TABLE OF CONTENTSSHORT HISTORY OF THE COMMITTEE BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE RECORDS SEARCHING IN OUR ON-LINE CATALOGUE FOR RELATED MATERIALS DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE RECORDS Series 1: Predecessor Committees 1921-1929 Series 2: Administrative Papers 1929-1969 Series 3: Finance and Personnel 1935-69 Series 4: Correspondence 1929-1969 Series 6: Publications 1929-69 Haverford College Quaker Collection Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College |
PHILADELPHIA YEARLY MEETING OF THE RELIGIOUS SOCIETY OF FRIENDS. COMMITTEE ON RACE RELATIONS.A Finding Aid for its Records Deposited in Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College
SHORT HISTORY OF THE COMMITTEEIn 1919, Esther Morton Smith of the Arch Street (Orthodox) Meeting of Philadelphia brought forth a concern on the lynching of African Americans. After voicing her concern to the Women’s Meeting, she took it to the Men’s Yearly Meeting, and a body named the Committee on Lynching was formed to study the problem. Smith also addressed the Race Street (Hicksite) Meeting, and they, too, formed an Anti-Lynching Committee after consideration in the Men’s Yearly Meeting. The two committees cooperated until both were laid down in 1921, whereupon Hicksite Friends formed a Committee on the Interests of the Colored Race and the Orthodox Friends formed a Committee on Race Relations to “encourage all right methods tending to a better understanding between the white and colored races.” (1921 PYM [O] proceedings, p. 16) The committee was also expressly “empowered to add to its members those other than Friends.” (1921, p. 39 [O]) The two committees worked separately (albeit with occasional cooperative efforts) until 1929 on such projects as Housing and Education and with groups such as the Southern Conference on Inter-Racial Cooperation (supported by Orthodox Friends) and the Interracial Committee of Philadelphia (organized by Hicksite Friends). In 1929, on the recommendation of the American Friends Service Committee, the two committees merged to form a “Joint Committee on Race Relations.” Sixteen years of cooperation between the two meetings followed, during which time the foremost objective was exposure of white Friends to “educated Negroes.” The committee was especially impressed by Crystal Bird, a singer of spirituals hired by the American Friends Service Committee, and with her help they began sending various black representatives to schools, meetings, and clubs in the Philadelphia area in an effort to eliminate prejudices and build understanding. The committee also became concerned with episodes of anti-Semitism prior to and throughout the Second World War, during which time they published and distributed pamphlets designed to counteract negative publications then in circulation. Their primary focus, however, remained what they termed White-Negro relations in the United States, to which they compared the anti-Semitism in Central Europe: “We are aghast at what is going on in Germany, but we need to realize that we have never given full rights as human beings to the largest minority group in our own country.” (1936, p. 126 [O]) (The committee published one annual report which was issued in both sets of Yearly Meeting Proceedings.) During this time period, guests of the committee included W.E.B. DuBois, Marian Anderson, and Alan Patton, among others. Following the 1955 “organic union” of the two Philadelphia Yearly Meetings, the committee continued its work, starting a yearly conference entitled “Beliefs Into Actions,” supporting various Fair Housing organizations, and developing a very successful “Green Circle” program designed to educate children in a prejudice-free fashion. Beginning in the 1960s, the committee saw increased activity as Race Relations became a national concern. It worked to integrate Friends’ Schools as well as Philadelphia public schools, to educate both whites and blacks, and to eliminate cultural deprivation and housing and workplace discrimination. A Meeting for Social Concerns was created in 1969, and the Committee on Race Relations, along with seven others, was placed under its jurisdiction. Later in 1969 the committee was jarred by the demands of the Black Manifesto and the group that published it, the Black Economic Development Conference. In special sessions of the Yearly Meeting, Friends were addressed by Muhammed Kenyatta , a Black civil rights leader, and struggled to find unity with the ideas of reparations and Black Power. In 1970 the Committee was laid down, and its functions and experience were continued by the Community Involvement Program under the Meeting for Social Concerns. Return to the Table of Contents BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE RECORDSContains Minutes, Correspondence, and Financial Records of the Committee as well as records documenting its involvement in various projects and publications it produced and collected.
Series 1: Predecessor Committees, 1921-1929 Series 2: Administrative Papers, 1929-1969 Series 3: Finances and Personnel, 1935-1969 Series 4: Correspondence, 1929-1969 Series 5: Projects, 1929-1969 Series 6: Publications, 1929-1969 Series 7: Miscellaneous, n.d. Subjects of interest in the collection include the Beliefs Into Action conference, the Green Circle educational program, fair employment, integration, fair housing, interracial marriage, the Institute of Race Relations, and lynching. Return to the Table of Contents RestrictionsAccessCollection is open for research. Use RestrictionsCopyright has not been assigned to the Repositories. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to the individual Meeting or its successor. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Repositories as the holder(s) of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by reader. Return to the Table of Contents SEARCHING IN OUR ON-LINE CATALOGUE FOR RELATED MATERIALSThis collection is indexed under the following headings in TRIPOD, the joint on-line catalog of Haverford and Swarthmore Colleges. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings. Earlier NamesPhiladelphia Yearly Meeting of
Friends (Orthodox : 1827-1955). Committee on Lynching
(1919-1921)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of
Friends (Hicksite : 1827-1955). Anti-Lynching Committee
(1919-1921)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of
Friends (Hicksite : 1827-1955). Committee on the Interests of
the Colored Race (1921-1929)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of
Friends (Orthodox : 1827-1955). Committee on Race Relations
(1921-1929)
Joint Committee on Race
Relations (Society of Friends : 1929-1955)
Later NamesPhiladelphia Yearly Meeting of
the Religious Society of Friends. Community Involvement Program.
