Factors That Led to Post War Red Scare
Tia Brown
AMH 2020/2042
June 11, 2017
After World War II, an anti-communist movement emerged in the United States. This period, which was known as the Red Scare, emerged after the war in the mid-1940’s and lasted into the 1950’s. During the Red Scare, the fear of communism was prevalent both within the government and among private citizens. There were a variety of factors, both international and domestic, that led to the post war Red Scare, and the phenomenon ultimately had a negative effect on civil liberties in the United States. The main factor that led to the post war Red Scare was the emergence of the Cold War. The tension between the United States and the Soviet Union began immediately after World War II ended in Europe, when the Allies began to discuss how Europe would look in the post war period. At the Yalta Conference in February 1945, it quickly became evident that Stalin wanted to establish satellite nations in the parts of Eastern Europe that the Soviet army controlled, potentially with the goal of spreading communism across the continent. This raised American fears about communism coming …show more content…
After World War I and the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, there was a slightly less influential Red Scare that led to the establishment of anti-communist citizens’ organizations and the antiradicalism division inside the FBI. Also, because many of President Roosevelt’s efforts to combat the Great Depression had a socialist flavor, the anticommunist network strengthened in the late 1930’s, and the Special House Committee to Investigate Un-American Activities was established in 1938. This strong infrastructure was another factor that contributed to the post war Red Scare, because it provided the necessary network to spread anti-communist sentiment to such a high
Tia Brown
AMH 2020/2042
June 11, 2017
After World War II, an anti-communist movement emerged in the United States. This period, which was known as the Red Scare, emerged after the war in the mid-1940’s and lasted into the 1950’s. During the Red Scare, the fear of communism was prevalent both within the government and among private citizens. There were a variety of factors, both international and domestic, that led to the post war Red Scare, and the phenomenon ultimately had a negative effect on civil liberties in the United States. The main factor that led to the post war Red Scare was the emergence of the Cold War. The tension between the United States and the Soviet Union began immediately after World War II ended in Europe, when the Allies began to discuss how Europe would look in the post war period. At the Yalta Conference in February 1945, it quickly became evident that Stalin wanted to establish satellite nations in the parts of Eastern Europe that the Soviet army controlled, potentially with the goal of spreading communism across the continent. This raised American fears about communism coming …show more content…
After World War I and the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, there was a slightly less influential Red Scare that led to the establishment of anti-communist citizens’ organizations and the antiradicalism division inside the FBI. Also, because many of President Roosevelt’s efforts to combat the Great Depression had a socialist flavor, the anticommunist network strengthened in the late 1930’s, and the Special House Committee to Investigate Un-American Activities was established in 1938. This strong infrastructure was another factor that contributed to the post war Red Scare, because it provided the necessary network to spread anti-communist sentiment to such a high