America has had a rich history of antiwar dissent in the past century. Antiwar protests are especially significant in the United States because they are an exercise of the First Amendment, something central to America’s understanding of freedom and democracy. America’s contributions to international warfare have represented turning points in its history in a multitude of ways. A country’s participation in war is a controversial subject and has always garnered dissent from citizens. Antiwar dissent has always coincided with eras of significant social change. Antiwar dissent holds a significant bearing in U.S. history since 1877, especially in the 20th and 21st centuries, because it has served as a platform for domestic social change, represented an avenue of communication with the government, and demanded accountability from the system which represents Americans.
This project will define antiwar dissent as any organized action against government involvement in war. It will assess a diverse array of dissent; direct and indirect action against war, songs, speeches, newspaper articles, photos, and political cartoons. Each manifestation of dissent – whether it contributed to achieving peace or not – shows the importance of free speech to democracy. All forms of dissent are effective in that they contribute to the cultivation of democratic norms in America. The investigation will begin in 1914 with the start of the World War One and end in present day, noting our omnipresent involvement in Afghanistan.
It is no coincidence that American involvement in war has coincided with profound social and political change. The onset of the Great War revealed the challenges of globalization and the complicated nature of progressively intertwined international relations[1]. Countries who were in opposition with each other engaged in conflicts over respective spheres of influence – for the United States, American Exceptionalism drove foreign policy. On the domestic front, race and gender divisions became more and more apparent as minority groups grew tired of a government which did not act in their best interest.
Following the First World War, the United States enacted isolationist policy in an attempt to confront adversity along racial, economic, and gender lines. The Second World War forced the United States out of isolation. An international showdown against Nazism and Fascism demonstrated that war’s purpose in America had shifted. Gone was the era of warfare over small-scale ideological or geographical disputes. By 1941, war had become a mechanism for preventing the spread of ideologies the United States saw as irreconcilable with its ownWhat ensued was a four-year-long all-out assault on governments and political views that would not submit to the agenda of the American government. This new perception of warfare’s purpose continued across multiple generations, partly in thanks to the Cold War and unwavering fear of weapons of mass destruction. In the past half century, war’s boundaries have dissolved: it has become much more violent, all-consuming, and driven by ulterior motives. Countries have become much more willing to sacrifice civilians and make assaults on the personal lives of those involved through the media
In a majority rules system, there will always be groups who feel unheard by their government. America’s foundational document, the Constitution, ensures the freedom to publicly voice one’s opinion, whether that be through speech or assembly. Dissent is an important part of America’s status as a healthy democracy as it allows average citizens to subvert political bureaucracy. After the invention of the atomic bomb, antiwar dissent became more common than previous wars as a result of the heightened stakes contingent on such a destructive weapon[4]. During the Cold War, administrations from both parties questionably inserted American forces into proxy battles against communism. Involvement in wars that did not directly impact the status of the United States left the American populous questioning the government’s true intentions and dedication to the notion of equality along race and gender lines. Many correctly feared that the government’s inaction on civil rights would be exploited by the Soviet Union to portray the United States as hypocritical and weak[5].The Cold War era also yielded heightened media coverage of how the government operated and Americans became increasingly aware that politicians operated with tunnel-vision – every political quarrel returned to communism and how it could be destroyed[6]. The release of the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam era became one of many catalysts for heightened awareness of suspect government operations. In modern American history, antiwar protests became an important part of a society mobilized for war. Civil Rights oriented groups utilized these protests to pursue racial equality[7]. Antiwar protest during World War One was used by women to dismantle biases – which had prevented them from political involvement – that had been ingrained in society worldwide for thousands of years[8]. In later wars, women found themselves in a political culture more open to their voices and opinions. The rise of the Civil Rights Movement provided an space for African-Americans to give their perspective on war’s connection to their struggle for civil rights and freedom. Groups with a diverse array of motivations used antiwar dissent pursue their own (often intersectional) agendas. These factions operated differently given their different motivations and grievances, but all found successes in objecting against war.
The beginning of modern warfare (WW1) marked a shift towards long-term wars which held deep implications for American life. There will be analysis of American involvement in World War 2 and the heightened the stakes of conflict. The Cold War engulfed American society, as proxy battles between the United States and the U.S.S.R. infiltrated and changed life as Americans knew it. These proxy battles exposed racial and gender injustices within America and showed that the government was not as direct and honest with its citizens as once previously believed[9]. Given the successes of the Civil Rights movement, dissent became a popular way to put pressure on the government. Recent wars have failed to recreate the spirit of dissent during the Vietnam era, but popular media has bolstered the ability to do so.
The purpose of this project is to show that American wars since 1900 have had different core motivations, therefore yielding a diverse array of dissent in form and purpose. This project ultimately demonstrates that antiwar dissent is significant to American history in that it has served as a platform to confront social inequality and hold the government accountable for its questionable actions when they did not represent the population’s desires. War protests have also served to expose the government’s conditional dedication to civil liberties, and revealed the hypocrisy in America’s participation in wars that are fundamental to American history. Ultimately, the government’s ignorance towards the destructive impact inherent to war shows the ugly story behind the perceived glory of America and its values.
[1] Strikwerda, Carl1. 2016. “World War I in the History of Globalization.” Historical Reflections 42 (3): 112–32.
[2] Levy, Alexandra F. 2015. “Promoting Democracy and Denazification: American Policymaking and German Public Opinion.” Diplomacy & Statecraft 26 (4): 614–35.
[3] Larson, Eric V., Bogdan Savych, Project Air Force (U.S.), and Rand Corporation. 2007. Misfortunes of War : Press and Public Reactions to Civilian Deaths in Wartime. Rand Corporation Monograph Series. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation.
[4] Howlett, Charles F. “Studying America’s Struggle against War: An Historical Perspective.” The History Teacher 36, no. 3 (2003): 297-330.
[5] Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty! An American History. 5th ed. Vol. 2. Seagull. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 935
[6] Foner, Give Me Liberty! An American History, 1005
[7] Foner, Give Me Liberty! An American History, 935
[8] Galt, Margot Fortunato. 2000. “The Movement beyond the Movement.” In Stop This War!, 38. Lerner Publishing Group.
[9] Burns, Ken, dir. “Ken Burns Vietnam: Riding the Tiger In Ken Burns Vietnam, produced by Lynn Novick. PBS. September 19, 2017. 49:45:00