Civil Rights In The USA Flashcards
(20 cards)
Name 3 reasons for the red scare
- The USA was capitalist, promoting the idea of democracy and the freedom for people to make as much money as possible
- The Soviet Union was communist, arguing that everyone should be made to be equal and that all property should be owned by the state; communism seemed to be a direct threat to American freedom.
- Many Americans feared the spread of communist and anarchist ideas.
What was McCarthyism
The mistaken belief that communist spies were everywhere in the USA, and that they needed to be found and removed.
Methods used by McCarthy
- interview witnesses in public, bullying them to confess to wild accusations without any evidence
- make accusations one after another that the suspect would not know how to answer
- assume any refusal to answer was a sign of guilt
Growth of McCarthy
- He became very popular
- He had supporters among the veterans of the American Legion, as well as Christian fundamentalists who thought that communism was the work of the devil.
- Poorer people were more easily owned over as his conspiracies were seen by them as attacks on more well-educated and well-off Americans.
Name 3 Reasons for McCarthy’s downfall
- McCarthy’s aggressive approach towards the military undermined people’s faith in him.
- He investigated respected figures like George Marshall, (who was accused of encouraging the spread of communism in army of being the hiding place of a large number of communists, even though the army had just fought a 3 year war against the communist takeover of Korea).
- Millions of people watched McCarthy’s hearing of television and did not like his bullying tactics, lack of any concrete evidence for his accusations and how he often seemed drunk.
What was the red scare
The belief that communists are trying to overthrow the government of a country.
Overall impact of McCarthyism on the USA
- No one was ever convicted of spying as a result of McCarthy’s accusations. However, the State Department lost many intelligent and experienced employees and many university and school teachers lost their jobs.
- People were accused of being communist if they held different views from most Americans.
- Trade union influence was reduced by the accusations that strikes were communist activity.
What was HUAC and when was it set up and why
House Un-American Activities Committee
Was set up in 1938 to monitor extreme political groups like the Nazis who might be operating int he USA.
Describe the HUAC investigation onto the Hollywood movie industry
- Film-makers were accused of making propaganda to brainwash Americans into supporting communism.
- Writers and producers were called to testify before the Committee and explain their political views. Anyone who refused was sent to prison.
Result of the HUAC investigation, Hollywood Ten
- Writers, such as Dalton Trumbull, and producers, referred to as ‘the Hollywood Ten’, were sacked from their - jobs and sent to prison for a year for contempt of Congress.
- They were blacklisted - banned from working int he movie industry 0 until the 1960s.
- A further investigation in 1954 added 350 people to the blacklist.
When did the HollyWood Ten happen
1947
What were the Jim Crow laws/Segregation laws
Laws that forced black Americans to use separate public facilities from White Americans.
What were sharecroppers
Black American farmers who paid for the rent of their farms with a share of the crops they grew.
What was a Ghetto
A part of town or city with very poor-quality housing.
More on Jim Crow laws
The southern states introduce the Jim Crow Laws to segregate black and white Americans in public places, in education and on public transport. They also tried to prevent Black Americans from voting, or from marrying white Americans.
Problems faced by black Americans in the 1950s
Black Americans could not:
- go to the same schools, the same cinemas or restaurants as white Americans.
- ride in the same railway carriages as white Americans.
- keep their seat on the buses if white Americans needed to sit down.
Plessy vs Ferguson case (mention year and what it was)
1896
The US supreme court argued that these segregation laws were constitutional, provided black Americans were treated equally if they were separate.
Black Americans in the South
- On farms, there were sharecroppers, paying the rent for their land by selling a share of their crops.
- Some ended up in domestic service , as the cleaner or cooks of richer white Americans.
- Those working in shops of factories found that they were paid half what white Americans were paid for the same job.
What was the grandfather clause?
You were only eligible to vote if your grandfather had been able to vote. Many black Americans who tried to challenge this system found that their families had been victims of racial violence.
Black Americans could vote in the North, True or False
True
