American Philanthropy at Home and Abroad: New Directions in the History of Giving

Description

This collection sheds light on the history of charity and philanthropy in the United States since the Civil War. It explores the ways in which charities, local associations, religious organisations and philanthropic foundations have engaged and interacted with American politics, society and relations with the world. Beginning in the 19th-century, the first chapters address the domestic, religious and transatlantic dimensions of philanthropy during a period of conflict and upheaval. The second section showcase four domestic case studies, exploring debates about the purpose of 'good works', including charity in the Ku Klux Klan and philanthropic African-American business women. The last chapters explore how philanthropy sought to shape US foreign policy during the interwar period, and assess the complex relationship between art, culture and government policy during the Cold War. In highlighting the significant role that charitable works have played in American politics and society, and the ways in which the concept of philanthropy has evolved since the mid-19th century, this collection demonstrates their value as a lens through which to view American history. Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Contents Figures Contributors Acknowledgements Introduction Part I: Religion and philanthropy Chapter 1: Heaping coals of fire on the enemy’s head: The political uses of Christian benevolence in the Civil War Chapter 2: ‘Ministry of helpfulness’: Near East Relief and Protestant philanthropic secularism, 1915–30 Chapter 3: Philanthropy as exchange: American missionaries and the international religious liberty debate Part II: Cultural networks Chapter 4: Transatlantic abolition and the unquiet library: Print culture and the making of a ‘celebrated philanthropist’ Chapter 5: Towards a cultural counter-establishment: Huntington Hartford and his eponymous foundation, 1948–65 Chapter 6: The Ford Foundation’s cultural Cold War in Berlin Part III: Diplomacy and international development Chapter 7: Women’s educational philanthropy and civil-society diplomacy: Opposing US legislation prohibiting Japanese immigration while fundraising for a Tokyo women’s college, 1900–29 Chapter 8: Cultivating ‘goodwill’ through rural welfare: The Near East Foundation in Iran, 1943–51 Chapter 9: From books to land rovers: The informal, small philanthropy of the AFL-CIO and the ICFTU in Africa during the early Cold War Part IV: Challenging philanthropy Chapter 10: Identifying a menace to the national welfare: The final report of the United States Commission on Industrial Relations and the Progressive Era critique of philanthropic foundations Chapter 11: Klanishness and American fraternalism: Examining charity and philanthropy in the Second Ku Klux Klan Select bibliography Index