The Arms Race

America's Cold Red Nightmare:

Cold War Propaganda and how it Affected the Americans

The Nuclear Arms Race

After WWII, the Soviet Union was weary of the atomic bombs the United States had dropped on Japan. So they decided to make their own. In 1947, the Soviet Union detonated their first nuclear bomb which sparked the start of the arms race between these two countries. 

The arms race was a race to see which country could achieve domination in nuclear warfare. Many events occured during this race such as the creation of the hydrogen bomb in 1952. Over the course of this race fears arose across the country with all this talk surrounding nuclear warfare. One of the things that fueled this fear was propaganda.

Nuclear Arms Race Propaganda, 1950's, Unknown.


How it affected Americans

Nuclear Shelters


With the rising amount of propaganda and fears associated with nuclear bombs, some people began to take extra steps to ensure their safety in case of an attack. 

Some Americans began to construct bomb shelters in case of a foreign attack. The problem was only the wealthy could afford to build these shelters. Thankfully, the Cold War never escalated that far. 
    

Family Huddling in Bomb Shelter, 1955, Underwood Archives/Getty Images 

Effects on Children

This widespread hysteria even reached some schools. Children were shown videos of what to do in case of an attack. They were taught to duck and cover to protect themselves from possible injuries.

In other schools, some children were given dog tags with their names on them. It was in case a child's body needed to be identified if an attack were to happen. 
    

Duck and Cover Bert the Turtle, 1951, Archer Productions


Previous Page
Next Page