Peace Movements and Religion in the U.S
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PEACE MOVEMENTS AND RELIGION IN THE UNITED STATES • 91 PEACE MOVEMENTS AND the purpose of demonstrating the ways in RELIGION IN THE UNITED which religious resources and faith have STATES mobilized citizens to resist war, challenge im perial aspirations, and promote nonviolent forms of conflict transformation. PEACE MOVEMENT ISSUES AND ACTIONS NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND There is a long and rich history of religious DISARMAMENT MOVEMENTS peace movements in the United States. These movements have addressed issues of military Although religious groups had mobilized for conscription, the nuclear arms race, bellicose the cause of peace before World War II, the policies toward other nations, and a variety advent of the nuclear era was transformative. of social justice issues. While there have been The United States demonstrated that it had hundreds of religious peace groups in the the most destructive military capacity of any United States, in this article I survey and high nation when it dropped atomic bombs on light ten. I categorize these movements around Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945, and three the issues of nuclear weapons and disarma days later on Nagasaki. Over 100,000 people ment, the Vietnam War, lowintensity warfare were killed instantly, and tens of thousands in Central America, and nonviolent interven died over the subsequent months. Others suf tion in conflict zones. I selected these ten fered longterm effects from massive radiation movements for the following three reasons. exposure—this included malignant tumors, First, all focused primarily on nonviolent direct various forms of cancer, ophthalmological dis action rather than educational endeavors or orders, neurological disorders, and birth consciousnessraising. This more directly qual defects.1 The use of nuclear weapons raised ifies them as social movements. Second, these serious moral and theological questions. Those are arguably some of the most innovative questions intensified as the Soviet Union movements, demonstrating tactical ingenuity developed atomic weapons, launching a rap and creativity rather than the traditional meth idly escalating nuclear arms race. ods of organizing marches and petitioning Congress. Although some of these movements Catholic Worker and the Civil Defense were controversial, they nonetheless had an Drill Protests. One of the earliest critiques impact—not necessarily in terms of achieving of the nuclear arms race came from the Catholic the goal of peace, but rather by stimulating Worker movement. Founded in 1933 by debate within American religious communi Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin, this move ties about issues of militarism and war. Third, ment combined works of mercy (or charity) these movements challenged imperialist goals. with works of social justice. It also promoted Some of these movements resisted U.S. efforts dialogue on labor and political matters through to establish global military dominance through its newspaper, The Catholic Worker, which its destructive capacity. Others challenged U.S. mimicked the communist newspaper of that involvement in conflicts abroad to benefit U.S. era, The Daily Worker. Witnessing the human business and political interests. In this regard, suffering and the difficult labor conditions of the article should not be seen as an exhaustive the Great Depression, Day and Maurin shared survey of U.S. religious peace movements. the labor movement’s goals, but their politics Rather, it highlights a few movements with were motivated by their Catholic faith. They 0003628681.INDD 91 Dictionary: NOAD 5/22/2018 6:59:36 PM 92 • PEACE MOVEMENTS AND RELIGION IN THE UNITED STATES addressed the immediate needs of the poor Up to this point, the Catholic Worker’s through a soup kitchen and “houses of hospi pacifism was primarily a theological stance tality” for the homeless. But charity was never that they articulated in their newspaper. Yet enough: they emphasized that a social revo Dorothy Day also had a longstanding history lution was needed to eliminate the roots of of political action, and thus it didn’t take long poverty. before she was resisting militarism with more Dorothy Day insisted that this social revo than her words. The first widely publicized lution must be waged nonviolently. A com action occurred in 1954. Instigated by Ammon mitted pacifist, she firmly believed that the Hennacy, who had newly joined the move Gospel called for nonviolent resistance to all ment, a number of Catholic Workers refused injustices. The Catholic Worker movement’s to cooperate with New York City’s air raid views were supported by the theological writ drills, which were to prepare the population ings of Paul Hanley Furfey, a priest and soci for a nuclear attack. Under the Civil Defense ology professor, who called upon Catholics Act, all citizens were legally required to par to reject the “Constantinian Compromise” of ticipate, taking cover in designated shelters the Just War tradition and return to the early