Unit 11/12
Herbert Hoover
"Bonus army" cleared out from DC (mostly MacArthur's fault though) - group of veterans who had come to lobby Congress to pay immediately a bonus for military service that was due in 1945- ironic fight b/w current army and veterans in order to drive them out of Washington
Neutrality Acts of 1935 and 1936
1935": Authorized the president to prohibit all arms shipment and to forbid the traveling of U.S citizens on ships of belligerent nations. 1936: Forbade the extension of loans and credit to belligerents.
Francis Townshend
67 year old physician who proposed a scheme to assist the elderly - Townshend plan proposed giving everyone over the age of 60 a monthly pension of $200 with the proviso that it must be spent in the first thirty days.
Manhattan Project
A super top secret program in which American scientists developed a way to release the energy in mass in the form of a devastating new weapon. It was tested successfully in New Mexico in 1945, and dropped in Japan a month later.
Fireside Chats
Addressed the nation by radio about what he had done with the banks. In general, FDR's guile and charisma would win him public support for his New Deal reforms, talking to them on the radio and helping them make decisions that boosted the economy. His first Fireside Chat helped get people to begin trusting banks again.
FDR
Aided 40% of black population and did far less for Mexican Americans and Native Americans fared slightly better-Indian Reorgnization Act0 reform measure designed to stress tribal unity
Fair Labor Standards Act
Aimed at unorganized workers and sought to establish minim wages and maximum hours of work per week
Nisei
American born
Atlantic Charter(1941)/Casablanca(1943)/Yalta(1945)/Potsdam Conferences(1945)
Atlantic Charter: A conference between FDR and Churchill. It promised that after victory there would be open access to markets, the rights of all peoples to choose their form of government, and a global extension of the New Deal. It helped lay the foundation for postwar ideals of human rights. Many of its provisions were broken during the Cold War. Casablanca: FDR and Churchill only, where they agreed to fight to "unconditional surrender" Yalta: Conference between FDR, Churchill, and Stalin. FDR was in a weak bargaining position, and needed Soviet help against Japan, so he gave away Eastern Europe to gain promise from SU to help defeat Japan. Potsdam Conference: Conference Between Truman, Stalin, Churchill and Attlee, where they negotiated the spoils of war. Reparations were the crucial issue of the conference, and SU wanted to take Germany resources to repair its own economy. U.S didn't want this, compromise ended with Germany being divided into four sectors, each group taking reparations from its own zone. (figured how to punish Germany)
Dust Bowl
Bad farming practices and weather led to lots of topsoil blowing all over the place, leading many Arkies and Okies to go to California in search of work. Ecological disaster
Neutrality Acts
Banned travel on belligerent ships as well as the sale of arms to countries at war. Imposed an embargo on arms shippments on both sides of Spanish civil war.
The War in Europe
Battle of Stalingrad: This was a turning point on the Eastern Front. The Germans foolishly lay siege to Stalingrad which had recently been bolstered by an influx of military supplies from the U.S. The Yermans were surrounded and forced to surrender in 1943, but not before 800,000 Germans and 1.2 million Russians died. This was the first defeat of the Nazis and marked a turning point in the war D-Day: This marks the beginning of the major involvement of American troops in Europe. On June 6, General Dwight Eisenhower and 200,000 U.S, British, and Canadian troops landed in Normandy (Northwestern France), and over a few weeks a millionish troops followed them in the most massive sea-land operation in history. This succeeded in opening the Western front and was a turning point in the war. Soon, Germany was pushed out of Paris. Battle of the Bulge: Desperate Hitler launched a surprise counterattack in France, pushing Allied forces back 50 miles, but the line didn't break. It was the largest battle ever fought by the U.S army and 70,000 American's dies, but by 1945 Hitler's last offensive failed and Allied victory was basically assured.
American Isolationism Pre WW2
Believed the threat for war was a distant one. Some even admired Hitler as a power to counter communism.
Election of 1940
Broke tradition dating back to GW and ran for a third term due to the fragility of the nation and international conflict. He ran against Wendell Wilkie (both of whom were similar in platform
Harry Hopkins
Brought in by FDR to direct the relief program- spent more than $5 million in less than two hours. By the end of 1933, Hopkins had distributed money to nearly 1/6 of the American people- allowed millions to avoid starvation and stay out of humiliating breadlines. Criticized for paying people to do useless jobs such as digging ditches
FDR response
Called for international action to quarantine aggressors but still abided by the policy of appeasement (decided in Munich conference?)
