By Michael Arthur
Afghanistan Veteran and host of “Veteran Nation” for NRN
Kahanu McCoy, popular on YouTube as the representative of A Veterans Affair Media, is a legend now of the underlying crisis so many American veterans are facing. His videos provide an honest, unfiltered look at his experiences trying to receive aid from the very institutions established to assist him—chiefly, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
At the heart of McCoy’s struggle is a battle to receive treatment for a traumatic brain injury (TBI), a condition that is severe and life-altering and one that he suffered in the Army. Despite unequivocal medical records and ongoing symptoms, the VA has routinely denied his requests for treatment, and he is left not only untreated but also alone and increasingly desperate.
The Invisible Wounds of War
Not like injuries that happen on the battlefield in the flesh, its effects are often internal, on memory, judgment, emotional balance, and body functioning. For Kahanu, the injury is more than a physician’s prognosis—it’s a day-to-day battle.
“My memory is hurt the worst,” McCoy says. “I forget a lot of things, so I record and refer back later with my phone.”
Despite the severity of his sickness, the VA has failed to treat him appropriately. Instead of compassion, McCoy claims that he has been treated to harassment and suspicion. He has claimed being repeatedly shadowed by security personnel whenever he attends VA clinics, further traumatizing him and verifying a sense of persecution.
“Security is alerted when I have an appointment. The minute I get in, I’m shadowed,” he says.
A Plea for Help—Spurned
Frustrated with inaction by the VA, Kahanu went to his legislator, Sacramento Democrat Ami Bera, who has been a vocal advocate for veterans in the past. But attempts by McCoy to discuss things with Bera’s office have, in his estimation, fallen on deaf ears.
Despite repeated efforts to reach out—letters, phone calls, and official inquiries—McCoy says he did not receive any tangible assistance. His rejected VA claims remained unresolved, and the assistance he had been seeking in his representative in office was never forthcoming.
This silence only served to increase McCoy’s disillusionment. For a man who had given everything for his country, such silence from the VA and his representative had a stinging feeling of abandonment.
Protest Denied
Determined to be heard, McCoy organized a peaceful protest outside a government facility. It was designed not only to draw attention to his individual situation but to the larger issues all veterans encounter throughout the nation.
But when he arrived, McCoy was stopped by government security and told he was not permitted to protest. Whether or not that was an overreach of bureaucracy or something darker, the result was clear: another effort to quiet an already overlooked veteran.
A System Failing Those Who Served
McCoy’s experience is hardly singular—his struggles are a telltale song for many of the hundreds of thousands of veterans who come back from war to find themselves battling a deaf, glacial bureaucracy. The VA has been roundly criticized for decades for its delays, denials, and inefficiencies, and the changes, when they come, are slow and spasmodic.
What makes the case of McCoy so concerning is the feeling of targeted mistreatment. Being tailed on VA grounds isn’t an annoyance—it’s intimidation that raises serious questions about how veterans are being treated by the very institutions that are there to assist them.
Congressional Accountability Missing
Representative elected officials are to speak for their constituents, especially those who belong to vulnerable groups. When they do not, veterans have to struggle through a confusing and sometimes hostile bureaucracy alone.
To McCoy, Bera’s inactivity is political neglect—it’s personal. It’s the feeling of abandonment by the same authorities who vowed to fight for those who fought.
More Than a Veteran—A Father’s Fight
McCoy is not only a veteran—now, a father. His fight with the VA and the failure of his representative to back him up does not only take a toll on him; it takes a toll on his family. The tension of having a debilitating condition with no medical support takes a toll on his ability to parent and provide.
Lives with a TBI are tough enough. Lives with one and being constantly denied treatment make it nearly impossible. For McCoy, the issue isn’t his health—it’s the future of his family.
Resilience and Advocacy Through Media
Despite all the hardships, McCoy continues to keep talking. On his YouTube channel, A Veterans Affair Media, he narrates his story and speaks out for those who feel silenced. His channel has become a kind of support group for the veterans with the same kind of experiences, and a tool for raising awareness on how the VA’s system fails.
His story is a call to action—a reminder that for every denied claim and unreturned phone call stands a human being with a family, a past, and a desperate need for help.
A Struggle That Isn’t Yet Over
Kahanu McCoy’s struggle isn’t yet over. With his videos and his activism, he’s shining a light on a broken system—and calling out the powers that be to step up and take responsibility.
It’s past time the nation honors its promises to veterans not just with rhetoric, but with actual, tangible action. Until that day arrives, voices such as McCoy’s will remain indispensable to the fight for justice and compassion for those who have served.
