American Homefront during WWII

Americans joined the War Effort After Pearl Harbor … five (5) million men volunteered for military service AND … eventually the Selective Service System provided another ten (10) million soldiers *first peacetime draft “A blue star in a home’s window meant someone from that family was in the war” “A gold star meant someone in the family had died in the war effort” Women in the Armed Forces Women’s Auxiliary Corps (WACS) female army volunteers served in noncombat positions nurses, ambulance drivers, radio operators, electricians, and pilots Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES) female noncombat volunteers made up 2 ½ percent of the Navy

FDR’s Four Freedom’s Speech “We look forward to a world founded upon four essential freedoms. The first freedom is freedom of speech and expression…The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way…The third is freedom from want(need)…the fourth is freedom from fear.” -FDR State of the Union Address , Jan 6, 1941

Minorities in the Military AFRICAN AMERICANS “Why die for democracy in some foreign country when we don’t even have it here?” “Here lies a black man killed fighting a yellow man for the protection of a white man.” one million African Americans served in segregated units Tuskegee Airmen ASIAN AMERICANS thousands of Chinese and Japanese Americans joined armed forces Japanese Americans served as spies and interpreters NATIVE AMERICANS thousands of native Americans enlisted, including women Navajo “code talkers” were essential for wartime communications

How did Americans get their news on the WAR? Newsreels: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jg_YUPQ9kiA telegrams NEWSPAPERS Ernie Pyle click radio to hear an actual WWII radio broadcast Radio broadcasts Edward R. Murrow Propaganda using media to promote a point of view letters

Production and Rationing Office of War Mobilization decided which companies would convert to wartime production Office of Price Administration rationed fuel and materials vital to the war effort, such as gas, metals, rubber, plastic collected and recycled important materials “scrap metal drives” people used ration books and stamps to purchase rationed items “victory gardens” and “car sharing clubs” New Work Opportunities for Some Groups women “Rosie the Riveter” minorities population shift to northern cities

Shhhhh … be quiet. Americans were also expected to keep quiet about war related work and information

Even Dr. Seuss was involved in the war effort …

Americans helped offset Paying for the War Americans helped offset the cost of the war by purchasing War Bonds 8 out of every 13 Americans purchased bonds, raising over 185 billion dollars for the war

Japanese Internment Camps FDR signs Executive Order 9066 in 1942 requiring removal of Japanese Americans California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, Hawaii recommended by military 110,000 Japanese Americans relocated to 10 relocation centers 2/3 of these were Nisei or American-born Japanese Korematsu v. United States restitutions eventually paid in 1990

WWII FDR guides nation through Great Depression and FDR was elected President a record four times! 1932 1936 1940 1944 FDR died shortly before V-E Day in April 1945 he changed the role of federal government, led country through WWII, appointed 1st female cabinet member, contributed to advances for minorities, and helped plan the United Nations Vice President Harry S Truman sworn in as 33rd president of the United States