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    "label": "Statement from Joseph M. Dawson, \"Why I Withdrew from the House Forum on Education\"",
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    "title": "Statement from Joseph M. Dawson, \"Why I Withdrew from the House Forum on Education\"",
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    "seq": 2,
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    "ocrText": "- 2 -\nany bill which might pass was in the question of transportation, and\nthis had not been settled because of disagreement among religious\ngroups. The two Roman Catholic representatives of the National Catho-\nlic Welfare Conference, Dr. E. J. Butler and Father McManus, then\nstated that they were only asking \"auxiliary services\" to parochial\nschools, such as transportation. I was seated next to Father McManus,\nand I at once produced a booklet written by him and printed by the\nNational Catholic Welfare Conference on which was printed, \"For a\nclear understanding of the state-aid-to-schools controversy read this\nexpert article by Rev. Wm. E. McManus\". The booklet-article, as\nshown by excerpts of it headlined July 31, 1949 in the News of De-\ntroit (Chairman Lesinski's home city) showed the \"Church official says\nCatholics look for full aid to schools. = The booklet-article contains\nthis arresting statement: \"There is doubt whether the American people\nwill for some time allow their Government to grant full support to\nparochial schools, but we are confident an ever increasing number of\nour fellow Americans will give a sympathetic hearing to our request\nfor fringe benefits like bus rides and textbooks.\" In other words,\nfor the present the Catholics will be content with preliminary aids\nbut will eventually expect full aid!\nOf course, this accords well with the Manifesto issued last\nNovember, signed by the cardinals, archbishops and bishops in which\nthey affirmed that separation of church and state in this country is\na mere fiction, a \"political shibboleth\", and though it is upheld by\nSupreme Court decisions they expect to work patiently and persistently\nuntil the Constitution may be changed in respect to this! Of course,\ntoo, we know the two Roman Catholic members of the President's\nCommission on Higher Education, last year vehemently dissented from\nthe declaration of the other twenty-six members of the Commission\nwho pronounced for \"public funds to public institutions only\". All\nthis notwithstanding Cardinal Spellman's acknowledgement in his reply\n#\nto Mrs. Roosevelt that state aid to parochial schools is unconstitu--\ntional!\nNow came the amazing action of Chairman Lesinski. Though there\nwas unanimous agreement that the religious question prevented Con-\ngressional action, he shut me off with the statement that he would\nnot tolerate an intrusion of the religious question. Some sympathetic\nRepresentative promptly spoke up, \"Certainly we shall not consent to\nreligious bigotry!"
}