Suggested Research Topics - The Character of Anti-Semitism in America, 1940-1976
Gerald L. K. Smith (center) at America
First Party rally.
The personal papers of Gerald L.K. Smith afford the historian a rare opportunity to examine at close range the character of a national figure of hatred, isolationism, and anti-Semitism. In the guise of a Christian crusader for national supremacy, Smith reached an audience of millions with his organizational and oratorical skills, through the media of his radio programs broadcast from WJR in Detroit, direct mail pieces, and personal appearances at mass meetings. He carried on a life-long campaign for an isolationist America, to be led exclusively by evangelical Christians. Early on in his career he was a close supporter of Louisiana governor Huey Long. He was also a leader in the ill-fated Union Party of 1936, and the founder of the Christian Nationalist Crusade. At one time a close rival of Father Charles Coughlin of Detroit, Smith ultimately abandoned his political goals to focus his entrepreneurial skills primarily on evangelical fundamentalism, establishing a Christian center for exhibits and performances in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
Using the Gerald L. K. Smith papers and selecting one year from each decade (1940s-1970s), perhaps an election year, examine Smith's correspondence files for those years and the relevant issues of his publication, The Cross and the Flag. Based upon this information, analyze the character of Smith's anti-Semitic rhetoric and answer the following questions:
- Is Smith's message constant over the four decades?
- What changes are you able to discover in his message?
- Is Smith's message fundamentally religious in character, or is his "philosophy" founded more on a social and/or political agenda?
- What was Smith hoping to accomplish?
- Based on your study of four years, did Gerald L. K. Smith have any measurable impact on American history in the twentieth century?
Examples of Primary Source Collections and Other Resources:
- Father Charles Coughlin printed pamphlets. These are listed in the printed catalog of the Bentley Library.
- Gerald L. K. Smith collection. This collection of ninety-nine linear feet of materials has been described, with folder listings, in an unpublished finding aid at the Bentley Library.
- Glen Jeansonne's Gerald L. K. Smith. Minister of Hate. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988.
In an effort to encourage creative thinking about possible research topics for students unfamiliar with archives and their inevitable complexities, archivists and student employees of the Bentley Historical Library have authored "suggested research topics ." The purpose of these is not to define a topic but rather to stimulate thinking about a topic where the holdings of the Bentley Library are particularly strong.