Militia (United States)

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The concept of the militia in the United States of America is a complex one. The term militia can mean any number of groups within the United States. In general, there are three types of militia within the US:

  • Constitutional, or unorganized miltia, which consist of every able-bodied man ages 18-45 who can be called into active service through congressional power and who, according to varous militia acts (Militia acts of 1792, 1852, 1903) are encouraged to train in marksmenship with arms provided by themselves in order to prepare them for military service. (The Civilian Marksmanship Program, created by Congressional power in 1903 at the request of President Theodore Roosevelt, is the only organization in which approved military rifles may be purchased without going through a Federal Firearms Dealer).
  • Select-militia, which originated in early State select-militia forces and the constitutional militia, consist of State and Federal militia forces, like the National Guard, which were created by statutory law rather than constitutional power.
  • Private-militia forces, which are made up of unorganized militiamen who have, on their own authority, organized into para-military organizations based on their own interpretation of the concept of the militia. These militia claim belief that private militia are supported by the principles of the common law of England (as found in Blackstone's Commentaries) and the intentions of the Founding Fathers of the United States (as found in the Annals of Congress and various publications of the period).

Contents

[edit] Etymology

The English term "militia" is derived from Latin roots:

  • miles /MEE-lace/ : a fighter or warrior
  • -itia /EE-tee-ah/ : a state, quality, or condition

In its original sense, therefore, militia meant "the state, quality, or condition of being a fighter or warrior." It can be thought of as "the combattant condition", "the fighter frame of mind", "the militant mode", "the soldierly status", or "the warrior way".

In common usage, a "militia" is a body of private persons who have taken up arms to respond to a violent emergency. The act of bringing to bear arms contextually changes the status of the person, from peaceful citizen, to warrior citizen. The militia is the sum total of persons undergoing this change of state.

[edit] History

The early colonists of America considered the militia an important social structure, necessary to defend their colonies from Indian attacks. All able-bodied males were expected to be members of the local militia. During the French and Indian Wars the town militias formed a recruiting pool for the Provincial Forces. The legislature of the colony would authorize a certain force level for the season's campaign, based on that set recruitment quotas for each local militia. In theory, militia members could be drafted by lot if there were inadequate forces for the Provincial Regulars; however, the draft was rarely resorted to because provincial regulars were highly paid (more highly paid than their regular British Army counterparts) and rarely engaged in combat.

See New Hampshire Provincial Regiment for a history of a Provincial unit during the French and Indian War.
Lexington Minuteman representing militia minuteman John Parker
Lexington Minuteman representing militia minuteman John Parker

In the American Revolutionary War, colonial militiamen or armed citizens agreed to turn out for service at a minute's notice. The term minutemen is often used to describe the men who were enrolled (1774) for such service by the Massachusetts provincial congress. These were also known as the "valiant farmers" who fought against the British at the battles of Lexington and Concord.

The delegates of the Constitutional Convention (the founding fathers/framers of the United States Constitution) under Article 1; section 8, paragraphs 15 and 16 of the federal constitution, granted Congress the power to "provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining (regulating/training) the Militia," as well as, and in distinction to, the power to raise an army and a navy. The US Congress is granted the power to use the militia of the United States for only three specific missions, as described in Article 1, section 8, paragraph 15: "To provide for the calling for of the militia to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions." The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution was intended to formalize this balance between the "well-regulated" unorganized militia and organized military forces. The Militia Act of 1792 clarified whom the militia consists of; " Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, That each and every free able-bodied white male citizen of the respective States, resident therein, who is or shall be of age of eighteen years, and under the age of forty-five years (except as is herein after excepted) shall severally and respectively be enrolled in the militia, by the Captain or Commanding Officer of the company, within whose bounds such citizen shall reside, and that within twelve months after the passing of this Act."

