Name:
Social Studies pd___
Date:
Ms. Durney
The Cold War at Home:
“Are you now, or have you ever been a member of the
Communist Party?”
Americans' fear of Communism during the Cold War led to efforts to contain it, not
only abroad, but at home as well. Many nervous citizens feared that Communist spies,
were undermining the government and misdirecting United States foreign policy. In
1947 President Truman launched a massive "loyalty" program. By the end of 1951
more than three million federal employees had been investigated and cleared, 2,000
had resigned, and 212 had been fired as "security risks." Meanwhile, in 1948 the FBI
and the Department of Justice began an intensive investigation of Communist activity
in the United States.
Under the Internal Security Act of 1950 (the McCarran Act), all Communist
organizations in the United States were required to file their membership lists as well
as statements of their financial operations with the Attorney General's office. In the
early 1950s three events brought about heightened concerns about internal security:
revelations that American atomic secrets had been given to the Soviet Union, the
victory of the Communists in China, and the outbreak of the war in Korea. It was
under these circumstances that Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin began to
charge high government officials of sympathy with Communism. In 1951 he attacked
the illustrious military leader and statesman General George C. Marshall, accusing
him of conspiracy against the government. In his relentless hunt for Communists,
McCarthy was joined by large numbers of private citizens. Actors, writers, educators,
and other individuals were investigated and accused of Communist affiliations or
sympathy toward Communist goals.
Many Americans praised McCarthy for his patriotism. Others criticized him for
reckless disregard of Constitutional rights. McCarthy was at the peak of his influence
in 1954 when he finally went too far. The end of the Korean War cooled the feverish
arena in which McCarthy had thrived. When he began to look for Communists in the
U.S. Army, the embattled military men fought back in thirty-five days of televised
hearings in the spring of 1954. Up to 20 million Americans at a time watched as a
boorish, surly McCarthy publicly cut his own throat by parading his essential
meanness and irresponsibility. A few months later the Senate formally condemned
him for "conduct unbecoming a member."
Cold War at Home and Abroad
The time line at left shows Cold War-related events that occurred in the United
States. The time-line on the right shows international events that were happening at
the same time.
Cold War At Home
International Events
1935 In Spain, fascist forces, backed by Hitler
and Mussolini, fight Loyalist government, backed
by Stalin. U.S. government takes neutral position.
1938 House
of
Representatives
forms 1938 World on brink of war as fascists in
Committee on Un-American Activities to Germany, Italy, and Japan continue their
investigate "subversion."
aggression.
1939 World War II breaks out. When Hitler
1940 Congress passes Smith Act making it attacks Soviet Union in 1941, they join Allies.
illegal to advocate overthrow of the government
by force.
1941 U.S. enters World War II.
1945 U.S. drops atomic bomb on Japan. World
War II ends. Soviets take over Eastern Europe.
1947 President Truman begins "loyalty" "Cold War" begins.
program. Loyalty Review Board investigates
federal employees, over 2,000 of whom resign or
are dismissed, none under formal indictment.
1948 Alger Hiss, prominent ex-New Dealer,
accused of being a Communist agent in 1930s.
Hiss denies everything but is convicted of
perjury and sentenced to five years in prison.
1949 China falls to Communist forces. Soviet
Union explodes its first atomic bomb.
1950 Senator Joseph R. McCarthy charges there 1950 Cold War turns "hot" when American
are scores of known Communists in U.S. State troops sent to repel Communist North Korea's
Department. He is unable to prove his attack on South Korea.
accusation.
1950 President Truman vetoes McCarran Bill
which would allow the president to arrest
suspicious persons during an "internal security
emergency." Congress passes law over Truman's
veto.
1950 Julius and Ethel Rosenberg convicted of
leaking atomic secrets to Russians. (Went to
electric chair in 1953.)
1953 Senator McCarthy continues "hunt" for
Communists. High government officials are
accused of sympathy with Communism. Actors,
writers, and educators are investigated and
accused.