Rise of Hitler
Campaign to control the entire continent- violated Versailles Treaty and pursued German rearmament- he sent troops to occupy Rhineland and the failure of US, Britain, and Russia to oppose this act convinced Hitler that his plans could and would not be stopped. Annexed Austira and Sudentenland
The Great Depression
Causes: The consumer goods market- steady expansion of the automobile and appliance industries had led gradually to a saturation of the market (amount of sales declined over the years)- 1927 underwent a mild recession (here could have raised wages or lowered prices to avert future conflicts). To make matters worse the federal reserve board lowered discount rate, charging less for loans in an attempt to stimulate the economy (additional credit went not into solid investment but into the stock market (considered buying on margin?)- people playing the market on credit (false confidence)
Zoot-suit riots
Club wielding sailors and policemen attacked Mexican American youths which illustrated the limits of wartime tolerance
Black Internationalism
Colonialism and racism at home went hand in hand
Cash and Carry/ Neutrality Act of 1939
Congress agreed to allow the sale of arms to Britain, with the stipulation that the weapons had to be paid for in cash, and transported in British ships. This worked well for a while as Britain had naval superiority in the Atlantic.
War in Pacific- Battle of Coral Sea(1942)/ Leyte Gulf(1944)/ Midway Island(1942)
Coral Sea: This was the first time a Japanese Invasion had been turned away, U.S troops thwarted Japanese attempts to invade Australia. Midway: This was a turning point in the war in the Pacific, Japan lost 4 irreplaceable aircraft carriers along with 250 planes and a cruiser. Leyte Gulf: This was the largest Naval Battle of WWII, it crushed the remaining Japanese fleet, the rest of the war was spent attacking Japanese bases. This battle also saw the first kamikaze missions (suicide missions)
Boulder Dam (1930-1936)
Created a huge man-made lake or purposes of irrigation, flood control, and electric power. It also served to provide jobs for many jobless. It was probably Hoover's most successful measure taken to fight the GD. Also it's ridiculously big, like, massively huge.
Reconstruction Finance Cooperation
Created to help imperiled banks and insurance companies- loaned gov money to financial institutions to save them from bankruptcy (while he favored aid to businesses, he still opposed measures such as direct relief and massive public works)
New Deal vs Free Enterprise
Debates during the period
Pearl Harbor
December 7, 1941 Japanese plans launched from aircraft carriers bombed the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii- more than 2000 Americans killed and 197 aircrafts and 18 naval vessels destroyed Conspiracy that FDR new of the attack and did nothing so as to bring the US into war- declared war on Japan soon after
Seeds of Cold War
Disagreement over who would control what parts of Europe led to tensions, and U.S keeping the atomic bomb secret from SU made SU feel unsafe.
Judiciary reorganization bill (court packing scheme)
Displeased with the conservative Supreme Court, partially because they killed like a lot of his reform programs, he attempted to remove them by making justices 70+ retire, stating that the court was moving to slowly (they weren't). While this was criticized as tyrannical, it was completely legal. It wasn't passed, as it would set a dangerous precedent. Over the next few years 5 judges would leave, allowing FDR to appoint more liberal jurists, and the court did seem to begin to side with FDR on later decisions. Ironically, FDR would appoint 9 new judges eventually because of resignations or deaths. The Scheme hurt FDR's relations with congress badly, and many conservative democrats began to oppose further New Deal reforms, which makes sense because there weren't really any new reforms passed after the scheme.- led to the supreme court's approval of new deal measures like Wagner Act and Social Security
New coalition for Dem Party
Due in part to the Packing scheme and the Roosevelt Recession, democrats lost 80 seats in the 1938 midterm elections, despite FDR's attempts to interfere with the elections to his favor. This created a new Conservative Coalition consisting of republicans and conservative southern Democrats who could block FDR's legislation.
Japanese Expansion
Explosions on the Southern Manchurian Railway (Mukden Incident) was blamed on the Chinese, and used by Japan as a pretext to invade and occupy Manchuria. They then ended the Washington Conference Power Treaties and started naval rearmament and withdrew from the league of nations. Hoover's response was weak, in addition to the LoN's. Nanking, farther inside China, would be invaded 6 years later and Japanese soldiers would massacre 300,000 Chinese prisoners of war and civilians.
