The Salem Witch Trials And The Red Scare In The 1950s

Can the similar type of instinctive prejudice and panic that seized a small Massachusetts settlement more than 300 years ago take over the thoughts in the prevailing society triggering “witch hunts”? The goal of these actions was to alienate particular members of our civilization, and arouse condemnation of those who may have diverse beliefs, attitudes and practices. Citizens of this community began to establish separate policies and condemnations of hostility for any person who does not go along with the existing social behaviors and trends. To get a better view on the matter, I would like to go review four separate eras in our history. The Salem Witch trials, the Holocaust, The Red Scare, and current Middle Eastern terrorist groups.

During the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 and the Red Scare of the 1950s, communities under a lot anxiety, hosted formal hearings during which representatives of these communities accused others of disregarding social standards. While these periods in history share many correlations, they were also distinctly different times that produced unmistakably different consequences. However, when both periods ended, many accusers were filled with apprehension regarding resolutions they made during the hardships of the community. (Withers) Depositions that fueled the Red Scare were furnished mainly by adults, many of whom were professionals. In various cases, Red Scare testimony was based on portion of information, such as the account that a person had once registered as a communist one decade prior to being examined. During this period, the fear of communism that the Red Scare created among American’s was portrayed in many books and films. For example, there were a lot of movies released depicting how awful communism was and how the communists planned to take over the United States. Some examples of these movies are “The Commies are Coming; the Commies are Coming”, released in 1957 and “The Red Menace” released in 1949. People were very afraid of becoming "red" or being taken over by “the reds." The Cincinnati Reds, a baseball team, even changed their name to the "Cincinnati Redlegs," so that people troubled by the red scare would continue watching their baseball games.