Establishment and the World War I Serbian National Defense Council (SND) was founded as
Српска народна одбрана (Srpska narodna odbrana) by
Michael Pupin in 1914 in
New York City, USA, in midst of
anti-Serb tensions leading up to the
First World War. Soon after being founded, more than 263 branches sprung up across the United States and Canada and began aiding in the
war effort at a time when America had yet to enter the conflict. The Headquarters of the Serbian National Defense Council was at 443 West 22nd Street in New York. Michael Pupin was the founder and its first president. Andrija Sremac, brother of the late
writer Stevan Sremac, was the council's 1st vice-president and Mita Bežanov was the 2nd vice-president; the treasurer was Tom Srzentić and the secretary was Vid Vuić (from 29 July 1914 to 22 May 1916) and Jovan Ekerović (from 22 May 1916 to 30 September 1917).
World War II By 1941, SND headquarters were relocated to
Chicago, Illinois, under the leadership of Mihailo Dučić, and the organization's activities and influence waned. With the arrival of Mihailo's brother,
Jovan Dučić, a poet/diplomat, the Serbian National Defense Council was revived. Throughout the
Second World War, the SND was heavily engaged in collecting relief funds for
Serbs and supporting the Royal
Yugoslav Army which during the resistance was a
Chetnik cause, of course, under the command of General
Dragoljub Mihailovich, appointed by the
London-based
Yugoslav government-in-exile at the time.
Contemporary period After
World War II, the
US government under the
FARA act, began an intensive probe into all
Serbian Nationalist organizations in the
US, primarily SND, and continued until 1947. In 1951, chapters of the Serbian National Defense Council were established in
Hamilton, Canada under the name of
Serbian National Shield Society of Canada and
Sydney, Australia. == Sloboda-Liberty Newspaper ==