vol. 22, no. 1

LAWRENCE SPEISER confers with Jeremiah Feingold during House

Unamerican Committee hearing.

House Hearings Melodrama

Closes After Two-Day Stand

After two days of investigation in San Francisco, a parade

of 14 witnesses who were questioned for a total of 14 hours

by a triumvirate of Congressmen, Harold Velde (R., Ill),

Chairman Clyde Doyle (D., Calif.), and Gordon Scherer (R.,

Ohio), and their counsel, Richard Arens, the House Un-

American Activities committee,

announced the result of their la-

bors. They stated that they had

exposed information which led to

the following recommendations:

1) that the FBI maintain- close

surveillance of Aubrey Gross-

man, Oakland attorney; 2) that

denaturalization proceedings be

instituted against Victor Arnau-

toff, who in 1955 caused a furor

with his caricature of Richard

Nixon; 3) that legislation be en-

acted that would enable "success-

ful" contempt of court prosecu-

tion of witnesses "like Goldblatt."

4) that San Francisco be alerted

that it is one of the many ports

that is now channeling a flow of

unlabelled prop aganda_ to

schools, churches and _ civic

_ groups.

MELODRAMA OPENS ~

`Before the two-day melodrama"

- opened, Arens, counsel for the

committee, in a press conference,

summarized the reason for the

San Francisco visit. "The Com-

munist threat is more serious In

the United States right now than

ever before in the history of the

country ... very little (activity)

comes under the classifigation

that calls for prosecution." As a

result, the House Un-American

Activities Committee had under-

taken, Arens explained, to ex-

pose Communist activity working

through groups who oppose the

Smith Act, the Internal Security.

Act, and the security provisions

of McCarran-Walters Act, and to

investigate the flow of such un-

labelled material that might con-

stitute "foreign propaganda,

coming from Red China. :

At best, the hearings which

were held in the august cham-

bers of Federal Judge Michael Oe

Roche, were a distressing display

- of intimidation of witnesses, in-

nuendoes, sneers and indignities

conducted in the name of the

government of the United States;

and among the worst, cheap melo-

drama

STAGE SET

The stage was set with the tes-

timony of three friendly wit-

nesses, who painted a picture of.

considerable danger. `Testified

IRVING FISHMAN, deputy col-

lector of customs, director of the

government censorship units

(who had testified twice prev1-

ously, in Washington and Phila-

delphia) that 156,575 packages

of unlabelled propaganda came

into San Francisco during the

last three months, from Red

China via Hong Kong. Mr. Fish-

man had with him, six sacks of

mail to attest to this fact. JOHN

CALDWELL, writer and lectur--

er, born in China, and recently

returned from a visit to the Far

East, testified that the Commun-

ist threat had grown in the Far

East, while attention was focus-

ed on Hungary and Egypt. The

Committee did not indicate what

bearing this had upon their in-

vestigation of propaganda-flow

into this country and specifically,

through San Francisco. CHES-

TER MACPHEE, collector of

Customs of the U.S. Postal De-

partment, also testified about the

amount of unlabelled materials

coming into San Francisco.

Eleven other "unfriendly" wit-.

nesses followed, three of whom

were represented by ACLU staff

counsel Lawrence Speiser.

ACLU CLIENTS

Jeremiah Feingold, owner and

operator of the Russky Kustar

Record and Book Shop, willingly

answered all questions about his

shop, books he received in Rus-

sian, (none of which came from

Red China but Russia,) which he

then supplied to such clients as

the Army School of Languages

in Monterey, Univer;ity of Cali-

fornia, Stanford University, Uni-

versity of Texas, etc) Mr. Fein-

gold along with Mr. Fishman and

Mr. MacPhee, was the only wit-

ness during the entire two days

of hearings who was questioned

about communications coming

into this country which was not

labeled as "foreign propaganda."

The Committee then switched

to questioning Mr. Feingold's af-

filiations with the Communist

Party. Since 1940, he had no con-

nection with the Communist

Party, he said. Of the years prior

to this-the nineteen thirties, Mr.

Feingold invoked the protection

of the Fifth Amendment.

SAMUEL HOFFBERG, a social

worker from Los Angeles who

was represented by the ACLU,

invoked the Fifth Amendment.

In Los Angeles, Mr. Hoffberg's

-Continued on Page 3

Reinstatement

Ordered in

Navy Case

Last month, the Navy Depart-

ment ordered the reinstatement

of a welder at the San Francisco

Naval Shipyard whose employ-

ment had been terminated on

April 12, 1956, after security

hearings.

The Navy acknowledged that

the employee did not have access

to classified military information

and, therefore, did not occupy a

sensitive job. Under the recent

decision of the United States Su-

preme Court in the case of Cole

vs. Young, it was held that Public

Law 733 establishing the Federal

security program was not appli-

cable to non-sensitive jobs. "Since

the record indicates that (the em-

ployee) occupied a position which

had not been designated as `sensi-

tive'," said Albert Pratt, Assist-

ant Secretary of the Navy, "I

have concluded that Executive

Order 10450 was not legally appli

cable to his case. Accordingly,

by separate correspondence, (the

employee) is being offered rein-

statement to his former position

-Continued on Page 3

American

Civil Liberties

Union

Volume XXII

San Francisco, California, January, 1957

Number 1.

ACLU To Oppose Prosecution

Of John Powell On Two Counts

Free Press, Fair

Trial Violated

On December 26, the Board of

Directors of the American Civil

Liberties Union of Northern Cal-

ifornia announced its opposition

to the sedition prosecution of

John W. Powell, his wife, Sylvia,

and Julian Schuman, who will be

tried in the U. S. District Court

in San Francisco at a still unde-

_termined time. The Powells are

residents of San Francisco, while

Schuman lives in New York.

The ACLU statement declared

that "this presents a_ serious

threat to fundamental liberties,

particularly freedom of the press

and fair trial." If the defendants

are convicted, the ACLU will in-

tervene in their behalf by filing

a "friend of the court" brief in

the Federal Court of Appeals.

John Powell, editor and pub-

lisher of an English language

monthly news magazine published

in Shanghai from 1950 to 1953,

the China Monthly Review, is

charged with seditious activity by

publishing in his paper state-

ments which allegedly were false,

"with the intent to interfere with

the success of the armed forces

of the United States and to pro-

mote the success of its enemies

... wilfully cause insubordina-

tion, disloyalty and mutiny...

wilfully obstruct the recruiting

and enlistment service of the

United States."

Although the bulk of his maga-

zine circulated in the Far East,

Powell is being prosecuted for

circulating them in the United

States. The exact number is not

known.

The statements for which Pow-

ell is being charged defended the

communist governments of China

and North Korea; stated that

North Koreans were merely de-

fending their homeland; criti-

cized U. S. foreign policy, the U.

JOHN W. POWELL, San Fran-

ciscan, indicted for sedition..