Additional AuthorsDavis, Bainbridge C., 1910-1993
Deming, Vinton
Subjects:American Friends Service Committee
Earlham College -- History
Friendly Acres (Secane, Pa.)
Friends Chester Project
Friends Mississippi Project
Green Circle (Program)
Institute of Race Relations (Swarthmore, Pa.)
Joint Committee on Race Relations (Society of Friends : 1929-1955)
March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington, D.C., 1963
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends (Orthodox : 1827-1955). Committee on Lynching (Orthodox: 1919-1921)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends (Hicksite : 1827-1955). Anti-Lynching Committee (1919-1921)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends (Hicksite : 1827-1955). Committee on the Interests of the Colored Race (1921-1929)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends (Orthodox : 1827-1955). Committee on Race Relations (1921-1929)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.Committee on Race Relations (Unified: 1955-1970)
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. Community Involvement Program.
Project FREE for Real Estate Equity
Beliefs Into Actions (Program)
Fauset, Crystal Dreda Bird, 1893-1965
Kenyatta, Muhammed, d. 1992
A Declaration of Intention (Petition)
African Americans -- Civil rights
African Americans -- Pennsylvania
Civil rights leaders -- Pennsylvania
Lynching
Race Relations -- Pennsylvania
Race relations -- Religious aspects -- Society of Friends.
Racism -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia
Slavery and the Church -- Society of Friends
Society of Friends -- Education
Society of Friends -- Pennsylvania.
Levittown (N.Y.) -- History
Pennsylvania -- Race relations
Philadelphia (Pa.) -- Race relations
Return to the Table of Contents Administrative InformationAccession informationDeposit, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends Return to the Table of Contents DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE RECORDSNote to Researchers: These records may only be consulted at Swarthmore (SW), and are not available through inter-Library loan. Series 1: Predecessor Committees, 1921-1929
Minutes.
Minutes.
Return to the Table of Contents Series 2: Administrative Papers, 1929-1969
Agendas, 1939-1956; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 1.
Agendas, 1957-1964; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 1.
Agendas, 1965-1969; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 1.
Minutes, 1929-36; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 2.
Minutes, 1936-43; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 2.
Minutes, 1943-50; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 2.
Minutes, 1950-56; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 3.
Minutes, 1956-1963; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 3.
Minutes, 1964-1965; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 3.
Return to the Table of Contents Series 3: Finance and Personnel, 1935-69
Taxes and Withholding, 1946-1951Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 4.
Taxes and Withholding, 1950-1956Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 4.
Taxes and Withholding, 1966-1968Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 4.
Includes job descriptions.
Return to the Table of Contents Series 4: Correspondence, 1929-1969
1960-63 correspondence includes a letter of Wm. W.
Baker to President Woodrow Wilson 10/15/1913, protesting racial
discrimination in hiring by the U.S. Government.
Correspondence, 1929-39; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 4.
Correspondence, 1940-45; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 4.
Correspondence, 1949-59; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 4.
Correspondence, 1960-63; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 4.
Correspondence, 1964; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 5.
Correspondence, 1965; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 5.
Correspondence, 1966; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 5.
Correspondence, 1967; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 5.
Correspondence, 1967-68; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 5.
Correspondence, 1969; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 5.
Return to the Table of Contents Series 5: Projects, 1929-69
Finances, 1961-70; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 6.
General, 1957-60; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 6.
General, 1961; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 6.
General, 1962; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 6.
Committee on Fair Employment, 1945-46; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 7.
Committee on Fair Employment, 1967; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 7.
Questionnaires and
Correspondence, 1937-64; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Loc.: Box 8.
Questionnaires and Correspondence
, 1927-64; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Loc.: Box 8.
Questionnaires and
Correspondence, 1927-64; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Loc.: Box 8.
Miscellaneous Documents, 1947-68; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Loc.: Box 8.
"Call to Action", 1964-65; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 10.
Concerning Friends' Institutions, 1930, '58-63; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 11.
To Monthly Meetings, 1942-59; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: H/O/U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 11.
Miscellaneous, 1966-68; Desc.: 1 folder; Affil.: U; Repos.: SW; Loc.: Box 11.
Includes annual reports by Gerda Hargrove.
Return to the Table of Contents Series 6: Publications, 1929-69
Return to the Table of Contents Series 7: Miscellaneous, n.d.
Return to the Table of Contents |