"Americanization" through philanthropy: The role of American Red Cross and American YMCA in Greece during 1918-1920

During World War I, US president Woodrow Wilson attempted to promote a different ethos in international relations that aimed at securing principles of political liberalism, as a precondition for the world to become a “safe haven for democracy.” Through his idealistic internationalism, Wilson tried to transform USA into a guarantor of the rights of the small and oppressed peoples of the world. This policy was in full harmony with US economic, trade, and geostrategic interests worldwide. The US, however, did not possess the “traditional” means of diplomatic, economic, or military pressure that the other European powers had in order to impose their policies on smaller nations. Thus, the only way to increase American influence was through “humanitarian and cultural diplomacy.” A campaign to disseminate the “American way of life” as the sole guarantor of the material prosperity and progress of nations was promoted primarily through education and philanthropy. A number of seemingly non-governmental organizations, but with unquestionable state support and guidance, were mobilized to serve the Wilsonian vision of an “Americanized” and democratized world. In Greece, such organizations were the American Red Cross (ARC) and American YMCA. This paper aims to document the humanitarian and political role and actions of ARC and American YMCA in Greece during 1918-1920 and the way in which Greeks received them. It is based primarily on unpublished archival material from the Greek Foreign Office, the Geneva World Alliance of YMCA and the Kautz Family YMCA Archives of University of Minnesota