Mutual Aid Societies

Mutual aid societies, also known as mutual benefit societies, fraternal orders, lodges, friendly societies, and benevolent societies, are voluntary organizations that provide funds or services in kind to members in cases of loss of income, illness, or death. Mutual aid societies were the forerunner to welfare and social services in the United States and peaked from the mid-19th century to the first half of the 20th century. Societies are an [Page 1531]amalgam of social clubs and financial institutions that provide coverage and protection while promoting values of self-reliance, benevolence, and moral character.

Closely related institutions include mutual savings banks and savings and loan associations, and the simplest mutual aid societies are simply burial societies, pooling funds in order to pay for the funerals and death expenses of deceased members. Where mutual aid societies have distinguished themselves, though, is in the aid and fraternity they have provided to specific ethnic groups and recent immigrants.

The first American mutual aid society was the Free African Society, founded in 1787 by Richard Allen and Absolom Jones, two Philadelphia ministers. American church beneficial societies were some of the earliest institutions that provided relief for sickness and burial, and they operated as the first insurance-type program, which was non-actuarial and truly mutual aid in nature. Monies were collected during meetings and social occasions, were held in reserve for emergencies, and were available to any member.

In cases of emergency, members were offered money as presents or services in kind. Later, mutual aid societies were established without regard to religious affiliation, but were still moral in nature, and emphasized living an orderly and sober lifestyle. In addition, mutual aid societies were identified with political affiliations, trades, new immigrants, and ethnic and racial minorities.

The risks of loss of income were real and commonplace, and included loss of income from layoff and illness, retirement because of injury or old age, and death of the breadwinner in the family. If a husband died and he was the sole source of income for the family, his widow and children were left with nothing. Workplace injuries were also common at factories and mills, leaving workers permanently disabled or disfigured, and no longer able to work. Also, the elderly were still expected to pay bills, despite having no pensions, and were unable to continue working. There were no regulations, agencies, or programs like unemployment, social security, or worker's compensation. The only avenue open to employees was litigation against an employer, which always resulted in automatic termination. Mutual benefit self-help institutions filled these needs.

The golden age of mutual aid societies was from the 1880s to the 1920s, which was not only a time when membership in fraternal organizations increased significantly but was also an age when immigration had accelerated and large numbers of first- and second-generation Americans of many ethnic origins could be found in most cities. Mutual aid societies became the vehicles of identity formation for communities transitioning from agrarian to urban life. Societies sprang up in cities all over the United States, embracing displaced farmers, new immigrants, and minority populations. They promoted kinship among members to take care of one another, like a new, extended family. Like many immigrant and ethnic groups— Asian benevolent societies, for example—propagated their community values of filial piety and familism, which further reinforced that people from the same place or clan are morally obligated to help one another, and mutual support was viewed as a privilege rather than a burden.

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