3. Race and civil rights
3.1. The new world
pressures.”133 Although this policy pretends to be a strategy to promote freedom and
democracy and can be seen as an anti-colonialist strategy on paper, the Truman doctrine was, according to historians Zinovia Lialiouti and Philip E. Muehlenbeck, mainly focused on supporting and setting up anti-Communist regimes. In combination with the Marshall plan, Truman’s policy may even be explained as a form of modern imperialism; in which a country was fully dependable on the US which controlled its economic, political, and social life.134 By using this strategy the gap between the US and the USSR grew and both countries tried to dominate not only their influence sphere but also the rest of the globe to convince them that their political system and world view was the one to be followed. Setting up propaganda to discredit the other became an important part of this struggle and, as historian Nico Slate explains, race was a significant part of the struggle between the power blocks:
“The argument that American racism damaged American foreign relations became even more compelling as decolonization accelerated and as the Soviet Union
positioned itself as a bulwark for those oppressed by imperialism and white supremacy worldwide. Segregation, lynching, and other brutal facets of American racism offered a propaganda windfall for the Soviets.”135
Soviet propaganda was focused on the problems of America’s racial standings. On one hand the US preached freedom, but on the other hand the US is well-known for its treatment of the Black community and other minorities as they are considered the lower economical classes in the society.136 For example lynching, which is still not a federal crime as of today, gave the Soviets enough ammunition to criticize the US.137 A propaganda war between both countries started soon after and academic sources were used to support their claims.
Economist Gunnar Myrdal discussed already in 1944 in his book An American Dilemma: The
133 Ivo H. Daalder and James M. Lindsay, The Empty Throne: America’s Abdication of Global Leadership (New York, New York: Hachette, 2018), 32. For this thesis an e-book is used, so the corresponding page numbers may deviate.
134 Zinovia Lialiouti and Philip Emil Muehlenbeck, “Ethnic Nationalism in the Cold War Context:
The Cyprus Issue in the Greek and Greek American Public Debate, 1954-1989.” In Muehlenbeck, Race, Ethnicity, and the Cold War, 229-259, 230–31. Even though the article focusses on the Cyprus conflict, the Truman-doctrine was applied as an overall blue print for the US foreign policy during his presidency.
135 Nico Slate, “The Borders of Race and Nation.” In Muehlenbeck, Race, Ethnicity, and the Cold War, ix-xvii, x.
136 This statement will further on in the chapter discussed in depth.
137 Allison Pecorin, "Emotional Senate Debate as Rand Paul Blocks Bill to Make Lynching a Federal Crime,"
June 5, 2020. ABC News, https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/lynching-federal-crime-us-sen-rand-paul-stands/story?id=71056869 (consulted July, 12, 2021).
Negro Problem and Modern Democracy the racial problems the US would face after the War.138 Myrdal explained the difference in ideology between the US and Nazi-Germany:
“Fascism and Nazism are based on a racial superiority dogma -not unlike the old hackneyed American caste theory- and they came to power by means of racial persecution and oppression. In fighting fascism and Nazism, America had to stand before the whole world in favor of racial tolerance and cooperation and of racial equality. It had to denounce German racialism as a reversion to barbarism.”139
By fighting against the Nazis in Europe and the Japanese in Asia, the US was in fact fighting against racist regimes. The Nazis set up a mass genocide system to erase the so-called Untermensch and the Japanese saw the Chinese as inferior and inhuman beings. Going into battle against these fascist systems also meant that, according to Myrdal, the US needed to check its own racial policies. The Jim Crow laws were still valid and, as explained in the previous chapters, under the FDR Administration reforms did not happen. Although the difficulties of the US own racial status quo were problematic, Myrdal urged it also created an opportunity. The economist continues to discuss how reforming the racial tensions are crucial for the post-war period:
“In this sense the Negro problem is not only America's greatest failure but also
America's incomparably great opportunity for the future. If America should follow its own deepest convictions, its well-being at home would be increased directly. At the same time America's prestige and power abroad would rise immensely. The century- old dream of American patriots, that America should give to the entire world its own freedoms and its own faith, would come true. America can demonstrate that justice, equality and cooperation are possible between white and colored people.”140
