“The War Power Is Not a Blank Check”: The Supreme Court and Conscientious Objection, 1917–1973

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 303-325
Author(s):  
Megan Threlkeld
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Vietnam War ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Conscientious Objection ◽  
Conscientious Objector ◽  
Compulsory Military Service ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
Changing Attitudes ◽  
War Power

Abstract:This article examines the Supreme Court’s role in the development of federal conscientious objector policy in the twentieth century. Focusing on two key periods—the three years following the end of World War II, and the era of the Vietnam War—I argue that the policy’s evolution was more complex than previous studies have indicated, and that the Court’s changing attitudes toward conscientious objection can be traced to the justices’ increasing but irresolute concern for civil liberties. By the early 1970s, the Court was interpreting federal statutes much more broadly than Congress ever intended, but the justices remained divided over just how broad those interpretations should be. While the end of the draft rendered the question of compulsory military service moot, the Court’s failure to arrive at a clear position on conscientious objection has had lasting implications on other issues.

“The Most Important Human Salvage Operation in the History of Our Country”

Rough Draft ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 128-156
Author(s):  
Amy J. Rutenberg
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Vietnam War ◽  
Military Service ◽  
National Guard ◽  
Conscientious Objector ◽  
White Middle Class ◽  
The Korean War ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Vietnam War ◽  
Minority Men

Chapter six argues that in working to avoid the draft, men during the Vietnam War did not behave terribly differently from men during World War II or the Korean War. Rather, it was the context of their actions that changed. This chapter affirms that the historical conditions of the Vietnam War, particularly the advent of draft counseling, made it easier for men to engage in draft avoidance behavior. But it also argues that the military manpower policies of the previous decades influenced their choices. Because policies and practices privileged men with the resources to attend college, gain admittance to the National Guard or Reserves, find sympathetic doctors, or write reasoned belief statements in conscientious objector applications, white, middle-class men were the most successful at avoiding the draft. For them, military service was a decision more than a fait accompli. Working-class and minority men had fewer tools for draft avoidance.

“Choice or Chance”

Rough Draft ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 156-187
Author(s):  
Amy J. Rutenberg
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Vietnam War ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Korean War ◽  
National Guard ◽  
Conscientious Objector ◽  
White Middle Class ◽  
The Korean War ◽  
The Vietnam War ◽  
Minority Men

Chapter six argues that in working to avoid the draft, men during the Vietnam War did not behave terribly differently from men during World War II or the Korean War. Rather, it was the context of their actions that changed. This chapter affirms that the historical conditions of the Vietnam War, particularly the advent of draft counseling, made it easier for men to engage in draft avoidance behavior. But it also argues that the military manpower policies of the previous decades influenced their choices. Because policies and practices privileged men with the resources to attend college, gain admittance to the National Guard or Reserves, find sympathetic doctors, or write reasoned belief statements in conscientious objector applications, white, middle-class men were the most successful at avoiding the draft. For them, military service was a decision more than a fait accompli. Working-class and minority men had fewer tools for draft avoidance.

scholarly journals Dual Citizenship

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristina Escobar
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Late 20Th Century ◽  
Regional Patterns ◽  
Compulsory Military Service ◽  
Dual Nationality ◽  
And Gender

