The American Asian studies establishment

Abstract

Subsequent to a U.S. Army Symposium on its Limited-War Mission (1962), an organization called the Foreign Areas Research Coordinating Group [FAR] was formed under the State Department to coordinate foreign areas research and to recruit the interests of social scientists to the conduct of research relevant to the needs of FAR's member agencies: Army, Air Force, Navy, CIA, ACDA, etc. FAR's first step was to set up in 1964 a FAR China Subcommittee, chaired by Dr. Allen Whiting, and mandated to serve as a catalyst for the stimulation of research both in and out of government. In May 1965 the FAR China Subcommittee produced a “Statement of External Research Priorities” reflecting the needs of its member agencies. The Statement was communicated to the Joint Committee on Contemporary China [JCCC] of the Social Science Research Council [SSRC] and the American Council of Learned Societies [ACLS]. While the response of the JCCC to this Statement is still unclear, there is, prima facie, considerable correspondence between it and the work sponsored by the JCCC and, in fact, the work in the contemporary China field in general. We therefore demand access to the files of the FAR China Subcommittee to assess the extent of such correspondence, if any.