Full Description
Priests of Our
Democracy tells of the teachers and professors who
battled the anti-communist witch hunt of the 1950s. It traces the political fortunes
of academic freedom beginning in the late 19th century, both on
campus and in the courts. Combining political and legal history with wrenching
personal stories, the book details how the anti-communist excesses of the 1950s
inspired the Supreme Court to recognize the vital role of teachers and
professors in American democracy. The crushing of dissent in the 1950s
impoverished political discourse in ways that are still being felt, and First
Amendment academic freedom, a product of that period, is in peril today. In
compelling terms, this book shows why the issue should matter to everyone.
Contents
Introduction Part I: Prelude to the Deluge 1 "Sifting and Winnowing" 2 Radicalism and Reaction in the 1930s 3 Rapp-Coudert Part II: Teachers and Free Speech 4 The Board of Education and the Feinberg Law 5 Insubordination and "Conduct Unbecoming" 6 The Vinson Court Part III: The Purge Comes to Higher Education 7 The McCarran Committee and the City Colleges 8 "The Laughing-Stock of Europe" 9 The Moral Dilemma: Naming Names Part IV: The Supreme Court and Academic Freedom 10 Red Monday and Beyond 11 The Road to Keyishian 12 "A Pall of Orthodoxy over the Classroom"Part V: Politics, Repression, and the Future of Academic Freedom 13 "A Generation Stopped in Its Tracks" 14 Academic Freedom after Keyishian 15 September 11 and Beyond Conclusion Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index About the Author
