John E. Rankin
Encyclopedia
John Elliott Rankin was a Democratic
congressman
from the U.S. State
of Mississippi
who supported racial segregation
and, on the floor of the United States House of Representatives
, voiced racist views on African Americans and Jews
and even accused Albert Einstein
of being a communist agitator.
In 1944, following the Port Chicago disaster
, the U.S. Navy asked Congress
to give $5,000 to the victim's families. However Rankin insisted the amount be reduced to $2,000 when he learned most of the dead were black sailors, which caused the amount to be negotiated at $3,000.
and he graduated from the University of Mississippi
law school in 1910. He began practicing in Clay County, Mississippi
before becoming prosecuting attorney
of Lee County, Mississippi
, a position he held to 1915.
. He served sixteen consecutive terms (March 4, 1921 – January 3, 1953) as Mississippi's First District
Representative.
Rankin co-authored the bill to create the Tennessee Valley Authority
and was a supporter of the Rural Electrification Administration. He was a sponsor of Edith Nourse Rogers
' Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 (also known as the G. I. Bill of Rights). He was a strong supporter of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's
New Deal
and advocated economic intervention in poor rural communities. He opposed the creation of the UN, stating "The United Nations is the greatest fraud in all History. Its purpose is to destroy the United States." He supported racial segregation and opposed civil rights legislation. During World War II, Rankin alleged that the US Army's loss of a certain battle was due to the cowardice of black soldiers. Fellow Representative Helen Gahagan Douglas replied that many black soldiers had been decorated for bravery despite serving in a segregated Army. When African American Adam Clayton Powell Jr. was elected to Congress in 1945, Rankin vowed to never sit next to him.
Rankin chaired the Committee on World War Veterans' Legislation (Seventy-second
through Seventy-ninth
Congresses) and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs (Eighty-first
and Eighty-second
Congresses).
(HUAC). He was active in probing the Communist Party, USA and the German-American Bund
, but was criticized for failing to investigate violence and murder perpetrated by the Ku Klux Klan
. After HUAC's chief counsel Ernest Adamson announced: "The committee has decided that it lacks sufficient data on which to base a probe," Rankin added: "After all, the KKK is an old American institution.".
and African Americans on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. After Rankin used the epithet nigger on the floor of the United States House of Representatives
, Rep. Adam Clayton Powell Jr. called for his impeachment. Although freshmen Congressmen were expected not to speak during their first year in office, Powell rose after one of Rankin's outbursts to say that "the time has arrived to impeach Rankin, or at least expel him from the party." William L. Strickland, professor of political science
at University of Massachusetts Amherst
http://blackcommentator.com/317/317_cover_du_boiss_revenge_strictland_ed_bd_printer_friendly.html has written that "Rankin was an equal opportunity bigot since he also assailed columnist Walter Winchell
as 'the little kike. The moment was referenced in the 1947 Academy Award winning film, Gentleman's Agreement
, which focuses on the topic of antisemitism.
Rankin claimed that the Immigration and Nationality Act was opposed solely by American Jews:
Rankin notoriously baited Jewish Congressmen, including Adolph J. Sabath
and Emanuel Celler
. In one exchange, Rankin referred to Celler as "the Jewish gentleman from New York". When Celler protested, Rankin asked, "Does the member from New York object to being called a Jew or does he object to being called a gentleman? What is he kicking about?"
An article in the ADL Bulletin entitled The Plot Against Anna M. Rosenberg
attributed the attacks on Rosenberg's loyalty to "professional anti-Semites and lunatic nationalists," including the "Jew-baiting cabal of John Rankin, Benjamin H. Freedman
and Gerald Smith
." During the trial of the Communist spies Rosenberg
, Rankin was attacked by Jewish groups for calling the Rosenbergs "communist kikes".
, on the floor of Congress, of supposedly being a “foreign-born agitator” who sought “to further the spread of Communism throughout the world.”
, which were violent attacks by a mob of white racist anti-communists after a concert where African American entertainer and political radical Paul Robeson
sang, Rankin condemned Robeson.
