CITIZENSHIP STATUS AND MILITARY SERVICE - THE QUEST FOR INCLUSION BY MINORITIES AND CONSCIENTIOUS-OBJECTORS

This article examines the relations between citizenship status and military service as they have affected the social standing of African Americans, women, and conscientious objectors in the United States. One purpose is to review evidence for the claim that there is a close connection between one's willingness to perform military service and one's acceptance as a citizen. Ironically, while the military has become a more inclusive institution for minorities since the end of World War II, the political community has become less insistent in its demand that citizens ought to perform military service. A second purpose is to correct (somewhat) the frequent preoccupation with economic and political inequality in the study of citizenship. I show that apart from and before the question of one's place in a hierarchy of possession, there is the question of whether one is recognized and respected as a member in good standing of the political community. Despite obvious differences, minority groups and conscientious objectors are alike in their desire to protect their social standing as citizens. In their different responses to military service, both seek to avoid becoming exiles in their own land. Studying this matter historically allows us to see why the relationship between citizenship status and military service has relaxed since the end of World War II. Unexpectedly perhaps, with an all-volunteer force, this relaxation enhances the prospects for the political and social inclusion of minorities more than it does for conscientious objectors.