Cornell and the Communists
Morgan, Alexander
Cornell and the Communists By Alexander Morgan HEADLINE ia tha Now York World Teleg,am A |Mt weak eald: CORNELL APPOINTS AN •jKp- ANTI-CtJafMUNIST. Do they think that is ?a|y'because Cornell's...
...But Simmons also included a battery of ¦nek fellow-travelers as Corliss Lamont, Sergei Kour-¦akoff, tt al...
...The majority report contained numerous proposed amendments which would, I am certain, cause general increases in price and rents all along the line...
...sociation of University Professors has stated that *c*Aamic freedom does not mean the right to leave a stipulated Held and air personal views on all manner of subjects...
...Their places have been taken Wl such innocent liberals as Robert Lynd, often associated with Communist-inspired ventures...
...When Kaiakevich waa shelved and Kumtz hired to teach soldier students, Simmons knew Kuniti's record as a Communist propagandist...
...It is our opinion that the first course is the wisest one to follow, the only practical one under present circumstances and the one least likely to lead to further inequities...
...The picture is revolting...
...India...
...The gackefeller Foundation puts up the money and Cornell's President E. E. Day puts Prof...
...Everybody wanted to know how Cornell could protect the soldier students from a little more slipping over tha Communist line...
...Simmons has "explained" that he made the best passible choice, that he could not tret any experts except those who "happened" to be pro Communist or •re-Soviet or both...
...The object was not education as generally understood...
...While Kazakevich was on the bench, Cornell entrusted the further instruction of the soldier students •» a long-time and notorious Stalinist forward-passer, Joshua Kunitz, one-time New Maxtet editor, functionary of numerous Communist committees, delegate • s Soviet congress of Red writers...
...Laji summer Cornell gays a course on Russian drill* Mtiea...
...Do they think that is ?a|y'because Cornell's pennant is red T No—there is a pfcry hack of that headline...
...Cornell insists on having as a faculty member a Commu-¦j* Propagandist who (according to President Day "¦•elf) acted as such in a geography class of Amer-*p soldiers, and Kazakevirh is on the team again...
...What Cornell should have done was to have hired a trustworthy man and let him talk, not hire a Communist propagandist and let him talk with a gun at his head...
...to see whether the . . . order or derision is a valid one and whether the agency in question has exceeded its duly granted power and authority in issuing such a regulation...
...But who would want an American university to have an entire course on British civilization staffed only by Knglishmen'' Would we want a Tory Englishman to handle the colonial prob* The following public criticisms of the first summer faculty, Cornell futilely tried to organize a winter Russian course and, at the eleventh hour, invited Messrs...
...Counts and Eastman to participate...
...At this point it became clear why **Mkevich had not complained in October...
...He and Cornell laid low...
...Hired to arm U. S. soldiers with geographical facts about Russia and an American view of Russia, Communist Kszekevirh ased the opportunity to disarm them by slipping ever Communist propaganda...
...Also, Simmons excluded all Soviet experts who are critical of Communism or of Stalin's dictatorial rale...
...Not if ha were under such control by his home government as is exercised over every Soviet lecturer and (through tha Communist Party) ever •very Communist lecturer...
...2 — Forbidding OPA from imposing penalties upon citizens which have not been definitely authorized by Congress...
...This is just what Kaiakevich did, tha personal views being Communist views...
...William Henry Chamberlin ia one, Cornell admits he is expert...
...It is too had that, for all the improvement represented by the appointment of Chamberlin, President Day still seems to repose complete confidence in Simmons and has accepted his nomination of Communist Kazakevich whom Day himself once accused of improprieties, OPA Under Fire By Jerry Voorhis 'J'HK Smith Committee to Investigate Kxecutive Agencies was created about a year ago with the purpose of preventing Kxecutive Bureaus or Agencies from exceeding the powers duly granted them by Congress...
...6—Forbidding the War Labor Board to designate by an order of the Board that a labor organization should be the collective bargaining agent for a group of workers...
...On July 1 a second course will begin...
...To teach geography in this course, Cornell selected (presumably again with Simmons' advice) Vladimir Kazakevich, the Communist propagandist...
...But with Ernest Simmons in a key post in the field, all this could have been foreseen...
...Cornell gave out that Kunits would not really lecture to the students but would read to them from a prepared manuscript previously paased on by the head of the soldiers' faculty...
...In truth it was giving » onesided view* point by a faculty handpicked by a fellow-traveler...
...To admit such a notion is to admit the Trojan horsa of political rule over professors...
...In the summer course Cornell claimed to be giving a scientific, objective picture of Soviet Russia painted by the best available staff of experts...
...We doubt that Professor Simmons ever expected anything else from his friend and co-thinker Kazakevirh whose record as a Communist propagandist Simmons well knew...
...Simmons' Doy nPIIKUK is a picture of what goes on "far above Cayuga's waters" Why...
...1 Finally, as a result of the pressure, Cornell reshuffled its summer faculty...
...6—Providing for adjustment of rents both upward and downward wherever they are not in line with rents prevailing for comparable housing accommodations, and providing individual relief in cases Where increases in property taxes or operating costs have actually caused property owners to lose money...
...Samuel Cross ef Harvard, who goes in for Slavic tongues and ancient nujaamenU...
...Aside from yells about academic freedom and plaints that it could find no critical experts, it did these things: 1. It sent Kazakev'u h to the bench—but not to the showers...
...He made no complaints...
