Cold War Propaganda from the United States
Cold War Propaganda from the Soviet Union
Interviews from Different Perspectives from Around the World
Blue= American perspective #1
Green= American perspective #2
Red= Soviet Union perspective
Pink= Israeli perspective
The following are a few questions from interviews with each Cold War witness:
1. Where were you living during the Cold War, and in what year were you born?
I was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1939.
I was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1928.
September 29, 1948 in the Soviet Union.
October 11, 1961 in Israel.
2. Who was considered the enemy, and how was it portrayed to you during the Cold War?
The enemy was Russia, and they were portrayed very negatively. Hearing about Russia made me worry about being bombed.
Cuba was considered the enemy. The United States was not on good terms with either Cuba or Russia, and they were portrayed as foes.
I remember them saying how the U.S. was an imperialist and capitalist state. I also remember about this one incident in which a man came back from Germany and talked about how their roads are so big and modern compared to the USSR. He went to jail in Siberia for 6 years just for talking about their roads.
In our eyes, the USSR was the enemy because they wouldn't let the Jewish people move to Israel.
3.Did you fear that there was going to be a nuclear war?
I felt a little afraid, but it was never intense fear. However, a lot of people were very afraid.
Yes, I definitely felt afraid. I believe that anybody would be afraid. We mainly felt threatened by Cuba because it was so close to the United States. We did not feel quite as threatened by Russia.
As kids, we were not afraid. No one talked about it anywhere.
Yes, because people in Israel were scared that it would destroy the world.
4. What do you remember hearing on the radio or on TV about the war?
There were different things at different times. I remember hearing speeches by President Reagan that explained how he wanted to spend more money for military arms so the United States could catch up to the Russians.
I remember that everybody was talking about it, and President Kennedy was not afraid to stand up to Cuba or Russia. There was a lot about the Cold War in newspapers.
In the newspaper, they always said how the U.S. wanted a war and the USSR was "perfect."
5. What do you remember about the Space Race?
I remember that Russia was ahead of us because they were the ones to launch the first man in space. In '69, an American became the first man on the moon. In my opinion, a lot of money was wasted in the space program. I think that all of the spending was unnecessary and could have been used to help the poor instead.
I remember how the entire nation was really happy about how the Soviet Union went to space first. It almost seemed like a national holiday.
I remember the U.S. space shuttles. I also remember that as a kid, somebody gave me a toy space shuttle that said Apollo 11 on it.
6. Did your school or workplace ever practice air-raid drills or other safety precautions during the Cold War?
I heard about how at schools, there would be a siren and they would make you hide under your desk. At work, they would make us hide in the room as well. There were also underground bomb shelters stored with non-perishable food. There needed to be enough for 3 months, because it would take that long for it to be safe due to all the radiation from the bombing.
Yes, we were told to get under our desks.
7. What lesson should today's society learn from the Cold War?
We should learn that there are countries that are stronger than others, that can easily take over the weaker ones. There was the saying, "might makes right," which pretty much summed it up.
At the time of the Cold War, we learned to respect other countries. I think that the government should not be afraid of being eliminated by other countries.
Green= American perspective #2
Red= Soviet Union perspective
Pink= Israeli perspective
The following are a few questions from interviews with each Cold War witness:
1. Where were you living during the Cold War, and in what year were you born?
I was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1939.
I was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1928.
September 29, 1948 in the Soviet Union.
October 11, 1961 in Israel.
2. Who was considered the enemy, and how was it portrayed to you during the Cold War?
The enemy was Russia, and they were portrayed very negatively. Hearing about Russia made me worry about being bombed.
Cuba was considered the enemy. The United States was not on good terms with either Cuba or Russia, and they were portrayed as foes.
I remember them saying how the U.S. was an imperialist and capitalist state. I also remember about this one incident in which a man came back from Germany and talked about how their roads are so big and modern compared to the USSR. He went to jail in Siberia for 6 years just for talking about their roads.
In our eyes, the USSR was the enemy because they wouldn't let the Jewish people move to Israel.
3.Did you fear that there was going to be a nuclear war?
I felt a little afraid, but it was never intense fear. However, a lot of people were very afraid.
Yes, I definitely felt afraid. I believe that anybody would be afraid. We mainly felt threatened by Cuba because it was so close to the United States. We did not feel quite as threatened by Russia.
As kids, we were not afraid. No one talked about it anywhere.
Yes, because people in Israel were scared that it would destroy the world.
4. What do you remember hearing on the radio or on TV about the war?
There were different things at different times. I remember hearing speeches by President Reagan that explained how he wanted to spend more money for military arms so the United States could catch up to the Russians.
I remember that everybody was talking about it, and President Kennedy was not afraid to stand up to Cuba or Russia. There was a lot about the Cold War in newspapers.
In the newspaper, they always said how the U.S. wanted a war and the USSR was "perfect."
5. What do you remember about the Space Race?
I remember that Russia was ahead of us because they were the ones to launch the first man in space. In '69, an American became the first man on the moon. In my opinion, a lot of money was wasted in the space program. I think that all of the spending was unnecessary and could have been used to help the poor instead.
I remember how the entire nation was really happy about how the Soviet Union went to space first. It almost seemed like a national holiday.
I remember the U.S. space shuttles. I also remember that as a kid, somebody gave me a toy space shuttle that said Apollo 11 on it.
6. Did your school or workplace ever practice air-raid drills or other safety precautions during the Cold War?
I heard about how at schools, there would be a siren and they would make you hide under your desk. At work, they would make us hide in the room as well. There were also underground bomb shelters stored with non-perishable food. There needed to be enough for 3 months, because it would take that long for it to be safe due to all the radiation from the bombing.
Yes, we were told to get under our desks.
7. What lesson should today's society learn from the Cold War?
We should learn that there are countries that are stronger than others, that can easily take over the weaker ones. There was the saying, "might makes right," which pretty much summed it up.
At the time of the Cold War, we learned to respect other countries. I think that the government should not be afraid of being eliminated by other countries.