AbstractBernhard J. Stern, an outstanding sociologist and a political radical, and victimized by Congressional investigating committees during the McCarthy period. The scope of Stern's intellectual contribution is described and his fate as a radical is examined. The history of Stern's treatment by Columbia University and his colleagues is described with the benefit of hitherto unpublished archival materials. This testimony is valuable in that Stern's case adds to the study of the strengths and weaknesses of academic institutions in times of crisis, especially about questions of academic freedom.