In Gillette v. United States, two individuals conscripted into the U.S. Army contended that the Free Exercise Clause prohibited the government from forcing them to fight in a particular war if doing so would violate their religious beliefs. The Court rejected the claims of the two soldiers, noting that the Free Exercise Clause prohibits government conduct designed to impede observance of one or all religions or to discriminate between religions. In the case of a neutral law with a secular purpose, the Free Exercise Clause only prohibits government conduct that results in a burden not justified by the gravity of the government’s interest. In the case of conscription, which is a neutral law, the Court found that the government’s substantial interest in procuring the manpower necessary to maintain an army outweighed the impact of the burden on objecting soldiers. Thus, the Free Exercise Clause does not entitle an individual to an exemption from fighting in a particular conflict on religious grounds.
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