The Einstein File: J. Edgar Hoover’s Secret War Against the World’s Most Famous Scientist

399 Pages·2002·107.46 MB·English

by  Fred Jerome

Using material newly obtained through the
Freedom of Information Act, Fred Jerome
weaves information from Einstein’s almost
two-thousand-page FBI file with the history
of the period to create a spy-story-like
narrative that also explores Einstein’s
political dimension.
flOM THE MOMIHI
Albert Einstein arrived
in the United States in 1933, the year of the
Nazis’ ascent to power in Germany, until his
death in 1955, J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI, assisted by
several other federal agencies, began feverishly
collecting “derogatory information” in an effort
to undermine the renowned physicist’s influence
and destroy his reputation. For the first time,
Fred Jerome tells the story in depth of that
anti-Einstein campaign, explains why and how
the campaign originated, and provides the
first detailed picture of Einstein’s little-known
political activism.
Unlike the popular image of Einstein as an
absentminded, head-in-the-clouds genius, he was
in fact intensely interested in the larger society
and felt it was his duty to use his worldwide
fame to help advance the cause of social justice.
Einstein was a fervent pacifist, socialist, inter-
nationalist, and an outspoken critic of racism
(he considered racism America’s “worst dis-
ease”), as well as a friend of celebrated African
Americans Paul Robeson and W. E. B. Du Bois.
Einstein dared to use his immense prestige to
denounce Joseph McCarthy at the height of the
feared senator’s power, and publicly urged
(continued on back flap)

J. E d g a r H o o v e r ’ s S e c r e t W a r A g a i n s t t h e
W o r l d ’ s M o s t F a m o u s S c i e n t i s t
F R E D J E R O M E
ST. m a r t i n ’ s PRESS fß NEW YORK
THE EINSTEIN FILE: J. EDGAR HOOVER’S SECRET WAR AGAINST THE WORLD’S
most famous scientist. Copyright © 2002 by Fred Jerome. All rights
reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book
may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written
permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical
articles or reviews. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth
Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
Book design by Ellen Cipriano
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Jerome, Fred.
The Einstein File : J. Edgar Hoover’s secret war against the world’s
most famous scientist / Fred Jerome— 1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0-312-28856-5
1. Einstein, Albert, 1879-1955—Political and social views. 2. United
States—Politics and government— 1945-1953. 3. United States.
Federal Bureau of Investigation. I. Jerome, Fred. II. Title.
QC16.E5 J46 2002
530'.092—dc21
[B]
2001058850
First Edition: May 2002
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To Jocelyn

“Do you think it’s right to rake up the past?”
“I don t feel that I know what you mean by raking
it up. How can we get at it unless we dig a little?
The present has such a rough way of treading it down. ”
— Henry James, The Aspern Papers
POPE: This man [Galileo] is the greatest physicist of
our time. He is the light of Italy, and not just
any muddlehead.
INQUISITOR: Would we have had to
arrest him otherwise?
— Bertolt Brecht, Galileo