Alfred W. McCoy
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Alfred "Al" William McCoy (born June 8, 1945) is an American
historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...
and educator. He is the Fred Harvey Harrington Professor of History at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...
."Alfred W. McCoy."
Department of History,
University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...
. Archived fro
the original
He specializes in the history of the Philippines, foreign policy of the United States,
European colonisation of Southeast Asia The first phase of European colonisation of Southeast Asia took place throughout the 16th and 17th centuries. They wanted to gain monopoly over the spice trade as this trade was very valuable to the Europeans due to high demand for various spic ...
,
illegal drug trade The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs throug ...
, and
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
covert operations A covert operation is a military operation intended to conceal the identity of (or allow plausible deniability by) the party that instigated the operation. Covert operations should not be confused with clandestine operations, which are performe ...
.


Career

Born in
Concord, Massachusetts Concord () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. At the 2020 census, the town population was 18,491. The United States Census Bureau considers Concord part of Greater Boston. The town center is near where the confl ...
to Alfred Mudge McCoy, Jr. and Margarita Piel, a noted
urban planner An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning. An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, town ...
, educator, and descendant of the originators of Piels Beer, McCoy graduated from the
Kent School Kent School is a private, co-educational, college preparatory boarding school in Kent, Connecticut, United States. Frederick Herbert Sill established the school in 1906. It is affiliated with the Episcopal Church of the United States. Acade ...
in 1964, where he earned varsity letters in football,
rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically ...
, and
wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
. He earned a
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
in European History from
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
in 1968, a
Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...
in Asian Studies from the
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
in 1969, and a
Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
in Southeast Asian History from
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
in 1977. His dissertation, advised by Harold C. Conklin was entitled ''Yloilo: Factional Conflict in a Colonial Economy, Iloilo Province, Philippines, 1937-1955'', which examined the region of
Iloilo Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...
. McCoy began his teaching career as a lecturer at Yale, while he was still a doctoral student (1976-1977). He spent the next academic year as a research fellow at the
Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies an ...
. McCoy remained in Australia at the
University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensiv ...
as a lecturer (1978-1981), senior lecturer (1981-1985), and was eventually promoted to associate professor (1985-1989). He returned to the United States in 1989 as a full professor of history at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
, where he has since spent his career. McCoy has been given two endowed chairs during his tenure: John R.W. Smail (2004-2015) and
Fred Harvey Harrington Fred Harvey Harrington (June 24, 1912 – April 8, 1995) was an American educator and the 17th President of the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1962 to 1970. Career Born in Watertown, Harrington received his Bachelor of Arts from Cornel ...
(2015-present).


Congressional testimony

On June 2, 1972, while studying at Yale, McCoy testified before the United States Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs of which Senator
William Proxmire Edward William Proxmire (November 11, 1915 – December 15, 2005) was an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Senator from Wisconsin from 1957 to 1989. He holds the record for being the longest-serv ...
was chairman, and accused American government officials, such as G. McMurtrie Godley and Nelson G. Gross, of covering up drug trafficking in
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...
. Soon after, McCoy reaffirmed these beliefs in a letter to Congressman
Les Aspin Leslie Aspin Jr. (July 21, 1938 – May 21, 1995) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district from 1971 to 1993 and as the 18th United States Secretary of Defe ...
. McCoy uncovered drug trafficking methods for heroin and opium throughout Southeast Asia and to American troops stationed there by high-ranking government officials: Commander Ouane Rattikone and General Vang Pao (Laos); and President
Nguyễn Văn Thiệu Nguyễn Văn Thiệu (; 5 April 1923 – 29 September 2001) was a South Vietnamese military officer and politician who was the president of South Vietnam from 1967 to 1975. He was a general in the Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces (RVNAF), becam ...
and General
Đặng Văn Quang Lieutenant General Đặng Văn Quang (21 June 1929 – 15 July 2011) popularly known as Fat Quang, was an officer of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam who served as a special advisor to President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu of South Vietnam. Biogra ...
(
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
). McCoy also cited their ties with the
Mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...
, namely a visit to Saigon in 1968 by Santo Trafficante Jr. Senator Gale W. McGee dismissed the allegations and accused McCoy of McCarthyism, which was immediately rebutted. Senator Proxmire requested additional evidence and documentation to which McCoy responded his forthcoming book on the topic would serve as such. In that same year, McCoy's book, '' The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia'', was published by Harper and Row. He restated that the
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
was knowingly involved in the trade of heroin in the Golden Triangle.