S. government and that of Chiang

- Kai-Shek. Other statements

claimed that the United States

forces in Korea were engaged in

aggressive acts, that they used

the Korean fighting to test gas

and bacteriological warfare, and

that the number of U. S. casual-

ties were greater than indicated

by the U. S.; that the Korean

truce talks were intentionally

stalled anc sapotaged by U. 5S.

negotiators. =:

INDICTED ON INTENT

In opposing the indictment of

Powell, Reverend Harry Meserve,

chairman of the Board of the

ACLU stated, "The danger in-

herent in Powell's charge is that

the editor and his two assistants

are being brought to trial, not for

actually causing insubordination

or disloyalty in the armed forces,

or obstructing recruitment and

enlistment in the United States,

but only for their intent to do so.

At no time did Powell advocate

such action; any intent to cause

mutiny or disloyalty can be in-

ferred only from comments and

opinion printed in the magazine."

ACLU to Sponsor

The Flowering Peach'

THE FLOWERING PEACH,

`a modern fable of Noah and

the flood, will be presented

by the American Civil Liber-

ties Union in a benefit thea-

ter performance, Friday, Jan-

uary 18, 1957. The play,

considered to be a return to

that wondrously delicate and

rich humor of Clifford Odets

earlier plays, is being given its

San Francisco premiere by

The Actor's Workshop at the

Marines Memorial Theater.

Two seasons ago, the play

was produced in New York

with the comedian Menasha

Skulnick in the role of Noah,

which will be played by Mau-

rice Argent in The Workshop

production. Mara Alexander .

Gilbert will play Noah's wife,

Esther.

The ACLU has bought the -

entire house of 680 seats for

_the Biblical drama for the

night of January 18. Sponsor

tickets, (which include an addi-

tional' contribution to the

ACLU and the choice seats of

the house) are $5 each. All

other tickets are priced at

$2.50. Mail orders will be filled

in the order in which they ar-

rive at the ACLU office. No

telephone orders can be taken.

Writes Bill Hagan of the Bay

Area production in the Decem-

ber 13 CHRONICLE, "one of

the best casts The Actors'

Workshop has assembled .. .

it is at once the funniest and

deepest play in town."

The production is under the

direction of David Sarvis; sets

by Tom Borden; costumes by

James H. Stearns. Also in the

cast of THE FLOWERING

PEACH are Tom Klunis, Mary -

Waldorf, Winnifred Mann, Wil-

liam Witt, Emanuel Brookman,

Harold Haswell, Julian Miller,

Margaret Doyle, and Don Dan-

forth.

Address ticket requests to

THE FLOWERING PEACH,

ACLU, Market Street, San

Francisco 5, California.

Sedition Law

Serious Threat

The ACLU regards the charges

leveled at Powell under the sedi-

tion act, and sedition legislation

in general, as a serious threat to

the press of this nation, which at

any time, can be held accountable

for its alleged intent.

"Under the circumstances, we

cannot regard this prosecution as

consistent with our constitutional

guarantee of freedom of the press.

If the sedition statute may be ap-

plied to the Powell statements,

it may by the same token be ap-

plied to any statement which

might have an adverse effect on

the morale of the general public

in war time...editors cannot be

expected to publish anything

which differs from the official

view if they can do so only by

_ risking 20 years imprisonment if

a jury, possibly swayed by the

passion and intolerance of war-

time, should make an adverse

finding as to the editor's intent."

FAIR TRIAL QUESTION

The second point on which the

ACLU opposes the Powell prose-

cution is the impossibility of a

fair triel.-

tionalism surrounding such mat-

ters as "germ" warfare, the un-

derlying causes and unannounced

aims of a war, Red China and

Nationalist China and commu-

hism, no jury could act without

pressure to convict the Powells.

Any verdict of their innocence

would be construed by the public

as an admission that the United

States had engaged in aggressive

acts and did engage in bacterio-

logical warfare.

Further, Powell's case cannot

be presented without voluminous

evidence in foreign countries be-

yond the reach of subpoena pow-

er, nor can Powell rebut the gov-

ernment's case without access to

secret military files.

The case denies equality be-

fore law, since the statements

made by the Powells were also

made by other left-wing periodi-

cals in this country, which have

not been prosecuted.

PROSECUTION DEMAND

- "Other circumstances sur-

rounding the charge should also

be noted," said ACLU Board

Chairman Harry Meserve. "The

Powells were not prosecuted un-

til almost three years after their

return to this country, and not

until their prosecution had been

publicly demanded by Senators

Welker and Jenner, although the

government must have known all

along what statements had ap-

peared in The China Monthly Re-

View."

Powell is being represented by

Doris Walker of San Francisco

and A. L. Wirin of Los Angeles.

Mr. Wirin, who is counsel for the

ACLU's Southern California

branch, is appearing in the case

in his private capacity.

The position of the American

Civil Liberties Union of North-

ern California is entirely inde-

pendent of any contention which

may be made by the defense that

the statements published in The

China Monthly Review are true.

Federal Judge Louis E. Good-

man on October 5, authorized tes-

timony by defense witnesses to

be taken in Hong Kong at govern-

ment expense.

(Full text of ACLU statement

on Page 2)

Because of the emo- -

THE POWELL CASE...

~ The following is a statement concerning the `'Powell Sedition Case,''

adopted by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California,

December 6, 1956:

Three persons are currently awaiting trial in the United States

District Court in San Francisco on a charge of "sedition," based

solely on their published reports and comments with regard to the

Korean War. In the opinion of the American Civil Liberties. Union |

of Northern California, this prosecution presents a serious threat

to fundamental ee particularly freedom of the press and fair

trial.

The defendants are charged with oleae a statute which was

enacted in 1917 shortly after the entry of the United States into

World War I. This statute expressed a judgment that public opinion,

as well as soldiers, should be conscripted to support the nation's war

effort. It was the first experiment (other than the short-lived Alien

and Sedition Acts of 1798) in punishing, as federal crimes, publica-

tions deemed harmful. Almost 2,000 persons were prosecuted under

this law during or immediately following the first World War. Most

of them were socialists or pacifists and were prosecuted for publish-

ing, in a peaceful and orderly manner, their sincere and deeply felt

convictions against American participation in that war. Professor

Zechariah Chafee of Harvard. University, one of our country's fore-

most authorities on freedom of speech, in 1920 described this war-

time sedition act as "the deadliest blow ever struck at a free press

in the United States."

The American Civil Liberties Union has always regarded sedition

legislation in general, and this statute in particular, as both unwise

and an invasion of the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the

First Amendment. Indeed, alarm over this particular law and the

early prosecutions under it played a large part in the original forma-

tion of the ACLU.

The principal defendant in the current prosecution is John W.

Powell of San Francisco. During the years 1950-1953, he was the edi-

tor of "China Monthly Review," an English-language periodical pub-

lished in Shanghai.

