Muhammad Ali and the draft

Muhammad Ali in 1967. Source: New York World-Telegram and Sun.

Today (January 17, 2023) would be the 81st birthday of former boxing heavyweight champion Muhammed Ali.

During the Vietnam War, which had a military draft, Ali applied for conscientious objector status. His request was denied. In 1967, Ali refused to be inducted into the army and was arrested. Evading the draft is a felony and he was convicted. Ali was also stripped of his championship titles and boxing licenses by state commissioning boards for over three years. (Ali was free on appeal during this time.) The Supreme Court reversed his conviction in 1971 (Clay v. United States) because no reason was given as to why Ali was refused conscientious objector status.

Ali lost the prime athletic years of his mid-to-late twenties, but he returned to the ring and was able to become champion on two more occasions.

The United States doesn't have an active military draft, but mandatory Selective Service registration subjects men to the possibility. There could be another young man in the future who faces Ali's predicament. The Selective Service website says, 

If required to register with Selective Service, failure to register is a felony punishable by a fine of up to $250,000 and/or 5 years imprisonment. Also, a person who knowingly counsels, aids, or abets another to fail to comply with the registration requirement is subject to the same penalties.

If the draft is reinstated, a conscientious objector will, like Ali, have to prove that he has:

 . . . a firm, fixed, and sincere objection to participation in war in any form or the bearing of arms, by reason of religious training and/or belief”. People who object to war “solely upon considerations of policy, pragmatism, expediency, or political views” do not qualify. The instruction explains that “religious training and/or belief” means “belief in an external power or ‘being’ or deeply held moral or ethical belief, to which all else is subordinate or upon which all else is ultimately dependent, and which has the power or force to affect moral well-being.”

Ali wasn't able to convince the draft board he was sincere. Or maybe he was persuasive but his request was rejected anyway.  One wonders how many other, low-profile conscientious objector applicants were denied and found themselves in a foreign land in a kill-or-be-killed situation.

Ali passed away on June 3, 2016. The next day I wrote an open letter to President Obama and Congress calling for the abolition of Selective Service. Five days later, Senator Rand Paul introduced a bill that would do exactly that, titled "Muhammad Ali Voluntary Service Act." It states that "a person may not be denied a right, privilege, benefit, or employment position under Federal law on the grounds that the person failed to present himself for and submit to registration."

Bills to abolish Selective Service were introduced in subsequent Congresses, although one has yet to be introduced in this brand-new session.

Selective Service presumes that the individual (particularly the combat-age man) belongs to the State. Meaning, they belong to politicians. Practically speaking, they belong to the President of the United States. 

And each President wants to be venerated like Churchill in his lifetime and Lincoln after his death. Say whatever else about these men, turning conscripts into cannon fodder is part of their legacies. And what do all Presidents do? They talk about sacrificing for "freedom" and accuse some guy overseas of being the next Hitler. Obsessed with their place in history, Presidents always make sure that war is always on the table. 

But why would a young man trust this Commander-in-Chief? Is it just that he must be put at risk of being drafted, after which he's put at risk of dying in an unjust and ignoble war?

Selective Service stems from the worldview that our lives and our bodies do not belong to us. It comes from the same outlook that prohibits certain kinds of drugs and alternative health practices. 

The "progressive" side of this authoritarianism forces children into schools they wouldn't otherwise choose to attend, as if the children belonged to the government. The "conservative" side will single out women's bodies for additional regulation as if their business is the State's business.

Neither side is interested in ending Selective Service.

But my view is that we are all born free. While we are responsible for our actions, we have no innate obligations. We are not born "indebted" to society. Life doesn't come with a price, and certainly shouldn't be sacrificed based on the judgments or whims of politicians.

Abolish Selective Service!

James Leroy Wilson writes Daily Miracles, The Daily Bible Chapter, JL Cells, and The MVP Chase. Thanks for your subscriptions and support! You may contact him for your writing, editing, and research needs at jamesleroywilson-at-gmail.com.