The Committee of Catholics to Fight Anti-Semitism (later known as the Committee of Catholics for Human Rights) was an American Catholic anti-racist organization formed in May 1939, partially in response to the 1938 announcement of

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City fro ...

that "it is not possible for Christians to take part in anti-Semitism". It was supported by many prominent Catholics, including members of the

Catholic Worker Movement The Catholic Worker Movement is a collection of autonomous communities of Catholics and their associates founded by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin in the United States in 1933. Its aim is to "live in accordance with the justice and charity of Jesus ...

, among them

Dorothy Day Dorothy Day (November 8, 1897 – November 29, 1980) was an American journalist, social activist and anarchist who, after a bohemian youth, became a Catholic without abandoning her social and anarchist activism. She was perhaps the best-known ...

Origin

In September 1938 Pope Pius XI, speaking to a group of Belgian pilgrims, denounced anti-Semitism explicitly, saying that it was incompatible with Christianity. Influenced by this statement, a group of American bishops released a statement encouraging Catholics to, "guard against all forms of racial bigotry." Inspired by the statement of the bishops, the Committee of Catholics to Fight Anti-Semitism was formed in May 1939 by Dorothy Day,

Catherine Doherty Ekaterina Fyodorovna Kolyschkine de Hueck Doherty (August 15, 1896 – December 14, 1985) was a Russian-Canadian Catholic baroness, social worker, racial justice activist, and founder of Friendship House and Madonna House Apostolate. A pione ...

, other supporters of the Catholic Worker Movement, and Emmanuel Chapman, professor at

Fordham University Fordham University () is a Private university, private Jesuit universities, Jesuit research university in New York City. Established in 1841 and named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the The Bronx, Bronx in which its origina ...

, who was its first executive secretary. Also included among the founders were artists, philosophers, writers and, according to Day, "a long list of priests and nuns." In August 1939 the group changed its name to the Committee of Catholics for Human Rights.

Membership

The American Church hierarchy supported the establishment of the group entirely. By July 1939,

Thomas J. Walsh Thomas James Walsh (June 12, 1859March 2, 1933) was an American lawyer and Democratic Party politician from Helena, Montana who represented Montana in the US Senate from 1913 to 1933. He was initially elected by the state legislature, and from 1 ...

, national commander of the Catholic War Veterans (CWV) and Archbishop of

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.John M. J. Quinn, the national chaplain of the CWV, announced that they would be joining the organization. In June 1939 boxer

Gene Tunney James Joseph Tunney (May 25, 1897 – November 7, 1978) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1915 to 1928. He held the world heavyweight title from 1926 to 1928, and the American light heavyweight title twice between 1922 and 1923 ...

joined the committee. Other notable members were

John A. Ryan John Augustine Ryan (1869–1945) was an American Catholic priest who was a noted moral theologian and advocate of social justice. Ryan lived during a decisive moment in the development of Catholic social teaching within the United States. The ...

Robert F. Wagner, Jr. The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, and Theodore Maynard.

Mission

According to the committee, its purpose was, "primarily to reach those who, contrary to the teachings of Christianity and the principles of democracy, are taking part, unfortunately, in spreading race and minority hatreds in the United States. Our approach will be positive and dignified, and there will be no personal attacks against anyone."

Activities and branches

According to ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' the committee's "program of activity consists of frequent issuance of literature, radio broadcasts, speakers' bureaus, educational programs for schools, research bureau, information service, and education of Catholics to combat bigotry and anti-Semitism." In July 1939, John Brophy, national director of the

Congress of Industrial Organizations The Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) was a federation of unions that organized workers in industrial unions in the United States and Canada from 1935 to 1955. Originally created in 1935 as a committee within the American Federation of ...

, gave a speech appealing for the labor movement to support the committee's work, saying that, "anti-Semitism, like every other form of racism and minority hatred, has a real place in the plans of un-democratic, un-American forces seeking to dominate our social and political life. It is spread in America today for a definite and carefully plotted purpose." By 1945 Brophy was a member of the executive board of the Committee. The committee published an eight-page tabloid journal called ''The Voice''. The first copy of the first issue was ceremonially presented to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

mayor

Fiorello La Guardia Fiorello Henry LaGuardia (; born Fiorello Enrico LaGuardia, ; December 11, 1882September 20, 1947) was an American attorney and politician who represented New York in the House of Representatives and served as the 99th Mayor of New York City fro ...

at the

1939 New York World's Fair The 1939–40 New York World's Fair was a world's fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchas ...

