A History of National Service in America , Peter Shapiro, Ed. If the citizen soldier can be traced back to the very origins of America, so can the conscientious objector.
Conscientious objection is an extraordinary freedom.
Yet, through time, the notion has grown that conscientious objection could not only be allowed, but that mandatory civic duties could be performed in other than a soldier s role. To the degree the state defines alternative service as a legitimate way of meeting citizenship obligations and to the degree the conscientious objector accepts that definition, we come to a profound expansion of the meaning of national service. No colony, it seems, ever forced religious objectors to bear arms if they were willing to pay for exemption. During the Revolutionary War, Mennonites and Brethren frequently purchased exemptions from military service, while Quakers suffered fines or even confiscation of property for their refusal to enroll in the militia. Over the years, the obvious moral integrity of the conscientious objectors gained them grudging respect and toleration.