The Cold War and Civil Rights

So while we were researching the fight for civil rights, my class found that many civil rights leaders were labeled communists and therefore further separated from what was considered "American" at the time. This not only separated them from the mainstream in the eyes of many Americans, but it also gave J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI a wonderful excuse for bugging and wire tapping civil rights leaders, including Martin Luther King jr.

When I was reading about the anti-communist streak that often led to the persecution of civil rights leaders (or was it just racism?), I actually kind of laughed. Calling someone a communist has become a bit of a punch line at my school. I think that the transformation of the communist label is one of the most interesting in contemporary America. You can call someone a socialist or a fascist, but calling them a communist is almost comical. Nobody throws around the accusation of communist leanings like they used to.

Well, nobody except for this guy. Someone needs to have a talk with this guy.

So when I saw a picture like this one, I actually thought they were joking. Just look at the guy in the middle, all mad and racist, looking like the owner of the jail in Cool Hand Luke twenty years beforehand. He's a freaking caricature. Race Mixing is Communism? What?


Anyways, my point is that we've made progress. Outside of the Westboro Baptist Church, there aren't any Americans who show up to rallies to prevent race mixing or communism. Maybe there are and I just don't know. There aren't as many Americans willing to rally against race mixing and communism. Heck, we've just elected a black, allegedly communist president. Twice. That would've made everyone in this picture absolutely livid. That's progress.