Location
Comstock Memorial Union, MSUM
Document Type
Poster
Event Website
https://www.mnstate.edu/sac/
Start Date
15-4-2025 12:00 AM
End Date
15-4-2025 12:00 AM
Publication Date
4-15-2025
Description
On February 9, 1950, Senator Joseph McCarthy took the nation by storm when he declared at a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia that he possessed a secret list of 205 communists working in the State Department. Two days later, he sent a letter to President Truman claiming to have 57 names. What was the reason for this discrepancy? No such list existed and it had all been a lie. Nevertheless, a ruthless strain of anti-communism, quickly titled McCarthyism, permeated American politics and crafted an atmosphere of fear and paranoia which threatened to unravel the nation. With this context in mind, it is worth asking the question of how did dissenters against McCarthyism serve as a guardrail for institutional preservation? This question will be tackled through a variety of sources, including hearing transcripts, interviews, letters, media communications, speeches, and other formats. These materials will be utilized to determine whether the dissenters against McCarthy provided a viable alternative to the American public and, in so doing, blocked the most extreme effects of McCarthyism. The lessons and thoughts individuals can take away are that a strong enough dissent can counter an overzealous power, even if said power is bent on the dissenting group’s destruction.
“Enemies from Within”: Dissent in the Midst of McCarthyism
Comstock Memorial Union, MSUM
On February 9, 1950, Senator Joseph McCarthy took the nation by storm when he declared at a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia that he possessed a secret list of 205 communists working in the State Department. Two days later, he sent a letter to President Truman claiming to have 57 names. What was the reason for this discrepancy? No such list existed and it had all been a lie. Nevertheless, a ruthless strain of anti-communism, quickly titled McCarthyism, permeated American politics and crafted an atmosphere of fear and paranoia which threatened to unravel the nation. With this context in mind, it is worth asking the question of how did dissenters against McCarthyism serve as a guardrail for institutional preservation? This question will be tackled through a variety of sources, including hearing transcripts, interviews, letters, media communications, speeches, and other formats. These materials will be utilized to determine whether the dissenters against McCarthy provided a viable alternative to the American public and, in so doing, blocked the most extreme effects of McCarthyism. The lessons and thoughts individuals can take away are that a strong enough dissent can counter an overzealous power, even if said power is bent on the dissenting group’s destruction.
https://red.mnstate.edu/sac/2025/cah/2