Global Cold War Shifts, Korean War, and Second Red Scare (1945-1955)

Post-WW II U.S. World-View and Containment

• Immediate post-war mindset

  • U.S. strategic "tunnel vision": priority on Europe while drafting the Atlantic Charter and George Kennan’s containment blueprint.

  • Assumption: If communism is stopped in Europe, the rest of the world will follow.

• World War II’s truly global after-effects

  • Massive political, economic, and ideological vacuum on every continent.

  • Result: the U.S. must eventually apply containment worldwide, not just on the European chessboard.

The Age of Decolonization

• Historical backdrop

  • Late 19^{th} / early 20^{th} centuries = “Great Age of Imperialism.”

  • Primary targets: Africa and Asia; but the U.S. also carved out holdings (e.g., \text{The Philippines} after the Spanish–American War).

• Post-war collapse of empires

  • Britain, France, and other colonial powers are economically exhausted; lack money, manpower, and public will.

  • U.S. leads by example: grants Filipino independence in 1946.

• Landmark decolonization moments

  • Rapid chain reaction across Africa: successive independence movements topple colonial regimes.

  • India: gains freedom in 1947 due largely to Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violent resistance.

• Significance

  • Emergence of dozens of new, politically fragile states becomes fertile ground for U.S.–Soviet competition.

Asian Nationalism, Communism, and the ‘Loss of China’

• Japanese wartime empire (Manchuria, coastal China, French Indochina) disintegrates in 1945.

• Many Asian anti-Japanese resistance groups are ideologically communist ⇒ U.S. can no longer assume communism is a Moscow-only phenomenon.

Chinese Civil War (Resumed 1945–1949)

• Two anti-Japanese factions now clash for full control:

  • Communists – led by Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung).

  • Nationalists – led by Chiang Kai-shek.

• U.S. miscalculation

  • Assumes Mao’s movement is “agrarian,” distinct from Soviet communism; provides only minimal support to Chiang.

• Outcome

  • 1949: Communist victory; creation of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

  • Immediate PRC–USSR military alliance shocks Washington – the phrase “Who lost China?” dominates politics.

• Strategic consequence

  • Truman administration expands containment doctrine from Euro-centric to globe-spanning.

Korea: From Japanese Colony to Cold-War Flashpoint

Liberation and Division (1945)

• Yalta Conference deal: USSR will help defeat Japan.

• Soviets liberate north of the 38^{th} Parallel; U.S. liberates south ⇒ a temporary occupational boundary.

Two rival regimes (by 1948)

• North Korea: Communist dictatorship under Kim Il-sung (grandfather of Kim Jong-un).

• South Korea: Authoritarian anti-communist regime under Syngman Rhee (U.S.-installed, bans opposition parties).

  • Ethical contradiction: U.S. backs a dictator solely because he is not communist.

Spark of War (June 1950)

• U.S. troops had already withdrawn in 1949 – perceived as a green light.

• North Korean Army, armed by USSR, crosses 38^{th} Parallel, nearly overruns peninsula (Pusan Perimeter).

UN Intervention & MacArthur’s Gamble

• Truman frames response as United Nations “police action,” avoiding a formal U.S. declaration of war.

  • Majority of UN forces = American; supreme commander = Gen. Douglas MacArthur.

• Phase I: Successful amphibious landing (Inchon), drives North Koreans past 38^{th} Parallel.

• Phase II: MacArthur convinces Truman to push toward Chinese border to unify Korea.

• Phase III: China intervenes with >1,000,000 troops, forcing UN retreat ⇒ long stalemate.

Cease-Fire & Legacy

• Armistice signed 1953 (Eisenhower era); new boundary ≈ original 38^{th} Parallel.

• No peace treaty – DPRK & ROK remain technically at war. U.S. still stations \approx 50{,}000 troops.

• Casualties

  • U.S. military deaths: \approx 54{,}000; wounded: >100{,}000.

  • Chinese deaths: \approx 900{,}000.

  • Korean military & civilian deaths: millions – underscores moral & humanitarian cost.

• Containment verdict

  • Success: South Korea preserved.

  • Costs: Enormous human toll, legitimization of dictators, precedent for global “hot” proxy wars.

Domestic Fallout: The Second Red Scare (Late 1940s–1950s)

Historical Precedent

• First Red Scare after World War I (Palmer Raids) fizzled – Communist Party <1\% of U.S. population.

New Context

• Great Depression boosted U.S. Communist Party membership – appeared as an alternative during crisis.

• Verified Soviet espionage heightens anxiety (e.g., Julius & Ethel Rosenberg give atomic secrets; executed 1953).

Republican Political Strategy – ‘Had Enough?’ (Election 1946)

• Exploit inflation, strikes, debt and “communism” to flip both chambers of Congress.

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

• Founded 1938; repurposed post-1946 as anti-communist spearhead.

• Collaboration with FBI to expose “subversives.”

• Notable spy uncovered: Alger Hiss (State Dept.) – convicted of perjury.

• Mission-creep: Education, government, media, Hollywood.

  • Dilemma for witnesses: confess & name names, or plead the Fifth and be blacklisted.

Hollywood Example

• The “Hollywood 10” – directors who invoked First Amendment; jailed for contempt, careers ruined.

• Other victims: playwright Arthur Miller (inspires “The Crucible”), folk singer Pete Seeger, even Lucille Ball and Burl Ives.

• Friendly witnesses: Walt Disney and Ronald Reagan (then Screen Actors Guild president) supply names.

• Cultural spill-over: propaganda films/books like “The Red Menace,” “I Married a Communist.”

McCarthyism

• Senator Joseph McCarthy (WI) seizes the spotlight in 1950.

  • Waves a paper claiming 205 Communists in State Dept. (later 81, then 57) – no evidence.

  • Quote-to-remember: “A lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth can get its pants on.”

• Political impact

  • Smears the Truman administration as “soft on communism.”

  • Helps Republicans win White House (Dwight Eisenhower, 1952) though Eisenhower privately despises McCarthy.

• Downfall – The Army-McCarthy Hearings (1954)

  • Televised interrogation of the U.S. Army exposes McCarthy’s bullying tactics.

  • Public opinion turns; Senate censures him; dies 1957 (alcohol-related).

Ethical & Philosophical Take-Aways

• Containment vs. Democratic Principles

  • Willingness to support dictators (Syngman Rhee) reveals a moral contradiction: freedom rhetoric vs. realpolitik.

• Proxy Wars & Human Cost

  • Korea foreshadows Vietnam and other Cold-War battlegrounds where civilians pay the highest price.

• Domestic Liberty vs. Security

  • HUAC and McCarthyism illustrate how fear undermines civil liberties (speech, association, due process).

Connections & Broader Relevance

• Mirrors earlier fear cycles: Salem Witch Trials metaphor; First Red Scare parallels.

• UN debut as peace-keeping body: Korea tests the collective-security concept founded in 1945.

• Seeds of future crises: ongoing Korean DMZ tensions, Sino-American rivalry, Republican use of “soft on communism” rhetoric in later elections (e.g., against JFK/LBJ over Vietnam).

Key Dates & Numbers (Quick Reference)

• 1945 – Yalta; liberation/division of Korea; end of WWII.

• 1946 – Filipino independence; Republicans regain Congress.

• 1947 – Indian independence; Truman Loyalty Program.

• 1949 – People’s Republic of China; U.S. withdrawal from Korea.

• 1950 – North Korean invasion; McCarthy’s Wheeling speech.

• 1950–1953 – Korean War.

• 1952 – Eisenhower elected.

• 1953 – Armistice; Rosenbergs executed.

• 1954 – Army-McCarthy Hearings.