Bank Holiday (1933)
FDR shut down banks from March 6-10, and only reopened the ones that were still in decent shape, which were the majority of them. When they reopened the found more public support due to the first Fireside Chat. (strong banks would reopen, weak ones would stay closed, and those in difficulty bolstered by government loans)
National Recovery Administration (NRA)
FDR's attempt to achieve economic advance through planning and cooperation among government, business, and labor. Hoped to achieve both the stabilizing of production/ raising prices for their goods as well as spread work through maximum hours and minimum wages Businesses who accepted codes of fair competition that set realistic limits on producution and set firm guidelines for prices, along with agreeing to instate a minimum wage and allow collective bargaining, they could put a blue NRA seal on their goods. 500 businesses adopted these codes within a year, but the codes were too detailed to be easily enforced, and because the codes were written by the big businesses, it favored larger companies at the expense of smaller ones. Section 7a mandated protection for labor in all codes by establishing maximum hours, minimum wages, and the guarantee of collective bargaining by unions. (called National Run Around and eventually invalidated by Supreme Court)
Four freedoms
FDR's beliefs in freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom of fear, and freedom of want- perpetuated by Norman Rockwell (Four freedoms painting)
Hundred Days
FDR's first 100 days of office in which he sent 15 major requests to Congress and received back 15 pieces of legislation.
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
FDR's idea in which youths were enrolled from city families on relief and sent to the nation's parks and recreational areas to build trails and improve public facilities. Ultimately more than two million young people served in the CCC contributing to both their families' income and to the nation's welfare. -known as "tree army" (lived together and gave income to their families)
Women at War/ Rosie the Riveter
Female industrial laborer depicted as muscular and self-reliant. With 15 million men in the armed forces, women made up more than 1/3 of the civilian labor force. New opportunities opened up for women however their entrance into such jobs was considered temporary
Issei
First generation immigrants
Post Munich conference
France and Britian distrusted Stalin (Russia) and saw Germany as a bulwark against the spread of communist influence
Fifth freedom
Free enterprise?
Four Freedoms
Freedom of speech, worship, want and fear and compared to ten commandments, the Magna Carta, and the EP. In FDR's State of Union Speech, FDR also asked Congress for increased authority to help Britain, leading to Lend-Lease
Gerald Nye
Further isolationist sentiment stating that US entry into WWI was a mistake
United Nations
General assembly, security council with 6 rotating members and 5 permanent ones, etc- replaced the league of nations and remains to this day
Invasion of Poland
Germany invaded poland immediately after the signing of the Nazi-Soviet pact- Britain and France who had pledged to protect Poland declared war. But within a year Nazis had overrun Poland and much of Scandinavia, Belgium, and the Netherlands
FDR's rise to power
Grew up in a wealthy family- dominant trait was his ability to persuade and convince other people/ cultivated the two wings of the divided Democrats appealing to both the traditionalists from the South and West and the new urban elements in the North. Demolished Hoover in election of 1932 and created an enduring democratic coalition
Friedrich A. Hayek/ The Road to Serfdom
Hayek, an obscure austrian-born economist, wrote this surprise best seller that claimed that government direction of the economy threatens individual liberty. He offered new, intellectual justification for opponents of active government, and helped lay the foundation for the rise of modern conservatism and a revival of laissez-faire thought. (belief in free enterprise?)
A Phillip. Randolph
He was a black labor leader who was angered by the near complete exclusion of blacks from jobs in the war industries, and called for a March on Washington in 1941, demanding access to defense employment, an end to segregation, and a national antilynching law. In response, the Fair Employment Practices Commission was created to dissuade the March, and discrimination was banned in defense jobs and hailed by the black press as the new EP. Executive order 8802
Gerald P. Nye
Headed the senate hearings which revealed that international bankers and armed exporters had pressed the Wilson administration to go to war (WWI) and had profitted handsomely from it. Sparked greater pacisfist movement
Volunteerism
Herbert Hoover tried to solve the GD with this, especially initially. It didn't work, however, as private charities didn't command enough resources to help everyone, and businesses didn't make much of an effort to stem the recession
Hirohito/ Hideki Tojo
Hirohito was the emperor of Japan, and was believed to be divine by the Japanese, part of the reason why they were so intensely loyal because their military orders were direct orders from god. Heideki Tojo was the super nationalistic Prime Minister of Japan
Good Neighbor Policy Cont.
