I was reading about the "hobos" and was wondering if the USA or any other country drafted homeless person into the armed forces?
After the U.S. entry into World War II, defense spending and the number of jobs available in factories increased rapidly. Nearly full employment was achieved by 1944 (1.2% unemployment that year; this number did not count those "underemployed," those that had a job but struggled to support themselves just off of their salary), and the number of homeless people living on the streets plummeted. The Social Security Act of 1935 provided unemployment insurance and assistance to families with children; Social Security numbers were initially not offered at birth, and as they were (and still are) a method to track income, most people who applied for them were of working age.
Through the initial provisions of the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940, all males aged 21-35 were required by law to register for the draft. Homeless people by and large did not have "permanent" addresses, but many exceptions were made. In the frantic rush to rebuild the United States' military from its anemic prewar state, draft boards often "looked the other way," when choosing to accept or reject registrants for military service, especially if they were made up of influential members of the community. The new Social Security numbers somewhat streamlined the process of proving identity to the Selective Service, and in some cases, the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940's stipulation of all males was taken to extremes. The famous New York City mayor and initial head of the federal Office of Civilian Defense Fiorello La Guardia sent the police to homeless shelters such as the Bowery Mission to check Selective Service registration statuses and detain those in violation. Their punishment? Registration and an opportunity for a job in a defense plant or hospital. During the Great Depression, over 1.5 million people in New York City received public assistance. Under La Guardia's tenure, by 1945 that number had dropped to less than 200,000; the number of homeless men in city lodging dropped from 17,000 to 2,000.
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