American Isolationists: Pro-Japan Anti-interventionists and the FBI on the Eve of the Pacific War, 1939-1941

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 240 pages
Publication date: 17 August 2022
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Amidst the backdrop of the looming war in the late 1930s, a significant segment of Americans, still seething from the consequences of the Great War, fervently resolved to steer clear of another global conflict. Dubbed isolationists or anti-interventionists, many of them, particularly the America First Committee, directed their attention toward the European war that erupted in September 1939. While some were less captivated by Japan's aggression in East Asia, which created an opportunity for another isolationist group, the Committee on Pacific Relations, to oppose war with Japan until the day of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the majority were less interested in this regional conflict.

In this groundbreaking exploration of pro-Japan isolationists, Roger B. Jeans presents a comprehensive historical account of the Committee, which was established in September 1941, mere ten weeks before the commencement of the war. At the helm of this movement was Missourian Orland Kay "O. K." Armstrong, a tireless traveler who traversed the late 1930s and early 1940s, tirelessly recruiting prominent Americans to his cause against war with Japan. He and his colleagues, often critical of US policies and China, the victim of Japanese aggression, faced widespread ostracism for their pro-Japanese stance. Drawing upon previously untapped sources, including personal letters of committee members and the FBI's dossiers on them, Jeans paints a vivid portrait of this lesser-known group.

Weight: 390g
Dimension: 228 x 152 x 16 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538171172