Clashes of Values and Other Problems The Roaring Twenties

A “New” America America was tired of war (WWI just ended) and making sacrifices. Wanted a “return to normalcy” Many also tired of Progressive Era struggles and wanted to take a breather During this time, we see a rise of consumer spending, new leisure activities, and rising stock prices, however…there were many underlying problems

Question List some of the problems/conflicts you found in your exploration

Question What do you think could cause some economic problems in the U.S. after WWI?

Economic Problems Once the war ended, those wartime industries were not needed in the same capacity Unemployment rises, Inflation goes sky high Lots of Labor Union strikes 1920-1921 – A Depression Extreme decline in production of goods Stock market prices fall Too many people back home to work Lots of failed businesses

Question What was the Great Migration?

Racial Unrest As soldiers were returning home, the U.S. saw more clashes between ethnicities Blacks had “taken the jobs” up north during the Great Migration Fears that black soldiers thought they were more equal than they actually should be Still fears of Germans and immigrants in general

Racial Unrest Race riots 1919 20 race riots in U.S. in summer alone Worst = Chicago on beach – 38 dead (500 injured)

Race Riots Picture slide show

Clashes with Communism Fear of Communism We saw how the Russian Revolution turned the country upside down Communism associated with disloyalty and anarchy Communist ideals of government owned property and an absence of religion went against American ideals

Clashes with Communism The First Red Scare Reds = Communists Nationwide panic of Communist Revolutionaries in the U.S. June 1919 – 8 bombs, 8 cities One damaged home of U.S. Attorney General – A. Mitchell Palmer

Question What laws supported “sniffing” out people we were afraid of? (2 acts that we talked about before the break)

The Palmer Raids Palmer took action on these “rebellious” acts Started foundations of FBI with J. Edgar Hoover Organized raids Nov 1919-Jan 1920 Idea was to get rid of communists/anarchists Focused on immigrants mostly 500 deported (many with no real evidence) Palmer’s predications of mass violence never happened lost credit with the people, but fear was still there

Video on Palmer Raids http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xjIK3rkX6M

Clashes with Cultures Anti-Immigration Sacco-Vanzetti Case Economic problems/Red Scare lead to a rise of Nativism More immigrants coming over from south and east Europe after war Sacco-Vanzetti Case 2 Italian immigrants convicted of robbery and murder They were anarchists Found guilty with little evidence and executed

Question Why do you think Sacco and Vanzetti were found guilty?

Video Sacco and Vanzetti case http://www.travelchannel.com/video/sacco-and-vanzetti-innocent

Question Which of the following best describes social darwinism:

Clashes with Cultures Eugenics Reading from “Race is a 4 Letter Word”

Clashes with Culture The Emergency Quota Act Limits immigrants Only 3% of the number of each country’s immigrants that were here in 1910 could come a year Went against southern and eastern Europeans mostly

Clashes with Culture The National Origins Act 1924 Harsher than Emergency Quota Act 2% of 1890 census totals 1929 – changed to 150,000 total immigrants allowed in a year Western hemisphere immigrants exempt Many Mexican immigrants still moving in

Draw a representation of conflicts/problems in the 1920s

Religious Conflicts Fundamentalism and Scopes Trial

Prohibition