Rosika Schwimmer
Encyclopedia
Rosika Schwimmer or Bédy-Schwimmer "Rózsa" Rózsika (1877–1948) was a Hungarian
-born pacifist, feminist and female suffragist.
Rosika Schwimmer was born on September 11, 1877 to a Jewish family in Budapest
in Austria-Hungary
. She studied music and languages but when family finances deteriorated 1896, she began to work as a bookkeeper.
In 1897 Schwimmer founded the Hungarian Feminist Association, helped to found Hungarian National Council of Women, later organized the first Women's Trade Union in Hungary and was a board member in the Hungarian Peace Society. In 1913 she became a corresponding secretary of the International Woman Suffrage Alliance (IWSA). Schwimmer toured Europe with Carrie Chapman Catt
to lecture on female suffrage. She also edited magazine A No (The Woman). In 1909, the Minister of the Interior appointed her to the governing board of child welfare.
In 1914 Schwimmer moved to London
and worked as a correspondent of various European newspapers and press secretary for IWSA. When the World War I
broke out, she could not return to home and began to agitate for the end of hostilities. In 1914 she toured the USA to demand that president Woodrow Wilson
form a neutral conference to end the war. In 1915 she took part in the formation of the Woman's Peace Party
. During the April 28-May 10, 1915 Hague Congress of Women, her proposal for a Neutral Conference for Continuous Mediation between the governments of the belligerents was adopted. In 1915 she gained the support of Henry Ford
, who chartered a Ford Peace Ship to Stockholm
. Disappointed with Ford's efforts, she later organized the International Committee for Immediate Mediation in June 1916. After the armistice, Schwimmer became vice-president of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
.
When Hungary gained independence from Austria-Hungary in 1918, prime minister Mihály Károlyi
appointed Schwimmer to be Minister to Switzerland
. When Béla Kun
's communists
overthrew the government in 1919, she opposed it and lost her civil rights. In 1920, when Miklós Horthy
's government ousted the communist dictatorship, she fled to Vienna
and in 1921 to the USA. She settled in Chicago and did not move back to Hungary, where she had help build the foundation for future women in Hungarian politics
.
Due to her pacifist beliefs, Schwimmer was labeled as a socialist in the USA. She spent most of her remaining life fighting various slanders against herself. When Fred Marvin accused her of being a German spy and a Bolshevist agent, she sued and received $17,000 in damages. However, she could not gain the US citizenship because of her pacifism—the U.S. Supreme Court
ruled against her in United States v. Schwimmer
(1929). In 1946, United States v. Schwimmer was overturned in Girouard v. United States
. She still spent the rest of her life in the country as a stateless person.
Later in life Schwimmer tried to create a world government
. In 1935 she formed the World Centre for Women's Archives with Mary Ritter Beard
. She received a World Peace Prize
in 1937 and formed the Campaign for World Government with Lola Maverick Lloyd. In 1947 she was nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
but no one received it the next year.
Rosika Schwimmer died of pneumonia
on August 3, 1948 in New York City
.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
-born pacifist, feminist and female suffragist.
Rosika Schwimmer was born on September 11, 1877 to a Jewish family in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
in Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
. She studied music and languages but when family finances deteriorated 1896, she began to work as a bookkeeper.
In 1897 Schwimmer founded the Hungarian Feminist Association, helped to found Hungarian National Council of Women, later organized the first Women's Trade Union in Hungary and was a board member in the Hungarian Peace Society. In 1913 she became a corresponding secretary of the International Woman Suffrage Alliance (IWSA). Schwimmer toured Europe with Carrie Chapman Catt
Carrie Chapman Catt
Carrie Chapman Catt was a women's suffrage leader who campaigned for the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution which gave U.S. women the right to vote in 1920...
to lecture on female suffrage. She also edited magazine A No (The Woman). In 1909, the Minister of the Interior appointed her to the governing board of child welfare.
