HUAC May Hold Boston Hearings; Student Demonstrations Foreseen

The House Committee on Un-American Activities will conduct hearings in Boston this spring, according to unconfirmed reports circulating here and in Washington yesterday.

A spokesman for the committee refused to comment on the reports when contacted in the capital yesterday afternoon, noting that it is the practice of the committee not to reveal the cities it will visit until shortly before the investigations are to begin.

No Official Word

Reliable sources in Washington have indicated that Boston has definitely been under consideration for some time, but no official word has as yet been given. There was speculation earlier that Boston would not be selected because of the committee's desire to avoid strong protests such as occurred in San Francisco in 1960.

Almost certainly, the committee will be met with concentrated opposition if the hearings are conducted here. A large number of student groups throughout the Boston area have passed resolutions in recent months condemning the committee and urging its abolition.

Planning Demonstrations

At Harvard, where the San Francisco riots received considerable attention and where opposition to the HUAC has been repeatedly expressed, student leaders are already considering plans for demonstrations against the committee's hearings if they should be held here in Boston.

But the committee itself remains silent on the issue. They refuse to say what consideration has been given to Boston, decline to reveal what other cities have been discussed, and have no comment on when or whether a decision will be made at all.