Conscription

Conscription is a general term for involuntary labour demanded by some established authority, e.g, Old Testament commentaries use the term to describe the levies of labour used to build the Temple, but it is most often used in the specific sense of government policies that require citizens to serve in their armed forces. It is known by various names — for example, the most recent conscription program in the United States was known colloquially as "the draft". Many nations do not maintain conscription forces, instead relying on a volunteer, or professional military, although many of these countries still reserve the possibility of conscription for wartime and "crises" of supply.

Draft resisters

The Vietnam War saw new levels of opposition to conscription and National Service. Many people opposed to and facing conscription, chose to either plead conscientious objection or to evade the draft by fleeing to a neutral country. A small proportion, like Muhammad Ali, chose to publicly and politically fight conscription. In Australia this was known as the Draft Resistance Movement.

Related Topics:
Vietnam War - National Service - Muhammad Ali

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