Committee Opposed to Militarism and the Draft (COMD)

From Draft NOtices, July-September 2020

Who Joins the Military and Why: An Initial Reconnaissance

Research with potential implications for counter-recruitment work

— Isidro D. Ortiz, Ph.D.

Change: gentrification

The demographic composition of the American military has been a subject of interest to scholars, journalists and counter-recruitment activists. Some of the last have contended that the composition reflects a “poverty draft.” A recent study provides insight into the issue. “A Mercenary Army of the poor? Technological Change and the Demographic Composition of post-9/11 U.S. Military” by Andrea Asoni et. al, sheds new light on the controversial notion that the “the American military is a mercenary army of the poor.” The investigators break methodological ground by analyzing individual-level data on two national samples covering the period 1979-2005. Their analyses of the data reveal, they claim, that “contrary to accepted wisdom, the U.S. military no longer primarily recruits individuals from the most disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds.” They also found that, in contrast to the past, those who join the American armed forces are at or above the median with respect to socio-economic indicators such as parental income, parental wealth and cognitive abilities — exactly the opposite of what other studies maintain. In other words, the armed forces recruited primarily from the middle-class sector of society. According to the investigators, at the roots of the change — which some have described as the “gentrification” of the military — are increases in the requirements of the “modern capital-intensive, information dominant, expeditionary American military.” According to the researchers, “the less affluent are less likely to meet such requirements.”

Read more: Who Joins the Military and Why

From Draft NOtices, July-September 2020

Gilberto Robledo: Educator-Activist, Leader, and Veteran for Peace

— Isidro Ortiz, Ph.D.

To youth who may be socially and economically marginalized, the claim that the military provides opportunities for growth, success and belonging may be seductive. The accomplishments of Gilberto Robledo -- educator, military veteran and peace activist — show how someone can attain those things without making a career out of the military.

When I recently interviewed Gilberto, I learned that he was born at home in Santa Paula, California, in 1940. Both of his parents were immigrants from Mexico. Neither of them was active in politics or in labor unions, but they experienced the cruel conditions of California farm labor, as children and as adults, working for corporate agribusiness. Despite such experiences, they aspired to become naturalized citizens. At the age of seven, Gilberto assisted them in this endeavor. As he notes: “In helping them study for their exam, I learned three big words of the branches of U.S. government: Legislature, Judicial, Executive.” Once they became naturalized, his parents “instilled the importance and privilege of voting in every election.”

Read more: Gilberto Robledo: Educator-Activist, Leader, and Veteran for Peace