Fear of Communism

Audrey Lee 19 October 2018 Secondary Source and Archival Research Paper Blue/ Group 2 English 290 Dr. Sheffield Fear is an emotion that humankind has experienced forever, and it can greatly influence people’s thoughts and actions. Historically, it is not uncommon for people in positions of power to manipulate and take advantage of these effects fear has on a population. For example, in the early 1950s, Americans developed a fear of communism and its influences in Russia, and some political figures preyed on this fear to create panic and gain power.

In particular, Joseph McCarthy used this widespread fear to create paranoia among the American public. The political tension between the United States and Russia during this period led to the widespread fear of communism in American society, which was manipulated by the actions of Senator Joseph McCarthy in February 1950.

The extent to which fear influenced American society becomes evident through the analysis of both his actions – specifically his speech and letter to the president in February 1950- and the public’s reaction shown in newspaper articles.

Joseph McCarthy was elected Senator of Wisconsin in 1947 and served until he died in 1957. McCarthy’s first few years as senator were unremarkable, but this quickly changed on February 9, 1950. On this day, he gave a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia entitled “Enemies From Within” in which he publicly accused multiple government officials of being involved with the communist party. He exclaimed, “I have here in my hand a list of 205 [State Department members] that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the communist party who nevertheless are still working and shaping the policy in the State Department” (McCarthy).

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This speech was one of the first times someone with political power had so publicly accused other people of the same status of being communists.

Before this, the American public had become accustomed to being suspicious of their peers and neighbors, but now they were told to question their government as well. For this reason, this speech created great turmoil among the general public and attracted much press. With this speech, McCarthy preyed on and manipulated Americans’ preexisting fear and suspicion for his benefit. His speech greatly intensified and broadened this paranoia, creating a sense of panic. “Enemies From Within” changed not only how Americans viewed their government and peers but also how they viewed McCarthy himself. It granted him fame and recognition because his accusations were public and blunt, so different from the norm. In Joseph McCarthy’s speech “Enemies From Within,” he accused multiple government officials of associating with the communist party, and he felt that not enough had been done about it. He believed that the accused members should be discharged from their positions and wanted to be sure that it happened. On February 11, 1950, two days after his speech, McCarthy wrote a letter to Harry Truman, the president at the time, in which he urged him to do something about the men in the government that were accused of being communists. He claimed that he was aware of 300 people who were meant to be discharged, but only 80 were punished (McCarthy). In the letter, he stated, “I would suggest, Mr. President, that you…ask…how many of those whom your board had labeled as dangerous Communists [and] failed to discharge.” (Mccarthy).

Writing a letter to the president shows that McCarthy wanted to directly and publicly express his concerns to a person in a higher position of power than him, and doing so in such an abrupt and upfront manner is a bold and uncommon thing to do. This shows that McCarthy was narcissistic enough to believe the president needed or wanted to take his advice. Also, writing a letter specifically shows that he wanted his words to be public and on record which means that he enjoyed the attention he was receiving from the public. McCarthy wanted to hold the president accountable and force him to publicly decide on the issue, and this urgency shows how passionate he was about either resolving the problem or maintaining the power and fame he received from his speech. Joseph McCarthy’s accusations in his speech and letter led the public to question the fragility of their government and society. By recklessly accusing people that Americans had learned to trust, he created widespread suspicion and paranoia throughout the country that still has lasting effects to this day. In a newspaper article written in 1983, the author claimed, “His reckless abuse of fundamental principles of justice left unhealing wounds on this country. We need to remember him and to recognize that our democracy is so inherently fragile” (Adams). He abused his freedom of speech and other parts of the American political system to gain power and control over the general public, unfortunately succeeding. Along with the government, American society is also still affected by the fear and paranoia McCarthy’s reckless accusations instilled.

