Letters of Support to Calles
Source: Archivo General de la Nación, México, AGN, Álvaro Obregón-Plutarco Elías Calles, Caja 35 and 36, Expediente: 104–L-23.
Letters of Support to Calles
During the 1920s, President Plutarco Elías Calles received letters of encouragement from various parts of the United States supporting his campaign against the Catholic Church. These letters highlighted the prevalent anti-Catholic sentiment in the US and expressed admiration for the Mexican government as a potential model for the United States. Furthermore, the authors of these letters endorsed the use of violence against Catholics in Mexico.[1]
The groups consisted of various Methodist Episcopal Churches located in the Southern region of the United States, the Scottish Rite Freemasons, the Orange Lodges, the International Workers of the World, the small Communist Party, some union members from the American Federation of Labor (who were informed by their Mexican counterparts from the Revolutionary Confederation of Mexican Workers or CROM), and even the Ku Klux Klan. Frank Whittington Creighton, an American bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church in Mexico, maintained a regular and friendly correspondence with the Mexican president. He opposed the Catholic campaign through his press work in the United States. He declared at the triennial convention of the Anglican Church in Washington that they had no problems in Mexico, where he had worked for many years, because “we obey the law.” He further stated, “the great cause for Mexico is to Protestantize the Aztec nation.”[2]
Following the suspension of public worship in Mexico, Joseph Lewis, President of the Freethinkers Society, expressed his support for Mexican President Calles. Meanwhile, he also conveyed his disagreement with the stance taken by some US Catholics against Calles’ actions. Lewis stated, “The publicity given to the protest made by the Knights of Columbus against your actions in dealing with the Catholic Church. I thought this a good opportunity to retaliate, and I elaborated upon my former letter to you and sent it to the press.” Lewis’s letter was accompanied by an article from The New York Times and quotes from famous freethinkers who were critical of the Catholic religion. In September 1926, Lewis expressed his support for President Calles at the New York Freethinkers Society’s convention. On the other hand, US bishops and the Knights of Columbus were accused of encouraging US intervention in Mexico by showing solidarity with Mexican Catholics.[3] In 1927, the British Consul in Guadalajara claimed that President Calles attacked the Catholic Church to divide public opinion in the US. The Ku Klux Klan, Masonic lodges, and most Protestants opposed the Knights of Columbus.[4]
The Cristero War caught the attention of both Catholics and non-Catholics worldwide, especially in the United States. Besides the well-known role of Ambassador Dwight Morrow, the Calles Administration’s public relations team, led by Arturo, his half-brother, collaborated with leftist journalists such as Carleton Beals and Ernest H. Gruening to publicize the situation in Mexico.[5] US Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg remarked in 1925 that Mexico was “on trial before the world.” Catholics in the United States actively raised awareness of the events and urged the State Department to intervene on behalf of Mexican Catholics.[6]
In 1926, Methodist preacher Hunter Reid from Taylor, Pennsylvania, sent a letter to President Calles stating, “Will you pardon a Citizen of the United States and a minister of the Gospel for breaking in upon your precious time?” [I want] “to express the heartfelt sympathy felt for you by millions of American men and women who feel for you and pray for you while you struggle to unlock the grip of the Roman Catholic Church from the grip she seems to have upon your great country.” Reverend Reid was not the only person who held those sentiments.[7]
Calles received letters of support from individuals and organizations across the United States, indicating a broad support base for his cause. The People’s Church of Toledo, Ohio, a prominent accountant and notary from Philadelphia named Alexander DeLuca, and the Methodist Preacher’s Meeting of Southern California all expressed their support. It included the endorsement of their 240,000 large congregations. The Englewood Hustling Hundreds, a service organization from Indianapolis, also sent their support to Calles.[8]





























Medellín, Colombia













































While some expressed their desire to see Calles succeed in his endeavors against the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico, many did so while invoking the name of Jesus Christ. The Eden Baptist Church of Drummond, Oklahoma, which was affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, passed a congregational resolution of support, stating that they were praying “for God’s blessing” on Calles and his mission” to free Mexican politics from the influence of any church or creed.” In a demonstration of the broader support for Calles’ cause, Mr. Z. Hooper of Roanoke, Virginia, even sent a dollar to Calles to counter the money the Knights of Columbus raised for the Cristeros. Willis or “Willie” J. Abbot, editor of the Christian Science Monitor and a Democratic Party member, forwarded twenty-five dollars from a reader convinced of the justice of the state’s struggle against the Catholic Church.[9]
