During the American Revolution, Paul Revere warned that the Redcoats were coming: “The British are coming!” The British are coming! After World War II, another red threat loomed; the red scare. America has gone through many troubling events, including the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR). The Cold War was a period in which both countries were determined to outdo each other in virtually every area. This tension gave rise to the Red Scare, pitting Americans against each other. The Red Scare, during the Cold War, was a period of distrust and suspicion driven by fear. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay The Cold War began almost immediately after World War II as the Soviet Union and the United States fought over territory and allies. Tension grew between Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, his successors, and U.S. presidents. America and the USSR did not fight directly, but indirectly in proxy wars, including the arms race and the space race. During the proxy wars, fear of a spread of communism in America greatly increased and the U.S. government began to fear communist spies and traitors. This became known as the Red Scare or Red Menace. The Red Scare immediately caused the Americans to immediately become defensive to the point that they began to lash out at each other. Neighbors spied on and distrusted each other, particularly regarding comments about the country and political party membership. During the Cold War, Senator Joe McCarthy spearheaded this obsession. “No lives have been taken because of this obsession, and many have not been imprisoned. But some lost their jobs, still others had their careers disrupted, and many suffered distressing periods of unwarranted surveillance during which their patriotism was called into question. Patriotism began to be questioned immediately after President Harry Truman issued Executive Order 9835, also known as the Loyalty Order. This order allowed the government to investigate the personal and professional activities of government employees in order to eliminate anyone who may have ties to communism (“Red Scare”). In addition to the aforementioned obsession with Senator McCarthy, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover developed files on questionable Americans, going so far as to tap phones and use undercover agents to collect information from reputable communist organizations. Twelve leaders of the American Communist Party were imprisoned following Hoover's actions ("Red Scare"). The Red Scare began to influence much of the debate between Democrats and Republicans in 1952. Republicans and their allies began to use communism as an advantage over Americans in the upcoming presidential election. This caused Democrats to try to make American citizens understand that Republicans had done nothing to help stop communism. The Republicans, however, ended up being victorious with Dwight D. Eisenhower, a respected military general, defeating Adlai Stevenson in the election. This was not the first time that the Republicans had manipulated the people by invoking the threat of the Red Scare (“The Red Fear Dominates…”). The Red Scare has even spread to pop culture. The films andHollywood directors have not escaped suspicion and have even been questioned by members of Congress. Senator McCarthy held up a list purporting to contain the names of more than 200 suspected traitors. Even though the paper was blank, investigations continued at full speed. The House of Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) was a government investigation that questioned Hollywood actors and directors suspected of having communist connections. They forced actors and directors to detail their activities to the committee. Those who would not testify, known as the Hollywood Ten, were sentenced to prison for contempt of court and blacklisted by the industry once released. All but one in ten, Edward Dmytryk, proclaimed his innocence. Dmytryk confessed during his imprisonment and gave the names of more than twenty additional conspirators. One of the men who testified before the committee was director Elia Kazan. He had been investigated for sympathy and membership in various radical organizations, including the American Communist Party. Rather than allow himself to be blacklisted, he offered the names of other colleagues in the film industry for investigation, thus becoming a pariah within the group. Ironically, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decided to honor Kazan with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1991, much to the dismay of many. The Hollywood blacklist was just another stain on American culture. The obsession with eliminating undesirable elements ultimately led to the Rosenberg trials, those of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. Government agents and prosecutors believed the Rosenbergs were both Soviet spies, accused of selling nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union. Julius himself was of Russian descent, had been a member of the American Communist Party (ACP), and had access to sensitive and secret information as an engineer working for the US Signal Corps, working with military weapons. He was fired because of his ties to communism. Soon after, prosecutors said Julius began giving information to his brother-in-law, David Greenglass, a member of the Manhattan Project who helped develop the first atomic bomb. Greenglass personally gave information to the Russians. Ethel Rosenberg was also born to Russian parents and was a member of the ACP. She worked as a secretary. She was accused of typing messages her husband had passed to his brother as well as David's own notes for Soviet spy agent Harry Gold. After a four-month trial, the Rosenbergs were sentenced to death and their co-conspirators received sentences of 15 to 30 years. Despite some evidence and testimony to the contrary, the Rosenbergs continued to maintain their innocence until the end of the trials. The Rosenbergs refused to make a deal that would have spared them the death penalty but would have forced them to admit their guilt. Both Rosenbergs were electrocuted at Sing Sing Prison on June 19, 1953. Many people believe that the Rosenbergs were convicted only because they were both admitted members of the American Communist Party and according to Greenglass' testimony, not due to strong evidence. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay The terrifying events of the Red Scare may have had a negative impact on some people; however, it fostered a sense of pride in America and the strength of democratic government. Some individual freedoms have been suspended due to suspicion and ties 2019. 2019.