INDICTMENT CHARGES

The indictment `charges that, during these years, he published in

the magazine statements in the following categories:

That United States forces in Korea were engaged in aggres-

~ sive acts; that they used the Korean fighting as an opportunity

to test gas and bacteriological weapons; that United States forces

had suffered certain numbers of casualties (presumably the .

prosecution will contend that the figures given were too high);

and that the Korean truce talks were intentionally stalled and

sabotaged by United States negotiators. It is alleged that Powell

knew these statements were false and published them to inter-

fere with United States forces and to aid "enemies."

Statements criticizing the United States government and that

of Chiang Kai-Shek, criticizing United States foreign policy,

defending the communist governments of China and North

Korea, and stating that the latter were merely defending their

homelands. It is alleged that these statements were made to

eause insubordination and mutiny in the armed forces and to

obstruct recruiting and enlistment.

It is also charged that two associate editors of the "China Month-

ly Review," Mrs. Powell and Julian Schuman, "conspired" with

Powell for all these purposes. This does not charge any additional

acts, nor that there was anything "conspiratorial" in the popular

sense. It merely charges that the two associate editors joined in bring-

ing about these publications and did so with the same intent attri-

buted to Powell by the prosecution.

The indictment is based solely on statements published in the

magazine and on the fact that some copies of the magazine (the

indictment does not say how many, nor what proportion of the total

circulation they represented) were circulated in the United States.

The statements charged do not urge or suggest any action on the

part of the reader. In other words, it is not charged that there was

any effort to interfere with United Nations military operations in

Korea by any other means than that of attempting to influence

general public opinion in the United States.

Under the circumstances, we cannot regard this prosecution as

consistent with our constitutional guarantee of freedom of the press.

If the sedition statute may be applied to the Powell statements, it

may, by the same token, be applied to any statement which might

have an adverse effect on the morale of the general public in war-

time. Any statement questioning the justice or necessity of a war,

or criticizing war aims, the conduct of a war, or the competency or

good faith of government leaders in war-time, might have such an

effect. Editors. cannot be expected to publish anything which differs

from the official view, if they can do so only by risking 20 years

imprisonment if a jury, possibly swayed by the passion and intoler-

ance of war-time, should make an adverse finding as to the editor's

"intent."

An especially dangerous aspect of this particular prosecution is

the charge that, when Powell drew unacceptable conclusions from

published materials, he thereby engaged in making "false reports"

with intent to interfere with American military forces and to aid the

enemy.

"FALSE" OPINIONS, OR "FALSE" FACTS?

Several of the statements which the indictment charges were

false and known to be false are clear and unmixed statements of

opinion. Such statements as that the United States is engaged in

"ageressive" acts, or that negotiators are seeking to prolong or dis-

rupt truce talks, are not statements of fact but interpretations of the

significance of facts.

However, the remainder of the "false" statements, although super-

ficially factual, actually present the same problem in a more subtle

and disguised form. The statements involved did not originate with

Powell. No reader would have understood them as a report of mat-

ters concerning which the editor claimed knowledge at first-hand.

Consequently, the statements boil down into two elements:

1) That certain statements or charges have been made;

2) That, in Powell's opinion, the published authority. on which

they are made is reliable or the published evidence in support of

them convincing.

The first element is clearly true and was generally printed in the

United States press. The prosecution is therefore directed at the

second element, which is matter of opinion. There can be little scope

or security for freedom of the press if an editor's interpretations of

world events can be converted into "false reports," and thereby into

a crime, by the fact that a jury arrives at different conclusions.

The impact of such a process on civil liberties is changed little,

if at all, by instructing the jury to convict only if convinced the defen-

dant "knew" his statements were false. It is very easy, though com-

-Continued on Page 3

Holmes' Axiom, 'Clear

And Present Danger'

Discussed by Ernst

By Morris L. Ernst, New York attorney, and author of fourteen books,

year, member of the

ACLU's general counsel.

lication of the national ACLU.

Every believer in the dynamics

of freedom, particularly in our

Republic, must appraise the 100th

Aniversary of the birth of Jus-

tice Brandeis in terms of civil

liberties.

Unlike his colleague, Justice

Holmes, who was the gay Back

Bay Boston Brahmin, . Louis

Brandeis was the mathematician,

trained for law with the slide

rule. He was not a maker of slo-

gans, and this brief comment

which I make concerns the most

widely known slogan uttered by

Holmes. I refer to his theory of

"clear and present" danger with

respect to freedom of speech.

_I have never believed in the

Holmes axiom. I have always felt

that the words "clear" and "pres-

ent" were too subjective to be

used with precision by judge or

jury. I don't happen to scare

easily, so for me no speech or

writing creates a danger which is

either "clear" or "present."

I wish that the ACLU would

abandon the Holmes slogan and

adopt the Brandeis theory under

which this test is made: is there

time to make answer, or, in the

alternative, time to cail the po-

lice? Under such a formula we

approach the possibility of objec-

tivity. A man speaks in favor of

lynching before a mob. Is there

time to ridicule, debate, or, in the

alternative, telephone the police?

Coxey's Army starts to march

on Washington to break every

window of the Capitol. To many

the announcement of the march

would create a "clear and pres-

~ Vice-chairman of the national ACLU Board of Directors for the past

Board since

Reprinted from Civil Liberties, monthly pub-

1929, and for twenty-six years

ent" danger. The Brandeis ap-

proach, however, would require

scrutiny as to whether there is

time by ridicule, satire and de-

bate to dissuade those who march

toward an illegal end, or in the

alternative, is there time to no-

tify the police to be at the Capitol |

to arrest the first man who picks

up the first brick?

Under the Brandeis formula

which I have adhered to for dec-

ades, I have never found a ra-

tionale for state interference in

the innumerable cases which have

gone through our courts and

where the freedom of speech and

press has become limited. Need-

less to say, the test of "time to

answer" or to call the police ap-

plies peculiarly, if not exclusive-

ly, to public speech and open pub-

lication.

There is never time to answer

secret speech or to protect by po-

lice against underground behav-

_ior. The Brandeis formula is for

those for whom the philosophy

of the First Amendment was de-

vised. It has slight, if any refer-

ence to the cowards who use

speech in secret fashion with un-

derground activity toward an ille-

gal objective.

On all other Brandeis-Holmes

fronts I find no fundamental di-

vergence as in this sector dealing

with free speech and press. One

other thought: laymen should not

be overwhelmed by the legal pro-

fession in their concern with the

distinctions indicated above. They

involve no mystery.

ACLU News Notes

SUPREME COURT

GRANTS HEARING

IN WIRETAP CASE

LOS ANGELES, December,

1956-The State Supreme Court

last week granted a hearing to

Counsel A. L. Wirin in Southern:

California ACLU's suit to prevent

the police department's use of

public funds for secret dicta--

graph equipment.

Wirin, as a taxpayer, seeks an

injunction to halt the widespread

practice of "bugging" private

homes and offices without the

permission of property owners.

