1. anti-German leaflets, pamphlets, movies
Treatment of Americans with “enemy” ethnicity within the United States and civil liberties in a time of war (CH 29: 676; CH 34: and 792/793)
WW II
WW I
Committee on Public Information – sell America on supporting WW I (in part by demonizing the enemy)
anti-German leaflets, pamphlets, movies
Occurrences of anti-German hysteria (rare tar and featherings, 1-lynching); “liberty cabbage”, “liberty steak”, no German books in libraries
Espionage Act (1917) and sedition Act (1918) – targets anti-war Americans
Schenck v. US (1919): “clear and present danger” and the 1st Amendment
America more unified heading into WW II than WW I (Pearl Harbor)
Still one major ethnicity targeted: Japanese-Americans
Executive Order No (later upheld by the SC in Korematsu v. US {1944}): 110,000 Japanese-Americans living on the Pacific Coast (2/3 born within the United States) forced to live in “internment camps”. The US government feared that they would act as “saboteurs” if japan invaded the US.
basic rights of Japanese-Americans taken away (4th Amendment)
huge economic property and business losses (hundreds of millions)

2. Production of war materials (CH 29: 676-678 and WW I mobilization packet; CH 34: 791)
WW II
US government mostly relied on voluntary compliance (from business and citizens). However, the War Industries Board was created to establish production quotas, allocate natural resources, and set prices for government purchase.
Industrial production dramatically increased
3.5 million rifles; 225,000 machine guns; 13,500 airplane engines; 10, 800 tons of toxic gas
War Production Board
US government pays American manufacturers to supply the Allied troops: 40 billion bullets; 300,000 aircraft; 76,000 ships; 86,000 tanks; 2.6 million machine guns
US government severely restricted the production of non- essential consumer items

3. Production of food (CH 29: 677-678; CH 34: 791 and 794)
WW I
WW II
US farm production increased by 1/4 during the war, and food exports to the Allies tripled.
US government, through the Committee of Public Information, encourages American citizens to voluntarily save/conserve
“wheatless Wednesdays” and “meatless Tuesdays”
Victory gardens
Farmers increase output (new agricultural machinery and improved fertilizers; bracero program)
Victory gardens, part 2: by there were an estimated 20 million victory gardens producing a good amount of vegetables.

4. 1916 average earnings = $751; 1920 = $828
Inflation (prices of consumer goods) and wages/earnings for factory workers (CH 29: 678; CH 34: 791 and 794)
WW II
WW I
Wages rose – in coal mining, manufacturing, and railroads – about 20% during the war
1916 average earnings = $751; = $828
No rationing in US (rationing in Europe); there was inflation
1914: 1%; 1915: 3%; 1916: 12.5%; 1917: 20%; 1918:18%; 1919: 17%
Full employment + few consumer goods to purchase = inflation!
Office of Price Administration: created to control inflation (by controlling demand)
rationing: 3 purposes
save needed items for the troops
more fair distribution of non-war materials
control demand and thus inflation (ration tickets needed to purchase various common items, like food, clothing and gasoline)
propaganda to convince Americans to save/conserve
National War Labor Board: imposed wage ceilings – also controls inflation
did not restrict overtime, so workers did make more money during WW II.
Personal income doubled (even with tax increases)

5. Labor unions grow (AF of L doubled its membership during WW I)
Labor union membership, activity, and compliance with the war effort (CH 29: and WW I mobilization packet; CH 34: 791 and 794)
WW I
WW II
Labor unions grow (AF of L doubled its membership during WW I)
Most unions take the “no strike pledge.” However, there were 6,000 strikes in the US during the war, the most notable being the steel industry.
US government created the National War Labors Board to troubleshoot any possible conflict between labor and business owners
Work stoppages = rare
Labor unions grow (10 million to 13 million during the war)
Most unions make the “no strike pledge”. However, there were strikes, most notably by the United Mine Workers
Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act (1943): this act gave the US government the authority to seize and operate tied up industries, and strikes against a government-operated industry were a criminal offense. Under this act, the US government briefly took over the coal and railroad industries.
Work stoppages = extremely rare (less than 1% of total American work hours)

