Can National Guardsmen deployed to US cities claim conscientious objection? [View all]
In the desert, he realized Humvees don’t uphold the Constitution: People do.
Twenty years later, Iraq War veteran Aaron Hughes continues spreading his realization that soldiers can better champion American ideals by following their conscience over orders.
The 42-year-old is sharing the message more vociferously than ever as President Donald Trump moves to deploy troops to cities around the U.S. in what the president says is an effort to fight crime and support immigration enforcement.
"When people withdraw themselves from the gears of the machine, that’s power, and service members need to know they have power to withdraw their consent," said the Chicago-area native.
Hughes is an Illinois-based member of About Face: Veterans Against the War, an organization formed to stop "militarism and endless wars" that has been slamming the White House’s efforts to use soldiers to police Americans and is urging troops to resist being deployed.
"We’re trying to rebuild the GI resistance movement," said Hughes, referring to the sweeping efforts veterans and service members made to end the Vietnam War. "We don't want our brothers and sisters participating in this authoritarian adventurism."
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/10/03/vets-call-on-national-guard-to-refuse-deployment-orders/86243828007/?tbref=hp
This is what helped end the Vietnam war.
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