Progressive Era
111-621: Repression and persecution Anti-war and civil rights movements Contemporary The Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee ( DSOC , / ˈ d iː s ɒ k / DEE -sok ) was a democratic socialist organization in the United States . The DSOC was founded in 1973 by Michael Harrington , who had led a minority caucus in the Socialist Party of America and disagreed with its transformation into Social Democrats, USA . Harrington's caucus supported George McGovern 's call for
222-484: A peace process or be imposed by United Nations Security Council resolutions via Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter . The immediate goal of a ceasefire is to stop violence but the underlying purposes of ceasefires vary. Ceasefires may be intended to meet short-term limited needs (such as providing humanitarian aid), manage a conflict to make it less devastating, or advance efforts to peacefully resolve
333-483: A truce or armistice ), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions often due to mediation by a third party. Ceasefires may be between state actors or involve non-state actors. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty but also as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces. They may occur via mediation or otherwise as part of
444-602: A "nonmailable matter". Due to the Espionage Act and the then Postmaster General Albert S. Burleson , 74 separate newspapers were not being mailed. In April 1919, authorities discovered a plot for mailing 36 bombs to prominent members of the U.S. political and economic establishment : J. P. Morgan Jr. , John D. Rockefeller , Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes , U.S. Attorney General Alexander Mitchell Palmer , and immigration officials. On June 2, 1919, in eight cities, eight bombs exploded simultaneously . One target
555-755: A "realignment" strategy common to socialists since the 1960s, the DSOC tried to help to build a "democratic left" movement from the political movements participating in the Democratic Party . DSOC joined the Socialist International in 1976. In 1982, the DSOC merged with the New American Movement to form the Democratic Socialists of America . After nearly a decade of internal acrimony, the Socialist Party of America-Social Democratic Federation
666-617: A 24-hour-truce. However, the Viet Cong and North Vietnam did not adhere to the truce, and ambushed the 2nd Battalion, Republic of Vietnam Marine Division , 10 minutes after midnight in Mỹ Tho . The Viet Cong would also attack a U.S. Army fire support base near Saigon , causing more casualties. On January 15, 1973, US President Richard Nixon ordered a ceasefire of the aerial bombings in North Vietnam . The decision came after Henry Kissinger ,
777-474: A Debs Caucus and one for the independent Samuel H. Friedman . Friedman and the minority caucuses had opposed the name change. The convention voted on and adopted proposals for its program by a two-one vote. On foreign policy, the program called for "firmness toward Communist aggression". However, on the Vietnam War the program opposed "any efforts to bomb Hanoi into submission" and instead it endorsed negotiating
888-947: A blunt directive from Moscow denouncing the Polish government. On September 17, the Soviet Union invaded eastern Poland and occupied the Polish territory assigned to it by the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, followed by co-ordination with German forces in Poland. The CPUSA turned the focus of its public activities from anti-fascism to advocating peace, not only opposing military preparations, but also condemning those opposed to Hitler . The party did not at first attack President Roosevelt, reasoning that this could devastate American Communism, blaming instead Roosevelt's advisors. On November 30, when Soviet Union attacked Finland and after forced mutual assistance pacts from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania ,
999-478: A cease-fire and immediate withdrawal from Vietnam. In contrast to the traditional emphasis on strengthening the working class by organizing labor unions, Harrington reduced the emphasis on labor of previous socialist organizations. While continuing to work with unionists, Harrington instead placed more emphasis on middle-class political activists, especially those drawn to activism through the McGovern campaign. Developing
1110-438: A dispute. An actor may not always intend for a ceasefire to advance the peaceful resolution of a conflict but instead give the actor an upper hand in the conflict (for example, by re-arming and repositioning forces or attacking an unsuspecting adversary), which creates bargaining problems that may make ceasefires less likely to be implemented and less likely to be durable if implemented. The durability of ceasefire agreements
1221-463: A full cessation of violence and military activities against Palestinians anywhere." On November 21, 2023, Qatar announced that they had negotiated a truce between Israel and Hamas would pause Gaza fighting , allow for the release of some hostages and bring more aid to Palestinian civilians. As part of the deal, 50 hostages held by Hamas were released while Israel released 150 Palestinian prisoners. Several attempts have been made to broker ceasefires in
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#17328523478711332-517: A full-scale international war, India referred the matter to the UN Security Council under Article 35 of the UN Charter, which addresses situations "likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace". The Security Council set up the dedicated United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan , which mediated for an entire year as the fighting continued. After several UN resolutions outlining
1443-547: A large and serious constituency of the Left remains, even if unorganized and uncertain. If presented with a clear and reasoned perspective for basic change, it might be won to a lifetime commitment, even in the Nixon years; if not, it could vanish. The Left, more than ever before, needs thought, self-criticism, candor, and communication. We hope this Newsletter will make a modest contribution to that end. Democratic Left continues today as