138 Dudziak, Cold War Civil Rights, 8.
139 Gunnar Myrdal, An American Dilemma: The Negro Problem and Modern Democracy (Piscataway, New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 1996), 1004. Usage of the theories of Myrdal was problematic for the Soviets as Myrdal argued that communist regimes worked as a destabilizing factor worldwide by creating and backing other revolutions, which would limit a possible redistribution of income and wealth and therefore these kinds of governments are a danger for the “welfare state.” See Gunnar Myrdal, Beyond the Welfare State: Economic Planning in the Welfare States and Its International Implications (London: Duckworth, 1960) for more information about this economic theory.
140 Myrdal, 1021. This analysis can also be found in by Hamilton, “The Negroes' Historical and Contemporary Role In National Defense,” who argued the same idea specifically for the Army. See page 26.
Myrdal already anticipated, rightfully, the post-war world politics as after the War the US became one of the new power blocks. Such a situation would lead to new problems, which needed to be addressed too. But rather seeing them as problems, they can also be considered possibilities so argues Myrdal. With its new position as one of the world leaders the US could present a new policy where, as Truman stated before the NAACP on June 29, 1947, it would be for “all Americans – I mean all Americans.”141 However, as civil rights historian Mary L.
Dudziakargues in her book Cold War Civil Rights: Race and the Image of American
Democracy, instead of the taking these opportunities, McCarthyismbecame the new guideline in post war US.142 With the implementation of McCarthyism, named after U.S. senator Joseph McCarthy (R-Wisconsin), state policy was to hunt down every potential communist or “not loyal” persons or groups in the US to stop possible Soviet espionage.143 The US government started to control its own citizens with draconian laws and pressure to not deviate from what was demanded by the Administration. Scared to be seen as a communist party and therefore be excommunicated of American society, civil rights groups had to walk a thin line between criticizing and demanding change and still being considered as part of the American
democracy. Already limited in their actions, civil rights advocates were frequently targeted and harassed by, for example, the FBI to stop their actions.144 Even though the sword of Damocles was hanging above the civil rights activists, the US government was obliged to make reforms due to international criticism.145
Klinkner and Smith show that Clifford urged Truman in August 1948 to “stress the need for a federal Civil rights program to cover every section of the United States, to prove the world that the great benefits of American democracy are meant for all groups in the country.”146 The argument of the international pressure can be considered as part of the decision-making process, as already seen in 1945 by the liberation of Italy. Questions from outside the US were raised about the duplicitous American racial policies as “American
141 ‘Historic Speeches: Truman Addresses the NAACP,’ June 29, 1947. Speech by Harry S. Truman, Truman Library Institute (blog), July 8, 2016, https://www.trumanlibraryinstitute.org/historic-speeches-naacp/, (consulted June 15, 2021).
142 Dudziak, Cold War Civil Rights, 11.
143 Truman issued EO 9835 on March 21, 1947, which demanded to screen all federal civil-service employees for being “loyal.” EXECUTIVE ORDER 9835, March 21, 1947. Harry S. Truman, Truman Library,
https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/executive-orders/9835/executive-order-9835, (consulted May 15, 2021).
144 See for example Taylor Branch, The King Years: Historic Moments in the Civil Rights Movement (New York, New York: Simon and Schuster, 2013) for an insight in the FBI's actions.
145 Dudziak, Cold War Civil Rights, 13.
146 Klinkner and Smith, The Unsteady March, 223.
culture which preaches democracy and practices discrimination.”147 As Myrdal also argued, the difference between what the US presented itself as and the actual reality were
contradicting and caused confusion among the liberated allies. The critique came not only from the Soviet and communist propaganda, but also from the US allies who, in a world of anti-colonialism and the promotion of democracies, saw the US racial policies as problematic.
