In honor of the 50th anniversary, the Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin flew by Black Hawk helicopter to Fort Meade in Maryland on Wednesday, to administer the military oath to 85 brave young women and men. After the ceremony, 67 new recruits were sent to basic training at bases across the nation, including Parris island, South Carolina, and Fort Moore in Georgia.

Secretary Austin said to the recruits that the United States had stopped drafting its citizens and instead turned to a voluntary force. Since then, Americans have joined the military out of conviction, not compulsion.

Secretary Austin shared words with each recruit as he shook their hands.

Secretary Austin’s trip comes at a time when the U.S. Military continues to struggle with a recruitment crisis. This is due to the strong job market, the ending of overseas wars, and the high rate of PTSD. Recruiters were not allowed to visit college campuses or high school during the COVID-19 epidemic peak in 2020 and 2021. This prevented them from interacting with potential recruits.

The college option has become more popular for high school students, with 62% of seniors being encouraged to enroll directly in college. Some people believe that the military is “woke” and this may be another reason for the low numbers of recruits. According to a Pentagon report, the nation also faces a health crisis with 77 percent not being eligible to serve.

In a recent WSJ report, another alarming trend was revealed: children from military families who make up about 80 percent of US Army recruits are telling their own children to not serve. This is especially true for those coming from the South.

This year, the Army, Air Force and Navy will miss their recruitment goals. Since 1973, the U.S. military usually meets its annual recruitment targets. Last year, the U.S. Army fell 25% short of its recruitment goals.

The wave of patriotism which swept across the country increased recruiting after 9/11. The Army will fall 15,000 recruits shy of its 65,000 target this year. U.S. military leaders say retention is at an all-time high, but they are still concerned that, if recruitment numbers do not improve, the U.S. won’t be able face the next Great Power or two conflicts simultaneously, Russia and China.

It is vital to protect U.S. interest that young men and woman like those Secretary Austin met Wednesday are recruited. Austin told the recruits, “Our democracy depends on you and your country is dependent on you” before they left for basic training.