Vietnam DRAFT Page
with a few movie links
This page was written by:
Nadav Weg &Daniel Klingenstein
Criticism of the United States military draft system became widespread in the 1960's. Some say this protest was in direct response to the Vietnam War. Since this war was very unpopular, the opponents claimed the selective service system was unfair. The pool of soldiers were mainly poor young men who had been drafted. They could not afford to go to college and therefore, did not qualify for a stuident deferment. In addition, many people claimed the local boards did not have equal standards. The morality of the draft was also questioned. The individual's liberties were being challenged by the draft. To a larger extent, the Vietnam War itself was seen as immoral. Many believed the U.S. did not have the jurisdiction to involve itself in the internal affairs of a foreign country. Many were also unhappy with the narrow definition of a conscientious objector. That is one who has strong moral and religious feelings against killing or war. The height of the protest included demonstrations in which the U.S. flag was burned. In many cities tactical police or the National Guard had to be called to presserve the peace. 1969 marked the inception of the modern day involuntary draft. This was based on a lottery of undeferred men in which order of induction was dependent on random drawing of their birthdays. There were many factors that made the Vietnam War unpopular. Most U.S. citizens did not relate or were familiar with this part of the world. It was seen as a "civil war," something which did not involve us. Conventional weopons were at a disadvantage and often the U.S. military was unable to identify its enemy in the fields. It was perceived that we were losing the war and morale was low. It was more than just fear which caused men to avoid the war.