The American Legion is a congressionally chartered patriotic, mutual-aid veteran's organization of the United States armed forces. It is the largest veteran organization in the world with 2.8 million members in the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, and several foreign countries. All members are current or former members of the U.S. Armed Forces with honorable service on active duty during periods of armed conflict.
In addition to organizing commemorative events and volunteer veteran support activities, the American Legion is active in U.S. politics. While its primary political activity is lobbying on the behalf of the interests of veterans and service members, including support for veteran's benefits such as pensions and the Veterans Affairs hospital system, it has also been involved in more general political issues.
At the state level, the American Legion is organized into "departments," which run annual civic training events for American youth. Notable among these are, American Legion Baseball, the National High School Oratorical Contest, Scouting, and of course Boys State and Boys Nation.
For more information about the American Legion and their programs, visit the American Legion Department of Arkansas web site at www.arlegion.org