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Address by Charles A. Lindbergh, May 10, 1941
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"Address by Charles A. Lindbergh, May 10, 1941" (2016). War Information Center Pamphlets. Book 1353.
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ADDRESS
by
CHARLES A. LJNDBERGH-
U IVERSITY
OF TOLE C
N~~c;~v19;~
.r j
~~
MINNEAPOLIS
MAY IO, 1941
~ 117
ADDRESS
Delivered at an
America First Committee
Meeting
by
Charles A. Lindbergh
Minneapolis, May 10, 1941
ONE
generation ago, my
father was speaking on platforms in Minnesota against American intervention in a
.European war. He believed that this country had a destiny of its own-a destiny
that should be kept independent of foreign
intrigue, and free from foreign war. He
believed that the future of America lay
more in the farms of the Mississippi Valley
than on battlefields across the sea; more
in the welfare of our factory workmen
than in the balance of power in Europe.
3
BuT the propaganda of war
had spread through our country. Speakers
from England addressed our meetings.
Idealists called on us to fight. Hysteria,
hatred and intolerance arose. Even college presidents and their faculties joined
in the cry. When my father charged political and financial interests with leading
us to war, his meetings were broken up,
his patriotism was questioned, and the
plates of his book were destroyed by government agents.
THE
from the Fourteen Points of Wilson to the
Four Freedoms of Roosevelt, the idealist
has held sway. We formed the League of
Nations, we demobilized our armies, we
sank our battleships, we made pacts of
non-aggression. But the kind of democracy we fought for in the last war doesn't
exist today, even in our own country. Except for England, we have incurred the
antagonism of every major military power
in both Europe and Asia. And all this
has been done in the name of democracy,
peace and civilization. As a matter of
fact, the idealists themselves seem to be
about all we fought for in the last war
that remains intact.
story from here on is
well known. We entered a war that was
going to make the world safe for democracy, and end all need for war in the
future. We sent two million troops overseas, turned the tide of battle, and helped
the Allies to victory. After that, we left
the future of the world in the hands of
our college presidents and our idealists.
You know as well as I, how they proceeded
to outlaw war and make the world safe
for democracy. The greatest wars and the
bloodiest revolutions of all history have
taken place under their guidance. From
the Russian Revolution to the Spanish;
from the first World War to the second,
NOW, they want us to go to
war again, to save the world by means of
some new idea. Speakers from England
are touring our country today, as they
did a generation ago. Our college presidents are shouting for war, just as they
did before. If only we send our armies
abroad once more, they tell us, if only
enough people in Europe can be starved
and killed, we will be able to spread
peace, and democracy, and our way of
life over the entire earth. People who
4
5
have been pacifists all their lives are now
saying that peace must be brought by war.
Ministers are preaching that Christianity
must be spread by famine. Our government asks us to preserve democracy
abroad by creating a dictatorship in our
own country. And all this in the name
of idealism.
BuT there are many people
in the nation who have ideals of another
kind. There are many of us who believe
that the place to save democracy is right
here in America. We do not accept the
claim that Christianity will thrive on
famine, or that our way of life can be
spread around the world by force. We
believe that it is possible for a man or
nation to be self reliant, to be practical,
to be successful, even to be tolerant, and
still have ideals of the highest type.
WE,
in America, have
learned something since the last war. We
lmow more about propaganda. We have
heard of the secrE;it treaties of Europe.
We have watched England and France
wrangle through an entire generation,
6
until a new war came tumbling down upon
their shoulders. The question is whether
we have learned enough to withstand the
barrage of propaganda to which we have
been subjected ever since this war began;
and whether, if we can withstand that
barrage, we will be able to impose our will
upon the government in Washington.
THERE was once a time in
America when we could impose our will
by vote. Candidates brought political issues before us, and stated clearly their
stand. After an election was over, responsibility to the voters remained. That
was what we once called a principle of
democracy. Many of us thought we were
still operating under that principle at the
elections last November. Both political
parties had adopted platforms against intervention in this war. Both political candidates spoke constantly of peace. Many
a sincere Democrat and Republican voted
with full confidence that his man, if
elected, would keep our country out of
war. But it now seems doubtful that we
even had two parties last November, at
least as far as the Presidential candidates
were-concerned. The people of this nation
7
were not given the chance to vote on the
greatest issue of our generation-the issue of foreign war. And yet we are now
told that we must go to Europe to fight
for the very principles of democracy that
were denied to us in our OWn nation
last November.
WE HAVE been asked to
fight abroad for the "Four Freedoms."
But there are other freedoms that our
President did not mention. One is the
freedom to vote on vital issues. Another
is freedom of information-the right of
a free people to know where they are
being led by their government. I doubt
that any country in Europe has been less
informed about the intentions of its government than we have been here in
America. I doubt that any country there
has been more misled about the actual
developments of the war. For years, the
true facts about Europe have been hidden
from us. Any attempt to tell them met
with the utmost criticism and opposition.
