4.2 The end of post-war euphoria

Question 1

Anti-communism and the Cold War context

Answer 1

• After each war, the US was gripped with the red scare
• after 1945, the second red scare occured
• 1945, hundereds of secret State Department documents were discovered in the offices of the communist magazine ‘Amerasia’.
• the following year, Canadian gov employees were caught handing over atomic secrets to Soviet spies
• this was seen as a serious threat to to US security
• 1947, Truman introduced new loyalty and security checks on all federal employees to see if they had communits sympathies

Question 2

HUAC and Joseph McCarthy

Answer 2

• House Un-American Activties Committee
• set up by the House of Representatives to protect the USA agasint Nazi Germany syping and subversion
• became a powerful tool in the campaign agaisnt communism within the USA
• Truman made a speech stating that the USSR was a major threat. Led to the Marshall Plan
• Investigations of communism were broadcasted so anyone could see it
• greatly increased hysteria against communists. The fear of ‘reds under the bed’ undermining American way of life, became a recurrent theme

JOSEPH MCCARTHY
height of anti-communism came with the rise of him
he annoucned that the State Department had been infiltrated by communists who were undermining the USA’s conflicts with world communism. Propelled him into national limelight
expolit it for his own personal gain
kept changing his story
attacked other government departments, such as the American Bar Association
1952- helped pass a law, the Immigration and Nationality Act, new stricter quotas on immigration
his attacks weakened morale in the federal government and created a climate of fear and accusation that helped undermine American life

Question 3

The Reality of Nuclear age

Answer 3

-End of WW2- USA was the world’s greatest power
-US home territory was under threat by attack of the most destructive weapon in history
-This led to a growing fear that the US’s position in the world could be undermined by communist subversion at home
-people were concerned with how the Soviets found out the secrets of the atomic weapon
-affected nearly all parts of life. Schools were teaching children what to do if there was a nuclear attack. People were building nuclear shelters and there were public ones as well
-The Highways and Defence Act 1956 was passed to enable the rapid evacuation of cities in case of nuclear attack

Question 4

The Rosenberg Case

Answer 4

-July 1950, Julius Rosenberg who was an electrical engineer within the US Army Signal Corps was arrested
-His wife was also arrested
-they were both former members of the American Communist Party.
-they were arrested partly on evidence provided by Ethels brother in-law.
-claimed they were singled out because they were Jewish
-appealed to the Supreme Court 7 times claiming they did not have a fair trial
-found guilty
-were executed and received popular support
-when soviet archives were released it was revealed that Julius was passing on secret info to them.
-the trial confirmed the belief to Americans that the main threat to the US’s position in the world came from within