1954 In televised hearings, McCarthy charges 1954 Korean War ends in a stalemate. The
U.S. army with communist sympathies. Army country remains divided between north and
fights back and Senator McCarthy is discredited. south.
What are two International Events on the timeline that probably caused an increase
in fears at home in the U.S.?
What do the timelines suggest about the Cold War at home and abroad?
What evidence from the timeline, suggests why Senator McCarthy was able to hunt
for Communists at home?
If you were alive during the time of the McCarthy hearings, how would you have
reacted?
Senator McCarthy on Conspiracy and Betrayal
The excerpts below are from the speeches delivered by Senator McCarthy in the
Senate in 1950.
Today we are engaged in a final, all-out battle between communistic non-beliefs and
Christianity....The reason why we find ourselves in this position is not because our
only powerful enemy has sent men to invade our shores, but rather because of the
traitorous actions of those who have been treated so well by this nation. It has not
been the less fortunate who have been selling this nation out, but rather those who
have had all the benefits that the wealthiest nation on earth has had to offer—the
finest homes, the finest college education, and the finest jobs in government we can
give. The first question which occurred to me was: Why do the men who are
attempting to betray us act this way? The question is: Do they do that because they
honestly think it would be good for us to have an unfriendly China or is it because
their loyalties are other than with America? In other words, are their actions the
result of treachery or incompetence?
In searching for the answer to why there are traitors high in this government, it must
be remembered that communism has already the equivalent of three Communist
military divisions in this country. The authority for this statement is none other than
our Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, J. Edgar Hoover. He estimates the
number of Communists in this country to be around 55,000. Remember when J. Edgar
Hoover says that there are 55,000 actual active members of the Communist Party in
this country, he is not indulging in any speculation or guesswork. And remember, too,
that for each of the sworn party members of the three Communist divisions, there are
at least 10 camp followers with varying degrees of loyalty to the party. Those camp
followers in the press, radio, and motion pictures have done deadly damage to the
nation in aiding the conspiracy of the three active Communist divisions at work in
America....
Source: Joseph McCarthy, Major Speeches and Debates of Senator Joe McCarthy Delivered in the United
States Senate, 1950-1951. (Washington, D C U S Government Printing Office, 1951.)
What do we learn about the Cold War from Senator McCarthy’s point of view?
How justified were McCarthy’s efforts to identify and root out Communists and
Communist sympathizers in the U.S.?
Senator Margaret Chase Smith Condemns McCarthyism
On June 1, 1950, Senator Margaret Chase Smith, a Republican from Maine, was the
first to speak out in the Senate against McCarthyism. Below is an excerpt from her
speech:
I think it high time that we [Senators] remembered that we have sworn to uphold and
defend the Constitution. I think it is high time that we remembered that the
Constitution, as amended, speaks not only of the freedom of speech but also of trial
by jury instead of trial by accusation.
Whether it be a criminal prosecution in court or a character prosecution in the
Senate, there is little practical distinction when the life of a person has been ruined.
Those of us who shout the loudest about Americanism in making character
assassinations are all too frequently those who, by our own words and acts, ignore
some of the basic principles of Americanism—
 The right to criticize.
 The right to hold unpopular beliefs.
 The right to protest.
 The right of independent thought.
The exercise of these rights should not cost one single American citizen his
reputation or his right to a livelihood nor should he be in danger of losing his
reputation or livelihood merely because he happens to know someone who holds
unpopular beliefs. Who of us does not? Otherwise none of us could call our souls our
own. Otherwise thought control would have set in. The American people are sick and
tired of being afraid to speak their minds lest they be politically smeared as
Communists or Fascists by their opponents. Freedom of speech is not what it used to
be in America.
How did Senator Margaret Chase Smith respond to Senator McCarthy’s charges?
If you were living in the U.S. in 1950, would you have supported Senator Smith’s
position on McCarthyism? What part of her speech impressed you the most?
