(Photo by Chaz D. Photography)
Powerstories Theatre will continue its 26th season Aug. 14-16 with a staged reading of “Conscience,” Joe DiPietro’s play about Senator Margaret Chase Smith’s historic “Declaration of Conscience.”
The production examines one woman’s refusal to let fear dictate national policy in the 1950s. For LGBTQ+ audiences, the story resonates most strongly through its connection to the Lavender Scare — which targeted LGBTQ+ Americans working in the federal government during the era — with the Red Scare serving as the political backdrop that allowed a quieter but equally devastating purge to take root.
Although Smith delivered her speech during the height of McCarthyism, the Red Scare’s loyalty tests, blacklists and accusations are only part of the story. While communists were publicly interrogated, LGBTQ+ Americans were investigated in hallways, offices, and interrogation rooms away from cameras and headlines.
The Red Scare created the climate; the Lavender Scare exploited it. Beginning in the late 1940s, thousands of LGBTQ+ federal workers were fired or forced to resign after being labeled security risks. In 1953, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed Executive Order 10450, formally banning gay people from federal employment and intensifying a purge that made authenticity dangerous. Careers ended not because of misconduct, but because of identity. The fear was systemic, and its consequences devastating.
LGBTQ+ people lived under constant threat of interrogation, dismissal, arrest and public exposure. Some were swept into programs like the U.S. Park Police’s Sex Perversion Elimination Program, while others were labeled sexual psychopaths under laws used to justify harassment.
Many hid relationships, avoided community organizations and lived with the possibility that a rumor or accusation could destroy their livelihoods. Federal policies shaped workplace culture nationwide, reinforcing the idea that LGBTQ+ Americans were security risks rather than citizens entitled to equal treatment.
Against this climate, Smith’s “Declaration of Conscience” gains a sharper dimension. Her speech challenged fear-driven politics and warned that character assassination and guilt by association threatened the values the nation claimed to defend.
Though she addressed U.S. Sen. Joe McCarthy’s tactics directly, her insistence on fairness and due process spoke to a broader culture of suspicion, one that ensnared her own staff. She fiercely protected her aide, Bill Lewis, a lifelong bachelor who endured homophobic slurs from McCarthy, illustrating how the Lavender Scare reached into offices, relationships and reputations.
Senate.gov explains, “He ridiculed Smith and her cosigners as ‘Snow White and the Six Dwarfs.’ He violated Senate custom to remove her as a member of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, and gave her place to the new senator from California, Richard M. Nixon.
“McCarthy’s allies took every occasion to smear Senator Smith,” it continues. “But in 1954 she had the satisfaction of casting a vote for McCarthy’s censure and effectively ending his campaign of falsehood and intimidation — what she had so effectively denounced as a political attempt to ride ‘the Four Horsemen of Calumny — Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry and Smear.’”
“Conscience” dramatizes the personal impact of the Lavender Scare. The play invites audiences to consider how fear-driven politics affects marginalized communities and how acts of courage inside government can ripple far beyond the halls of power.
Audiences may find that these themes feel especially sharp in Florida. Today’s political climate has stirred conversations about the role of government in shaping public discourse and defining whose experiences are recognized.
Governor Ron DeSantis has framed his “anti-woke agenda” as a defense of traditional values, while critics argue the strategy echoes tactics used during the McCarthy era. Rather than communists, today’s debates often focus on diversity initiatives, inclusive education and LGBTQ+ visibility.
Legislation restricting discussions of identity, equity and history has replaced loyalty oaths, critics note, but they see a familiar pattern: identify a perceived threat, amplify concern and marginalize those who refuse to conform.
The rhetoric surrounding proposals to label businesses supporting DEI and LGBTQ+ communities as terrorist organizations have not become law, but critics argue it reflects a broader concern about redefining ordinary civic participation as extremism. When fear becomes a political tool, communities can become targets.
“Conscience” is directed by Powerstories Executive Artistic Director Clareann Despain. It highlights the personal cost of conviction.
“Margaret Chase Smith’s decision to speak truth to power reflects Powerstories’ mission to share the true stories of women whose lives teach and inspire,” she explains. “Looking to history reminds us that even in difficult moments, there have always been individuals whose example helps us meet the challenges of today.”
Rather than presenting Smith as an untouchable historical figure, DiPietro’s script explores the pressures of public service, party loyalty, political ambition and individual principle. The result is a portrait of leadership that feels contemporary, reminding audiences that courage is rarely comfortable and almost never convenient.
Actor Roxanne Faye brings depth to Smith’s character, capturing the determination required to challenge a political culture built on intimidation and the personal and political cost of speaking when silence was safer.
For over two and half decades, Powerstories Theatre has built its reputation on telling true stories of women and girls to open minds and hearts and inspire change. Including “Conscience” in its Greater Good season reinforces that mission by bringing audiences a story of political courage that continues to resonate decades later.
Smith’s speech did not end the Red or the Lavender Scare, but it became an enduring record of resistance and proof that integrity can challenge entrenched politics of fear. Her words remain a reminder that democracy depends not only on institutions, but on individuals willing to defend the principles behind them.
For LGBTQ+ audiences, “Conscience” offers historical insight and a timely reminder. It connects political history with queer history while inviting reflection on progress achieved and the work that remains.
Smith’s example feels less like distant history than a reminder that moral courage inside government can shape the lives of those outside it.
Powerstories Theatre presents “Conscience” Aug. 14-16, with Stageworks sponsoring the venue at 1120 E. Kennedy Blvd., Ste 151 in Tampa. Learn more at Powerstories.com/Conscience.
Sign up for the Watermark Out News eNewsletter and follow us for more:
BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | TikTok | Threads | YouTube