In the past, some believed that Mexico’s secularization threatened Catholicism and could pose a similar threat to the US. This belief was known as the “Catholic Domino Theory in North America,” and the Cristero War was seen as the first battle in this conflict. However, there were differing opinions among Americans. For instance, Lowell H. Coate, a renowned secular humanist from California, sent a note to Calles on behalf of The Fellowship of Reconciliation’s Pasadena chapter, commending Calles for his actions and urging the US not to interfere to stop the violence in Mexico. Similarly, A.J. Martin from Portland, Oregon, expressed his support for Calles: ‘Today Mexico stands… alone in the field of true progress; may the All-Father aid you and your loyal followers … may the banner of justice raised in Mexico be welcome in this my country. I trace my American ancestry back some three centuries, yet alas! Our people need your great example set before them daily.’ Finally, a group of twenty-one individuals from Gainesville, Florida, directly connected Mexico’s struggle for secularism and the US experience, hoping that justice would prevail in both countries, stating:[10]
The American people are having the same experience here with the Roman Catholics as they are trying to use their religion, calling it holy, and in secret and [undercover] are planning to overthrow our government and destroy our Christian churches and Bible and set up Papal hierarchy. So far they have been a terror ever since they landed in our free country of America. We congratulate you on your manly stand and hope you will continue your fight to free your country from this abominable power.[11]
It is no surprise that Calles received many letters from Masonic lodges worldwide. Protestants associated with Free Masonry in the United States were among these correspondents. While there has historically been some tension between Free Masons and Catholics, the conflict between the Mexican federal government and Catholics at the time was well-known and widely discussed. President Calles himself was a Freemason. One author, writing on behalf of the York, Pennsylvania Lafayette Club, conveyed this information to Calles:[12]
The [purpose] of this note is to assure you that you have the hearty good wishes of the overwhelming majority of the Protestant element in the United States in your efforts to make your country self-governing. […] This country is about 90% Protestant and we shall not allow ourselves to be blindfolded by efforts to discredit you and your administration. The enclosed card will indicate that I hold a place fairly high in Masonic Circles.[13]
The self-proclaimed Protestant Masons who expressed solidarity with Mexico were not the only ones. The KKK and its various offshoots also wished Calles luck. Protestantism and the KKK were not interchangeable categories, they were not mutually exclusive. Protestantism formed the basis of the “membership, rituals, and rites” of the KKK, and it was also present in “Klan print culture.”[14] The Klan’s “racism and nationalism” were only “matched… by their desire to protect and celebrate Protestantism.”[15] It could be said that the Klan’s political power was bolstered by their ability to access Protestant congregations that shared some of their political values, even if they did not support their racial objectives. In areas like New England, the Klan failed “to convert its substantial membership into firm political power,” unlike sites “where fundamentalist Protestantism remained the dominant ethic.”[16] Protestant denominations and the KKK used similar language to praise restrictions on Catholics in Mexico.[17]
The Nebraska City Klan No. 12 sent a letter to Calles expressing, ‘Although realizing as we do that the Mexico situation is an affair with which the Americans should not meddle, we cannot refrain from expressing our approval of the manner in which you are enforcing the Constitution of your great country.’ Similarly, the Klan assembly 56 of Seattle or Realm of Washington passed a unanimous vote of ‘admiration of the firm way you [Calles] have taken in the controversy raging in Mexico between your government and the Roman Catholic Hierarchy. It is in the earnest prayer of this Klan that your commendable efforts to completely separate the Church and State will be crowned with the utmost success.’ The Utah Klan branch also sent a letter to Calles, along with writings of Mormon Apostle Anthony W. Ivins, and in exchange with Reverend D. G. Hunt of Salt Lake City, in which Ivins condemned Catholicism for its association with foreign intervention in Mexican politics and its failure to Christianize Mexico.[18]
The following visualizations were crafted using a comprehensive corpus of “Letters” sent to Mexican President Plutarco Elías Calles during the Cristero War. These tools are designed to provide an in-depth analysis of the corpus. The main analysis page includes five primary tools: Cirrus, Reader, Trends, Summary, and Contexts.
