Regarding the Michael Epstein documentary: "Arthur Miller, Elia Kazan and the Blacklist: None Without Sin," (PBS, 9/3/03): the real "sin" was clearly that of the blacklisted writers and actors. This documentary is yet another attempt by the American left to keep alive the big lie that the blacklisted were innocent victims and unjustly persecuted. They were neither.
American citizens have the right to hold and express unpopular views, including communist views. However, such freedom does not include the right to forcibly overthrow the United States government. The American Communist Party was a secret organization not a political party. And as the KGB archives prove, it was financed and directed by the Soviet Union, which made it an extension of Soviet foreign policy, and thus a proper subject for congressional inquiry. Those who refused to "name names" had plenty to hide.
The Hollywood blacklist was an economic boycott--a proper response to those with whom one does not want to deal. There is no right to a job. And the ruined careers of dozens of American writers and actors is a just consequence of having aided and abetted the Soviet Union, which murdered thousands of Russian writers and millions of its own citizens. Sincerely,
Jeff Britting Ayn Rand Institute
2121 Alton Parkway, #250 Irvine, CA 92606 United States (949) 222-6550 ext. 203
Please let me know if you decide to publish my letter. Thank you.