Items

• Students Playing Ping Pong in CCNY Alcoves

  The City College alcoves, located in the lunchroom, provided the setting for much political debate between students during the 1930s and served as the base for various student groups. They also used the space for leisure activities such as playing ping-pong. In "Memoirs of a Trotskyist," a New York Times article from 1977, Irving Kristol (class of 1940) reflected: "The first alcove on the right, as you entered the lunchroom, was Alcove No. 1, and this soon became most of what City College meant to me. It was there one ate lunch, played Ping‐Pong (sometimes with a net, sometimes without), passed the time of day between and after classes, argued incessantly and generally devoted oneself to solving the ultimate problems of the human race."
• "ABOLISH the R.O.T.C.!" Graphic

  Published in a 1934 issue of Student Outlook, this illustration encapsulates the feelings of many left-leaning student activists towards the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) programs found on college campuses across the country. At City College, the two-year, military science based ROTC program was made initially compulsory for the entire student body shortly after World War I. However, student campaigns against the requirement were successful and ROTC became an elective in 1928.Anti-ROTC sentiment would persist in the subsequent decades, although it was not until the early 1970s and the Vietnam War that student activists successfully forced the program off of campuses. In 2013, the program returned to the CCNY campus.
• "Suspended City College Registrar at Opening of Trial"

  This newspaper clipping shows suspended City College registrar John K. Ackley sitting at his trial before the Board of Higher Education. Ackley had been identified for his Communist ties by the Rapp-Coudert Committee in April 1941. By June, he was the first City College employee to be tried and fired as a result of the committee's hearings. His firing marked the first of dozens for the college's faculty and staff that came at the hands of the Rapp-Coudert Committee. The state appointed group, seeking to investigate subversive influences in New York City's public schools and colleges, held private and public hearings with more than 500 faculty, staff, and students between 1940 and 1942. Shortly after his initial suspension in April, Ackley spoke before a group of Columbia students at their invitation and declared the Rapp-Coudert Committee hearings "a conspiracy against the schools, and part of a broader conspiracy against academic freedom and trade unionism." In April 1957, Ackley, later employed for the Metropolitan Music School, would be called to testify before a sub-committee of the House Committee for Un-American Activities, again for his ties to the Communist party.
• Annette Gottsegen Taking Oath Before Testimony

  This photograph shows Annette Sherman Gottsegen, a clerk at City College, taking an oath prior to her testimony against CCNY registrar John Ackley. Ackley would shortly thereafter be fired from his position. Gottsegen had previously been a member of the Communist Party and an active participant in the Teachers Union and the college's Anti-Fascist Association. She used her experiences with the various groups to testify against those she observed at the meetings. Gottsegen's testimony was prompted by the Rapp-Coudert Committee, a state run investigative group that subpoenaed and interrogated more than 500 faculty, staff, and students from New York's public schools and colleges between 1940 and 1942 in their quest to identify subversive influences on campuses. Particularly interested in those with Communist ties, City College became a special target of the committee with dozens of its faculty and staff called to private and public hearings.
• "Rally in City College's Lewisohn Stadium"

  This newspaper clipping features a photograph of an April 23, 1941 peace assembly at City College's Lewisohn Stadium. An annual event, the college administration cancelled all classes that day between 11am and 12pm to accommodate the gathering. With the main theme being "to keep the United States out of the war" and "to guarantee that CCNY shall not be America's War victim no. 1," attendees also protested the ongoing Rapp-Coudert hearings that saw to the suspension and dismissal of campus faculty and staff for their alleged communist ties. Speaking at the event was Canada Lee, a renowned African-American actor of stage, screen, and radio, who would later be blacklisted for his political affiliations.
• William Canning during his Testimony

  This photograph shows William Canning, an instructor in the City College history department, appearing before the Rapp-Coudert Committee. During his testimony, Canning, an ex-member of the Communist Party, disclosed the names of over fifty fellow faculty and staff at CCNY belonging to the party. The Rapp-Coudert Committee subpoenaed and interrogated more than 500 faculty, staff, and students from New York's public schools and colleges between 1940 and 1942 in their quest to identify subversive influences on campuses. Particularly interested in those with Communist ties, City College became a special target of the committee with dozens of its faculty and staff called to private and public hearings.
• "What Really Happened?"