. By July, 1939, according to Chapman, over 100,000 copies of the journal had been circulated. According to historian Mary Christine Athans, "''The Voice'' was published in direct opposition to /nowiki>

/nowiki>Father_Charles_Coughlin's">Father_Charles_Coughlin.html"_;"title="/nowiki>Father_Charles_Coughlin">/nowiki>Father_Charles_Coughlin's/nowiki>_''Social_Justice_(periodical).html" "title="Father_Charles_Coughlin's.html" ;"title="Father_Charles_Coughlin.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Father Charles Coughlin">/nowiki>Father Charles Coughlin's">Father_Charles_Coughlin.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Father Charles Coughlin">/nowiki>Father Charles Coughlin's/nowiki> ''Social Justice (periodical)">Social Justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...

'', condemning the antisemitic activities which were rampant at that time." A branch of the committee was founded in

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on July 28, 1939. Thirty Catholic leaders announced the formation of the branch committee, among them Edward Marciniak, elected chairman of the new group, and Marie Antoinette Roulet.

The Committee of Catholics for Human Rights

In August 1939 group changed its name to the Committee of Catholics for Human Rights (CCHR) and the name of their publication to the ''Voice for Human Rights''. According to executive secretary Chapman, "The original aim of the committee was to combat the growing error of racism by bringing before the public the positive Christian doctrines condemning such thought. Since those same doctrines which emphasize the brotherhood of man under the fatherhood of God apply to all races and peoples, we have felt that a broader application of them was imperative." Under its new name the committee vigorously opposed radio priest and vocal anti-Semite Coughlin's organization the Christian Front. They also spoke out against

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

senator

Theodore Bilbo Theodore Gilmore Bilbo (October 13, 1877 – August 21, 1947) was an American politician who twice served as governor of Mississippi (1916–1920, 1928–1932) and later was elected a U.S. Senator (1935–1947). A lifelong Democrat, he was a fi ...

for opposing Franklin Roosevelt's

Fair Employment Practices Committee A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

by using arguments containing "personal attacks that help feed the flames of bigotry and discriminatory practice." Bilbo vowed to respond to the Committee's letter and promised that his reply "would be hot." In August 1940 the first anniversary issue of ''The Voice'' was published. The issue contained messages of support from

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...

Wendell Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 Republican nominee for President. Willkie appealed to many convention delegates as the Republican ...

, then-governor of New York

Herbert H. Lehman Herbert Henry Lehman (March 28, 1878 – December 5, 1963) was an American Democratic Party politician from New York. He served from 1933 until 1942 as the 45th governor of New York and represented New York State in the U.S. Senate from 194 ...

, and President

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

. By September 1939, the CCHR had local chapters in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, and

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. Former New York State governor

Al Smith Alfred Emanuel Smith (December 30, 1873 – October 4, 1944) was an American politician who served four terms as Governor of New York and was the Democratic Party's candidate for president in 1928. The son of an Irish-American mother and a C ...

joined the CCHR in September 1939, stating in a letter to the committee that "no Catholic can be an anti-Semite, because the Catholic Church teaches charity and love of your neighbor." The CCHR suspended its activities when

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

began. It was revived in 1944. Its reorganization, explained Emmanuel Chapman, "was made urgent by numerous requests from members of the committee who pointed to the resurgence of intolerance at this time."

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

Justice

Frank Murphy William Francis Murphy (April 13, 1890July 19, 1949) was an American politician, lawyer and jurist from Michigan. He was a Democrat who was named to the Supreme Court of the United States in 1940 after a political career that included serving ...

was named honorary chairman of the reorganized committee. Notable prelate

Edwin Vincent O'Hara Edwin Vincent O'Hara (September 6, 1881 – September 11, 1956) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Great Falls in Montana from 1930 to 1939 and bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City in Mi ...

joined the CCHR in 1944. In November 1945 the CCHR awarded the Monsignor John A. Ryan Award to

president

Philip Murray Philip Murray (May 25, 1886 – November 9, 1952) was a Scottish-born steelworker and an American labor leader. He was the first president of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC), the first president of the United Steelworkers of ...

and bishop

Bernard James Sheil Bernard James Sheil (February 18, 1888 – September 13, 1969) was an Auxiliary Roman Catholic Bishop of Chicago. Biography Born and raised in Chicago, Sheil was ordained a priest on May 3, 1910. He was named auxiliary Bishop of Chicago in 1 ...

of Chicago, who were consequently commended by President

Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

References