American Youth Congress

The American Youth Congress was established in 1935 as an umbrella organization of American youth advocacy groups. Its intention was to unite these disparate groups under a single voice to promote opportunities for education and civic involvement for Depression-era youth, and to lobby on behalf of the under-21 population. The AYC won the vocal support of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, adn established itself as a powerful lobbying entity. Among many other causes, the AYC undertook lobbying efforts on behalf of racial justice, increased federal spending on education, and an end to mandatory participation in the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) for male college students. In its final years, with WWII looming, the AYC fought a vigorous battle against the Conscription Act and advocated American neutrality in the war. From its inception the AYC followed a policy of inclusiveness, welcoming youth organizations of all political views to join and contribute. But as its membership grew (the AYC claimed to represent at least 4.5 million citizens in 1938), left-leaning groups such as the American Student Union and the Young Communist League began to comprise the largest block of members, and the leadership of the AYC became increasingly radicalized, until by 1940 many of its upper-level members, including Director Joseph Cadden and Secretary Joseph Lash, also claimed membership in Communist Party front organizations. The AYC came under frequent attack from the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and particularly from the committee chairman Martin Dies, whose 1940 book The Trojan Horse in America was largely an exposé of Communist infiltration in the AYC ranks. Under the pressure of these HUAC attacks, and following its notorious anti-war, anti-Roosevelt rally on the White House lawn in 1940, the AYC lost the support of its few remaining political allies, including Eleanor Roosevelt; by 1941 its influence had all but waned, and the group was effectively disbanded by the end of that year.

From the guide to the American Youth Congress Records, undated, (Tamiment Library / Wagner Archives)

The American Youth Congress was formed in 1935 to be a "voice for youth" on economic, social, and political issues of interest to young people, including unemployment, education, the draft, Communism, and so on. The organization was structured like a mock Congress, with delegates from across the United States as well as Canada, Cuba, China, Puerto Rico, and other countries. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was a strong backer of the organization (her involvement eventually led to the establishment of the National Youth Administration). When leaders of the AYC were subpoenaed by the House Un-American Affairs Committee (HUAC), Mrs. Roosevelt attended the hearings to demonstrate her support. The organization disbanded in 1940, largely due to internal conflict over the Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact.

From the guide to the American Youth Congress Collection, 1937-1944, (Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Libraries)