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In the 1950’s, Senator Joseph McCarthy turned Americans against each other by installing fear in the people regarding toward Communism. During this time, in fact, people were getting blacklisted even if they weren't communist. In an incident at the Republican Women’s Club of Wheeling, McCarthy delivered a speech. The situation involving the Senator escalated when he stated that the State Department is infested with Communist. In this point in time, due to the false allegations, people went on a decade long period of witch hunts. Sam Roberts, the author of “A Decade of Fear” stated that in fact, “...thousands of alleged Communists in the U.S. were arrested and deported during what became known as the Red Scare.”

The censorship of ideas contributed to a decline in job opportunities for those said to have communist

During the time of the Red Scare lives were destroyed from all of accusations made. The people that were wrongfully accused had families and then got destroyed reputations. From the Cold War Museum it stated that “the nation grew to realize that McCarthy was evil and unmatched in malice.” once they found that McCarthy was not to be trusted, everyone knew that the people McCarthy told were communist were not

Hundreds of years later, the United States entered the time of the “Red Scare”. In this time, Americans were still very apprehensive of Communists. On April 22, 1954, Army hearings began. Senator Joseph McCarthy accused the United States Army of being too “soft” on communism. This really began in 1950, however, when McCarthy claimed that there were over 200 known communists in the Department of State (“Army-McCarthy” History.com). As Abigail did with the Witch trials, McCarthy began accusing innocents of crime to benefit his own personal agenda.

of other communist sympathizers, this led to sanctions. This fear of being accused led to the

To begin with, Alger Hiss contributed his life to give us a world that only so many people can give. He sought to put the world together, to further improve the relations of foreign countries. Hiss was known for helping create the United Nations and to serve in the State Department. Hiss in the public eye was a good man. How could he commit such a crime of being in the Communist Party? This was a question that Alger himself had to face when

In the 1950’s, the U.S government black listed artists, playwright and other intellectuals as Communists and unfairly destroyed many careers.

In the late 1940s one of the most well-known U.S. State Department Officials was accused of being an espionage for the Soviet Union. Alger Hiss, who was allegedly accused by Whittaker Chamber, denied this accusation (Haynes). At the court case of Alger Hiss, Chambers had insisted that him and Alger Hiss were both members of the Communist Party USA, in which Hiss also denied this. He also denied ever knowing Chambers which he later finds out that he did in fact know Chambers, but under a different name (Vile). After this accusation from Chambers, Hiss decides to sue him for slander. This backfires and Chambers come back with evidence that Hiss apparently wrote to him in the mid 1930s (Hiss). Alger Hiss is now in more trouble since he lied of

During the 1950s there was a rise in the fear of communism called “The Red Scare”. Senator Joseph McCarthy was one of the many people who contributed to people’s fear by making a list of people who he said were communists even though there was no proof in most cases. In an article by Alan Brinkley called “The 1950s Part One: McCarthy and The Red Scare”, it informs, “McCarthy was only one of many who helped create the great fear. The Red Scare was visible in almost every area of American life” (Brinkley). This quote tell us that in the 1950s even though Senator Joseph McCarthy was a huge contributor to The Red Scare. His list of suspected communists made rumors spread and the people on the list get questioned and even go to jail when in some cases they were innocent. It also says in the article by USHistory.org called “McCarthyism: Witch Hunting and Blacklisting in America”, that, “In the 1950s anyone who was considered a communist could be questioned and thrown in jail” (USHistory.org). Which means that his allegations could have easily put people in prison.

These people were suspected of helping the Communist country, so this Cold War hostility helped to determine the harsh punishment given to the suspected communist. There was a “list of questionable organizations . . . that were considered disloyal” (Reeves). One could be put on this list simply because the boss did not get along with the employee. Anyone, even the loyalist, and most trustworthy people, could be tried for Communism. Many innocent people 's lives were forever changed by the insane acts of this time.

Moreover, this was believed to be one of the reasons why Miller came under the committee’s scrutiny. This hunt was very unfortunate on writers, and entertainers. Many were labeled as communist sympathizers (PBS.ORG). Some were put in jail while others had their passports taken away. Those who were accused of communist

This is where McCarthy starts the real setup for his bombshell. He is quoted, "When a great democracy is destroyed, it will not be because of enemies from without, but rather because of enemies from within." (Chafe 50). He then says that these traitors are not the minority of this country but are of the wealthiest of this country, and have the finest jobs in the Government. So he is telling these people that it is not them, but those rich people in the government who are selling out this country. This is where he drops the bomb. McCarthy insinuates that one of the most important government agencies, the State Department "is infested with Communists" (Chafe 50). He then says that he had a list of 57 people he believed to be "either card carrying members or certainly loyal to the Communist Party" (Chafe 50). The truth is there was no list, no names, it was just

As you can see many people, many important people had been affected. Many books were also burned or banned such as Robin Hood, Civil Disobedience, etc (Anti-Communism). As was stated before many people had lost their jobs because the government was suspicious of people.

In the midst of the political and economic discord, tensions were rising in America over the spread of communism at home. This sparked the creation of the House of Un-American Activities Committee, whose duty was to investigate communist influence in labor unions and New Deal organizations. During the “Great Fear,” all

Everyone feared the thought of communism at the time, and was quick to support whoever was in charge of the investigations. Both situations had soon escalated to a level no one could have predicted and the trials were soon starting to be used for other purposes.