Joe McCarthy and the fear of Communism in USA The Red Scare Joe McCarthy and the fear of Communism in USA M. Moloney- 2016

What do we want to know? How did the fear of the spread of Communism in the USA influence government policy and life in America? Why did a relatively unknown Senator become a central figure in the "Red Scare"? Who was Senator Joe McCarthy and what role did he play? (KEY PERSONALITY) What were the consequences of "McCarthyism"?

Containment We have already seen that the Truman Doctrine of USA intervention to prevent the spread of Communism led to incidents in Berlin, Korea and Cuba. The threat of Communism was not just seen as an external threat..... the search for "the enemies within" also came to dominate US politics and society during the 1950s and 60s. This "Red Scare" came to cause a level of near hysteria in American society, where the press, the movie makers and politicians had people believing that everyone was a potential communist and people must be constantly vigilant and report suspects.

House UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC) In 1947, the House of Representatives in Washington set up HUAC. Its role was to search for "communist sympathisers" in America, but particularly in the film industry, which was seen as a potentially powerful tool which could be used to spread "unAmerican" propaganda. Artists, Writers, Actors, Directors etc were called before this Committee and quizzed about their alleged connections to Communist beliefs. Often the only way to "prove" ones own "innocence" was to expose others . Some did this- others refused to answer questions and found themselves "blacklisted" and struggled to find work in the period afterwards. The man who became a national figure due to his work on HUAC was the Republican Senator, Joe McCarthy.

JOE MCCARTHY McCarthy was born in Wisconsin and was originally a member if the Democratic Party, but when he failed to get chosen as a candidate to run for the US Senate, he became a Republican. Despite having only a desk job during World War II, McCarthy lied about his war record, and got elected to the Senate in 1946. McCarthy was a fairly unremarkable Senator but all of that began to change, when in 1950 he made a speech alleging that Communists had infiltrated the State Department. This catapulted him onto the front pages and helped to ensure his reelection in 1952.

Allegations McCarthy claimed that at least 57 people in the State Department were members of the Communist Party and were also involved in passing information to the USSR. He claimed that the Truman government was aware of this and was doing nothing. None of this "information" was accurate. However, anyone in Washington who tried to speak in opposition to it was labelled part of the Communist conspiracy.

Bully As chairman of the HUAC, McCarthy became the "star" of the show. The only way those who were accused could show they were loyal to the US was to implicate others. Many of those who came under fire from McCarthy were members of the Democratic Party. This was an important factor in the victory of Eisenhower in the 1952 Presidential election. Eisenhower didn't like McCarthy's tactics, however as McCarthy was such a powerful and popular figure at this stage, even the President was reluctant to publicly criticise him.

Criticism People began to be increasingly unhappy with McCarthy's aggressive questioning techniques. Despite any significant proof against most people, more than 2000 government employees lost their jobs as a result of McCarthy's investigations.

"Have you no sense of decency Sir?" By 1954, McCarthy was turning his attention to "enemies" in the Armed Forces. Many who had been willing to overlook McCarthy's tactics over the previous 4-5 years, began to feel that he was now going too far. The Army undermined McCarthy's credibility when it was shown that he has tried to gain preferential treatment for some of his staff when they were called up for military service. The fatal blow came with the decision to televise the Army-McCarthy hearings. Most American people were shocked to see McCarthy attempting to harass and intimidate witnesses. When he attacked a young army lawyer, the Army's Chief Counsel forcefully asked McCarthy: "have you no sense of decency sir?"

https://youtu.be/p9JFVoQQXuk

Downfall Eventually, it was felt that McCarthy was going too far and in 1954 he was disciplined by the Senate. This brought McCarthyism and his Witch-hunt to an end. Approximately 10,000 Americans were imprisoned or lost their jobs as a result of McCarthy's actions. Ironically, the actions of the HUAC damaged America's reputation as a democratic, free country and gave a propaganda victory to the Soviet Union.