Fifty years since the end of the U.S. War in Vietnam, Quakers continue to be on the forefront of opposing conscription and supporting conscientious objection to war. As Congress considers changes to the Selective Service, including proposals FCNL opposes to expand draft registration to women, FCNL is hosting a conversation about conscientious objection among Friends, from Vietnam to today.
Register to join our conversation on conscientious objection on Weds. Jan. 18 at 6:30 p.m. EST.
Speakers joining us for this Quaker Changemaker event are Lenore Yarger, who works with the GI Rights Hotline and Quaker House in Fayetteville, NC to counsel service members considering their options including conscientious objection, and FCNL Executive Secretary Emeritus Joe Volk, who was a conscientious objector after being drafted in the U.S. War in Vietnam. They’ll be in dialogue with Sr. Director of Quaker Leadership Alicia McBride.
Speakers
Joe Volk
Joe Volk is an FCNL Executive Secretary Emeritus, having served in that role from 1990 to 2011. Currently, he serves on the General Committee of FCNL, the Corporation Committee of the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), the Corporation Committee of Haverford College, and is a trustee of the board of Wilmington College (OH).
Prior to joining FCNL in 1990, Joe worked 18 years for the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and served as its National Secretary for Peace Education from 1982 to 1990.
He began a career in the peace movement when in 1967 he refused a deferment from the military draft and went into the Army to try to organize troops to refuse deployment to Vietnam. In 1968, he refused to go with his unit to Vietnam. Although convicted in a court martial on AWOL charges, he received an honorable discharge after doing a short time in an Army stockade.
In 2011, Wilmington College honored him with an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters. He also serves on the board of the Kendal Corporation, a federation of non-profit, Quaker continuing care retirement communities.
Joe is a member of Ann Arbor Friends Meeting (MI).
Lenore Yarger
Lenore is a resource counselor with Quaker House and the GI Rights Hotline. The GI Rights Hotline is a confidential, toll-free hotline that provides information and resources to US military members anywhere in the world who are having issues with their military service. Together with her husband, Steve Woolford, Lenore supports military members who want out of the military for a variety of reasons, including conscientious objection. She also helps with grievances and complaints about unfair treatment, poor medical and/or mental health care, and sexual assault. She works with military members who are AWOL to resolve their situations.
Lenore, Steve, and their two children live at the Silk Hope Catholic Worker in rural North Carolina, where they offer shelter and support to house-less women and children.
Alicia McBride
Alicia McBride leads FCNL’s work to nurture, expand, and deepen relationships with Friends across the United States. She also works to ensure that everyone engaged with the organization understands the spiritual basis of FCNL’s advocacy. She oversees FCNL events at the Quaker Welcome Center as well as Annual Meeting and the Quaker Public Policy Institute.