McCarthyism is a word created with reference to the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, treason, or subversion without proper regard for evidence. The term originated from the antics of the U.S. senator Joseph R. McCarthy (R-WI), and his years in the senate (1947–1957) marked the height of McCarthyism in the United States. Ever since the rise of communism and its growth as a threatening political force, the United States had been fearful of communism’s allure and development. This fear, associated with the rise of communism and policies that many saw as communist-like, led many to adopt a type of McCarthyism, well before the tenure of Senator McCarthy. This First Red Scare was promptly silenced with the onset of World War II because of a ...

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