Red Scare and McCarthyism

What did senator Joseph McCarthy do?

he helped fuel the suspicions regarding Communists infiltrating the U.S.; He had no real evidence to support his communist accusations; he accused innocent government officials of being communists, making them lose their jobs and ruining their lives; 20 million people watched the Army-McCarthy hearings; his bullying tactics hurt his reputation, and Welch asked him “have you no decency sir?”; McCarthy was eventually censured by the U.S.; McCarthy originally accused 205 people, but that eventually became 9.

Does the Red Scare and McCarthyism regard Civil Rights or Liberties?

Civil Liberties (rights are taken bc he accused innocent people)

Suburbs?

in the 60s 60 million Americans moved to the suburbs, which were “planned communities” (“Levittowns” made all houses look exactly alike to save money); the people who moved to the suburbs were looking for a time of calm after WWII and the Great Depression, and wanted to start families; BABY BOOM!

baby boom?

after the end of WWII, soldiers came back home, had babies, and the baby boom happened, making the peak have 4.5 million babies born

GI Bill of Rights

helped veterans returning from WWII by giving them loans for education, to start businesses, and to buy homes.

Highway Act

Eisenhower’s Highway Act created the largest highway system in the world; this freeway system serves nearly all U.S. major cities and downtown areas

Technology? Shows?

the most popular family activity in the 50s was watching TV together; The Honeymooners was a situation comedy; The World Series sporting event; I love Lucy was the most popular program of the decade; however, televisions only showed white, middle class, suburban experiences. Things such as poverty and ethnic minorities barely, if not ever, appeared on TV.

Teenagers?

with more free time and spending money, these teenagers sought new leisure-time activities, which glamorized rebellion against the suburban conformity; this led to Hippies; they identified with literature (Holden Caufield in The Catcher in the Rye) and people on TV; however, some of these books were banned from libraries because adults thought that they were inappropriate; James Dean was an idol to teenagers; Rebel Without a Cause

Loyalty Review Board

they investigated potential communists and communist ties among federal government employees; they thought it was important to guarantee the loyalty of Federal Employees because any disloyal or subversive person constitutes a threat to America’s democratic processes (think of how communism=bad and Vietnam War)

HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee)

HUAC investigated communists everywhere including private citizens, public employees and organizations; they wanted to ferret out and expose communists everywhere; it was disbanded in 1975 because they were doing things that made people feel as if their personal freedoms were being taken away (e.g. blacklisting, Hollywood 10, invasion of privacy); according to Hoover, communists infiltrated Hollywood by using airways, seeking radio channels, trying to infiltrate labor unions, and so-called intellectual and creative fields.

Hollywood 10

they were 10 screenwriters, and 40 people associated with this movie called to testify before the committee of HUAC for alleged communism. There was no evidence between them and communism, and HUAC continued to call witnesses and force them to give information regarding communism, despite them testifying their First amendment rights; this got them blacklisted, making them fired from their Hollywood jobs (showcasing HUACs bad investigation methods)

McCarren Act

this act was created in order to increase International Security to avoid communism coming to America. It removed the bar on naturalization, only for Asian immigrants, making them identified by race, not by national origin. They denied immigration to unlawful, immortal, diseased, and politically radical people. Basically, anyone remotely related to communism was a “serious threat,” making immigration extremely selective. Truman tried to veto this law, but the Congress passed it. It also required Communist organizations to register with the government.

Anti-Communist Propoganda

propaganda was everywhere, on TV, newspapers, all against communists; one video even showed people how to spot a communist (when someone openly states they’re a communist, if they read and advocate the views of a communist company, if someone attacks the domestic policy of the U.S.); some propaganda showed America on fire if it was communist, showing that colleges have no communist, and saying that communists are in your walls and bathroom.

Alger Hiss

Hiss was a former official who was accused to be a Soviet spy. When HUAC had a hearing with him, Whitaker Chambers testified saying that Hiss has given Chambers classified documents. Hiss denied this yet Chambers showed evidence, making Hiss arrested. This increased the amount of fear of Communists and fears of them infiltrating the U.S. (red scare)

The Rosenberg’s

The Rosenbergs gave secrets of the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union during WWII, they were convicted and sentenced to death (the first time in 177 years). This fueled the intense fear of Communism.

Political Cartoons of the Red Scare

They showed that communists create fear, and that it is okay to feel fear right now, since they are working extremely hard to get rid of all the Communists in America, and will eventually do so.

They are showing the U.S. important people having a meeting about how to destroy the USSR (which was symbolized with scissors), and how much planning they are putting into it to ensure citizens that it will happens and that everything will by okay.