The Draft Xinchen Du

What is Conscription ? Conscription in the United States has been employed several times, usually during war but also during the nominal peace of the Cold War. In the United States, conscription, also called "the draft", ended in 1973, but males between 18 and 25 are required to register with the Selective Service System to enable a reintroduction of conscription if necessary. President Gerald Ford suspended mandatory draft registration in 1975, but President Jimmy Carter reinstated that requirement when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. Selective Service registration is still required of all young men although the draft has not been used since 1973.

The Selective Service System The Selective Service System is an independent agency of the United States government that maintains information on those potentially subject to military conscription. During the Vietnam War, at least one-third of the American troops were selected foe military service through an involuntary process known as the draft. For more than 50 years, Selective Service and the registration requirement for America's young men have served as a backup system to provide manpower to the U.S. Armed Forces.

When a man’s name was drawn, he was required to report to his local draft board for evaluation. Local draft boards held the fate of potential draftees in their hands. They decided who was to go to the Vietnam War in the end.

Who was drafted? All male U.S. citizens are required to register with Selective Service within 30 days of their 18th birthday. In addition, non-U.S.-citizen males between the ages of 18 and 25 (inclusive) living in the United States must register. Most are from a poor or working -class family who had nit attended college.

There are some legal ways to avoid or delay military service. For example, young men who had physical problems, were enrolled in college, worked in an industry that was vital to the war effort, were needed at home to support a family, or joined the National Guard might be granted deferments.

The Draft has changed

As the protesters against the Vietnam War era increased, the draft itself became a target. Some protesters burnt their draft cards, while other Americans actually fled to Canada to avoid the draft. This led to a suggestion to change the draft in The new draft would use a lottery system instead of a draft board.

How the lottery system works ?

366 blue plastic capsules containing birth dates were placed in a large glass jar and drawn by hand to assign order-of-call numbers to all men within the age range specified in Selective Service law. The first date drawn was assigned a draft number of “one”; the next date drawn received draft number “two”; and so an, until each year — each potential birthday— had been drawn from the jar and assigned a draft number.

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