1939.06.27 “Free Public Education is at Stake”
by Mischa Richter (1910-2001)
9.1 x 11.5 in., ink and wash on paper
Coppola Collection
Mischa Richter (1910-2001) was a well-known New Yorker, King Features, and PM newspaper cartoonist who worked for the Communist Party’s literary journal “New Masses” in the late 1930 and early 1940s, becoming its art editor in the 1940s.
In 1939, threats to public education stemmed from a combination of financial strain due to the lingering Great Depression, the growing ideological menace of fascism and totalitarianism abroad, and domestic concerns over curriculum content.
The most immediate and tangible threats in the US were financial, as the country was still recovering from the Great Depression. Business and conservative groups advocated for severe budget cuts, often described as "retrenchment," which involved calls to limit the number of subjects taught and even close schools. Teacher salaries were often reduced, and generally, there were shortages of essential resources like books, paper, and equipment.
The global political climate posed significant threats. Over 2,300 educators signed a manifesto in April 1939 warning against the "fascist menace" to democratic institutions and liberties, including educational curbs, "gag laws," intolerance, and press censorship. There was a widespread conviction that unselfish educational leadership was necessary to guard democracy against the rise of such dangers. Domestically, there were "firestorms of criticism" led by conservative patriotic and business groups against progressive education, particularly the social science textbooks of Harold Rugg. These groups did not want students raising questions about the basic structures of American life and the capitalist economic system, leading to accusations of unpatriotic indoctrination that foreshadowed later controversies.
