Race, jobs, and the war : the FEPC in the Midwest, 1941-46

A richly detailed look at the crucial role of federally supported civil rights activism In this rigorous and thoroughly documented study focusing on the pivotal Midwest, Andrew E. Kersten shows how a tiny government agency--the President's Committee on Fair Employment Practice (FEPC)--influenced the course of civil rights reform, moving the United States closer to a national fair employment policy and laying the foundation for today's contested affirmative action practices. Rejecting claims that black advancement during the war was due primarily to shortages of labor, Race, Jobs, and the War contends that the FEPC made significant strides in breaking racial barriers, settling complaints, and pursuing a vigorous educational campaign to foster more harmonious industrial relations between white and minority workers. The President's Committee On Fair Employment Practice (fepc) Was Established By Franklin Roosevelt In Response To An Intense Lobbying Campaign Led By Black Leaders Who Challenged His Administration To Eliminate Racial Discrimination In U.s. Defense Plants. In This Examination Of The Fepc's Work, Focusing On The Pivotal Midwest, Andrew Edmund Kersten Shows How This Tiny Government Agency Influenced The Course Of Civil Rights Reform And Moved The United States Closer To A National Fair Employment Policy. Race, Jobs And The War Looks Across The Midwest At The Accomplishments And Failures Of A New Deal Organization That Laid The Foundation For Today's Contested Affirmative Action Practices. Rejecting Claims That Black Advancement During The War Was Due Primarily To Shortages Of Labor, Kersten Contends That The Fepc Made Significant Strides In Allaying Discrimination, Especially When Local Authorities Cooperated. Efforts To Foster Racial Equality In The Southern Region Of The Midwest Suffered From Managerial Stonewalling And White Hostility, Kersten Finds, While Areas Farther North Saw More Support From Government Officials And Community And Union Activists And Correspondingly Greater Success In Reversing Discriminatory Patterns.--jacket. 1. A Refreshing Shower In A Thirsty Land: The Creation Of The First Fepc -- 2. The Publicity Campaign And The Chicago Precedents -- 3. Ruin And Rebirth: The Creation Of The Second Fepc -- 4. The Chicago Office: The Fepc And Illinois, 1943-45 -- 5. The Limits Of Activism: The Fepc In Indiana, Wisconsin, And Minnesota -- 6. The Fepc In The Buckeye State -- 7. The Fepc And The Motor City -- 8. Stretching The Social Pattern: The Fepc And St. Louis -- 9. A Vicious And Destructive Attack: Congress And The End Of The Fepc -- App. A. Compliance Data From Companies Attending The 19-20 January 1942 Chicago Hearings -- App. B. Wartime Hate Strike Data. Andrew Edmund Kersten. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. The President's Committee on Fair Employment Practice (FEPC) was established by Franklin Roosevelt in response to an intense lobbying campaign led by black leaders who challenged his administration to eliminate racial discrimination in U.S. defense plants. In this rigorous and thoroughly documented examination of the FEPC's work, focusing on the pivotal Midwest, Andrew Edmund Kersten shows how this tiny government agency influenced the course of civil rights reform and moved the United States closer to a national fair employment policy.Race, Jobs, and the War looks across the Midwest at the accomplishments and failures of a New Deal organization that laid the foundation for today's contested affirmative action practices. Rejecting claims that black advancement during the war was due primarily to shortages of labor, Kersten contends that the FEPC made significant strides in allaying discrimination, especially when local authorities cooperated. Efforts to foster racial equality in the southern region of the Midwest suffered from managerial stonewalling and white hostility, Kersten finds, while areas farther north saw more support from government officials and community and union activists and correspondingly greater success in reversing discriminatory patterns.Events such as the infamous Cincinnati "D-Day" Strike -- a wildcat strike by nine thousand white UAW-CIO workers in protest of the upgrading of seven black machinists -- signaled the depth of racial animosity on the home front. Fighting an uphill battle to dismantle such deep-seated and virulent racism, the FEPC succeeded in breaking some racial barriers, settling complaints, and pursuing a vigorous education campaign tofoster more harmonious industrial relations between white and minority workers. The FEPC also acted as a catalyst, inspiring midwestern local communities to rejuvenate and transform their own fights against employment discrimination.