Refugee men forced to sign up for Selective Service

I was kind of shocked when I found this out. That in the process of filing with UNHCR and requesting to come to the US, refugee men 18 and over are forced to sign up for selective service if there is ever another draft. I really doubt there ever will be again and pray there isn't, but I still don't feel this is right. These people leave war torn nations because they live in fear of their own government and military, why should they be forced to sign up to be in the military of their host country encase it goes to war if they are not even citizens. The government doesn't want gays in the military who want to serve and who are citizens, yet they will take those who are not even citizens and force them into it. I'm curious to what your opinions are.

Before I wrote this, I did check to make sure what I was told by the young men in my office was correct, and it appears to be.

http://www.refugeeinfo.org/youth/selectiveservice.html

That does seem unfair but on the positive side it is a good test as to whether the person truly wants to be an American.

the other way the service gets people is the deadbeat dad. At least in my 1st husband's case they did. He was ordered to pay child support and didn't so they hit his paycheck for it. That made him mad so he quit - well, guess what, when the gov attachs your wages you can't quit to avoid it without being arrested for evasion. So now you he's in jail and no way to pay what's owed - so they offered him an option. Stay in jail until you can find a way to pay - which of course is impossible or go in the service and your allotment will cover your support. He ended up career Navy for his whole life.

I kind of feel no one should be made to sign up for the military that doesn't want to. I think it should be a personal choice.

And in the eyes of America, especially before they have citizenship which they can't even apply for until they have been here at least 5 years, they will never be Americans. Many didn't want to come here, but it was come here and try to survive and make a better life, or live there and die and watch their children die.

Terizz wrote:

I kind of feel no one should be made to sign up for the military that doesn't want to. I think it should be a personal choice.

And in the eyes of America, especially before they have citizenship which they can't even apply for until they have been here at least 5 years, they will never be Americans. Many didn't want to come here, but it was come here and try to survive and make a better life, or live there and die and watch their children die.

Teri, I must respectfully disagree. I believe that Americans have the utmost respect for those who come to this country legally, take the classes, take the citizenship test, and do everything honorably. The problem is the large number who want to skip all that legal hassle.

Although, I concede the anger surrounding this issue is making the distinction between immigrant and illegal harder to determine...and that is the saddest byproduct of this issue. By fighting so hard for rights for illegal aliens, we completely disrespect the sacrifice made by those who come here and do it right.

As to this required service...I definitely need to think more on it before I make an opinion. I see both sides right now.

Not sure where you got Teri from, but it's Tish And that's ok no worries.

I can only state from what I have witnessed where I live where now we have nearly as many if not more refugees as we do Caucasians, and Mexicans, and of course I don't know which ones have come here illegally and which ones haven't of those who have come from Mexico but that is an entirely different subject. I've just seen how my clients are treated here, and it isn't always pretty. We've even had problems with the local police, maybe it's mostly due to being a small town or it being in Texas. I'm not really sure because I can of course only speak from what I have witnessed here. And I've been working with refugees from Burma for a year now.

I'm just totally against the whole selective service issue for anyone especially those who have come out of wars, and have suffered enough due to them destroying their countries to the point they have to seek refuge in another one, and then feel threatened there to have to settle in another one and be asked to sign up to go into the military and fight if a war were to occur here. Of course I pray that none of us has to face a war situation, but I just felt it was wrong to ask of them. I think it would have been perfectly fine to ask them if they would like to sign up after they become citizens, but to demand it of them before they even set foot on US soil I don't think is right.

And I do respect all of your opinions even if I don't agree So hope that you all know that, and thanks for your responses.

And I guess not all refugees are against it either. I just had a conversation with a friend of mine who came here as a political refugee 10 years ago and he is a citizen also. And at the time that he came here they also made him sign up for selective service. I asked him how he felt about it and he said good. I asked why. And he said because he felt he was being treated as a citizen before he was a citizen, and felt that it was his legal obligation to do so. I asked him if he were called to war for the US would he be happy to go, he said yes. He said the Burmese have a saying that is if you love a country you're willing to fight for it. Maybe the older generation feels the way he does, he is 42, and the younger generation who are just coming here feel differently most of them in their early to late 20s.

I still feel the way that I do, but it was interesting to have a prospective from someone who came here as a refugee who is a little older and has been here longer.