Camilo Ernesto Mejía (born August 28, 1975)[1] is a Nicaraguan who left the United States Army during the Iraq War on conscientious objector grounds, was convicted of desertion and went on to become an anti-war activist.
[3] On May 21, 2004, Mejía was convicted of desertion by a military jury and sentenced to one year confinement, reduction to the rank of Private E-1, and a Bad Conduct Discharge.
Mejía is interviewed in "The Ground Truth: After the Killing Ends (2006)", a documentary about the training and alleged dehumanization of U.S. soldiers, and how they struggle to come to terms with it when they come back home.
[7] In early 2006, alternative reggae/rock band State Radio released the album Us Against the Crown, which features the song "Camilo".
Lyrics in the song reflect on Camilo Mejía's situation: Twenty days in a concrete fallout/ What life have I to take your own/ Oh my country, won't you call out/ Doorbells are ringing with boxes of bones/ And from another land's war torn corners/ To a prison cell in my own/ Punish me for not taking your orders/ But don't lock me up for not leavin' my home Camilo/ Camilo/ Leaving my home/ Camilo/ Camilo