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History of the CHAPTER III |
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Birth of the Legion in Nebraska |
| Nebraska soldiers and sailors were among the
very first in the country to make plans for a veterans' organization
in their state. It should be kept in mind that the Paris
caucus took place on March 15, 16 and 17, 1919, and that the St.
Louis meeting was held nearly two months later, on May 8, 9 and 10.
In the meantime the Cornhuskers made good use of their time.
On April 5th - scarcely a month after the Paris gathering - a mass
meeting was held in Omaha, the purpose of which was to get an
expression from the service men and to make preliminary plans for a
state convention. This meeting was arranged by Allan A. Tukey,
at the solicitation of the National Executive Committee of the A.E.F.
Legion, which was anxious to foster state chapters and therefore had
appointed Mr. Tukey temporary State Secretary. While no official record of this meeting was kept, it seems that a goodly number of veterans attended and that most of the time was devoted to an open discussion of ways and means of getting the men throughout the state interested. A resolution was presented and passed which called upon the various counties of the state to send delegates to a meeting to be held in Lincoln May 3, 1919. It was not the intention of this particular gathering to formulate policies or transact (pages missing)... ...American Legion, Department of Nebraska" -- and the election of temporary officers. But the most interesting thing one finds in perusing this record is the determination to build well and to make certain that the organization should be representative of veterans of every rank, creed or color. When it came time to select two delegates at large to serve on the temporary Executive Committee, someone moved that these places be given to two colored soldiers--one to be chosen to represent colored men in Douglas County and the other to represent those in Lancaster. Again we find a motion duly put and carried which instructed the delegates to the St. Louis meeting to work toward the end of allowing membership to those American citizens, who, after being unable to enter the service of our government because of physical handicaps, later served honorably with Allied forces under other flags. And again we find put and carried a motion that invited representatives of the people of Nebraska--the Governor of the state, the Adjutant General, the Department Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic and the Department Commander of the United Spanish War Veterans and others--to attend the St. Louis caucus as honorary delegates. Here was the key to the success that was to come to the American Legion: Its leaders were willing and anxious to take the general public into their confidence and to let the people of the country know exactly what they were all about. There was no deception or selfishness; no petty jealousy of rank or branch or place of service; no distinction in class or creed or color; no desire to take something away from the American people by secret or unfair methods. The representatives of this meeting wanted to build a great organization that would appeal to all veterans--an organization that would serve the country at large as well as the individual soldier and sailor. How well they succeeded in this is left for time to record. To be continued.... |