Arch Puddington

Claims by American liberals that the United States sacrificed civil liberties during the Cold War are erroneous, argues Arch Puddington in the following viewpoint. In fact, Puddington maintains, because the United States was the leader of the free world during the Cold War, it was driven to promote democratic ideals, particularly at home. By focusing on the early years of the Cold War, during which the civil liberties of a few left-leaning Americans were curtailed, scholars of the American left ignore advances in civil rights and improvements in the economic status of America’s working class that occurred during the Cold War. For example, Puddington asserts, during the Korean and Vietnam Wars, the U.S. military became integrated, and blacks in the military obtained positions of authority. Moreover, he...