Daughters of the American Revolution
The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a national patriotic organization established in 1890 by Caroline Harrison, the wife of President Benjamin Harrison. It is specifically for women who are descendants of individuals who served in the American Revolution. The DAR was chartered by Congress in 1895 and has since focused on promoting education about American history and patriotism.
However, the organization has faced criticism for its conservative stance on social issues and its predominantly white membership, which has led to accusations of racism. Notably, in 1939, the DAR denied the use of its Constitution Hall for a concert by the African American singer Marian Anderson, which drew widespread condemnation. The group has also been critical of various social movements and organizations, often labeling them as unpatriotic or left-wing.
Despite its dedication to historical education and patriotism, the DAR's controversial positions on race and social reform have sparked ongoing debates about its role in contemporary society. The organization continues to be involved in educational and historical preservation efforts while navigating the complexities of its past.
Daughters of the American Revolution
Founded: August 8, 1890
Type of organization: Conservative patriotic women’s group
Significance: Since its founding, the DAR has used patriotism to justify censorship
In 1890 President Benjamin Harrison’s wife, Caroline Harrison, founded the DAR, a national patriotic organization for female descendants of Americans who served in the Revolution. Congress chartered the organization in 1895. Since then the DAR has promoted patriotic history education, but its opposition to liberal social reform has attracted criticism. As a primarily white organization it has also often been accused of racism. In 1939 it denied use of its headquarters, Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., to the black contralto Marian Anderson for a concert sponsored by Howard University. When black pianist Hazel Scott was barred from the hall in 1945, DAR member Bess Truman—the wife of President Harry Truman—compared DAR policies to Nazism. In the 1960’s, the group denounced the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People as left-wing and anti-Christian.
The DAR opposed the New Deal, and it rejected both the League of Nations and later the United Nations as unpatriotic. While Senator Joseph McCarthy hunted communists in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, the DAR accused the United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) of using formal education to indoctrinate children with socialism. DAR and John Birch Society members also attacked textbook publishers. Of 214 texts evaluated in DAR Textbook Study 1958-1959, only forty-nine met the group’s minimum standards for patriotism. “Dangerous” works included four Pulitzer Prize winners, as well as Theodore Dreiser’s An American Tragedy, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, John Hersey’s Hiroshima, and writings by Margaret Mead and Lincoln Steffens.