It was a scare that communism would come to the U.S. Many people were very worried and many in the government
In the 1920 The Red Scare was the fear of Communism in the United States. After employees went on strike people blamed it on communist belief. They
America in the 1950’s was a time where neighbor was told to watch neighbor in fear of a spy from Soviet Russia. After the second World War, many had believed that the atheistic communists had infiltrated the United States government on a mission to shape its policies. Politicians became disgraced after accusations of being a Communist member or sympathizer. In his “Speech Delivered in Wheeling West Virginia, February 9, 1950”, Republican senator from Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy, exemplified McCarthyism and the Red Scare by presenting a list of more than two hundred State Department employees that had been a Communist. Going into the Cold War between the Soviet Union and The United States had been a heated time for politicians named a communist; a near equivalent to being called a witch in Salem, Virginia.
In McCarthy’s speech in Wheeling, West Virginia, he mentions how there were communists throughout the government. He targeted those treated well by the Nation, such as the wealthy and white-collar workers. Attacking people born with silver spoons in their mouths, those who are born privileged, and claiming the ones in the government are Communists increases the amount of fear the Americans had that communism was spreading. Despite McCarthy’s accusations that these people were communists, he never provided evidence that supported his claim. McCarthy’s “witch hunt” for Communists, also known as McCarthyism, was a movement he used to make himself more powerful and to discredit the Truman
The First Red Scare, falling out in the aftermath of World War I, arose due to global upheaval and conflict. From 1917 to the summer of 1920, intense fear spread across the United States as a result of radical political ideologies such as communism and anarchism. The Russian Revolution in 1917 and the rise of the Bolsheviks fueled American societies to be fearful and suspicious. The federal government tasked Attorney General, A. Mitchell Palmer, with leading the investigation. In response to these investigations, the Palmer raids from 1919-1920 were carried out.
First you need to know that that the United States was scared of communism at the time
This kind of hysteria caused the Red Scare, which was a period that Americans thought communists were working to destroy America. This mass fear of communism ruined people’s lives and made them turn against their own family and friends. Joseph McCarthy played an
Examples of this can be seen many times throughout history, with a clear one being the trial of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti that occurred during the 1920s. America in the 1920s saw vast change and economic growth, yet still faced domestic turmoil. Due to the rise of communism in countries such as Russia, Bavaria and Hungary, a violent wave of anti-communist panic, known as the Red Scare, swept through the United States in the early 1920s. During the Red Scare, many Americans feared that communism would spread to this country and began to resent immigrants for their differences. The Palmer raids, which occurred in November and December of 1919, further demonstrated this fear with the arrests of over 4,000 people, many of who were citizens, because of suspicion that they were radicals.
Lastly, unlike the period of 1840s-50s in the period of 1910s-20s Americans were afraid immigrants were bringing ideas of communism into the country and threatening the safety of democracy. The red scare in 1919-20 resulted in a nationwide crusade against left-wingers whose Americanism was suspicious. Numerous states joined in the outcry against radicals. The case of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, the court may have discriminated against them because they were
“Americans were uneasy, filled with anxieties and fears about the Cold War, and distressed that World War I had obviously not been the war to end war. They wanted answers to explain their dilemma and for many the Communist “conspiracy” in Washington seemed to be the apparent explanation.” (Associated Press 144) It was at that moment Senator Mccarthy, who was in search of a political agenda, had found
In the 1920’s in the United States, the first Red Scare occurred. This was a time where American civilians would observe people on the streets, in stores, at work, on the bus, anywhere citizens might find strange behavior they might deem communist. Following the phase of this fight against communism, America obtained the ideal to help other nations follow in their leadership and inherit the democratic elements implemented in American democracy while eliminating the ruling of communism. Pursuing this principle in his presidency, President Harry S Truman, a loyal and honest man, leads with this mentality in his orders and decisions. In his patriotic speech to Congress and the Speaker of the House, President Harry Truman describes the hardships
People thought that because the Russian czar had been overthrown and executed by strikes that the labor unions of America were being taken over by Communist immigrants with the same goal in mind. Soon, people became obsessed with the Communistic threat coming from Russia following World War II, which led to violence and disregard of civil liberties. “The U.S. government, mainly the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) led by Democratic congressman Martin Dies, Jr., had launched an investigation designed to target suspected Communist Party members in all areas of life, including government, educational institutions, labor unions, and the entertainment industry. The repression engendered a climate of fear throughout the country, as people were afraid to speak out as the accused found their names on blacklists, which hindered their employability and ruined many lives.” (The Crucible Allegorizes the Red Scare)
(Miller94). Similarly during WW1 in the 1920’s xenophobia and the spread of communism posed a great threat to Americans politically and socially. John
motion, in order to send information to certain organizations beyond the executive branch of the Federal Government, as stated by Cathleen Thom and Patrick Jung (348). Hoover referred to communism as “the mad march of Red fascism,” because of American communists seeking to make a Soviet America (Weiner 24). The “zealots” of the communist party intended to overthrow the Government of the United States (26-27). Hoover had declared a war on communism, and he had multiple resources on his side. During his war on communism, Weiner explains that Hoover had thirty five undercover informants and sixty one FBI agents under his leadership.
After the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, the result was the red scare. With selfish dictators emerging throughout the world, many were filled with the fear of widespread communism making it’s way into the United States. Amongst the good and bad change were those who
