Several days ago I received a communication from my college alumni association (City College of New York) concerning the 70th reunion of the class of 1940. Some personal data was requested. I referred to the graduation yearbook and found something that brought back very sour memories. The yearbook bore the dedication, "To the fight to keep America out of the war." It was prepared during the months leading up to June 1940. This period was was squarely in the middle of the era of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, officially titled the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. It lasted from August 24, 1939 till June 22, 1941, the date on which Germany launched its attack on the Soviet Union. The pact established spheres of influence in Eastern Europe that led inter alia to the divison of Poland between them.
Up till the signing of the pact, Nazi Germany was anethema on campus. The day following the announcement of the pact, communist students and their adherents had an epiphany. The Nazis immediately became enlightened nationalists and the Jews in Germany were troublemakers and deserving of all the trouble they were having. There was also the chant, "To hell with England; let God save the King." The campus was plastered with posters bearing the same legend. On June 22, 1941, there was a new epiphany. Germany reverted to its previous status of vileness and and England became noble and worthy of total support.
The comunnist cohort of students had much more influence on campus they should have. They were vocal and well organized. There was, however, one goup of students beyond their influence or control: The members of the ROTC. In the class yearbook, Microcosm, the graduating seniors were grouped in separate sections according to their School: Liberal Arts, Engineering, etc. The communists had their revenge by segregating the ROTC graduates into a separate ROTC section.
The ROTC no longer exists at City. When it did, it was the largest voluntary ROTC in the country.
The comunnist cohort of students had much more influence on campus they should have. They were vocal and well organized. There was, however, one goup of students beyond their influence or control: The members of the ROTC. In the class yearbook, Microcosm, the graduating seniors were grouped in separate sections according to their School: Liberal Arts, Engineering, etc. The communists had their revenge by segregating the ROTC graduates into a separate ROTC section.
The ROTC no longer exists at City. When it did, it was the largest voluntary ROTC in the country.
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