1915 November 11

Pacifist Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR) Founded

 

The Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR), a pacifist organization that became one of the leading advocates for the right of conscientious objection to participation in war during World War I, was founded on this day.

Norman Thomas, a major FOR leader, also became a founding member and long-time national board member of the ACLU (founded on January 19, 1920).

Later, in the early 1940s, members of FOR established the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), on March 9, 1942, which became one of the important civil rights organizations of the 1960s. CORE organized the one of the first sit-ins challenging segregated restaurants on May 8, 1943; the 1947 Journey of Reconciliation; a freedom ride challenging segregation in interstate bus travel that began on April 9, 1947; and the famous 1961 Freedom Rides, also challenging segregated interstate bus travel that began on May 4, 1961, and is one of the iconic events of the civil rights movement.

Visit the FOR web site: http://www.forusa.org

Learn more about Norman Thomas, his family, and FOR in WW I: Louisa Thomas, Two Soldiers, Two Pacifists, One Family — A Test of Will and Faith in World War I (2011)

Visit the International Fellowship of Reconciliation web site here.

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