US entry into World War I

Zimmerman Telegram (1917)

March 1917. Great Britain intercepted a letter from the German Foreign Secretary, addressed to the German minister in Mexico City. It stated that Mexico should attack the US if the US goes to war with Germany (needed that advantage due to Mexico's proximity to the US). In return, Germany would give back the land Mexico lost to the United States.

Neutrality

President Wilson sought to distance the US from WWI by issuing a proclamation of neutrality, Wilson's policy of neutrality was consistent with America's traditional policy of avoiding European entanglements, Wilson insisted that all belligerents respect American neutral rights on the high seas.

US Declaration of War

On February 1, 1917, the restarting of unrestricted submarine warfare marked the beginning of the final phase of the war. For two months the submarine campaign was spectacularly effective, and by April the British found themselves without reserves of industrial raw materials and with only six weeks' supply of food. Meanwhile, on April 6, the United States declared war on Germany. The new submarine campaign not only cost U.S. lives but also, in President Wilson's eyes, demonstrated malignant militarism that threatened liberal institutions all over the world. This last point had been brought home to Americans when they discovered that Germany had promised to return the southwestern area of the United States to Mexico if Mexico would attack the United States. Congress supported the president, and Americans entered the war believing they were going "over there" to "make the world safe for democracy."

Palmer Raids, 1920

Palmer Raids, also called Palmer Red Raids, raids conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice in 1919 and 1920 in an attempt to arrest foreign anarchists, communists, and radical leftists, many of whom were subsequently deported. People were arrested under suspicion of being affiliated with Communism. Over 500 individuals were deported or sent to jail without trials.

Bolshevik Revolution/Russian Revolution

Russia's Czar Nicolas II was overthrown and Russia experienced a Civil War. The Bolsheviks won the revolution because its leader, Vladimir Lenin promised the Russians peace (get out of WWI), bread (end starvation), and land (give land to the peasants). Russia changed its name to the Soviet Union and became a Communist nation.

Sinking of the Lusitania (1915)/Unrestricted Submarine Warfare

Sinking ships without warning. German's sunk the British passenger ship Lusitania in May 1915. 1200 killed included 130 Americans. Wilson demanded reparations and an apology. Germans said Lusitania was armed (false) and carrying military cargo (true, British was using civilians to shield war cargo).

US loans

The United States said it was neutral, however; we let Britain and France borrow money. If the British and French lose the war, they would default on the loan. The United States did not want this to happen. There was a stalemate in WWI and Russia withdrew because of the Russian Revolution.

Red Scare (1919-1920)

The brief period of mass anti-communist paranoia in the U.S., during which a number of legislatures passed anti-red statutes that often violated the right to free speech.

Sacco and Vanzetti Case

Two Italian immigrants, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were arrested, tried, and executed for crimes of burglary and murder, though there were widespread doubts about the fairness of the proceedings. Many observers at the time, and today, continue to debate the verdict and suggest Sacco and Vanzetti were found guilty not because of overwhelming evidence against them, but due to the anti-foreigner sentiment of the 1920s. The trial became a public sensation, focused more on Sacco and Vanzetti's foreign origins and radical political beliefs than on evidence and fair justice.

Communism

a political theory derived from Karl Marx, advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs

anarchism/anarchy

belief in the abolition of all government and the organization of society on a voluntary, cooperative basis without recourse to force or compulsion

socialism

the political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.