To What Extent Did The Cold War Affect Life Within The USA? Flashcards
What is the Red Scare?
A growing fear that communist ideas would spread and perhaps lead to a communist revolution and creation of a communist dictatorship in the USA.
Communists and other radical left-wing groups were known as Reds.
When did the first major Red Scare take place?
1919
This was when the federal government launched the Palmer Raids.
What significant event occurred after the Second World War?
The Cold War began
This was marked by a series of geopolitical tensions between the USA and the USSR.
What was the Berlin Airlift Crisis?
A major event in 1948-49 during the Cold War where the USA and its allies airlifted supplies to Berlin after the Soviet blockade.
What speech did Joseph McCarthy make about communist subversion?
Wheeling Speech
This speech claimed that communists had infiltrated the State Department.
What act was passed in 1952 aimed at controlling immigration related to communism?
McCarran Act
What was the purpose of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1953?
To regulate immigration and prevent the entry of communists into the United States.
When did the Korean War begin?
1950
What was the outcome of the Korean War?
The Korean War ended in 1953.
What was the Hollywood Ten investigated for?
Allegations of communist subversion
They were a group of screenwriters and directors accused of having communist ties.
What was the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) originally created for?
To protect the USA against Nazi German spying and subversion.
What did President Truman introduce in 1947 related to federal employees?
New loyalty and security checks to see if they had communist sympathies.
What was Executive Order 9835?
It created the Federal Employee Loyalty Program.
How many federal employees resigned between 1947 and 1951 due to loyalty checks?
Nearly 3,000
What was the outcome of the Dennis v. the United States case?
It upheld the Smith Act of 1940 against communists.
What was the significance of the Iron Curtain as described by Winston Churchill?
It symbolized the division of Europe into communist and non-communist spheres.
What did the discovery of secret documents in the Amerasia magazine offices indicate?
A serious threat to US security due to suspected communist activity.
True or False: The USA was the only power with nuclear weapons until 1949.
True
Fill in the blank: The _______ was a series of investigations led by HUAC into communist influence in America.
Red Scare
What were the consequences for those investigated by HUAC?
Many faced public scrutiny, loss of employment, and blacklisting.
What was the purpose of the HUAC?
The HUAC investigated communist infiltration across American society and attempted to expose communist supporters in the federal government, trade unions, and Hollywood.
What significant act was passed in 1940 to combat communism?
The Smith Act of 1940 allowed the prosecution of anyone who supported and promoted communism.
What was President Truman’s stance on communism in Europe?
In March 1947, Truman advocated for massive US aid to Europe, stating that the Soviet Union was a major threat to democracy.
What was the European Recovery Plan also known as?
The Marshall Plan.
Who was Alger Hiss?
Alger Hiss was a State Department official accused of being a communist sympathizer and convicted for lying to the HUAC.
What was the outcome of the HUAC’s investigation into Alger Hiss?
Hiss was convicted for lying to the HUAC in January 1950.
Who was Richard Nixon in relation to the Hiss case?
Richard Nixon was a junior Congressman who gained national prominence by attacking Hiss.
What did the fear of communism lead to in American society?
It led to national hysteria against communists, with the theme of ‘Reds under the bed’ becoming recurrent.
Who was Joseph McCarthy?
Joseph McCarthy was a junior senator from Wisconsin who rose to prominence during the height of anti-communist feeling.
What is a ‘witch hunt’?
A process whereby a person or persons are deliberately set out to be accused of a crime, irrespective of the strength of evidence.
What was the context of the article ‘How Not to Get Investigated’?
It illustrated the degree of concern within the federal government about possible communist subversion.
Who is Senator McCarthy?
Senator McCarthy is the person most closely associated with the anti-communist movement within the USA in the early stages of the Cold War.
What did McCarthy announce in February 1950?
He announced that the State Department had been infiltrated by communists who were undermining the USA’s conflict with world communism.
What was the public reaction to McCarthy’s claims?
McCarthy’s claims propelled him into the national limelight and he became popular despite no evidence supporting his accusations.
What did McCarthy claim about the State Department?
He claimed that the State Department was full of communists and communist sympathisers.
What was the result of the Senate Committee investigation into McCarthy’s claims?
The Senate Committee found no evidence to support McCarthy’s claims.
What was the public opinion on communists in the teaching profession in 1950?
In a poll, 61 percent of Americans said that if a person was proved to be a communist sympathiser, they should be dismissed from the teaching profession.
What impact did McCarthy have on the 1950 midterm elections?
