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GCSE History · key term
The House Un-American Activities Committee, established in 1938 to investigate activities regarded as threatening to the United States.
Used by AQA and OCR
Paper 1
Revise: Post-war Society and EconomyHUAC had been established in 1938. In 1947, Truman introduced loyalty checks for federal employees. Investigations increasingly focused on people’s political associations as well as their actions.
Paper 1
The House Un-American Activities Committee, a committee of the US House of Representatives which investigated alleged subversive activity, including communist influence.
McCarthy did not create HUAC: it was established in 1938. His campaign was part of a wider anti-communist scare.
Keep HUAC separate from McCarthy: HUAC was a House of Representatives committee, and its 1947 Hollywood hearings preceded McCarthy’s rise.
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The FBI director supplied material to HUAC and cultivated contacts with journalists and politicians. Investigations and publicity therefore reinforced one another: official suspicions could become public accusations, increasing pressure for further action.