Americans for Democratic Action

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Americans For Democratic Action (ADA)
Website	http://www.adaction.org/
Founded	1947, by Eleanor Roosevelt, Arthur Schesinger, Reihold Niebuhr, John Kenneth Galbraith, and Walter Reuther
Headquarters	Washington D.C. , United States

Americans for Democratic Action is a group that was created to preserve the ideals of the New Deal, continue to uphold American values, and fight the spread of communism. Americans for Democratic Action has influenced many major American movements such as the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, women’s rights, and the Iraqi war.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Founding 2 Current objectives and activities 3 Organizational structure 4 Achievements 5 Public perception and controversies 6 References

History

ADA has played a key role in American democracy with its involvement in elections, social reforms, and key issues.^[1] The ADA began with its support of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1940s. It guided the movement in its early stages by gathering national democratic support and continued fighting throughout the 1950s. In the 1960s ADA helped establish anti-poverty programs and social equality. During the 1970s they helped create programs to protect the environment and fought hard against the social policies of Ronald Regan during the 1980s. In the 1990s they battled along side the labor force for trade and worker’s rights.^[2]

Founding

ADA was founded in 1947 in Washington D.C. by Eleanor Roosevelt, Arthur Schesinger, Reihold Niebuhr, John Kenneth Galbraith, and Walter Reuther all of whom were key members of the Democratic Party.^[3]

Current objectives and activities

Since the election of Barack Obama the ADA has regained support from the White House. This will allow the group to expand nationally and gain more support towards current issues. ADA has addressed issues such as Health care reform, immigrations, tax reform, employee free choice act, education, poverty, fair trade, and environmental policies. However its key focus is fixing the problems caused by the Bush Administration and past Republican administrations.

Organizational structure

Americans for Democratic Action is run by elected officers. The officers include a President, Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Counsel, and multiple Vice Presidents. Their views are based on democratic action and focuses on incorporating democratic and liberal views in American policy.^[4]

Achievements

ADA has grown significantly since it was founded. It now operates in major cities throughout the United States as well as capitals. ADA contributes greatly to congressional candidates during elections and provides support to campaigns. They helped Barack Obama win the senate seat in 2004 and have also been a large advocate of universal healthcare for many years. ADA helped impose Employee Free Choice Act, which allows working people to join a union and have equal voice in decision-making and they also helped better the environment by passing the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009..^[5]

Public perception and controversies

Americans For Democratic Action is perceived by the public as very liberal. They are a strong group and have a very large community of members at nearly 60,000. They have a large influence on American Politics especially after the election of Barack Obama. ADA has been always been opposed to conservative ideals.

References

1. ↑ Peltzman, Sam. "An Economic Interpretation of the History of Congressional Voting in the Twentieth Century." The American Economic Review 75.4 (1985): 656-75. Print.
2. ↑ Americans for Democratic Action - Home. Web. 25 Sept. 2009. <http://www.adaction.org/>.
3. ↑ Americans for Democratic Action - Home. Web. 25 Sept. 2009. <http://www.adaction.org/>.
4. ↑ Carson, Richard T., and Joe A. Oppenheimer. "A Method of Estimating the Personal Ideology of Political Representatives." The American Political Science Review 78.1 (1984): 1-16. Print.
5. ↑ Americans for Democratic Action - Home. Web. 25 Sept. 2009. <http://www.adaction.org/>.

Americans for Democratic Action - Home. Web. 25 Sept. 2009. <http://www.adaction.org/>.

Carson, Richard T., and Joe A. Oppenheimer. "A Method of Estimating the Personal Ideology of Political Representatives." The American Political Science Review 78.1 (1984): 1-16. Print.

Peltzman, Sam. "An Economic Interpretation of the History of Congressional Voting in the Twentieth Century." The American Economic Review 75.4 (1985): 656-75. Print.

"Project Vote Smart - Americans for Democratic Action Rating." Project Vote Smart - American Government, Elections, Candidates and Voting. Web. 24 Sept. 2009. <http://www.votesmart.org/issue_rating_detail.php?r_id=1376>.