Once upon a time, in the land of lights, camera, and action...

There was a place named Hollywood where actors, writers, and directors made movies for everyone to enjoy.

But one day, 

things changed.

The Second Red Scare came.

People were scared of something called communism, which is another way of running a country!

Some believed they were hiding everywhere.. even in movie studios!

Like these!!

So, the government created a group called the House Un-American Activities Committee, or HUAC for short.

Their job was to find communists, or friends of communists in Hollywood!

One day, ten brave screenwriters and directors were called to speak in front of HUAC.

Alvah Bessie, Herbert Biberman, Lester Cole, Edward Dmytryk,

Ring Lardner Jr., John Howard Lawson, Albert Maltz,

Samuel Ornitz, Adrian Scott, and Dalton Trumbo.

People started calling them... The Hollywood Ten.

HUAC asked them

 “Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?”

But the Hollywood Ten didn’t answer that question.

We have the right to remain silent.

They believed the government shouldn’t punish people for their beliefs.

The committee didn’t like that answer.

So, the Hollywood Ten were sent to jail for “contempt of Congress.”

Some went to prison for months. Others lost their jobs. All of them were blacklisted... no one would hire them anymore.

But they didn’t give up.

They kept writing stories, sometimes using secret names.

One of them, Dalton Trumbo, even won an Oscar while blacklisted!

They stood up for their beliefs, even when it was hard.

Im Dalton Trumbo

Today, we remember the Hollywood Ten as heroes of free speech.

They remind us that speaking up, even when it's unpopular, is how we protect freedom in America.

We are heroes for freedom