Eugene Joseph McCarthy was a United States senator and New School professor in political science. Born in Watkins, Minnesota in 1916, McCarthy had originally been an instructor in economics and sociology at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota before he was elected as a Democratic Party congressional representative for Minnesota in 1948. In 1958, he was elected to the United States Senate, where he became known for his championing of liberal causes, and in particular for his opposition to the Vietnam War. He ran as a candidate for the Democratic Party presidential nomination on an anti-war platform in 1968, but lost to Hubert Humphrey.

McCarthy had first spoken at The New School in 1961, delivering a lecture on “The Shape of the Future: National and World Affairs” as part of the inauguration of Henry David as university president. In 1966, he was appointed as the “Adlai E. Stevenson Lecturer,” a position that was created for McCarthy and named for his then-recently deceased political mentor and ally, whom he had nominated for president in 1960. The position entailed giving two-to-four public lectures per semester, along with a series of informal seminars for students and faculty. The lectures were held until 1968, when it seems they were discontinued due to inadequate funding: McCarthy demanded a speaking fee of $12,500 per semester, and the amount was only fully paid by The New School in 1970.

After a second failed bid at presidential nomination, McCarthy was hired by the Graduate Faculty of the New School for Social Research in 1973, this time being appointed as the “Adlai E. Stevenson Professor of Political Science.” In this position, he also taught courses for the Adult Division, most notably “The Future of Liberalism in America” in Spring 1973. McCarthy appears to have resigned, and the Adlai E. Stevenson professorship dissolved, after Spring 1975, ahead of his third and final unsuccessful presidential bid in 1976.

McCarthy died on December 10, 2005 in Washington, D.C.

Sources

College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University. Who is Eugene J. McCarthy?. Accessed July 2, 2024. https://www.csbsju.edu/mccarthy-center/about-the-center/who-is-eugene-j-mccarthy

John Everett (1966-1973). Adlai Stevenson Lectureship on International Affairs. John Everett Records (NS.01.01.02, Box 7, Folder 7), The New School Archives and Special Collections.

The New School (1961). New School Bulletin Vol. 19, No. 04 [bulletin]. New School Bulletin Collection. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/NS030102_bull1904

The New School (1966). New School Bulletin 1966 Fall Vol. 24 No. 3 [bulletin]. New School Bulletin Collection. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/NS050101_ns1966fa

The New School (1973). McCarthy Appointed Stevenson Professor [press release]. New School Press Release Collection. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/NS030107_001690

“The Future of Liberalism in America” was a course offered by the Adult Division of The New School for Social Research, taught in 1973 by former United States senator and Adlai E. Stevenson Professor of Political Science, Eugene McCarthy. The course was advertised as six lectures by McCarthy on the subject of the future of liberalism (referring here to modern American liberalism, a political ideology that pairs support for civil liberties with support for economic regulation and social programs) in the United States, each followed by a question and answer section. The course proved popular due to McCarthy’s prominent public profile, and much of the lectures and many of the questions concern McCarthy’s own political views and experience.

Sources

The New School (1973). The Future of Liberalism in America, 1st lecture (1 of 3) [audio tape]. The Future of Liberalism in America: Eugene McCarthy Event Recordings. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/NS070224_000037

The New School (1973). McCarthy Appointed Stevenson Professor [press release]. New School Press Release Collection. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/NS030107_001690