1554-614: A peace agreement, which should protect Communist political cadres in South Vietnam from further military or police reprisals. Harrington's proposal for a ceasefire and immediate withdrawal of United States forces was defeated. Harrington complained that after its convention the Socialist Party had endorsed George McGovern only with a statement loaded with "constructive criticism" and that it had not mobilized enough support for McGovern. The majority caucus's Arch Puddington replied that
1665-445: A pre-WWII isolationist tradition on the right. Liberal anti-communists believed that political debate was enough to show Communists as disloyal and irrelevant, while countersubversive anticommunists believed that Communists had to be exposed and punished. At times, countersubversive anticommunists accused liberals of being "equally destructive" as Communists due to an alleged lack of religious values or supposed "red web" infiltration into
1776-686: A procedure for resolving the dispute via a plebiscite , a ceasefire agreement was reached between the countries towards the end of December 1948, which came into effect in the New Year. The Security Council set up the United Nations Military Observer Group for India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to monitor the ceasefire line. India declared a ceasefire in Kashmir Valley during Ramadan in 2018. The Irish Republican Army held several Christmas ceasefires (usually referred to as truces) during
1887-592: A revival of Red Scare politics in the United States, and for its ties to conspiracy theorist Frank Gaffney and conservative activist Steve Bannon . David Skidmore, writing for The Diplomat , saw it as another instance of "adolescent hysteria" in American diplomacy, as another of the "fevered crusades [which] have produced some of the costliest mistakes in American foreign policy". Between 2000 and 2023, there were 224 reported instances of Chinese espionage directed at
1998-507: A viable left-wing pressure-group within the Democratic Party , advancing an explicitly socialist agenda and attempting to win influence over elected officials for that program. Harrington led many members of this caucus and from his networks to establish the DSOC in 1973. Harrington, a former editor of the SPA's weekly newspaper, New America , was the most important figure in the establishment of DSOC. Harrington had resigned as National Co-Chairman of
2109-605: A visit to Kuwait; Iraq being bombed in June 1993 as a response, Iraqi forces firing on coalition aircraft patrolling the Iraqi no-fly zones , US President Bill Clinton 's bombing of Baghdad in 1998 during Operation Desert Fox , and an earlier 1996 bombing of Iraq by the US during Operation Desert Strike . The war remained in effect until 2003, when US and UK forces invaded Iraq and toppled Saddam Hussein 's regime from power. A UN-mediated ceasefire
2220-637: Is Twentieth-Century Americanism", the chairman, Earl Browder, advertised the CPUSA's integration to the political mainstream. In contrast, the Trotskyist Socialist Workers Party opposed U.S. participation in the war and supported labor strikes, even in the war-effort industry. For this reason, James P. Cannon and other SWP leaders were convicted per the Smith Act. In March 1947, President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9835 , creating
2331-463: Is a spy. Abundant accounts in narrative forms contained themes of the infiltration, subversion, invasion, and destruction of American society by un–American thought . Even a baseball team, the Cincinnati Reds , temporarily renamed themselves the "Cincinnati Redlegs" to avoid the money-losing and career-ruining connotations inherent in being ball-playing "Reds" (communists). In 1954, Congress passed
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#17328523478712442-436: Is affected by several factors, such as demilitarized zones, withdrawal of troops and third-party guarantees and monitoring (e.g. peacekeeping ). Ceasefire agreements are more likely to be durable when they reduce incentives to attack, reduce uncertainty about the adversary's intentions, and when mechanisms are put in place to prevent accidents from spiraling into conflict. Ceasefire agreements are more likely to be reached when
2553-744: Is known as " McCarthyism " after its best-known advocate, Senator Joseph McCarthy . McCarthyism coincided with an increased and widespread fear of communist espionage that was consequent of the increasing tension in the Cold War through the Soviet occupation of Eastern Europe , the Berlin Blockade (1948–49), the end of the Chinese Civil War , the confessions of spying for the Soviet Union that were made by several high-ranking U.S. government officials, and
2664-593: Is most often used to refer to two periods in the history of the United States which are referred to by this name. The First Red Scare , which occurred immediately after World War I , revolved around a perceived threat from the American labor movement , anarchist revolution , and political radicalism that followed revolutionary socialist movements in Germany and Russia during the 19th–early 20th century. The Second Red Scare , which occurred immediately after World War II ,
2775-696: The Communist Control Act of 1954 which prevented members of the communist party in America from holding office in labor unions and other labor organizations. Examining the political controversies of the 1940s and 1950s, historian John Earl Haynes , who studied the Venona decryptions extensively, argued that Joseph McCarthy's attempts to "make anti-communism a partisan weapon" actually "threatened [the post-War] anti-Communist consensus", thereby ultimately harming anti-communist efforts more than helping them. Meanwhile,
2886-670: The Communist Party USA Murray B. Levin wrote that the Red Scare was "a nationwide anti-radical hysteria provoked by a mounting fear and anxiety that a Bolshevik revolution in America was imminent—a revolution that would change Church, home, marriage, civility, and the American way of Life". News media exacerbated such fears, channeling them into anti-foreign sentiment due to the lively debate among recent immigrants from Europe regarding various forms of anarchism as possible solutions to widespread poverty. The Industrial Workers of
2997-595: The German-American Bund , and the perceived racial disloyalty of the Japanese-American population ( cf. hyphenated-Americans ). After the Soviet Union signed the non-aggression Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany on August 23, 1939, negative attitudes towards communists in the United States were on the rise. While the American communist party at first attacked Germany for its September 1, 1939 invasion of western Poland , on September 11 it received