  Created within a week of the May 29, 1933 anti-war/anti-ROTC rally that led to the suspensions of students, clubs, and campus publications, this flier advertises another demonstration designed to both "secure the reinstatement of the [suspended] students" and set the record straight regarding the events of the "Jingo Day" rally. Their initial march on May 29, in protest of an ROTC review scheduled on campus at Lewisohn Stadium, escalated with the arrival of police officers who had been called in by City College (CCNY) President Frederick B. Robinson. By protest's end, several left-leaning student organizations and publications were shut down, and Robinson was accused of attacking students with his umbrella. Much to the activists' chagrin, the circumstances surrounding Robinson's actions were revised by newspapers in the days following the demonstration.
• "They Put You in Jail"

  This is a pamphlet from 1941 created in support of recently fired and imprisoned City College English instructor Morris Schappes. Schappes, a self-avowed communist was sentenced to prison for failing to divulge the names of his fellow party members on the faculty at CCNY. At a March 1941 hearing before the Rapp-Coudert Committee, a New York State organized communist-hunt group, Schappes freely admitted his communist ties. When state officials demanded he name other party members at CCNY, Schappes claimed there were only ever four others: three of whom had been killed in the Spanish Civil War and another that had already left the school. Testimony from a friendly, ex-communist witness contradicted Schappes' claims and so the English instructor was tried for perjury, convicted and sentenced for up to two years in prison. He would ultimately serve thirteen and a half months before his release. From his conviction through his imprisonment, activists protested for his release with many viewing his imprisonment as punishment for his political opinions.
• National Student League Platform

  Created in 1931, the National Student League (NSL) was a Communist-led coalition of radical students from across the United States. Growing out of frustrations felt by students at City College, the group expanded to other campuses embracing a single set of shared ideas. Those ideas, laid out in this platform, guided radical and progressive students efforts at City College and across the country. The NSL became part of the American Student Union, an alliance between communist, socialist and liberal students formed in 1935.
• "It's Happening in New York!"

  Published in 1941, this pamphlet was created by the Committee for the Defense of Public Education, a joint committee between the Teachers Union and the College Teachers Union, amidst the turmoil of the Rapp-Coudert hearings. Citing a variety of injustices taking place in New York City, not least of which were the dozens of suspensions and dismissals of City College teachers suspected of having communist ties, the document likens the atmosphere in New York to that of Nazi Germany, including even a reference to Hitler's concentration camps. Such comparisons aside, the committee's aim was to increase awareness of the plight of many of their union's members who were fired by the Board of Higher Education because of their political affiliations. Morris Schappes, a CCNY instructor, was imprisoned for perjury as a result of the hearings. Throughout its existence, the committee organized letter-writing campaigns (as seen on the final page) and petition drives in an unsuccessful effort to overturn the effects of New York State's communist witch-hunt.
• College Newsletter, November 21, 1941

  Published by the New York College Teachers Union, the cover of this issue of the College Newsletter features articles about the dismissal of Morris Schappes and Phillip Foner, two City College instructors fired as a result of the Rapp-Coudert hearings. The Rapp-Coudert Committee was a New York State initiative organized in June 1940 to investigate and identify "subversive activities" and persons in New York's public schools and colleges. City College, in particular, became a target of the commitee with dozens of faculty and staff suspected of communist sympathies called to public and private hearings. Ultimately, more than fifty of the college's employees were fired from their positions.
• College Newsletter, June 2, 1941

  The cover of this issue of the College Newsletter, a publication of the New York College Teachers Union, includes several articles regarding the then ongoing Rapp-Coudert hearings of the early 1940s. Included is one article addressed to "future historians" that speaks to the difficulties experienced by the group.The Rapp-Coudert Committee was a New York State initiative organized in June 1940 to investigate and identify "subversive activities" and persons in New York's public schools and colleges. As one article from the extract attests, several teachers' unions were targeted in the initial stages of the state's investigation as their membership rolls comprised far left activists, many of whom admitted to Communist ties. City College, in particular, became a target of the committee with dozens of faculty and staff called to public and private hearings.
• "Breakfast and Forum on Political Tests for Teachers"

  This flier promotes a breakfast forum discussing the Board of Higher Education's then recently passed resolution designed to "set up political qualifications for teachers." The resolution was adopted amidst the ongoing Rapp-Coudert Committee hearings which sought to rid New York's public schools of subversive influences, namely those with communist sympathies. The committee's creation was driven largely by rising anti-communist sentiment following the Nazi-Soviet Pact of 1939. Among the list of sponsors for this event were photographer Berenice Abbott and author Dashiell Hammett, as well as instructors from various colleges across New York City.
• "Students Fight Faculty Purge At City College"

