Communist activities in the peace movement (Women Strike for ...

2110 COMMUNIST ACTIVITIES IN THE PEACE MOVEMENT
Mrs. Hoffman. I stand on my previous answer, or shall I repeat it?
Mr. Doyle. Witness, since you say this question is not pertinent,
I want to read one sentence again in my preliminary statement:
The subject of this inquiry is to determine the extent of Communist infiltration
in peace organizations * * *.
We frequently have the experience where a person has been a member
of the Communist Party, and now and then they come before our
committee and say, "Well, I was a member 8, 10, 12 years ago, but I
haven't been a member since." Once in a while we find witnesses in
that situation acting in the utmost good faith with Congress. We
feel it is pertinent to find out in these hearings whether or not any
witness before us ever has been and, if they have, are they now.
Many people were Communists at one time and, after a matter of
study of philosophies, discovered that it is a conspiracy against our
form of government and kick it out of their lives and regret they ever
were in it.
Of course, our Supreme Court has held that it is a conspiracy, as I
am sure your worthy counsel loiows. So I am just raising that
thought to you. This is a pertinent question. That is the point I
want to make clear to you. It is pertinent to the hearing. I am
not asking you, nor did we ask any others, this question to embarrass
you. So I instruct you to answer this question.
(Witness conferred with counsel.)
Mrs. Hoffman. Gentlemen, I frankly have a very different point
of view upon this than you and I am going to answer this question
imder protest, because I think the reasons for asking are clearly to
harass and limit freedom of speech. But I do want to say that I am
not now a member of the Communist Party. I have not been a member
for more than 5 years. I do not see that any further questions
concerning my beliefs previous to this period are pertinent or
authorized.
Mr. NiTTLE. You state that you
Mr. Doyle. In view of my statement to you, may I further state
this : We have not been in these hearings, and are not now, interested
in motives for people entering the peace movement. We know what
the motive of the Communist is in joining the peace movement. It is
to help the Communist-outfit conspirators take over the free world.
But we don't assign that, as I read, to every member, and naturally
not. But I would not have instructed you to answer the question if
I didn't feel, as a matter of law, it was pertinent.
(Witness conferred with counsel.)
Mrs. Hoffman. I don't quite follow your thinking—if you are interested
in my following ycrur thinking—in that whatever you have to
say I don't quite see the connection with the peace movement and
with today's investigation of the peace movement.
Many of these things that you are discussing here I can't quite see
what they have to do with some of the conspiracy charges you and
that man over there brought up about, because if the Russians think
so, that makes everything bad.
Kennedy believes everything we believe, or he said it, anyhow; and
I don't quite follow what you are trying to say to me. I would like
to understand.
Mr. Doyle. I was trying to say to you, and I think I did and I
think you got it, that maybe you were a Communist at one time.