Constitutional Educational League

The Constitutional Educational League was an American anti-communist organization.

History

Founded in 1919[1] during America's First Red Scare, the group gained major influence during the aftermath of the First World War. In the 1930s, they were known for printing an anti-communist newspaper entitled "Headlines and What's Behind Them."

In 1942, the organization was listed as one of 28 organizations indicted by a special grand jury as having conspired against the United States Army and Navy, being an instrument of the Axis Powers.[2]

In the 1944 presidential campaign, the organization published a brochure, Vote CIO and Get A Soviet America. A congressional investigation into the 1944 campaign expenditures sought to find out who the financial backers were of the League, as it deemed this brochure to be political. However, Joseph P. Kamp, vice-president of the League refused to hand over this information.[3] Because Kamp refused to act on a subpoena, he was tried for Contempt of Congress. In 1950, he was convicted, and sentenced to four months in prison.[4] Kamp was tried another time for congressional defiance in 1952, when he failed to produce records for the House Lobby Investigating Committee.[5] This time, Kamp was acquitted of the charge, as the House Committee failed to orderly disclose why Kamp was in default.[6]

Publications

The League's vice president, Joseph P. Kamp, authored most or all pamphlets published:

  • Hell of Herrin Rages Again (1937)[7]
  • Stop Lewis and Smash Communism! Program of the Constitutional Educational League (1939)[8]
  • Fifth Column in Washington! (1940)[9][1]
  • Fifth Column in the South (1940)[10]
  • Fifth Column vs. the Dies Committee (1941)[11]
  • How to Win the War and Lose What We're Fighting For! (1942)[12]
  • Famine in America (1943)[13]
  • With Lotions of Love... (1944)[14]
  • Vote CIO and Get a Soviet America (1944)[15]
  • The Hell with G. I. Joe! (1944)[16]
  • Open Letter to Congress. Gentlemen: Are You Mice or Men? An Underworld Secret-Police Terror Menaces America (1948)[17]
  • America Betrayed: The Tragic Consequences of Reds on the Government Payroll! (1950)[18]
  • It Isn't Safe to be an American (1950)[19]
  • We Must Abolish the United States: The Hidden Facts Behind the Crusade for World Government (1950)[20]

See also

References
  1. Kamp, Joseph P. (21 June 1940). The Fifth Column in Washington!. Constitutional Educational League. p. back cover. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  2. "28 Organized Groups Linked to Fascist Plot". The Washington Post. 1942-07-24. p. 4.
  3. "Kamp Blames Trial for Contempt on 'Smearbund'". The Washington Post. 1945-12-13. p. 3.
  4. "Kamp is sent to Jail for Defying Congress". The New York Times. 1950-06-17. p. 2.
  5. "Kamp Again on Trial for Contempt". The Washington Post. 1952-02-05. p. 7.
  6. "Kamp Freed in Contempt Case". The Washington Post. 1952-02-07. p. 15.
  7. Kamp, Joseph P. (1937). Hell of Herrin Rages Again. New Haven, CT: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 38005707. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  8. Kamp, Joseph P. (1939). Stop Lewis and Smash Communism! Program of the Constitutional Educational League. Constitutional Educational League.
  9. Kamp, Joseph P. (1940). Fifth Column in Washington!. New Haven, CT: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 40034341. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  10. Kamp, Joseph P. (1940). Fifth Column in the South. New Haven, CT: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 41002128. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  11. Kamp, Joseph P. (1941). Fifth Column vs. the Dies Committee. New Haven, CT: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 41006105. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  12. Kamp, Joseph P. (1942). How to Win the War and Lose What We're Fighting For!. New York: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 45014216. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  13. Kamp, Joseph P. (1943). Famine in America. New Haven, CT: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 43009042. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  14. Kamp, Joseph P. (1944). With Lotions of Love... New Haven, CT: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 45001283. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  15. Kamp, Joseph P. (1944). How to Win the War and Lose What We're Fighting For!. New York: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 45016580. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  16. Kamp, Joseph P. (1944). The Hell with G. I. Joe!: Bureaucratic Regimentation vs.. Constitutional Government. New York: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 44051057. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  17. Kamp, Joseph P. (1948). Open Letter to Congress. Gentlemen: Are You Mice or Men? An Underworld Secret-Police Terror Menaces America. New York: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 48018100. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  18. Kamp, Joseph P. (1948). America Betrayed: The Tragic Consequences of Reds on the Government Payroll!. New York: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 50002413. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  19. Kamp, Joseph P. (1950). It Isn't Safe to be an American. New York: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 50009994. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  20. Kamp, Joseph P. (1950). We Must Abolish the United States: The Hidden Facts Behind the Crusade for World Government. New York: Constitutional Educational League. LCCN 50006544. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
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