What does it mean when U.S. military members become conscientious objectors to war?

WBUR | By Here & Now Newsroom

Published April 8, 2026 at 11:54 AM EDT

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U.S. Army soldiers stand in formation next to a US flag and a U.S. Army armoured vehicle as they take part in the NATO "Noble Blueprint 23" joint military exercise at the Novo Selo military ground, northwestern Bulgaria, on September 26, 2023. (Nikolay Doychinov/AFP via Getty Images)

The Center on Conscience and War, a nonprofit that advises service members seeking conscientious objections, says it’s seeing a rise in calls from U.S. military members facing deployment who are seeking to be discharged or reassigned as conscientious objectors.

Here & Now’s Indira Lakshmanan gets more context about the process with Iraq War veteran Mike Prysner, the nonprofit’s executive director.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.