Dual or multiple nationality/citizenship is a status that grants an individual membership in two or more states. This status was repudiated and fought against legally and culturally, but it has been normalized since the end of the 20th century as a result of various changes that occurred in the aftermath of World War II: (1) decrease in international conflict and a reduction of compulsory military service; (2) development of human rights and gender equality, allowing women to transfer their nationality to their offspring; (3) increase in international support for the prevention of statelessness; and (4) increase in international migration and intermarriage. An individual can become a dual/multiple national/citizen by birth or by naturalization. In international law, nationality and citizenship are used interchangeably, however, some countries draw legal distinctions between them; moreover, various social scientists insist on distinguishing between these two closely related concepts. While countries may legally accept or reject dual nationality/citizenship, the reality is more complex because there is formal and informal tolerance of this status. This tolerance can also be differential (e.g., restriction of dual nationality/citizenship via naturalization and tolerance of this status when individuals are born in the territory and inherit a second—or more—nationality/citizenship from their parents). Dual or multiple nationality/citizenship can also diverge in its origins and consequences depending on whether it involves immigration or emigration states and in the degree to which dual nationality/citizenship is granted (e.g., acceptance of the retention of nationality when emigrants nationalize abroad while restricting their access to citizenship rights, such as political rights). The increase in dual nationality/citizenship since the late 20th century has promoted a normative debate (more intense, initially) about its consequences in terms of military service, state loyalty, diplomatic protection, equality of rights among citizens, and so on. However, thanks to the proliferation of comparative and single studies of dual nationality/citizenship around the globe, we may now analyze not only the reasons that brought about the acceptance, rejection, or tolerance of this status but also its practical consequences. Scholars have studied the effects of dual nationality/citizenship in many areas, such as international relations, nationalism and the state, migrants’ integration in countries of reception, membership and rights extension to migrants in countries of emigration, political participation, instrumental use of this status, and so on. While the causes and consequences of dual nationality/citizenship vary widely, some regional patterns around the globe have been identified.

Part 1 Freedom of Religion or Belief, 1.3.11 Conscientious Objection

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bielefeldt Heiner, Prof ◽  
Ghanea Nazila, Dr ◽  
Wiener Michael, Dr
Keyword(s):  
Military Service ◽  
Conscientious Objection ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
National Anthem ◽  
Conscientious Objectors ◽  
Lethal Force ◽  
Compulsory Military Service ◽  
Normative Basis ◽  
Military Expenditures ◽  
Alternative Service

This chapter addresses issues concerning conscientious objection, notably the refusal by individuals to perform compulsory military service based on their genuinely held religious or other beliefs that forbid the use of lethal force. Throughout the past five decades, various international and regional human rights mechanisms have significantly changed their interpretation with regard to the existence and normative basis of a right to conscientious objection to military service. This chapter also discusses the question of who can claim conscientious objection; procedural issues; the problem of repeated trials and punishment of conscientious objectors; the nature and length of alternative service; refugee status claims based on persecution arising from conscientious objection; and conscientious objection in disputed territories. In addition, there are several issues of interpretation related to ‘selective’ objection against participating in certain wars and ‘total’ objection even against alternative civilian service. In addition to conscientious objection to military service, also other issues may give rise to objections, for example against the obligation to pay taxes for military expenditures; against carrying out abortions; against a duty to join a hunting association; against singing the national anthem or saluting the flag; and conscientious objection in the employment sphere.

Generations of Veterans: Socioeconomic Attainment from World War II to the Contemporary Era

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Alair MacLean ◽  
Meredith Kleykamp
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Vietnam War ◽  
Military Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
War And Peace ◽  
World War ◽  
Socioeconomic Attainment ◽  
Veteran Status ◽  
The Life Course

Abstract Scholars have long examined how generations or, more technically, cohorts produce social change. According to theory, people’s lives are shaped by the years in which they were born because they experience, along with their peers, particular historical events at the same points in the life course. Despite the importance of history, however, many scholars have evaluated cohorts not defined by clear start and end dates, but rather by arbitrary cut points, such as five-year intervals. In contrast, this article uses defined changes in military service in the United States stemming from shifts between war and peace, and from draft to volunteer service to assess how cohorts have contributed to change in socioeconomic attainment. It uses the Current Population Survey from 1971 to 2017, which has not previously been used to evaluate how veteran status may have produced shifting outcomes across cohorts. It finds evidence that cohorts had different average income overall and between groups, with veterans earning more money than nonveterans who were eligible to serve during the draft era before the Vietnam War. These gaps are partially explained by racial and educational differences. The findings provide a model for analyses of changes in the relative status of other groups, as well as information about how the role of military service in social mobility changed historically.

