Research: Red Scare campaigns 1917-1921

The campaign to suppress radicalism escalated during World War I and escalated further in 1919. Within months of declaring war against Germany in 1917 Congress passed a sedition act that made it a crime to interfere with the war effort. The law was quickly used against the IWW. In 1919, the confrontation in Centralia, WA prompted calls for stronger measures as did a sequence  of mail bomb attacks attributed to anarchists. Thousands were arrested. Many of those not born in the United States were deported. A variety of topics related to this are possible. You might examine the campaigns against the IWW in 1917 or 1918, or following the Centralia violence in 1919.  Or explore the patterns of news coverage about Reds/radicals 1919-1920.  In each case you will be evaluating media perspectives as well as detailing events.

The assignment has three parts: (1) You will read newspaper articles and record information in an excel database; (2) You will read a recommended secondary source (book); (3) You will write a 8-10 page paper about your subject using information from both the secondary and primary sources

 Primary source research (newspapers):

 1) Begin by downloading this project database_hstaa353-excel.xlsx Download project database_hstaa353-excel.xlsx

 2) We are using ProQuest Historical Newspapers for newspaper searches. Below is the link to the pre-arranged databases of newspaper articles that you should use. It delivers articles from newspapers and magazines related to this topic. 

• Press coverage in mainstream newspapers about IWW 1917 

https://www.proquest.com/search/2286236?accountid=14784 Links to an external site.

•   Press coverage in mainstream newspapers about IWW Centralia Tragedy 1919 

https://www.proquest.com/search/2583954?accountid=14784 Links to an external site.

•   Press coverage in mainstream newspapers about anarchists and Bolsheviks

https://www.proquest.com/search/2388558?accountid=14784 Links to an external site.

a) you should see a page like this. If not, you may need to click the Library's login button top right and enter your UW-net ID

b) scroll the titles of articles, clicking on those that seem most relevant. Some will be mistaken entries triggered by the search terms. Others will be too short to be useful. Download copies of all articles that might be useful or interesting. It is more efficient to download them than to read them in ProQuest. 

c) use "back to results" to return to the search results.

d) you can filter results using the menus on left side. Sorted by "oldest first" means the entries are in chronological order. "Relevance" is the other option. You can also open the Publication title menu and select articles from particular newspapers.

3) After downloading many articles, add at least 20 to your project database_hstaa353-excel.xlsx Download project database_hstaa353-excel.xlsx and write a short description of the event or issue described in each article. Feel free to add additional information in other columns. Your spreadsheet needs to include no less than 20 articles. You will submit the research database along with your paper.

4)  Please DO NOT save or delete the ProQuest search. Others will not be able to use it.

5) Secondary source research (books):

Aliens and dissenters : Federal suppression of radicals, 1903-1933 (print book) Links to an external site.