Submitted by Betsy Brinson & Curt Torrell

The decision to allow women to serve in all combat roles by Defense Secretary Ashton Carter on December3, 2015 should be enough to reverse Rostker v. Goldberg, the Supreme Court decision upholding women not required to sign up for Selective Service. That ruling was based on the Pentagon policy that excluded women in combat. It has been tested in the 90’s by Clinton and Congress yet reaffirmed many times since for the same reason.

Revisiting this would mean either a new Selective Service law or a new case brought before the Supreme Court, neither of which is likely to happen before Presidential elections. A case would be strengthened by the fact that Solomon and Thurmond amendments (denial of federal and state education loans, jobs and training) plus required SS registration to get a state driver’s license are imposed only on men.

The decision to open up all military positions to women complicates the issue even more. Women now presumably will be subject to draft. In Virginia when you get a driver’s license at age 16, your name is given to Selective Service. Most people do not even realize this is what they are doing when they apply for a license. If there is a draft and one gets notice, you only have about nine days to get an appeal together. This is why the Quaker House program to document now is so important to our peace testimony.