-
Period: to
Red Scare
-
Potsdam Conference
The surprise appearance of Harry Truman from the United States and Clement Attlee from Great Britan causes new tensions between Russia and the West. Truman and Stalin get off to a bad start. This, in effect, starts the Cold War. -
Iron Curtain Speech
Winston Churchill delivers his famous "Iron Curtain" speech in Missouri. This demonstrated how Communism had split Europe. -
Truman Doctrine
President Truman declared that the United States would send aid to any country to help fight the spread of Communism. -
Executive Order 9835
Presiden Truman established a Loyality-Security program for federal employees. This "Loyality Order" was meant to counter Republican accusations of Communists in the government. All it did was show the public that even the president had a right to fear Communism. -
Taft-Hartley Act
The Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 restricted the power of labor unions. It also required unions to declare if they had any Communist members or had intentions to "overthrow of the United States government by force or by any illegal or unconstitutional means." -
HUAC
The House Un-American Activities Committee begins its investigation into Communism in Hollywood. -
John Lawson
Screeenwriter John Lawson refuses to tell the HUAC (on Constitutional grounds) if he is a member of the Communist Party. He is charged with Contempt of Congress. -
Hollywood Ten
The HUAC issues citations for Contempt of Congress to John Howard Lawson, Alvah Bessie, Herbert Biberman, Lester Cole, Edward Dmytryk, Ring Lardner Jr., Albert Maltz, Samuel Ornitz, Adrian Scott, and Dalton Trumbo. This leads tothe blacklisting of these people in the film industry. -
Soviets Reject Marshall Plan
The Soviet Union rejected the American Marshall Plan to rebuild after WWII. They called it an "imperialist" plan to enslave Eastern Europe. -
Alger Hiss named a Communist
On this day, former Communist ,Whittaker Chambers, testifies in Congress and names Alger Hiss, of the State Department, as a Communist. The HUAC is responsible for this turn of events. -
Soviet Atomic Bomb
The U.S.S.R. successfully detonated its first atomic bomb. This shocked and frightened the American Public. -
Chinese Revolution Ends
Mao Zedong and the Communists emerge victorious in the Chinese Revolution. China is now Communist and allied with the Soviet Union. This encourages the "Domino Theory." -
CIO revokes UEW charter
The Congress of Industrial Organizations revokes the charter for the United Electrical Workers for failing to remove all of its Communist members. -
Alger Hiss Convicted
Alger Hiss was convicted of perjury by the HUAC. The jury concluded that he had made false statements regarding a Communist connection to Whittaker Chambers. -
Joseph McCarthy calls out suspected Communists
McCarthy made a speech in Wheeling, Virginia, calling out suspected Communists. He said, "I have in my hand a list of 205 cases of individuals who appear to be either card-carrying members or certainly loyal to the Communist Party." -
"McCarthyism" coined
Herbert Block effectively coined the term "McCarthyism" to describe the anti-Communist sensation caused by the Joseph McCarthy accusations. He did it with this cartoon. -
Korean War starts
The Communist North Korea invaded the South, starting the Korean War and further propagating the "Domino Theory." -
Rosenbergs Convicted
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are convicted of passing information about the United States' atomic program to the Soviets. -
McCarthy Hearings Begin
The hearings of the people Joseph McCarthy called out begin. It is broadcast live by ABC on television. -
Joseph Welch Speech
Disgusted by McCarthy's tactics and attacks on his own assistant counsel, Joseph Welch asks him, "Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" -
Joseph McCarthy Censured
The U.S. Senate censures McCarthy for "conduct contrary to Senatorial tradition." -
McCarthy Dies
Just as the title says. His death effectively ended McCarthyism and the Red Scare.
