McCarthyism
 |
Sen. Joseph McCarthy |
McCarthyism is the term describing a period of intense
anti-Communist suspicion in the
United States that lasted roughly from the late
1940s to the mid to late
1950s. The term derives from U.S. Senator
Joseph McCarthy, a
Republican of
Wisconsin. The period of McCarthyism is also referred to as the Second
Red Scare, and coincided with increased fears of
Communist influence on American institutions, espionage by
Soviet agents such as
the Rosenbergs, heightened tension from Soviet hegemony over
Eastern Europe, the success of the
Chinese Communist revolution (1949) and the
Korean War (1950-1953).
During this time people in a variety of situations, primarily those employed in government, in the entertainment industry or in education, were accused of being Communists or Communist sympathizers and became the subject of aggressive investigations and questioning before various government or privately run panels, committees and agencies. Suspicions were often given credence despite inconclusive or questionable evidence, and the level of threat posed by a person's real or supposed leftist associations or beliefs was often greatly exaggerated. Many people suffered loss of employment, destruction of their careers, and even imprisonment. Most of these punishments came about through trial verdicts that would later be overturned,
[For example, Yates v. United States, 1957; or Watkins v. United States, 1957: ]
* Price, David H. Threatening Anthropology: McCarthyism and the FBI's Surveillance of Activist Anthropologists Duke University Press, 2004.
* McCarthyism and the Movies
* International Journal of Baudrillard Studies
* What McCarthyism Means Today
* Two Cheers for "McCarthyism"?
