Communism; a threat to the nation of the United States of America. Many Americans believe that people who believe in Communist teachings are corrupt. In 1950, a historical event happened in the US timeline; the Red Scare. Joe McCarthy became a Senator for the state of Wisconsin in 1947. The Red Scare happened from 1947-1957, “The Cold War, which began after the end of World War II, was a period where Americans were extremely paranoid about the threat of Communism.” (“Background to the Red Scare” Par. 1) The Cold War was a period of time where citizens of the United States feared nuclear warfare with the Soviet Union. Joe McCarthy created a list of names that were people of power who were part of the Communist Party. He took a five-city tour,…
In the years following World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union entered upon the brink of the Cold War, which lasted from the late 1940s into the early 1950s. During this time, the United States broke into hysteria over supposed threats of communist in the country, thus brining forth the second red scare. After rising to political power, Republican Senator Joseph P. McCarthy was not only looked upon as an enduring symbol of the red scare brining forth the term known as McCarthyism, but was able to have a profound effect on government and society forceing people to draw loyalties until the scares eventual fall.…
McCarthyism, or the time known as the McCarthy Era, dominated our country from 1950-1954. During this time, there were many hearings in which people suspected of being related in some way to communism were interviewed and forced to give up names of others. If they refused to give up names of others, they were put in prison.…
Mccarthyism resulted in americans turning against each other because of fear of spies, paranoia and hysteria Clearly, american had anxiety of being watched by spies. In the article it is said that “A former assistant secretary of state, Alger Hiss was convicted of perjury after denying that he was a communist spy. This shows that american people were so scared they started to point finger at people who could possible be innocent. One reason for this is that In “1917 soon after the Bolshevik Revolution that will turn rushing to Soviet union thousands of a legend communist in the US were arrested and deported this was later known as the red scare”.…
“The American pupulace was paranoid and the U.S. military maintained a hair-trigger nuclear defense posture for a number of years. Senator Joseph McCarthy conducted witch-trialesque hearings to denounce supposedly un-American communist infiltrators in American government, in Hollywood, and elsewhere. The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) pursued, denounced, and ruined the lives of suspected but often unproved traitors (page 6)”…
After the end of the Second World War in 1945 another war emerged, this war was the cold war. The cold war was a power struggle between Communism and Capitalism. Capitalist Americans were terrified of communists and the chance of being hurled into a nuclear war. The American fear of communism, “the red scare”, caused many citizens to become paranoid. This paranoia lead many Americans into…
Sam Robert in the article a decade of fear argues that MCcarthyism turned americans against each other. Robert supports his claim by illustrating fear, described betrayal and compared it to other united states internal conflict. The author's purpose is to point out a vulnerable period in american history in order to demonstrate that americans fell prey to mccarthys negative propaganda. The author writes in a informative persuasive tone for his educated audience. I strongly agree with Roberts claim.…
Several post-World War II events led to the Second Red Scare and consequently to McCarthyism. For starters, after World War II, under the Warsaw Pact, the Soviet Union controlled eight different communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, creating what was called the Iron Curtain. Soviet Union…
The 1950’s dealt with threats from the USSR and Communism which scared many people in the United States and soon became a full-fledged paranoia. There was fear of falling behind the advances of the Communist countries, especially among the Soviet Union, creating the Red Scare. As the Cold War with the USSR escalated, Americans increased their suspicions of Communist influences. Due to this, a special committee was formed in order to investigate Communists in America known as HUAC (The House Un-American Activities Committee). In 1947, HUAC accused ten people in Hollywood of supporting communist propaganda becoming blacklisted. As time went on, more individuals were being suspected of being Communists which eventually led to the act of McCarthyism…
Vivian Gonzalez Mr. Martinez-Ramos A.P. United States History May 3, 2000 McCarthyism was one of the saddest events of American history. It destroyed people's lives and shattered many families. It threw innocent people into a whirlwind of mass confusion and fictional portrayals of their lives. McCarthyism spawned for the country's new found terror of Communism known as the red scare. McCarthyism was an extreme version of the red scare, a scare whose ends did not justify the means. The Red Scare happened twice in the history of this great country. When the communist took over Russia in 1919, the American people were unnerved. They were afraid of a communist take over in the states. When the First World War ended in 1918, there was still an ideological…
