Where does the word McCarthyism come from?
McCarthyism is the term describing a period of intense anti-Communist suspicion in the United States which began during the start of the Cold War, that lasted roughly from the late 1940s to the mid to late 1950s. The term gets its name from U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy, a Republican of Wisconsin.
Where did McCarthyism first take place?
McCarthy’s involvement in these issues began publicly with a speech he made on Lincoln Day, February 9, 1950, to the Republican Women’s Club of Wheeling, West Virginia. He brandished a piece of paper, which he claimed contained a list of known communists working for the State Department.
What caused McCarthyism?
The Red Scare and McCarthyism. Another factor that caused communism fears in the U.S. was the fear of the spread of communism itself. Following the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia as well as a series of anarchist bombings on U.S. soil after World War I, the Red Scare began in the U.S. in 1919.
How did the Cold War affect McCarthyism?
The Cold War renovated American politics in a way that exposed communism as a central part of political life. McCarthyism was believed to be an absurd reaction to the rise of the secular state and the total association was resentments produced by status concern.
Why did McCarthyism start?
McCarthyism, name given to the period of time in American history that saw Wisconsin Sen. Joseph McCarthy produce a series of investigations and hearings during the 1950s in an effort to expose supposed communist infiltration of various areas of the U.S. government. The term has since become a byname for defamation…
How did McCarthyism affect American Society?
McCarthyism had wide effect on America, especially within the government. McCarthyism led to increased suspicions and fear within the government, abolition of the communist party and increased tension between America and communist allied nations.