Dean Alfange
Encyclopedia
Dean Alfange was an American
politician who held nominations and appointments from a number of parties, including the Democratic Party
, the Republican Party
, the American Labor Party
, and the Liberal Party of New York
, which he was a founding member of. Born in the Ottoman Empire
to two native Greek
parents, Alfange remained involved in Greek-American organizations for much of his life, as well as activist Zionist
groups.
He was a prominent liberal legal commentator who supported the notion of judicial activism
and a Living Constitution
. He ran for a number of offices, including Governor of New York
, where his candidacy split the liberal vote, allowing Thomas E. Dewey to win the governorship. He also ran for the United States House of Representatives
, but lost again. He is well remembered for a short piece he wrote entitled either "An American's Creed" or simply "My Creed". The Creed espouses the ideas of self-reliance and freedom.
in the Ottoman Empire
, to two ethnic Greek
parents. His parents moved to New York
when he was still an infant, where they raised him in Utica, New York
. He graduated from Utica Free Academy
in 1918, and joined the United States Army
during World War I
.
After the war, he attended Hamilton College and graduated in 1922 with honors in philosophy
, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa Society
. Alfange remained active at the college, and when he received the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Award for his book The Supreme Court and the National Will, he donated the prize to Hamilton College, establishing the ongoing Dean Alfange Essay Award, given to two students each year for essays on American constitutional government. He received a juris doctor
from Columbia University Law School, and became a lawyer in Manhattan
.
from cancer
.
in 1925. He criticized the United States Supreme Court for its treatment of New Deal
programs, urging they adopt a more progressive attitude towards the policies. He contended that the programs should not be evaluated solely on their legality, but on their possible moral and economic effects, as well as public perception at the time. He supported Truman's notion of a Living Constitution
.
Later in his political career, Alfange served as the Deputy New York State Attorney General
.
. In 1941, he received the nomination for the United States Congress
running out of the Upper East Side
, then known as the Silk Stocking District, but lost to Joseph C. Baldwin
, receiving 16,690 votes.
for several years in the late 1930s. In 1942, he received the nomination for Governor of New York
. Though he received the nomination, the American Labor Party only officially fielded a candidate after Herbert H. Lehman
, the man they had backed for the Democratic nomination, lost to John J. Bennett, Jr.
in the primary. Mayor of New York City
Fiorello La Guardia supported Alfange in this election. Alfange finishing in third place with 409,047 votes, or about 17.7 percent of votes cast. With this figure, Alfange garnered more votes than any other American Labor candidate ever had or would again in a state-wide election; these votes split the liberal vote and played a large role in Thomas E. Dewey's victory.
factions within the organization came into increased conflict. This walkout led to the formation of the Liberal Party of New York
.
in the early 1970s, and served until Hugh L. Carey abolished the board in 1975.
, an organization for the advancement of Greek-Americans. He also served as president of La Guardia Memorial House, a settlement house, for more than 40 years.
Alfange headed the Zionist
organization Committee to Arm the Jewish State, a group that sought to end arms embargo
s against Israel
. He also served as the chairman of the Emergency Committee to Save the Jewish People of Europe, a group that sought to rescue victims of the then ongoing Holocaust. Through this organizations, Alfange urged that it was a Christian
's moral and religious duty to help the Jewish victimized by the Nazis.
in both the October 1952 and January 1954 issues, though two lines were later added to this version. The Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge
gave Alfange an award for the composition in 1952.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician who held nominations and appointments from a number of parties, including the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, the American Labor Party
American Labor Party
The American Labor Party was a political party in the United States established in 1936 which was active almost exclusively in the state of New York. The organization was founded by labor leaders and former members of the Socialist Party who had established themselves as the Social Democratic...
, and the Liberal Party of New York
Liberal Party of New York
The Liberal Party of New York is a minor American political party that has been active only in the state of New York. Its platform supports a standard set of social liberal policies: it supports right to abortion, increased spending on education, and universal health care.As of 2007, the Liberal...
, which he was a founding member of. Born in the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
to two native Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
parents, Alfange remained involved in Greek-American organizations for much of his life, as well as activist Zionist
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
groups.
He was a prominent liberal legal commentator who supported the notion of judicial activism
Judicial activism
Judicial activism describes judicial ruling suspected of being based on personal or political considerations rather than on existing law. It is sometimes used as an antonym of judicial restraint. The definition of judicial activism, and which specific decisions are activist, is a controversial...
and a Living Constitution
Living Constitution
The Living Constitution is a concept in America, also referred to as loose constructionism, constitutional interpretation which claims that the Constitution has a dynamic meaning or that it has the properties of a human in the sense that it changes...
. He ran for a number of offices, including Governor of New York
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
, where his candidacy split the liberal vote, allowing Thomas E. Dewey to win the governorship. He also ran for the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, but lost again. He is well remembered for a short piece he wrote entitled either "An American's Creed" or simply "My Creed". The Creed espouses the ideas of self-reliance and freedom.
Early life and education
Alfange was born in ConstantinopleIstanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
in the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, to two ethnic Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
parents. His parents moved to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
when he was still an infant, where they raised him in Utica, New York
Utica, New York
Utica is a city in and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 62,235 at the 2010 census, an increase of 2.6% from the 2000 census....
. He graduated from Utica Free Academy
Utica Free Academy
Utica Free Academy was a high school in Utica, New York, United States.The building is now a nursing home, the Loretto Utica Center. Politician Dean Alfange attended the school.-Notable alumni:*Richard H. Balch, businessperson and politician...
in 1918, and joined the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
After the war, he attended Hamilton College and graduated in 1922 with honors in philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa Society
Phi Beta Kappa Society
The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and...
