Name: Norwood, Sheryl
E-mail: sheryl@norwoodpms.com
Topic: Arkansas’ Reaction to Draft Resistance During World War
II.
Grade: Ninth and Tenth Grades (Adaptable 7 12)
Time: One class period
Ark. Hist. Framework: 6.1.10, 6.1.14
Objective: The student will be able to identify various types of resistance
and personal, political, and social consequences to the resistance of the draft
in Arkansas during World War II.
Set: Review the fact that World War II came about within two decades of the
war that “was the war to end all wars.” Note that patriotism was at an all time
high, nationally and locally, only after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December
7, 1941 and President Roosevelt’s announcement of war against Japan on December
8, 1941. Ask students to tell you why this event might stir even more patriotism
than the beginnings of WWI. Pose the question: “How did the people of Arkansas
react to WWII war resisters after December 7, 1941?”
Materials: Arkansas History Text, World Atlas from WWII period, Photographs
from WWII, Video depicting WWII historical clips, if available to you, which
includes groups exempted from the draft. Internet access would be a
plus.
Key Terms: Draft, Nationalism, Conscientious Objector Status, Selective
Service of 1940, Dissent, Registration, Classification, Deferment, Petition,
Combative Service, Non-combative Service, Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Key Facts: Draft resistance in WWI set precedence for years to come: in
order to avoid the draft, some men chose suicide, were executed, fought in
“draft wars”, and suffered religious persecution.
Americans
have been sympathetic to conscientious objectors when a war effort lacks the
overwhelming support of the country as a whole. This was not the case during
World War II.
There was an
unprecedented wave of nationalism after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and
there was no room for tolerance of dissenters who for religious or philosophical
reasons opposed the war.
In order to
rectify some issues faced during the draft process of WWI, the United States
implemented the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940:
“Nothing contained in this Act shall be construed to require any person to
be subject to combatant training and service in the land or naval forces of the
United States who, by reason of religious training and belief, is
conscientiously opposed to participation in war in any form. Any such person
claiming such exemption from combatant training and service because of such
conscientious objections whose claim is sustained by the local board shall, if
he is inducted into the land or naval forces under this Act, be assigned to
noncombatant service…or shall, if he is found to be conscientiously opposed to
such participation in such noncombatant service, in lieu of such induction, be
assigned to work of national importance under civilian direction.”
STSA Act 1940 provided two distinct classifications for COs or Conscientious
Objectors: Class 1-A-O: an applicant willing to render service in the military
but objected to service, which required the use of arms. Class 4-E: an applicant
who objected to any type of military service, but was willing to be assigned
to work of national importance such as soil conservation, dam construction,
farm experimentation, and forest fire-fighting.
The 1940 act
was viewed as more liberal that the Draft Act of 1917 because it was not limited
to the members of recognized religious sects, and it provided for an appeal from
the local draft board.
There were
ninety-four local draft boards in Arkansas by 1945. An average of three men
served on each board. A board’s duty was to classify all registrants, review all
claims concerning classification, and to inform the applicant of his right to a
personal hearing. The President appointed board members from the recommendations
of the Governor.
Even though there was a law to assist them, CO s still had to register for
the draft. They still had to report for induction, have a physical, and were
rated by the military boards before they could request objector status. If the
individual did not ask for and fill out the special Selective Service Form 47,
they would find it difficult to present their case to the local board. The
appeals process was long and complicated. It could take years to win a favorable
decision. In fifty percent of the cases filed, the decision of the local board
was sustained. There were over 5,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses who served prison
sentences for their objections to war.
Jehovah’s Witnesses, also known as the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society,
or the Russellites, was a religious group that strongly opposed war.
In January
1942, members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in El Dorado seized the literature
of several Witnesses who refused to salute the flag, pounced one of the
Witnesses, and burned the literature.
