August Edgar Johansen (July 21, 1905 – April 16, 1995) was a politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Biography

Johansen was born in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, and attended the public schools in

Battle Creek, Michigan Battle Creek is a city in northwestern Calhoun County, Michigan, United States, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo River, Kalamazoo and Battle Creek River, Battle Creek rivers. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a tota ...

. He attended

Olivet College The University of Olivet, formerly known as Olivet College, is a private Christian college in Olivet, Michigan, United States. The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It was founded in 1844 by missionaries from Oberlin Coll ...

in 1922 and 1923, and Western Michigan College of Education in Kalamazoo in 1923 and 1924. He graduated from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

in 1926. Johansen was a reporter with the '' Battle Creek Moon-Journal'' during the summers from 1922 to 1927. He served as minister of the Seventh Day Baptist Church in Chicago, Illinois, and

Congregational Church Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice congregational government. Each congregation independently a ...

in Bedford, Michigan, from 1924 to 1934. He was also manager of industrial relations of

Kellogg Company Kellanova, formerly known as the Kellogg Company and commonly known as Kellogg's, is an American multinational food manufacturing company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, US. Kellanova produces and markets convenience foods and snack f ...

in Battle Creek, from 1934 to 1944. He was an editorial writer for the ''

Battle Creek Enquirer-News A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

'' from 1944 to 1948, editor of the '' Lakeview News'', and news editor on radio from 1944 to 1951. He was a member of the Calhoun County Tax Allocation Board in 1949 and 1950 and served as administrative assistant to U.S. Representative

Paul W. Shafer Paul Werntz Shafer (April 27, 1893 – August 17, 1954) was a politician and judge from Michigan. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1937 until his death. Biography Shafer was born in Elkhart, Indiana, on A ...

from 1951 to 1954. In 1954, after Shafer's death just two weeks after being nominated unopposed in the Republican Party primary election for

Michigan's 3rd congressional district Michigan's 3rd congressional district is a List of United States congressional districts, U.S. congressional district in West Michigan. From 2003 to 2013, it consisted of the counties of Barry County, Michigan, Barry and Ionia County, Michigan, ...

, Johansen was elected to replace Shafer in the

84th United States Congress The 84th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 1955 ...

. Johansen was subsequently re-elected to the next four Congresses, serving from January 3, 1955, to January 3, 1965. In 1964, Johansen lost in the general election to

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Paul H. Todd, Jr. Johansen voted against the Civil Rights Acts of 1957,

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

, and

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

, as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' described him as one of the most consistent non- Southern opponents of

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...

legislation in his era. Johansen later served as executive vice president of the

Robert A. Taft Robert Alphonso Taft Sr. (September 8, 1889 – July 31, 1953) was an American politician, lawyer, and scion of the Republican Party's Taft family. Taft represented Ohio in the United States Senate, briefly served as Senate majority le ...

Institute for Government from 1966 to 1967. He was a lecturer and writer. Johansen died in

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

, of

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

. He was buried at Glen Haven Memorial Park and Mausoleum in

Winter Park, Florida Winter Park is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 29,795 according to the 2020 census. It is part of the Greater Orlando, Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Winter Park was foun ...

References

Sources

August E. Johansen
at The Political Graveyard {{DEFAULTSORT:Johansen, August E. 1905 births 1995 deaths American Protestants American segregationists Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan Deaths from dementia in Florida Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in Florida History of racism in Michigan Politicians from Philadelphia University of Chicago alumni 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives Members of the House Un-American Activities Committee