Donna T. Haverty-Stacke, Trotskyists on Trial: Free Speech and Political Persecution Since the Age of FDR

Abstract

Donna T. Haverty-Stacke indicates in her introduction that she intends the work to be “a case study” about Trotskyists although her subtitle, “Free Speech and Political Persecution since the Age of FDR,” promises more, in terms of scope and time-frame. And all but the last chapter and a half take place during the Roosevelt years rather than after them. Unfortunately, these seeming contradictions leave the reader somewhat unclear about what he/she should expect from this book. As the 1940 Smith Act persecutions of Trotskyists and the events leading up to them occupy roughly the first two-thirds of the book, Haverty-Stacke’s description of her work seems more accurate than the subtitle. The research is prodigious. The author has made use of both Trotskyist literature and the personal papers of most of the Trotskyist leaders’ – and members of the Minneapolis Teamsters union - papers. Piecing together a narrative when there were many sides to consider is truly an accomplishment. The author provides a clear and detailed retelling of the first Smith Act prosecution, the wartime indictment of Trotskyist leaders. I am not a legal scholar. I found the minute-by-minute depiction of the case, which at one point reports when during opening arguments the court “adjourn[ed] for the day” (p. 92), overwhelming, yet all the critical details are present and clear.