Former POW Reassigned to Help Recruit Latinos

Instead of rejoining his unit in Europe, former prisoner of war Andrew Ramirez has been temporarily assigned to the Army’s recruiting command in Los Angeles to help bolster the campaign to get more Latinos and others into uniform, Army officials said Thursday.

Ramirez, an Army staff sergeant, was scheduled to end his 30-day home leave and return to a 1st Infantry Division unit in Germany. The 26-year-old soldier from East Los Angeles and two other GIs were released by their Serb captors after they were captured during a routine patrol in Macedonia.

The temporary duty in recruiting extends his stay in Los Angeles for 30 days. Officials say that he will probably return to Europe next month.

Officials said the decision to use Ramirez, who is Mexican American, in Latino recruiting seemed natural because he appeared with Army Secretary Louis Caldera at several events last Friday to push the effort. Officials say that Latinos are underrepresented in the Army, making up only 6% of the Army’s active duty personnel although they constitute 13% of the country’s population.

“We’ll have him engaged in small sit-down groups at high schools,” Army recruiting spokesman Ron Van Dyck said. “There are a lot of kids who need to hear credible information; how character and values can get you through tough situations. Here’s a guy who lived through it.”

On Thursday, Ramirez visited Junior ROTC programs at two Ventura County high schools, which officials declined to identify. He will visit another Ventura-area high school today, Van Dyck said.