Anti-Communism in American Higher Education, 1938 - Gregory Anastasio
Hometown: Castleton, New York
Class Year: 2008
Major: History, Political Science
Research Advisor: Professor Andrew Feffer
Project Description:
In 1938 the House Committee on Un-American Activities conducted extensive investigations of alleged American communists, communist organizations and their roles in espionage, propaganda, subversion, and un-American activities. The Committee was particularly concerned with the extent to which communists and communist philosophy had infiltrated the American educational system. My research identifies the motivation behind the Committee’s investigation and analyzes the Committee’s justification for conducting these hearings. Furthermore, I endeavor to establish whether or not communist infiltration and subversion actually posed an ostensible threat to the American education system in the late 1930s. Finally, my research assesses what the Dies Committee was willing to accept as evidence and proof of communist subversion.