The Center on Conscience & War (CCW) is a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

anti-war An anti-war movement (also ''antiwar'') is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term anti-war can also refer to pa ...

organization located in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, dedicated to defending and extending the rights of

conscientious objector A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...

s. The group participates in the G.I. Rights Hotline, and works against all forms of

conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...

. There are no charges for any of CCW's services. The group was organized as National Council for Religious Conscientious Objectors on October 5, 1940, by the three historic peace churches in response to the

Selective Training and Service Act of 1940 The Selective Training and Service Act of 1940, also known as the Burke–Wadsworth Act, , was the first peacetime conscription in United States history. This Selective Service Act required that men who had reached their 21st birthday b ...

, which introduced the first peacetime draft in the United States. The Selective Service Act provided for ''work of national importance'' and an alternative to military service for conscientious objectors. The immediate task of this group was to advise conscientious objectors and create a structure for the proposed alternative service. On November 26, 1940, National Council for Religious Conscientious Objectors was merged with a similar organization, Civilian Service Board, to become National Service Board for Religious Objectors (NSBRO). In the following months additional groups became interested in the work of NSBRO and positions on the governing board was expanded to include representatives from the

Fellowship of Reconciliation The Fellowship of Reconciliation (FoR or FOR) is the name used by a number of religious nonviolent organizations, particularly in English-speaking countries. They are linked by affiliation to the International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR). ...

, Fellowship of Peace of the

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

Disciples of Christ The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...

and Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America. During this first year a total of fifteen groups became members of NSBRO and by the end of the war this number grew to thirty nine. During its first year, 3000 conscientious objectors were referred to NSBRO by Selective Service. In all, nearly 12,000 World War II COs would be handled by NSBRO. The program for conscientious objectors,

Civilian Public Service The Civilian Public Service (CPS) was a program of the United States government that provided conscientious objectors with an alternative to military service during World War II. From 1941 to 1947, nearly 12,000 draftees, willing to serve their ...

(CPS), was under civilian control with NSBRO responsible for working with the government and representing the interests of the churches and other groups involved. The work of NSBRO was divided into three sections. The ''Camp Section'' selected sites, often former

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

facilities, for use as CPS base camps, The ''Assignment Section'' matched men with camps and units, keeping detailed records of the assignments and projects. The ''Complaint Section'' worked with cases of men who were denied conscientious objector status. Later an ''Advisory Section'' was created to track the changes in Selective Service regulations and interpret them to NSBRO constituency. Regular contact was made with COs who chose prison over CPS. Conscientious objectors were required to serve into 1947, past the end of the war. Member groups who disagreed with this policy or the cooperation required with a system of conscription began to withdraw from the organization.

War Resisters League The War Resisters League (WRL) is the oldest secular pacifist organization in the United States. History Founded in 1923 by men and women who had opposed World War I, it is a section of the London-based War Resisters' International. It continues ...

pulled out early in the war, followed by Fellowship of Reconciliation,

American Friends Service Committee The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is a Religious Society of Friends (''Quaker'') founded organization working for peace and social justice in the United States and around the world. AFSC was founded in 1917 as a combined effort by Am ...

, and Association of Catholic Conscientious Objectors. The last CPS camp closed in April 1947, completing this phase of NSBRO work. In 1964 the name was changed to National Interreligious Service Board for Conscientious Objectors (NISBCO), and in 2000 it became Center on Conscience & War (CCW). Today, the work of the Center on Conscience & War is mainly with members of the US military who experience a crisis of conscience and seek discharge as conscientious objectors. CCW also provides technical and community support to other conscientious objectors, including immigrants seeking citizenship in the US who are moved by conscience to take an alternative oath of citizenship that does not include a promise to bear arms, and youth facing Selective Service (draft) registration.

References

*Gingerich, Melvin (1949), ''Service for Peace, A History of Mennonite Civilian Public Service'',

Mennonite Central Committee Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) is a relief service, and peace agency representing fifteen Mennonite, Brethren in Christ and Amish bodies in North America. The U.S. headquarters are in Akron, Pennsylvania, the Canadian in Winnipeg, Manitoba. ...

.
The Plurism Project profile
accessed 2006-02-08

External links

Official site

in ''Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Center on Conscience and War Conscientious objection organizations Peace organizations based in the United States Military sociology Non-profit organizations based in Washington, D.C. 501(c)(3) organizations

See also

References

External links