The purpose of HUAC was to

investigate alleged acts of Un-American

activity in the U.S. What exactly constituted
un-American activity? IN the case of
HUAC, un-American activity tended to refer
Martin Dies Jr.

Establishment

to any alliance with the communist party. It

was the fear of communist Soviet Russia

HUAC (House of Un-American

Activities Committee) was established in
1930 as a means to scope out communist
activity in the United States. Martin Dies Jr.

communist party that drove the need for the

committee and the reason that so many
people backed the actions the committee
took to protect the United States.

was elected chairman of the committee. Dies

was a Texas law student turned politician.

Hearings

He began campaigning against the

Roosevelt administration and democratic
party. He convinced congress of the need for
a committee to protect the United States
from internal threats of the communist
Russia. The large role that Dies played in the
formation and operations of HUAC lead to it
later being referred to as the Dies
Committee.

The best know action that HUAC

took to learn about un-American activities
was through the hearings they held in the
1940s. HUAC throughout the 1940s and

What is Un-American
Activity?

1950s would have countless hearing held to

question people of alleged ties to the

communist party. The most famous of these

The method that HUAC used to get

hearing were ran by HUAC member Richard

information from citizens was just as

Nixon. The format of these hearings were

controversial. HUAC, in its establishment,

highly controversial because of the

was given the power to subpoena citizens.

interrogation tactics used and types of

people who were questioned in the hearings.
The people that HUAC questioned ranged
from politicians to the infamous
Hollywood 10 in 1949. Many of the
people who were forced to appear at the
hearings and refused to answer that
questions asked suffered many
consequences after the hearing even if they
werent convicted. They were blacklisted in
their careers because alleged ties to
communism. The reason many people
refused to answer questions was because of

This meant the HUAC could force

the nature of the questions being asked that

people to appear at the hearings. The people

violated rights of the citizens. This raised the

did not have a choice. Next, HUAC

question of the threat of communists

intensely interrogate the person at great

outweighed the protection of the rights of

length on a variety of topics typically in

citizens.

regards to ties with the communist party.

Methods

Now, the 5th amendment of the constitution

protects people from having to incriminate

themselves; so anyone could plead the 5th

and not have to answer any questions. Doing
this would essentially incite that the person
was in fact guilty. This event would happen
at many of the hearings. After the hearings,
the investigators would use whatever

HUAC would eventually enter a

information gained to support further

decline in popularity after McCarthy is

investigations on other people that may have

censured in congress. In this decline HUAC

been mentioned. The tactics that HUAC

would eventually be turned into the House

used would be replicated later by McCarthy

of Internal Affairs Committee in 1969.

in his series of hearings.

Finally, the committee would be fully

Decline and End

abolished in 1971.