During Congressional debates, James Madison was among the strongest proponents for the creation of a militia in lieu of a standing army:

The highest number to which a standing army can be carried in any country does not exceed one hundredth part of the souls, or one twenty-fifth part of the number able to bear arms. This portion would not yield, in the United States, an army of more than twenty-five or thirty thousand men. To these would be opposed a militia amounting to near half a million citizens with arms in their hands, officered by men chosen from among themselves, fighting for their common liberties and united and conducted by governments possessing their affections and confidence. It may well be doubted whether a militia thus circumstanced could ever be conquered by such a proportion of regular troops. Besides the advantage of being armed, it forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of any form can admit of. The governments of Europe are afraid to trust the people with arms. If they did, the people would surely shake off the yoke of tyranny, as America did. Let us not insult the free and gallant citizens of America with the suspicion that they would be less able to defend the rights of which they would be in actual possession than the debased subjects of arbitrary power would be to rescue theirs from the hands of their oppressors."-(Source I Annals of Congress 434, June 8, 1789)

Trench Coxe, a prominent American political economist (1755-1824) who attended the earlier convention in Annapolis, explained (in the Pennsylvania Federal Gazette on June 18th, 1789) the founders' definition of who the militia was and why they chose to create it as follows:

The militia of these free commonwealths, entitled and accustomed to their arms, when compared with any possible army, must be tremendous and irresistible. Who are the militia? Are they not ourselves? Is it feared, then, that we shall turn our arms each man against his own bosom. Congress have no power to disarm the militia. Their swords, and every other terrible implement of the soldier, are the birth-right of an American ...the unlimited power of the sword is not in the hands of either the federal or state governments, but, where I trust in God it will ever remain, in the hands of the people.
The militia, who are in fact the effective part of the people at large, will render many troops quite unnecessary. They will form a powerful check upon the regular troops, and will generally be sufficient to over-awe them.
Whereas civil rulers, not having their duty to the people duly before them, may attempt to tyrannize, and as military forces, which must be occasionally raised to defend our country, might pervert their power to the injury of their fellow citizens, the people are confirmed by the article in their right to keep and bear their private arms.

The purpose of the militia, as envisioned by the framers of the Constitution of the United States, can be further demonstrated by the words of Representative Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts (from 1 Annals of Congress at 750, 17 August 1789): What, sir, is the use of a militia? It is to prevent the establishment of a standing army, the bane of liberty . . . Whenever Governments mean to invade the rights and liberties of the people, they always attempt to destroy the militia, in order to raise an army upon their ruins.

In the War of 1812, the United States militias were routed by British regulars, and it was determined that militas were not adquate for the national defense. Military budgets were greatly increased at this time, and standing armies rather than militias were deemed better for the national defense.

However, the importance of the miltia continued during the middle of the 1800s, as can be demonstrated in both the Militia Act of 1852 and the Morrill Act of 1862. The Morrill Act of July 2nd, 1862 provided federally aided land grants to colleges and universities. A condition of these grants included mandatory military training "in order to prepare well-educated men for leadership in the militia."

[edit] National Guard

The United States National Guard, created by the Militia Act of 1903, was a federalized portion of the State militias which were converted into regular troops kept in reserve for the United States Army. The National Defense Act of 1916 [1] placed all state militia units under the National Guard. This act was later amended in 1933 under the National Guard Mobilization, Act][2] to place all National Guard units under the control of the United States Army, making them regular troops and effectively ending their status as constitutional militia forces under Article 1, section 8, paragraphs 15,16, of the Federal Constitution and the Second Amendment of the Federal Constitution.

The current United States Code, Title 10 (Armed forces), section 311 (Militia: Composition and Classes), paragraph (a) states: "The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard." Section 313 of Title 32 refers to persons with prior military experience who could serve as officers. These persons remain members of the militia until age 64. Paragraph (b) further states, "The classes of the militia are: (1) the organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval Militia; and (2) the unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia."[3].