3108-625: The Korean War (1950–53) against U.S. ally South Korea . A few of the events during the Red Scare were also due to a power struggle between director of FBI J. Edgar Hoover and the Central Intelligence Agency . Hoover had instigated and aided some of the investigations of members of the CIA with "leftist" history, like Cord Meyer . This conflict could also be traced back to the conflict between Hoover and William J. Donovan , going back to
3219-661: The Kremlin has." In 1954, after accusing the army, including war heroes, Senator Joseph McCarthy lost credibility in the eyes of the American public and the Army-McCarthy Hearings were held in the summer of 1954. He was formally censured by his colleagues in Congress and the hearings led by McCarthy came to a close. After the Senate formally censured McCarthy, his political standing and power were significantly diminished, and much of
3330-691: The National Security Advisor to the President, returned to Washington, D.C. , from Paris, France , with a draft peace proposal. Combat missions continued in South Vietnam . By January 27, 1973, all parties of the Vietnam War signed a ceasefire as a prelude to the Paris Peace Accord . After Iraq was driven out of Kuwait by US-led coalition forces during Operation Desert Storm , Iraq and
3441-570: The New Deal . Much evidence for Soviet espionage existed, according to Democratic Senator and historian Daniel Moynihan , with the Venona project consisting of "overwhelming proof of the activities of Soviet spy networks in America, complete with names, dates, places, and deeds." However, Moynihan argued that because sources like the Venona project were kept secret for so long, "ignorant armies clashed by night". With McCarthy advocating an extremist view,
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3552-734: The New York City Council ( Ruth Messinger ). The DSOC had public support from union leaders as Victor Reuther of the United Auto Workers , William W. Winpisinger of the International Association of Machinists and various officials of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America . The DSOC ceased to exist in 1982 when it merged with the New American Movement (NAM) to form the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). Discussions with representatives of
3663-552: The People's Volunteer Army (PVA) on the other took hold at approximately the 38th parallel north . These parties signed the Korean Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953 but South Korean President Syngman Rhee , who attacked the ceasefire proceedings, did not. Upon agreeing to the ceasefire which called upon the governments of South Korea, the United States , North Korea and China to participate in continued peace talks,
3774-575: The Syrian Civil War . Several attempts have been made to broker ceasefires during the Russian invasion of Ukraine . In May 2023, Donald Trump told the UK's GB news that as US president he would end the war within 24 hours, given that he had good relationships with the leaders of Ukraine and Russia. He added that it would be easy to conclude a ceasefire agreement to end the war. The 2020 global ceasefire
3885-490: The U.S. Constitution via Palmer-authorized "illegal acts" and "wanton violence". Defensively, Palmer then warned that a government-deposing left-wing revolution would begin on 1 May 1920— May Day , the International Workers' Day. When it failed to happen, he was ridiculed and lost much credibility. Strengthening the legal criticism of Palmer was that fewer than 600 deportations were substantiated with evidence, out of
3996-572: The UN Security Council signed a ceasefire agreement on March 3, 1991. Subsequently, throughout the 1990s, the U.N. Security Council passed numerous resolutions calling for Iraq to disarm its weapons of mass destruction unconditionally and immediately. Because no peace treaty was signed after the Gulf War , the war still remained in effect, including an alleged assassination attempt of former US President George H. W. Bush by Iraqi agents while on
4107-751: The United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan , establishing a cease-fire line in Kashmir following the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 . On November 29, 1952, the US president-elect , Dwight D. Eisenhower , went to Korea to see how to end the Korean War . With the UN 's acceptance of India 's proposed armistice, the ceasefire between the UN Command on the one side and the Korean People's Army (KPA) and
4218-838: The social-democratic parliamentary opposition party of Canada. The following day on October 13, the convention moved to the McAlpin Hotel , located at the corner of Broadway and 34th Street in New York City and began in earnest. Harrington delivered an address to those attending the gathering which was undelegated and open to all desiring to attend from the general public and then the attendees broke up into various small workshops. Small group subjects included "the unions", " feminism ", "racial equality", "Democratic Party", "equality" and " detente ". Workshop chairs were appointed in advance and included Michael Walzer , Bogdan Denitch , Christopher Lasch and others. A panel discussion on "Socialism and
4329-462: The " Federal Employees Loyalty Program " establishing political-loyalty review boards who determined the "Americanism" of Federal Government employees, and requiring that all federal employees to take an oath of loyalty to the United States government. It then recommended termination of those who had confessed to spying for the Soviet Union, as well as some suspected of being "Un-American". This led to more than 2,700 dismissals and 12,000 resignations from
4440-408: The "shockingly high level" of infiltration by Soviet agents during WWII had largely dissipated by 1950. Liberal anti-communists like Edward Shils and Daniel Moynihan had contempt for McCarthyism, and Moynihan argued that McCarthy's overreaction distracted from the "real (but limited) extent of Soviet espionage in America." In 1950, President Harry Truman called Joseph McCarthy "the greatest asset
