The Cold War, McCarthyism and

1
The Cold War, McCarthyism and

• THE ACADEMIC CRUSADE
• Lia Lendis-Hahn
• Duquesne University
• GILED 703
• Dr. R. Agostino

2
Understanding the dominant interpretation of
McCarthyism in Education

• Must look at the educational initiatives at the
  time

3
Why were Anti-Communists hysterical about
communism in education?

• Progressive Education
• John Dewey believed that schools should become a
  fundamental lever of social progress by virtue of
  its capability to improve the quality of life for
  individuals
• Sounds liketwo words.

4
More of Dewey

• Rejected traditional lockstep routines of
  schoolinstead
• Focusing on collaboration
• Project based learning
• Self-expression
• Socialization and utility

5
FLIP SIDE

• In Hackensack, NJ between 1933-1940, college prep
  schools lost enrollment from 30 to 15 once they
  adopted this type of educational philosophy
• This began to raise a debate regarding the
  benefits of Progressive education

6
Critics to Progressivism

• Robert Hutchins labeled an elitist in the media
• -believed that Progressivism was inadequate and
  anti-intellectual
• Felt that we must change our environment and not
  adjust ourselves to it
• Crusader of cleansing our schools of subversive
  influences

7
More criticism

• Mortimer Smith felt Progressivism denounced
  individuality
• He also asserted that Progressivism eliminated
  intellectualism and moral standards

8
More dissention

• Arthur Bestor scorned the substitution of life
  needs for content subjects
• Due to the global tension, he felt that more
  attention should be given to history, foreign
  languages and sciences

9
The climate at the time

• Post WW II
• Cold War
• Time of insecurity and suspicion
• Desperate times bring about radical solutions
• NEW DEAL LEFTISTS and COMMUNISM ON COLLEGE
  CAMPUSES

10
GOVT CHASES AWAY THE BIG BAD WOLF

• Congress attaches a little red rider to the
  District of Columbia School Appropriation Bill
• Teachers advocating communism in school will not
  be paid

11
More red hunting

• 1948 three professors were fired for having
  membership to the communist party at University
  of Washington
• American Legion protested the Social Studies
  books adopted by Harold Ruggs in the 1930s, as
  radical and propaganistic.

12
This academic debate became a hot topic regarding
academic freedom

• Moderate Hutchins of University of Chicago
  redness and rudeness is not the same and make
  legislation to identify subversion but do not
  deny free thought
• 37 major college presidents held that there must
  be no curbing of academic freedom
• Yet in 1954, 90 of public surveyed believed that
  an admitted communist teacher should be fired

13
Sidney Hook and Alexander Meiklejohn

• Hook believed that communism does not allow for
  inquiry, so how could a communist argue academic
  freedom
• Meiklejohn felt that it is hypocritical to tell
  students to think without being able to say
  offensive things.

14
McCarthyism was working

• In 1948, Pasadena CA, a progressive
  superintendent was ousted for identifying his
  schools as common learnings
• Books were censored throughout nations libraries
• Organizations, such as the Screen Actors Guild,
  KKK and the NEA were investigated

15
Finally it was Joes turn

• Eisenhower censured Joe McCarthy and his HUAC in
  1952
• Joseph McCarthy dies a few years later from liver
  failure

16
Lessons of McCarthyism

• To what extent should education be influenced by
  historical, political and economic factors?
• To what extent does public perception affect
  political reality?
• To what extent is public perception impacted by
  infiltration as McCarthy attempted to prove?
• To what extent should government government curb
  public speech and educational curricula?
• Was the Communist party a genuine party or a
  subversive tool to spread totalitarianism?

17
More questions ???

• Are schools supposed to reflect the values of
  existing society or project a new set of values?
• What is the responsibility of government in
  monitoring educational programs?

18
What is the alternative ?

• Hindering academic freedom for the sake of
  national security?

19
References

• Cohen, R. (2005). The Search for Reds a farce
  in one act. History of
• Education Quarterly, 45, 112-118.
• Foster, S. (2000). Red Alert educators
  confront the red scare in
• American public schools. New York P. Lang.
• Gutek, G. (2000). American Education
  1945-2000 a history and
• commentary. Chicago Waveland Press.
• Iverson, R. (1959). The communists and the
  schools. New York
• Harcourt Brace.

20
References

• McIver, R. (1955). Academic freedom in our
  time. New York Columbia
• University Press.
• Ravitch, D. (1983). The troubled crusade. New
  York Basic Books
• Screcker, E. (1986). No ivory tower
  McCarthyism and the Universities. New
• York Oxford University.
• Schrecker, E. (1994). The age of McCarthyism.
  New York Bedford Books.