Ep. 12: Witch Hunts pt. 3 - Surveillance State: Red Scare, Lavender Lies

***Hi! Just a heads up...i had to take a tiny break because i am a full time student, & I have a child with special needs, and..i mean, i'm adhd af-trying to focus while my normal schedule is out the window; HOWEVER, I'm on it, now and nearly have episode 13 ready! So...if you're still with me, hang on a tiny bit longer!*** <3 Nicole 07/29/2025

 

**the corrected version is 1 hour and 32 seconds  ~Nicole 

 

It's PRIDE MONTH! In pt. 3 of "Witch hunts never go out of style: the many faces of patriarchy", we explore the history and impact of the First and Second Red Scares, alongside the lesser-known but deeply more consequential Lavender Scare. Through a feminist lens, we will take a look at how anti-Communist and anti-LGBTQ campaigns intersected with broader patterns of state surveillance, moral panic, and social control in mid-20th century America. The episode traces how these government-led efforts affected not only political dissenters and artists but also disproportionately targeted queer individuals and other marginalized groups, such as people of color. The next episode will feature the black scare, AKA cointelpro-I didn't want to cram it into this episode, because I wanted to make sure to spend enough time on each of these damaging, tragic moral panics which were waged against those who were seen as "other", or deemed less than.

     While primarily historical in focus, the discussion draws brief parallels to contemporary dynamics of power, identity, and civil liberties.

 

Show Notes:

 

Kady Grass' gofundme:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-kady-grass-after-brutal-attack 

 

The Trevor Project is the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people. They provide information & support to LGBTQ+ young people 24/7, all year round.

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/ 

 

ILGA World, the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex Association:

https://ilga.org/ 

 

Rainbow Railroad helps at-risk LGBTQI+ people get to safety.

https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/ 

 

 

socials:

[e-mail]

ig: @g.i.t.s.podcast

tiktok: @greatinthesackpodcast

tiktok: @neurodivergentfeminist

 

Sources:

https://www.universityarchives.com/auction-lot/j.-edgar-hoover-tls-on-joseph-mccarthy-a-hero-va_AEE482F9F9?utm 

 

archivesfoundation.org+5nglcc.org+5nps.gov+5them.us. 

 

https://time.com/6697055/welfare-queen-stereotype-origins/ 

 

https://abcnews.go.com/US/suspects-allegedly-attacked-woman-mcdonalds-sexual-orientation-face/story?id=122274998 

 

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/international-review-of-social-history/article/james-a-baer-anarchist-immigrants-in-spain-and-argentina-university-of-illinois-press-urbana-il-etc-2015-xviii-240-pp-ill-5500-travis-tomchuk-transnational-radicals-italian-anarchists-in-canada-and-the-us-19151940-university-of-manitoba-press-winnipeg2015-xi-260-pp-ill-2795-epub-ebook-2000-pdf-ebook-2000-kenyon-zimmer-immigrants-against-the-state-yiddish-and-italian-anarchism-in-america-the-working-class-in-american-history-university-of-illinois-press-urbana-etc-2015-x-300-pp-ill-9500-paper-3000/09E310DFA917DC6A84668205FDEB9BA2 

 

https://www.brita