The Babel Proclamation was issued by Iowa's Governor William L. Harding on May 23, 1918. It forbade the speaking of any language besides English in public. The proclamation was controversial, supported by many established English-speaking Iowans and notably opposed by citizens who spoke languages other than English. Harding repealed it on December 4, 1918. The Babel Proclamation marked the peak of a wave of anti-German sentiment in Iowa during World War I.
As America became involved in World War I on the side of the Allies and against Germany, the nation saw a rise in anti-German sentiment. Nativism, which had existed before the war, became increasingly mainstream as a result of American intervention. [1] : 128–129 The state of Iowa saw a particularly large rise in anti-German sentiment. On November 23, 1917, the Iowa State Council for Defense determined that German should not be taught in public schools and took actions to that effect, such as burning German books. Iowa also saw places that had German-related names renamed, such as Germania being renamed to Lakota. Some German-Americans were attacked for speaking their language in public. In 1900 there were 46 German-language newspapers in Iowa; 20 years later there were just 16. [1] : 130–134 [2]
The Governor of Iowa, William L. Harding, issued the Babel Proclamation on May 23, 1918. [3] It stated that Iowa schools must teach their courses in English, public conversations had to be in English, addresses in public were to be given in English, and religious services were to be in English. Harding asserted that allowing languages other than English to be spoken "disturbs the peace and quiet of the community" and would lead to "discord among neighbors and citizens." He maintained that all non-English languages could be used to spread German propaganda. [3] He further argued that the proclamation would "save the lives of American boys overseas by curbing sedition at home." [4] Harding stated that the proclamation should be treated as law, although it was accused of violating the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech. He argued that the amendment did not apply to languages other than English. [2]
In response to the mandate, there were several protests, including one led by a priest at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church on May 30. [3] Scandinavian speakers were not excluded from the discrimination; one Lutheran pastor wrote to his representative in May 1918 complaining that half his congregation would be unable to understand the service if it were not conducted in Norwegian, the language in which he had been preaching for the past 40 years. [5] However, it was generally popular among English-speaking, well established Iowans. Former US President Theodore Roosevelt publicly supported Harding's decision in a speech given on May 27, [6] [7] saying "America is a nation—not a polyglot boarding house ... There can be but one loyalty—to the Stars and Stripes; one nationality—the American—and therefore only one language—the English language." [8] Virtually all ethnic minorities who spoke languages other than English opposed the proclamation to some extent. The proclamation was seriously enforced, and many "patriotic organizations" issued fines to violators. [1] : 139–142 The majority of violators were caught when telephone operators listened to conversations for violations. [2] For instance, in Le Claire Township, Scott County, four or five women received fines after they spoke German over the telephone. [1] : 142 [4] They ended up paying $225, which was donated to the Red Cross. [4] Nebraska issued a similar proclamation. [2] Across the Midwestern United States, 18,000 people eventually faced charges of violating English mandates. [3]
The proclamation became "the major political issue" in Iowa for 1918. The Des Moines Register led opposition, publishing several op-eds against the proclamation. [1] : 139 [6] A Jewish leader in Des Moines contacted Louis Marshall, then the president of the American Jewish Committee, for advice. Marshall responded that he couldn't "conceive the possibility that the people of any state could be guilty of such an absurdity." However, he advised the Jewish community to avoid publicly going against the proclamation. On June 13 Marshall wrote a letter of protest to Harding. [4]
People debated the proclamation across the state and more generally what it meant to be "American". Some newspapers called English "American", as calling it English would suggest that it was "borrowed, and therefore any European tongue would be as legitimate as English." [1] : 141 [6] After World War I ended, Harding repealed the proclamation on December 4, 1918. [9] [10]
A 2018 op-ed published in The Des Moines Register called the Babel Proclamation "perhaps the most infamous executive order" in Iowa's history. [11] Several articles have cited the proclamation as an early example of anti-immigrant sentiment. [3] [11] A hearing in the United States House of Representatives in 2006 called the proclamation "the most famous" of several "English-only" restrictions passed around the same time. [12]
Ottumwa is a city in and the county seat of Wapello County, Iowa, United States. The population was 25,529 at the time of the 2020 U.S. Census. Located in the state's southeastern section, the city is split into northern and southern halves by the Des Moines River.
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Anti-German sentiment is opposition to or fear of Germany, its inhabitants, its culture, or its language. Its opposite is Germanophilia.
William Lloyd Harding was an American Republican politician. He was the 22nd Governor of Iowa, from 1917 to 1921.
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The Iowa State Council for Defense was created by Iowa Governor William L. Harding one month after the United States entered World War I, and was disbanded soon after the end of the war. It became a focal point of various political battles conducted in the name of loyalty and Americanism.