His policy was basically one of non-intervention and cooperation, and made FDR a popular figure in Latin America. It renounced the Platt amendment, and withdrew troops from Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic, and the Reciprocal Trade Agreement Act was passed, which reduced tariffs by 50% in the Western Hemisphere, stimulating trade with Latin America and U.S investments in the region. This policy wasn't entirely out of the kindness of FDR's heart, however, as it was essentially a reaction to overseas aggression, and FDR thought it would be important to have a united Western Hemisphere, which certainly helped during the war, helping to avoid the repetition of a Zimmerman telegram.
Munich Conference/ Appeasement
In 1938 Hitler forced Austria to join Germany, and took over the Sudetenland (Part of Czechoslovakia) insisting that it should be part of Germany because it spoke German-in the conference this action was approved. Apparently Chamberlain and Daladier thought this was fine too, because they let Hitler take the Sudetenland unopposed in exchange for peace. They wanted to appease Germany's desire for expansion. Chamberlain then said that "we have achieved peace in our time". Appeasement policy towards Germany derived from this conference
Axis
In September of 1940, Germany, Italy, and Japan created this military alliance
Roosevelt Recession (1937)
Industrial production fell one third and nearly four million workers lost their jobs. -FDR to blame because he cut back on WPA and other gov programs
Kellog/ Briand Pact
It renounced the aggressive use of force to achieve national ends, unless in self-defense. It had strong public support, and reflected the post WWI attitude of Americans who wanted no more of those annoying war things. It really was just a peace of paper(c wat I did ther), though, as there were no measures included on how to deal with nations that violated the pact. The pact in reality reflected U.S desire to avoid involvement in the European alliance system, and to establish a close tie between France and U.S. This was symbolic of American foreign policy in the post WWI era, the U.S didn't use its power to maintain world order, preferring meaningless thin slices of trees instead. ^refers to when France wanted a sole anti-war alliance with US
Hawley Smoot Tariff
It was the highest peace time barrier in the nation's history, raising the tariff to 60%. It intended to encourage purchase of American products, but it was so severe that other countries saw it as an economic declaration of war, and led to retaliatory tariffs, hurting American exports. It worsened the existing international economic depression, and the ensuing financial chaos made the U.S even more turtley. (Isolationist)- hurt rather than helped the cause
Mussolini
Italian dictator/ founder of fascism (similar to nazism) who invaded Ethiopia
Internment Camps
Japanese Immigrants were subjected to military discipline, lived in shacks and stables, were watched by armed guards, had little privacy and no medical facilities. This revealed how easily war can undermine basic freedoms, there were no court hearings, due process, or writs of habeas corpus. The press supported this policy almost unanimously, even groups that opposed racism supported it or didn't speak up. In the camps, Japanese immigrants were forced to take a loyalty oath and submit to the draft.
Battle of Bataan
Japanese forced 78,000 American troops and Filipino troops to lay down their arms- largest surrender in American military history (represents Japanese momentum at the beginning of the war)
Fred Korematsu/ Korematsu vs US (1944)
Korematsu was Japanese American who avoided interment by pretending to be Chinese and worked at a war industries factory to try to help the war effort. He was arrested and the Supreme Court denied his appeal, stating that an order applying only to those of Japanese descent was not based on race.
Albert Einstein/ Leo Szilard
Leo was the one who tried to tell FDR about the German nuclear program, and Einstein used his popularity to help him be heard, and now Einstein is given most of the credit.
Federal Farm Board
Loaned money to aid cooperatives and brought up surplus crops in the open market in a vain effort to raise farm prices
Views of Freedom
Luce- vision of worldwide free enterprise vs. Wallace- vision of global New Deal
Hitler's Final Solution
Mass extermination of Jews, Slavs, gypsies, homosexuals, disabled, etc (6 million jews murdered)
Effects
Material and psychological- even well to do citizens were hit hard by the depression (specifically the middle class).
