President's Committee on Civil Rights facts for kids

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President's Committee on Civil Rights

History
Established by	Harry Truman on December 5, 1946
Disbanded	December 1947
Related Executive Order number(s)	9808, 9980, 9981
Membership
Chairperson	Charles Edward Wilson
Other committee members	Sadie T. Alexander James B. Carey John Sloan Dickey Morris Ernst Roland B. Gittelsohn Frank Porter Graham Francis J. Haas Charles Luckman Francis P. Matthews Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr. Henry Knox Sherrill Boris Shishkin Dorothy Rogers Tilly Channing Heggie Tobias
Jurisdiction
Purpose	Investigate the status of civil rights in the country and propose measures to strengthen and protect them
Policy areas	Civil rights
Summary
Establish a permanent Civil Rights Commission, Joint Congressional Committee on Civil Rights, and a Civil Rights Division in the Department of Justice Develop federal protection from lynching Establish a permanent fair employment practice commission Abolish poll taxes Other measures

The President's Committee on Civil Rights was a special group created by President Harry Truman in 1946. Its main job was to look into how well civil rights were being protected across the United States. The committee was asked to suggest ways to make these rights stronger and safer for everyone. In December 1947, they gave President Truman a big report called To Secure These Rights. Based on this report, President Truman suggested new laws to Congress and ordered an end to unfair treatment and separation (desegregation) in the government and military.

Why the Committee Was Formed

The President's Committee on Civil Rights had an important task. They needed to study the state of civil rights in the United States. After their study, they wrote a detailed report about what they found. They also made recommendations on how to improve civil rights for all Americans.

Key Recommendations for Civil Rights

In December 1947, the committee released its 178-page report, To Secure These Rights. This report suggested several important changes. For example, it proposed creating a permanent Civil Rights Commission. It also suggested a special committee in Congress for civil rights. Another idea was to create a Civil Rights Division within the Department of Justice.

The report also called for federal protection against serious harm to people. It urged the creation of a permanent commission to ensure fair employment practices. This would help make sure people were hired based on their skills, not their background. The committee also recommended getting rid of certain voting fees called poll taxes. These taxes had stopped many people from voting. The report even suggested that a 1945 international agreement, the UN Charter, could help fight unfair treatment in the U.S.

Truman's Actions for Equality

On July 26, 1948, President Truman took action based on the report's ideas. He signed two important orders. Executive Order 9980 ordered an end to unfair treatment in the federal government's workplaces. Executive Order 9981 ordered the end of separation (desegregation) in the armed forces. This meant people of all backgrounds would serve together.

President Truman also sent a special message to Congress on February 2, 1948. He asked Congress to pass laws that would put the committee's recommendations into action.

Impact on Diplomacy

The committee's report also helped open doors for African-American diplomats. These are people who represent their country in other nations. Because of the committee's findings on race relations, Edward R. Dudley became the first African American to be an ambassador under President Truman. This was a big step forward.

However, these changes were also partly due to how the U.S. was seen by other countries. Unfair treatment in the U.S. was harming its relationships with other nations. Even with the committee's strong findings, President Truman faced challenges. It was hard for him to act on all the research because some people in the U.S. did not support the changes.

Committee Members

The committee was made up of 15 members. They were chosen to help investigate and report on civil rights.

Report Publication

• President's Committee on Civil Rights. To Secure These Rights: The Report of the President's Committee on Civil Rights. Washington: GPO, 1947.

See also

• Executive Order 8802, signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on July 25, 1941, to prohibit ethnic or racial discrimination in the nation's defense industry