In "The Culture of Fear" by Barry Glassner, he describes how it is our perception that dangers have increased more than they actually are. Glassner states about the prices we have to pay for our panics, as well as the time and energy we spend worrying about the dangers. He also explains all throughout this book how organizations and people use the populations fears as a way to make more money. The Americans are afraid of everything because the media's broadcasting of crime, drugs, violence and diseases.…
The Decade of Fear was essentially caused by one man – Joseph McCarthy. When he served on the Senate from 1947-1957, he seemed to make it his personal mission to eradicate all traces of communism from the earth (or at least America). Right away, he went after Hollywood, black-listing anyone involved in the entertainment industry whom he thought might be linked with communists. The following year, he released a list to the public with the names of 154 organizations he believed to have communist affiliations. This initially gained him support from the citizens, as 110 of those organizations did have some form of link to communism.…
McCarthyism not only destroyed the lives and careers of many Americans but also the innocent image of the country. Senator Joe McCarthy from Wisconsin was the same as any man. But when he cried Communism the world seemed to listen.<br><br>Following the Cold War between Russia and the United States there came many hardships, such as unemployment and high inflation. These hardships produced a restless society. The society then looked for something or someone to blame (Fried, 39). They found someone to blame. Communists. Throughout the country there was a witch hunt known as the Red Scare. A basic idea was formed: Communism was evil. Anyone who participated in such evil was considered illegitimate and were to be excluded from such things as sharing ideas, and jobs (Reeves, 136). This fear of Communism or anti-Communism as it was called could be described as a type of "virus." When all was calm in America the virus would fade, but the moment a crisis struck, the virus came back stronger than ever (Feuerlicht, 35). Communism was a threat not only for countries overseas but a threat for America and its people. It was a threat on the American way of life, a bruise on the phrase "the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." (Feuerlicht, 45) And McCarthy helped spread this fear.<br><br>McCarthy and his ways challenged the Bill of Rights. "When free speech or due process are denied to any individual everyone's rights are jeopardized. Today's oppressors may become tomorrow's accursed group." (Feuerlicht, 154) And nothing is guaranteed more than the destruction of America when the freedoms promised by the Bill of Rights are denied (Feuerlicht, 154). McCarthy installed a fear in the people. But people feared tremendously the loss of their jobs. They feared that their political afflictions would reflect on their job status (Reeves, 99). By trying to keep America from becoming a Communist nation, McCarthy and his followers turned the country into an anti - Communist…
Are people controlled by their fears or pleasures? According to George Orwell’s view in the novel 1984, people are controlled by their fears. Some fears may be caused by wars, earthquakes, and many other fearful objects. I strongly stand with Orwell and his opinion rather than Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World, and Neil Postman, author of Amusing ourselves to Death, and their beliefs that people are controlled by their pleasures. I believe people are controlled by their fears.…
Dave, did you hear what the news just said about that woman who…? I interject. No grandma what did the news have to say this time? My grandmother has become just another casualty to television's over exaggerated statistics and fictional stories. Recently widowed, my grandma has been getting progressively worse. As is with most elderly people, the television plays a very big role in her daily activities. I would have to say that the TV has become "a member of the family." It is for this reason that my grandmother now lives in fear. This fear unfortunately has taken away my grandmother’s confidence in herself and those around her. Unless she is going to the grocery store or the church around the corner, she seldom ever leaves her apartment. She believes that everyone is out to "get" her one way or another; her trust in people is not what it once was. Heavy television watchers are prone to this behavior. As Gerbner's Cultivation Theory suggests, minds that are immersed in heavy television watching grow fearful thoughts. Gerbner named this occurrence the mean world syndrome, whereas people who watch considerable amounts of television believe that the world is an unsafe and dangerous place. Gerbner also concluded that these viewers believe they are more apt to violent crimes, fear walking alone at night, and have a general mistrust in people. My grandma fits this profile. The fearful thoughts arise primarily because of the violent images being strewn across the screen numerous times per showing. Over time and depending upon the amount of television exposure, our minds are cultivated into believing that this is how the world really is. These violent shows and newscasts instill in us insecurity and social paranoia about the world around us. Is there hope that one day the content of favorite shows will change? I think in time we will see a decline. However, for the time being, these programs are not going to tone it down. Violence and fear add dramatic effect to the…