Commies, Black folks, and queers, oh my! (with Robert Fieseler)

In 1959, a young University of Florida student was pulled out of his final exam by police and taken to a motel room for interrogation. His suspected crime: being gay.

Journalist Robert Fieseler uncovers the hidden history of Florida's Johns Committee, a state-backed investigation that targeted Black activists, supposed communists, and LGBTQ people. Drawing from previously confidential records, Fieseler traces how fear became a political weapon—and how ordinary people fought back through the courts, protest, and in acts of personal courage.

Their conversation explores the human cost of these investigations, the rise of gay political consciousness in Florida, and why this history still matters today.

Full transcript is available here at relationscapes.org. 

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About the Guest

Robert W. Fieseler is a journalist investigating marginalized groups and a scholar excavating forgotten histories. A National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association Journalist of the Year and recipient of the Pulitzer Traveling Fellowship, his debut book Tinderbox won seven awards, including the Edgar Award, and his reporting has appeared in Slate, Commonweal, and River Teeth, among others. Fieseler graduated co-valedictorian from the Columbia Journalism School and is pursuing a PhD at Tulane University as a Mellon Fellow. He lives with his husband on the gayest street in New Orleans. His latest book is American Scare: Florida's Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives.