American Scare – Robert W. Fieseler

In January of 1959, Art Copleston was escorted out of his college accounting class by three police officers. In a motel room, blinds drawn, he sat in front of a state senator and the legal counsel for the Florida Legislative Investigation Committee. His crime? Being a suspected homosexual. And the government of Florida would use any tactic at their disposal – legal or not – to get Copleston to admit it. Using a secret trove of primary source documents that have been decoded for the first time in history, award-winning journalist Robert Fieseler unravels the mystery of what actually happened behind the closed doors of the Johns Committee. In this fast-paced true crime story, Fieseler places readers in the centre of the action, illustrating the shocking techniques the government would use to intimidate and break those who they saw as a threat to Florida“s white, conservative identity. The state of Florida would prefer if its history remained buried. But for almost a decade, the Florida Legislature founded, funded, and supported the Johns Committee – an organization using the cover of communism to viciously attack members of the NAACP and queer professors and students. Fieseler describes the heart-breaking ramifications for the citizens of Florida whose lives were imperilled, profiling marginalized residents with compassion, curiosity, and a determination to bring their devasting experiences into the limelight at last. A propulsive, human-centred drama, with fascinating insight into Florida politics, American Scare is a page-turning reckoning of our racist and homophobic past – and its chilling parallels to today.