The American Legion is the largest organization of vETERANs in the United States. Founded in Paris in 1919 by veterans of World War I, it held its first convention in St. Louis that same year. The American Legion dedicated itself to fighting for the social and political interests of veterans and promoting Americanism and American interests.
One of several veterans’ organizations formed in the aftermath of World War I, the legion’s founders hoped to build on the sense of community that troops had shared in the war. The creation of the legion was aided by the makeup of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF). Many Americans of impoverished backgrounds failed the physicals required to join the military. Others unrepresented were immigrants who had not become citizens and therefore were not required to register for the draft. The American forces were, therefore, predominately of middle - and lower-middle-class men of northern European ancestry. This dynamic gave the veterans a sense of shared community that they hoped to continue after the war. They also wanted to continue the patriotic crusade for democracy they had began in Europe. The founders of the legion established it for two purposes. The first purpose was to take care of wounded veterans. The second purpose was to promote patriotism at home.
In the 1920s, when lobbying and interest groups were on the rise, the American Legion became the most powerful lobby for veterans’ issues, national defense, and anti-radical legislation. Responding to pressure from members, it lobbied the federal government for a payment to World War I veterans. They argued that the veterans had sacrificed earnings by joining the war effort and that the government should pay them for their lost earnings. In 1924 the legion and other veterans’ advocates succeeded when Congress passed a bonus bill that granted them future payments. The American Legion also focused on fighting radicalism. Many legionnaires saw communism as a threat to Americanism and fought against radicalism in a variety of ways. In their first years, some legion groups physically attacked people whom they saw as dangerous to America. Although the legion was not clear as to what constituted Americanism, it knew what radicalism was and organized to fight it. Communists, socialists, labor leaders, and the
American Civil Liberties Union, for example, all fell into the group of radicals as defined by legion leaders. By the mid-twenties, the legion realized that violence in pursuit of Americanism was counterproductive and turned to legislative lobbying to further its aims. The legion was the most active group fighting radicalism in America. Members kept watch and publicized their beliefs about what was endangering American society. They also enjoyed access to elected officials who introduced legislation that allowed the legion to shape legislative debates. The legion network of state organizations was used to publicize an issue that it deemed important. In this role, the American Legion became an influential force in American politics.
Further reading: William Pencak, For God and Country: The American Legion, 1919-1941 (Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1989).
—Michael Hartman
World History