When I stated in 1938, after a careful
study, that the German air force was
stronger than any combination that could
be brought against it, I was charged with
8
l
being both wrong and pro-Nazi. When I
said in 1939, that this war could not be
won simply by sending a few thousand airplanes and cannon to Europe I was accused of being misguided and un-American. When I told you in 1940 that the
phrase "steps short of war" was nothing
but a mask for war itself, I ·was called
a :fifth-columnist and a Hitler agent.
When I tell you today that we are not
in a position to win this war for England,
I am charged with being disloyal by the
same politicians and idealists who denied
all the other statements when I made
•them. But they cannot point to a single
one that has not turned out to be true.
These charges will undoubtedly continue
in the future, and I do not know how
much longer free speech will be allowed
in this country. But as long as our laws
permit it, I intend to continue telling you
what I believe.
I
HAVE never wanted Germany to win this war. But I know that
England is not in a position to win it,
even with our help. That is why I have
constantly advocated a negotiated peace.
The idea that the entire continent of
9
Europe can be blockaded into submission
is ridiculous. Short of an internal collapse, of which there is no sign today,
the only way Germany could be defeated
is by an invasion. Even i£ a~ invasion
were possible, which I do not believe, the
r esulting devastation would be so great
that Europe could not recover for generations i£ it could recover at all.
THE
developments of this
war have shown clearly how difficult it is
to force a landing or to supply an expeditionary force on a hostile coast. If we
intend to invade Europe against the opposition of the same army and air force
that broke the Maginot Line and routed
the British forces in Norway, Flanders,
and Greece, then the United States must
become a regimented and military nation
that surpasses Germany herself in totalitarian efficiency. In that case, we might
as well realize that "our way of life" is a
thing of the past, and that our children
will be fortunate if they live long enough
to see it again. The conditions which
exist in Germany today will seem moderate in comparison to those which will
result from a prolongation of this war.
10
MEN
and women of Minnesota, I say to you today what my father
said a quarter century ago. The future
of democracy depends on our ability to
govern our own country. It rests in the
character of our own people, in the welfare of our farmers and our workmen.
What happens in Europe and Asia is of
secondary importance to what is happening to us here in our own land. It is far
more essential for this country to have
farms without mortgages, workmen with
their own homes, and young people who
can afford families, than it is for us to
crusade abroad for freedoms that are
tottering in our own country.
I
N the stand he took, a generation ago, my father was thinking of
more than war alone. He was opposing a
great change in our national policy, the
same change Washington opposed in his
Farewell Address-the merging of our
destiny with that of Europe. My father
knew that one war would lead to another,
and that a second would lead to a third.
He knew that, by entering war, we would
not solve the problems that were arising,
either in our own country or abroad. In
this, history has proven that he was right.
11
NOW, you and I, in a new
generation, are faced with this choice
again. We have seen the result of one
European war in which our country took
part. Are we to enter a second at thi.s
time? Is the destiny of America to be
forever merged with that of Europe Y Are
we to take the policing of the entire world
upon our shoulders? Must our children
fight again when the next European war
takes place?
THE
answer to these questions
depends upon the action that you, and
I, and millions like us, are ready to take.
In every section of the United States,
men and women are assembling, as we
have assembled .tonight. If we have the
stamina and the courage to speak forth,
if we are willing to organize and work, if
we have enough character and faith to
justify an independent existence for this
nation, American soldiers will not be sent
to fight again in these intra-European
wars.
to intervention. It is a non-political organization open to any patriotic citizen
of tb,e United States. Our principles are
open and clear. We believe that the
security of this country depends upon
our own character and strength. We believe that the best way to defend our
nation is to keep our armies on our own
soil. We stand for an independent American destiny.
IF
you stand with us, we ask
you to join this Committee. We ask you
to help us by organizing meetings, by
talking to your friends, and by writing
to your representatives in Washington.
The crisis is here. We need your assistance now. The entire future of America depends on the action we take at this
time.
THE
America First Committee has been formed to give voice to the
people in this country who are opposed
12
13
Principles
of
America First Committee
1. Our first duty is to keep America out of
foreign wars. Our entry would only destroy democracy, not save it. "The path
to war is a false path to freedom.''
2. Not by acts of war abroad but by preserving and extending democracy at
home can we aid democracy and freedom
in other lands.
3. In 1917 we sent our American ships into
the war zone and this led us to war. In
1941 we must keep our naval convoys
and merchant vessels on this side of the
Atlantic.
4. We must build a defense, for our own
shores, so strong that no foreign power
or combination of powers can invade our
country, by sea, air or land.
5. Humanitarian aid is the duty of a strong,
free country at peace. With proper safeguard for the distribution of supplies,
we should feed and clothe the suffering
and needy people of England, the other
-Democracies and the occupied countries.
AMERICA FIRST COMMITTEE
141 WEST JACKSON BOULEVARD
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
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