V-E Day
May 8th- formal end to war against Germany
Mexican Americans/ Native Americans/ Women/ African-Americans and WWII
Mexican Americans: The Bracero program was implemented during the war, and under it 4.5 million Mexican laborers migrated to the U.S to work, but they had difficulty securing decent working conditions because they could be deported at any time. Second Gen Mexican Americans could serve in unsegregated military units, and an emerging Chicano culture would lead to Zoot Suit Riots, illustrating the limits of wartime tolerance. Half a million would serve in the armed forces. Native Americans: WWII brought many Native Americans closer to the mainstream of American life, as many who served in the war came back and stayed in urban areas instead to returning to reservations. 25,000 served in the war, including the Navajo Code talkers whose obscure and complicated language gave the U.S the only code the Japanese couldn't decipher. Women: See Previous Slide. Blacks: The 2nd Great Migration was triggered as 700,000 black migrants moved from rural south to North and West cities seeking industrial jobs. Unfortunately, they often encountered violence and hostility, notably in Detroit where a race riot left 34 dead, and rioting continued to occur. The served in segregated units in the army for most of the war, and they were severely limited as to the benefits they could receive from the GI bill.
Buying on Margin
Money from loans put into the stock market rather than invested?
Social Security Act
Most significant reform act enacted in 1935-Three major parts of the legislation: provided for old-age pensions financed equally by a tax on employers and workers, it set up a system of unemployment compensation on a federal-state basis, and finally, it provided for direct federal grants to the states for welfare payments to the blind, handicapped, needy elderly, and dependent children (adopted some of Townshend's principles). Landmark act
The Crash
October 1929- put a sudden and tragic end to the speculative mania- corps and financial institutions no longer willing to provide capital for stock market purchases, investors and bankers cut off consumer credit (diminishing buying power and leading to a decline in production), factories laid off workers, etc -unemployment swelled to 25% of the workforce- BASIC cause that US factories produced more goods than the American people good consume (gap b/w rich and poor)- hardly raised wages during the time period (only 11%) which largely contributed to the depression
Hiroshima/Nagasaki/Decision to Drop the Atomic Bombs
On August 6, the Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb over Hiroshima, a city chosen because it had not yet suffered much damage from the war, so scientists could assess the total damage the bomb dealt. 70,000 people were murdered almost instantly, and the ensuing radiation led to more deaths over the next half a century. On August 9, after Japan hadn't surrendered, the U.S dropped its second bomb on Nagasaki, killing another 70,000. The soviet union declared war on Japan on the same day and invaded Manchuria. Japan surrendered within a week. Truman had agreed to drop the bomb, believing it was the best way to minimize american casualties. (Japan nearing surrender but not unconditional surrender)
America's First Committee/ Charles Lindbergh
Opponents of involvement in WWII formed this Committee, which had hundreds of thousands of members and leadership including figures like Ford, Coughlin, and Lindbergh. Speakers traveled around the country speaking out against the folly of getting involved for a second time in Europe's troubles (Perpetuated anti-war/ isolationist sentiment)
Lend Lease Act
Passed in 1941 which authorized military aid so long as countries promised somehow to return it all after the war
Double V/ Connection to Civil Rights Movement
Pittsburgh Courier coined this phrase that came to symbolize black attitudes during the war- said victory in the war had to be coupled with victory over segregation at home. NAACP membership grew 10 fold to half a million members, and CORE began to hold sit ins in northern cities.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
Proved to be the most successful and enduring of all Roosevelt's New Deal measures-It was the first major experiment in regional public planning, and wanted to break up the power monopoly of utility companies by building hydroelectric power plants in TN valley. It employed thousands, built 20 dams, helping to stop flooding, erosion, improved navigation, and generated power. It was a huge success, the most successful of the first new deal reforms. It provided employment for errbody in the region, supplied cheap electric power, and plenty of other good stuff. Criticized as being socialist, but the Supreme Court upheld it. However, Congress refused other similar projects because they wouldn't want to lose reelection.
"Soak the Rich Tax"
Raised income taxes on the wealthy
Father Charles Coughlin
Roman Catholic priest from Detroit who had originally supported FDR- talked on a radio station in which he appealed to the discounted with a mixture of monetary schemes and anti-semitism (called for nationalization of banks)
Nonaggression Pact
Russia's pact with Hitler and Nazi Germany to maintain peace.
