War Resisters League Honors the History of Armistice Day
As the United States celebrates “Veterans Day” on November 11th, WRL calls for a return to its pacifist origins as Armistice Day which marked the anniversary of the end of the “Great War” (World War I). On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, it was a time to mourn those lost and to commit to peace. First celebrated in the United States on November 11, 1919, Armistice Day was designated a federal holiday in 1938. Less than a month after founding the War Resisters League, Jessie Wallace Hughan organized an Armistice Day Rally with pacifist speakers in November, 1923.
An early street action by WRL was a demonstration marking the 10th anniversary of the World War I armistice on November 10, 1928. WRL participated in “poster walks” on each subsequent anniversary up until World War II. Those in 1938 (Nov. 10) and 1939 (Nov. 11) went from 14 Street to Madison Square Park in Manhattan and were under the auspices of United Pacifist Committee (organized by Jessie Wallace Hughan and the WRL).
Photo Credit: New York Times, Nov. 18, 1928.
In the early 1930s, annual Armistice Day eve dedication services were held by the WRL under the direction of Tracy Mygatt and Frances Witherspoon and featured public declarations by young men renouncing war.
How did Armistice Day become Veterans Day in the U.S.? In 1954, the U.S. Congress and President Dwight Eisenhower changed the name of the holiday to Veterans Day to honor the U.S. veterans who fought in World War II and Korea. Although the legislation changing the name states that “the holiday was dedicated to the cause of world peace,” the holiday has become a glorification of war supported by a culture of militarism.
Forty years ago, an article in the The Nonviolent Activist (Volume 2 Number 1 January 1985) “Reclaiming the Calendar” says:
“NOVEMBER: Veteran’s Day needs to be ‘recovered’ by the American people. This was originally a major holiday, a celebration of the end of the ‘Great War’ (World War I). Known as Armistice Day, it was a day of sadness over those lost, and a time of hope for a future without war. Veterans, having suffered much from war, should be aware of the danger of militarizing a holiday which was originally dedicated to those who had not survived.”
Indeed, Armistice Day was dedicated to everyone, both combatants and civilians, who were lost in World War I, not just soldiers.
This November, Veterans for Peace echoes that call to reclaim Armistice Day.
— Mary McClintock is the WRL 100th Anniversary Project Coordinator
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