December 1941: America enters World War II

Three days after Japan bombs Pearl Harbor, signaling the U.S. entry into war versus the Axis powers, The Bates Student headlines its Dec. 10, 1941, editorial simply: “War.” The editors support the call to arms and acknowledge the humanity-numbing prospect of war.

Yet at the same time, they warn of war’s greatest danger: allowing hatred, particularly racial hatred, to consume the soul.

The nuanced approach reflects the paper’s gifted editorial leadership: editor Ralph Tuller ’42, who went on to a distinguished law career in the Boston area, passing away in 1994; managing editor John Donovan ’42, who became the DeAlva Stanwood Alexander Professor of Government at Bowdoin, passing away in 1984; and Norman Boyan ’43, an eminent educator who concluded his career as professor of education and dean of the Graduate School of Education at UC-Santa Barbara, retiring to the Santa Barbara area.