Vietnam Draft Refusal

A speech by Muhammad Ali on his decision to refuse being drafted to Vietnam.

"My conscious won't let me go shoot my brother, or some darker people, or some poor hungry people in the mud for big powerful America. And shoot them for wha...

Clay v. United States, 403 U.S. 698 (1971), was Muhammad Ali's[1] appeal of his conviction in 1967 for refusing to report for induction into the United States military forces during the Vietnam War. His local draft board had rejected his application for conscientious objector classification. In a unanimous 8-0 ruling (Thurgood Marshall recused himself due to his previous involvement in the case as a Justice department official), the United States Supreme Court reversed the conviction that had been upheld by the Fifth Circuit.

Heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali (1942-2016) was outspoken about many political issues, including his opposition to the Vietnam War. Ali was drafted in 1966 and called up for induction in 1967, however he refused to answer to his name or take the oath. This led to Ali’s arrest and conviction, later overturned on appeal by the US Supreme Court. In March 1967, one month before his scheduled military induction, Ali explained why he would not be enlisting to fight in Vietnam:

His refusal to be drafted to fight in the war transcended the boxing ring, which he had dominated, at great personal cost.

On this day in History, Muhammad Ali refuses Army induction on Apr 28, 1967. Learn more about what happened today on History.