National Coalition For Men (NCFM) Marks Movember by Calling for End to Gender-Exclusive Conscription Policies

SAN DIEGO, CA, UNITED STATES, November 30, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- As millions of men grew mustaches this Movember to raise awareness of men’s health, the National Coalition For Men (NCFM) is spotlighting another critical issue: the health and wellbeing of men subjected to involuntary conscription. While many nations continue to impose mandatory military service exclusively on men, a smaller but growing number have extended conscription to women as well. NCFM reaffirms its position: mandatory conscription targeted only at men is discriminatory, outdated, and unjust.

Conscription as a Men’s Health Issue

Movember highlights men’s unique health challenges — from prostate cancer to mental health.

Male-only conscription policies add another layer:
• Physical health risks: Severe injury, long-term health consequences, and death.
• Mental health burdens: stress, trauma and disruption of family, education, and careers.
• Systemic inequality: reinforces outdated gender roles, placing the burden of national defense squarely on men’s shoulders.

Carl Augustsson, NCFM International Liaison Coordinator. “Conscription is not just a policy issue — it is a men’s health issue. Forcing only men into service undermines equality and puts their wellbeing at risk.”

Global Trends
• Male-only conscription remains the norm in Brazil, Russia, Mexico, Egypt, Türkiye, South Korea, and Iran.
• Gender-neutral conscription exists in Israel, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Eritrea, Mozambique, Morocco, Chad, Niger, Mali, and North Korea.
• Denmark announced that women turning 18 after July 1, 2025, will be subject to a national lottery draft beginning in 2026.
• Croatia voted in October 2025 to reintroduce compulsory military service in 2026, applying only to men, with 4,000 recruits annually for two months of training.
• Germany unveiled a new framework requiring men to register and undergo medical exams starting in 2027, while women may volunteer.
• Ukraine faces allegations of coercion, beatings, and illegal detentions linked to conscription, with Parliament confirming women cannot be drafted against their will.
• Russia continues male-only conscription, with President Putin ordering 135,000 men in fall 2025 — the largest intake in nine years. Police raids in Moscow and St. Petersburg have intensified, with detainees forced into service within 24 hours of capture.

NCFM’s Legal Efforts

NCFM has fought male-only conscription in U.S. courts for over a decade:
• In 2013, NCFM filed suit against the Selective Service System, arguing male-only registration was unconstitutional. (Case No. 2:13‑cv‑02391 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The lead attorney for NCFM was Marc E. Angelucci, Esq., NCFM Vice-President in private practice, murdered because of his activism in 2020 - RIP).
• In 2019, a federal court agreed, but the Fifth Circuit overturned the ruling.
• In 2024, NCFM filed a new lawsuit in California under the Fifth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. The decision is pending. (Case No. 2:24‑cv‑04016 (Central District of California). The lead attorney for NCFM is Nadine Lewis, Esq. in private practice).

These lawsuits highlight NCFM’s commitment to ensuring that men’s rights — and men’s health — are not sidelined in national policy.

What Happens to Men Who Refuse Conscription

In countries with mandatory conscription, refusal can result in:
• Criminal charges and prosecution.
• Imprisonment ranging from months to years.
• Fines and financial penalties.
• Loss of civil rights such as voting or public employment.
• Social stigma and discrimination.
• Forced conscription despite refusal.
• Alternative service options, often lengthy and demanding.

Call to Action

NCFM urges policymakers, advocates, and the public to:
• Recognize conscription as a men’s health issue.
• Challenge discriminatory laws targeting men exclusively.
. Help fund related activist efforts, like NCFM does in the USA and in Europe.
• Promote voluntary service models that respect individual choice.
• Ensure gender-neutral policies in countries that maintain conscription.

“Ending male-only conscription is not just a policy change — it’s a global call for fairness, dignity, and well-being for all of us…” said Harry Crouch, NCFM President/Board Chair

About NCFM

Founded in 1977, the National Coalition For Men is a nonprofit educational and civil rights organization committed to ending sex discrimination against men and boys. NCFM has been at the forefront of legal, cultural, and policy advocacy for five decades.

Endnotes
1. WHO report on military training injuries
2. RAND study on conscription and mental health
3. UN Human Rights Committee on gender roles in conscription
4. Global conscription policies overview
5. Comparative study on gender-neutral drafts
6. Danish Ministry of Defence announcement, 2025
7. Croatian Parliament vote, October 2025
8. German Defence Ministry framework, 2025
9. Ukrainian Parliament statement, 2025
10. Kremlin decree on fall 2025 draft
11. Human Rights Watch report on Russian raids
12. NCFM v. Selective Service, 2013 filing
13. Fifth Circuit ruling overturning 2019 decision.
14. NCFM lawsuit filed in California, 2024 15–21. Amnesty International & HRW reports on conscription consequences.

Harry Crouch
National Coalition For Men
+1 619-231-1909
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