4551-619: The 1930s, communism had become an attractive economic ideology , particularly among labor leaders and intellectuals. By 1939, the CPUSA had about 50,000 members. In 1940, soon after World War II began in Europe, the U.S. Congress legislated the Alien Registration Act (aka the Smith Act , 18 USC § 2385) making it a crime to "knowingly or willfully advocate, abet, advise or teach the duty, necessity, desirability or propriety of overthrowing
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4662-481: The Boston police department. The press portrayed these worker strikes as "radical threats to American society" inspired by "left-wing, foreign agents provocateurs ". The IWW and those sympathetic to workers claimed that the press "misrepresented legitimate labor strikes" as "crimes against society", "conspiracies against the government", and "plots to establish communism". Opponents of labor viewed strikes as an extension of
4773-611: The California branch was especially active in supporting McGovern while the New York branch were focusing on a congressional race. Even before the convention, Michael Harrington had resigned as an Honorary Chairperson of the SPA. Some months after the convention, he resigned his membership in SDUSA. Harrington and his supporters from the Coalition Caucus soon formed the DSOC. Many members of
4884-556: The Communist Party considered Russian security sufficient justification to support the actions. Secret short wave radio broadcasts in October from Comintern leader Georgi Dimitrov ordered CPUSA leader Earl Browder to change the party's support for Roosevelt. On October 23, the party began attacking Roosevelt. The party was active in the isolationist America First Committee . The CPUSA also dropped its boycott of Nazi goods, spread
4995-441: The DSOC inner circle. Meier's home served as the group's base of operations up to the October 1973 convention, at which time the DSOC rented a tiny basement office. The DSOC presented itself as an explicitly socialist organization. In electoral politics, it worked within the Democratic Party in which it dedicated itself to building a base of support for democratic-socialist ("democratic-left") ideas. In Michael Harrington 's view,
5106-408: The DSOC. At its start, DSOC had 840 members, according to a 1973 profile of Harrington. According to the group's founder Michael Harrington , the DSOC began with a core of about 250 members. The group's first paid staffer was Jack Clark, a 23-year-old from Boston who received $ 50 a month and use of a spare bed in the home of Debbie Meier, herself a second generation socialist and important figure in
5217-537: The Debs Caucus resigned from SDUSA and formed the Socialist Party USA . Despite opposing the majority of the SPA, Harrington acknowledged the validity of its members' concerns: The anti-war activists of the sixties were overwhelmingly white and middle class. Many of them were unconcerned about the domestic political consequences of their actions and were even contemptuous of that majority of Americans who supported
5328-572: The Democratic Left (the name was later shortened to Democratic Left ) appeared in March 1973 under the editorship of Mike Harrington, assisted by Jack Clark as Managing Editor. A front page essay by Harrington, entitled "The Shape of Our Politics", made nary a mention of the bitter faction fight within the SPA: Liberalism is in transition. Important ideologists announce their 'deradicalization.' On
5439-431: The Democratic Party on a democratic socialist platform. Its members ran for political office almost always within the Democratic Party. In addition, the DSOC publicized and promoted the individual efforts of its dues payers and supporters, many of whom were active in labor unions or other political organizations. There were members of the DSOC who were elected to the Congress ( Berkeley, California Rep. Ron Dellums ) and
5550-697: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – within the Department of Justice, and used federal agents to jail more than 5,000 citizens and to search homes without respecting their constitutional rights. In 1918, before the bombings, President Woodrow Wilson had pressured Congress to legislate the anti-anarchist Sedition Act of 1918 to protect wartime morale by deporting putatively undesirable political people. Law professor David D. Cole reports that President Wilson's "federal government consistently targeted alien radicals, deporting them... for their speech or associations, making little effort to distinguish terrorists from ideological dissidents ". President Wilson used
5661-416: The Federal agents against Reds and suspected-Reds". In the event, twelve publicly prominent lawyers characterized the Palmer Raids as unconstitutional. The critics included future Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter , who published A Report on the Illegal Practices of The United States Department of Justice , documenting systematic violations of the Fourth , Fifth , Sixth , and Eighth Amendments to
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#17328523478715772-437: The Government of the United States or of any State by force or violence, or for anyone to organize any association which teaches, advises or encourages such an overthrow, or for anyone to become a member of or to affiliate with any such association"—and required Federal registration of all foreign nationals . Although principally deployed against communists, the Smith Act was also used against right-wing political threats such as
5883-418: The NAM's position towards Israel , with the DSOC maintaining belief in a two-state solution guaranteeing the existence of Israel while many in the NAM saw the Palestine Liberation Organization as engaged in an anti-colonial liberation struggle. Ultimately, a careful statement was worked out on the Middle East based upon a two-state solution and merger talks moved forward. The 1981 DSOC National Convention
5994-460: The NAM, a successor organization to Students for a Democratic Society , began as early as 1977. The move was favored by the DSOC's left-wing led by historian Jim Chapin which sought to bring into the DSOC many former participants in the New Left of the 1960s who were in search of a new home. The DSOC formally endorsed the idea of merger with the NAM at its 1979 Houston convention. However, the proposal for merger generated vocal opposition. Forces on
6105-406: The New Red Scare has caused the American and Chinese governments to "increasingly view Chinese students with suspicion" on American college campuses. The fourth iteration of the Committee on the Present Danger , a United States foreign policy interest group, was established on March 25, 2019, branding itself Committee on the Present Danger: China (CPDC). The CPDC has been criticized as promoting
