Was the 1970 draft lottery random?

Draft Lottery 1970 Story. Abstract: In 1970, Congress instituted a random selection process for the military draft. All 366 possible birth dates were placed in plastic capsules in a rotating drum and were selected one by one.

Was the Vietnam draft random?

On Dec. 1, 1969, the United States held its first draft lottery, which gave young men a random number corresponding to their birthdays. Men with lower numbers were called first and told to report to induction centers where they could be ordered into active duty and possibly sent to the Vietnam War.

Is the draft random?

One lottery ball is drawn randomly from the machine containing those with dates marked on them, and one is then drawn from the machine containing balls with numbers 1 through 365 (366 if the draft will call men born during a leap year) marked on them.

What was the draft lottery number in 1969?

N69 gives the results of the lottery held on December 1, 1969, for men born from 1944 through 1950. The highest lottery number called for this group was 195; all men assigned that lottery number or any lower number, and who were classified as available for military service, were called to report for possible induction.

Why was the draft Unfair?

The draft was viewed as unequal because the working class man’s only choice was to go to war, while the wealthy men would go to college or enlist in the National Guard. By the end of the 1960’s the nation was fed up with the war, and they were angry with how the war itself was being carried out.

What did Vietnam protesters do to their draft cards?

Draft-card burning became one of the most iconic forms of protest during the war. It was a gesture made by young men who wished to buck the system but were not comfortable with more extreme measures such as going to Canada, participating in riots, or destroying induction centers.

Can you be drafted if you are the only son?

the “only son”, “the last son to carry the family name,” and ” sole surviving son” must register with Selective Service. These sons can be drafted. However, they may be entitled to peacetime deferment if there is a military death in the immediate family.

Why was the Vietnam draft Unfair?

What birthdays were chosen for the Vietnam draft?

On December 1, 1969, the Selective Service System of the United States conducted two lotteries to determine the order of call to military service in the Vietnam War in the year 1970, for men born from January 1, 1944 to December 31, 1950.

What did protesters do to their draft cards?

At the University of California, Berkeley, on May 5, 1965, amid a protest march of several hundred people carrying a black coffin to the Berkeley draft board, 40 men burned their draft cards.

Is burning a draft card constitutional?

Furthermore, after Congress adopted the Draft Card Mutilation Act of 1965 to promote the efficient operation of the Selective Service System and preempt venues of resistance, it became a criminal offense knowingly to destroy or mutilate one’s draft card.

Can a father be drafted?

An increasing number of volunteers combined with smaller draft calls may allow fathers over 26 to be deferred from the draft in the near future, a spokesman for the Selective Service said yesterday.

Can you be drafted if you are overweight?

Currently, 19% of U.S. adults ages 18-24 would not meet standards for accession to the U.S. military due to obesity. Those who do not meet body fat standards can join the armed forces if they reduce their body fat through diet and exercise.

Was draft a fair?

What was one reason the draft was unpopular?

What was one reason the draft was unpopular? Some people believed that the draft targeted poorer citizens.

What was the punishment for burning a draft card?

In 1965 Congress passed an amendment to the Selective Service Act criminalizing the destruction or mutilation of draft cards. Penalties included fines up to $10,000 and five years in prison.

Is a draft card government property?

In United States v. O’Brien (1968), the Supreme Court considered the government’s right to require possession and punish mutilation of draft cards against individuals’ rights to engage in symbolic speech acts under the protection of the First Amendment.

How did the draft lottery have social and economic consequences?

The draft lottery had social and economic consequences because it generated further resistance to military service. Those who resisted were generally young, well-educated, healthy men. Reluctance to serve in Vietnam led many young men to try to join the National Guard, aware that the National Guard would be unlikely to send soldiers to Vietnam.

Was the 1970s draft lottery random?

On January 4, 1970, the New York Times ran a long article, “Statisticians Charge Draft Lottery Was Not Random,” illustrated with a bar chart of the monthly averages ( Rosenbaum 1970a ). It described the way the lottery was carried out, and with hindsight one can see how the attempt at randomization broke down.

Was Vietnam’s draft lottery ‘random’?

It wasn’t until 1975 that the draft disappeared and the U.S. military turned into an all-volunteer force. But back in 1970, one Ph.D. student in computer planning saw the “random” Vietnam draft lottery as flawed — mathematically flawed. According to a New York Times article from the period, he wasn’t the only one.

Was the Selective Service draft really random?

David Stodolosky, the aforementioned Ph.D. student, is the one who filed a suit against Selective Service, based on the findings that the drawing wasn’t truly random. His lawyers argued that President Nixon’s orders called for a random draft and that wasn’t what they got.