1952 April 23

Mississippi Rep. John Rankin Slurs Jews on the House Floor

 

Rep. John Rankin from Mississippi was a segregationist and arguably the most notorious anti-Semite ever to serve in Congress. On this day, he slurred Jews in a speech on the floor of the House of Representatives.

He was not disciplined in any way for his remarks, however.

Rankin became a member of the House in 1921 and was finally defeated for reelection (as a result of reapportionment) in November of 1952.

Rep. Rankin: “They whine about discrimination. Do you know who is being discriminated against? The white Christian people of America, the ones who created this nation… I am talking about the white Christian people of the North as well as the South.” (Cong. Rec., April 23, 1952, p. 4320).

Learn about anti-Semitism: Leonard Dinnerstein, Antisemitism in America (1994)

Read Rankin’s Congressional Biography here

Learn more about Rankin’s career: http://encyclopedia.densho.org/John%20Rankin/

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