During the Vietnam War, roughly 209,000 young men were accused of draft violations, about 8,700 were convicted, and approximately 3,250 served time in prison. To most people, those are just numbers buried in history books. To me, they are faces. They are voices. They are young men who reached a point where conscience outweighed fear and said no.
I know because I was one of them.
More than once, a judge offered me a way out. More than once, I was handed what amounted to a get-out-of-jail-free card. All I had to do was cooperate, bend a little, say the right words, agree to the right conditions. More than once I looked at the offer and said no.
Read the full post on Substack
https://danielbrookssanders.substack.com/p/thank-you-for-your-service
