Anti-War Voices

In the history of the United States, opposition to war has never been socially acceptable or tolerated. We see this in the Revolutionary war when the Quakers refused to pay taxes that funded militias and to participate in the war. These people faced persecution on both sides of the war, even though they followed their religious beliefs. Fast forward d to the Civil War when Congressman Clement L. Vallandigham started to criticize Lincoln and the government for their faults in the Civil War and to call for the end of the Civil War. Vallandigham m also was a member of the Knights of the Golden Circle, a secret anti-war group active in midwestern states during the Civil War. However, in 1863 he made a speech in Ohio against Lincoln and the government again, so consequently, that May, he was arrested by the military for reasonable sympathy. He was tried and exiled to the Confederacy. The suppression of Anti-War voices during these times can also be seen by governmental action taken during these times, like the suspension of Habeas Corpus by Lincoln during the Civil war and years before the passing of the Alien and Sedition Acts by John Adams during the Quasi-War. 

This long history of pro-war by the government and society has a chokehold on America even today; people who even mention that the government is mishandling a war are often ridiculed. This is seen even to this day. In 2001 a poll was done to see how many Americans supported an invasion of Afghanistan 80% of Americans supported the invasion, and 18% did not. This invasion of Afgraghtain led to an almost 20-year stay there by American troops and many civilian deaths.  During these two decades, the American government constantly lied about the progress they were making in Afghanistan and hid the war crimes they were committing. This is why sites like AntiWar.com and The American Conservative are so vital to the US way of life. During the wars, the people are usually fed propaganda by the leading news stations telling us to trust our government and that everything is fine. A strong anti-war voice will never really be put on television because that is seen as unpatriotic in today's age people will look at you and deem you hate your own country just because you disagree with its stance on war. Sites like the one I mentioned before you will most likely never see an ad for, and if you do find the site you would have to purposefully look for it; the reason for that is that no app or site wants to be affiliated with an anti-war site because in this day and age not supporting a war is interpreted as treason. While we may not always agree with these sites, they still must be easily and readily available if a consumer wants them. If no news sources do not question the government during times of war, then there is something truly wrong.