  This article from the New York Daily Mirror discusses an April 23, 1941 student rally at City College (CCNY). The rally, planned initially as an anti-war peace demonstration, was expanded to include a protest against the recent suspension of 11 CCNY instructors. The instructors were suspended by the Board of Higher Education after their alleged ties to the Communist Party and their refusal to cooperate at the public hearings of New York State's Rapp-Coudert Committee. Students had protested outside of CCNY President Harry Wright's office in the previous days.
• "Eleven CCNY Teachers Suspended in College Red Hunt"

  This newspaper clipping from the April 23, 1941 edition of PM features eleven City College teachers suspended by the Board of Higher Education following discoveries, by the Rapp-Coudert Committee, of their communist ties. The majority of those listed would ultimately be fired from the college.PM was a daily New York newspaper printed from 1940 until 1948. Created by Ralph Ingersoll, a managing editor at Time-Life, it was an ad-free, political, liberal publication that continually struggled financially.The Rapp-Coudert Committee, a New York State initiative, was organized in June 1940 to investigate and identify "subversive activities" and persons in New York's public schools and colleges. The committee's creation was driven largely by rising anti-communist sentiment following the Nazi-Soviet Pact of 1939. State officials sought to rid publicly funded schools of undesired "red" influence. Holding private hearings from September 1940 through December 1941, the group issued subpoenas and interrogated more than 500 faculty, staff, and students in New York City. City College, in particular, became a target of the committee with dozens of faculty and staff called to public hearings after being identified as communists by two friendly witnesses from the college.
• "Peace Assembly: Strike in Lewisohn Stadium"

  This flier advertises a peace rally at City College's Lewisohn Stadium on April 23, 1941. The assembly, one of two held simultaneously on that day, was part of an annual April peace demonstration at the school and the college cancelled all classes between 11am and 12pm. The gathering at the stadium was reportedly attended by more than 2,500 students with the main theme being "to keep the United States out of the war" and "to guarantee that CCNY shall not be America's War victim no. 1." Attendees also protested the ongoing Rapp-Coudert hearings that saw to the suspension and dismissal of campus faculty and staff for their alleged communist ties. Speaking at the event was Canada Lee, a renowned African American actor of stage, screen, and radio, who would later be blacklisted for his political affiliations.
• American Student Union's "Charter of Student Rights and Responsibilities,"

  Adopted at the American Student Union's (ASU) 1940 convention, this document lays out the group's main tenets, namely the belief that peace and progress must be found and cultivated at each of the nation's universities. The charter also lists a set of progressive rights the group sought to "win universal recognition for." The ASU, a left-wing national student organization, was formed in December 1935 following the merging of the National Student League and the Socialist Student League for Industrial Democracy. At the time, it was the largest of all national student groups, counting over 20,000 members in its rolls.
• "Our Position"

  This flier promotes a student rally in support of suspended City College history instructor Jack Foner. Foner, a CCNY graduate of 1932, was just one victim of the Rapp-Coudert hearings which lasted from 1940 to 1941. The hearings, organized by New York State, were a concerted effort to rid the state's public schools of "subversive" and undesired influences on campuses. While Foner was alleged to have belonged to the Communist Party, no evidence was ever presented in support of the claim. Refusing to testify before the Rapp-Coudert Committee, however, Foner was shortly thereafter suspended from his position and later fired. Foner was an ardent anti-fascist and champion for civil rights as well as trade unions. He taught at CCNY along with his twin brother, Philip, who was also fired as a result of the Rapp-Coudert hearings.
• College Newsletter, November 25, 1940

  Published by the New York College Teachers Union, this issue of the College Newsletter covers several reactions to the ongoing Rapp-Coudert hearings of the early 1940s.The Rapp-Coudert Committee was a New York State initiative organized in June 1940 to investigate and identify "subversive activities" and persons in New York City's public schools and colleges. As two of the articles from this extract attest, several teachers' unions were targeted in the initial stages of the investigation as their membership rolls comprised many union activists. City College, in particular, became a target of the commitee with dozens of faculty and staff called to public and private hearings.
• "Umbrella Strikes Again!" Flier

