Luella Mundel
Encyclopedia
Luella Mundel was the subject of a documentary by Helen Whitney
called American Inquisition. The program examined how McCarthyism
had affected the small town of Fairmont, West Virginia
. Victor Lasky
, "the rightwing journalist" who rose to prominence in the McCarthy era, sued ABC
over his depiction in the show. The central issue was whether Lasky had accused Mundel at an American Legion
meeting in 1951 of being a Communist. Mundel was the head of the art department of Fairmont State College in Fairmont, West Virginia
. In this environment, the question alone led to her termination and blacklisting. She later attempted suicide. Lasky maintained that the program inaccurately reported that he had called Mundel a Communist. In the documentary, the narrator said that in 1951 Mundel "was not a political activist, but had tastes, convictions about art, about religion, unfamiliar to these streets. And at a local American Legion seminar about subversives, she angrily stood to challenge what was being preached there. Her contract was dropped by the college. A state education official accused her of being a poor security risk. She then sued for slander, but in the trial that followed in Fairmont's courtroom, it was Luella Mundel and her right to speak freely, to be different, that wound up being tried."
Helen Whitney
Helen Whitney is an award-winning producer for the American Broadcasting Company.She produced a documentary called American Inquisition, which became the subject of a very famous case about First Amendment rights...
called American Inquisition. The program examined how McCarthyism
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...
had affected the small town of Fairmont, West Virginia
Fairmont, West Virginia
Fairmont is a city in Marion County, West Virginia, United States. Nicknamed "The Friendly City". The population was 18,704 at the 2010 census...
. Victor Lasky
Victor Lasky
Victor Lasky was a conservative columnist in the United States who wrote several best-selling books. He was syndicated by North American Newspaper Alliance.-Life:...
, "the rightwing journalist" who rose to prominence in the McCarthy era, sued ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
over his depiction in the show. The central issue was whether Lasky had accused Mundel at an American Legion
American Legion
The American Legion is a mutual-aid organization of veterans of the United States armed forces chartered by the United States Congress. It was founded to benefit those veterans who served during a wartime period as defined by Congress...
meeting in 1951 of being a Communist. Mundel was the head of the art department of Fairmont State College in Fairmont, West Virginia
Fairmont, West Virginia
Fairmont is a city in Marion County, West Virginia, United States. Nicknamed "The Friendly City". The population was 18,704 at the 2010 census...
. In this environment, the question alone led to her termination and blacklisting. She later attempted suicide. Lasky maintained that the program inaccurately reported that he had called Mundel a Communist. In the documentary, the narrator said that in 1951 Mundel "was not a political activist, but had tastes, convictions about art, about religion, unfamiliar to these streets. And at a local American Legion seminar about subversives, she angrily stood to challenge what was being preached there. Her contract was dropped by the college. A state education official accused her of being a poor security risk. She then sued for slander, but in the trial that followed in Fairmont's courtroom, it was Luella Mundel and her right to speak freely, to be different, that wound up being tried."
Trivia
- On July 9, 2006, the Santa Maria, CaliforniaSanta Maria, CaliforniaSanta Maria is a city in Santa Barbara County, on the Central Coast of California. The 2010 census population was 100,062, putting it ahead of Santa Barbara for the first time and making it the largest city in the county...
art gallery The Cypress Gallery honored Mundel in an art show.
Quotes about the Mundel affair
- "Fairmont State College art professor Luella Mundel fell victim to this anti-communismAnti-communismAnti-communism is opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed in reaction to the rise of communism, especially after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia and the beginning of the Cold War in 1947.-Objections to communist theory:...
frenzy. In 1951, Mundel publicly challenged an American Legion assertion that colleges were havens for communists. Weeks later, Thelma Loudin, a member of the state school board from Fairmont, called Mundel a 'poor security risk' and the board refused to renew her contract. Mundel unsuccessfully sued Loudin for slander. The potential cost of being labeled a communist was so great that Loudin's lawyer, U.S. Senator Matthew Neely, a staunch defender of liberalismLiberalismLiberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
, denounced Mundel's political and religious beliefs during the trial to prove his patriotism". West VirginiaWest VirginiaWest Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
State History Archive.
External links
- The Anti-Communist Hysteria and the Academy: The Luella Mundel Affair
- John Corry, TV: ABC Offers The American Inquisition, The New York Times, June 23, 1983.