Mcarthyism And The Red Scare Flashcards
What made the USA worried about the spread of communism 1945-50?
- the 1948 invasion of Czechoslovakia
- 1948 Berlin blockade
- 1949 success of the communist party in china
- 1950 invasion of South Korea by North Korea
Impacts of the Cold War: international relations 1945-50
Truman and Stalin first clashed at the Potsdam conference in 1945 due to soviet influence in the east. The USA were genuinely scared of communism spreading through the east and the west. In march 1946 Churchill talked of an ‘iron curtain’ separating the east and the west.
What did the USA do to try and stop communism in 1945-50?
- Truman doctrine
- Marshall plan
- NATO
The development of the red scare
People in the US began to think that difficulties with communism abroad were because of treason at home. Republicans and democrats had very anti communist views. In 1945 a raid of a pro communist newspaper office showed that classified documents had been leaked by two state employees and a naval intelligence officer.
Executive order 9835
In march 1947 Truman issued this order establishing loyalty checks on all government workers, including their beliefs and associations. In the next 4 years nearly 3000 people had to resign and 300 people were sacked due to disloyalty. By 1953 39 states had loyalty programmes where state employees had to sign loyalty oaths or they would lose their jobs.
HUAC (house un-American activities committee)
In 1947 they began hearings to expose communist influence in American life. Those who refused to answer their questions would often lose their jobs.
The Hollywood 10
They were ten writers and producers who had to testify before HUAC. They refused to speak In court, pleading the fifth amendment. They were found guilty of contempt in congress and were given one year in jail.
Alger hiss
In 1948 Whitaker chambers, an editor for the times and a former communist told HUAC(Richard Nixon) that Alger hiss was a spy. Hiss was very high up in government. He was interrogated but there wasn’t enough evidence to find him guilty. Later that year, Nixon was invited to chambers farm where he was shown a micro film( hidden In a pumpkin) that had secret documents from hiss’ typewriter. In 1950, hiss was tried for perjury and sentenced to 5 years in jail.
Mccarren internal security act, September 1950
Said that communist parties had to register with the justice department so that they could be carefully monitored. Also it said that in the event of a war communists could be held in detention camps and that they couldn’t work in armement factories.
The Rosenberg trial
In July 1950 Julius and Ethel rosenburg were arrested for passing on secrets of the atom bomb to the soviets. They were found guilty and sent to death row where they were killed in June 1953
McCarthy
He was a senator of Wisconsin who created a hysteria about communism. On the 9th February 1950 he produced a list of 205 names of people working for the state who he claimed to be communists. However, many of his claims had no evidence to support him.
Owen lattimore
A professor at a top university who McCarthy claimed was a top Russian spy. However, McCarthys claims fluctuated and lattimore was cleared of all charges.
The tydings committee
As McCarthy never publicly released the list, people began to question whether or not it existed. Therefore this committee was set up to investigate his claims and it was decided they were ‘a fraud and a coax’. After this, senator tydings was branded a communist by McCarthy and lost the next election to a McCarthy supporter.
Why did McCarthy gain so much support?
People were already worried about communism in America because of:
•Alger hiss
•the rosenburgs
•Hollywood ten
What role did the media play in the fading of mccarthyism?
In march 1954 a journalist ed Murrow made a TV programme condemning McCarthy. It was almost entirely based on his own words and exposed the shabby nature of his baseless claims. After this, other journalists had the confidence to attack McCarthy.
