The American Peace Movement and Social Reform, 1889-1918

The history of the peace movement in the United States was one of dramatic change: in the mid-IKWs it consisted of a few provincial societies; by 1912 it had become eminently respectable and listed among its members an impressive number of the nation’s leaders; by 1918 it was once again weak and remote from those who formulated national policy. Along with these fluctuations went equally substantial changes of leadership and purpose that, as C. Roland Marchand emphasizes, reflected the motives of the various reform groups that successively joined and dominated the movement. Most of those who joined were not devoted solely to the cause of world peace, but saw in the programs of the movement a chance for the fulfillment of their own mare immediately relevant goals. Consequently the story of the peace movement reflects the concerns of such groups as the international lawyers who wanted a world court of arbitration as an alternative to war, the business leaders who believed that international economic stability would be endangered by war, and the labor unions who felt that the working class suffered most in war.

Originally published in 1973.

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