HR155.DOC

WHEREAS, the Declaration of Independence (1776) states that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness;" and

WHEREAS, gender equality was further codified in the United

Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of

Discrimination Against Women (1979), in which was noted that

"States Parties to the International Covenants on Human Rights

have the obligation to ensure the equal rights of men and women

to enjoy all economic, social, cultural, civil and political

rights;" and

WHEREAS, some women find military training and service

fulfilling: female cadets in the United States Reserve Officers'

Training Corps (ROTC) see military training as an "opportunity

to be strong, assertive and skillful" and such training "as an

escape from some of the negative aspects of traditional

femininity" (2008 study, Jennifer M. Silva); and

WHEREAS, front-line infantry, armor, artillery and special

operations jobs are currently open to female volunteers who can

meet the physical requirements; last year alone, nearly 15

percent of the nation's 1.5 million active duty military

personnel were women; and

WHEREAS, the purpose of a draft is to create a pool of

potential combat troops should a national emergency demand a

rapid increase in the size of the military but the draft has

excluded women; and
WHEREAS, the United States came close to drafting women

during World War II (1939-1942) when there was a shortage of

military nurses, though a few women also cross-dressed as men in

order to fight; and

WHEREAS, expanding the universe of draft registrants increases the share of the national population with a stake in the activities of the armed forces; and

WHEREAS, women should become equally obligated to defend

the United States if the need for a draft arises and the women are physically capable of enduring the strenuous activities the United States military requires; and

WHEREAS, excluding women from a draft reinforces a

stereotype that they are less capable than men and need to be

protected; and

WHEREAS, Rostker v. Goldberg, 453 U.S. 57 (1981) alleged that the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment was violated because only men are required to register with the Selective Service System; however, it was subsequently over-ruled because women were excluded from combat service by statute or military policy; and

WHEREAS, that same year, the National Organization for

Women, in agreement, filed an action alleging that the male-only draft was unconstitutional and testified before the House Armed Services Committee prior to the enactment of the Military Selective Service Act, that, "because men exclude women here, they justify excluding women from the decision-making of our nation;" and

WHEREAS, the announcement made by the Department of Defense

that women between the ages of 18 to 25 can serve with ground military forces in combat has opened the possibility that women could be required to register for Selective Service, mirroring the law applicable to all U.S. men in that age group; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the

Twenty-seventh Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular

Session of 2013, that this body strongly supports including women in the national draft; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Majority Leader of the United States Senate, and members of Hawaii's Congressional Delegation.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

US Women's Draft

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	155
TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2013
STATE OF HAWAII