The Cold War and American Society Chapter 26 Section 3

The Red Scare Rumors that Communists had gotten into the US and were trying to take over the world Why? September 1945 – Igor Gouzenko walked out of the Soviet Embassy in Canada and defected Igor had documents that revealed a massive effort by the Soviets to infiltrate organizations and govt. agencies in Canada and the US Specific Goal  obtain information about the atomic bomb

US Fear Igor’s case stunned Americans Implied spies had reached the US govt. The search for spies soon escalated into a general fear of Communist subversion Subversion – effort to secretly weaken a society and over throw its govt.

Screening for Enemies Loyalty review program Established by Truman Job – to screen all federal employees Goal – to calm public suspicion Effect – only increases the fear in Americans that communism was sweeping the nation

How to Screen? Screening for loyalty was difficult… No specific regulations or rules People could be suspect for … Reading certain books Belonging to certain groups Traveling overseas Seeing certain foreign films, etc. Approximately 2,200 govt. employees quit their jobs or were fired No actual evidence against them was ever found

Alger Hiss 1948 – Whittaker Chambers, Time magazine editor, testified that there were several govt. officials who were former Communists or spies Alger Hiss – most prominent govt. official named by Chambers Alger Hiss was… Lawyer and diplomat that served in FDR’s administration Attended Yalta Conference Took part in organizing the UN Hiss denied ever meeting Chambers

Infiltration Chambers claimed that Hiss had given him… Secret documents from the State Dept. along w/ microfilm Chambers hid this in a hollow pumpkin on his farm  “pumpkin papers” These papers proved that Hiss was lying and a jury convicted Hiss of perjury

The Rosenberg's The concern – American Communists had sold the secrets of the atomic bomb 1950 – hunt led to Klaus Fuchs British scientist that admitted sending info to the Soviets Fuchs’s testimony led the FBI to arrest Julius and Ethel Rosenberg A New York couple who were members of the Communist Party Charge against them – heading a Soviet spy ring They denied the charges but were condemned to death for espionage The couple was executed in 1953

Project Venona The goal of the project was to crack the Soviet spy code In 1946 American cryptographers cracked it Messages confirmed extensive Soviet spying Project Venona’s existence was not made public until 1995 Venona documents provided strong evidence that the Rosenberg's were guilty

The McCarran Act 1950 – Congress passed the Internal Security Act (McCarran Act) Declared that world Communism has as its sole purpose the est. of a totalitarian dictatorship in America Made it illegal to combine, conspire, or agree w/ any person who may contribute to the est. of a totalitarian govt. Required all Communist Party members to register w/ the US attorney general and publish their records Allowed the arrest and detention of Communists and sympathizers in case of a national emergency Truman vetoed the bill, but Congress easily passed over his veto Later, Supreme Court cases ensured that the McCarran Act would never be effective

McCarthy Joseph R. McCarthy – Wisconsin senator During a speech McCarthy said he had a list of 205 men in the State Dept. who were members of the Communist party and of the Soviet spy ring He said these men were known to the Secretary of State and still working in govt. The list never appeared, but McCarthy continued to make charges and draw attention

McCarthy’s Tactics McCarthy turned the govts. Communist investigation into a witch hunt Search for disloyalty based on flimsy evidence and irrational fears McCarthyism – his tactics of damaging reputations w/ vague and unfounded charges Badger witnesses and then refuse to accept their answers People were afraid to challenge him in fear of b/c targets themselves

McCarthy’s Downfall 1954 McCarthy b/g to look for Soviet spies in the US army The army conducted its own internal investigation and found no spies McCarthy was mad at the denial and took his investigation to television Army-McCarthy hearings – Spring of 1954 Millions of Americans watched McCarthy bully witnesses His popular support started to fade The Senate passes a vote of censure against McCarthy Censure – formal disapproval – one of the most serious criticisms it can level against a member McCarthy’s influence was gone and he faded from public view

Facing the Bomb Fear of communism and of nuclear war dominated life for ordinary Americans Soviet weapons increased fear in Americans 1949 – SU successfully tested the atomic bomb 1953 – SU successfully tested the H-bomb (hydrogen bomb) Less than 1 year after the US tested its H-bomb Americans prepared for a surprise Soviet attack Schools set aside special areas as bomb shelters

Facing the Bomb School Bomb Drills… Duck-and-cover – students learned to duck under their desks, turn away from the windows, and cover their heads w/ their hands The duck-and-cover method was supposed to protect them from a nuclear blast Fallout – the radiation left over after a nuclear blast Experts say for every 1 person killed outright by a nuclear blast, 4 more would die later from fallout Some families built fallout shelters in their yards and stocked them w/ canned food