Why do you think Julius and Ethel Rosenberg received the death sentence?
1 Answer
It has to be seen in the context of the time.
Explanation:
Their trial and execution in 1953 was at a time when fear of communism and a Soviet nuclear attack were extreme if not paranoiac.
This was a period dominated by the Cold War and polices such as The Truman Doctrine, Containment and The Domino Theory. There was the division of Europe, the Iron Curtain, the Berlin Blockade and the Korean War.
The fact that Julius Rosenberg had passed secrets to the Soviets which had accelerated their successful development of nuclear weapons, in this context, was readily seen in the US as an act of treason.
Julius was guilty but there are doubts over Ethel's guilt. Her brother had given evidence to condemn her but later admitted it was his wife who had typed up the information.
Finally, the death penalty was far more reflective of the norms and values of the time, so their execution, although controversial, was far less than what it would be today.
