The Conscientious Objector News & Features

In early 1967, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. informed his advisors that he intended to play a major role in the anti-war movement, advocating immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Vietnam. No major figure of Dr. King's stature had yet been willing to take such a dramatic stand, and King knew he would be turning past allies like President Lyndon Johnson into powerful enemies. His inner circle feared he would trigger a political backlash that could undo the progress made in civil rights. Drawing from the historical record, including the FBI's relentless and often illegal surveillance, and the White House's infamous secret telephone recordings, The Conscientious Objector tells a troubling story of dissent in America during a time of war.