The Nuclear Age and 2nd Red Scare

A. The Hydrogen Bomb1. Developing the H-Bomb– January 1950, Truman approves work on the

hydrogen bomb– Works through “staging” nuclear fission

explosion sets off a nuclear fusion explosion– Far more powerful than the atomic bombs

dropped on Japan in WWII

2. Testing the Bomb (Operation IVY)– First tested in November 1952– At Elugelab Island, Eniwetok in the South Pacific– 10.4 megatons of explosives

3. Soviets get the Hydrogen Bomb– Less than one year

later the Soviet Union tested a Hydrogen Bomb

– Claimed that US no longer had a “monopoly” on the bomb

B. Nuclear Arms Race1. US vs Soviets– Both the US and the Soviets greatly increased

their nuclear stockpiles– Each tried to have more weapons than the other

2. MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction)– By the 1950s both the US and Soviet Union had

the power to obliterate the other side– Both sides developed a "second-strike" capability

– Could attack the other side after sustaining huge destruction

– both sides knew that any attack upon the other would be suicide

3. Brinkmanship– Eisenhower's Foreign Policy– Be at the verge of war without ever fighting– A stand off with the costs so high that neither

side would wage war

C. Fear of the Bomb

1. At Home– People built bomb shelters

– Stocked up on food that did not have to be refrigerated

– Bought Pocket Dosimeters to let them know when radiation levels were safe

2. SANE– Committee for Sane Nuclear Policy– Anti-nuclear group– Argued that nuclear tests released harmful

radioactive particles that led to birth defects and disease

Duck and Cover

Cold War Fears

Early Cold War

A. 2nd Red Scare 1. Where the Fears Came From– Growth of communism in the US (Communist Party of the USA)– Soviet Expansion into Eastern Europe– Communist takeover of China

2. HUAC– House Un-American Activities Committee– Created May 1938– Investigated disloyalty and harmful foreign

influences– Held hearings on Communists in Hollywood and the

Government

3. HUAC and Blacklisting– People investigated in

Hollywood by HUAC were often blacklisted

– Blacklisting = refusing to hire

– Those accused couldn’t find jobs

– The Hollywood Ten, a group of writers who would not cooperate with HUAC, were the most famous of those blacklisted

B. Spies in the Government1. Loyalty Review Board– Truman was accused of letting Communists

sneak into the government– He created this board– Investigated 16,000 federal workers– No Communists were discovered– Many institutions then started loyalty oaths and

investigations

2. Internal Security Act (1950) – Required organizations thought to be communist

to register with the government– Gave the government the right to arrest people

suspected of treasonous activities during times of national emergency

C. McCarthyism1. Joseph McCarthy– Republican Senator from Wisconsin (1947-57)– In 1950 began a campaign to expose alleged

communists in the US Government

2. McCarthy’s Accusations– Communists had infiltrated the US Government– Claimed to have files on 57 communists in the

Govt– His accusations were called a hoax but he simply

made up more charges

3. No Challenges from the Public– Public not used to questioning government

officials– Did not want to be labeled “soft on communism”– People wanted an explanation for the spread of

communism and McCarthy gave them one

4. Army-McCarthy Hearings– One of McCarthy’s assistants had been drafted in the

Military– McCarthy blamed communists in the military for this– A group of Senators decided to hold televised

hearings on these charges

– McCarthy continued to attack military and the Army’s Attorney, Joseph Welch

– People began to see McCarthy as a bully– 1954: Senate voted to condemn McCarthy, 67 to

22– McCarthy’s lies however still destroyed careers

and lives

D. Communist Fears in Pop Culture1. Magazines– Articles

published about communism

– “How Communists Get That Way”

– “Communists Are After Your Child”

2. Movies– Hollywood produced

40 anti-communist films

– “I Married a Communist”

Comic