United States. Congress. House. Committee on Un-American Activities

Created in 1938 as a House investigative committee, the House Committee on Un-American Activities—often known as HUAC—set out to examine alleged disloyalty and subversive activity in the United States. It became a standing committee in 1945, and over time its work shifted from investigating fascist groups to focusing heavily on suspected communist influence.

The committee became especially famous in the 1940s and 1950s for dramatic public hearings. Its inquiries touched federal employees, labor organizers, writers, actors, and directors, and its 1947 Hollywood hearings helped fuel the blacklist that damaged many careers. For many Americans, HUAC came to symbolize the anxieties of the Cold War and the tension between national security and civil liberties.

The committee remained active for decades, though its influence faded as public opinion changed. In 1969 it was renamed the House Internal Security Committee, and it was abolished in 1975. Today, it is remembered as one of the most debated congressional bodies in U.S. history.