Escape from Freedom

Social psychologist Erich Fromm was born in Frankfurt am Main to Orthodox parents. He studied law at Frankfurt University, as well as sociology and philosophy at the University of Heidelberg. Fromm was introduced to psychoanalysis in 1924; he practiced in Berlin, where he was involved with the Institute for Social Research, later known as the Frankfurt School. When the Nazis came to power, Fromm moved to New York and taught psychology at several American universities until 1950, when he relocated to Mexico. Always politically active, Fromm was a member of the American Socialist Party and spoke out against the nuclear arms race and the Vietnam War.