THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON
December 18, 1937

Mr. Joseph P. Lash, 
National Secretary, 
American Student Union,
112 East Nineteenth Street,
New York, N.Y.

My dear Mr. Lash:

It is encouraging to find that there are students sufficiently socially minded to devote four days of their brief Christmas Holiday to a discussion of our country’s social and economic problems. The schools of our country, especially the colleges and universities, are expressions of democracy’s interest in youth.

The fact that large groups of students, on their own initiative, are taking up national problems is evidence that our institutions of learning are getting results. So long as our printing presses, radios, and schools are kept free I do not have any great anxiety about the future success of our democratic systems.

The freshness of point of views of youth should make your discussions especially valuable not only to the youth of the country but to the country as a whole. I send hearty greetings to your convention and sincere wishes that your deliberations will be fruitful in making our schools and colleges a genuine fortress of democracy.

Very sincerely yours, 

Franklin D. Roosevelt
President, USA.