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Here's What Martial Law In The US Would Actually Look Like - YouTube
Channel: The Infographics Show
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It's finally happened, a less-than-ethical
bioresearch company accidentally released
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the T-virus.
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It all started with a cough, some difficulty
breathing, and pretty soon Tyrants, zombie
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dogs, and those gross guys with the long tongues
started running rampant.
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Now there's only one way to enforce the quarantine
that will save America- forget social distancing,
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it's time for martial law.
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Martial law has been declared numerous times
throughout US history, from the Revolutionary
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War to the 1960's civil rights movement.
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But what is martial law exactly, and what
would it look like in modern life?
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Martial law is typically declared in times
of national emergency, though what exactly
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constitutes an emergency varies from nation
to nation.
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Once martial law is declared, most civil rights
are temporarily suspended, and the US military
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assumes control of all law enforcement duties,
although existing law enforcement is still
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active and aids in establishing martial law.
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Because martial law pretty much suspends democracy
as we know it, in the United States it has
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been sparingly used, and even when it has
it鈥檚 been in a very limited scope.
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If there's one thing country music has taught
us, it's that Americans love their freedom,
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and don't take kindly to the government infringing
on it.
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Thus martial law is only declared in the US
for the most extreme circumstances, for times
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when the military is needed to help maintain
law and order.
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Recent incidents of martial law include its
enactment after the attack on Pearl Harbor,
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but even then it was only declared in Hawaii
and only because an imminent invasion was
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feared.
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In the US only the President has the power
to enact martial law nationally.
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Each state governor has the right to enact
martial law in their own state individually,
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and enforce it with the aid of federal troops
as well as the National Guard.
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Controversially though, in 2007, President
George W. Bush's administration added a provision
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into a military funding bill allowing the
President to take command of the National
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Guard units of each state without their governor's
consent.
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Let's say your city ends up on the T-virus's
menu.
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One day you're working your four full-time
jobs while also attending college and still
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not making rent, and suddenly people start
turning into zombies and lickers all around
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you.
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The state governor gets on tv and announces
he's enacting martial law to enforce a mandatory
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quarantine.
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The first thing you'll notice about your new
life is that you've got a curfew again, only
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this one is much more restrictive and better
enforced than the one your parents set up
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while you were in high school.
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You are not allowed to be out of your house
from 8pm to 9am every single day.
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The curfew is meant to control the flow of
people, and it makes it easier for law enforcement
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to spot bad actors.
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During war time if you were violating curfew
at 2 in the morning, there's a good chance
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you were an enemy saboteur.
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Curfews during a viral pandemic though can
also help to limit the spread of the disease,
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and if the outbreak is severe enough, you
may not be allowed out of your home at all
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except on specific days for specific times.
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A highly restricted curfew could for instance
only allow you to leave your home for three
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hours every third day.
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Each part of a city could have a different
curfew, and thus the spread of the virus would
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be highly limited as only one part of the
city would be away from home at any given
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time.
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In most nations, martial law automatically
suspends all of your civil rights, and gives
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the military complete police and judicial
powers.
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In the United States though, Supreme Court
decisions have worked to limit the scope of
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martial law, and even if martial law is declared,
citizens still have a right to a civil trial.
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The arresting authority of military or law
enforcement during martial law however is
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not restricted, meaning that you could be
arrested and not immediately charged.
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This certainly throws the door open to some
very scary scenarios, with police and military
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arresting individuals as they see fit, and
is one of the big reasons why martial law
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is so rarely declared.
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If a catastrophe is serious enough, or lasts
long enough, and martial law is necessary
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for an extended amount of time, along with
a curfew you may need to carry specially assigned
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movement and travel documents.
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These would be given to you by the authorities
after carefully interrogating your personal
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life and your needs- as in what you do for
a living and what type of non-home medical
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or specialized care you need.
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Then the authorities would hand you documents
which authorize you to either be in violation
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of curfew, or to travel outside of established
control zones so you can do things like go
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to work or get to a physical therapist appointment.
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These documents will typically be very specific
about where you're allowed to go and when,
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helping the authorities to determine if you're
in violation of curfew or travel restrictions.
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During World War II many Nazi-occupied countries
found themselves dealing with German-backed
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curfews and travel restrictions necessitating
special transit or travel documents.
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If martial law is declared nationally, you'll
need these documents to leave your home city
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and travel anywhere else, and any foreign
travel will have to be approved in advance.
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To enforce travel and movement restrictions,
security checkpoints will be placed throughout
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your city and strategic areas.
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If the emergency is bad enough that segregation
of the population and tight movement control
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is necessary, you could even see entire streets
closed off and neighborhoods get barricaded.
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This will be done in order to ensure that
there are only a select amount of avenues
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of travel through the city, which can all
be overwatched by a series of security checkpoints.
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In the United States, elections are protected
by the Constitution, and thus martial law
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cannot stop or impede an election from happening.
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During the Civil War despite martial law having
been established, there were still two major
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elections.
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Having strict travel restrictions though could
certainly impede the democratic process.
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Want to learn about some of the craziest laws
you might break during martial law?
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Check out our video crazy laws that still
exist around the world.
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Or perhaps you'd prefer this other video instead-
either way, click one now, at least you can
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still watch your favorite youtube channel
during martial law!
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