Informative Essay: How did the Accusations of the HUAC reflect the effects of the Cold War in the United States? The House Un-american Activities Committee, or HUAC, was one of the defining points of McCarthyism and the Cold War. Fueled by suspicion and distrust, the HUAC was formed to investigated private individuals and public figures who were suspected of engaging in subversive activities or having Communist ties (House Un-American Activities Committee). While it was established far before the Cold War, the HUAC reached it’s peak during the Red Scares of the Cold War, and represented the attitudes of many Americans during this time. The accusations of the HUAC were symptomatic of the culture of fear, particularly fear of being different, that the Cold War caused in the United States. HUAC investigations during this time targeted primarily at those …show more content…
In the transcript of a HUAC hearing, it can be seen that many were forced to self-incriminate, as if they pleaded the fifth amendment they would be unable to return to their jobs and their families, while pleading the first amendment would cause them to be sent to prison in contempt of the court (Lithwick). Terrence Hallinan, an eyewitness to HUAC trials, said in a statement that if anyone incriminated themselves as being Communist, the HUAC would investigate their close relations for Communist ties (Carlsson, Hallinan, and Jenkins). Active in Marxist circles as a youth, and close to many confirmed Communists and Marxists, Betty Fredian’s associations and relationships also caused her to become a target of the HUAC in this way (Boucher). This too embodies the extreme prejudice of individuals in the United States of people who identified as Marxist, Communist, or were otherwise far left leaning, to the extent that those around them were incriminated by