17.1 Mobilizing for Defense How did the U.S. get involved and join the war effort?

Plans for War In August 1941, FDR met secretly with Churchill; he did not commit the U.S. to war, but he and Churchill did sign the Atlantic Charter, a statement of goals for fighting WWII Later, 26 nations signed a similar agreement; these nations were known as the Allies, united in fighting Germany, Italy, and Japan

Continued In Sept. of 1941, a German U-boat fired on an American merchant ship; FDR then ordered the Navy to fire upon German ships, and U-boats responded by sinking several American ships The Senate finally allowed the arming of merchant ships

Japan Attacks the U.S. In Japan, expansionists had long dreamed of creating a huge empire; it began by seizing Asian territory held as colonies by European nations When Japan invaded Indochina, the U.S. cut off trade with Japan Japan needed American oil to function The new prime minister of Japan was a militant general named Hideki Tojo He started peace talks with the U.S. while still preparing for war

Continued The U.S. broke Japan’s secret communications code and knew Japan was preparing for a military strike but did not know details On December 7, 1941, during the peace talks, Japan attacked the main U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii The Japanese crippled the U.S. Pacific fleet in one blow Over 2400 people were killed

Continued FDR did not want to fight a war on two fronts; he had expected fighting in Europe, not Asia On December 8, he addressed Congress asking for a declaration of war against Japan They agreed, and caused Germany and Italy to declare war on the U.S.

Americans Join the War Effort The Japanese expected Americans to react with fear and despair; instead, they reacted with rage “Remember Pearl Harbor” became a rallying cry; five million men volunteered for military service Another ten million were drafted New soldiers received eight weeks of basic training and known as “GIs”

Continued To free more men for combat, the Army Chief of Staff George Marshall suggested using women for noncombat military tasks Congress created the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) in 1942; about 25,000 women served in the military Minority service was segregated, and African Americans did not even see combat until the last year of the war

A Production Miracle The nation’s factories quickly switched to war production About 18 million workers kept these war industries going; 6 million new workers were women paid at 60 % as much as men A. Phillip Randolph, an African American labor leader, got FDR to issue an executive order to end discrimination in defense industries

Continued The government hired scientists to develop new weapons and medicines, such as radar, sonar, and penicillin The government also set up the Manhattan Project, which developed the atomic bomb The Office of Price Administration (OPA) fought inflation by freezing prices on most goods Taxes were raised, and the War Production Board (WPB) decided who would make war materials Rationing was set up using coupons for scarce items and bought war bonds to support the war effort