INJUNCTION DENIED

In the lower courts an injunc-

tion was denied, first, on grounds

that the petition did not fall

within the jurisdiction of the

court, and later, for the reason

that while police surveillance "in-.

vades one's privacy," it does not

necessarily violate constitutional

guarantees against unreasonable

search and seizure.

Wirin and Atty. Nathan L.

Schoichet, volunteer counsel in

the case, emphasized that the suit

also stresses the importance of

maintaining the right of a tax-

payer to sue for relief.

"The innocent have no other

redress," Wirin says. `The only

effectual way to stop this surrep-

titious `bugging' is through the

injunctive process." 0x00B0

Southern California ACLU's

brief submitted to the State Su-

preme Court also emphasized

that an injunction is sought only

against the "Cahan type" of dic-

tagraph installation, which in-

cludes a trespass and installation

without the knowledge or con-

sent of anyone connected with

the premises and, of course, with-

out the knowledge of the person

under surveillance.

ACROSS THE NATION

WASHINGTON, Oct. 24-Sen-

ator McNamara, Democrat, Mich-

igan, has asked the Army to drop

security charges against Dr. Rob-

ert Greenberg of Detroit, for in-

sufficient evidence. Charges

against Dr. Greenberg were based

on his medical student days at -

the University of California,

where the doctor attended meet-

ings of the Labor Youth Council;

was a member of the San Fran-

cisco Council of Arts, Sciences

and Professions, attended a meet-

ing on the Rosenberg atom-spy

case (along with 2000 other per-

sons), subscribed to a leftist cam-

pus publication, and had been

cited by the California Un-Amer-

ican Activities Committee. Mc-

Namara said the Army had over-

looked character affidavits from

medical school professors, and of

associates at the Children's Hos-

pital in Detroit.

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 8-The

Board of Education dismissed

Donald Weiss, city school teacher

since 1950, for his refusal to an-

swer questions about Commu-

nism in a hearing before the

board on Jan. 19. The instructor

of English and social studies in-

voked the Fifth Amendment. A

Superior Court ruling upheld the

Board's right to fire Weiss.

Salem, Oregon, Oct. 11 (AP)-

Frank Victor Paterson, Portland, .

was denied admission to the bar

yesterday, because of former af-

filiation with the Communist

Party. The Oregon Supreme

Court ruled that Patterson could

not be admitted to law practice

because it would be contrary to

the public interest. Patterson had

been active in the Communist

Party for four years, and was ex-

pelled in 1949.

NEW YORK, Oct. 29-Edward

J. Fitzgerald,

economist and researcher, today

former Federal |

became the first person impris-

oned under the Compulsory Tes-

timony Act of 1954. Under the

act, a witness who has been grant-

ed immunity from prosecution is

required to answer questions or

face prosecution for contempt of

court. Fitzgerald refused to an-

swer questions before a Federal

grand jury on Aug. 18, 1955.

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 27-Rus-

sell Mason, sound engineer, testi-

fied before a State Senate sub-

committee yesterday that he had

helped law-enforcement officers

`wiretap about 1,000 homes, mo-

tels and apartments. "Sometimes

I would climb under a house, go

into the attic through a hole in

the roof, or by various other

means such as a burglar would

use."

Mason did "bugging" for the

district attorney's office, for the

state attorney general's office,

the State Medical Board,: the

State Pharmaceutical Board, and

the State Board of Health. Mason

showed equipment, including a

"shotgun" microphone, which

could record a conversation 300

feet away. The California State

Supreme Court has outlawed evi-

dence obtained by telephone taps.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Nov. 28-

The Broyles Loyalty Oath Law

was upheld yesterday by the IIli-

nois Supreme Court. The Law,

passed in 1955, forbids use of

state funds for paying salaries of

- AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES

UNION-NEWS

Published Monthly at 503 Market St.,

San Francisco 5, California

EDITOR: Ernest Besig

STAFF: Lawrence Speiser,

Priscilla Ginsberg

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR:

Morris Ernst

Second class mail privileges

authorized at San Francisco, Calif.

SUBSCRIPTION RATES:

$1.50 yearly; 15c per copy

151

school teachers, state workers

and other public employees if

they meise to sign an oath.

ITHICA, N. Y., Oct. 23 (AP)-

A Cornell University chapter of

Sigma Kappa sorority, suspended

by its national organization for

pledging a Negro girl, continues

to operate under a suspended sta-

tus. Said President Thelma Ham-

mon, `We hope to keep the issue -

open for action by the Sigma

Kappa Council, rather than break-

ing entirely."

WASHINGTON, Oct. 15 (AP)

The Supreme Court of the United

States today let stand a General

Electric Co. policy of firing em-

ployees who plead the Fifth

Amendment at public hearings

about Communist affiliations.

The Supreme Court refused the

request of the United Electrical,

Radio and Machine Workers of

America, to review the G. E. pol-

icy, which is to suspend workers

for 90 days if they invoke the

privilege, followed by dismissal

unless the worker answers ques-

tions fully. The U. S. District

Court in Seattle had upheld the

employer's right to dismiss em-

ployees based on their use of the

Fifth Amendment.

GILMANTON, N. H.-George

Metalious, whose wife, Grace, is

author of best-selling novel, Pey-

ton Place, has been dismissed

from his job. Claims Mr. Meta-

lious, "They told me it was be-

cause of my wife's book." The

school board denied that Meta-

lious' dismissal had any connec-

tion with his wife's book, an

earthy novel about life in a small

New England town. Insisted the

school board, "It's a personal

matter...we thought a change

might do George good."

ACLU NEWS

January, 1957

Page 2

Vee

Mild Interest In Civil Liberties

Exhibited In Valley Towns

(On a field trip to the towns of Sacramento Valley, Mrs. Priscilla

' Ginsberg spent eight days, speaking with more than 60 persons, both

members and non-members, about the advisability of sponsoring a forum

meeting to assess civil liberties in their communities; about the com-

munity citizens who should be involved in such an effort, and how the -

ACLU might gain greater membership support.)

By PRISCILLA GINSBERG

In general summary, I think

it is accurate to say that people

are only mildly interested in

local problems of civil liberties,

and felt "our town is in pretty

good shape." At the same time,

they recognized the need of hav-

ing an organized group ready to

go into action should some in-

fringement arise.

Most persons thought a forum

on civil liberties would be valu-

able but should not be expected

to produce a large attendance, As

one member put it, "This plan

certainly would not shake the

earth under our feet, but after

all, you have to begin some-

where." Most of the ACLU mem-

bers talked to feel somewhat out-

side the pale of concerns of the

northern California branch, and

have little, or no sense of organ-

ization identification with ACLU.

In considering Stockton, Sacra-

mento, and Fresno, it is impos-

sible to consider the three to-

gether, since each*has distinct

needs and growth factors that set

it apart from the others. There-

fore, there follows a brief review

of each community.

