Religious scruples and the politics of anticommunism in Oklahoma, 1917-1951

Abstract

Scope and Method of Study: This study surveys the progression and interaction between anticommunism and religious faith in Oklahoma state and local politics from 1917 to 1951. Employing primary source materials that include newspapers, state legislative records, manuscript collections, court records, and census records, the author reconstructs the development of communist-control legislation culminating in the loyalty oath law of 1951. This dissertation is a comparative study encompassing the evolution of the Oklahoma oath, with a special focus on the interaction between religious faith, political regulation, and patriotism.

Findings and Conclusions: Research revealed that anticommunist sentiment had very deep roots in Oklahoma political history. Beginning in World War I, and continuing through the Korean War, state leaders had an abiding interest in promoting unity of purpose among citizens and defending against subversive radicals. Employing a variety of pledge drives and oaths, politicians sought to promote security and loyalty during times of national crises. This study argues that anticommunism in Oklahoma was part of a recurring populist style of politics, which intended to rid the state of subversive and communist influences but managed instead to victimize political and religious non-conformists. The anticommunist oath controversies of 1941 and 1951 are illustrative of this recurring style. Both episodes were part of a long-term political effort in Oklahoma to rid state government and, in particular state schools, of subversive influences, which resulted not in the purging of communists but political and religious nonconformists statewide.