League against Usury
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League Against Usury
Liga contra Cametei Liga împotriva Cametei |
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| President | Eftimie Antonescu |
| Founded | August 17, 1929 |
| Dissolved | 1932 |
| Headquarters | Carol Street 62, Bucharest |
| Newspaper |
Jos Camăta Desrobirea |
| Ideology |
Single-issue Agrarianism Producerism Economic antisemitism Fascism (minority) |
| Political position | Center-left to far-right |
The League Against Usury (Romanian: Liga contra Cametei, LCC, or Liga împotriva Cametei) was a single-issue, mainly agrarian, political party in Romania. Formed as a political answer to the Great Depression, it involved itself in the fight against "usury" (or predatory lending), bringing together politicians on all sides of the political spectrum. Its prominent backers and activists included leftists such as Nicolae L. Lupu and independents such as George Tutoveanu and Eraclie Sterian, alongside affiliates of the interwar far-right. The LCC fought channeled protest votes, and competed in this with fascist movements such as the Iron Guard, ambiguously supporting economic antisemitism.
Although perceived as an upsetting contender, the LCC effectively seconded the Democratic Peasants' Party–Stere. Under its auspices, it managed to obtain one seat in the Assembly in the election of June 1931. The League's fiscal proposals were embraced by the government of Nicolae Iorga, which also drew in former LCC cadres, while other activists left the League to openly embrace fascism. After involving itself in support of continued debt relief policies, and failing to win any seats in later elections, the LCC finally dissolved in late 1932.
The LCC was created by the jurist Eftimie "Volică" Antonescu with support from various politicians and journalists. Its constitutive congress was held at Antonescu's home in Bucharest on Saturday, August 17, 1929. According to one account, the movement may have had roots that predated the Great Depression: a League of the same name (later LCC chapter) was reportedly formed in 1928 by the Gorj County landowner Alexandru A. Magherescu. Voted in as LCC president, Antonescu had previously been a member of the Conservative and National Parties, before defecting to the National Liberal Party. Elected for the Senate seat in Gorj, he had criticized the governing National Peasants' Party for its handling of the Depression, and also for its passage of multiple and conflicting laws.
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