Ernest Van den Haag

Who was Ernest Van den Haag?

Ernest van den Haag was a Dutch-American sociologist, social critic, and John M. Olin Professor of Jurisprudence and Public Policy at Fordham University. He was best known for his contributions to National Review.

Ernest van den Haag was born in 1914 in a province of South Holland named The Hague which is located in the Netherlands. While Van den Haag was still young, his family moved to Italy. Van den Haag grew up in Italy, and following his education began a life in politics. In the late 1930s he was a well-known left wing activist and communist. During this time, Italy was ruled by the Mussolini fascist regime. In 1937, Van den Haag was nearly murdered by a political assassin who shot him five times. After being shot, he spent nearly three years in prison. Nearly eighteen months of those three years were spent in solitary confinement. After being released, fearing re-imprisonment, Van den Haag became somewhat of a vagabond, drifting between European countries in an attempt to evade Italy and Mussolini. In 1940, he made his way to Portugal and fled to the United States, arriving at Ellis Island, not knowing a word of English.