McCarthyism and Blacklisting
“Where fear is present, wisdom cannot be.” – Lactantius
1.
Explain your topic and how it relates to fear.
Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin was not well-liked and was facing re-election. He had few issues of
importance in his campaign. In February of 1950, he announced he had a list of 205 communists who worked at the
State Department. This gained him instant recognition and press coverage. During his campaign, the amount of
communists in the State Department kept changing. First there were 205 communists, then 81, then 57, and finally
to no exact number, but McCarthy claimed there were “a lot.” These supposed communists were working for our
government, and it was assumed that they were giving American secrets to the USSR Americans were most
concerned with nuclear secrets falling into the hands of the Soviet Union which would allow them to advance their
nuclear and thermonuclear programs.
McCarthy claimed he was the only one who could root out the hidden communists within the Truman
administration. Due to American’s fears of nuclear weapons and warfare, most people believed McCarthy at first,
and he won his re-election to the Senate. Even though he never produced any credible evidence, he became
chairman of a Senate subcommittee in 1953 that allowed him to make more attacks on others. Accusations were
made, and people were called before his House Un-American Activities Committee. The accusations and
questioning started to expand beyond government workers to include the investigation of union organizers, public
figures, educators and people in the entertainment industry. Thousands of people were investigated and/or
questioned in hearings, committees, loyalty review boards, and even in panels in business and industry.
At hearings, the subject would usually not have a right to the presence of an attorney and was asked to
defend himself against accusations without being allowed to cross-examine the accuser. If people refused to testify,
they were found guilty, even though everyone has the right, under the Fifth Amendment, to refuse to testify in court
proceedings to protect oneself from self-incrimination. Other people were attacked for exercising their First
Amendment right to freedom of speech.
It is estimated that hundreds of people were jailed for their beliefs or connections to “undesirable” groups.
There were also several thousand people who lost their jobs as a result of the investigations and were blacklisted.
Blacklisting creates a list of people who, for one reason or another, are denied the right to hold jobs. Many
Americans were forced to swear loyalty to the country to avoid suspicion. In 1958, it was estimated that roughly
one out of every five employees in the United States was required to pass some sort of loyalty review.
2. What other events/circumstances were going on in the US or the world to make Americans afraid?
 The communist takeover during the Russian Revolution was a violent civil war, and Americans feared that
supporters of communism may try to overthrow the US government.
 People were afraid because of China’s recent fall to communism.
 People feared nuclear war after the Soviet Union’s first successful test of the atomic bomb.
 People were fearful due to the statements and actions of Joseph Stalin, dictator of the USSR, who
guaranteed that communism would be a world-wide revolution.
 North Korea recently fell to communism and was in the process of attempting to take over South Korea.
 Americans were fearful after the US entered the Korean War.
 There were some spies who were caught and convicted of selling atomic secrets to the Soviets (Alger Hiss &
the Rosenburgs).
3. The fear during the event caused people to be victimized. Who were the victims? Why were they targeted?
What happened to them? Were the victims’ actions responsible for causing the fear?
There were many different people victimized by McCarthyism. Members of the communist party in America and
people who supported liberal ideas were attacked. Many members of the communist party were blacklisted and
some were even jailed. Many were targeted because communism is based on taking wealth and resources from the
rich and powerful and redistributing to the working people. Rich and powerful people have the most to lose in a
possible communist revolution, and as they control the government, they would want to target those who may have
been a threat to their power. There were no actions taken by the communist party in the US to cause the fear of a
revolution, so they were not responsible for causing the fear.
Many people who were blacklisted had friends or family who were in the communist party, but they were not
actual members themselves. Others were targeted simply for reading Karl Marx’s philosophies whether they agreed
with what they read or not. Anyone who worked against the wealthy could be attacked. Union leaders and
sometimes unionized workers were attacked and blacklisted simply for fighting for better pay, benefits, or working
conditions. Citizens were blacklisted for having visited countries that were now communist, even if the country was
not communist at the time of the visit.
