CHAPTER 34 VISUAL SUMMARY

CHAPTER 35: The Impact of World War II on Americans What kinds of opportunities and hardships did the war create for Americans at home and abroad?

Organizing the American Economy for War The War Production Board The goal: make America the “arsenal of democracy” with conversions of industry Automakers would now make airplanes and tanks Other workers would retrain workers for wartime tasks G.D.P. (gross domestic product) rises rapidly The National War Labor Board mediates disputes between union leaders and business owners Government spending rises to new levels Taxes account for 45% (“withholding” is introduced) War bonds help in financing the war

Price controls are needed (Office of Price Administration) People were back to work earning money Goods were scarce because of the war effort Too much money chasing too few goods = inflation Rationing was necessary Gasoline, tires, sugar, food Americans received coupon books to limit consumption University of North Carolina website War funding comes from taxes and borrowing (bonds) just like WWI

American G.I.’s (government issue) Go To War 1,500,000 troops by Pearl Harbor Eager volunteers joined the draftees to fight Immigrants wanted to show they were truly Americans 8 weeks of intense training then combat Fear, loneliness, homesickness, boredom once deployed Physical, emotional and mental wounds surface during and after An appreciation for American ideals after viewing the abuses of the European dictators, pride and loyalty, too

The Internment of Japanese-Americans Were they loyal? Sabotage? Did their spies cause Pearl Harbor? “Enemy Aliens” (Germans, Italians, Japanese immigrants) had to register with the government and carry identification The Japanese-Americans did not have political power and were potentially more easily recognized Executive Order 9066 (February 1942) goes into effect and even native born Japanese-Americans are sent to internment camps inland

100,000 were forced to relocate into guarded “barracks” Korematsu v. U.S. Fred Korematsu as a native born citizen who disobeyed the law and appealed it all the way to the Supreme Court The Court upheld the decision on the grounds that a group’s civil rights can be set aside in time of war 100,000 were forced to relocate into guarded “barracks” 442nd Regimental Combat team was an all-Japanese unit

Women and World War II (“Rosie the Riveter”) New opportunities because of the demand for workers Still faced hostility in male- dominated businesses Were expected to complete their “domestic” duties WAC (Women’s Army Corps) WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service – Navy)

African-Americans and WWII The Double V Campaign: Victory for democracy at home and abroad Black G.I.’s were segregated and were not permitted in combat (at first) Tuskegee Airmen there were many people who thought that black men lacked intelligence, skill, courage and patriotism. Bomber escorts and direct combat The only fighter group to never lose a bomber to enemy planes

African-Americans and WWII At the same time Executive Order 9066 inters Japanese-Americans, Executive Order 8802 outlaws discrimination against African-Americans in the defense industry A.Philip Randolph had threatened a march on Washington if black civil rights were not protected The Great Migration continued to northern industrial cities Blacks may have escaped the South but not racism The National Urban League fought for equal opportunities in housing and employment The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) confronted discrimination with nonviolent resistance

Jewish Americans and WWII Nazi persecution of Jews in Germany began in 1933 as soon as Hitler rose to power Kristallnacht (“night of broken glass”) occurred in 1938 when mobs burned Jewish synagogues and businesses 90 Jews were killed and 30,000 were sent to concentration camps The 1924 National Origins Act restricted immigration into the U.S. (remember the nativism and lack of tolerance during the 1920’s?) Anti-Semitism (anti-Jewish sentiment) led to a lack of support for European Jews The War Refugee Board was created in 1944 to finally help Jewish refugees

Mexican Americans and WWII Discrimination had barred many Mexicans from better jobs in the United States During the war, laborers were needed The bracero program allowed short term work contracts to be filled by Mexicans in the farms and on the railroads June 1943: Zoot suit riots Zoot suits were associated with Mexican teenagers (pachucos) and gangs who roamed barrios (neighborhoods) in Los Angeles Mobs of sailors and marines sought out Mexicans and others wearing a zoot suit and beat them Another example of racial prejudice and intolerance