Word: polyani
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Dates: during 1954-1954
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Such lack of review of visa denials has been embarrassing as well as costly to the United States. In his recent book, The Golden Door, a castigation of the McCarran-Walter act, J. Campbell Bruce reviews the story of Michael Polyani, and "eminent British chemist and social philosopher, long recognized as Britain's foremost anti-Communist scholar," Polyani was elected a chair of Social Philosophy at the University of Chicago for the academic year 1951-52. In January of 1951, he applied to the U.S. Consulate in Liverpool for an immigrant visa, and completed forms which included such questions...
...months passed with no action, despite intercession by two U.S. Senators. Eleven months later-six weeks after the Chicago appointment was to begin, Polyani was forced to withdraw his acceptance, but was fortunately able to remain at the University of Manchester. Chicago accordingly changed its offer to a temporary chair, and Polyani revised his application to ask for a nonimmigrant or temporary visa...
...says, 'the vice-consul expressed uneasiness when I said that, while I had no idea that the (League) was a Communist organization, I would still have addressed them if I had known it. It appears that in his view, trying to convert them would have been a subversive activity!'" Polyani's speech before the group was severely censured by its secretary as a vicious "attack on Soviet scientists...
Then, in June, 1952, 18 months after application, Polyani was turned down flat, because, the consul said, of "certain political beliefs or activities; and membership in, or affiliation with, certain organizations." And the McCarran-Walter act gave Polyani no right to appeal from this decision...