Better dead than red

"Better dead than red" was an anti-Communist phrase. The slogan was used in the United States in the 1950s by anti-Communists to express their opposition to a Communism and left-wing politics.

"Better dead than red" has also been used in school rivalries. For instance, it has been yelled by fans of teams that match up against the Wisconsin Badgers (who use the colors red and white), especially fans of the Minnesota Golden Gophers. There is an American Rock Against Communism/Oi! band called Better Dead Than Red. The "better dead than red" phrase has also been used in the the Mac game SimAnt.

In 1997 Better Dead Than Red was used by Leeds United supporters as the operating company which held the domain name MUFC.com. The company promoted satirical promotional items vai the web site. This was forced to close by lawyers acting on behalf of MUFC.

Counter-slogan

The counter-slogan "Better Red than dead" also developed, and was popularized by Bertrand Russell.

Better Dead than Red later became the name of a white power punk band.