Post Ww2 Dbq Essay

World War II dramatically changed the United States turning it from an isolationist nation to a superpower, ready to lead the world. However, the war also affected the internal landscape of the country; as tensions increased between the United States and the Soviet Union, so did tensions between democracy and communism. During the 1940s and 1950s, a hysteric fear of communism swept the United States, as many Americans felt that communism was on a path of total take over, threatening the existence of the United States. Fear of the threat of communism filled the United States following World War II due to the planting of the roots of communist fears before the end of the war, the spread of communism throughout the world, and propaganda and internal

Even before the end of the war, the roots of fear had already begun to take shape in the United States. Many Americans were suspicious of the Soviets and their intentions, regardless of the fact that the United States and the Soviet Union were allies. For example, telegrams by Soviets discussing spies in the united States were intercepted by the Americans (Doc A), leading to a basis for fear. This led to many valid fears of Americans, as it is clear that communism was beginning to spread into the United States. However, these fears also started the path for invalid and inflated fears, which often led to biased action. After the Soviet union tested their first atomic bombs, many Americans suspected that spies had aided the Soviets. This led to Julius and Ethel rosenberg to be accused of being spies working for the Soviets; they were found guilty of treason and executed. These developments were based mainly off of the anti-communist attitudes that were spreading rapidly during the time, demonstrating how the fears of many led to wrongful

President Truman stated in a speech that “malicious propaganda has gone too far”, and he describes the fear that Americans had over losing their jobs or being labeled as communist. This exemplifies the growing sentiments regarding the negative influence and expansion of communism during the time period. During the 1940s, a Loyalty review Board was created, which investigated the backgrounds of millions of federal employees. This sparked a fear in Americans of losing their jobs over suspected communist ties. Furthermore, Senator Joseph McCarthy only exacerbated Americans’ fears of communism with his investigations and accusations of hundreds of State Department employees having ties to communism. Senator McCarthy developed his power based on the fears of Americans, demonstrating the growing concern that was overpowering the country. However, many of these fears were exaggerated, as many of these accusations were false. Though some of the fears of Americans were valid, many were inflated and led only to more