Australian Association for Cultural Freedom, 1950-1962

Component identifier:

Series 71

Content Summary:

The Congress for Cultural Freedom was established in June 1950 when 118 writers, artists and scientists from 21 countries met in Berlin and decided to create a permanent association to fight against any threats to cultural freedom. A secretariat was set up in Paris. H. R. Krygier was the Australian representative of the Congress and in March 1954 he announced that the International Executive had approved the formation of an Australian Committee for Cultural Freedom. The name was changed to the Australian Association for Cultural Freedom in 1957. Latham was President from 1954-1961.

Items 1-601 in this large series consist of correspondence dating from February 1954-October 1961. The correspondents include Richard Krygier, Clem Christesen, W. A. Townsley, James McAuley, R. N. Spann and G. Patterson. They deal with the formation of the executive, the establishment of the periodicals Free Spirit and Quadrant, criticisms of the Association as being excessively anti-communist, the visits of Malcolm Muggeridge and Stephen Spender in 1954 and James T. Farrell in 1955, the Milan Conference in 1955 which Latham attended, the case of Professor S. Orr (1956), the Stuart case (1959), the finances of the Association, and efforts to obtain a Commonwealth Literary Fund grant for Quadrant.

There are several publications (Items 602-724) including the Manifesto of the Congress for Cultural Freedom (1950), works on the Orr case, an article on Soviet historians by B. D. Wolfe, issues of the London journal Science and Freedom, and many issues of the Association's bulletin Free Spirit (1954-1962). Items 725-923 are papers delivered at the 1955 Milan Conference, speeches, itineraries and other papers relating to Latham's overseas trip. Finally, there are minutes, rules, financial papers, secretary's reports, reports of the editorial committee, president's statements, lists of members, and a diary kept by Latham in September-October 1955 (Item 1051). There are also some photographs and newscuttings.

The records of the Australian Association for Cultural Freedom are also held in the National Library (MS 2031).

Immediate source of acquisition:

The bulk of the collection was presented to the National Library by Sir John Latham in December 1963, a few months before his death. In November 1974 the Library purchased some further papers from a secondhand book dealer. They comprised family letters and photographs, some diaries and papers relating to the High Court. These papers have been amalgamated into the original collection.

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