Emil Freed
Encyclopedia
Emil Freed was a political activist and the founder of the Southern California Library for Social Studies and Research, an archive in Los Angeles
.
Born in New York, he moved to Los Angeles in 1910 and received a degree in electrical engineering at University of Southern California
in 1923.
Freed joined the Communist Party
in 1929 and was active in Communist party politics, running for the United States House of Representatives on the Communist ticket in 1940. In 1949, He spent 10 months in jail for participating in the Hollywood Studio Strike
of 1945-1946, for which he was ultimately expelled from the International Association of Machinists (IAM) Local 311.
In 1953, Lucille Ball
was questioned before the Committee on Un-American Activities
about her support of Freed's candidacy in 1940. She denied knowing anything about it.
During the McCarthy era
, Freed collected pamphlets, films, papers and other documents that people were disposing of to distance themselves from Communist involvement. He began by storing the works in a garage, then rented more space, and finally created the Library which survives as a repository of radical history of Los Angeles and California.
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
Born in New York, he moved to Los Angeles in 1910 and received a degree in electrical engineering at University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
in 1923.
Freed joined the Communist Party
Communist Party USA
The Communist Party USA is a Marxist political party in the United States, established in 1919. It has a long, complex history that is closely related to the histories of similar communist parties worldwide and the U.S. labor movement....
in 1929 and was active in Communist party politics, running for the United States House of Representatives on the Communist ticket in 1940. In 1949, He spent 10 months in jail for participating in the Hollywood Studio Strike
Hollywood Black Friday
Hollywood Black Friday is the name given, in the history of organized labor in the United States, to October 5, 1945. On that date, a six-month strike by the set decorators represented by the Conference of Studio Unions boiled over into a bloody riot at the gates of Warner Brothers' studios in...
of 1945-1946, for which he was ultimately expelled from the International Association of Machinists (IAM) Local 311.
In 1953, Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
was questioned before the Committee on Un-American Activities
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
about her support of Freed's candidacy in 1940. She denied knowing anything about it.
During the McCarthy era
McCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by...
, Freed collected pamphlets, films, papers and other documents that people were disposing of to distance themselves from Communist involvement. He began by storing the works in a garage, then rented more space, and finally created the Library which survives as a repository of radical history of Los Angeles and California.