6216-465: The Northern Ireland conflict. An example of a ceasefire in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict was announced between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority on February 8, 2005. When announced, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat publicly defined the ceasefire as follows: "We have agreed that today President Mahmoud Abbas will declare a full cessation of violence against Israelis anywhere and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will declare
6327-488: The Red Scare did not distinguish between communism , anarchism , socialism , or social democracy . This aggressive crackdown on certain ideologies resulted in many Supreme Court cases over free speech. In the 1919 case of Schenk v. United States , the Supreme Court, introducing the clear-and-present-danger test, effectively deemed the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918 constitutional. The second Red Scare occurred after World War II (1939–1945), and
6438-416: The SDUSA or its predecessors in 1973 when SDUSA stated its membership at 1,800, according to a 1973 profile of Harrington. The publication that would eventually become the official organ of the DSOC, initially an eight-page letter-sized monthly called Newsletter of the Democratic Left, predated the formal establishment of the DSOC as a national organization in October 1973. The first issue of Newsletter of
6549-464: The SPA had last sponsored a candidate for President in 1956 , who received only 2,121 votes, which were cast in only 6 states. Because the party no longer sponsored candidates in presidential elections, the name "Party" had been "misleading" as "Party" had hindered the recruiting of activists who participated in the Democratic Party, according to the majority report. The name "Socialist" was replaced by " Social Democrats " because many American associated
6660-424: The SPA, many of whose leaders criticized McGovern, when Harrington focused his efforts on electing McGovern in October 1972. In his first memoir, published in 1973, Harrington defended his choice of peace activists over trade unionists: But in their derogatory comparison of this movement with the trade unionists, my comrades failed to notice two of its historic aspects. First, the anti-war young were right: Vietnam
6771-451: The Sedition Act of 1918 to limit the exercise of free speech by criminalizing language deemed disloyal to the United States government. Initially, the press praised the raids; The Washington Post stated: "There is no time to waste on hairsplitting over [the] infringement of liberty", and The New York Times wrote that the injuries inflicted upon the arrested were "souvenirs of the new attitude of aggressiveness which had been assumed by
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#17328523478716882-450: The Soviet Union—in the process revealing the extraordinary breadth of the Soviet spy network in infiltrating the federal government. The process also launched the successful political careers of Richard Nixon and Robert F. Kennedy , as well as that of Joseph McCarthy. The HUAC held a large interest in investigating those in the entertainment industry in Hollywood. They interrogated actors, writers, and producers. The people who cooperated in
6993-477: The U.S. government before, during and after World War II. Other U.S. citizen spies confessed to their acts of espionage in situations where the statute of limitations on prosecuting them had run out. In 1949, anti-communist fear, and fear of American traitors, was aggravated by the Chinese Communists winning the Chinese Civil War against the Western-sponsored Kuomintang , their founding of the Communist China , and later China intervenes (October–December 1950) in
7104-451: The United States. The American Red Scares, combined with the general atmosphere of the Cold War, had a marked influence on other Anglophone countries. Anticommunist paranoia and violence was significantly advanced in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. In other parts of the world , such as Indonesia , fear and loathing of communism has escalated to the level of political violence . Ceasefire A ceasefire (also known as
7215-425: The Welfare State" was also held, featuring prominently Harrington's close political associate, the historian and magazine editor Irving Howe , an individual who would become one of the organization's leading faces. The final day saw the election of a governing National Board and ratification of a constitution for the new organization. At most 200 members of the Coalition Caucus joined Michael Harrington in forming
7326-469: The World (IWW), also known as the Wobblies, backed several labor strikes in 1916 and 1917. These strikes covered a wide range of industries including steel working, shipbuilding, coal mining, copper mining, and others necessary for wartime activities. After World War I ended (November 1918), the number of strikes increased to record levels in 1919, with more than 3,600 separate strikes by a wide range of workers, e.g. steel workers, railroad shop workers, and
7437-618: The act a "mockery of the Bill of Rights" and a "long step toward totalitarianism" because it represented a government restriction on the freedom of opinion. He vetoed the act but his veto was overridden by Congress. Much of the bill eventually was repealed. The formal establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and the beginning of the Korean War in 1950 meant that Asian Americans , especially those of Chinese or Korean descent, came under increasing suspicion by both American civilians and government officials of being Communist sympathizers. Simultaneously, some American politicians saw
7548-435: The atom bomb , were found to have engaged in espionage. This allegedly included some pro-Soviet capitalists, such as economist Harry Dexter White , and communist businessman David Karr . According to The New York Times , China 's growing military and economic power has resulted in a "New Red Scare" in the United States. Both Democrats and Republicans have expressed anti-China sentiment. According to The Economist ,