6. Increased taxes = 20% of the war costs
Financing the war and economic benefits (WW I mobilization packet; CH 34: )
WW I
WW II
WW I cost $30-35 billion
Three basic ways to raise the money: (1) raising taxes, (2) borrowing from the public, and (3) printing money
Increased taxes = 20% of the war costs
The income tax was as high as 70% for the wealthiest Americans
Printing paper $ = 20/25%%
Borrowing/war bonds = 55/60%
1916 GNP = $46 billion; 1920 = $87.2 billion
WW II cost $330 billion (more than 10 times the cost of WW I)
Increased taxes/revenue = 2/5 the cost of the war.
The income tax designed to draw from more people (some income tax rates ran as high as 90%)
The rest of the war (3/5 of it) financed through borrowing (war bonds)
1941 national debt = $49 billion; 1945 = $259 billion (a 500% increase)
1940 GNP = $100 billion; 1945 GNP = $200 billion
1940 corporate profits = $6 billion; 1944 = $12 billion
Beginning of the “warfare-welfare” state: economy that depends on military spending

7. Building/adding to the military manpower numbers (CH 29: and WW I mobilization packet; CH 34: 794)
WW I
WW II
Nearly 5 million Americans were drafted, with around 1.5 million Americans seeing active combat.
For the first time, women were admitted to the armed forces (noncombat roles) – 11,000 in the Navy, 269 Marines (army refused to admit women)
African-Americans: mostly in non-combat roles, in segregated units headed by a white officer
US military enlisted/drafted 15 million men and a little over 200,000 women (noncombat roles)
Draft eligible men: 18-37
African-Americans able to be drafted in 1943; combat roles in segregated units

8. Migration patterns during war (CH 29: 679; CH 34: 795-797)
WW I
WW II
Great Migration – African- Americans begin to migrate to northern cities, mostly for war industries jobs. This migration pattern continues into the 1920’s, 30’s, and 40’s.
Wartime employment gave rise to “boomtowns” (Los Angeles, Detroit, Seattle, Baton Rouge). Southern states received heavy financial support ($6 billion) to build/modernize factories
“Sunbelt”: population growth in southern and western states due to wartime employment. Still, 1.6 million African-Americans left the South for northern and western industrial cities

9. The role of women, African-Americans, and other racial/ethnic minorities during war (CH 29: 681 and internet research; CH 34: )
WW I
WW II
Women
thousands of women took factory jobs left vacant by men serving in the war (lower/middle class women). However, most of these women gave up their jobs at the conclusion of WW I
thousands of women form or join organizations to bring relief to war-torn countries in Europe. These were typically headed by upper class women who had both the time and the money to commit to this cause.
Women served in the military (around 11,000); this was the first time women were admitted into the military.
African-Americans
mostly in non-combat roles, in segregated units headed by a white officer
Great Migration
Women
216,000 women join the military (noncombat roles)
6 million women take wage-earning jobs (over half of them had never had a job before); “Rosie the Riveter”. However, most the majority of women maintained their traditional role in society/home, especially those whose husbands were not fighting or they had children to take care of. Also, at the end of the war, 2/3 of women war workers (4 million) left the labor force (marriage/families/”Baby Boomers”/suburbs
African-Americans
Black Americans were drafted into military service, but served in segregated combat units. This pushes Black Americans to strive for equality at home (Double V Campaign)
1.6 million African-Americans left the South for northern and western industrial cities. The migration continued well beyond WW II…a 2nd Great Migration.
A. Phillip Randolph (1941) threatens a “March on Washington” to demand equal employment opportunities as well as military opportunities. FDR responded with an executive order that banned discrimination in defense industries, and created the Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC) to monitor compliance.
NAACP membership rose significantly; the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) created in 1942 to actively work against discrimination.
Native Americans
WW II begins a slow migration pattern away from reservations and into cities
25,000 serve in the military: code-talkers (Comanches in Europe and Navajos in the Pacific)