Today, as the tenth year of the Afghanistan War begins, veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars launch a national campaign to stop deployment of wounded soldiers into war zones. Members of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) will hold a ceremony for the wounded this morning at Walter Reed Medical Center, then march six miles to Capitol Hill to declare their intentions to end this practice and hold accountable those responsible.

IVAW's Operation Recovery: Stop the Deployment of Traumatized Troops challenges the military's endemic practices of deploying soldiers unfit for combat, both voluntarily and against their will. Their focus is on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and Military Sexual Trauma (MST). IVAW challenges the military on the grounds that as injured servicemembers, they have the right to heal.

“I was denied treatment for the mental and physical wounds I sustained in battle, like so many others,” says Ethan McCord, a former infantry soldier. “This campaign is critical for soldiers because we are asserting our right to heal. Now, the government has a choice- will it recognize our right to heal, or continue to deny it?”  McCord, who served in Iraq with the Bravo Company 2-16 made infamous by the Wikileaked “Collateral Murder” video, is actively involved in fighting for veterans' rights as well as reparations for Iraqi civilians who his unit harmed.