SACRAMENTO

Several years ago, a Sacramen-

to BEE reporter labeled Sacra-

mento as safe and senile. This

label is still conferrable, and, of

all the valley towns, the effort

to establish a forum will require

the most work and probably fall

on the most barren ground. (Paul

Douglas, I was told, drew a crowd

of 150 persons when he spoke

there recently.) Despite a popu-

lation growth of 20,000 since

1950, the town is still resistant to

deviation from the status quo.

The large numbers of. persons

moving into Sacramento have a

limited effect upon the commun-

ity, because of their newness,

- and because a significant num-

ber are governmental employees,

whose average residence is only

four to five years. The leader-

ship seems to fall into two cate-

gories: the small, . overworked

core of professional persons-

social workers, educators, law-

yers, doctors-who could provide

the leadership for ACLU. ("We

see ourselves coming and going

at every meeting for any liberal

cause," was one comment.) The

other category is the more con-

servative money and power con-

trol of the farming, real estate

and merchant interests.

A number of persons indicated

that Sacramento had no signifi-

cant civil liberties infringements

(which is an indication that per-

haps we have not done the edu-

cation job we should have in

helping our members recognize

a civil liberties issue). On fur-

ther questioning there have

been instances of discharges

other than honorable at McClel-

land and Mather airfields, on the

grounds of alleged associations

and opinions. In the schools and

colleges, the necessity to con-

form, to maintain status has left

a residue of caution and fear in

the personal as well as the pro-

fessional lives of the teachers.

The major social problem un-

questionably, as it is in the entire

valley, is with the housing and

job opportunities of minority

groups, particularly migratory

farm labor.

A steering committee has been

established to get forum plans

underway. A three-man team will

divide the major chairmanship

responsibility: Mr. Edward Zberg,

attorney; Dick Mayer and Adolph

Moskowitz, attorneys in the At-

torney General's office. Mrs. Mar-

`garet Brooks will represent Da-

vis on the committee.

STOCKTON

The College of the Pacific

exerts considerable impact upon

the community of Stockton, and

the social action philosophy of

the religious community has

_ created an alert interest in con-

ditions affecting the field of

human relations. Leadership of

Stockton seems to stem from

this religious community. With

an economy supported by farm-

ing, business, industry and trans-

portation, Stockton reflects a

good cross section of interests.

Citizenship in several naturaliza-

tion cases has been held up for

no expressed reason, only ``pend:

ing further investigation." In the

public school system, teachers

seem to be fearful of their own

security, and hesitate to speak

out or affiliate too actively with

any organization labeled by the

community as "liberal."

Reverend Ford Lewis, Uni-

tarian minister, and Reverend

Clifford Crummey of the Grace

Methodist Church, have assum-

ed responsibility for enlisting a

chairman who will head the

Forum Committee.

FRESNO

In Fresno, there is interested

leadership in establishing a

forum, and in forming an ACLU

local group-leadership which is

already vividly identified with

the "liberal" fringe, however.

One member said, "I think ACLU

would do better to go beyond

those of us who are so clearly

Douglas, Kerr

To Address

AFSC Meeting

Supreme Court Justice William

O. Douglas and University of Cali-

fornia Chancellor Clark Kerr will

be the keynote speakers at the

annual high school conference

February 22-24, sponsored by the

American Friends Service Com-

mittee at Asilomar, California.

Theme of the conference will

be "The Problems of Freedom in

a New Age." Justice Douglas will

speak on "The Future of Free-

dom in the World," and Chancel-

lor Kerr's topic will te "The

Future of Freedom in the U. S."

Discussion leaders and coun-

selors from school faculties,

churches and community youth

organizations will participate in

the conference, which is open to

California high school students.

Recreation, folk dancing, food

and entertainment are included

in the registration fee of $15. Re-

quests for scholarships will be

considered.

Detailed information may be

obtained from the AFSC, 1830

Sutter Street, San Francisco 15.

=

THANK YOU...

For the art work in the An-

nual Report, which will be

mailed to the members this

month, and for art services

donated during the year, the

American Civil Liberties Un-

ion is indebted to the firm of

Shawl, Nyeland and Seavey,

artists. Their services continue

to be an excellent contribution

to' ACLU.

on one side of the fence, and

utilize the more conservative, yet

concerned citizens who would be

interested in ACLU and what it

represents, but who are not now

members."

Fresno is essentially, a heavy

farming and trucking center.

With the advent of North Amer-

ican Aviation and Aerojet, the

more liberal CIO was able to pro-

vide the wedge in the conserva-

tive Central Labor Council. With

fifty-seven nationalities repre-

sented in Fresno and a large

foreign-born population, there

have been some infringements in

the immigration and naturaliza-

tion field, but a new judge is

expected to improve this situa-

tion. Both the large corporation

farms and _ individually-owned

farms are thwarting unionization,

and the plight of the migratory

worker - particularly Mexican

nationals and Negroes-is prob-

ably more distressing here than

in any other community in the

valley.

Wallace Maxey of the Unitar-

ian-Universalist Church, in con-

junction with other members, is

assuming responsibility for en-

listing ee for the forum.

CLU Condemns

Comm. Hearings

Full text of the ACLU statement released to the

press, on hearings of House Committee on Un-

American Activities:

Dec. 10-The ACLU of North-

ern California today condemned

the San Francisco hearings of the

House Committee on Un-Amer--

ican Activities as "being grossly

- unfair, unnecessary, a waste of

the taxpayers' money, and viola-

tive of the right of free speech."

"We don't need public hear-

ings," said Ernest Besig, Execu-

tive Director of the ACLU, "to

discover that a handful of Com-

munists have seized upon our

harsh and discriminatory immi-

gration laws as a means of mak-

ing political hay. Setting up front

groups to exploit an issue is the

usual Communist technique and .

it would be remarkable if they

hadn't done so. What would be

-more to the point would be an

effort by the Committee to dis-

cover what there is about our

immigration laws that make them

vulnerable to Communist politi-

NAVY CASE

Continued from Page 1-

or a position equivalent in grade

and tenure."

Mr. Pratt hastened to add, how-

ever, "I believe that you are en-

titled to know that, upon his re-

employment, charges may be pre-

ferred against (the employee) un-

der appropriate legislative au-

thority." Nevertheless, the em-

ployee is to be reinstated with

back pay. Thus far, however, the

employee has not received the

notice of reinstatement which the

ACLU was told he would receive.

CHARGES

The charges in the case were

bitterly contested. It was alleged

that the employee was a Commu-

nist Party: member from 1943 to

1945, to have recruited for the

party and to have subscribed to

the Daily Worker. He was also

charged with being a Communist

"during the summer of 1947

through 1948" and with having

been a member of American

-Youth for Democracy in 1949.

After the hearings, the Navy De-

partment acknowledged there was

no basis for the last two charges,

but sustained the dismissal on

the other grounds.

The employee denied all of the.

charges, under oath, and, through

ACLU counsel, sought amplifica-

`tion of the charges. Specifically,

he wanted to know the basis for

saying he was a Communist, etc.

The Navy Department refused to

reveal the basis of its charges so

the employee had the impossible

task of proving the negative.

