PLEASE NOTE THIS EVENT IS FULL: April 13 screening of THE TRIALS OF MUHAMMAD ALI at the Washington DC Jewish Community Center



Maria Santelli is the executive director for the Center for Conscience and War, an organization that was formed in 1940 and was then known as the National Interreligious Service Board for Conscientious Objectors (NISBCO). CCW works to defend and extend the rights of conscientious objectors*. The Center is committed to supporting all those who question participation in war, whether they are U.S. citizens, permanent residents, documented or undocumented immigrants–or citizens in other countries.

At the center of the film, “The Trials of Muhammad Ali,” the boxing champion finds himself in a highly publicized and political debate for his refusal to serve in the Vietnam War. He is banned from boxing and faces a five-year prison sentence. Ali’s choice of belief and conscience over fame and fortune resonates far beyond the boxing ring, striking issues of race, faith and identity that continue to confront us all today.

In 2008, Maria Santelli founded the New Mexico GI Rights Hotline node to provide direct services and resources to callers and to be a leading voice statewide on issues affecting service members and veterans, including conscientious objection, military sexual violence, post-traumatic stress disorder, and truth in recruitment. Maria has developed local and statewide policy on military recruiting in schools and jail diversion programs for veterans, favoring treatment as an alternative to incarceration.

For more information about the Center for Conscience and War, visit their website at www.centeronconscience.org.

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conscientious objector: a person who refuses to serve in the armed forces or bear arms on moral or religious grounds (source: Merriam-Webster)