Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, A. Philip Randolph Papers [8-8]

Asa Philip Randolph, founder of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, organized a march on Washington, D.C. in 1941 to draw attention to discrimination and segregation in the defense industries. In response to the threatened march, which Randolph predicted would be attended by 100,000 protesters, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, which banned racial and religious discrimination in defense industries and government training programs. Roosevelt also established the Fair Employment Practices Committee (FEPC) to monitor defense industry hiring practices. Randolph called off the march.