scholarly journals THE UNITED STATES ALL-VOLUNTEER FORCE: EMERGING (AND OFTEN UNANTICIPATED) ISSUES OF RECRUITMENT, RETENTION, AND READINESS

2018 ◽  
pp. 55-74
Author(s):  
James Griffith
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Military Personnel ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
The United States ◽  
National Defense ◽  
Recruitment And Retention ◽  
Compulsory Military Service ◽  
Volunteer Force ◽  
All Volunteer Force

Povzetek Po drugi svetovni vojni so se oborožene sile ZDA popolnjevale z vpoklicem ali obveznim služenjem vojaškega roka za fante. Ta praksa se je končala leta 1973 z uvedbo prostovoljnega popolnjevanja (All-Volunteer Force – AVF). Uvedba AVF pa je prinesla več novih izzivov, vključno z ustreznim pridobivanjem in zadrževanjem vojaškega kadra. Sčasoma je bilo treba sprejeti več prosilcev, saj se je pridobivanje kadra zmanjšalo. Bilo je manj zainteresiranih in ustreznih prosilcev, od teh pa še manj tistih, ki so ustrezali standardom. Ob uvedbi sprememb v nacionalni obrambni politiki in zaradi sodelovanja ZDA v nedavnih bojnih operacijah večjega obsega je prišlo do pomanjkanja pripravljenosti na področju pridobivanja in zadrževanja kadra. Nezadovoljiva pripravljenost se je najbolj kazala v rezervni sestavi, na kar se v tem članku tudi osredotočamo. S pomočjo opisa teh dogodkov prikazujemo medsebojno povezanost med pridobivanjem in zadrževanjem kadra ter pripravljenostjo, pri čemer kažemo na potrebo po bolj preudarnem razmisleku o tem, kako se vsak izmed njih izvaja, še zlasti v okviru AVF. Teorija identitete ponuja načine za razumevanje in razvijanje takih vrst vojaškega kadra, ki je potreben za lažje pridobivanje, zadrževanje in pripravo kadra. Ključne besede: vpoklic, obvezno služenje vojaškega roka, prostovoljno popolnjevanje, All-Volunteer Force – AVF, pridobivanje kadra, zadrževanje kadra, pripravljenost. Abstract After World War II “the draft”, or compulsory military service of young men, staffed U.S. forces. This practice ended in 1973 with the introduction of the All-Volunteer Force (AVF). However, staffing the AVF introduced several new challenges, including the adequate recruitment and retention of military personnel. Over time, more applicants had to be taken, as recruitment fell short. There were fewer interested and eligible applicants, and of these, even fewer who met the standards. A lack of readiness relating to both recruitment and retention became apparent as changes occurred in the national defense policy and the U.S.’s participation in recent large-scale combat operations. Inadequacies in readiness were most evident among the reserve forces – the focus of this paper. Through the description of these events, the inter-relationships between recruitment, retention, and readiness are demonstrated, pointing to the need for more deliberate thought with regard to how each is implemented, especially in the context of the AVF. Identity theory offers ways to understand and to develop the kinds of military personnel needed to better recruit, retain, and ready personnel. KEY WORDS draft, compulsory military service, all-volunteer force, recruitment, retention, readiness

scholarly journals Three Supreme Court “Failures” and a Story of Supreme Court Success

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corinna Barrett Lain
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Japanese Americans ◽  
World War ◽  
Protective Capacity ◽  
Forced Sterilization ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
Do So

Plessy v. Ferguson. Buck v. Bell. Korematsu v. United States. Together, these three decisions legitimated ‘separate but equal,’ sanctioned the forced sterilization of thousands, and ratified the removal of Japanese Americans from their homes during World War II. By Erwin Chemerinsky’s measure in The Case Against the Supreme Court, all three are Supreme Court failures—cases in which the Court should have protected vulnerable minorities, but failed to do so. Considered in historical context, however, a dramatically different impression of these cases, and the Supreme Court that decided them, emerges. In two of the cases—Plessy and Buck—the Court’s ruling reflected the progressive view at the time, and in the third— Korematsu—the extralegal context of the case was strong enough to draw the support of Justices Black and Douglas, two of the Court’s most staunch civil liberties defenders. Plessy, Buck, and Korematsu are potent reminders of the need to historically situate the Supreme Court when evaluating its proclivity to protect. But this is not to say that an ahistoric view of the Court’s protective capacity is all bad. However historically inaccurate, the Supreme Court’s image as a countermajoritarian protector also has a curious upside, setting in motion forces that can, over time, enable and inspire the Court’s protection. In the end, our expectations of the Supreme Court as a countermajoritarian hero both give rise to a rhetoric of failure and pave the way for future protection. What is vastly underappreciated is the connection between the two—how within the rhetoric of failure lies a larger, and largely untold, story of Supreme Court success.

8. Security

2018 ◽  
pp. 108-122
Author(s):  
David J. Bodenhamer
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
World War I ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
Vietnam War ◽  
War On Terror ◽  
World War ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
Imminent Threat ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
The Impact

Armed conflict poses an imminent threat to the nation’s existence, but so does suspension of the nation’s fundamental laws. The framers wrestled with how to grant government the power to defend the nation without providing it the means to threaten liberty. The question it raises—does war suspend the Constitution or does the Constitution control the conduct of the war—has rarely been absent from American history. ‘Security’ describes the impact of the Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Cold War, the Vietnam War, as well as the recent ‘war on terror’ on the nation’s laws, the executive presidential power, and the roles of the Supreme Court and Congress.

RETURNING OF COMPULSORY MILITARY SERVICE – DECISION ADDENDUM

2021 ◽  
pp. 247-262
Author(s):  
MILOVAN SUBOTIĆ
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Conscientious Objection ◽  
Defense System ◽  
Individual Life ◽  
Compulsory Military Service ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Media Space ◽  
Full Capacity

The obligation to serve in the Serbian Armed Forces was suspended ending with the last batch of soldiers sent in 2010, and it also referred to recruits who, due to conscientious objection, replaced military service with civilian service. This decision was carried out on 1 January 2011, and since then military service has been based on the principle of voluntariness. Ten years later, judging by the statements of state officials and the extensive media space which this topic occupies, we are never closer to returning to compulsory military service. Recognising the fact that the 'thawing' of military service would have significant counteractions not only on the defense system but also on the broader context of community and individual life, this paper emphasises the importance of a nuanced approach to the problem. The experiences of the countries that have returned to military service are precious, so at the beginning of the paper, all the attention is aimed at that direction. The experiences of countries with a continuous duration of military service are also analysed, on the examples of those who carry out this service at full capacity and those who have formally compulsory military service, but whose armed forces are almost 100% replenished with volunteers. The context of the possible return of compulsory military service in Serbia is viewed from the point of several supremacist aspects important for decision-making, such as the current security situation and several complementary aspects, such as economic, functional and legal. It is important to point out that the authors do not value themselves in this paper, but the key intention of the paper is to understand a number of factors that must be taken into account when deciding on this issue.

Treatment of the Conscientious Objector Under the Selective Service Act of 1940

1942 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 697-701
Author(s):  
John W. Masland
Keyword(s):  
Military Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
Conscientious Objector ◽  
World War ◽  
Selective Service ◽  
Compulsory Military Service ◽  
The First World War ◽  
Democratic Nation ◽  
The Many ◽  
First World

Among the many problems which the war has thrust upon the United States has been that of the proper treatment of the conscientious objector to compulsory military service. Our record in this regard during the first World War was not one of which a democratic nation could be proud. With the enactment of the Selective Service and Training Act of 1940, reconsideration of the issue was necessary. Now, after almost two years of experience with the administration of the Act, a systematized plan quite unlike that of the past has been formulated and placed in operation.

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