English: On May 18th, 2022, the Selective Service Acting Director Craig Brown laid a wreath at Arlington National Cemetery to commemorate the 105th anniversary of the Selective Service System and honor the life of General Lewis Blaine Hersey.

The Selective Service has advanced considerably from its original conception, and the ongoing achievements could not have been sustained and developed without the accomplishments General Hershey sought during his dedicated tenure with the Selective Service. His vision to provide our nation with the most prompt, efficient, and equitable draft still serves as our mission today and continues to be a key component of our nation’s national security strategy.

Currently, registration with the Selective Service is the most publicly visible program during peacetime that ensures operational readiness in a fair and equitable manner. If authorized by the President and Congress, our Agency would rapidly provide personnel to the Department of Defense while at the same time providing an Alternative Service Program for conscientious objectors.

The Selective Service enables our nation to respond to its manpower needs, should it be called upon to do so. We are a small agency with a huge mission, and while young men have not been called for service or draft in nearly fifty years, our Agency helps to prepare and fulfill the promise made by generations of Americans that came before us; to protect our freedom as a constitutional republic.

Learn more about Selective Service at sss.gov.