. Alfange remained active at the college, and when he received the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Award for his book The Supreme Court and the National Will, he donated the prize to Hamilton College, establishing the ongoing Dean Alfange Essay Award, given to two students each year for essays on American constitutional government. He received a juris doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
from Columbia University Law School, and became a lawyer in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
.
Later life
He was married to Thalia Perry, with whom he had one child, Dean Alfange, Jr. Alfange died October 24, 1989 in ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
.
Legal career
Alfange received his degree from Columbia University Law School, and was admitted to the American Bar AssociationAmerican Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
in 1925. He criticized the United States Supreme Court for its treatment of New Deal
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...
programs, urging they adopt a more progressive attitude towards the policies. He contended that the programs should not be evaluated solely on their legality, but on their possible moral and economic effects, as well as public perception at the time. He supported Truman's notion of a Living Constitution
Living Constitution
The Living Constitution is a concept in America, also referred to as loose constructionism, constitutional interpretation which claims that the Constitution has a dynamic meaning or that it has the properties of a human in the sense that it changes...
.
Later in his political career, Alfange served as the Deputy New York State Attorney General
New York State Attorney General
The New York State Attorney General is the chief legal officer of the State of New York. The office has been in existence in some form since 1626, under the Dutch colonial government of New York.The current Attorney General is Eric Schneiderman...
.
Democratic Party
In 1940, Franklin Delano Roosevelt made Alfange chairman of the Democratic foreign-language speakers' bureau of his third election campaignUnited States presidential election, 1940
The United States presidential election of 1940 was fought in the shadow of World War II as the United States was emerging from the Great Depression. Incumbent President Franklin D. Roosevelt , a Democrat, broke with tradition and ran for a third term, which became a major issue...
. In 1941, he received the nomination for the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
running out of the Upper East Side
Upper East Side
The Upper East Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, between Central Park and the East River. The Upper East Side lies within an area bounded by 59th Street to 96th Street, and the East River to Fifth Avenue-Central Park...
, then known as the Silk Stocking District, but lost to Joseph C. Baldwin
Joseph C. Baldwin
Joseph Clark Baldwin was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New York....
, receiving 16,690 votes.
American Labor Party
Alfange served as head of the American Labor PartyAmerican Labor Party
The American Labor Party was a political party in the United States established in 1936 which was active almost exclusively in the state of New York. The organization was founded by labor leaders and former members of the Socialist Party who had established themselves as the Social Democratic...
for several years in the late 1930s. In 1942, he received the nomination for Governor of New York
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
. Though he received the nomination, the American Labor Party only officially fielded a candidate after Herbert H. Lehman
Herbert H. Lehman
Herbert Henry Lehman was a Democratic Party politician from New York. He was the 45th Governor of New York from 1933 to 1942, and represented New York in the United States Senate from 1950 to 1957.-Lehman Brothers:...
, the man they had backed for the Democratic nomination, lost to John J. Bennett, Jr.
John J. Bennett, Jr.
John James Bennett was an American Lawyer and politician.- Life :...
in the primary. Mayor of New York City
Mayor of New York City
The Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
Fiorello La Guardia supported Alfange in this election. Alfange finishing in third place with 409,047 votes, or about 17.7 percent of votes cast. With this figure, Alfange garnered more votes than any other American Labor candidate ever had or would again in a state-wide election; these votes split the liberal vote and played a large role in Thomas E. Dewey's victory.
Liberal Party
Alfange led a walkout against the Labor Party in 1944 when pro and anti-CommunistCommunism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
factions within the organization came into increased conflict. This walkout led to the formation of the Liberal Party of New York
Liberal Party of New York
The Liberal Party of New York is a minor American political party that has been active only in the state of New York. Its platform supports a standard set of social liberal policies: it supports right to abortion, increased spending on education, and universal health care.As of 2007, the Liberal...
.
Republican
Then Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller named Alfange head of the New York State Racing and Wagering BoardNew York State Racing and Wagering Board
The New York State Racing and Wagering Board is the official governing body that oversees horse racing, charitable gaming, and Indian casino gaming in New York State...
in the early 1970s, and served until Hugh L. Carey abolished the board in 1975.
Activism
Alfange served in a number of activist and ethnic organizations, including heading the American Hellenic Educational Progressive AssociationAmerican Hellenic Educational Progressive Association
The American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association ' is a service organization founded on July 26, 1922 in Atlanta, Georgia. Its mission is to support Greek-American charities, causes, and communities. It works closely with the Greek Orthodox Church. Its ladies' auxiliary, the Daughters of...
, an organization for the advancement of Greek-Americans. He also served as president of La Guardia Memorial House, a settlement house, for more than 40 years.
Alfange headed the Zionist
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
organization Committee to Arm the Jewish State, a group that sought to end arms embargo
Arms embargo
An arms embargo is an embargo that applies to weaponry. It may also include "dual use" items. An arms embargo may serve one or more purposes:# to signal disapproval of behavior by a certain actor,# to maintain neutral standing in an ongoing conflict, or...
s against Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. He also served as the chairman of the Emergency Committee to Save the Jewish People of Europe, a group that sought to rescue victims of the then ongoing Holocaust. Through this organizations, Alfange urged that it was a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
's moral and religious duty to help the Jewish victimized by the Nazis.
An American's Creed
Alfange is remembered for a short statement he wrote in the 1950s entitled "An American's Creed" or simply "My Creed". The creed originally appeared in This Week Magazine, and later republished in Reader's DigestReader's Digest
Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
in both the October 1952 and January 1954 issues, though two lines were later added to this version. The Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge
Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge
The Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge is a national, non-profit, non-partisan, non-sectarian educational organization, founded in 1949. The Foundation is located adjacent to the Valley Forge National Historical Park, near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, U.S., and sits on ground that was once part of...
gave Alfange an award for the composition in 1952.