Albert
Blakeley of Geyer Springs, AR was granted ministerial status in December 1940
and he had filed Form 47, with the local draft board. He was opposed to the war,
and had applied for ministerial status and hoped he would not be drafted. He
also was employed by the Arkansas Highway Department since 1934. In September
1942, he was granted leave from his job to attend a Jehovah’s Witness convention
in Little Rock.
The Missouri
Pacific Booster Club of North Little Rock canceled the agreement to rent their
hall for the Witnesses’ event. The same week the M.M. Eberts American Legion
Post pressured the Little Rock Baseball Company to refuse the society permission
to meet at Travelers Field in Little Rock. New meeting place placards were
destroyed by Legionnaires and the police were asked to take action against the
Witnesses.
Witnesses
who were involved in the convention in Little Rock were denied access to
bathroom facilities, were wounded in hostile incidents and were severely beaten.
There was a power struggle between Witnesses and 100 pipeline workers during the
weekend. Some people were wounded or severely beaten. Four Witnesses were
arrested. Mr. Blakeley did not become involved in the violence and was asked to
file a written report about the incident at work.
Mr. Blakeley
returned to work on Monday, by Wednesday, he was told that the American Legion
wanted his resignation. He was eventually asked to quietly resign because of
persistent pressure. He resigned and entered full time ministry. Five days after
he resigned, he was instructed to appear before the local draft board. He lost
his ministerial status and was classified as a 1-A available for military
combat.
It took three hearings with the local board, an ongoing appeals process,
and three years to get his ministerial status and 4-D Classification back.
Blakeley’s appeal was granted in 1943, at the height of the draft for
WWII.
Activities: Students will review terms and period appropriate maps.
Students will be given the opportunity to research, write, and role-play scripts
of local board members who were Southern businessmen, farmers or planters; attorneys
or judges or other legal authorities of this period; and conscientious objectors,
their friends, families, or co-workers; newspaper journalists or persons who
write letters to the editor for and against COs. Students may work individually
or in small groups to draft and prepare their speeches. Time should be allowed
for role-play and writing a paragraph about what they learned about Draft Resistance
and Arkansas reaction to draft resisters during WWII.
Closure: Remind students that the idea of conscription or the draft is not
new; however, Congress passed the first peacetime draft law in the nation’s
history on September 16, 1940. This time, ALL men had to register who were between
the ages of 18 and 64. A lottery was used initially; however, by June of 1942
date of birth was primary. Many Arkansans did not wait for the draft, they volunteered
their services. A young football player from Lepanto volunteered with his team;
however, he was turned down and his reaction was to attempt suicide. Others
who wanted to serve their country were not accepted into the military by local
boards due to their state of health or educational levels, at least until 1943,
when entrance standards were lowered. During WWI, the primary exemption from
registering for the draft was only for currently serving military men. There
were no exemptions from registering for the draft in 1940 prior to our entering
WWII. Conscientious Objectors had to register for the draft, be rated, and take
a physical before requesting Conscientious Objector Status. Unless they knew
what to ask for and completed and submitted Form 47, COs may either have to
serve in some capacity in the military, be imprisoned, or executed. It could
take years for an appeal of a 1-A classification of active military duty to
be changed to a D-4 non-combatant service rating. During times of peace, many
people would be sympathetic to conscientious objectors; however, during times
of war, nationalism and patriotism would over-ride sympathy.
Assessment: Students will write a paragraph explaining the draft, local boards
and their duties, and the process by which an individual might apply for conscientious
objector status. Students are to list three incidents or types of responses
in Arkansas to conscientious objectors during WWII. Students should note any
differences between the draft of WWI and WWII. Prior to the establishment of
a rubric, students will be apprized of the expectations of the rubric.
Resources: Morris, Cynthia Hastas “Arkansas’s Reaction to the Men Who Said
“No” to
World War II.” Arkansas Historical Quarterly, Volume XLIII, Spring 1984,
Number 1, pp. 153-77.
Dougan, Michael B., Arkansas Odyssey: The Saga of Arkansas from Prehistoric
Times to Present. Little Rock, Arkansas: Rose Publishing Company.
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