Communism In The 1950's

The 1950s in the United States was a time of change, a time of fear, and a time of a “boom.” The 1950s was a time post World War II, where America’s wealth grew along with the economy. The “boom” was a boom in wealth and anxiety for Americans. The fifties were a time for growing technology including the use of television as a major news outlet, growing family sizes, growth in advancements such as highways, shopping malls, and corporations. The social norm was that the man belonged in the work force and women belonged at home with the family. Any woman who wanted to seek outside the household were seen as unusual. By the end of the decade, more than 50 million households had televisions. Popular shows like “I Love Lucy” and “Father Knows Best” provided great entertainment to Americans. Even though this decade was a time …show more content…
Americans saw how communism had affected the Soviet Union and people remained on their toes as they looked out for unusual and suspicious behavior, over the fear of communists walking among them. Communists were seen asa threat and evil. According to “Anticommunism at Home” By Ellen Schrecker, “In 1957, nearly three years after the United States Senate censured Joe McCarthy, the State’s commissioner of water supply, gas and electricity refused to grant fishing permits to two communists. Absurd as such provisions may seem today, at the time they had considerable logic. The commissioner was simply protecting the city’s drinking water from possible saboteurs who might poison it while pretending to troll for trout.” This is just an example of how the fear of communism caused many to make assumptions about suspicious people. Communism was a rising fear in the United States. Americans enjoyed the freedom and division of classes that they had