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The Call for Anti-war Social Work Advocacy

Viewpoints

By Ron Snyder, MSW

protesters holding signs with antiwar slogans such as stop war now Those born after 2001 have never experienced the U.S. in a time of peace. It can be argued that America is currently not engaged in an active war, but U.S. troops are still stationed in declared combat zones and in varying countries to protect national interests. The U.S. funds the Ukrainian and Israeli wars, while posturing for possible wars with Iran and China. This is hardly peace. And yet, peace is dangled in front of the population as they are assured “just one more war and we will be safe. Just a little more increase in the defense budget and we will be safe.”

World War I was supposed to be the war to end all wars, and President Woodrow Wilson said that by committing the U.S. to the wars in Europe, the world could be “made safe for democracy.” But have all these wars made it safer for Americans? Has our quality of life improved?

War and Peace: Relevance to Social Work

Although we are propagandized to believe the war is “over there” and handled, the wars still reach back to the unexposed civilian population in the states. Not to mention, war simply contradicts social work’s values of social justice and dignity and worth of the person. Therefore, it can be argued that social workers have a professional responsibility to be anti-war. Anti-war is interchangeable with pacifism in the dictionary, however pacifism is mistakenly associated with passive behavior. The logic regarding passive behavior versus active opposition of “warism” follows the same logic as anti-racism: An individual is not anti-racist just because they do not participate in racist behavior/beliefs. An individual is not anti-war just because they do not participate in war or believe in warism, which is the moral position that war is not only justifiable in principle but also justified in many actual cases.

During the Global War on Terror (GWOT), ranging from 2001 to 2022, it is estimated that approximately 892,000 to 929,000 people were killed. The majority of those killed were civilians, local nationals in their own countries (Crawford & Lutz, 2021). Nearly 3,000 Americans were brutally murdered in the 9/11 terrorist attacks, justifying the initiation of the war on terror.

Through the two decades of war that followed, however, approximately 7,000 American service members were killed. Keep in mind, this number only reflects those who were killed in war. It does not account for the wounded, the disfigured, dismembered and broken minds. That number does not include the fractured families and communities, and the children growing up without a mother or father. And it does not show the 30,000 completed U.S. service member suicides associated with the GWOT (Suitt, 2021). Social workers care about all of these issues.

Social Justice

Damage to infrastructure is a common result of war, which can lead to destabilization, increased political tensions and potential refugee/human migration situations. But war is not the only contributor. Climate change also plays a role, which exacerbates the situation as it is a cause of deforestation and food and water insecurity (Crawford, 2019). Discussion of environmental justice is an appropriate transition to the second social work value contradicting war: social justice.

Military recruitment targets young individuals and marginalized populations, using incentives like education benefits, monetary bonuses and citizenship. According to the DoD (2022), approximately 70% of America’s military force identifies as white. The U.S. Census Bureau (2023) data show that approximately 75% of the U.S. population is white. This implies that BIPOC communities are committing more of their people to war.

Look to the Past

Social workers have a professional responsibility to advocate for policies that prevent war and encourage international conflict resolution. Fortunately, social workers of the past set excellent examples for others to follow. NASW Pioneer Jane Addams, regarded as the “mother of social work,” founded the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), an organization advocating for disarmament and peace agreements during World War I. Despite the U.S. committing to the war, Addams continued to advocate for peace, resulting in attacks on her reputation. Addams’ anti-war efforts were eventually recognized, and she became the first American woman and second woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Following in her footsteps was social worker Jeanette Rankin, from Montana, who became the first congresswoman. Her efforts included membership in the WILPF, voting against both world wars and leading a silent march of 5,000 women to protest the Vietnam War.

Ron Snyder In an article written in 1993, “Social Work Values and Pacifism,” the author describes an old NASW program called Social Workers for Peace and Justice, which had the purpose of advocating for reduction of military expenditure and peacetime economy conversion with redirection of funds to human welfare (Verschelden, 1993). The program also opposed nuclear weapon production and supported peaceful resolutions to international conflicts.

These are just a few examples of how social workers actively opposed war and can serve as inspiration for social workers today to engage in anti-war advocacy and advocacy of international conflict resolution.

Ron Snyder, MSW, is a social worker and recent graduate of the University of Alaska.

References

Chandler, S. K. (2004). "Curiously uninvolved": Social work and protest against the war in Vietnam. The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 31(4). https://doi.org/10.15453/0191-5096.3023

Crawford, N. C., & Lutz, C. (2021). Human cost of post-9/11 wars: Direct war deaths in major war zones, Afghanistan & Pakistan (Oct. 2001–Aug. 2021); Iraq (March 2003–Aug. 2021); Syria (Sept. 2014–May 2021); Yemen (Oct. 2002–Aug. 2021) and other post-9/11 war zones [Data set]. Boston University.

Crawford, N. C. (2019, November 13). Pentagon fuel use, climate change, and the costs of war. Boston University.

Department of Defense. (2022). 2022 demographics: Profile of the military community. https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/24177791/2022-demographics-report.pdf

Jeannette Rankin Foundation. (n.d.). History of Jeannette Rankin Foundation. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://rankinfoundation.org/history-of-jeannette-rankin-foundation/

Matthews, L. (2016, August 24). Jeannette Rankin BrigadeTA. https://boundarystones.weta.org/2016/08/24/jeannette-rankin-brigade

Michaels, D. (2017). Jane Addams. National Women’s History Museum. https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/jane-addams

ional Women’s Hall of Fame. (n.d.). Jane Addams. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/jane-addams/

Nobel Prize Outreach. (n.d.). The Nobel Peace Prize 1931: Jane Addams. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1931/addams/facts/

Savell, S., & McMahon, R. (n.d.). Numbers and per capita distribution of troops serving in the U.S. post-9/11 wars in 2019, by state. Boston University.

Suitt, T. H. III. (2021). High suicide rates among United States service members and veterans of the post-9/11 wars. Boston University. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/files/cow/imce/papers/2021/Suitt_Suicides_Costs%20of%20War_June%2021%202021.pdf

Verschelden, C. (1993). Social work values and pacifism: Opposition to war as a professional responsibility. Social Work, 38(6), 765–769. https://www.jstor.org/stable/23717187

U.S. Census Bureau. (2023). QuickFacts: United States [Data set]. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US#

Disclaimer

Viewpoints columns are guest editorials about topics related to social work. They are written by contributors to Social Work Advocates magazine, and do not necessarily represent the opinions or reflect the policies of NASW. If you are interested in writing for Viewpoints, email us at swadvocates@socialworkers.org.