Harry S. Truman: Address to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Harry S. Truman was known for his plain-spoken and straightforward speaking style. From his early days in office, he developed a reputation as an honest and extremely hardworking politician, and his public comments reflected these traits. Humorous and warm in person and in small groups, Truman could appear stiff when giving formal addresses. He generally disliked public speaking and had the distinct disadvantage of following Roosevelt, one of the best public speakers who ever sat in the Oval Office. But Truman was an enthusiastic campaigner, capable of passionate delivery, especially when speaking extemporaneously. In his 1947 Address to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on civil rights policies, Truman urges that civil rights laws offer not “protection of the people against the Government, but protection of the people by the Government” and equates civil rights in America with the fight for freedom in the larger world.