Quakers and Wars During the 1900s / Quakers and the Civil War

Quakers and Wars During the 1900s, also, Quakers and the Civil War. . , Quakers and Wars During the 1900s , The 1900s saw warfare and humanitarian atrocities around the globe. Quakers were caught in the middle. During World War I, thousands of American men, including Quakers, were drafted. Quakers do not believe in participating in war; so drafted members served in non-combat positions. In 1917, the Quakers founded the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) as another way for conscientious objectors to aid their country., In the 1930s, AFSC provided essential positions for civilians caught in the Spanish Civil War. During World War II, AFSC helped Jewish refugees escape from Nazi Germany. They also supported civilians on both sides of the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The organization continues to promote Quaker beliefs in peace and civil justice around the world., [Captions:] , The AFSC protested the Vietnam War outside of the White House., Banner image: The AFSC fed children caught in the Spanish Civil War., In the Depression, AFSC helped unemployed Appalachian miners find alternative occupations., During World War II, Quaker relief workers brought supplies to Jewish refugees in France., In 1949, Quakers provided assistance to Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip., Quakers and the Civil War , Prior to the Civil War, the nation was deeply divided by slavery. The War would determine if the nation continued as two separate countries or one nation without slavery. Quakers, a pacifist religious sect, were heavily represented in the Abolitionist movement. They helped slaves escape on the Underground Railroad and sometimes opened their homes to those in need., For Quakers, the Civil War was difficult slavery violated moral laws, they also do not believe in fighting wars. Young Quaker men had the choice of serving in the army or finding replacements. Those who refused to find a replacement were charged a $300 fee. If they refused to pay the exemption fee, they were threatened with the loss of their land., [Captions:] , Levi and Catherine White Coffin were Quaker abolitionists. They set up safe houses for fugitive slaves in Indiana and Ohio., Banner image: This sketch illustrates the dangers of fugitive slaves and abolitionists faced on the Underground Railroad. . This historical marker was erected by Ohio Historical Society. It is in Mount Pleasant in Jefferson County Ohio