Why was there a Red Scare in the USA in1919 and 1920?

Why was there a Red Scare in the USA in1919 and 1920?

1. Legacy of the First World War

   • Russia left the war after the Bolshevik revolution
     • USA was afraid of communism taking root in America too

2. Ideological differences

   • The 'American Dream' that anyone could get to the top
     • But in Communism there is no 'top' to get to
   • Marxism taught to spread communism - the Americans were proud of their successful capitalism

3. Recent communist movements elsewhere

   • Revolutions and uprisings in Berlin, Munich and Hungary

4. Anti- trade union feeling

   • Trade unions had never been very popular - legacy of events such as Pullman strike of 1894 and the bombing of the Los Angeles Times building by two unhappy trade union workers
     • Communism was seen as similar to trade unionism

5. Dislike of foreigners

   • Foreigners were seen as having dragged the USA into war
   • Epsionage and Sedition acts; said that immigrants were spying
     • Wilson: There are citizens of the United States born under other flags but welcomed under our generous naturalization laws to the full freedom and opportunity of America, who have poured the poison of disloyalty into the very arteries of our national life...'
   • Led to Sacco + Vanzetti trial and Palmer Raids

6. African-American migration

   • Many African-Americans migrated north during the war; there were more oppurtunities for them there, especially with the wartime industry boom
     • Unfortunately they helped spread prejudice against anyone who wasn't a WASP (white anglo-saxon protestant)
       • There were 20 race riots in 1919 - 38 people died in one in Chicago

7. High inflation

   • Wages went up more slowly and many veterans were unemployed
     • This left a lot of young men knocking around with nothing to do except get into trouble, helping cause race riots
       • They were also angry with immigrants who, willing to work cheaply, got jobs fairly easily