Documenting the Marcos dictatorship

McCoy's work on the administration of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos has influenced not only the academic documentation regarding the dictatorship, but in some cases had a direct impact on the actual events - such as the publication in the New York Times of his investigation on Marcos' "fake medals," just week before the
1986 Philippine presidential election The 1986 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on February 7, 1986. Popularly known as the 1986 snap election, it is among the landmark events that led up to the People Power Revolution, the downfall of the presidenc ...
and Marcos' eventual ouster during the
People Power Revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a sustained campaign of c ...
.


Awards

*1985 -
Philippine National Book Award The Philippine National Book Awards, or simply the National Book Awards, is a Philippine literary award sponsored by the National Book Development Board The National Book Development Board, abbreviated as NBDB, is an agency of the Philippine gove ...
*1995 -
Philippine National Book Award The Philippine National Book Awards, or simply the National Book Awards, is a Philippine literary award sponsored by the National Book Development Board The National Book Development Board, abbreviated as NBDB, is an agency of the Philippine gove ...
*1998 - Fulbright-Hays Faculty Research Abroad *2001 -
Philippine National Book Award The Philippine National Book Awards, or simply the National Book Awards, is a Philippine literary award sponsored by the National Book Development Board The National Book Development Board, abbreviated as NBDB, is an agency of the Philippine gove ...
*2001 -
Association for Asian Studies The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) is a scholarly, non-political and non-profit professional association focusing on Asia and the study of Asia. It is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. The Association provides members with an Annu ...
, Grant Goodman Prize *2004 -
University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...
Graduate School, J.R.W. Smail Chair in History *2011 -
Association for Asian Studies The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) is a scholarly, non-political and non-profit professional association focusing on Asia and the study of Asia. It is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. The Association provides members with an Annu ...
, George Kahin Prize *2012 -
Yale Graduate School The Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is the graduate school of Yale University. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest graduate school in North America, and was the first North American graduate school to confer a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D ...
Alumni Association,
Wilbur Cross Medal The Wilbur Cross Medal, or Wilbur Lucius Cross Medal for Alumni Achievement, is an award by the Yale University Graduate School Alumni Association to recognize "...distinguished achievements in scholarship, teaching, academic administration, and p ...
*2012 -
University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
, Hilldale Award for Arts and Humanities


Filmography

Film credits include:"Alfred W. McCoy"
''
IMDb IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
''.
Television credits include:


Bibliography


Books

* ''Laos: War and Revolution'', with Nina S. Adams. New York:
Harper & Row Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins based in New York City. History J. & J. Harper (1817–1833) James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishin ...
(1970). *'' The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia: CIA Complicity in the Global Drug Trade''. New York:
Harper & Row Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins based in New York City. History J. & J. Harper (1817–1833) James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishin ...
(1972). * ''Priests on Trial: Father Gore and Father O'Brien Caught in the Crossfire Between Dictatorship and Revolution''. New York:
Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.''Closer Than Brothers: Manhood at the Philippine Military Academy''.
New Haven:
Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Universi ...
(1999). * ''A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror''. New York:
Metropolitan Books Henry Holt and Company is an American book-publishing company based in New York City. One of the oldest publishers in the United States, it was founded in 1866 by Henry Holt and Frederick Leypoldt. Currently, the company publishes in the fields ...
(2006). . *''Policing America's Empire: The United States, the Philippines, and the Rise of the Surveillance State''. Madison, Wis.:
University of Wisconsin Press The University of Wisconsin Press (sometimes abbreviated as UW Press) is a non-profit university press publishing peer-reviewed books and journals. It publishes work by scholars from the global academic community; works of fiction, memoir and p ...
(2009). *''Colonial Crucible: Empire in the Making of the Modern American State''. Madison, Wis.:
University of Wisconsin Press The University of Wisconsin Press (sometimes abbreviated as UW Press) is a non-profit university press publishing peer-reviewed books and journals. It publishes work by scholars from the global academic community; works of fiction, memoir and p ...
(2009). *''An Anarchy of Families: State and Family in the Philippines''. Madison, Wis.:
University of Wisconsin Press The University of Wisconsin Press (sometimes abbreviated as UW Press) is a non-profit university press publishing peer-reviewed books and journals. It publishes work by scholars from the global academic community; works of fiction, memoir and p ...
(2009). *''Torture and Impunity: The U.S. Doctrine of Coercive Interrogation''. Madison, Wis.:
University of Wisconsin Press The University of Wisconsin Press (sometimes abbreviated as UW Press) is a non-profit university press publishing peer-reviewed books and journals. It publishes work by scholars from the global academic community; works of fiction, memoir and p ...
(2012). *''Endless Empire: Spain's Retreat, Europe's Eclipse, America's Decline''. Madison, Wis.:
University of Wisconsin Press The University of Wisconsin Press (sometimes abbreviated as UW Press) is a non-profit university press publishing peer-reviewed books and journals. It publishes work by scholars from the global academic community; works of fiction, memoir and p ...
(2012). *''Beer of Broadway Fame: The Piel Family and Their Brooklyn Brewery''. SUNY Press (2016). *''In the Shadows of the American Century: The Rise and Decline of US Global Power''. Chicago:
Haymarket Books Haymarket Books is a left-wing non-profit, independent book publisher based in Chicago. History Haymarket Books was founded in 2001 by Anthony Arnove, Ahmed Shawki and Julie Fain, all of whom had previously worked at the '' International Sociali ...
(2017). *''To Govern the Globe: World Orders and Catastrophic Change''. Chicago:
Haymarket Books Haymarket Books is a left-wing non-profit, independent book publisher based in Chicago. History Haymarket Books was founded in 2001 by Anthony Arnove, Ahmed Shawki and Julie Fain, all of whom had previously worked at the '' International Sociali ...
(2021).


