Forest Hills, New York
April 5, 1948
My dear Neill:
I just received your letter of March 30th. I understand your
depression very well. The difference between you and me seems to be
that you seem to lose hope whereas I, relying on the untouchable life
principle in children and on the discovery of the cosmic energy, am full
of hope and pep for a future, better society, whether I am going to live
through the holocaust or not.
Please, don't worry about the publicity business. I only mentioned
it to you because it happens so often that people love the Orgone
Institute but are afraid of mentioning it in public. It has to do with the
orgasm function, you know. I may confess that I have to grit my teeth
very often when I see how the fear of natural love and life distorts
people's reactions.
My attitude towards publicity is clearly this: We want all publicity
possible, but not in the wrong way and not with the wrong people. And,
first of all, we are not begging for recognition.
I understand your situation with your teachers. You have entered the
age of the "Little Man," this time in the form of teachers.
I am completely in agreement with your last sentence and Ena's idea
of starting a home for mothers and children right after birth. It is to my
mind the only real way of doing something lasting in education: preven
tion of armoring. Whether you can still do it, I don't know.
The Orgone Institute is not only not on the black-list, but on the
contrary, its publications are ordered and read by most of the American
universities and college libraries, a total of about 300 or so. You have
still a wrong view on my standing in this world, due to the lack of
publicity noise.
Summerhill School
Leiston, Suffolk
My dear Reich,
- ••
April 4, 1948I note what you say about my pessimism and your own hope
for humanity. But I am taking a narrow view ... I want Zoe to live
and flourish, and it doesn't console me to think that in the year
3000 A.D. life will be grand. But we'll leave all this for our talks ...