Conscience and dissent
Jane Dawson writes about the ‘Remembering Muted Voices’ symposium
Kansas City, Missouri was once the western frontier of the United States. The sprawling Mississippi flanks its border with the state of Kansas. It marks a boundary, the former division between the Northern states (the Union) and the slave-owning states of the South.
As the gathering point for pioneer trails out to the west of the US, Kansas City has always been a melting pot of hope, religious zeal and military might. Today the city is the home of Hallmark cards and American football’s Kansas City Chiefs. Less benign is the wealth created from the production of depleted uranium. This product contributes to a significant proportion of the US nuclear weapons programme.
It is no surprise to find at the heart of the city the nation’s largest memorial to those who fell in world war one. Standing high above Union Station in Kansas City it is easy to imagine the impression it made on the rail travellers of the ‘roaring twenties’. Egyptian sphinxes with wings covering their eyes in horror flank a torchlit tower. The National World War I Museum is housed beneath this impressive monument.
In 1917 America entered the first world war. It is currently marking the anniversary. The Museum recently hosted a symposium, ‘Remembering Muted Voices: Conscience, Dissent, Resistance and Civil Liberties in World War I Through Today’. Attendees came from peace groups and churches around the world. White poppies from the Peace Pledge Union were included in all 250 delegate arrival packs. I was among the speakers along with Simon Colbeck, another British Friend
Music framed the symposium, opening with the words of Quaker MP John Bright set to Dona noblis pacem, the cantata by Ralph Vaughan Williams, and closing with hymns sung by the Hutterite children’s choir. Ecumenical worship was held ‘to remember all who died in world war one of whatever race, people, gender and country; all COs [conscientious objectors]; those known and unknown; those who survived and those who died, in every nation’. Quaker silence and Mennonite prayers were included.
Initially America was reluctant to enter the war. The explosion of the military infrastructure during and immediately after the war fuelled an economic boom. This overcame the natural isolationism of the US, making it politically expedient to become a player on the world stage. As in Britain, anti-war resistance was largely written out of US history. While in Britain up to 20,000 COs are recorded, in the US 64,700 Americans registered as conscientious objectors to the draft. As the symposium unfolded it became clear that world war one resistance groups were seedbeds of the later civil rights movement. Faith organisations inspired and supported the early formation of such groups. Quaker influence and involvement was clearly evident. In the face of great adversity peacework can sometimes feel futile. Looking back over the century with a long view of history, it is possible to see the genesis of a century of change.
The stories of British conscientious objectors, Howard Marten, Corder Catchpool and Percy Leonard, mirrored the story of three Hutterite brothers. Tortured in Alcatraz, two of them eventually died in Fort Leavenworth military prison. The lack of respect for deeply held views and basic human dignity generated a palpable sense of horror and sadness amongst symposium participants.
Time and again throughout the symposium speakers referred to the violation of the first amendment, drawing parallels with today. The first amendment defends religious expression and free speech. The National World War I Museum must be commended for showcasing military history alongside the history of resistance. It respectfully allows everyone a voice. It was a lesson for us all – to consider how we engage with those who hold opposing views before war breaks out.
Jane is head of external communications for Britain Yearly Meeting.
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