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Incarcerated Vets: Vietnam Behind Bars

By Stephen Gregory

"Kilo, kilo, kilo. Any kilo station this net. If anybody can hear me, I'm coming out. Say again, I'm coming out!"

This radioman did come out. Alone. He left his commanding officer lying in the rice paddies—shot between the eyes. He left his best friend lying with his guts spilling from a massive hole in his chest—dead. All of his squad members remained at the ambush site—dead.

The above statement is not unusual if you hear it coming from a Vietnam combat veteran. The same statement is repeated daily in the minds of many of this nations' forgotten warriors.

In this case, however, the statement was made by a veteran as he walked down the steel and concrete halls of Marion Correctional Institution in Marion, Ohio. A prison. The man, an ex-marine who served in Vietnam, was experiencing a flashback. When he finally came out of his altered state of mind and began to realize where he really was, he was terrified. He ran toward another Vietnam veteran, begging him to stop the authorities from taking him to the institutional hospital. The veteran knew they would lock him in a room. He knew they would make fun of him. He knew they would say he was crazy...

Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is only one of the many problems suffered by incarcerated Vietnam veterans. Many of these veterans suffer a wide variety of physical disorders, lack of vocational training and education, and deficiencies in self-worth. A number of these vets are afraid that they have been exposed to the chemical defoliant Agent Orange, and that they dioxin is killing them slowly. They worry that they have passed on the poison to their families.

These incarcerated veterans realize that they are in dire need of help. Unlike free society, they can't traverse the streets to find those persons who care enough to assist them. Simply put, incarcerated veterans haven't any place or person to take their trouble to. The veterans Administration doesn't send representatives to the prisons anymore. Concerned persons and friends from the numerous veterans' organization are not permitted to visti the veterans, or when they are, they are forced through searches that leave normal people totally embarrassed. The Vietnam veterans inside know that the government took away their educational and vocational benefits. They are bitter and extremely hurt. "It wasn't in our contract that our benefits would be cut if we ended up in prison" is heard daily.

Psychiatric care? Funny. One or two psychiatrists/psychologists to service the mental needs of hundreds of inmates Medical care? Forget it! Put in you request this week, see the doctor one or tow weeks later. Most medical problems are "treated" by inmates. Drug problem? Uh-uh! No funds to support such a program. Take the problem back into society when you are paroled.

Incarcerated veterans have severe parole planning and employment problems, major factors for a successful transition into the world of reality. Incarcerated veterans have no way of knowing what is available to them once they are released. How could they? Source information is kept on the "outside."

Incarcerated Vietnam veterans are expected to exercise their postal service rights in order to put together their entire lives. How does my radio operator friend ever begin to explain what goes through his mind in a letter? How can he ever tell someone that he is visualizing his Vietnam war experiences in flashbacks and horrendous dreams? How can he begin to explain to this unseen person that he only uses hard drugs in order to escape the reality of what he presently is going through? My friend has never talked about what happened to him in Vietnam. He can't relate his drug problem—the prison authorities would haunt him day and night.

My friend remembers his radio codes and terminology very well. Maybe he could write out his message to a seemingly uncaring world: HOTEL-ECHO-LIMA-POPPA. No; it is doubtful anyone would understand.

There are over 30,000 Vietnam veterans serving time in federal and state prisons across the nation. Many of these veterans are serving their third or fourth prison sentences. Ninety-five % of these veterans are serving their third or fourth prison sentences. Ninety-five % of these veterans have never seen, nor spoken with, a Veterans Administration representative. Psychiatrists and psychologists within penal facilities who understand the unique problems of Vietnam combat veterans are totally non-existent. The few counselors that service the needs of inmates are too busy to care. The incarcerated Vietnam veteran has no means of assistance to help him gain control of his life.

From the death scenes of a cruel and unjust war to the steel and concrete warehouses of mankind: for 30,000 Vietnam veterans the transition has been one hell of a price to pay for serving their country when they were needed most.

It is time that the American people begin to recognize the need to reach "inside" to the incarcerated Vietnam veteran and help to bring him home..."any Kilo station on this net, I'm coming out!"

Stephen Gregory
Ex-Corporal,
USMC