7659-478: The bombing, in which 38 died and 141 were injured. In 1919–20, several states enacted " criminal syndicalism " laws outlawing advocacy of violence in effecting and securing social change . The restrictions included limitations on free speech . Passage of these laws, in turn, provoked aggressive police investigation of the accused persons, their jailing, and deportation for being suspected of being either communist or left-wing. Regardless of ideological gradation,
7770-415: The convention, Co-Chairman Bayard Rustin called for Social Democrats, USA (SDUSA) to organize against the "reactionary policies of the Nixon Administration" while at the same time criticized the "irresponsibility and élitism of the 'New Politics' liberals". The party changed its name to SDUSA by a vote of 73 to 34. Renaming the party as SDUSA was meant to be "realistic". The New York Times observed that
7881-503: The costs of conflict are high and when the actors in a conflict have lower audience costs . Scholars emphasize that war termination is more likely to occur when actors have more information about each other, when actors can make credible commitments, and when the domestic political situation makes it possible for leaders to make war termination agreements without incurring domestic punishment. By one estimate, there were at least 2202 ceasefires across 66 countries in 109 civil conflicts over
7992-524: The discussion of communist subversion was made into a civil rights issue instead of a counterintelligence one. This historiographical perspective is shared by historians John Earl Haynes and Robert Louis Benson. While President Truman formulated the Truman Doctrine against Soviet expansion, it is possible he was not fully informed of the Venona intercepts, leaving him unaware of the domestic extent of espionage, according to Moynihan and Benson. By
8103-510: The fear of Communists infiltrating the country. Supporters, however, believe the actions of the HUAC were justified given the level of threat Communism posed to democracy in the United States. Senator McCarthy stirred up further fear in the United States of communists infiltrating the country by saying that communist spies were omnipresent, and he was America's only salvation, using this fear to increase his own influence. In 1950 Joseph McCarthy addressed
8214-754: The fear that the Soviet Union would drop nuclear bombs on the United States, and fear of the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA). In Canada, the 1946 Kellock–Taschereau Commission investigated espionage after top-secret documents concerning RDX , radar and other weapons were handed over to the Soviets by a domestic spy-ring. At the House Un-American Activities Committee , former CPUSA members and NKVD spies, Elizabeth Bentley and Whittaker Chambers , testified that Soviet spies and communist sympathizers had penetrated
8325-590: The first Red Scare, but especially during World War II. Donovan ran the OSS (CIA's predecessor). They had differing opinions on the nature of the alliance with the Soviet Union, conflicts over jurisdiction, conflicts of personality, the OSS hiring of communists and criminals as agents, etc. Historian Richard Powers distinguishes two main forms of anti-communism during the period, liberal anti-communism and countersubversive anti-communism. The countersubversives, he argues, derived from
8436-456: The front, the sharing and fraternity. All was well until the higher echelons of command got to hear about the effect of the ceasefire, whereby their wrath ensured a return to hostilities. There was no peace treaty signed during the Christmas truce , and the war resumed after a few days. The Karachi Agreement of 1949 was signed by the military representatives of India and Pakistan, supervised by
8547-422: The investigations got to continue working as they had been, but people who refused to cooperate were blacklisted . Critics of the HUAC claim their tactics were an abuse of government power and resulted in a witch hunt that disregarded citizens’ rights and ruined their careers and reputations. Critics claim the internal witch hunt was a use for personal gain to spread influence for government officials by intensifying
8658-462: The killer, who had been dating one of Trotsky's secretaries, was a disillusioned follower. In allegiance to the Soviet Union, the party changed this policy again after Hitler broke the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact by attacking the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941. The CPUSA opposed labor strikes in the weapons industry and supporting the U.S. war effort against the Axis Powers . With the slogan "Communism
8769-413: The never-before-mentioned National Board of the DSOC had issued a call for the launch of "a new, nationwide socialist organization". The founding convention of the DSOC was initially slated to begin on October 12, 1973 in New York City. For the first time, membership dues were solicited, with rates of $ 3.50 for students and $ 7.00 for regular membership accepted until January 1, 1974. The Founding Convention
8880-689: The organization's right-wing, led by Howe and calling themselves the Committee Against the NAM Merger (CATNAM), urged that instead of courting New Left survivors. the DSOC should instead continue to place its emphasis on outreach to larger forces in the labor movement and the Democratic Party. In addition to noting the NAM's deep distrust of the Democratic Party, many adherents of the CATNAM had grave misgivings about
8991-407: The other wing, many trade unionists and middle-class liberals have become aware of the need for structural change in our society. In the McGovern campaign, for instance, the frankly redistributionist principle that revenue should be raised by levies on unearned incomes was a major step forward. On the campus there is a decline of activism, a revival of private concerns. The New Left is dead. But
9102-463: The outbreak of the Korean War . The events of the late 1940s, the early 1950s—the trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg (1953), the trial of Alger Hiss , the Iron Curtain (1945–1991) around Eastern Europe , and the Soviet Union's first nuclear weapon test in 1949 ( RDS-1 )—surprised the American public, influencing popular opinion about U.S. national security , which, in turn, was connected to
9213-576: The period 1989–2020. Historically, the concept of a ceasefire existed at least by the time of the Middle Ages, when it was known as a 'truce of God' . During World War I , on December 24, 1914, there was an unofficial ceasefire on the Western Front as France , the United Kingdom , and Germany observed Christmas . There are accounts that claimed the unofficial ceasefire took place throughout
