Saturday Jun 14, 2025

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

**the corrected version is 1 hour and 32 minutes & 11 seconds, and doesn't seem to have hit all the podcast outlets, except podbean directly--there were a few sloppy mistakes and repetitions that were fixed, plus I added a bit!**

06/18/2025-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:

greatinthesackpodcast@gmail.com

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