1. Vietnam War
The Draft
Opposition

2. History of the Selective Service
• 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.
• President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Selective Training and Service Act of
1940 which created the country's first peacetime draft and formally
established the Selective Service System as an independent Federal agency.
• From 1948 until 1973, during both peacetime and periods of conflict, men
were drafted to fill vacancies in the armed forces which could not be filled
through voluntary means.
• In 1973, the draft ended and the U.S. converted to an All-Volunteer military.
• The registration requirement was suspended in April 1975. It was resumed
again in 1980 by President Carter in response to the Soviet invasion of
Afghanistan. Registration continues today as a hedge against
underestimating the number of servicemen needed in a future crisis.

3. Draft Process
• All men must register when
they turned 18
• The Service Board called
men between the age of
18-26 into military service
as they needed.
• During the Vietnam War it
was done by what is called
a “lottery draft.”

4. Vietnam War Draft
• A lot of the combat soldiers were drafted
– 25% (648,500) Of total forces in country were draftees.
– Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in
Vietnam.
• The draft made the war what is called a working class war
because middle-class and upper-class American youths
were able to avoid military service through college and
other means.
• Many young men sought ways to avoid the draft through
medical deferments, by joining the national guard, or by
receiving a deferment by going to college.
• African Americans served in disproportionate numbers in
Vietnam. They experienced much of the same racism that
was going on back in the United States.

5. Draft Dodgers
• Some men protested the War and draft by
burning their draft cards.
• Many of these men would flee to Canada,
Mexico or another country to avoid serving.
• They are called draft dodgers.

6. I-A
Available for military service
I-A-0
Conscientious objector available for noncombatant military service only
I-C
Member of the armed forces of the U.S., the Coast and Geodetic Survey, or the Public Health Service
I-D
Member of reserve component or student taking military training
I-H
Registrant not currently subject to processing for induction
I-0
Conscientious objector available for civilian work contributing to the maintenance of the national health, safety, or interest
I-S
Student deferred by statute (High School)
I-Y
Registrant available for military service, but qualified for military only in the event of war or national emergency
I-W
Conscientious objector performing civilian work
contributing to the maintenance of the national health, safety, or interest
II-A
Registrant deferred because of civilian occupation (except agriculture or activity in study)
II-C
Registrant deferred because of agricultural occupation
II-D
Registrant deferred because of study preparing for the ministry
II-S
Registrant deferred because of activity in study
III-A
Registrant with a child or children; registrant deferred by reason of extreme hardship to dependents
IV-A
Registrant who has completed service; sole surviving son
IV-B
Official deferred by law
IV-C
Alien
IV-D
Minister of religion or divinity student
IV-F
Registrant not qualified for any military service
IV-G
Registrant exempt from service during peace (surviving son or brother)
IV-W
Conscientious objector who has completed alternate service contributing to the maintenance of the national health, safety, or interest in lieu of induction into the
Armed Forces of the United States
V-A
Registrant over the age of liability for military service

7. Roots of Opposition
• An atmosphere of protest existed on many college
campuses in the 1960s
• The growing youth movement became known as the
New Left which was made up of many activist
groups. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
was formed by two UofM students and railed
against their perceived increasing power of the gov’t
and corporations. The Free Speech Movement
(FSM) was formed in Berkeley, CA to criticize
many of the same things as the SDS

8. Students for a Democratic Society

9. Free Speech Movement

10. The Protest Movement Emerges
• SDS and FSM led student protests across the
country on college campuses. As they became
increasingly disillusioned with the war these groups
began to openly protest the war and even held
“teach-ins” at some universities.
• As the anti-war movement intensified demonstrators
protested more and more frequently. Many burned
their draft cards, some fled to Canada, many protests
led to confrontations w/ military police.

12. Protest Movements Grow
•April 1965 SDS march on Washington: 20,000 protestors
•November 1965: 30,000
•January 1966: Johnson changed college deferment to good
academic standing.
Draft Protestors
•200,000 men accused of draft offenses… 4,000 imprisoned(6
months- 5years)

13. War Divides the Nation
• By 1967, Americans increasingly found themselves
divided into either being a hawk (someone who
supported the war) or a dove (someone who
opposed the war.)
• Many hawks criticized doves for protesting against
a war while American soldiers were dying.
• Despite the growing anti-war movement President
Johnson stood fast in his belief in the war, although
cracks in his administration began to show when
Defense Secretary Robert McNamara (who had
helped devise the war plans) resigned in 1967.