Two Civil Liberties Issues .. . Impossibility of Fair Trial. .

Continued from Page 2-

pletely fallacious, for a jury to assume that any statement which

seems implausible to them must have seemed implausible to the

defendant at the time it was made and, therefore, to conclude that

it was not made in good faith.

The position of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern

California on this case is entirely independent of any contention

which may be made by the defense that the statements printed were

true. We believe, however, for the reasons already suggested, that

the essence of the "false statements" charge is that, in a situation

where conflicting versions of events were circulating simultaneously,

each version devoutly believed by its own partisans, Powell accepted

and printed the one put out by the wrong side. Such a charge raises

two far-reaching civil liberties issues:

a) A question of principle-An act of belief (as to the truth of

the U. S. version) and of disbelief (of the rival version) is required

under severe criminal penalties.

b) A practical problem-The government is largely freed of prac-

tical responsibility to the people in war-time if it can place all edi-

tors, in effect, under legal compulsion to believe and print only the

government's version as to the facts of what is taking place.

It is also important to note that, since the Powell publications did

not urge any acts, they could not produce any direct and immediate

harm such as might result from an incitement to draft evasion or

other unlawful activity. Any harm from them could come only indi-

rectly and remotely, as a result of their effect on future public discus-

sions, in which the government and its supporters would have plenty

of opportunity to answer words with words, instead of with prosecu-

tions. Whatever circulation the "China Monthly Review" had in the

United States was an insignificant trickle compared to the enormous

volume of contrary material reaching the public simultaneously

through aewspapers, radio and other mass media. We are not con-

ceding that other circumstances would have justified a prosecution

for publications of this nature, but it seems clear that, in this in-

stance, the danger involved is not sufficient to justify prosecution.

In addition to its effect on freedom of the press, the Powell indict-

ment requires a jury to pass on issues which, in the nature of the

case, cannot be fairly tried. Issues as to the underlying causes and

unannounced aims of a war, such as a jury must determine if it is

to. try the truth or falsity of such statements as that the United

States was engaged in "aggressive acts,' depend on evidence too

voluminous and complex to put before a jury and are, in any case,

not the sort of issues which a jury is equipped to decide. The defen-

dants' side of the case cannot be presented without voluminous evi-

dence from foreign countries which is beyond the reach of the

court's subpoena power. The defendants cannot be given a fair

chance to rebut the government's case without access to secret mili-

tary files which, we may assume, will not be permitted. Above all, the

jury will inevitably feel that an acquittal of the Powells would be

interpreted as convicting the United States of aggression and germ

warfare. This puts irresistible pressure on them to convict the Pow-

ells whether the evidence justifies it or not.

Issues which cannot be fairly tried ought not to be tried at all,

unless it is absolutely unavoidable. This prosecution is not justified

by any necessity to discourage further interference with a war, since

it was not commenced until long after the fighting ended. The same

statements published by the Powells were also printed by left-wing

periodicals in this country, whose editors have not been. prosecuted.

The Powells themselves were not prosecuted until almost three

years after their return to this country, and not until their prosecu-

tion had been publicly demanded by Senators Welker and Jenner,

although the government must have known all along what statements

had appeared in the "China Monthly Review." Under the circum-

stances, it is difficult to believe that there is any constitutional justi-

fication for a prosecution which raises such serious problems both

in the area of fair trial and in that of freedom of the press.

cal exploitation and then recom-

mend needed changes."

"These hearings," Besig went

on to say, "will have the effect

if not the intention of branding

-all opposition to the McCarran-

Walter Immigration Act as being

Communist inspired. Of course,

that is most unfair because near-

ly all of the demands for revis-

ion of the law come from anti- ,

Communists, including President

Eisenhower." If the Committee

wants to get the problem into

proper perspective it should al-

low testimony from anti-Com-

munists in this area who are the

chief opponents of the McCarran-

Walter Immigration Act.

"But what the ACLU most de-

plores about this headline-hunt-

ing committee is its violation of

freedom of speech. There's no-

thing unlawful about advocating

legislative changes in our laws,

whether such changes are advo-

cated by Communists or anyone

else," said Besig. "Consequently,

the ordinary citizen, irrespective

of his politics, is not accountable

to Congressman Walter and his

Committee for his opinions. And

the committee is obviously en-

gaged not in any proper legisla-

tive purpose but is bent on trying

people by publicity and without

according them any legal pro-

tections."

Because of its objections to the

Committee's activities, the local

board of the American Civil Lib-

erties Union has authorized its

staff counsel, Lawrence Speiser,

to appear on behalf of three per-

sons who have received subpo-

enas.

COMMITTEE HEARINGS

Continued from Page 1-

hearing was postponed because

-of his inability to obtain counsel.

The third ACLU client was

Cleophus Brown, Richmond con-

struction worker, .and former

supporter of the NAACP and

Committee for the Protection of

the Foreign-born, who consistent-

ly invoked the Fifth Amendment

when questioned about his associ-

ation or memberships.

Three witnesses from the Com-

mittee for the Protection of the

Foreign Born invoked the Fifth

Amendment: they were WIL-

LIAM HEIKKILA, draftsman,

born in Finland, who has had

deportation proceedings pending

for many months; CLAIR JEN-

SON, northern California chair-

man; and GRACE PARTRIDGE,

executive secretary for the Cali-

fornia committee.

Other witnesses who refused

to answer questions, relying upon

the Fifth Amendment were: AU-

BREY GROSSMAN, Oakland at-

torney, and former Pacific Coast

director for Civil Rights Con-

gress; Dr. HOLLAND ROBERTS,

former Stanford faculty member

and director of the California

Labor School; VICTOR ARNAU- -

TOFF, artist and Stanford Uni-

versity instructor on leave; WIL-

HELMINA LOUGHREY, named

-as operator of the Twentieth

Century Book Shop in Berkeley,

and LOUIS GOLDBLATT, secre-

tary-treasurer of the ILWU, who -

was ejected after a stormy ex- ~

change between him and Arens.

Mr. Goldblatt was questioned

about the authorship of articles

written for the Young Commun-

ists' League; Goldblatt retorted

that Arens was making insinua-

tion he (Goldblatt) didn't like

one bit; the lid was off, and ac-

cusation crossed accusation.

Arens said Goldblatt looked like

"a creampuff" compared to some

of the tough fellows the commit-

_tee was accustomed to question-

ing, and Goldblatt shouted back

- that Arens was a cheap, two-bit

publicity hound. The audience

snickered at first, then fell quiet

under the hypnosis of the fracas.

ACLU NEWS

January, 1957

Page 3

Decision Returns Mass

Case to Lower Court

On December 21, 1956 the

State Supreme Court, in a

4-3 decision ruled that John

Mass had been improperly

dismissed by the San Fran-

cisco Board of Education, as

a result of his appearance hbe-

fore the House Un-American

Activities Committee in De-

cember, 1953, and for his re-

fusal to answer questions

concerning his past member-

ship in the Communist Party.

