The History Of Julius And Ethel Rosenberg

Mass hysteria in the United States of America is not an uncommon commodity. During this nation’s brief history there have been several outbreaks of mass hysteria, the Salem witch trials, lynching, the Red Scare and the Palmers Raids, Japanese American Internment during WWII (1942) and the Second Red Scare which brought about the term McCarthyism. One of the most notable instances during the Second Red Scare was the trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.

“

“Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, a married couple convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage in 1951, and put to death in the electric chair. The execution marked the dramatic finale of the most controversial espionage case of the Cold War.” (http://www.history.com/) Ethel Greenglass was born on September 25, 1915, in New York City. “Julius Rosenberg was born to a family of Jewish immigrants in New York City on May 12, 1918. Census records show that his family lived at 205 East 113th when he was two years old. The family moved to the Lower East Side by the time Julius was eleven. His parents worked in the shops of the Lower East Side, as Julius attended Seward Park High School. Julius became a leader in the Young Communist League USA while at City College of New York (CCNY). In 1939 he graduated from CCNY with a degree in electrical engineering.” (Denison)

“Julius Rosenberg joined the Army Signal Corps Engineering Laboratories at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, in 1940, where he worked as an engineer-inspector until 1945. He was fired when the U.S. Army discovered his previous membership in the Communist Party. (Denison) “Rosenberg was originally recruited by the NKVD on Labor Day 1942 by former spymaster Semyon Semenov.” (Feklisov and Kostin)

The trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg w...

... middle of paper ...

...ended another school for a short period in 1948, studying mechanical designing. While he was young, he worked in his father's shop.” (http://www.fbi.gov/)

David Greenglass was a psychopath that showed no empathy when he admitted that he had lied about his own sister’s role in the espionage that was being committed by him, that possibly sent Ethel to the electric chair. In an interview forty years after the trail Greenglass’s cold and empty statement was “I sleep very well.” (http://news.bbc.co.uk/) Ethel and Julius case rested mainly on the testimony of Mr. Greenglass.

“David Greenglass had admitted that he was indoctrinated with communist principles in his youth by Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and was a member of the Young Communist League in New York from 1936 to 1938. He continued his belief in communism, but never joined the Communist Party.” (http://www.fbi.gov/)