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Klaverns or meeting places of the KKK from Massachusetts to California also supported Calles’ actions against Catholicism, which they believed ‘bore the biggest brunt of their hatred.’ The Santa Cruz, California Klavern, along with its chapter founder, Baptist Reverend J. C. Colyar, who was a former associate of Billy Sunday in Los Angeles, even extended an invitation for Calles to send a representative to speak about Mexican public education as a model for the US and as a means to increase harmony between the two countries.[19]
There were instances where the KKK focused their efforts on Catholics due to their loyalty to the Pope, who was perceived as a leader from another country. By 1922, the Klan held considerable political influence in Texas, boasting a membership of over 200,000 individuals. Texan residents who were of the Mexican Catholic faith, as well as those who had migrated post-1926, were made aware of the unfavorable circumstances surrounding them.[20]
It was noticeable how sharply the praise given to President Calles in this account contrasted with the bitterness the West Texas KKK expressed towards all of Mexico. The Klan called Mexico a “hell of vice” and sent letters to US citizens along the border, cautioning them to avoid Mexico at all costs.[21] The KKK viewed Mexicans as a triple threat to their idealized Anglo-Saxon Protestant republic. ‘A mongrel race that could contaminate white racial purity, their Catholic faith, and supposed adherence to communism further menaced the institutional and ideological foundations of the [US].’ The KKK believed that Mexican immigrants threatened American institutions and ideals.[22]
During the early twentieth-century, vigilante organizations targeted Mexican labor for lynching, including the KKK and the White Owls in Texas.[23] Mexican Americans formed political and security groups to resist KKK violence. The Mexican consulate protested against brutality against its citizens.[24] The KKK seemed to view Mexicans and Mexican Americans as separate entities. They saw Mexico as a distant land without connection to the United States and could not recognize the flow of refugees from the Cristero War seeking asylum there. The Klan viewed the refugees as a threat to their religion and race but paradoxically supported the Cristero War that had resulted in their displacement from Mexico.[25]
Different organizations affiliated with the Ku Klux Klan or originating from it in the United States had their own interpretations of the Cristero War and its meaning for their country. One of these organizations, the Knights of American Protestantism (KAP), based in Muncie, Indiana, created a standardized form letter in Spanish for its various branches to express their support for Calles.[26] The KAP had separated from D.C. Stephenson’s Indiana-based Independent Klan of America in late 1924 or 1925.[27] The KAP letters from its numerous chapters throughout the Midwest and Southern states praised Calles, often adding their comments. One KAP member even made Calles a member of his fraternal organization, the ‘American Indian Wig-Wam Inc.,’ and awarded him the honorary title “Grey Eagle.” This member was a self-proclaimed Native American Protestant KKK member from Indiana who shared Calles’s opposition to Catholicism. He saw the conflict in Mexico and anti-Catholicism in the United States as part of a larger struggle against the convergence of Church and State represented by papal authority.[28]
In 1926, there was a noticeable decrease in the number of people who identified as members of the KKK. This decline was attributed to the increasing anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic sentiments that had become prevalent in the United States. As a result, the government had imposed immigration restrictions. To promote inclusivity and tolerance, the Knights of Columbus established a Historical Commission that successfully countered antiwar propaganda. In certain circles, a negative portrayal of Mexicans, African Americans, Asians, and Irish with Catholic backgrounds emerged, depicting them as usurers with menacing intentions. It is worth noting that a majority of Methodist pastors expressed congratulations to Calles in 1926.[29]
During the Cristero War, several US citizens representing various groups, including Protestant congregations, individuals, fraternal orders, and Klaverns, wrote letters to Calles expressing their concerns about the situation in Mexico. Some writers believed that the war paved the way for secularism, while others thought it could lead to the expansion of Protestantism in the region. However, the letters from these groups occasionally used anti-Catholic language that fueled their imaginations about the Mexican conflict. The letters from the Klansmen of California and Methodists from Pennsylvania projected onto Mexico what these groups wanted to see in their society. They depicted a fantasy of violence they could not use in their society. Essentially, they saw a religious “tourism gaze in Mexico.”[30]
[1] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 24–25.
[2] Meyer, La cruzada por México, 71–75.
[3] Meyer, 69–70.
[4] Lawrence, Insurgency, Counter-Insurgency and Policing in Centre-West Mexico, 1926-1929, 32–72.
[5] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 29–30; Buchenau, Plutarco Elías Calles and the Mexican Revolution, 133.
[6] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 30; Buchenau, Plutarco Elías Calles and the Mexican Revolution, 133.
[7] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 30.
[8] Dormady, 30–31.
[9] Dormady, 30–31.
[10] Dormady, 31.
[11] Dormady, 31.
[12] Dormady, 31.
[13] Dormady, 31.
[14] Kelly J. Baker, Gospel According to the Klan: The KKK’s Appeal to Protestant America, 1915-1930, Culture America (Lawrence: University of Kansas Press, 2011), 38; Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 32.
[15] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 31; Baker, Gospel According to the Klan, 6.
[16] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 31; Kenneth T. Jackson, The Ku Klux Klan in The City, 1915-1930, 1st Elephant paperback edition. (Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 1967), 183.
[17] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 32.
[18] Larry R. Gerlach, Blazing Crosses in Zion: The Ku Klux Klan in Utah (Logan, Utah: Utah State University Press, 1982); Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 32.
[19] Patsy Sims, The Klan, Second edition. (Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 1996), 3; Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 32.
[20] Meyer, La cruzada por México, 71–75.
[21] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 33; Shawn Lay, War, Revolution, and the Ku Klux Klan: A Study of Intolerance in a Border City (El Paso: Texas Western Press, University of Texas at El Paso, 1985), 108.
[22] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 33; William D. Carrigan, Forgotten Dead: Mob Violence against Mexicans in the United States, 1848-1928 (United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 2013), 120.
[23] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 33; Carrigan, Forgotten Dead, 150.
[24] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 33; Carrigan, Forgotten Dead, 148.
[25] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 33.
[26] Dormady, 33.
[27] Michael Newton, The Ku Klux Klan Encyclopedia, Garland Reference Library of the Social Sciences; Vol. 499 (New York: Garland Pub., 1991), 325; Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 33.
[28] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 33–34.
[29] Meyer, La cruzada por México, 71–75.
[30] Dormady, “Dear Mr. Calles,” 34–35. Sociologist John Urry coined the term “tourist gaze” in 1990 with respect to the consumerism of modern tourism. For Mexico, traditional tourists often visited as an opportunity to depart from the strictures of domestic behavior through drinking, lounging, or prostitution. This theoretical framework can be applied to Protestants or groups that used a Protestant-inspired worldview.