Herbert Hoover (Republican)
Scapegoat of the depression- tried to remain optimistic but he was viewed as cynical and mistrusted. He blamed Depression on foreign causes and relied too heavily on voluntary cooperation rather than bold governmental policy. Also relied on voluntary efforts (private charities etc) to help feed and clothe those in need. He eventually cut taxes to help build public confidence and adopted a few federal public works projects (Boulder Dam-provide jobs for idle men)
Huey Long
Senator from LA who eventually turned against FDR and by 1935 had become a major political threat- announced a nation wide "Share the Wealth" movement- wanted to take money from the rich. He threatened to run on a third party which could swing the election to Republicans. He was eventually assassinated
Eleanor Roosevelt
Set an example that encouraged millions of American women. Dubbed the Conscience of the New Deal, she was a strong advocate for women and blacks during the depression, helping to get their inclusion in the New Deal programs. Many voiceless groups and lower classes cherished her. FDR was worried her speak of equal opportunity for blacks would alienate southern supporters, however. Believed in a life of dignity and decency for all
Frances Perkins
She was the first woman cabinet member, the secretary of labor. During his presidency, FDR would appoint women ambassadors and federal judges for the first time.
Public Works Administration (PWA)
Sought to put jobless to work (Harold Ickes in charge but he was to intent on the quality of the projects rather than human needs and failed to put many people to work). In response the CWA (civil works admin) was created to get people off the unemployment lines- Hopkins was faced with this responsibility
Japanese invasion of Manchuria
Sparked future expansion of Japan- later moved further into China eventually reaching Nanjing killing an estimated 300,000 Chinese prisoners of war and civilians
Works Progress Administration (WPA)
Spent nearly $5 million authorized by Congress for emergency relief. Tried to give unemployed enough money to meet their basic needs, and tried to stimulate the stagnant economy. Was a response to unrest and criticism from folks like Coughlin, Long, and Townsend. Employed 9 million on public works projects like airports and hospitals (legit stuff). It cost $11.4 billion in total, and eventually employed 40% of nation's workers, who worked 3 hours a week for double the relief payment but less than private employment. Within it, the Federal Arts Project employed young people with arts backgrounds in order to preserve art. It was led by Hopkins, and it helped, but failed to overcome the depression. It was criticized to not spend enough (something FDR didn't like to do), and failed to increase purchasing power. ^critics argued that jobs had no value-"boondoggle" FDR made the depression bearable but prosperity had not yet come
Non-agression pact
Stalin initially proposed an international agreement to oppose further German aggression, but the main powers of Europe refused. Stalin then turned to Germany and signed a non-aggression pact with Hitler. This allowed Hitler to avoid a taxing two front war for much of WWII, and allowed him to basically take over most of Europe in a Blitzkrieg- shows some of the territorial insecurities of the Soviet Union. Hitler eventually went against this pact and invaded the country
View of Japanese
Subhuman view- rats, gorillas, snakes, etc
Butler Vs. U.S (1936)
Supreme Court Case in which the AAA was found unconstitutional. Them SC judges said it gave the government too much power. This was a blow to the new deal, and led to FDR judge Packing extravaganza.
Election of 1936
Sweeping victory for FDR against Aldred Landon
Europe First
The Allied Strategy to focus on defeating the Nazi's before the U.S focused on Japan. This was due in part to Germany and Italy declaring war on the U.S three days after Pearl Harbor. This angered some Americans who were outraged by Pearl Harbor.
John Lewis/ CIO
The Head of the United Mine Workers, Lewis, founded this after encouragement from the Wagner Act. After some struggle, it organized most of the steel and automobile industry, and by the end of the 1930s it had more members than the AFL, 5 million. It was successful in many industries, and had unskilled workers as members, included women and blacks, who made up a large part of the membership. Happy moderately related union facts: In 1940, less than 1/3rd of Americans were in unions, however, and restaurant, retail, service, and farming was still unorganized and had low wages and long hours. Union membership would spike during WWII.
Schechter Poultry vs US (1935)
The Supreme Court ruled that the farm regulation was a state's rights issue, and invalidated a portion of the National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933, closing the National Recovery Administration (NRA). Many of the NRA policies, such as setting minimum wage and restricting work hours, were successfully reenacted under the National Labor Relations Act (aka Wagner Act) passed in July 1935.
Bombings of Dresden/ Tokyo
The U.S bombed many of Japan's major cities. In a single Tokyo raid, 100,000 Japanese were killed and 60% of its buildings were destroyed. In Germany, U.S and Britain fire bombed Dresden, killing another 100,000 and destroying factories and rail lines.