  This flier promotes an April 14, 1937 student protest against City College President Frederick B. Robinson's decision to ban the "Oxford Pledge" from the CCNY campus. The pledge, an American adaptation of the British original, comprised an oath in which students stated: "I refuse to support the Government of the United States in any war it may conduct." The oath had been a part of protest gatherings in the prior years, though with the new decision, the administration would refuse use of campus facilities to student organizations that employed the pledge. The "umbrella" mentioned on the flier was used in reference to CCNY President Robinson who, in May 1933, allegedly struck multiple students with his umbrella at an anti-war rally on campus. Students adopted the umbrella as a symbol for Robinson for the remainder of his presidency.
• "Schappes Must Stay!" Flier

  This flier promotes a May 12, 1936 conference organized by City College's Student Council. The meeting, which first called for the election of student-elected delegates, was meant to "determine future student action on the Schappes case." Morris Schappes, an English instructor at the college, had been fired on April 22 after speaking on behalf of the faculty-organized Anti-fascist Association at an anti-war rally on campus earlier that day. His dismissal, attributed by administration to reasons unrelated to the protest, provoked an uproar from many students who immediately began to fight for his reinstatement. More than 1,000 students staged a several days long sit-in in front of the president's office. As a result of their efforts, he retained his job though it was not long before Schappes' political leanings would lead to his dismissal and imprisonment in 1941.
• "Strike Against War!" Flier

  This flier advertises an April 22, 1936 anti-war demonstration in the Great Hall at the City College of New York (CCNY). The event, attended by 3,500 students, featured addresses from student and faculty leaders as well as a vote that reaffirmed the students' fight against both the ROTC on campus and CCNY President Frederick Robinson. They further denounced perceived American war preparations and Japanese imperial aggression, and announced their refusal "to support the government of the United States in any war it may undertake." Like several other rallies from the previous year, this demonstration was part of a larger coordinated nationwide effort of left-wing and liberal students that day led by the American Student Union, around 500,000 participated in all. At CCNY, day students left class at 11am to participate in the strike while evening students held a similar rally later that night. Perhaps the most immediate consequence of the protest was the firing of Morris Schappes, a professor in the English Department who had spoken at the rally on behalf of the Anti-fascist Association. His firing, announced the day of the rally though attributed to other causes, would spark an outcry amongst many in the CCNY community. As a result of their efforts, he retained his job though it was not long before Schappes' political leanings would lead to his dismissal and imprisonment in 1941.
• Teacher and Worker, April 1936

  Articles on this front page of the April 1936 issue of City College's Teacher and Worker discuss a planned student "peace assembly" as well as preparations for faculty participation in the upcoming May Day Parade. This monthly campus publication was produced by the "Communist Party Unit of the City College."Teacher and Worker commenced publication in March 1935 and throughout its run contained anonymously written articles that discussed various campus issues as well as larger national and international concerns. The publication is just one example of rising faculty activism at CCNY during the period. Participation in the campus Communist Party as well as the Anti-fascist Association all stemmed from a desire to combat fascism and other societal injustices.
• "New CCNY Song"

  Published in the March 1936 edition of Teacher and Worker, the lyrics from this parody song mock City College of New York (CCNY) President Frederick B. Robinson and his efforts to keep "our alma mater pure," often through the supression of free expression on campus.Throughout the decade, President Robinson and left-wing student activists were continually in conflict and the song makes reference to several incidents. The events referenced include: Robinson's expulsion of students following protests ("expelling all fanaticals"), his calling in the police on May 29, 1933 student rally ("who changed it to an altercation"), his assault on students with his umbrella at that same rally ("flayed the bearded aliens all / with your trusty parisol"), his invitation and welcoming of representatives from Mussolini's government ("Duce's fascist delegation"), and his dismissal of protesting students as "guttersnipes."The Teacher and Worker was a monthly publication created by the Communist Party Unit of the City College.
• The Bulletin of the Anti-Fascist Association, January 1935

  Founded by City College staff in early 1935, the Anti-Fascist Association was a collective of likeminded left-wing and liberal faculty who perceived and fought against a rising threat of fascism abroad and militarism at home. The group held monthly meetings and published their newsletters monthly as well. The document is the front page of the group's inaugural bulletin. The Anti-Fascist Association counted approximately 200 members in its ranks, including senior faculty, with representatives from the organization often speaking at student-organized anti-war rallies. In 1936, one such representative, English instructor Morris Schappes, would be fired just hours after addressing a crowd of student protestors.