Being Red in Philadelphia: A Memoir of the McCarthy Era

by Sherman Labovitz

In July 1953, nine Philadelphia men were arrested and charged with violating the Smith Act of 1940. At the time, this piece of legislation--which prohibits citizens from advocating the overthrow of the U.S. government by any means--was being used as the basis of Senator Joseph McCarthy's campaign to expose and punish any behavior that could be construed as subversive or dangerous to the government. McCarthy particularly took aim against avowed or suspected communists--and the nine men who were arrested that July were leaders of the Communist Party in Philadelphia. Now, for the first time, one of these men reveals the specific circumstances behind the arrests and details the criminal trial which contributed to the beginning of the end of McCarthyism.

165 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1997