William White

Who is William White?

William "Bill" White was a Sydney school teacher during the Vietnam War. In July 1966, White defied a notice to report for duty at an army induction centre. White was the first Australian to be a public conscientious objector to the Vietnam War. Both this initial application for total exemption and subsequent appeals were rejected. White was removed from his classroom and ordered to report to Army quarters at Watsons Bay. He refused to comply and waited at home for the authorities to make the next move.

This standoff lasted for several days and gained wide press coverage causing considerable embarrassment for the Australian Government. The standoff ended when White was dragged from his home after refusing to comply with an order to enter the army. A photo of this event became a potent symbol of the nature of conscription. The famous image of Bill being dragged off by three policemen was taken by John Fairfax 1966.

He was gaoled just before the 1966 election, and continued to seek conscientious objector status until he eventually succeeded on 23 December 1966.

White's main objection was that he felt he was being asked to kill other human beings. However, he also had objections to the war itself and conscription.