...Like Simmons, Lynd is a newly-elected vice-president of the ftannnist-Hillman ALP...
...a » ? • ***e%mle Smoke Scraea ^HAT about academic freedom...
...Simmons is an old fellow-traveler who has awfcuehed in the New Matiee, belonged to the Communist League of American Writers, and is now vice* tatrnun of the Communist-Hillman controlled American Labor Party...
...Some people ask: "Can you have a course on Russian civilization with no Communists, h» Russians...
...It may not be President Day's fault...
...Off the bench came Commit-*¦* propagandist Kazakevich who will again be on the jummer faculty...
...How much Cornell really earaa about Jt today is a question...
...I signed the minority report, but both reports agree that changes should be made in these laws as they now stand: 1—Giving citizens opportunity to appeal to the courts...
...What Kazakevirh did to arm the soldiers is best described by Cornell's President: he "occasionally slipped over the line, and in one lecture he went ever the limits without question...
...Nor does academic freedom mean that a university has a right to rig a onesided summer institute, exclude entirely the critical views held by many American experts on the subject of Russia and try to sell the article as scholarship...
...Nobody would object to a couple of Knglishmen teaching in such a course, nobody would object to a couple of Russians...
...Thus Cornell seems to regard them, too, as reputable experts...
...Kverybody would know where those men stood, and the rest of the faculty would stand somewhere else...
...4—Adding to the law the requirement that all orders and regulations issued by Executive Agencies must be immediately published in full in the Federal Register so that all citizens may know exactly what these regulations are...
...Of course, it included a few innocent* on innocent topics, such as Prof...
...In this connection, our minority report stated: "It is our opinion that the provision for appeal to the courts of the land from the decision of the executive agencies exercising auch broad and sweeping powera as those given to the Office of Price Administration and the War Labor Board is fitting and proper...
...But when organizing the hist course, Simmons did not invite (hem...
...Driormino...
...The admission is implicit in the fact that Chamberlin will be on the 1944 summer faculty...
...1 have been a member of this committee from the beginning...
...It has just issued its fifth intermediate report on the subject of the Price Control and Stabilization Acts which Congress must renew before June 30...
...a> William Henry Cham bed in this season...
...Our minority report stated: "The minority members of this committee take th» position, therefore, that either the act to extend price control and the etabitization program mu*t contain na provision which would operate to bring about any general increate in pricel, rente or ¦vtagee, or else the attempt should be made to provide flexibility with regard to all three of them...
...At the came time, the majority would take away from the War Labor Board the possibility of making wage adjustments as to really low wages amounting to no more than 50 rents per hour so as to bring some of these underpaid people into a more nearly fair position...
...If course, they might have had him last summer, too...
...And Simmons is still having his day...
...It is here that we find our basic disagreement with the position taken by the majority in its report and its proposed bill...
...It is totalitarian...
...Simmons was at work...
...The Army wanted some of its ASTP boys armed in the American cause with a factual knowledge and an American viewpoint of Russian geography, history, culture, etc...
...The question is as irrelevant as this one, "Can you have a course on British civilization with no Knglishmen...
...What did Cornell do...
...lews, e.g...
...For we believe some of the amendments there advocated contain every likelihood of upsetting existing stabilization without bearing any direct relationship to the province of this committee which is to restrain executive agencies from exceeding the powers duly granted to them...
...The truth is plenty of good critics were available...
...3—Amending the Penalties Provisions to reduce penalties for minor violations resulting largely from ignorance or carelessness and to increase the penalties as to willful black market operations...
...The position which I have taken in this matter is that the line which has been established for stabilizing our economy must be held, but that Congress must do its best to iron out difficulties which have arisen and give citizens protection in the courts and elsewhere against any arbitrary action exceeding powers granted by Congress to any executive agency...
...This will improve the course...
...In short, "far above Cayuga's waters" Communist propaganda had a field day...
...There could he no greater violation of academic freedom than tuck adminittrative previewing of an inetrueior'e lecturee...
...Ernest Simmons in (harfs...
...He knew JJa* If winter came, spring could not be far behind...
...Of the 1943 first string fellow-traveling backfield, several like Kournakoff and lamont hare vanished...
...The American As...
...One more word on academic freedom, a subject dear to Cornellians whose great Andrew White waa ita staunch defender...
...fhe Soldier, f HE summer course was for civilians, although some Servicemen took it...
...But Cornell also gave an Army Specialized Training Program in "Russian area studies" for soldier students...
...Cornell officials gave out that they "thought" Kaiakevich had quit to go to Harvard, but Kazakevirh never did...
...Here again, presumably, the influence of Prof...
...Simmons admits he is expert...
...Cor.elli Y»ll$ J70R all this Cornell caught hell, from the Scripps-Howard press and others...
...The National Labor Relations Act provides a regular method by means of elections held under tha direction of the National Labor Relations Board for the selection of collective bargaining agents, and this method should be used...
...In naming his 1943 faculty, Sim--j.fi followed his bent...
...Our minority report disagreed with the majority on broad principle...
...They just did not try to get him or any other critic* They have taken Chamberlin now only because they were barraged with criticism...
...Yes, as the World-Telegram thrilled to report, Cornell will have one critic of Communism and Stalin in its Russian course this summer...
...He topped it off with Vladimir Kaza-bjeish, 100 per cent Communist editor of .Science and gteiity...
...The line was the line of Communist propaganda...
Vol. 27 • May 1944 • No. 19
