John E. Rankin

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'''John Elliott Rankin''' (March 29, 1882 – November 26, 1960) was a [[White-Supremacy|White-Supremacist]] and a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] politician from [[Mississippi]] who served sixteen terms in the [[U.S. House of Representatives]] from 1921 to 1953. He was co-author of the bill for the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] and from 1933 to 1936 he supported the [[New Deal]] programs of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], which brought investment and jobs to the South.

'''John Elliott Rankin''' (March 29, 1882 – November 26, 1960) was a [[White Supremacy|White-Supremacist]] and a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] politician from [[Mississippi]] who served sixteen terms in the [[U.S. House of Representatives]] from 1921 to 1953. He was co-author of the bill for the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] and from 1933 to 1936 he supported the [[New Deal]] programs of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], which brought investment and jobs to the South.

Rankin proposed a bill to prohibit [[interracial marriage in the United States|interracial marriage]] and opposed a bill to prohibit state use of the [[Poll tax (United States)|poll tax]], which southern states had used since the turn of the century to disenfranchise most blacks and many poor whites. He used his power to support segregation and deny federal benefits programs to African Americans. For instance, in 1944, following the [[Port Chicago disaster]], the [[U.S. Navy]] asked Congress to authorize payments of $5,000 to each of the victims' families. But when Rankin learned most of the dead were black sailors, he insisted the amount be reduced to $2,000; Congress settled the amount at $3,000 per family.{{sfn|Allen|1989|p=67}}

Rankin proposed a bill to prohibit [[interracial marriage in the United States|interracial marriage]] and opposed a bill to prohibit state use of the [[Poll tax (United States)|poll tax]], which southern states had used since the turn of the century to disenfranchise most blacks and many poor whites. He used his power to support segregation and deny federal benefits programs to African Americans. For instance, in 1944, following the [[Port Chicago disaster]], the [[U.S. Navy]] asked Congress to authorize payments of $5,000 to each of the victims' families. But when Rankin learned most of the dead were black sailors, he insisted the amount be reduced to $2,000; Congress settled the amount at $3,000 per family.{{sfn|Allen|1989|p=67}}