Crusade for Freedom
The Crusade for Freedom, officially managed by the National Committee for a Free Europe (NCFE), had direct ties to the Office of Policy Coordination, the State Department, and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
This bell traveled around the United States, along with a Freedom Scroll for people to sign, and was then sent to West Berlin, where it was dedicated by Clay on 24 October 1950.
The OPC began seeking ways to implement NSC 20/4, a National Security Council directive to "place the maximum strain on the Soviet structure of power and particularly on the relationships between Moscow and the satellite countries."
After the National Committee for a Free Europe (NCFE) was formed in May 1949, its backers decided that to appear legitimate the organization would need to seem independently funded.
"[5] Washburn and Crabtree suggested using the Liberty Bell as the symbol for the Crusade and, under instructions from the NCFE, sought out General Lucius D. Clay as its chairman.
[11] The Crusade also gained the support of religious leaders such as Rabbi Bernard J. Bamberger, president of the Synagogue Council of America, and Archbishop Francis Spellman.
[12] The campaign benefited from the direct collusion of the American media—including The New York Times and the San Francisco Examiner—which knew of its CIA connections but chose not to report them.
[14][15] The Crusade for Freedom helped to create public legitimacy for ex-Nazis who collaborated with the U.S. government to call for the downfall of the USSR.
[17] The Crusade for Freedom gained support from hundreds of national and local organizations, conducting a countless array of events across the United States.
[4] Some programs were national in scope: The official domestic goal of the Crusade for Freedom was to solicit donations from American citizens, and it succeeded in raising $1,317,000 in its first year.
[20] Leaping Lena was a homing pigeon, reported lost in early August, 1954 during a routine flight in West Germany, and then found again bearing an anti-Communist note signed "Unbowed Pilsen."
Wednesday, 3 October 1951, was declared "Youth Crusade Day", and students of all ages listened to the Crosby radio program in their school classrooms.
It was also promoted in the Educational Edition of Reader's Digest, used in 50% of American High Schools, with an exercise asking students to complete the sentence, imagine their own broadcasts, and answer some questions about Radio Free Europe.
[32] Eisenhower (introduced over radio by Ford II) gave his third Crusade for Freedom speech on 11 November 1952—one week after he was elected president.
In the same broadcast, listeners heard the defeated Adlai Stevenson also express his support for the Crusade, stating: "The programs have a spontaneity and freshness, which no official information agency can have.
"[33] (Eisenhower had reportedly been prepared to order leaflet drops over immigrant communities such as Hamtramck blaming Stevenson for "betraying" the liberation agenda in Eastern Europe.