He was followed by Representative Jacob Javits who condemned the mob in Peekskill for violating constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech and free assembly. Rankin replied angrily. "It was not surprising to hear the gentlemen from New York defend the Communist enclave." Rankin bellowed that he wanted it known that the American people are not in sympathy "with that Nigger
Communist and that bunch of Reds who went up there." On a point of order, Representative Vito Marcantonio
protested to House Speaker Sam Rayburn
that "the gentlemen from Mississippi used the word 'nigger.' I ask that the word be taken down and stricken from the RECORD inasmuch as there are two members in this house of Negro race." Rayburn claimed that Rankin had not said "nigger" but "Negro" but Rankin yelled over him saying "I said Niggra! Just as I have said since I have been able to talk and shall continue to say." Speaker Rayburn defended Rankin, ruling that "the gentlemen from Mississippi
is not subject to a point of order... referred to the Negro race and they should not be afraid of that designation."
. He finished last among five major candidates with over 24,000 votes and 13% of the vote.
.
Rankin died at his home in Tupelo
on November 26, 1960. He is interred in Greenwood Cemetery in West Point
, Mississippi.
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...
congressman
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....
from the U.S. State
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
who supported racial segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
and, on the floor of 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...
, voiced racist views on African Americans and Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
and even accused Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
of being a communist agitator.
In 1944, following the Port Chicago disaster
Port Chicago disaster
The Port Chicago disaster was a deadly munitions explosion that occurred on July 17, 1944, at the Port Chicago Naval Magazine in Port Chicago, California, United States. Munitions detonated while being loaded onto a cargo vessel bound for the Pacific Theater of Operations, killing 320 sailors and...
, the U.S. Navy asked 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....
to give $5,000 to the victim's families. However Rankin insisted the amount be reduced to $2,000 when he learned most of the dead were black sailors, which caused the amount to be negotiated at $3,000.
Early life
Rankin was born near Bolanda in Itawamba County, MississippiItawamba County, Mississippi
In 2000, there were 8,773 households out of which 33.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.30% were married couples living together, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.90% were non-families. 23.40% of all households were made up of individuals and...
and he graduated from the University of Mississippi
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
law school in 1910. He began practicing in Clay County, Mississippi
Clay County, Mississippi
As of the census of 2000, there were 21,979 people, 8,152 households, and 5,885 families residing in the county. The population density was 54 people per square mile . There were 8,810 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile...
before becoming prosecuting attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
of Lee County, Mississippi
Lee County, Mississippi
-National protected areas:* Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site* Natchez Trace Parkway * Tupelo National Battlefield-History:On September 20, 1816, General Andrew Jackson, David Meriwether, and the Chickasaw Nation signed the Treaty of Chickasaw Council House in Lee County.Lee County was...
, a position he held to 1915.
Election to Congress
In 1920, he was elected to the House as a DemocratDemocratic 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...
. He served sixteen consecutive terms (March 4, 1921 – January 3, 1953) as Mississippi's First District
Mississippi's 1st congressional district
Mississippi's 1st congressional district is in the northeast corner of the state. It includes much of the northern portion of the state including Columbus, Grenada, Oxford, Southaven, and Tupelo....
Representative.
Rankin co-authored the bill to create the Tennessee Valley Authority
Tennessee Valley Authority
The Tennessee Valley Authority is a federally owned corporation in the United States created by congressional charter in May 1933 to provide navigation, flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing, and economic development in the Tennessee Valley, a region particularly affected...
and was a supporter of the Rural Electrification Administration. He was a sponsor of Edith Nourse Rogers
Edith Nourse Rogers
Edith Nourse Rogers was an American social welfare volunteer and politician who was one of the first women to serve in the United States Congress. She was the first woman elected to congress from Massachusetts...
' Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 (also known as the G. I. Bill of Rights). He was a strong supporter of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
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...
and advocated economic intervention in poor rural communities. He opposed the creation of the UN, stating "The United Nations is the greatest fraud in all History. Its purpose is to destroy the United States." He supported racial segregation and opposed civil rights legislation. During World War II, Rankin alleged that the US Army's loss of a certain battle was due to the cowardice of black soldiers. Fellow Representative Helen Gahagan Douglas replied that many black soldiers had been decorated for bravery despite serving in a segregated Army. When African American Adam Clayton Powell Jr. was elected to Congress in 1945, Rankin vowed to never sit next to him.