America's reaction to Holocaust
The U.S. In America, some believed the Holocaust didn't actually occur, and anti-semitism was still prevalent in business, government, and the general public. FDR didn't destroy German death camps despite his knowledge of them. German Jews immigrating to the U.S were often turned away, in one instance, a ship carrying tons of Jewish refugees was forced to return to Germany, where many died in death camps. FDR believed that would need to win the war to liberate the concentration camps
Growth of Sunbelt
The West Coast had emerged as a focus of military industrial production, as 2 million Americans moved to California for jobs in defense-related industries that received government investments. In addition, the South became more industrialized, but still remained very poor when the war ended, and the economy still was dependent on agriculture and extractive industries.
Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)
The secretary of Agriculture, Henry A. Wallace, devised this mediocre plan. It strove to raise crop prices by decreasing overproduction. It encouraged farmers to take land out of production by paying them subsidies which were funded for by taxing processors of the goods. This led to the destruction of crops and livestock at a time when thousands were starving, however, this criticism is exaggerated. This benefited large farmers who could afford to farm more efficiently on fewer acres of land, but it hurt tenants and sharecroppers whose land was subsidies, leaving them without a job; it improved the efficiency of American agriculture at a cost. It was found unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in Butler V U.S, declaring the tax of processors to fund the subsidies unconstitutional. It was brought back in smaller forms later, and the system of allotments financed directly by the government became a standard feature of the farm economy- did lead to smaller harvests and rising prices which boosted fan income.
John Maynard Keynes/ Keynesianism
This British economist identified government spending as the best way to promote economic growth, even if it caused budget deficits. His views influenced the National Resources Planning Board, which called for guaranteed employment and other radical things that led to its elimination of funding.
Glass-Steagall Act (FDIC) (1933)
This act created the FDIC, which insured individual deposits of up to $5000, helping garner public trust in the banks. It also separated commercial banking from more speculative investment banking
Selective Service Act
This act provided for the registration of all American men between 21 and 35 to the first peacetime draft. It trained 1.2 million troops in a year. Isolationists were outraged as FDR continued to chip away at American neutrality. (further proves how America was not neutral)-note though that FDR tried to maintain a neutral platform due to his running for a third election
Wagner Act (National Labor Relations Act) (1935)
This act was introduced by NY senator Wagner, and outlawed company unions along with other tricksy labor practices, so that unions could have collective bargaining. It replaced the Section 7a of the NRA after it was killed by the Supreme Court. It encouraged the creation of the CIO. It was the most far-reaching of all the New Deal measures and revitalized the American labor movement and led to a permanent shift in labor-management relations. Mister history sage calls it the most important piece of labor legislation in U.S history.
Marian Anderson
This black contralto was not allowed to sing in Constitution hall because the Daughters of the American Revolution didn't let her. Eleanor Roosevelt spoke out against this discrimination, removing her membership to the DAR. The singer eventually did sing at Constitution hall.-she performed in front of 75,000 people at the Lincoln Memorial
An American Dilemma/ Gunnar Myrdal (1944)
This reflected the new concern with the status of blacks. It was an account of America's racial past, present, and future, and argued that racism was deeply entrenched in all aspects of life. Myrdal, a swedish social scientist, said that the contradiciton between the belief in freedom and justice embodied by the American Creed and racial inequality brought up during the war would help end racism. By 1945, an end to racial injustice was added to the liberal agenda.
Rugged Individualism
This thought process led to Herbert Hoover's refusal to use federal funds for relief for people in need because it would destroy the nation's work ethic
Island Hopping
This was America's strategy to take on one island at a time, working our way towards Japan, where bombers could get in range of cities like Tokyo and Hiroshima. We didn't take every island though, just strategerygenic ones.
Office of War Information
This was created to mobilize public support for the war, with widespread propaganda in the form of posters, radio broadcasts, and other mediums. However, because Congress believed it was just as focused on promoting New Deal social programs as it was on promoting the war effort, they cut its funding and its job fell to private companies that were overseen by the War Advertising Council.
GI bill/ Servicemen's Readjustment Act
This was one of the most far reaching peaches of social legislation in American history. It aimed at preventing the widespread unemployment and economic disruption following WWII by giving veterans unemployment pay and other monetary incentives like home mortgages and college tuition. It profoundly shaped postwar society, 1 million vets attended college under its, and home mortgages spurred the postwar suburban housing boom. However, blacks and other groups didn't get as many perks from the bill, for instance, they could only get tuition for segregated colleges.
