| From the Award-Winning Author of 1920: The Year of the Six Presidents |
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Comparison of
1948 Civil Rights Planks
1948 GOP Civil Rights Plank:
Proposed Truman Administration Democratic Civil Rights Plank
The Democratic party is responsible for the great civil rights gains made in recent years in
eliminating unfair and illegal discrimination based on race, creed, or color.
The Democratic Party commits itself to continuing its efforts to eradicate all racial, religious, and
economic discrimination. We again state our belief that racial and religious minorities must have
the right to live, the right to work, the right to vote, the full and equal protection of the law, on a
basis of equality with all citizens as guaranteed by the Constitution. We again call upon the
Congress to exert its full authority to the limit of its constitutional powers to assure and protect
these rights.”
Proposed Southern Democratic Party Civil Rights Plank
Adopted Biemiller-Humphrey Democratic Party Civil Rights Plank
Progressive Party Civil Rights Plank
1948 Civil Rights Planks
1948 GOP Civil Rights Plank:
- Lynching or any other form of mob violence anywhere is a disgrace to any civilized state,
and we favor the prompt enactment of legislation to end this infamy.
One of the basic principles of this Republic is the equality of all individuals in their right to
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This principle is enunciated in the Declaration of
Independence and embodied in the Constitution of the United States; it was vindicated
on the field of battle and became the cornerstone of this Republic. This right of equal
opportunity to work and to advance in life should never be limited in any individual
because of race, religion, color, or country of origin. We favor the enactment and just
enforcement of such Federal legislation as may be necessary to maintain this right at all
times in every part of this Republic.
We favor the abolition of the poll tax as a requisite to voting.
We are opposed to the idea of racial segregation in the armed services of the United
States.
Proposed Truman Administration Democratic Civil Rights Plank
The Democratic party is responsible for the great civil rights gains made in recent years in
eliminating unfair and illegal discrimination based on race, creed, or color.
The Democratic Party commits itself to continuing its efforts to eradicate all racial, religious, and
economic discrimination. We again state our belief that racial and religious minorities must have
the right to live, the right to work, the right to vote, the full and equal protection of the law, on a
basis of equality with all citizens as guaranteed by the Constitution. We again call upon the
Congress to exert its full authority to the limit of its constitutional powers to assure and protect
these rights.”
Proposed Southern Democratic Party Civil Rights Plank
- The Democratic Party stands for the principles that the Constitution contemplated and
established a union of indestructible sovereign states and that under the Constitution the
general Federal Government and the separate States have their separate fields of power
and permitted activities.
Traditionally it has been, and it remains a part of the faith of the Democratic Party that
the Federal Government shall not encroach upon the reserved powers of the States by
centralization of government or otherwise. Within the reserve powers of the States, to be
exercised subject to the limitations imposed by the Fourteenth and Fifteenth
Amendments to the Constitution on the manner of their exercise, is the power to regulate
and control local affairs and act in the exercise of the police power.
Adopted Biemiller-Humphrey Democratic Party Civil Rights Plank
- The Democratic Party is responsible for the great civil rights gains made in recent years in
eliminating unfair and illegal discrimination based on race, creed or color,
The Democratic Party commits itself to continuing its efforts to eradicate all racial,
religious and economic discrimination.
We again state our belief that racial and religious minorities must have the right to live, the
right to work, the right to vote, the full and equal protection of the laws, on a basis of
equality with all citizens as guaranteed by the Constitution.
We highly commend President Harry S. Truman for his courageous stand on the issue of
civil rights.
We call upon the Congress to support our President in guaranteeing these basic and
fundamental American Principles:
- (1) the right of full and equal political participation;
(2) the right to equal opportunity of employment;
(3) the right of security of person;
(4) and the right of equal treatment in the service and defense of our nation.
Progressive Party Civil Rights Plank
- The Progressive Party condemns segregation and discrimination in all its forms and in all
places.
- We demand full equality for the Negro people, the Jewish people, Spanish-speaking
Americans, Italian Americans, Japanese Americans, and all Other nationality groups.
We call for a Presidential proclamation ending segregation and all forms of discrimination
in the armed services and Federal employment.
We demand Federal anti-lynch, anti-discrimination, and fair-employment-practices
legislation, and legislation abolishing segregation in interstate travel.
We call for immediate passage of anti-poll tax legislation, enactment of a universal
suffrage law to permit all citizens to vote in Federal elections, and the full use of Federal
enforcement powers to assure free exercise of the right to franchise.
We call for a Civil Rights Act for the District of Columbia to eliminate racial segregation
and discrimination in the nation's capital.
We demand the ending of segregation and discrimination in the Panama Canal Zone and
all territories, possessions and trusteeships.
We demand that Indians, the earliest Americans, be given full citizenship rights without
loss of reservation rights and be permitted to administer their own affairs.
We will develop special programs to raise the low standards of health, housing, and
educational facilities for Negroes, Indians and nationality groups, and will deny Federal
funds to any state or local authority which withholds opportunities or benefits for reasons
of race, creed, color, sex or national origin.
We will initiate a Federal program of education, in cooperation with state, local, and
private agencies to combat racial and religious prejudice.
We support the enactment of legislation making it a Federal crime to disseminate anti-
Semitic, anti-Negro, and all racist propaganda by mail, radio, motion picture or other
means of communication.
We call for a Constitutional amendment which will effectively prohibit every form of
discrimination against women—economic, educational, legal, and political.
We pledge to respect the freedom of conscience of sincere conscientious objectors to
war.
We demand amnesty for conscientious objectors imprisoned in World War II.