Mass, an English instructor at

the City College of San Francis-

co, had signed a loyalty oath in

1950 in which he had stated that

he "had been a member of the

Communist Party from the fall

of 1947 to the fall of 1949," but

that he was no longer connected

with it. However, when question-

ed about this by a House Com- (c)

mittee, he refused to answer on

the ground of privilege against

self-incrimination. The State

Supreme Court, in `an opinion

written by Chief Justice Phil S.

Gibson and concurred in by Jus-

tices Traynor and Schauer, held

that Mass' firing under the pro-

visions of the Dilworth Act was

invalid and sent the case back to

the trial court for further hear-

ings.

The court based its opinion on

the holding in the: Slochower

case in which the United States

Supreme Court refused, however,

to rule a New York law to be

unconstitutional.

Mass' firing followed the pro-

cedures set forth under the Ed-

ucation Code which provides for

_a hearing in the Superior Court

although the Dilworth law states

that a refusal to answer ques-

tions about communism for any

reason whatsoever shall be deem-

ed cause for dismissal. The dis-

tinction the Supreme Court drew

was that under the provisions of

the Education Code, Mass should

have had an opportunity in the

Superior Court' to explain the

reasons why he relied on the

privilege against self-incrimina-

tion.

The court, in its majority opin-

ion stated: "We understand the

holding of the Slochower case to

be that a public employee may be

dismissed for invoking the privi-

lege against self-incrimination

only if, after a full hearing in

which he is afforded an oppor-

tunity to explain his reason for

claiming the privilege, it is de-

termined that his refusal to ans-

wer is sufficient under the cir-

cumstances to warrant dismissal.

Justice Gibson concluded his

opinion with language which may

mean. that Mr. Mass may not re-

gain his job after a hearing in

the lower court by stating "it is

apparent that no consideration

was given to defendant's reason

for invoking his constitutional

right. The scope of inquiry was

limited to a determination of

whether he refused to answer

the questions which were put to

him by the committee .. .We do

not, of course, mean to suggest

that, on retrial, the sufficiency

of defendant's reasons for in-

voking the privilege is the onl

question which may he consider-

ed in determining whether his

dismissal is warranted. Any mat-

ter germane to the charges filed

against him would be open to

inquiry."

Justice Jesse Carter wrote a

separate concurring opinion, but

sharply disagreed with Chief

JOHN W. MASS

An Ex-Member

Justice Gibson in his contentions.

Justice Carter held that the Dil-

worth act was clearly unconstitu-

tional. He pointed out that the

Slochower case, made a distinc-

tion between an inquiry conduct-

ed by a legislative committee and

one conducted by the employing

agency. He pointed out that John

Mass offered to answer any ques-

tions of his employing agency at

a Board of Education meeting

but the Board of Education vot-

ed not to ask him any questions.

As in the Slochower case, Justice

Carter stated, "On such a record

the Board cannot claim that its

`action (of dismissal) was part of

a bonafide attempt to gain need-

ed and relevant information." In

referring to the hearing provided

for under the Education Code,

Justice Carter said "such a hear-

ing is a mere farce, since the end

result is a foregone conclusion

that the employee may be dis-

charged since the statute here in-

volved eliminates any defense

whatsoever. Even though there

is a hearing, there is nothing to

be heard except whether the

teacher did or did not refuse to

- answer the question."

Justice Carter ends his opinion

with a ringing denunciation of

the principles of guilt-by-associ-

ation upon which the Dilworth

Act relies. He states:

"J have no sympathy whatso-

ever with the philosophy which

establishes guilt by association.

Neither would I determine inno-

cence on the same basis. Holy

Writ tells us that a man known

as Jesus of Nazareth was ostra-

cized and condemned by relig-

ious and social leaders of His

own race because He associated

with publicans and sinners (Mat-

thew 9:11 11:19, Luke 5:30 15:2

19:7), yet half the world will

unite this month in commemor-

Order

Your Tickets

Today

For

THE ACLU BENEFIT

"The Flowering

Peach"

Friday, Jan. 18

8:30 P.M.

Your Board Meets...

The ACLU Board meets the first Thursday of every month at the

Sutter Street YWCA. On November 1,

. accepted with regret the

resignation of Ruth Kingman

and adopted a resolution express-

ing appreciation for her fifteen

years of devoted service to the

ACLU

.. discussed the question of

incorporating the ACLU of

Northern California. The purpose

of such a corporation was placed

on the agenda for consideration

among other things, the Board:

at the December meeting.

. agreed that an attempt to

penalize Iva D'Quino, a United

States born citizen, with loss of

citizenship and deportation to

Japan, because of her treason

conviction, presents a civil lib-

erties issue.

. reported that the dinner

meeting on October 19th net-

ted a profit of $19.63.

`| tax exemption as a chure

ation of His birth and bow in

reverence to His name. I am suf-

ficiently naive to believe that

there may be those who `can talk

with crowds and keep their vir-

tue, or walk with kings nor lose

the common touch.' It has been

aptly said that, `It is not by deed

alone can any eye the whole

soul's measure scan--the whole

round life from the cradle to the

grave must be the test of man.'

About twenty years ago liberal

minded people in this country

were shocked by the disclosure

that a man who had just been

appointed an Associate Justice

of the Supreme Court of the

United States had, in his youth,

been a member of the Ku Klux

Klan, yet that man by an unbro-

ken line of judicial epinions has

indelibly written into the deci-

sional law of this country a most

liberal philosphy of civil liber-

ties and racial and religious tol-

erance. Many other similar ex-

amples may be mentioned, all

of which serve to demonstrate

_ that mere membership in an or-

ganization or group does not nec-

essarily classify anyone as an ad-

herent of its teachings. Of

course, such membership or as-

sociation may be, and often is,

used in political campaigns to

discredit candidates for public

office when such organizations

are in popular disfavor and super

patriots use them as whipping

boys."

There was a dissenting opinion

by Justice Spence, concurred in

by Justices Shenk and McComb,

in which they stated they felt

that no good could come from

remanding the case to a lower

court since the majority opinion

furnishes no guide to the trial

court for the purpose of deter-

mining the sufficiency of any

reasons for defendant's refusal

to answer questions. The dissen-

tors felt that the Dilworth Act

was clearly constitutional.

It is not clear at this time,

what will happen in the lower

court. Since his dismissal almost

exactly 3 years ago, John Mass

has been living in Los Angeles,

working in a furniture factory.

CORRECTION ...

Under the title, "Must Re-

ligion Include Belief in a

Deity?," the ACLU --NEWS

story in the last issue, about

the filing of an amicus curiae

brief in the Fellowship of Hu-

manity case, made the follow-

ing erroneous statement: "Cit-

ing the Unitarian Church as

an organization that for over

one hundred years has been

considered as an integral part

of the religious community

and professes no belief in

God,..." As a matter of fact,

"Some Unitarians cal "them-

selves `humanists'and others

call themselves `teists. a

The error was one in report-

ing. Volunteer ACLU attorney

George Brunn actually made

the following statement in his

brief opposing efforts of the

Alameda County Tax Assessor

to disqualify the Fellowship

of Humanity from receiving

cause it does not hee in

God:

| "Thus, the Unitarian church.

does not demand of..its*mem-

bers that-they" `believe in a

y and many in fact do not.