Chairmanships
72nd United States Congress
The Seventy-second United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1931 to March 4, 1933, during the last two years...
through Seventy-ninth
79th United States Congress
The Seventy-ninth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1945 to January 3, 1947, during the last months of...
Congresses) and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs (Eighty-first
81st United States Congress
The Eighty-first United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives...
and Eighty-second
82nd United States Congress
The Eighty-second United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1951 to January 3, 1953, during the last two years...
Congresses).
House Un-American Activities Committee
Rankin was a leading member of the House Un-American Activities CommitteeHouse Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
(HUAC). He was active in probing the Communist Party, USA and the German-American Bund
German-American Bund
The German American Bund or German American Federation was an American Nazi organization established in the 1930s...
, but was criticized for failing to investigate violence and murder perpetrated by the Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
. After HUAC's chief counsel Ernest Adamson announced: "The committee has decided that it lacks sufficient data on which to base a probe," Rankin added: "After all, the KKK is an old American institution.".
Rankin's bigoted remarks condemned by his peers
Rankin belittled both JewsJews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
and African Americans on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. After Rankin used the epithet nigger on the floor of 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...
, Rep. Adam Clayton Powell Jr. called for his impeachment. Although freshmen Congressmen were expected not to speak during their first year in office, Powell rose after one of Rankin's outbursts to say that "the time has arrived to impeach Rankin, or at least expel him from the party." William L. Strickland, professor of political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
at University of Massachusetts Amherst
University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst is a public research and land-grant university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States and the flagship of the University of Massachusetts system...
http://blackcommentator.com/317/317_cover_du_boiss_revenge_strictland_ed_bd_printer_friendly.html has written that "Rankin was an equal opportunity bigot since he also assailed columnist Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell was an American newspaper and radio gossip commentator.-Professional career:Born Walter Weinschel in New York City, he left school in the sixth grade and started performing in a vaudeville troupe known as Gus Edwards' "Newsboys Sextet."His career in journalism was begun by posting...
as 'the little kike. The moment was referenced in the 1947 Academy Award winning film, Gentleman's Agreement
Gentleman's Agreement
Gentleman's Agreement is a 1947 drama film about a journalist who goes undercover as a Jew to conduct research for an exposé on antisemitism in New York City and the affluent community of Darien, Connecticut...
, which focuses on the topic of antisemitism.
Rankin claimed that the Immigration and Nationality Act was opposed solely by American Jews:
They whine about discrimination. Do you know who is being discriminated against? The white Christian people of America, the ones who created this nation... I am talking about the white Christian people of the North as well as the South... Communism is racial. A racial minority seized control in RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and in all her satellite countries, such as PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, and many other countries I could name. They have been run out of practically every country in Europe in the years gone by, and if they keep stirring race trouble in this country and trying to force their communistic program on the Christian people of America, there is no telling what will happen to them here.(Cong. Rec., April 23, 1952, p. 4320).
Rankin notoriously baited Jewish Congressmen, including Adolph J. Sabath
Adolph J. Sabath
Adolph Joachim Sabath was an American politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Chicago, Illinois, from 1907 until his death.He immigrated to America at age 15, became active in real estate, and received his LL.B...
and Emanuel Celler
Emanuel Celler
Emanuel Celler was an American politician from New York who served in the United States House of Representatives for almost 50 years, from March 1923 to January 1973. He was a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life:...
. In one exchange, Rankin referred to Celler as "the Jewish gentleman from New York". When Celler protested, Rankin asked, "Does the member from New York object to being called a Jew or does he object to being called a gentleman? What is he kicking about?"
An article in the ADL Bulletin entitled The Plot Against Anna M. Rosenberg
Anna M. Rosenberg
Anna Marie Rosenberg, , later Anna Rosenberg Hoffman, was a public official and businesswoman.Born in Budapest, Anna Lederer immigrated with her family to the US in 1912. In 1919 she married Julius Rosenberg, a Jewish American member of the upper class...
attributed the attacks on Rosenberg's loyalty to "professional anti-Semites and lunatic nationalists," including the "Jew-baiting cabal of John Rankin, Benjamin H. Freedman
Benjamin H. Freedman
Benjamin Harrison Freedman, was an American antisemitic and anti-Zionist activist. Freedman was a partner in a dermatological institute and in small business. He converted from Judaism to Roman Catholicism,-Biography:...
and Gerald Smith
Gerald Smith
Gerald Smith may refer to:*Gerald L. K. Smith , American activist and politician*Gerald W. Smith , American writer*Gerald Smith , Canadian politician-See also:*Gerald Smyth, British Army officer...
