Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has introduced amendments to a defense appropriations bill seeking to ban the military from using federal funding to recruit from U.S. schools or on digital streaming platforms heavily used by school-aged children.
“Whether through recruitment stations in their lunchrooms, or now through e-sports teams, children in low-income communities are persistently targeted for enlistment,” Ocasio-Cortez told The New York Times.
“In many public high schools where military recruiters have a daily presence, there is not even a counselor,” she continued. “As a result, the military stops feeling like a ‘choice’ and starts feeling like the only option for many young, low-income Americans.”
Her statement comes after the congresswomen talked to Motherboard about her disapproval of the military’s recruitment of teenagers on the Twitch streaming platform.
Last week, the U.S. Army halted its Twitch channel after facing criticism for banning viewers who asked its streamers about U.S. war crimes.
“It’s incredibly irresponsible for the Army and the Navy to be recruiting impressionable young people and children via live streaming platforms,” the congresswoman told Motherboard. “War is not a game, and the Marine Corps’ decision not to engage in this recruiting tool should be a clear signal to the other branches of the military to cease this practice entirely.”
Speaking to GameSpot, the Army released the following statement about their now-paused channel:
“The team has paused streaming to review internal policies and procedures, as well as all platform-specific policies, to ensure those participating in the space are clear before streaming resumes.”
