Colella on Looking Back at the Allen Ginsberg Obscenity Trial 62 Years Later @HaubLawatPace

Frank G. Colella, Pace University, has published Looking Back at the Allen Ginsberg Obscenity Trial 62 Years Later at 262 N.Y.L.J. no. 6 (Aug. 29, 2019). It is also forthcoming as a Pace University Research Paper. Here is the abstract.

Sixty-two years ago this month, a decade before 1967's Summer of Love, San Francisco hosted the obscenity trial of Allen Ginsberg's epic poem, Howl, during the summer of 1957. The 1950s, and well into the 1960s, witnessed no shortage of censorship battles over the arts-even comic books. This particular battle focused on a small chapbook of obscure poetry, Howl and Other Poems, has reached quasi-mythological status in the history of the Beat Generation. The nationwide publicity generated by the trial single-handedly dragged Ginsberg and Howl into the public consciousness. Today's global recognition and critical acclaim for Howl aside, that the trial itself still resonates in the legal community is no small accomplishment because the decision was never officially published. Moreover, it is unusual in and of itself for a municipal court trial judge to author a written opinion, which would be binding only upon those individuals within that municipality. As a consequence, People v. Ferlinghetti was never cited as precedent, or otherwise, in any subsequent legal proceeding.

Download the essay from SSRN at the link.