Anyone who questioned McCarthy and/or blacklisting or anyone who demanded proof of McCarthy’s
accusations became targets and victims. Teachers, lawyers, public figures had to constant watch what they said. If
anyone criticized the government in any way, they could be blacklisted, even though citizens have a protected
Constitutional right to do so. Libraries were even forced to remove books that McCarthy decided were
inappropriate.
4. Groups and/or individuals used the fear to advance their agenda(s) or to take advantage of the situation. What
group or individual was it who took advantage of the situation? Then explain how that group or individual used
the event to do at least three of the following:
 Harass and weaken opposition
 Settle grudges
 Gain/maintain power or popularity
In 1954, Edward R. Murrow on his TV program, See It Now, reported on Senator McCarthy and his lack of
evidence. Murrow used excerpts from McCarthy's own speeches and proclamations to criticize the senator and
point out episodes where he had contradicted himself. McCarthy attacked back accusing Murrow of being a
communist, since Murrow had once been an exchange student in Russia. Also, at the various hearings, anyone who
demanded proof and evidence was assumed to be guilty of communist sympathies. These were attempts by
McCarthy to weaken the opposition who questioned him.
McCarthy wasn’t the only one who made up accusations, many times accusations came from rivals or coworkers who sought to eliminate the competition. Everyday people found they could settle grudges by accusing
others.
McCarthy used the accusations to increase his popularity to win re-election. He never actually produced any
proof and frequently waved blank sheets of paper, calling them lists of communists. He received immediate press
attention. Over 20 million people watched the 36 days of televised Congressional hearings that were held by
McCarthy. He easily won re-election.
5. How did the event come to an end?
Murrow’s broadcast showed many Americans how little evidence that McCarthy had. It also showed
him as abusive toward witnesses and prominent Americans. American citizens began to turn against McCarthy.
When Eisenhower became President, he tried to ignore McCarthy. McCarthy accused many in the army of
being communists at the same time that the army was in Korea fighting a war against communism. In particular,
General Marshall, who was leading the troops in Korea, was attacked for having once been an ambassador to China
(before it became communist). These attacks were televised, allowing the public to view first-hand McCarthy's
interrogation of individuals and his controversial tactics.
McCarthy's colleagues censured him for dishonoring the Senate, and the hearings came to a close in 1954.
A censure is an official declaration of disapproval of a member of Congress. Plagued with poor health and
alcoholism, McCarthy himself died three years later.
Many court cases attacked McCarthyism and broke down the Senator’s power. In 1956, in the Supreme
Court case of Slochower v. Board of Education, it was ruled that the a professor could not be fired for refusing to
testify at one of McCarthy’s committees, as this would violate the man’s Fifth Amendment rights. Another key
decision was in the 1957 case, Yates v. United States, in which the convictions of fourteen Communists were
reversed. Also in 1957, the Supreme Court ruled on the case of Watkins v. United States, stopping HUAC from
punishing uncooperative witnesses by finding them in contempt of Congress.
6. Were the actions and responses to your event equal to the level of threat your event caused?
McCarthyism’s investigations of thousands of Americans were taken to the extreme. There was a
communist party within the USA, but the majority of members were non-violent and not connected in any way with
anyone in a communist country. While there had been a few spies that were caught and convicted, it did not justify
attacking thousands of others. Just because people read about communism, they were investigated regardless of
their beliefs. There were many people who were former members of the communist party, who left the group after
seeing the violent takeovers of other countries. Yet those individuals were condemned the same as if they were still
members of the party. Others were blacklisted for having friends or family who were communists, even though they
were loyal Americans. They had no connection to any threat against the US government.
Others were attacked because they criticized government policy and/or McCarthy’s lack of evidence.
Americans have the right to question their government. Just because someone questions or criticizes the
government or an individual politician, it does not mean that the person is trying to overthrow the country and hand
it to communists. Just because people refused to testify against themselves, it does not mean they are guilty.