Collection Summary |
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| Creator: | American Friends Service Committee | |
| Title: | American Friends Service Committee Records | |
| Dates: | 1931-1967 | |
| Abstract: | The collection consists of tape recordings (1959-1961), surveys, bibliographies, pamphlets, reprints, memoranda, clippings, statements, reports, newsletters, press releases, leaflets, lists, bulletins, correspondence, handbooks, forms, photographs, minutes, memorial booklets, petitions, circulation letters, yearbooks, resolutions, questionnaires, speeches, policy statements, editorials, statements of beliefs, directories, schedules, manifestos, proposals, prayers, plans of action, promotional literature, tests, answer sheets, research papers, information tables, poems, manuals, fact sheets, notes, interviews, information literature, budgets, constitutions, evaluations, agendas, proposals, testimonies, advertisements, calendars, films, study guides, reviews, position papers, biographical sketches, invoices, receipts, fact sheets, announcements, background data, and programs. | |
| Quantity: | 63.25 linear feet | |
| Identification: | AFSC | |
The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is a nonsectarian pacifist and service organization which was founded by Quakers in Philadelphia in 1917 in order to provide conscientious objectors with an opportunity to aid civilian war victims. During its first year, the AFSC sent young men and women to France where they cared for refugee chidren, founded a maternity hospital, repaired and rebuilt homes, and helped returning refugees restart their lives. After the war ended in 1918, the AFSC helped Russian workers who were victims of famine and disease. It also helped Poland and Serbia to establish an orphanage and rehabilitate their agriculture. Also, the AFSC fed hungry children in Austria and Germany. In the 1930s, the AFSC helped refugees escape from Adolph Hitler's Germany, provided relief for children on both sides of the Spanish Civil War; fed refugees in occupied France, and helped victims of the London blitz. The AFSC helped with relief and reconstruction in many parts of Europe after World War II, as well as in India, China, and Japan. The AFSC also mobilized itself to lend assistance to many of the conflicts that followed World War II including the Korean War, the Hungarian Revolution, and the Algerian War. In the 1950s, the AFSC began to focus its efforts on relieving tensions in order to prevent war. The committee created programs of social and technical assistance in developing nations in order to address the disparity between rich and poor nations. It has also brought together mid-career diplomats from many nations in informal, off-the-record conferences. More recently, the organization has begun targeting injustice in the U.S. by involving itself with Native Americans, Mexican-Americans, African-Americans, migrant workers, prisoners, and the poor. The AFSC helps work with people to organize community action to obtain better education, housing, and working conditions. Today, the AFSC carries out service, development, social justice, and peace programs throughout the world. The work of the organization is based on the Quaker belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice.
Index Terms |
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| This record series is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms. | ||
| Subjects: | ||
| American Friends Service Committee--Archives. | ||
| Chicago African American History | ||
| Chicago Community Organizations | ||
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