Has Anyone Actually Went To Jail For Not Registering For Selective Service

With contributions from Centre on Conscience & War

In 1917, the Selective Service Human action created a system that authorized a draft and required all men of a certain age to register through the Selective Service System. AFSC was founded that aforementioned yr to give careful objectors an alternative to military service as they faced the realities of a draft in Earth War I.

AFSC opposes requiring anyone, regardless of gender, to register for the draft and to participate in systems of state of war. Nevertheless, in July of this year, the Senate Military Commission voted to aggrandize the registration requirement—and associated penalties— to women.

This is a step backward toward militarism that hurts us all. Instead of expanding registration, the U.South. must finish the Selective Service requirement for anybody.

Tell Congress: End the Selective Service requirement for everyone!

Here'due south what you lot need to know:

1. Right now, all draft-historic period, male U.South. residents are required to register for the Selective Service.

The Selective Service arrangement exists to collect data well-nigh people in the United States who could exist forced to bring together the armed forces in the case of a draft. The system allows the Department of Defense force to rapidly increase the number of troops serving in the military machine if at that place aren't enough volunteers.

Most men ages 18 to 25 who are U.Due south. citizens or residents are required to register under this system, which collects information like the individual's address, Social Security Number, and electronic mail.

The system also maintains a network of "draft boards." These are civilian groups who would be tasked with deciding if people become deferments or classifications similar "conscientious objector" condition in the case of a typhoon. The typhoon itself would be administered past military reservists, despite the Selective Service beingness ostensibly a civilian agency.

Draft counseling during the Vietnam War. Photo: AFSC Archives

two. People who don't annals with the Selective Service face penalties.

Not registering for the Selective Service is a felony, and those who cull not to register confront many penalties. These extrajudicial sanctions include not being able to get many federal or state jobs or trainings and some country student assist (although federal pupil help programs are no longer restricted). It tin can also cause a v-year filibuster for those seeking citizenship. In the worst example scenario, if someone were to be criminally bedevilled of not registering, they could be fined up to $250,000 and sent to jail for upwardly to v years—although this has not happened since the 1980s.

3. The Selective Service system is outdated and serves as a recruitment tool.

The United States has not drafted anyone since 1973, and the Selective Service organisation, which costs taxpayers near $26 meg a year, collects registration records that have been described as "less than useless" by Bernard Rostker, a erstwhile director of the agency.

Without an active draft, the Selective Service system has become a armed services recruitment tool—with recruiters oft targeting Black, Chocolate-brown, and low-income communities.

Bayard Rustin (center) spent two years in prison for his resistance to the draft. Photo: AFSC Archives

iv. Some legislators are trying to expand the draft to women—and some are trying to finish the system entirely.

In a recent defence policy pecker, the Firm of Representatives voted to crave women to annals with the Selective Service. They added this provision to the National Defense force Potency Human activity (NDAA), a nib that passes every yr to authorize defense-related activities. The Senate Armed Services Committee as well included this expansion in their own version of the NDAA. Withal, when the Business firm and Senate negotiated the final bill the Selective Service System expansion was stripped from the text!

The expansion was stopped for now, merely ultimately nosotros desire to see an stop to the arrangement overall. Fortunately, at that place are also efforts in both the House and Senate to end the Selective Service arrangement! Reps. Peter DeFazio and Rodney Davis, and Sens. Ron Wyden and Rand Paul, take introduced the Selective Service Repeal Act in each chamber (H.R. 2509 and S. 1139). This bipartisan effort would end the Selective Service System, end the sanctions against those who don't annals, detect new government jobs for those working for the Selective Service, and preserve the rights of conscientious objectors.

5. Expanding the Selective Service Organization is not progress. It's a stride dorsum toward militarism.

Proponents of expanding Selective Service registration have bearded the effort every bit "feminism." In reality, the draft is a burden that has been unjustly placed on men for decades—and expanding the system to women is a wrong-headed arroyo in working toward equality. Instead of forcing more people to participate in systems of war with threats of fines, prison, and other sanctions, Congress should end the organization entirely.