John+Birch+societies+-+p5

Jessica In 1958 a man by the name of Robert Welch started an organization called The John Birch Societies. This organization promoted anti-communism and was named after Captain John M. Birch. The John Birch societies lasted around twenty years and grew into an enormous organization. As the organization grew so did its demands in what they wanted to achieve. Near the end of The John Birch Society there leader became more aggressive in trying to make the society a national organization.
 * Intro into the John Birch Societies**

In 1945 a man named John M. Birch was killed by Chinese communists on August 25 1945 ten days after the Japanese surrendered from WWll. John Birch was a Baptist Missionary who became an Army Air force officer during WWll until he died at the age of twenty six (1939-1945). Birchs death marked the beginning of the final struggle between the defenders of freedom, Christianity, the forces of communism oppression, and atheism. In 1958 Robert Welch a wealthy candy manufacturer and a onetime vice-president of the National Association of Manufactures started the John Birch society. Welch started the society to educate Americans about being anti-communist.

The John Birch society was an anti-communism organization. Robert Welch founded the society to promote his theory that the communists controlled the American society. He also wanted to educate Americans about the danger of communist subversion. Between 1962 and 1966 the number of members grew from 25,000 to 85,000 and they were mainly white and upper class. The members were organized into 4,000 local chapters across the country. Welch wanted all the members to avoid political organization and emphasize public education and community action. Members of the society wanted to withdrawal from the United Nations and impeach the Supreme Court justice Earl Warren.

The John Birch society was founded in 1958 and went on for about twenty years after that until it started to lose members due to Welch’s opinion on President Eisenhower became known. The society grew a large amount of members at its peak in 1962. This is an important topic because so many Americans wanted to have a socialist country and tried many ways to educate other American into socialism. If they would have suceded we might have a socialist country right now.

The John Birch society is an important topic to learn about because it teaches you about communism and socialism and what they stand for. Also it teaches you who was involved in these organizations and helps you understand the government better. The society also teaches you about how the government was run during the 1950's and through the 1990's. It is also important because it shows you what is involved in societies like this and how they are run and controlled. Learning about these societies can also help you decide who you are going to vote for in an election and what political party you want to join.
 * The importance of the John Birch societies**

Extra Focus On December 1, 1899 a man named Robert Henry Winborne Welch Jr. was born in Chowan Country North Carolina. Growing up Welch was home schooled by his mother and at age ten enrolled in high school and when he was twelve he was admitted to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Later he attended the U.S Naval Academy and Harvard Law School but dropped out of both before graduating. To earn a living Welch founded the Oxford Candy Company in 1925 and but it went out of business during the Great Depression. He was then hired by his brother James and retired a wealthy man in 1956. In 1950 Welch lost in an election for the post of Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. In December of 1958 Welch stared the John Birch Societys. He was also the editor and publisher of the magazine American Opinion and The review of the News and wrote four books. When Welch died on January 6 1985 he left behind a wife and two sons.

Kaufman, Burton I. "John Birch Society." //World Book Online// //Reference// //Center//. 2007. [Place of access. 2/5/07 <[|http://www.worldbookonline.com.ezproxy.cooklib.org:2048/wb/Article?id=ar710567>.]
 * Bibliography**

Huberty, Robert. "Welch, Robert (1899-1985)." //Encyclopedia of World Biography//. Ed. Suzanne M. Bourgoin. 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale Research, 1998. 17 vols.//Student// //Resource// //Center// //- Gold//. Thomson Gale. Cook Memorial Public Library. 7 Feb. 2007 <[|http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&contentSet=GBRC&type=retrieve&tabID=T001&prodId=SRC-1&docId=EK1631006903&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=ccscm&version=1.0>.] 2/12/07 Right-Wing Political Movement in the 1960s." //DISCovering// //U.S.// //History//. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003. //Student// //Resource// //Center// //- Gold//. Thomson Gale. Cook Memorial Public Library. 12 Feb. 2007 <[|http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&contentSet=GSRC&type=retrieve&tabID=T001&prodId=SRC-1&docId=EJ2104240418&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=ccscm&version=1.0>.] 2/12/07


 * Welch, Robert. __The Blue Book of the John Birch Society__. Appelton WI: Western Islands, 1999. 1-202.**