In 1914 Schwimmer moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and worked as a correspondent of various European newspapers and press secretary for IWSA. When the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
broke out, she could not return to home and began to agitate for the end of hostilities. In 1914 she toured the USA to demand that president Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
form a neutral conference to end the war. In 1915 she took part in the formation of the Woman's Peace Party
Woman's Peace Party
The Woman's Peace Party was an American pacifist organization formally established in January 1915 in response to World War I. The organization is remembered as the first American peace organization to make use of direct action tactics such as public demonstration...
. During the April 28-May 10, 1915 Hague Congress of Women, her proposal for a Neutral Conference for Continuous Mediation between the governments of the belligerents was adopted. In 1915 she gained the support of Henry Ford
Henry Ford
Henry Ford was an American industrialist, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and sponsor of the development of the assembly line technique of mass production. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry...
, who chartered a Ford Peace Ship to Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
. Disappointed with Ford's efforts, she later organized the International Committee for Immediate Mediation in June 1916. After the armistice, Schwimmer became vice-president of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
The Women's International League for Peace and Freedom was established in the United States in January 1915 as the Woman's Peace Party...
.
When Hungary gained independence from Austria-Hungary in 1918, prime minister Mihály Károlyi
Mihály Károlyi
Count Mihály Ádám György Miklós Károlyi de Nagykároly was briefly Hungary's leader in 1918-19 during a short-lived democracy...
appointed Schwimmer to be Minister to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. When Béla Kun
Béla Kun
Béla Kun , born Béla Kohn, was a Hungarian Communist politician and a Bolshevik Revolutionary who led the Hungarian Soviet Republic in 1919.- Early life :...
's communists
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
overthrew the government in 1919, she opposed it and lost her civil rights. In 1920, when Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
's government ousted the communist dictatorship, she fled to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
and in 1921 to the USA. She settled in Chicago and did not move back to Hungary, where she had help build the foundation for future women in Hungarian politics
Women in Hungarian Politics
The roles of women in Hungary have changed significantly over the past 200 years. In the Kingdom of Hungary, discourses on women’s roles, rights, and political access, along with feminist movements, have developed within the context of extremely traditional gender roles, and more recently,...
.
Due to her pacifist beliefs, Schwimmer was labeled as a socialist in the USA. She spent most of her remaining life fighting various slanders against herself. When Fred Marvin accused her of being a German spy and a Bolshevist agent, she sued and received $17,000 in damages. However, she could not gain the US citizenship because of her pacifism—the U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
ruled against her in United States v. Schwimmer
United States v. Schwimmer
United States v. Schwimmer, 279 U.S. 644 , was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States.It concerned a pacifist applicant for naturalization who in the interview declared not to be willing to "take up arms personally" in defense of the United States...
(1929). In 1946, United States v. Schwimmer was overturned in Girouard v. United States
Girouard v. United States
Girouard v. United States, , was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States. It concerned a pacifist applicant for naturalization who in the interview declared not to be willing to fight for the defense of the United States. The case questioned a precedent set by United States v...
. She still spent the rest of her life in the country as a stateless person.
Later in life Schwimmer tried to create a world government
World government
World government is the notion of a single common political authority for all of humanity. Its modern conception is rooted in European history, particularly in the philosophy of ancient Greece, in the political formation of the Roman Empire, and in the subsequent struggle between secular authority,...
. In 1935 she formed the World Centre for Women's Archives with Mary Ritter Beard
Mary Ritter Beard
Mary Ritter Beard was an American historian and archivist, who played an important role in the women's suffrage movement and was a lifelong advocate of social justice through educational and activist roles in both the labor and woman's rights movements...
. She received a World Peace Prize
World Peace Prize
-Mission:World Peace Prize is an initiative to promote world peace and inter-religious understanding. The Prize is awarded periodically to individuals who have contributed to the causes of world peace by preventing regional conflicts or world war; by settling the disputes of political, diplomatic...
in 1937 and formed the Campaign for World Government with Lola Maverick Lloyd. In 1947 she was nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
but no one received it the next year.
Rosika Schwimmer died of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
on August 3, 1948 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.