[Peace] The Good War And Those Who Refused to Fight It

[Kranich, Kimberlie]

7pm Tuesday, January 8th at the IMC, come out to watch the sneak preview of
"The Good War and Those Who Refused to Fight It" and meet WILL-TV program
director, David Thiel (for those who cannot make the sneak preview, the
program will be broadcast on WILL-TV at 9pm January 15th).

THE GOOD WAR And Those Who Refused To Fight It sheds light on a previously
ignored part of the World War II saga - the story of American conscientious
objectors who refused to fight "the good war." It is a story of personal
courage, idealism and nonconformity based on both ethical and religious
beliefs - about men whose love of country could not extend to killing their
fellow man.  THE GOOD WAR And Those Who Refused To Fight It tells its story
through the memories of several remarkable men who went against the tide of
the most popular and justifiable war of the 20th century. Many were Quakers
or others whose religious beliefs interpreted the commandment "Thou Shalt
Not Kill" to include war; others were passionate pacifists who felt morally
incapable of cooperating with a violent conflict, no matter how worthy the
cause. 	
	
	
Like today, during WWII many Americans felt that being opposed to war was
cowardly and unpatriotic. In order to prove their patriotism while
maintaining their principles, many of these World War II conscientious
objectors risked their lives as fire jumpers and medical guinea pigs. In the
film, former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop recalls working with COs as a
young doctor in these dangerous and sometimes deadly experiments. Thousands
of other COs volunteered to work in mental institutions and helped transform
them from places of filth and degradation to the more humane institutions of
today. All of these efforts took place under Civilian Public Service, a
national system of work camps administered and paid for by the "peace"
churches - the Quakers, Mennonites and Brethren.  Thousands, however,
refused to cooperate with the war effort and spent the war years in prison,
where they used hunger strikes to integrate the federal prison system.  All
lived with the scorn of a nation, and often family and friends as well.
While it has been more than half a century since WWII, this particular war
story has been almost entirely lost to history until now.