Court Case
The judge hearing the case was the Irish Catholic John E. McGeehan who on the basis of four of Russell's popular and non-philosophic books (On Education, What I Believe, Education and the Modern World, and Marriage and Morals) ruled against 'a chair of indecency,' finding Russell morally unfit to teach philosophy. In the books, Russell advocated sex before marriage, among other things.
Russell was prevented from appearing in court and an appeal by the American Civil Liberties Union was denied in several courts. The City of New York's lawyers told the Board of Higher Education that the verdict would not be appealed. A few days later Mayor LaGuardia removed the funds for the position from the budget.
Judge McGeehan's ruling was published as Kay v. Board of Higher Ed. of City of New York, 18 N.Y.S.2d 821 (1940).
Read more about this topic: The Bertrand Russell Case
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