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Primary
American Rhetoric

American Rhetoric: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn: Statement at the Smith Act Trial

For Students 9th - 10th
This is the text of the testimony of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, a member of the USA Communist Party, who spoke in her own defense at her trial for being a Communist on April 24 1952, in New York.
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Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Huac: Backlash and Implications

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
These videos and support materials explore the intense division experienced by those who testified before and blacklisted by HUAC during the Cold War, focusing on the testimony of Elia Kazan. The videos are from American Masters None...
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Primary
Michigan State University

Michigan State University: Msu Libraries: Digital Collections: Hollywood Ten

For Students 9th - 10th
Primary source documents related to the Hollywood Ten, a group of writers, directors, and producers who were blacklisted for purported un-American activities and ties to Communism. All materials can be downloaded.
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Article
George Mason University

George Mason University: Between the Wars: Fear of Dissent

For Students 9th - 10th
An article, "The Case Against the 'Reds'" written by A. Mitchell Palmer, supporting the Palmer Raids as a method to fight Bolshevism in the United States.
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Article
George Mason University

Chnm: The Most Brainiest Man

For Students 9th - 10th
A fascinating article about how a conversation about Lenin led to the conviction and six-month jail sentence for Joseph Yenowsky. Excellent article shows the extreme fear of Reds and communism in the 1920's.
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Primary
Curated OER

History Matters: Leon Sverdlove on the Taft Hartley Act

For Students 9th - 10th
It's interesting to read about the anti-union sentiment that led to the Taft-Hartley Act after World War II, but even more amazing to see how that sentiment was tied to the anti-communist witch hunts of the time. Read the comments of the...
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Primary
Curated OER

History Matters: "Enemies From Within": Senator Joseph Mc Carthy's Accusations

For Students 9th - 10th
Read a speech and a letter from Joseph McCarthy supporting his contention that there are Communists in the State Department.
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eBook
Digital History

Digital History: Mc Carthy and Mc Carthyism [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about one of the truly black eyes in American history when Senator Joseph McCarthy was able to make false accusations against politicians and ordinary citizens alike, claiming they had communist leanings and were enemies of the...
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Handout
Digital History

Digital History: Alger Hiss

For Students 9th - 10th
Secondary source information on the Trial of Alger Hiss.
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Handout
Digital History

Digital History: Domestic Communism

For Students 9th - 10th
In the 1930s, the Communist Party and associated organizations attracted the support of a glittering array of novelists, screenwriters, critics, and artists. Within the Communist Party, these individuals had found comradeship,...
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Handout
Digital History

Digital History: Margaret Chase Smith: The Conscience of the Senate

For Students 9th - 10th
Margaret Chase Smith was the first woman elected to both houses of Congress. She was the first woman to enter the Senate without being appointed to the position. During World War II, she was the only civilian woman to go to sea in a Navy...
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Activity
The Atlantic Monthly Group

The Atlantic: The Never Ending Wrong

For Students 9th - 10th
The famous author, Katherine Anne Porter, wrote an article in the July, 1977, The Atlantic magazine, recounting her memory of the Sacco-Vanzetti trial fifty years before, and commenting on the view of Anarchism and Communism in the...
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Article
US National Archives

Nara: Prologue Magazine: Prelude to Mc Carthyism: The Making of a Blacklist

For Students 9th - 10th
This lengthy article in the Prologue Magazine, a publication from the National Archives, details the operations of the Attorney General's List of Subversive Organizations, or AGLOSO, which was used in compiling information based on...
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Primary
Other

Cpsu: J. Edgar Hoover Huac Testimony

For Students 9th - 10th
Read the testimony of J. Edgar Hoover before the House Un-American Activities Committee where he explains the destructive nature of Communists in the United States.
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Primary
Michigan State University

Michigan State University: United States History Since 1920: Truman Loyalty Oath, 1947

For Students 9th - 10th
In March, 1947, President Truman issued an executive order requiring that all Federal employees take a loyalty oath swearing loyalty to the United States. This was a time of fear of Communists and the Soviet Union. Read the entire...
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Primary
San Diego State University

San Diego State University: Internal Security Act of 1950 (Mc Carran Act) [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
The McCarran Act was passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate in the words of the act "to protect the United States against certain un-American and subversive activities by requiring registration of Communist...
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Website
Other

Teach American History: The Bonus Army [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
A great overview along with photographs and an eyewitness account of the march on Washington by the so-called Bonus Army in 1932. Find out why General Douglas MacArthur was so adamant about crushing the march and marchers. [pdf]
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Website
Other

Radio News: Edward R. Murrow

For Students 9th - 10th
This site not only gives a biography of Murrow with a look at his career as a radio and television journalist, but also has 4 audio clips of actual radio reports he gave. Very interesting. Use the links at the bottom of the page.
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Activity
Illinois Institute of Technology

Oyez: Gitlow v. New York

For Students 9th - 10th
Brief resource presents the facts of the case, questions presented, and the conclusion of the Gitlow v. New York United States Supreme Court case.
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Unit Plan
Read Works

Read Works: Internal Security Act of 1950

For Teachers 11th - 12th
[Free Registration/Login Required] This ReadWorks passage provides a brief history of the International Security Act of 1950. A paired passage, a passage with related content, and a questions sheet are available to help students build...
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Primary
Teaching American History

Teaching American History: Executive Order 9835

For Students 9th - 10th
Find the executive order from President Harry S. Truman which outlined the loyalty review program to examine the loyalty of federal employees. This was issued in response to anti-Communist hysteria at the time.
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Website
Library of Congress

Loc: America's Story: The Modern Era

For Students 3rd - 8th
For a brief overview of the period after World War II until the present, visit this Library of Congress resource. Learn about the Cold War and the first man to walk on the moon.
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Primary
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

Gilder Lehrman Institute: History Resources: Sacco and Vanzetti

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Read about the case of Sacco and Vanzetti, charged and convicted of murder. See why this case was a divisive one and read the broadside, published by the Sacco-Vanzetti Defense Committee, which raised...
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Unit Plan
Department of Defense

Do Dea: Ap Us History: Unit 8: An Age of Confidence and Anxiety

For Students 9th - 10th
This extensive learning module examines the United States' response to the global uncertainty and instability that followed World War II and the ways that marginalized groups challenged discrimination, and the counter-responses to their...

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