False Witness
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Book Overview
In the summer of 1948, with Cold War tensions rising, a young state legislator from Spokane, Washington, named Albert Canwell set out to combat the "communist menace" through a state version of the House Committee on Un-American Activities. University of Washington professor Melvin Rader was a victim of the Canwell Committee's rush to judgment, but he fought back. False Witness tells of his struggle to clear his name. It is a testament of personal courage in the face of mass hysteria and a cautionary example of how basic freedoms can rapidly erode when the powers of the state are allowed to serve a rigid ideological agenda.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0295977027
ISBN13:9780295977027
Release Date:December 1997
Publisher:University of Washington Press
Length:264 Pages
Weight:0.75 lbs.
Dimensions:0.7" x 5.6" x 8.6"
Grade Range:Postsecondary and higher
Customer Reviews
1 rating
Chronicle of a "Communist" witch hunt in Washington State.
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 25 years ago
False Witness is the story of Prof. Melvin Rader¹s experiences as a target of the Washington State Legislature¹s Committee on Un-American Activities in 1948. In his own words, Rader vividly describes the tactics and procedures used by Albert Canwell and others in this ³investigation². Although eventually able to clear his name, Rader¹s chronicle reveals the civil rights violations which led to the dismissal of three University of Washington professors, punishments for three more, and the abandonment of ³due process² in the rush to find and punish ³Communists². A short, easy, informative read.
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