Effects of the War at Home

What political, economic, and social effects did World War I have on the United States? The Treaty of Versailles produced an unstable peace. Its harsh terms left Germany with a strong desire for revenge, while Soviet Russia threatened revolution throughout the industrial world. In the United States, the horrors of the war and the fear of radicals led people to question the nation’s role in the world.

Economic troubles also caused problems in the United States. A recession, or economic slowdown, occurred after the war. Many women and African Americans lost their jobs to returning soldiers. Tension over jobs and housing led to race riots in some cities. Scarcity of consumer goods and high demand caused inflation, or rising prices. 3

Many unions went on strike for higher pay and shorter workdays. Because rising prices made it harder to make ends meet, inflation caused labor unrest. Many unions went on strike for higher pay and shorter workdays. In 1919, more than 4 million workers went on strike. The workers succeeded in some strikes, but lost far more. Some strikes turned violent. 5

Directions: Dot Activity You will participate in an activity in which you will form groups based on your secret identities You will each receive a piece of paper Some are blank Some have a dot drawn on them There are fewer dots than non-dots When you receive your piece of paper you must secretly look at it. If you receive a dot you must not reveal it to anyone.

Goal of Activity: The goal of the activity is to form as large of a group of “non-dot” members as Possible Points: The largest group of “non-dot” students will earn candy The whole group will lose if there is one “dot” member in your group Any “Dot” member who successfully makes it into a non-dot group will earn candy

Advice: Since everyone in the class will deny having a dot, you must look for any indication of suspicion If you suspect someone has a dot you should say out loud, “Bob is a dot!” If you are a “Dot” then you must bluff to convince others that you are not a dot.

Ready? What questions do you have? On GO: You have 5 minutes to talk to each other and form groups with “non-dot” members. When I turn off the lights, you must freeze in your place and talking must end immediately. No exceptions.

So, what? This activity was designed to allow you to experience the anti-communism hysteria and suspicion during the post WWI era Hysteria- exaggerated or uncontrollable emotion or excitement, especially among a group of people. During this era, Americans turned on their fellow citizens and denounced them as Communist sympathizers based on little to no evidence If you were a “dot,” what were you? Guilt by Association: If students were friends with suspected “dots,” they were accused of being “dots.”

Violent strikes The emergence of the Soviet Union as a communist country A series of mail bombs targeting industrialists and government officials Several events combined to create the first Red Scare in the United States.

Police arrested thousands of people. One mail bomb was sent to Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, who launched the Palmer Raids in 1920. Police arrested thousands of people. Some were radicals; others were simply immigrants. Hundreds of people were deported without a trial. Palmer creates the FBI led by Hoover- to conduct his Palmer Raids and find Communist conspirators.

Harding won the election in a landslide. In the 1920 presidential election, Republican Warren G. Harding based his campaign on a call for “normalcy,” a return to a simpler time before President Wilson. Harding won the election in a landslide. Republicans also won control of Congress. 13

Despite Harding’s desire to go back to earlier times, it became clear that a new world order had emerged. The Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires no longer existed. Germany and Russia had new forms of government. Other nations were weakened. Meanwhile, the United States was strong, confident, and prosperous. It became the world’s economic center and largest creditor nation. America would wrestle with its relationship with the world in years to come. 14

Crash course WWI Overview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y59wErqg4Xg WWI Legacy? http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/world-war-i-history/videos/legacy-of-world-war-i?m=528e394da93ae&s=undefined&f=1&free=false