Emanuel Celler

Emanuel Celler
Portrait by Joseph Margulies, 1963
39th Dean of the United States House of Representatives
In office January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1973
Preceded by	Carl Vinson
Succeeded by	Wright Patman
Chair of the House Judiciary Committee
In office January 3, 1955 – January 3, 1973
Preceded by	Chauncey W. Reed
Succeeded by	Peter W. Rodino
In office January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1953
Preceded by	Earl C. Michener
Succeeded by	Chauncey W. Reed
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York
In office March 4, 1923 – January 3, 1973
Preceded by	Lester D. Volk
Succeeded by	Elizabeth Holtzman
Constituency	10th district (1923–1945) 15th district (1945–1953) 11th district (1953–1963) 10th district (1963–1973)
Personal details
Born	(1888-05-06)May 6, 1888 New York City, U.S.
Died	January 15, 1981(1981-01-15) (aged 92) New York City, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	Columbia University (BA, LLB)
Occupation	Lawyer

Emanuel Celler (May 6, 1888 – January 15, 1981) was an American Democratic politician from New York who represented parts of the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens in the United States House of Representatives for nearly 50 years, from March 1923 to January 1973. He served as the dean of the United States House of Representatives from 1965 to 1973. Celler chaired the House Committee on the Judiciary for eleven terms between 1949 and 1973 and was a leading advocate for the liberalization of immigration and naturalization laws, from his early stand against the Immigration Act of 1924 to his sponsorship of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. He ranks as the fifth longest-serving congressman in history^[a] and the longest-serving member of either house of Congress in New York's history.

Celler strongly supported help for Jewish refugees fleeing Europe during World War II. As Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee for all but two years between 1949 and 1973, he ushered the major civil rights legislation including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. In the early 1970s, Celler took a position in opposition to the women's Equal Rights Amendment.

He was defeated in the 1972 primary by Elizabeth Holtzman, becoming the most senior Representative ever to lose a primary.

Early life

Emanuel Celler was born on May 6, 1888, in

Celler was first elected to the House in 1922, defeating incumbent Republican Lester D. Volk.

As a representative-elect in December 1922, Celler forcefully criticized the Second Ku Klux Klan as "a national menace," a "canker and disease that is harassing our body politic," and "worse than Bolshevism."^[2]

During his first twenty-two years in Congress, 1923–1945, Celler's Brooklyn and Queens-based district was numbered as New York's 10th congressional district. Redistricting in 1944 put him into the 15th district from 1945 to 1953; from 1953 to 1963 his district was the 11th; and for his final decade in the United States Congress, 1963–1973, it was back to its 1922 designation as the 10th. For his final campaign in 1972, the district had been renumbered as the 16th.

Celler made his first important speech on the House floor during consideration of the Johnson–Reed

In the 1940s, Celler opposed both the isolationists and the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration by forcefully advocating that the United States relax immigration laws on an emergency basis to rescue those fleeing the Holocaust. In 1943, he called President Roosevelt's immigration policy "cold and cruel" and blasted the "glacier-like attitude" of the State Department.

In 1950, he was the lead House sponsor of legislation to strengthen the

In 1951, Celler conducted hearings in the

In the early 1950s, the Republican Senator Joseph McCarthy attacked Celler's patriotism. At the 1952 Democratic National Convention, Celler gave a speech in which he responded to Sen. McCarthy, saying:

"Deliberately and calculatedly, McCarthyism has set before itself the task of undermining the faith of the people in their Government. It has undertaken to sow suspicion everywhere, to set friend against friend and brother against brother. It deals in coercion and in intimidation, tying the hands of citizens and officials with the fear of the smear attack."

As Chairman of the

In June 1972, Celler (then the House of Representatives' most senior member) unexpectedly lost the Democratic primary to a somewhat more liberal Democrat, attorney Elizabeth Holtzman, who eked out a 635-vote victory over Celler,^[10] based chiefly on Celler's opposition to feminism and the Equal Rights Amendment. At the time, Celler was the most senior congressman ever to have been ousted in a primary. Even though Celler remained on the ballot as the candidate of the Liberal Party, he decided not to campaign and endorsed Holtzman in September.^[11] This allowed Holtzman to win the general election that November with 66% of the vote, versus 23% for her Republican opponent. Celler received 7%.^[12]

Final years

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In his final years, Celler remained busy, speaking about immigration and myriad other topics that occupied his half-century of public service. During the

In 1978, shortly before his 90th birthday, he granted an interview in which he reflected on New York and national politicians.[13]

Emanuel Celler died in his native Brooklyn at the age of 92.

See also

• List of Jewish members of the United States Congress

References