9324-528: The principal belligerents of the war established the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and it has since been patrolled by the joint Republic of Korea Army , US, and UN Command on the one side and the KPA on the other. The war is considered to have ended at that point even though there still is no peace treaty. On New Years Day, 1968, Pope Paul VI convinced South Vietnam and the United States to declare
9435-628: The prospect of American-educated Chinese students bringing their knowledge back to "Red China" as an unacceptable threat to American national security, and laws such as the China Aid Act of 1950 and the Refugee Relief Act of 1953 gave significant assistance to Chinese students who wished to settle in the United States. Despite being naturalized, however, Chinese immigrants continued to face suspicion of their allegiance. The general effect, according to University of Wisconsin-Madison scholar Qing Liu,
9546-415: The publication of the Democratic Socialists of America , the organizational successor to the DSOC. The organization also published a number of issues of an internal discussion bulletin, containing typewritten content submitted by its members about various issues of concern. The June 1973 issue of Newsletter of the Democratic Left, the fourth monthly magazine off the press, announced to its subscribers that
9657-561: The radical, anarchist foundations of the IWW, which contends that all workers should be united as a social class and that capitalism and the wage system should be abolished. In June 1917, as a response to World War I, Congress passed the Espionage Act to prevent any information relating to national defense from being used to harm the United States or to aid her enemies. The Wilson administration used this act to make anything "urging treason"
9768-401: The rise, supposed or real, of leftist ideologies in a society, especially communism and socialism . Historically, "red scares" have led to mass political persecution , scapegoating , and the ousting of those in government positions who have had connections with left-wing to far-left ideology. The name is derived from the red flag , a common symbol of communism and socialism. The term
9879-494: The senate, citing 81 separate cases, and made accusations against suspected communists. Although he provided little or no evidence, this prompted the Senate to call for a full investigation. Senator McCarran introduced the McCarran Internal Security Act of 1950 that was passed by the U.S. Congress and which modified a great deal of law to restrict civil liberties in the name of security. President Truman declared
9990-648: The slogans " The Yanks Are Not Coming " and "Hands Off", set up a "perpetual peace vigil" across the street from the White House and announced that Roosevelt was the head of the "war party of the American bourgeoisie". By April 1940, the party Daily Worker ' s line seemed not so much antiwar as simply pro-German. A pamphlet stated the Jews had just as much to fear from Britain and France as they did Germany. In August 1940, after NKVD agent Ramón Mercader killed Trotsky with an ice axe , Browder perpetuated Moscow's fiction that
10101-515: The strength of congressional investigation committees, and weakening the Smith Act. In the 1957 case Yates v. United States and the 1961 case Scales v. United States , the Supreme Court limited Congress's ability to circumvent the First Amendment, and in 1967 during the Supreme Court case United States v. Robel , the Supreme Court ruled that a ban on communists in the defense industry
10212-551: The task facing the American movement was "to build a new American majority for social change". While important, Harrington wrote that the union movement could not win political power in its own right, instead arguing that it needed to unite with the "college-educated and issue-oriented" adherents of the so-called " New Politics " in the Democratic Party: In 1968, the Center-Right of Nixon and Wallace received almost 58% of
10323-404: The tension surrounding the idea of a possible communist takeover died down. From 1955 through 1959, the Supreme Court made several decisions which restricted the ways in which the government could enforce its anti-communist policies, some of which included limiting the federal loyalty program to only those who had access to sensitive information, allowing defendants to face their accusers, reducing
10434-456: The thousands of resident aliens arrested and deported. In July 1920, Palmer's once-promising Democratic Party bid for the U.S. presidency failed. Wall Street was bombed on September 16, 1920, near Federal Hall National Memorial and the JP Morgan Bank . Although both anarchists and communists were suspected as being responsible for the bombing, ultimately no individuals were indicted for
10545-410: The votes; in 1972, in a two-way race, Nixon got over 61%. In 1968, the American unions were a major, and sometimes sole, force behind Hubert Humphrey , proving that the organized workers are the most cohesive element that can be mobilized for social change. But the '68 election also proved that labor by itself cannot come close to winning. [...] In 1968 many McCarthyites did not understand that Humphrey
10656-517: The war. There was a profoundly elitist tendency in the movement that [the majority of the Socialist Party leadership] denounced as dilettantish and collegiate. Moreover, there was a vocal, and regularly televised, fringe of confrontationists, exhibitionists, and Vietcong flag wavers who could plausibly be dismissed as freakish, or sinister, or both. Harrington's caucus in the SPA endorsed the New Politics movement and sought to expand that tendency into
10767-461: The week leading to Christmas, and that British and German troops exchanged seasonal greetings and songs between their trenches. The ceasefire was brief but spontaneous. Beginning when German soldiers lit Christmas trees , it quickly spread up and down the Western Front. One account described the development in the following words: It was good to see the human spirit prevailed amongst all sides at