The National Guard is the largest of the organized federal reserve military forces in the United States. The National Guard is classified (under title 10, see above) as the organized federal militia as it is under both federal and state control, and both the President of the United States and state governors can call upon it. Since the 2003 Invasion of Iraq many National Guard units have served overseas (under the Total Force Policy of 1973 which effectively combined the National Guard with the armed forces making them regular troops.) This can lead to problems for states that also face internal emergencies while the Guard is deployed overseas. To address such issues, many of the states, such as New York and Maryland also have organized state "militia" forces or State Guards which are under the control of the governor of a state, however many of these "militia" also act as a reserve for the National Guard and are thus a part of it (varies from state to state depending on individual state statutory laws). New York and Ohio also have active naval militias, and a few other states have on-call or proposed ones. In 1990, the United States Supreme Court ruled in the case of Perpich v. Department of Defense that the Federal government has plenary power over the National Guard, and greatly reduced (to the point of nonexistence) the state government's ability to withhold consent to Federal deployments and training missions of the National Guard.[4]

During some wars, both the suitability and effectiveness of the National Guard have been questioned, because of perceptions that personnel are often hastily, or not fully, trained for the roles they are asked to perform. For many decades, there were persistent allegations of nepotism, favoritism and/or the use of influence in the commissioning and assignment of officers. (See, for example, George W. Bush military service controversy.)

Numerous states have their own Guard units separate from the National Guard; some authorized by the states themselves, like the Alabama State Defense Force, others simply are acknowledged by the state as their official State Guard. These units have no affiliation with the National Guard.

[edit] Private militia organizations

Within the United States there are political organizations that call themselves "militia" or "unorganised militia"(as a reference to the term mentioned in various acts treatices, and forbearer writings), and claim legitimacy based on Article 1, section 8 and the 2nd Amendment of the United States Constitution, the militia act of 1792, Title 10 section 311, and the common law concept of an armed citizenry. Some of these groups refer to themselves as citizen's militias, [5] others refer to themselves as simply militia, [6], many use the term "unorganised militia" and others do not use the term "militia" at all, [7] though most espouse the similar right-wing ideological beliefs.

These private "militia" groups have not been formally called into service by the Federal congress. They are not linked to a state or federal government organization or military force, nor are any they known to be registered with the Civilian Marksmanship Program. These organizations are known to speak out against the political actions of many State governments and the Federal government, due to what they consider to be unconstitutional (or non-constitional) federal statutory laws, policies, treaties with foreign powers, and many federal agencies. Educational, fitness, training and commissioning standards for these private militias are minimal when compared to the Regular Army, National Guard or Reserve Forces.

These private militias are believed to have spawned from the independent survivalist movement, tax-protestor movement and others in the subculture of what is called the "Patriot" movement in the United States. A few small private-militia groups developed within the United States during the 1970s and 1980s, but the movement experienced a wave of growth in the 1990s for various reasons including the Gordon Kahl, Ruby Ridge, and Waco incidents and the passage of the Brady law, and 1994 Assault Weapons Ban.

Private-militia activities range from organized lawful protesting of government policies to criminal activities including the illegal modification and manufacture of firearms and explosives. However, the majority of private-militia groups are non-violent and only a small segment of the private-militias actually commit acts of violence to advance their political goals and beliefs.

A number of leaders of these groups, such as Lynn Van Huizen of the Michigan Militia Corps-Wolverines, have gone to some effort to actively rid their ranks of radical members who are inclined to carry out acts of violence and/or terrorism. Officials at the FBI Academy classify private-militia groups within four categories, ranging from moderate groups who do not engage in criminal activity to radical cells which commit violent acts of terrorism.

The FBI has published its report on the militia movement and has determined that the movement is not a threat to the national security of the United States.

Private-militia anxiety, paranoia of Globalism, and millenarianism relating to the year 2000 were based mainly on a political ideology, as opposed to religious beliefs. Private-militia leaders espoused the idea that the year 2000 would lead to political and personal repression enforced by the United Nations and countenanced by a compliant U.S. government. This ideology centers around what is known as the New World Order (NWO) conspiracy theory. Other issues which have served as motivating factors for the private-militia movement include gun control, illegal immigration, the incidents at Ruby Ridge (1992) and Waco (1993), the publishing of the controversial novel Unintended Consequences by John Ross (1996), the Montana Freemen standoff (1996) and the restriction of land use by federal agencies, as well as present and past circuit and Supreme Court decisions regarding both the constitution and its amendments (specifically the first 10).