Pella Dutch, also known as Iowa Dutch, is a dialect of the Dutch language spoken in Pella, Iowa. It is a subdialect of South Guelderish.
Lester Jesse Dickinson was a Republican United States Representative and Senator from Iowa. He was, in the words of Time magazine, "a big, friendly, white-thatched Iowa lawyer." In early 1936, he dreamed of winning the presidency. However, the only race he would enter that year would be for his own seat in the Senate which he lost.
The Postville raid was a raid at the Agriprocessors, Inc. kosher slaughterhouse and meat packing plant in Postville, Iowa, on May 12, 2008, executed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division of the Department of Homeland Security together with other agencies.
Kimberly Kay Reynolds is an American politician serving as the 43rd governor of Iowa since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, Reynolds served as the 46th lieutenant governor of Iowa from 2011 to 2017.
Iowa is a state in the upper Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the east and southeast, Missouri to the south, Nebraska to the west, South Dakota to the northwest, and Minnesota to the north.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights in the U.S. state of Iowa have evolved significantly in the 21st century. Iowa began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples on April 27, 2009 following a ruling by the Iowa Supreme Court, making Iowa the fourth U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage. Same-sex couples may also adopt, and state laws ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations.
The Northern Iowan is a student newspaper at the University of Northern Iowa. It is published semi-weekly, on Monday and Thursday and distributed around campus free of charge. The paper publishes articles on campus news and events, the university's sports programs, and student opinion pieces. The name of the paper has changed over the years. It was called the Students Offering from 1888–1889, the Normal Eye from 1892–1911, the College Eye from 1911–1967, and the Northern Iowan from 1967–present.
Mary Beth Tinker is an American free speech activist known for her role in the 1969 Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District Supreme Court case, which ruled that Warren Harding Junior High School could not punish her for wearing a black armband in school in support of a truce in the Vietnam War. The case set a precedent for student speech in schools.
Capital punishment has been abolished in Iowa since 1965. Forty-five men were executed by hanging in Iowa between 1834 and 1963 for crimes including murder, rape, and robbery.
Abortion in Iowa is legal up to 20 weeks of gestation. A 6-week abortion ban has been indefinitely blocked in court.
The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached the U.S. state of Iowa in March 2020. The first known cases were three individuals who had traveled on a cruise in Egypt before returning home to Johnson County on March 3. Initially, case clusters were focused at meatpacking plants and congregate care facilities. By late October, community spread had become a concern, and some areas of the state had reported over 20% test positivity. A headline stated that "Iowa hospitals fear overwhelming patient surge if coronavirus cases continue to climb."
Women's suffrage in Iowa efforts began early in Iowa's history. During the territory's Constitutional Convention, discussions on both African American and women's suffrage took place. Early on, women's rights were discussed in the state by women such as Amelia Bloomer and petitions for suffrage were sent to the Iowa state legislature. While African American men earned the right to vote in 1868, women from all backgrounds had to continue to agitate for enfranchisement. One of the first suffrage groups was formed in Dubuque in 1869. Not long after, a state suffrage convention was held in Mount Pleasant in 1870. Iowa suffragists focused on organizing and lobbying the state legislature. In 1894, women gained the right to vote on municipal bond and tax issues and also in school elections. These rights were immediately utilized by women who turned out in good numbers to vote on these issues. By the 1910s, the state legislature finally passed in successive sessions a women's suffrage amendment to the state constitution. This resulted in a voter referendum to be held on the issue on June 5, 1916. The campaign included anti-suffrage agitation from liquor interests who claimed that women's suffrage would cause higher taxes. The amendment was defeated, though a subsequent investigation turned up a large amount of fraud. However, the election could not be invalidated and women had to wait to vote. On July 2, 1919, Iowa became the tenth state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment.
This is a timeline of women's suffrage in Iowa. Women's suffrage work started early in Iowa's history. Organizing began in the late 1960s with the first state suffrage convention taking place in 1870. In the 1890s, women gained the right to vote on municipal bonds, tax efforts and school-related issues. By 1916, a state suffrage amendment went to out to a voter referendum, which failed. Iowa was the tenth state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment in 1919.
Joseph Eiboeck was an American newspaper editor, publisher, and author, who emigrated from Austria to the United States. Known as "Colonel Eiboeck", he was one of the most prominent newspaper editors in late 19th- and early 20th-century Iowa, writing in both German and English, and an influential opponent of Prohibition. For nearly 40 years, he edited the Iowa Staats-Anzeiger, a Des Moines newspaper focusing on state politics and advocating "personal liberty", the motto of anti-Prohibitionists. Although Eiboeck himself did not drink alcohol, he believed in individual choice over regulation, and campaigned fervently against anti-saloon legislation, representing "the extreme views of the liquor interests in Iowa politics" according to The New York Times.