10878-576: The word " socialism " with Soviet Communism . The party also wished to distinguish itself from two small Marxist parties, the Socialist Workers Party and the Socialist Labor Party . During the convention, the majority (Unity Caucus) won every vote by a ratio of two to one. The convention elected a national committee of 33 members, with 22 seats for the majority caucus, eight seats for the Coalition Caucus of Michael Harrington , two for
10989-647: The years 1947 to 1956. It also was the template for several state legislatures' loyalty acts, such as California's Levering Act . The House Committee on Un-American Activities was created during the Truman administration as a response to allegations by Republicans of disloyalty in Truman's administration. The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) and the committees of Senator Joseph McCarthy ( R. , Wisc. ) conducted character investigations of "American communists" (actual and alleged), and their roles in (real and imaginary) espionage, propaganda, and subversion favoring
11100-521: Was a response to a formal appeal by United Nations Secretary-General António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres on March 23 for a global ceasefire as part of the United Nations' response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic . On 24 June 2020, 170 UN Member States and Observers signed a non-binding statement in support of the appeal, rising to 172 on 25 June 2020, and on 1 July 2020, the UN Security Council passed
11211-437: Was agreed between India and Pakistan , on 1 January 1949, ending the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 (also called the 1947 Kashmir War). Fighting broke out between the two newly independent countries in Kashmir in October 1947, with India intervening on behalf of the princely ruler of Kashmir, who had joined India, and Pakistan supporting the rebels. The fighting was limited to Kashmir, but, apprehensive that it might develop into
11322-561: Was clearly headed for a split as the decade of the 1970s opened. While sharing a common antipathy to the worldwide Communist movement, the organization was divided over two primary issues: In its 1972 convention, the Socialist Party of America (SPA) had two Co-Chairmen, Bayard Rustin and Charles S. Zimmerman of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU); and a First National Vice Chairman, James S. Glaser, who were re-elected by acclamation . In his opening speech to
11433-617: Was held in Detroit in 1982 and the DSA was thereby established. The gathering was addressed by George Crockett , a member of the Congressional Black Caucus in the House of Representatives , with Harrington delivering the keynote address. The new organization claimed a membership of 6,000 at the time of its formation. Red Scare A Red Scare is a form of moral panic provoked by fear of
11544-601: Was infinitely preferable to Nixon; in 1972, the Meanyites did not understand that McGovern was infinitely preferable to Nixon. If this split continues, the Republicans will hold the Presidency for the foreseeable future. Therefore, the only way to build a new majority for social change is for labor and the new politics to come together. The DSOC proposed winning power through the tactic of "realignment", i.e. uniting of forces within
11655-400: Was marked by a very heated debate on the question of merger with the NAM, which was ultimately resolved by a vote of approximately 80% of the delegates in favor and none against, with the 20% or so supporting the CATNAM position abstaining. Harrington later noted: "Our opponents wanted to indicate they were unhappy — and that they were staying". The unity convention joining the NAM and the DSOC
11766-482: Was not only an immoral conflict, it was counterproductive from all points of view, including that of progressive anti-Communism. Secondly, the new strata of the issue-oriented and college-educated who provided the mass bass for this phenomenon were, and are, extremely important to the creation of a new majority for change in this country. At its start, the DSOC had 840 members, of which 2 percent served on its national board; approximately 200 had previously had membership in
11877-699: Was preoccupied with the perception that national or foreign communists were infiltrating or subverting American society and the federal government . The first Red Scare in the United States accompanied the Russian Revolution of 1917 (specifically, the October Revolution ) and subsequent communist revolutions in Europe and beyond . Citizens of the United States in the years of World War I (1914–1918) were intensely patriotic; anarchist and left-wing social agitation aggravated national, social, and political tensions. Political scientist and former member of
11988-582: Was the Washington, D.C. , house of U.S. Attorney General Palmer, where the explosion killed the bomber, who (evidence indicated) was an Italian-American radical from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . Afterwards, Palmer ordered the U.S. Justice Department to launch the Palmer Raids (1919–21). He deported 249 Russian immigrants on the " Soviet Ark ", formed the General Intelligence Unit – a precursor to
12099-574: Was to be a three-day-long affair, beginning at 8 pm at the Eisner and Lubin Auditorium of New York University . The convention was not composed of elected delegates, but was rather open to a general admission and about 500 people were in attendance. The keynote speaker chosen by the organizers of the DSOC to address this gathering was David Lewis , one of the key architects of the New Democratic Party ,
12210-401: Was to simultaneously demand that Chinese (and other Asian) students politically support the American government yet avoid engaging directly in politics. The Second Red Scare profoundly altered the temper of American society. Its later characterizations may be seen as contributory to works of feared communist espionage, such as the film My Son John (1952), about parents' suspicions their son
12321-686: Was unconstitutional. In 1995, the American government declassified details of the Venona Project following the Moynihan Commission , which when combined with the opening of the USSR Comintern archives, provided substantial validation of intelligence gathering, outright spying, and policy influencing, by Americans on behalf of the Soviet Union, from 1940 through 1980. Over 300 American communists, whether they knew it or not, including government officials and technicians that helped in developing
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