when the alarms went off, simulating an air Christian church’s pacifist roots. Yet once Pearl raid. Even though such measures would not Harbor was attacked and the United States provide any viable protection in the event entered World War II, Americans became of a real attack, the drills were designed to more critical of Catholic pacifism. As Dorothy encourage acceptance of the arms race and Day called for conscientious objection, dis provide a (false) sense of protection. couraging young men from registering for the To challenge these acts of militarism, seven draft, the majority of American Catholics sup Catholic Workers—including Day and ported the war.2 As a result, the Catholic Worker Hennacy— refused to take shelter. The next lost many subscribers. Newspaper circulation year, in June 1955, twentythree activists from declined from 130,000 monthly copies in the War Resisters League and the Fellowship of 1939 to only around 50,000 monthly copies Reconciliation joined the Catholic Workers. by 1944.3 In 1956, they again refused to cooperate and Catholic pacifism remained unpopular as were sent to jail for five days. Year after year, World War II ended. Yet, as the world entered they repeated the action, telling New York’s the era of nuclear weapons, Dorothy Day con civil defense director that, “Civil defense, after tinued writing in the Catholic Worker about the all, is an integral part of the total preparation need to end the arms race. She argued that for nuclear war. We, on the other hand, are weapons of mass destruction rendered the convinced that the only secure defense is for Just War tradition obsolete by violating the people to refuse to participate in any way in principle of proportionality, which states that the preparations for war.”4 In 1960, when the the good that will be accomplished through sirens went off, nearly 2,000 protesters assem war must outweigh the totality of destruction bled in Central Park, enjoying a picnic instead and suffering that it will cause. Moreover, nu of cowering in fear of a nuclear attack. The clear bombs violated Just War rules about how protest was covered by various news agencies, war should be waged—namely, these weap marking it as the largest direct action against ons violate the principle of distinction, which nuclear arms to date.5 Eventually, when city requires that civilians not be targeted. personnel realized that they couldn’t enforce 0003628681.INDD 92 Dictionary: NOAD 5/22/2018 6:59:36 PM PEACE MOVEMENTS AND RELIGION IN THE UNITED STATES • 93 drill participation with so many protesters, joining a local SANE group. Within a few they suspended the policy.6 weeks, staff had received 2,500 inquiries. Local chapters were set up, providing a network of Quaker Movements to Stop Nuclear grassroots groups. By the summer of 1958, Testing. Around the same time that Cath SANE had 130 chapters throughout the coun olic Workers were defying the civil defense try, comprising a membership of 25,000.8 drills, a group of Quakers affiliated with the Obviously, not all SANE and CNVA mem American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) bers were Quakers. Yet the Quaker tradition of grew concerned about radioactive fallout from nonviolent engagement shaped the organiza nuclear testing. This concern expanded in tions’ approach, even as they established a divi March 1954 when a nuclear test in the South sion of labor in which SANE generated political Pacific contaminated the Marshall Islands, pressure for a test ban treaty while CNVA harming its residents and nearby fishermen. engaged in direct action. Conse quently, when Shortly thereafter, Indian Prime Minister the Soviet Union unilaterally declared a sus Jawaharlal Nehru proposed an international pension of atmospheric testing in the spring moratorium on testing. While waiting for in of 1958, SANE supporters called upon the ternational governments to respond, Quakers United States government to reciprocate. The at the Chicago AFSC chapter decided to take Eisenhower administration did not recipro action. They organized a meeting in 1957 to cate. Moreover, the president had public opin form the Committee to Stop H Bomb Tests. ion on his side. According to a Gallup poll, only Eventually, they merged their efforts with two 29 percent of U.S. citizens favored a test ban other groups: the Committee for Nonviolent moratorium.9 During this time, CNVA was or Action (CNVA, earlier called Nonviolent ganizing acts of intervention in testing zones. Action Against Nuclear Weapons) and the It launched its first campaign in 1957, on the National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy twelfth anniversary of the Hiroshima bomb (SANE). Quaker donors provided the re ing. On that date, twelve activists entered the sources to fund these new organizations, and Nevada atomic test site and were arrested for SANE and CNVA became the test ban move trespassing. One of those arrested was Alfred ment leaders. Their goal was to instigate a test Bigelow, who began planning a campaign to ing moratorium as a first step toward nuclear obstruct atomic testing in the American South disarmament.7 Pacific.