ShmoopTube

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[ musical flourish ]

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And here's your Shmoop du jour, brought to you by suspected leftists,

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right-handed people with a secret.

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First up, the excerpt.

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[ mumbles ] All right, and the question:

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Which of the following was aided by the passage of the Espionage Act?

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And here are your potential answers.

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[ mumbles ]

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All right, well during World War I, even a whisper of communism

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was enough to send the U.S. into a tailspin.

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Let's see what role the Espionage Act

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played in uncovering these secrets.

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Did the passage of the Espionage Act aid A -

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the work of unions and labor organizations?

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Hmm. Well, some of the labor movement's ideas

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had their origins in communism and socialism,

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so the constant threat of arrest under the Espionage Act

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made things a bit more disorganized for these organized groups.

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Same goes for immigrants,

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especially those from Eastern Europe,

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since they represented the big bad "other"

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for officials fearing dissent of any kind.

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So that's a smear against A and C.

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Could the Espionage Act have helped B -

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progressive reforms of corrupt politics?

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Well, the Espionage Act encouraged a tax on

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anyone outside moderate political lines.

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And when reformers threatened the status quo of corrupt politicians,

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the politicians fired back with red-hued threats of their own.

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That's a blast against B, too.

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Which means the passage of the Espionage Act most aided D -

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government opposition of communist activities.

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At the height of the first Red Scare, government officials arrested

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anyone suspected of the tiniest association with communism.

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And the Espionage Act justified these often

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unjust accusations.

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So D is the right answer.

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Though there were definitely some leftist

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plots against the U.S.,

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government officials frequently used the Espionage Act

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to drum up anti-Communist fervor,

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creating a "my way or the spy way" kind of atmosphere.

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[ birds chirping ]

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[ creaking ]

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