What was the draft like during the Vietnam War?

Two-thirds of the U.S. military who served in the Vietnam War — and more than half of the names on The Wall — volunteered for duty. The other one-third were drafted, primarily into the Army. Beginning in 1969, draftees were picked via a televised lottery based on date of birth.

Why did people come to hate the draft during the Vietnam War?

Black antiwar groups opposed the war for similar reasons as white groups, but often protested in separate events and sometimes did not cooperate with the ideas of white antiwar leadership. They harshly criticized the draft because poor and minority men were usually most affected by conscription.

What happens if you get drafted?

If Congress and the president authorize a draft: The Selective Service System will start calling registered men ages 18-25 for duty. The men will be called in a sequence determined by random lottery number and year of birth. The men will be examined for mental, physical, and moral fitness for military service.

Can you say no to the draft?

If you want to resist the draft and your parent support you, they can help by sending back, unopened, any mail for you from Selective Service. It’s a crime to lie to Selective Service or the FBI, but you have the right to remain silent. When they say, “Anything you say will be used against you,” they mean it.

What was the punishment for burning a draft card?

The burning of draft cards became such a popular method of protest against the war in Viet Nam that President Johnson signed into law an amendment to the federal legislation in August of 1965 that rendered the burning of a draft card to be a criminal act, punishable by up to five years in prison or a 10,000 dollar fine …

How did the military draft affect the Vietnam War?

The military draft brought the war to the American home front. During the Vietnam War era, between 1964 and 1973, the U.S. military drafted 2.2 million American men out of an eligible pool of 27 million.

What happened to draft dodgers after the Vietnam War?

Those who had practiced draft invasion by flying abroad faced forced military service or imprisonment if they went back home. Although draft dodgers were still prosecuted after the end of U.S. direct involvement in Vietnam, in September 1974 President Gerald Ford granted a conditional amnesty that required them to be of service from 6 to 24 months.

What was life like for American soldiers in Vietnam?

As a matter of fact, American forces in Vietnam included twenty-five percent poor, fifty-five percent working-class, twenty percent middle-class men, but very few came from upper-classes families. Many soldiers came from rural towns and farming communities.

How did young men avoid military service during the Vietnam War?

As American troop strength in Vietnam shot up, more young men of call-up age sought to avoid or delay their military service and there were some legal ways to do that. Men who had physical or mental problems, were married, with children, attending college or needed at home to support their families might be granted deferments.