McCarthy’s tactics seemed to have worked, with two anti-McCarthy senators losing their seats and Republicans gaining significantly.
What were some reasons for McCarthy’s popularity?
He offered simple answers to complex questions about the USA’s position in the world and exploited fears of communism.
What was the HUAC?
The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) investigated alleged disloyalty and subversive activities.
What legislation did Richard Nixon support in 1948?
He supported a bill that required all of the USA’s 60,000 communists to register with the government.
What was the McCarran Act?
The McCarran Act required communist organizations to register and allowed the federal government to arrest individuals engaged in subversive activities.
What was the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952?
It established new, stricter quotas on immigration and set up procedures to screen out potential subversives from entering the USA.
What was the outcome of the Dennis v. United States case?
The US Supreme Court upheld the Smith Act, allowing the arrest and detention of known communists.
What effect did McCarthy’s actions have on the federal government?
His attacks weakened morale and created a climate of fear and accusation in American life.
What was a key feature of US life in the early 1950s?
Fear of ‘Reds under the bed’ became a common concern in every US town and institution.
What was the significance of McCarthy’s Senate hearings?
They were held in public and filmed for television, bringing McCarthy’s views into American homes.
What was the reality of the nuclear arms race after WWII?
The USA possessed nuclear weapons, but the USSR exploded its own atomic bomb in 1949, escalating tensions.
What was the impact of McCarthy’s anti-communist crusade on the Republican Party?
McCarthy’s anti-communist crusade helped the Republican Party win the presidential election in November 1952 for the first time in 20 years.
What happened to McCarthy’s political usefulness after the Republicans gained power in 1953?
Much of McCarthy’s political usefulness had gone, but he continued to make accusations about communist infiltration into prestigious institutions.
What was the Senate’s reaction to McCarthy’s behavior?
The US Senate became increasingly irritated by McCarthy’s accusations and behavior, viewing him as an embarrassment.
How long did McCarthy face questioning in the Senate Caucus Room?
McCarthy faced questioning in the Senate Caucus Room for 35 days, with up to 20 million Americans watching on television.
What was the effect of McCarthy’s accusations on American institutions?
McCarthy’s accusations helped undermine the government, the teaching profession, and other professional bodies.
What was the state of the USA at the end of the Second World War?
The USA saw itself as the world’s greatest power, possessing nuclear weapons while the Soviet Union was devastated by war.
When did the Soviet Union explode its own nuclear weapon?
The Soviet Union exploded its own nuclear weapon in 1949.
What was the nature of the threat faced by the USA from 1949 to 1991?
The USA faced a serious threat of attack from nuclear weapons, leading to fears of communist subversion at home.
How did the reality of the nuclear age affect American life?
American life was affected by drills in schools for nuclear attacks, families building shelters, and civil defense plans being drawn up.
What did the Federal Highways and Defense Act of 1956 enable?
The Federal Highways and Defense Act of 1956 was passed partly to enable the rapid evacuation of cities in case of a nuclear attack.
What event led to the arrest of Klaus Fuchs?
In early February 1950, Klaus Fuchs was arrested by the British for passing on US nuclear weapons secrets to the Soviets.
Who were implicated by Klaus Fuchs?
Klaus Fuchs implicated Ethel and Julius Rosenberg.
When were Julius and Ethel Rosenberg arrested?
Julius Rosenberg was arrested on 17 July 1950, and Ethel was arrested on 11 August 1950.
What was Julius Rosenberg’s occupation?
Julius Rosenberg was an electrical engineer with the US Army Signal Corps.
What was the basis for the Rosenbergs’ arrest?
Their arrest was based partly on evidence provided by Ethel’s brother-in-law, David Greengrass, and chemist Harry Gold.
What did the Rosenbergs claim regarding their trial?
They claimed they were singled out because they were Jewish and did not receive a fair trial.
What was the outcome of the Rosenbergs’ trial?
They were found guilty under the Espionage Act of 1917 and sentenced to death.
When were the Rosenbergs executed?
The executions took place on 19 June 1953.
What was the public reaction to the Rosenbergs’ death sentence?
The death sentence received popular support, with major media sources in agreement except for The Daily Worker and the Jewish Way Forward.
What did the declassification of Soviet archives in the 1990s reveal about Julius Rosenberg?
It revealed that Julius was a communist who passed on secret information to Soviet agents.
What belief did the trial confirm among many Americans?
The trial confirmed the belief that the main threat to the US’s position in the world came from within.
What did Irving Saypol state regarding the trial’s focus?
He stated that the defendants were not on trial for being Communists, but for their actions related to espionage.
