Post War World Council Collection
Founded and chaired by Norman Thomas in 1942, the Post-War World Council sought to lay the groundwork for a democratic and anti-imperialist end to the Second World War. As the face of the organization, Thomas promoted the pacifist ideals of internationalism, disarmament, and decolonization, however his failing health in the early 1960s led to the decline of the Council and its formal dissolution in 1967.
This collection consists of pamphlets from the Post War World Council that document a range of opinions concerning the war and the world, including titles such as “Saboteurs of Victory,” “The Case Against Compulsory Peacetime Military Training,” “The Future of the Far East,” and “Disarmament in the Post War World.”
Background on Post War World Council
The Keep America Out of War Committee was formed in New York in 1938 as a pacifist and Democratic Socialist organization devoted to strengthening the anti-war movement. After the attack on Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entry into the Second World War, the Committee was dissolved and re-organized as the Provisional Committee Toward a Democratic Peace. The committee continued to evolve in name and focus, and in February 1942, it took the name the Post-War World Council.
Founded and chaired by Norman Thomas, the Council sought to lay the groundwork for a democratic and anti-imperialist end to the war. As the face of the organization, Thomas promoted the pacifist ideals of internationalism, disarmament, and decolonization, however his failing health in the early 1960s led to the decline of the Council and its formal dissolution in 1967.
The Post-War World Council collection consists of 25 pamphlets published during and after the Second World War promoting the ideals of internationalism, peace, and anti-imperialism. With contributions by noted activists such as Norman Thomas, Pearl S. Buck, and Oswald Garrison Villard, the titles include “Saboteurs of Victory,” “The Case Against Compulsory Peacetime Military Training,” “The Future of the Far East,” and “Disarmament in the Post War World.”
Gift of Stephen Siteman, 1990.
Processed by I. Eliot Wentworth, May 2015.
)Cite as: Post War World Council Collection (MS 307). Special Collections and University Archives, University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries.