American Youth Congress
AYC leaders Jack R. McMichael, William W. Hinckley and Joseph Cadden before the House Un-American Activities Committee, 1939 | |
| Abbreviation | AYC |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1935 |
| Dissolved | 1940 |
| Purpose | Youth rights advocacy |
| Location | |
| Affiliations | World Youth Congress Movement |
The American Youth Congress (AYC) was an early youth voice organization composed of young people from across the United States who gathered to discuss the problems facing youth as a whole in the 1930s.
At the time, United States citizens were not legally considered adults until the age of 21, and so the group focused on the under-discussed economic exploitation of adolescents and children.
The formation of the AYC is seen as a precursor to the establishment of the National Youth Administration. Both the AYC and the NYA are notable for the support lent them by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
Affiliated with the World Youth Congress Movement, the AYC hosted the 1938 Second World Youth Congress at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York.