The widespread fear of communism and Russia originally occurred because of Americans’ mass hysteria after World War I, social unrest, and the fear that communist ideas would spread to America (Schmidt 28). “Added to this were more profound anxieties caused by social and cultural changes brought about by the urbanization, industrialization, and immigration of the previous decades (Schmidt 28).” The American fear of communism was just as much a social movement as it was a political one. Because of this, the lasting effects of McCarthy influenced both American politics and society. In addition to this, Joseph McCarthy’s speech and letter developed America’s widespread fear of Russia and the idea of communism into a panic and terror. The absurd and persistent accusation of government officials being involved with the communist party caused the public to question everyone they met. McCarthy’s position as a senator meant that he was accusing people that were of the same social and political status, and this caused Americans to believe him. Because of this, Americans felt they needed to be suspicious of not only their neighbors and peers but also their government representatives. During this period, a newspaper article titled “The Fear of Communism” expressed the extent of this fear. The author states, “There is in this country a great and ever-increasing fear of communism. That fear manifests itself in many ways and the methods are often fanatic and desperate.” This fear had been present in Americans’ lives for years and McCarthy only increased and broadened it; now their lives were revolving around it. His speech and letter created so much panic that during this period, society and politics were consumed with the terror of communism. One expert says, “The Red Scare was largely a situation in which political and economic conservatives, politicians, and ordinary citizens alike were overcome by anger and fear” (Brinson 2). Everyone in American society was affected by this.

No matter a person’s political beliefs or social status, every single person in America was swept into believing this fear of communism and Russia. McCarthy manipulated people and raised this fear to become a common truth and way of life. Joseph McCarthy’s ideas and accusations have had a lasting impact on America to this day by forever changing the way Americans viewed criticism of their government and causing them to be skeptical of the introduction of new ideas into politics. One newspaper article titled “Red Scare Frights Liberals” written in 1951 says, “[The Communist scare] has been used as a sort of smear campaign against anybody who suggests that improvements can be made in our economic and social orders.” The fear and paranoia that McCarthy created in American society and politics forced people to become suspicious of everything. This fear was so intense and widespread that it invaded all ways of thinking and all aspects of people’s lives, causing them to not trust anything, especially new unfamiliar things. Americans assumed that all new foreign ideas and people were bad and untrustworthy because they could either be secretly communist in disguise or similar to communism. In reality, this is an extremely unreasonable way to think because it is almost impossible that the entirety of new ideas or people is communist. This mindset is also unhealthy and unproductive because criticism is an important and necessary part of any government. One scholar wrote, “[Mccarthyism] stands for many things. One of them is the belief that criticism is equal to treason…The danger of Mccarthyism…is that when criticism is suppressed, so is truth” (Feuerlicht 115).

Criticism is a vital part of the development of anything, especially a government, and the toxic mindsets that McCarthy created in the American people did not allow for that. The paranoia and panic of communism that he let flourish caused Americans to forever be skeptical of their government which still affects politics in negative ways. In conclusion, the political tensions between the US and Russia in the early 1950s created a widespread fear of communism which Joseph McCarthy used to manipulate the public and create paranoia. His wild accusations made in a speech and letter made the American public question the fragility of their country, live in intense fear and suspicion, and be wary of new unfamiliar political ideas. The intensity of the fear McCarthy created allowed all of these things to have a lasting impact on American politics and society today. However, McCarthy was only able to manipulate the public to the extent to which he did because people were unaware that it was happening. Therefore, it is important to be educated and knowledgeable about the ideas society and politics are teaching Americans t avoid other people like Joseph McCarthy creating such a panic among Americans again today.

Works Cited

1. Adams, John G. “Without Precedent.” Dallas Morning News, 24 Apr. 1983, pp. 5.
2. Brinson, Susan L. The Red Scare, Politics, and the Federal Communications Commission, 1941-1960, ABC-CLIO, LLC, 2004. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.proxy.lib.utk.edu/lib/utk/detail.action?docID=496936.
3. “The Fear of Communism.” The Plaindealer, 27 Dec. 1935, pp. 7.
4. Feuerlicht, Roberta Strauss. America’s Reign of Terror: World War I, the Red Scare, and the Palmer Raids. Random House, 1971.
5. McCarthy, Joseph. “Enemies From Within.” Wheeling, 9 Feb. 1950.
6. McCarthy, Joseph. Received by Harry Truman, 11 Feb. 1950. “Red Scare Frights Liberals.” Arkansas State Press, 31 Aug. 1951, pp. 4.
7. Schmidt, Regin. Red Scare  FBI and the Origins of Anti-Communism in the United States, Museum Tusculanum Press, 2000.
8. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.proxy.lib.utk.edu/lib/utk/detail.action?docID=3374872