[lbo-talk] Herbert Aptheker revelations

Jesse Lemisch utopia1 at attglobal.net
Tue Oct 3 11:31:33 PDT 2006


The Chronicle: 10/6/2006: Herbert Aptheker: the Contradictions of HistoryI understand that Chris Phelps's piece in the Chronicle of Higher Ed was posted here earlier. Below is a letter I have sent to Chris, with his original piece deleted to fit LBO length limits.

Jesse Lemisch

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Good for you, Chris, and good for Bettina. This is an awful and amazing story, reading like something in Doctorow's Ragtime.

As you know, I have always said that the left should speak uncomortable truths, even if they please Ron Radosh (see below, including Ron's questioning of the truth of Bettina's reminiscence.). This material certainly sheds light on Aptheker, and by extension on the gap or connection between the personal and the political in the US CP (of which we have much evidence). It's full of irony that this comes out at the time of the delayed Foley revelations.

But. I think you are a little too agnostic in your rhetorical question, "To what extent should disheartening revelations about a scholar's conduct be held against his oeuvre?"

Without positing a major disconnect between the personal and the public, I can't see how these revelations of despicable sexual behavior make American Negro Slave Revolts or the horrifying Truth about Hungary any more true or false. But I am interested in seeing what connections people might be able to sketch in. There might be some.

Best. Jesse

----- Original Message ----- From: ron radosh To: ron radosh Sent: Tuesday, October 03, 2006 11:51 AM Subject: Another side of Comrade Aptheker

Of course, she should have done this when he was alive, so he could answer. Who knows if it's true. But what a shock! Ron Radosh -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <../attachments/20061003/70cce159/attachment.htm>



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