‘Addicted to Killing’ Essay Gets Vet Banned from College
Catonsville, Md. – A student at the Community College of Baltimore County was encouraged by a professor to publish an essay he had written about his experience as a soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, after the story appeared in the school newspaper, administrators barred the student from campus pending a psychological evaluation.
Charles Whittington Jr. lost a finger and suffered nerve damage in his arm after falling victim to numerous roadside explosions in Iraq as a soldier. He received a medical discharge from the military after being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Whittington’s essay – which he wrote for an English class – discussed his addiction to killing and combat, ABC News reports.
Hope Davis, a college spokeswoman, told the news source that the college’s actions against Whittington were intended to protect the student body and prevent any incidents of violence on the campus. She said that she had received complaints about the essay from other veterans who felt it portrayed them in a bad light.
Whittington has undergone a psychological evaluation and believes it will prove that he is not a danger to anyone. Nevertheless, he intends to leave the college at the end of the semester. He told ABC News that the college was not supportive of veterans and that he did not regret publishing his essay.
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