Between 1947 and 1954, the Texas State Legislature enacted a series of eight highly restrictive anti-communist laws. Designed to protect political, military, and economic structures in the state from communist infiltration, the laws banned communists from participating the political process, required registration of all communists who entered the state and eventually outlawed the Communist Party. Drawn from perceptions about Cold War events, such as the Truman Doctrine and the Korean War, and an expanding economy inside of Texas, members of the state legislature perceived that communism represented a threat to their state. However, when presented with the opportunity to put the laws into action during the 1953 Port Arthur Labor Strike, the state government failed to bring any charges against those who they labeled as communists. Instead of actually curtailing the limited communist presence inside of the state, members of the state government instead used the laws to leverage political control throughout the state by attacking labor, liberals in education and government, and racial minorities with accusations of communism.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc1505165 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Bonewell, Shaffer Allen |
| Contributors | Moye, Todd, Torget, Andrew, Cox, Graham |
| Publisher | University of North Texas |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | iv, 144 pages, Text |
| Rights | Public, Bonewell, Shaffer Allen, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights Reserved. |
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