Cut the funding and the war stops, right? That’s the line of
reasoning taken by a growing number of peace activists, and it’s a
tactic with a lot of potential. But actually doing it is
harder than it looks. Fortunately, there are plenty of resources
out there for those hard-core activists or for the merely
curious.
‘If you work for peace, stop paying for war,’ says the button
atop the National War Tax
Resistance Coordinating Committee (NWTRCC) website, a general
introduction to the topic replete with handy links. The group,
active since 1982, seeks to build a national alliance of
conscientious objectors to military taxes.
The US ‘war taxes’ are taken out of everything from income taxes
to your phone bill. Nearly half of the US federal income tax
revenue is spent on the military, past and present.
Matthew Wheeland of
AlterNet lays out a step-by-step guide to — and the
repercussions of — war tax resistance. And those repercussions can
be steep, as illustrated by
Every Voice Network‘s, account of war tax resister Pat
Washburn, who lost first her car and then her house to the
IRS.
War-tax resistance is popular among religious groups and other
conscientious objectors. It is a form of nonviolent direct action
that makes a big impact. So what should you do if you’d like to pay
taxes toward building a peaceful society? The
National Campaign for a
Peace Tax Fund is working to create a provision in tax law to
allow conscientious objectors to pay their taxes in full, but
ensuring that the war portion is instead spent on non-military
activities.
Go there >>
National War Tax Resistance
Coordinating Committee
Go there too >>
War Tax Resistance
Made Simple
Related Links:
Related Links from the Utne
Archive:
Comments? Story tips?
Write a letter to the editor
Like this? Want more?Subscribe to Utne
magazine
