Stetson Kennedy Progressive Party Collection

Collection

Identifier: MsC0376

Staff Only
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Scope and Contents

The Stetson Kennedy Collection of Progressive Party Materials consists of 118 items. Founded in 1948, the Progressive Party's first presidential candidate was Henry A. Wallace. The party (which continued until 1954) opposed the bipartisan Cold War policy, advocated civil rights, and wanted an extension of New Deal policies. This small collection includes correspondence, speeches, flyers, and advertising relating to the Henry A. Wallace campaign and southern strategy. It also contains clippings and folders concerning the Progressive Citizens of America and the National Council of the Arts, Sciences, and Professions.

Dates

Creation: 1945-1952
Creation: Majority of material found within 1940-1949

Creator

Kennedy, Stetson (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Biographical / Historical

Writer and political activist Stetson Kennedy was born in Florida in 1916. He graduated from Lee High School and attended the University of Florida. One of his first jobs after college was as the state editor for the WPA Florida Writers Project. In 1941, Kennedy published his first book, Palmetto County. In the 1940s he infiltrated the Ku Klux Klan, out of which came his book Southern Exposure. During World War II, he was director of intelligence for the Anti-Nazi League. He was active in pre- and post-war peace movements and was a delegate to the World Peace Conference. In 1950, Stetson Kennedy ran for the U.S. Senate from Florida as an Independent. He was endorsed by the Progressive Voters League but received only 914 votes. Kennedy has worked as a newspaper writer and columnist for papers such as the New York Times and the New York Post. Most of his papers are deposited at the Southern Labor Archives at Georgia State University.