World War I at Home

Free-write in response to the following questions… What does patriotism mean to you? Do you think it’s important for people to be patriotic? Why or why not? Is it patriotic or anti-American to criticize the United States government?

Wartime Agencies and Laws War Industries Board Railroad Administration Fuel Administration Run by former stockbroker Bernard Baruch 2. Tasked with efficiently managing US industry in the manufacture of war materials 3. Controlled what products were made in US factories Controlled the nations railroads Run by Harry Garfield Regulated coal supplies Rationed gas and heating oil (Heatless Mondays) Introduced daylight-savings. (Factories not making war materials had their workweeks shortened) National War Labor Board Food Administration Run by Herbert Hoover Committee on Public Information 1. Federal agency which acted to mediate and quickly settle labor disputes to avoid disrupting the war effort 2. Pressured industry to keep workers happy with increased wages, shorter workdays, and respect for unions 1. Responsible for increasing food production and reducing food consumption 2. Encouraged families to grow their own food in “victory gardens” and to observe “Wheatless Mondays” & “Meatless Tuesdays” 1. responsible for coordinating pro-war propaganda 2. Distributed pamphlets, arranged public speakers, recorded songs, and made short patriotic films 3. Government assumed new role of manipulating public opinion, controlling what information about the war the public had access to 4. Recruited Four Minute Men to deliver speeches Wartime Agencies and Laws

Paying for the War US spent $32 billion on the war Congress raised income taxes and created new taxes on corporations US also borrowed $20 billion from American citizens through the sale of Liberty Bonds or Victory Bonds

Espionage Act of 1917 Prohibited any attempt to interfere with military operations, support America's enemies during wartime, to promote insubordination in the military, or interfere with military recruitment

Sedition Act of 1918 Limited freedom of speech by making it illegal to publicly express any opposition to the war Government could (and did) prosecute anyone who criticized the government

Schenck v. US (1919) Charles Schenck, a socialist, had been sending pamphlets to men urging them not to report if drafted Schenck was convicted of violating the Espionage Act Supreme Court upheld Schenck’s conviction and ruled that an individual’s freedom of speech can be limited by the government when it presents a “clear and present danger,” such as during times of war

Were critics of American involvement in World War I anti-American?

The War at Home Public opinion on WWI was divided in the U.S. Some Americans, notably socialists, Christian pacifists, anarchists, women’s groups, unionists, and intellectuals, opposed the war. Some of these pacifists believed war was immoral, while “radicals” believed the government was entering war not to “make the world safe for democracy,” as Wilson claimed, but rather to serve the interest of capitalists. Other Americans strongly supported U.S. entry into the war in light of the Zimmerman telegram and the sinking of the Lusitania. In 1916 President Wilson won re-election running on the slogan “He Kept Us Out of War.” After the revelation of the Zimmerman telegram and Germany beginning a program of unrestricted submarine warfare that threatened U.S. commercial shipping, Wilson declared war in April 1917. That same month Wilson established the Committee on Public Information, a propaganda agency that galvanized public support for U.S. war aims. The president pushed through Congress the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918, which suppressed anti-British, pro-German, and anti-war opinions. Over 1,500 people were prosecuted and over 1,000 convicted under these laws, many for small acts of dissent. His administration saw the arrest and deportation of many foreign-born, antiwar radicals and drew closer to pro-war unions. What did President Wilson do to promote nationalism and restrict dissent during WWI? Based on what you know, do you think these were necessary decisions?

Were critics of American involvement in World War I anti-American? The War at Home Read Documents A and B and discuss with your partner: Then, complete the handout for Documents A and B Do you think Debs and Schenck were anti-American? Why or why not? Now examine Document C. With your partner, answer the questions on the handout for Document C. Consider whether or not Debs and Schenck were guilty of breaking this law. Both Debs and Schenck were arrested for breaking the law, found guilty, and sentenced to jail. Debs served 32 months in prison until President Harding released him in 1921. Schenck spent 6 months in prison. Now read Document D. What does this ruling say? Do you agree with the ruling? (Consider your response in the historical context of World War I. Also consider the content of the First Amendment.) Were critics of American involvement in World War I anti-American?

Espionage and Sedition Acts Prosecuted: 2,000 Convicted: more than 1,000 Loss of mailing privileges for publications that criticized the war People fired who opposed the war Labor union leaders imprisoned

The End of War

WWI Brings Changes Immigrants African Americans Women Immigration halted Many Mexicans entered the US to fill the labor shortage on farms in the Southwest and in factories in the North Great Migration  massive movement of African Americans from the South to Northern cities Improved economic opportunity (new problems) Soldiers allowed to serve under African American officers Moved into jobs traditionally held by men Encouraged passage of the 19th Amendment (voting rights)

Wilson Fights for Peace 1918 Wilson delivers Fourteen Points speech to Congress.  What were Wilson’s points? 1. No secret treaties 2. Freedom of the seas 3. Tariffs lowered or abolished to encourage free trade 4. Arms reduction 5. Consideration of the interests of colonial people 6. – .13 Boundary changes and self-determination of ethnic/national groups 14. A League of Nations

Wilson Fights for Peace 1919 Treaty of Versailles is signed  What terms of the treaty specifically affected Germany? Demilitarization Return of Alsace-Lorraine to France $33 billion in reparations (war debt) War-guilt clause (full responsibility for WWI) What were the weaknesses of the treaty? Humiliated Germany Set Germans against the treaty Set reparations Germany couldn’t possibly pay Ignored the sacrifices and desires of Russia Stripped Germany of the colonies needed to pay reparations Ignored the claims of colonized people for self-determination

Wilson Fights for Peace 1920 Senate rejects Treaty of Versailles.  Why did Henry Cabot Lodge object to the treaty? Suspicious of the provision for joint action against aggression Wanted the treaty to include the constitutional right of U.S. Congress to declare war

Wilson Fights for Peace 1921 Senate again rejects Treaty of Versailles.  How did Wilson help bring about the Senate’s rejection of the treaty? Chose an American delegation that failed to include enough Republicans and Senators Refused to compromise with Senator Lodge U.S. signs separate treaty with Germany. What circumstances at this time would eventually lead many Germans to support Adolf Hitler? Political instability and violence Resentment over Germany’s treatment by the Allies Economic depression