OPPOSES SILENCE

To the Editors of the CRIMSON:

Mr. Boudin's suggestion in a recent letter to the CRIMSON defeats the purpose he purports to defend. The teacher who asserts his Fifth-Amendment privilege before a Congressional committee must share responsibility--along with the McCarthys and the Jenners--for further encroachments of academic freedom. The hostility and antagonism aroused by "I refuse to answer because it might incriminate me" leads to more persecution, not to more respect for the teaching profession. Refusal to testify creates suspicion and distrust, both in the minds of the investigating Congressmen and in the minds of the general public. Regardless of how justified these investigations may be, the teacher who irritates the Velde committee by his silence at the same time encourages them to make more accusations and to conduct further investigations. Let our teachers appear not afraid to suffer the consequences of what they have believed in. let them have the courage to speak forthrightly, whether it be to the reporters after a hearing, or to the very interrogators of the committee itself. If our professors have interest in effectively defending academic freedom, let them defend it with frankness and candor when they face the Jenner group next week. Leonard Boehner '52, 1L