Bonus Army March (1932)
This was the biggest blow to Hoover's public image. WWI veterans seeking their bonus promised to be given to them by 1945 marched on washington. The public lapped it up, but it was the Bonus Bill was defeated in Senate, and half of the army remained in protest. They were driven away by militanty MacArthur, who shot tear gas at the 11,000 veterans and burned their shacks down. In truth, MacArthur was more to blame than Hoover for the conflict.
FDR differences with Hoover
To generalize, FDR expands the power of the presidency, believing he has the powers of a war time president, and the war is on poverty. His actions show much more government intervention that Hoover was willing to do. The downside to these reforms were higher government spending leading to debt leading to higher taxes. (Hoover did not believe in direct relief FDR viewed the GD as a war to be won
Isolationism (pre WWII)
To most Americans, threat of Germany and Japan seemed very distant and some even supported Hitler and his efforts. Until 1941, 80% of Japanese oil supply from US- context being that coming from Great Depression so country more involved in domestic issues
League of Nation
U.S never joined the League, and neither did the SU (Soviet Union) and Germany. Because these large powers took no part in the League, it was essentially crippled, and really only helped settle disputes between small powers, when larger powers like Japan were involved, it didn't work out. Failed to stop Japanese, Italian, and German aggression, and would be replaced by the UN after WWII.
Washington Disarmament Conference
U.S, Japan, and Britain had been engaged in a naval armament race, and this Conference was the first attempt to find a solution to the rivalry, initiated by Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes. It strove to begin naval disarmament and stabilize relations in the Pacific. The Conference led to the Five Power Treaty which limited capital ships in a ratio of 5:5:3 for the U.S, Britain, and Japan respectively, Japan agreed to the lower amount of ships as long as the U.S didn't fortify Pacific bases like Guam and the Philippines. This treaty temporarily cooled off the naval race. It also led to the Nine Power Treaty, which pledged all countries involved to uphold the Open Door Policy. In addition, the Four Power treaty basically replaced the older Anglo-Japanese alliance with a shiny new Pacific security pact signed by Britain, France, Japan, and the U.S. None of these documents contained any enforcement provisions, and basically formed a parchment peace that would be broken in 1931 when Japan overran Manchuria. (a period of somewhat peace among the large powers)
Good Neighbor Policy
US repudiated the right to intervene militarily in the internal affairs of Latin American countries- US troops withdrawn from Haiti and Nicaragua- wanted to promote better relations with Latin America
Race question
WWII spirit affirmed the need to examine racial relations in own country but intolerance far from disappeared (first time however than ethnic groups perceived as Americans)
Mobilizing for War
War Production Board, War Manpower Commission, and Office of Price Administration were put in place to regulate the allocation of labor, control the shipping industry, establish manufacturing quotas, and fix wages, prices, and rents. Unemployment was pushed down to 2% in 1943 as the number of federal workers quadrupled to 4 million. Millions of dollars of war bonds, increased taxes, and broader taxes helped fund the war. The largest companies benefited from the new incentives for production- low interest loans and contracts with guaranteed profits. Union membership soared to unprecedented levels, and unions agreed not to strike, in addition to agreeing to acknowledging the employers' right to managerial things and a fair profit. Lots of brief walkouts still occurred though, as laborers protested that they were producing more and still being paid the same amount while company profits grew.
Military-industrial complex
War created a link between big business and a militarized federal government
Harry Truman
When FDR died early in 1945, Truman was forced quickly with the decision of using the atomic bomb or not. He essentially just went with what Burns said, as he was new to the dilemma. He was self righteous, and lacked FDR's guile and charm.
Impact of New Deal
Why it was good: No revolution occurred, FDR's leadership restored America's pride and faith in government, relieved the worst of the GD, its acts are still important today, citizens could retain their self respect, helped lessen economic stratification. Why it was bad(criticisms): Bureaucracy grew far too large, states power weakened even more, national debt doubled, it was socialisty, unemployment never went below 16%, DIDN'T CURE THE DEPRESSION, WWII did. Nothing DRASTIC was done by FDR and his measures helped those established in society more so than those without a voice/ marginalized