[euro `has no creed of any kind

and includes among its con-

gregations and its ministers

persons with humanist religi-

ous attitudes very similar to

those of plaintiff.

"Yet the Unitarian church

has traditionally been accept-

ed as a religion in the United

States - including among its

members Presidents Jeffer-

son, both Adams, Fillmore and

"Taft-and it seems inconceiv-

able that this acceptance

might be challenged." -

bef -

ACLU NEWS

January, 1957

Page 4

National and-or Local

Membership Explained

"Why is it," a member asks,

. "that after joining the ACLU

through the Northern California

branch we are solicited for mem-

bership by the national office, or

vice versa?" From time to time,

this question arises, and here is

the clarification. .

In 1951, the ACLU had only 4

branehes with offices and paid

staffs (Northern and Southern

California, Chicago and Massa-

chusetts). It had 11 other affili-

ates with a combined member-

ship (both local and national) of

only three thousand. Moreover,

nine of the latter affiliates had

an average membership of only

Army Reverses

Decisions in

Security Cases

Favorable decisions were hand-

ed down in two Army security

cases last month, but, in one case,

only a general discharge was is-

sued, so a further appeal will be

taken.

In the first case, the inductee

received security charges exactly

22 days before his scheduled dis-

charge on April 14, 1956. Time

was so short that his separation

papers declared that the charac-

ter of his discharge was to be

- determined.

Another five months elapsed

before hearings were held on the

following three charges: 1. That

in early 1954 the inductee had

"followed Communist Party di-

rectives in agreeing to become ac-

tive in the San Diego Young Dem-

ocrats"; 2. That from 1952 to 1954

he had subscribed to various Com-

munist publications; and 3. That

in filling out Army forms he had

"failed to disclose your associa-

tion with the Communist Party

and Communist Party members."

The inductee denied that he

had joined the Young Democrats

at the direction of the Commu-

nist Party. His only association

with the Young Democrats sprang

from attendance at one meeting.

It was true, however, that he

subscribed to Communist litera-

ture in order to find out. what

Communism was all about. As a

result of his reading, he formed

a judgment against Communism.

As for the third charge, he denied

that he had any knowing associa-

tion with the Communist Party,

and that his association with any

party members was on a political

basis.

SECOND CASE SIMILAR

The inductee has now received

an honorable separation~and is,

therefore, required to serve six

years in the inactive reserve.

In the second case, the inductee

_was also separated with the char-

acter of his service to be deter-

mined, although he had already

had a hearing before an Army

security board. That hearing

dealt with three charges:

"In 1950 and 1952 you were a

member of the Hollywood Arts,

Sciences and Professions Coun-

cil." He answered that he attend-

ed one concert sponsored by the

group and paid whatever~admis-

sion fee was.charged. He has a

vague--recollection of signing

Something, but it may have been

only a mailing list.

The second charge claimed he

_had"materially falsified an offi-

cial document by failing to list

his membership in the Hollywood

Arts, Sciences and Professions

Council. His answer was that he

had not remembered the forego-

ing incident when he filled out

the form, and also that he was

not knowingly a member of the

group.

The third charge was possibly

the most important. Two C.I.C.

agents sought to question the in-

ductee. He was willing to answer

questions about his own activities,

but he was not willing to discuss

his own opinions or his wife's

opinions and associations. In con-

sequence, he was charged with

resting on his constitutional

rights in refusing to answer "per-

tinent questions in the course of_

an official investigation."

two hundred, At that time, too,

all of the affiliates, large and

small, raised their own money, as

did the national office, and did

not share their income with each

other.

In 1951, the Chicago branch

was having financial difficulties

and worked out an arrangement

with the national office to inte-

grate its membership and fi-

nances with the national office.

Then, at the May 1951 ACLU na-

tional conference, the national

office proposed that all of the

smaller affiliates should also in-

tegrate their membership and

finances. Under this plan, all

dues go to the national office,

and a fixed per cent is then re-

turned. to the affiliate. The

amount returned, until a year

ago, varied from 10% to 70%.

Voluntary Plan

When the new plan was adopt-

ed, it was understood, of course,

that it was voluntary and applied

only to groups in need of

strengthening and was not in-

tended for self-sustaining affili-

_ates (Northern and Southern Cal-

ifornia and Massachusetts). Fi-

nally, Massachusetts, which was

having financial difficulties,

agreed to "integrate", and

Southern California shortly aft-

erward. Then, as new affiliates -

were established, membership

and financial integration was pro-

vided as one of the conditions of

affiliation. As a result, after five

years, the ACLU of Northern

California is the only branch

which has not joined the plan,

although it has been under con-

siderable pressure to do so.

At the 1956 biennial confer-

ence, the biggest problem in-

volved finances, including the

bargaining the affiliates undergo

each year for a share of the in-

come from their areas. It was

agreed at this conference that all

affiliates would thereafter re-

ceive 60% of the income from

their areas, except in New York.

The national office has now pro-

posed that beginning February 1,

affiliates with offices would con-

tinue to receive 60% of the in-

come from their areas, but the

New York affiliate's share would

be cut to 25%. However, the

twelve affiliates without offices

would now receive only 30% of

the income from their areas. low

the matter will be resolved re-

mains to be seen. Incidentally,

income the national office re-

ceives from areas without affili-

ates, and from Northern Califor- f

nia, is not thrown into the com-

mon pot.

Pays Own Bill

In Northern California, then,

the affiliate raises its own money

and pays the local bill for civil

liberties work. Last year, the in-

come from all sources was about

$35,000. On the other hand, the

national offices hope to raise

about $12,000 in Northern Cali-

fornia during its fiscal year end-

ing January 31. It secures this

money from old members and

also by circulating the mailing

lists of such periodicals as "The

Reporter," "New Republic,"-ete."

Consequently, local-members are

frequently~solicited to join and

sometimes carry memberships in

othe

ds

7 an 4

At4

both the national and local.-of--

fices. On the other hand, some

members' send their dues to the

national office without noticing

that it is actually going there.

At the present time, a proposal

has been made by Northern Cali-

fornia for membership and finan-

cial integration in Northern Cali-

fornia. Under this plan, the

Northern California branch

would raise all money in the

area. There would be no mail so-

licitation by the national office.

The national membership would

be joined with the local mem-

bership, and in return, the

branch would pay a per capita

sum on each member, or a per-

centage of its income to finance

national operations. The stum-

bling block appears to be one of

mechanics. The national office

requests that duplicate receipts

be sent to them for each contri-

bution received. The additional

office work required would entail

a substantial increase in over-

head expense.