Federal Employee Loyalty Program

The Federal Employee Loyalty Program was established in 1947 by President Harry S. Truman. This program created loyalty review boards across the federal government to investigate claims of communist subversion. Employees suspected of being subversive could be fired. This initiative was part of a broader anti-communist sentiment during the Cold War, fueled by figures like Senator Joseph McCarthy, who claimed communists were infiltrating U.S. government agencies.1

The program's scope expanded to include individuals deemed "loyalty risks," which, due to contemporary fears and moral perceptions, came to encompass those with "physical or moral defects," including gay individuals. This led to the "Lavender Scare," where thousands of federal employees were purged from government service based on their sexual orientation, despite no evidence linking them to communist activities.1