." During the trial of the Communist spies Rosenberg
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg
Ethel Greenglass Rosenberg and Julius Rosenberg were American communists who were convicted and executed in 1953 for conspiracy to commit espionage during a time of war. The charges related to their passing information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union...
, Rankin was attacked by Jewish groups for calling the Rosenbergs "communist kikes".
Accusations against Albert Einstein
Rankin accused Albert EinsteinAlbert Einstein
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
, on the floor of Congress, of supposedly being a “foreign-born agitator” who sought “to further the spread of Communism throughout the world.”
Congressional usage of the word "nigger"
Following the 1949 Peekskill RiotsPeekskill Riots
The Peekskill Riots were anti-communist riots with anti-black and anti-Semitic undertonesthat took place at Cortlandt Manor, Westchester County, New York in 1949. The catalyst for the rioting was an announced concert by black singer Paul Robeson, who was well known for his strong pro-trade union...
, which were violent attacks by a mob of white racist anti-communists after a concert where African American entertainer and political radical Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
sang, Rankin condemned Robeson.
He was followed by Representative Jacob Javits who condemned the mob in Peekskill for violating constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech and free assembly. Rankin replied angrily. "It was not surprising to hear the gentlemen from New York defend the Communist enclave." Rankin bellowed that he wanted it known that the American people are not in sympathy "with that Nigger
Nigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
Communist and that bunch of Reds who went up there." On a point of order, Representative Vito Marcantonio
Vito Marcantonio
Vito Anthony Marcantonio was an American lawyer and democratic socialist politician. Originally a member of the Republican Party and a supporter of Fiorello LaGuardia, he switched to the American Labor Party.-Early life:...
protested to House Speaker Sam Rayburn
Sam Rayburn
Samuel Taliaferro Rayburn , often called "Mr. Sam," or "Mr. Democrat," was a Democratic lawmaker from Bonham, Texas, who served as the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives for seventeen years, the longest tenure in U.S. history.- Background :Rayburn was born in Roane County, Tennessee, and...
that "the gentlemen from Mississippi used the word 'nigger.' I ask that the word be taken down and stricken from the RECORD inasmuch as there are two members in this house of Negro race." Rayburn claimed that Rankin had not said "nigger" but "Negro" but Rankin yelled over him saying "I said Niggra! Just as I have said since I have been able to talk and shall continue to say." Speaker Rayburn defended Rankin, ruling that "the gentlemen from Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
is not subject to a point of order... referred to the Negro race and they should not be afraid of that designation."
Unsuccessful bid for Senate
Rankin ran for the Democratic nomination following the death of Theodore G. BilboTheodore G. Bilbo
Theodore Gilmore Bilbo was an American politician. Bilbo, a Democrat, twice served as governor of Mississippi and later was elected a U.S. Senator . A master of filibuster and scathing rhetoric, a rough-and-tumble fighter in debate, he made his name a synonym for white supremacy...
. He finished last among five major candidates with over 24,000 votes and 13% of the vote.
Defeat and death
Rankin was defeated for re-election to the House in 1952 by Congressman Thomas G. Abernethy after their districts were joined through redistrictingRedistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...
.
Rankin died at his home in Tupelo
Tupelo, Mississippi
Tupelo is the largest city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. It is the seventh largest city in the state of Mississippi, smaller than Meridian, and larger than Greenville. As of the 2000 United States Census, the city's population was 34,211...
on November 26, 1960. He is interred in Greenwood Cemetery in West Point
West Point, Mississippi
West Point is a city in Clay County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 12,145 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Clay County and the principal city of the West Point Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the larger Columbus-West Point Combined Statistical...
, Mississippi.
External links
- The University of Southern Mississippi Manuscript Collection
- Svonkin, Stuart, Jews Against Prejudice: American Jews and the Fight for Civil Liberties. Columbia University PressColumbia University PressColumbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by James D. Jordan and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fields of literary and cultural studies, history, social work, sociology,...
1997. ISBN 0-231-10638-6