[edit] Left wing militia

During the 1950s and 1960s, left wing militia groups like the Black Panthers and Young Lords claimed an association with armed revolutionary groups of the time. Both groups used guerilla-style uniforms, organized under a Marxist political party style structure; for example their leaders were the Chairman and Minister of Information rather than using a military structure. According to the FBI the Black Panthers organization "advocated the use of guns and guerrilla tactics by African Americans to protect themselves and to bring about the overthrow of the United States Government." The FBI classified the BPP as a domestic-terrorist organization and not a "militia group". The Weather Underground, a splinter group of the SDS, also developed an increasing interest in the self-defensive use (and revolutionary offensive use) of firearms and bombed mostly symbolic targets with no loss of life, committing crimes against property rather than persons. Their self-conception as a kind of revolutionary militant cell shares certain commonalities with the concept of militias.

The 1990s and early 2000s has seen the rise of groups such as the Animal Liberation Front and Earth Liberation Front, who, according to the FBI, are responsible for numerous arsons, vandalism, theft, and intimidation throughout the United States. The groups are not considered militia organizations by the US Department of Justice. According to the FBI's 2000/2001 publicaton on Terrorism in the United States, ALF and ELF are classified as domestic-terrorist organizations.

[edit] List of U.S. militias

[edit] U.S. Federal militia forces

(this does not include the "unorganised militia" as it is organised and some argue not a militia but a state army)

[edit] U.S. State Defense Forces

[edit] U.S. Private militias

(many are self-defined as "unorganised militia" as mentioned in various acts and historical treatices or writings )

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] References

[edit] Historic

  • Federalist papers
  • Anti-Federalist papers
  • United States Constitution
  • Militia Act of 1792
  • Militia Act of 1903
  • National Defense Act of 1916
  • National Guard Mobilization Act of 1933
  • Total Force Policy of 1973

[edit] Legislative analysis

[edit] Scholarly

  • Samuel J. Newland The Pennsylvania militia: Defending the Commonwealth and the nation, 1669-1870 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Dept. of Military and Veterans Affairs (2002)

[edit] Critical of contemporary private miltias

  • Lamy, Philip. 1996. Millennium Rage: Survivalists, White Supremacists, and the Doomsday Prophecy. New York: Plenum.
  • Stern, Kenneth S. 1996. A Force Upon the Plain: The American Militia Movement and the Politics of Hate. New York: Simon & Schuster.
  • Gibson, James William. 1994. Warrior Dreams: Paramilitary Culture in Post-Viet Nam America. New York: Hill and Wang.
  • Gibson, James William. 1997. "Is the Apocalypse Coming? Paramilitary Culture after the Cold War." In The Year 2000: Essays on the End, ed. Charles B. Strozier and Michael Flynn. New York: New York University Press.
  • Levitas, Daniel. 2002. The Terrorist Next Door: The Militia Movement and the Radical Right. New York: St. Martin's.

[edit] Critical of government (works which influenced private-militia ideology)

  • Larry Pratt Safeguarding Liberty: The Constitution and Citizens Militias Legacy Communications (May, 1995)
  • Gary Allen, Larry Abraham, Senator John G. Schmitz, 1976 None Dare Call it Conspiracy Concord Press
  • John A. Stormer 1968 The Death of a Nation Liberty Bell Press
  • John A Stormer 1964 None Dare Call it Treason Liberty Bell Press
  • G. Edward Griffith July 1964The Fearful Master: A second look at the United Nations Western Islands Publishing
  • David M. Kirkham 1993 The New World Order: In Historical Perspective Wyoming: High Plains Publishing Company
  • Jim Keith 1994 Black Helicopters Over America: Strike Force for the New World Order. Illuminet Press
  • Mack Tanner Armed-Citizen Solution to Crime in the Streets: So Many Criminals, So Few Bullets. ISBN 0-87364-806-4

[edit] Artifact

  • Leonard C. Lewin 1967 The Report From Iron Mountain: On the Possibility and Desirability of Peace (A hoax document written as a subtle satire widely believed to be authentic within many right wing political groups), Dial Press
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