The Cold War at Home

Vocabulary 1. Red Scare 2. Smith Act 3. HUAC 4. Hollywood Ten 5. Blacklist 6. Alger Hiss 7. Joseph McCarthy 8. McCarthyism

 Sept. 2, USSR have a nuclear bomb  1949 China becomes communist  Reaction by U.S.  Increase production of nuclear arms Increasing Tensions

Reaction to events  Truman orders the Atomic Energy Commission to make an H-bomb  Oppenheimer and Einstein oppose this Fear a perpetual arms race Fear a perpetual arms race 1952 first H-bomb test 1952 first H-bomb test  USSR and USA spent the next 4 decades stockpiling and developing nuclear weapons

Result: Paranoia at home  Bomb shelters  Duck and cover  Secretary of State Dulles: Added to Eisenhower’s strategy to dealing with USSR Added to Eisenhower’s strategy to dealing with USSR Both felt Truman just dragged the US into long wars that drained resources Both felt Truman just dragged the US into long wars that drained resources

Eisenhower  Ike does not favor spending billions sending troops and weapons all over the war  He focused on nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them: Planes Planes Subs Subs missiles missiles

Massive Retaliation  1954  US would respond to any communist threat with the use of crushing, overwhelming force Nukes if necessary Nukes if necessary Dulles’ approach: brinksmanship Dulles’ approach: brinksmanship For a chance of peace you might have to chance warFor a chance of peace you might have to chance war

Khruschev crushes rebellion  Khrushchev- March 5, 1953 becomes USSR leader  Poland Hungary Czechoslovakia wanted more political freedom Students in Hungary started to demonstrate Students in Hungary started to demonstrate Wanted pro Hungarian officials Wanted pro Hungarian officials  Results: Crushed Crushed Killed hundreds Killed hundreds Put in communist hard liners Put in communist hard liners

reaction  Olympics 1956  Polo match USSR v. Hungry  Bloody

Communists in the US  Red Scare  Federal Employee Loyalty Program created by Truman in March ,000 fed. employees fired or quit 3,000 fed. employees fired or quit  List of “totalitarian, fascist, or subversive organizations” made and those who were part of groups also had trouble

Communists in the US  Smith Act – illegal to teach or advocate the violent overthrow of the US gov’t  House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) started in 1938  Hollywood Ten refused to take part in HUAC, they were sent to prison and blacklisted  Blacklists circulated through schools, labor unions, labs, and city halls.  Oppenheimer was denied access to information because of people he knew

Hollywood Ten

The House Un-American Activities Committee  HUAC – was created by the HofR to investigate possible communists  HUAC – targets the movie industry  Hollywood Ten – took the 5 th amendment – sent to prison for contempt in Congress - Blacklisted  Watkins vs. U.S (1957)– witness did not have to give names to the HUAC  Sig: Hollywood would avoid controversial sub, only make entertaining movies

Freedom of Speech?  Hollywood Ten Demonstrated that free speech not guaranteed Demonstrated that free speech not guaranteed Americans lost jobs b/c of groups they belonged to Americans lost jobs b/c of groups they belonged to Fired for being friends of communists or friends of someone who made disloyal remarks Fired for being friends of communists or friends of someone who made disloyal remarks Communists b/c rooted out and black listed Communists b/c rooted out and black listed Universities, labor unions, city hallUniversities, labor unions, city hall

Spy Cases  Alger Hiss  1948 accused of stealing gov’t documents for Communists  Worked on the New Deal and UN creation  Accused by a co-worker,Whittaker Chambers  Caught because he denied knowing the co-worker and Nixon figured it out  Found guilty

 Nixon was a young congress man  Chambers accused Hiss of giving him confidential gov’t documents  Hiss in fact a communist  Sig: Nixon becomes a well known figure

Spy Cases  Julius and Ethel Rosenberg  Accused of passing on atomic secrets  Case based on accusations of a spy  claimed racism because they were Jewish  Both were executed in a controversial decision  In the 1990’s evidence finally came out that Julius was guilty but Ethel played only a minor role.

McCarthyism  McCarthyism – Named after Senator Joseph McCarthy who made extreme, reckless charges  In February 1950 he gave a speech claiming 205 members of the US gov’t were Communists  He began accusing people and even without a trial many people lost jobs and reputations  He became so powerful other senators feared he would accuse them!

Joseph McCarthy  “ The reason why we find ourselves in a position of weakness is not because the enemy has sent men to invade our shores, but rather because of the traitorous actions of those who have had the benefits that the wealthiest nation on earth has had to offer. The finest homes, the finest colleges and educations and the finests jobs in government we can give… I have here in my hand a list of 205 individuals that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communists party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping public policy of the State Department”.

McCarthy falls from power  In 1954 McCarthy accused Army leaders of having Communist ties  Televised hearings were held  McCarthy was shown to be cruel and bullying, losing support  Congress censured him after the trials and he lost power

Cold War Entertainment  Comic Books took on patriotic themes

Cold War Entertainment  Novels and Movies also took on anti- communist messages  Other novels and movies predicted a devastating atomic war between the US and USSR