“I do not feel that five years of my life are too much to give to say that this law is wrong.”--- Steve Smith, October 20, 1965
In 1963, Steve Smith had entered the University of Iowa. Smith became a political activist and turned his focus to the war in Vietnam and the draft. Draft card burnings caused Congress to pass a law in August of 1965 with the repercussions being a $10,000 fine or five years in prison. This law went unchallenged until October 15, 1965 when David Miller burned his draft card in New York City and on October 20, Smith was the first to burn his draft card on a college campus. Smith was arrested, tried and convicted with willful destruction of his draft card in 1966; he received three years’ probation.
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Bailey Adolph
Senior Division Webpage
Senior Division Webpage