Articles


"Flowers of Evil: The CIA and the Heroin Trade."
'' Harper's Magazine'' (July 1972), pp. 47–53.
"A Correspondence with the CIA."
''
New York Review of Books New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...
'', vol. 19, no. 4 (Sep. 21, 1972).
"The Afghanistan Drug Lords."
''
Convergence Convergence may refer to: Arts and media Literature *''Convergence'' (book series), edited by Ruth Nanda Anshen *Convergence (comics), "Convergence" (comics), two separate story lines published by DC Comics: **A four-part crossover storyline that ...
'' (Fall 1991), pp. 11–12, 14. * "Lord of Drug Lords: One Life as Lesson for US Drug Policy." '' Crime, Law and Social Change'', vol. 30, no. 4 (Nov. 1998), pp. 301–331.
"Science in Dachau’s Shadow: Hebb, Beecher, and the Development of CIA Psychological Torture and Modern Medical Ethics."
''
Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences The ''Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering the history of social and behavioral sciences. It was established in 1965 and is published by John Wiley & Sons. The editor-in-chief i ...
'', vol. 43, no. 4 (Fall 2007), pp. 401–417. .
"Searching for Significance among Drug Lords and Death Squads: The Covert Netherworld as Invisible Incubator for Illicit Commerce."
''Journal of Illicit Economies and Development'', vol. 1, no. 1 (Jan. 14, 2019), pp. 9–22. * Online version is titled "How an article about the H-bomb landed ''Scientific American'' in the middle of the Red Scare".


Interviews


"Alfred McCoy Interviewed."
Interview by Nelson Benton. ''
CBS Morning News The ''CBS Morning News'' is an American early-morning news broadcast presented weekdays on the CBS television network. The program features late-breaking news stories, national weather forecasts and sports highlights. Since 2013, it has been anc ...
'' (Aug. 8, 1972).
"An Interview with Alfred W. McCoy."
Interview by Frank McGee. ''Today Show'' (
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
) (Aug. 15, 1972).
"Name: Alfred McCoy, Occupation: Author."
Interview by John Stapleton. ''The Tagg File'' (1980), pp. 5, 7–8, 10–11
Full transcript.

"The Future of the American Empire."
Interview by Nick Turse. ''
The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper t ...
'' (Nov. 24, 2017).
Alfred McCoy's interviews
on ''
Democracy Now! ''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long American TV, radio, and Internet news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, which airs live each weekday at ...
''


See also

* Allegations of CIA drug trafficking


References


External links


Curriculum Vitae


at
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

University of Wisconsin-Madison profileFull-text publications
at ResearchGate {{DEFAULTSORT:McCoy, Alfred W. 1945 births Living people 20th-century American historians 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers American expatriates in Australia American male non-fiction writers American non-fiction writers American people of German descent Columbia College (New York) alumni Kent School alumni Non-fiction writers about the French Connection People from Concord, Massachusetts Scientific American people University of California, Berkeley alumni University of New South Wales faculty University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Yale University faculty