A Father Remembered
In the excerpt below, Patricia Bosworth, having just viewed "Hollywood on Trial," a documentary
on the House Un-American Affairs Committee's investigation of the film industry in 1947, recalls
her own father's involvement as one of the lawyers for the "Hollywood 19."
My father was one of six lawyers for the "19." His name was Bartley Crum, and he was
well known in his day. He saw the fight against HUAC as a chance to test the powers
of the Constitution, and the idea excited him. If you see "Hollywood on Trial," you can
watch my father be gaveled down time and time again as he and his co-counsel
Robert Kenny try to prove that HUAC was indeed unconstitutional. They are not
allowed to complete a sentence.
During the four harrowing days when some of the "Unfriendly 19" were on the stand,
the hearings were turned into a virtual trial, with the committee acting as prosecutor,
judge and jury. My father and Kenny were denied the right to cross-examine so-called
friendly witnesses about their clients, and their clients were not allowed to make
personal statements—a right that had earlier been accorded friendly witnesses like
Ronald Reagan, the president of the Screen Actors Guild. Ultimately 10 of the 19 were
called to testify, but they all refused to answer what would become the legendary
question: "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?"
They were cited for contempt by Congress and eventually sentenced to prison.
In November of 1947 Eric Johnson, president of the Motion Picture Association of
America, announced that henceforth "no Communists or sympathizers will willingly
be employed in Hollywood." As a result of this ultimatum, more than 250 actors,
writers and directors were officially blacklisted (banned), among them African
American actor, Paul Robeson, Edward Dmytryk, the director, and the producer
Adrian Scott, three of the Hollywood 10 who were my father's personal clients.
As the anti-communist crusade had escalated, President Truman had instigated a
loyalty program. The anti-Communist elimination can only be understood by the
climate of fear that accompanied it, fear that the Soviet Union was the supreme threat
to Americanism. My father's name was linked to the Attorney General's list of
"rebellious" organizations, including the Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee Committee, which
he belonged to and which was supposedly "riddled with Communists." Our phones
were tapped, and we were put under surveillance by the F.B.I.
In 1948, after we moved to Manhattan, and in 1949 returned to practicing law,
occasionally advising blacklisted artists and performers. Often, when we least
expected it, Paul Robeson or John Garfield would show up in our living room. The
suffering that pursued them overwhelmed my mother, my brother and me. By 1953,
my father had been informed on, too, by witnesses who described him not only as a
"card-carrying Communist" but also "a powerful Jewish lawyer." The fact was, he had
never been a member of the Communist Party. He was an Irish Catholic and a selfdescribed "independent progressive." One afternoon in the midst of this madness, we
dropped by P J. Clark's for a hamburger. Suddenly my father was called away to a pay
phone near the bar. When he returned, he was shaking. "Jesus God—that was J. Edgar
Hoover telling me my passport is being taken away, and I have to go to Washington to
answer questions, or I won't get it back."
The next week my father met with the F.B.I, in Washington. He never told us what
happened. We only knew that one thing he's been most condemned for was raising
money to send milk to Spanish refugee babies. Soon after that incident my brother
and I were sent away to school—our tuition money borrowed from some mysterious
source. It was around that time that we seemed to stop functioning as a family. It was
as if we were frozen in time—we no longer experienced anything personal together.
The blacklist had driven an invisible wedge between us.
My father got his passport back; he continued practicing law very quietly in New
York, taking only apolitical clients. When we saw him, he tried to be cheerful, but
more often he was edgy and depressed. We never discussed what the blacklist had
done to him or his friends. Essentially, the blacklist was a conspiracy of silence;
explanations were never given, never asked for. In 1959, my father committed
suicide.
The New York Times, September 27, 1992, Section 2, pp. 1, 22-23.
Who was Bartley Crum?
How was the film industry impacted by the suspected Communist activity in the U.S?
How were Crum’s civil rights threated during the time period?
According to the article, ultimately, how was the life of Bartley Crum compromised?