How could it possibly work combining both democracy and freedom within a racist policy?
Especially because all citizens are supposed to be equal, right?
Even though new policies were made, the reforms were still limited because as Dudziak explains: “Racism might be an international embarrassment. Class-based inequality, however, was a feature of capitalism, an economic system Americans were proud of.”148 Even more important than a “perfect” democracy, in which all citizens are equal and therefore are also treated as such, the capitalist system was dominant for the decisions made by the government. Traceable with, for example, the support of different dictatorial coups in Latin America, US policies were dominated by economical decisions rather than being based on democratic ideals. Back in the US Black Americans had a disadvantage to fully participate in the US economy due to the Jim Crow laws. These laws had survived due to the Southern politicians, who were challenging every kind of opposition against these laws. It even led to
“a wave of violence swept the South as African American veterans returned home.”149 Black veterans were treated badly and sometimes, as in the case of Isaac Woodard Jr., even
physically abused. Historian Michael L. Krenn points out how the new civil rights protocols made by the Administration(s) were a small expression not leading to a true change of the system, as he analyzes: “Within the framework of its token diplomacy, America could give lip service to equality, freedom, and civil rights while at the same time maintaining a generally steadfast adherence to the old notions of white superiority.”150 In the Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States collection, which consists mainly of the written reports of press moments, little can be found in regard to EO 9981.151 Aside from a single remark in
147 Memo re: Negro troops in Italy, 1945. Truman library, Desegregation of the Armed Forces,
https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/research-files/memo-re-negro-troops-italy, (consulted April 25, 2021).
However, it is not clear where this memo is used for or who it was sent to.
148 Dudziak, Cold War Civil Rights, 252.
149 Dudziak, 23. See page 38 for Truman's response to the violence against Black veterans.
150 Michael L. Krenn, “Token Diplomacy; The United States, Race, and the Cold War,” in Muehlenbeck, Race, Ethnicity, and the Cold War, 22.
151 Harry S. Truman: 1948 : containing the public messages, speeches, and statements of the president, January 1 to December 31, 1948. Truman, Harry S., 1884-1972., United States. President (1945-1953 : Truman), United States. Office of the Federal Register. Washington: Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, For sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O., 1964, via http://name.umdl.umich.edu/4728453.1948.001 , 422-424, (consulted July 19, 2021).
regards to General Omar Bradley’s position on the topic (which was fake news according to Truman), the media seemed mainly interested in the political situation overseas and the economic situation at home.
As Myrdal described, racial relations in US society stood at a crossroads in the latter years of World War II. The country would probably be (one of) the new dominant force(s) in the world, because Europe was in shambles and therefore needed to be rebuilt first. How the country would take up this role needed to be determined, but its ideals were clear. Capitalism, democracy and freedom were, and still are, the cornerstones of American society and
therefore these principals needed to be shared all around the world. Setting up a post-war policy was the task Truman inherited from FDR and a difficult one, made even more challenging due to its (sometimes antagonizing) ideals. Myrdal explained that in the fight against fascism and Nazism, the US was in “favor of racial tolerance and cooperation and of racial equality,” but, as Dudziak recalls, “class-based inequality however, was a feature of capitalism, an economic system Americans were proud of.”152 According to the author, America had simply said two choices; either satisfy the international community (and the Black activists) or satisfy the South and segregationists, who (largely) saw the economic class-based inequality as part of daily life. Dudziak and Krenn argue that the social reforms made by Truman were too small and were more a token to stop the criticism. However, as the Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States show, there were more reforms suggested by Truman, but the Senate “did not take action.”153 The argument of Dudziak and Krenn does not take this into consideration and therefore it is important to study the specific political situation Truman was confronted with, especially in the run-up of the Presidential election of 1948.