US History 2 Test 4 - Nativism in the 1920s and the Great Depression

Fundamentalists: Every word in the Bible must be taken literally and that creationism was the origin of all life Modernists: Took a more historical/critical look at the Bible and believed that they could accept Darwin's theory of evolution

What is the Difference Between Fundamentalists and Modernists?

1930 to 1933

When was the Worst Phase of the Great Depression?

People were living in despair and depression nationwide. They felt as though they were hopeless and helpless. People even began to think that it was their fault that everything failed (when one person alone was not to blame)

How did the Mental Anguish of the Time Impact the American People?

Ups: More money people can keep to buy what they want Downs: The government doesn't have as much money to do more things

What are the Ups and Downs to Tax Cuts?

Nativism: the fear of foreigners and immigrants (people only) Xenophobia: the fear of anything that's foreign - a more general term than nativism - some examples include people, culture, customs, ideas, and RELIGION

What is Nativism and What is Xenophobia?

The Changing of Immigration Patterns

What was the First of the Three Main Reasons Nativism Spiked in the 1920s?

The KKK was a very nativist and isolationist hate group that sought to preserve their perception of true Americanism.

Basically, What was the KKK?

NO! Most of the very wealthy people tended to get out of the Great Depression okay. In fact, many of them opened up soup kitchens for the poor

Did Everyone Go into Poverty?

Protestant fundamentalists, being as devote to their religion as they were, completely supported the prohibition amendment. In these small, rural towns, drinking was considered to be highly immoral and an abomination. Despite that, most regular people and government officials alike ignored the law.

Did Protestant Fundamentalists Support Prohibition? If They did, then Who was Against It?

With immigration restrictions. Prior to the 1920s, there were no limits on European immigration. Immigration restrictions during the 1920s was the first real attempt to put limits on immigration. The two goals that congress had were to drastically reduce immigration to the U.S. and return to "old immigrant" patterns

How Else did the Government Deal with Nativism in the United States?

If you could not pay your mortgage on your house, then the bank took back possession of it. If you could not afford to pay your rent, the landlord kicked you out. During the Great Depression, many people became homeless. Millions of Americans were now living in poverty because they could not afford the basic necessities like food and shelter.

How did Foreclosures and Evictions Impact the American People? Were they in Poverty?

Because the United States placed high tariffs on foreign goods, other countries decided to do the same thing to American goods being sold overseas. So businesses couldn't really earn money at home or overseas anymore.

How did High Tariffs lead to Economic Slowdown?

As mentioned before, poor workers kept buying products using credit, even though they had no way of paying it back plus interest. They were working up so much debt, that eventually they had to realize that they had to slow down on making these big purchases.

How did Low Wages and Consumer Debt lead to Economic Slowdown?

There are certain products, like refrigerators and dishwashers, that you can only buy every so often. And when you do buy them, you expect them to be built to last. By the end of the 1920s, everyone had major appliances in their homes, so there weren't as many people buying those products anymore.

How did Market Exhaustion lead to Economic Slowdown?

Because they ran out of money, the banks went bankrupt, meaning they had to close. Millions of people who had their life savings in those banks had no way of getting any of their money back. Remember, a bank is a business that earns money by loaning the money out that goes into it by charging interest. The whole economy depends on people borrowing money from banks and putting money into banks. If the banks fail, then the whole economic system fails with it.

How did Thousands of Bank Failures Impact the People of the Nation?

The unemployment rate during the Great Depression was the highest rate in U.S. history. People now had no job and no life savings (to way to make or save money). And there were no government programs to help them either

How did an Unemployment Rate of 25%-30% Impact the People of the Nation?

Millions of people trusted banks with their money by putting it in their savings accounts because they thought it was a safe place. Once people began to hear that the banks were running out of money, people tried to go to them and pull out their saved cash as soon as possible. Some people got their money out in time while others lost everything.

How did the Banking Crisis Lead to "Runs" on the Banks?

The federal government cracked-down on primarily new Russian immigrants during what became known as the Palmer Raids. A. Mitchell Palmer was the attorney general of the country at the time. During the raids, they convicted suspected communists and other Russian radicals and deported them back to Russia.

How did the Government Respond to This?

The Ku Klux Klan of the Reconstruction days was a small group ex-confederates in the deep south that would terrorize the freedmen. However, once the segregation laws came into effect, there really wasn't any need for them anymore. However, once nativism sparked in the 1920s, they suddenly became relevant again, but this time on a more national scale. Although they were the strongest in small, rural towns in the "Bible Belt," they were found in virtually every state. Their membership even skyrocketed to 5 million formal members, approximately 5% of the population at the time.

How did the Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s Differ from That of the Reconstruction Days?

You have to understand that regular people who invested money in the stock market bought the stock with credit supplied by the bank. This was called an on-margin loan. Once the crash happened, people had to pay back the banks when they couldn't afford to do so. So, the banks quite literally ran out of money.

How did the Stock Market Crash lead to the Banking Crisis?

Because these big businesses weren't doing as well as they had before, the stock prices began to go down. After that point, everything kind of had a snowball effect because of the inexperience of the investors. People panicked and began to pull their money out of the stock market at the first sign of decline. Once that happens, even more people pull out their money, causing stock prices to plunge even further. All of this is what caused the Crash of October 1929.

How did this Economic Slowdown lead to the Declining Stock Market and the Great Depression?

One of the main factors that contributed to nativism was religion. People, primarily those who lived in small rural towns, did not want the religious culture of the country to change. Another main factor was that people did not want foreign ideas to change the traditional way the nation was run, for example, they did not want socialism or communism to be introduced into American government.

In general, Why did Nativism have a Strong Presence in the 1920s?

As everyone is buying new products using credit, and companies are mastering the mass production of the assembly lines, there were higher corporate profits than ever before. There was also record unemployment rates because almost everyone had a job as these businesses expanded. This was an extremely productive time in American history because so much stuff was being produced.

In the end, What Happened during this Consumer Boom?

They took a laissez-faire approach, raised tariffs, cut taxes, and moved away from government regulations.

What Four Things did They Do Regarding the Economics of the Country?

Two Italian immigrants were convicted for robbery and murder, even though there was little evidence to back up that claim. Many thought they were easy scapegoats because of their nationality and political viewpoint. They were later executed in 1927.

What Happened during the Sacco-Vanzetti Case?

John Scopes taught Darwin's theory of evolution to his high school students in Tennessee (which was illegal). He was brought to trial over the issue and was convicted. The ruling was later overturned on a technicality.

What Happened during the Scopes Trial of 1925?

Low wages are still a major issue during this time, as companies are not passing on their profits to their employees. Two other major problems were credit and stock market mania (speculation boom)

What are Some of the Problems during this Time?

Basic Protestants, Strict Protestants, Extreme Fundamentalist, and Extreme Nativist

What are the Four Different Types/Levels of Protestantism?

Ups: Thought that it was good for American businesses because if the price of foreign goods was high, than more Americans would buy American products, thus keeping the money in the country. Downs: U.S. companies could still raise their prices, only a little less than the foreign products, so it wasn't making things cost less. Plus, foreign countries might get mad and put high tariffs on American goods being sold overseas

What are the Ups and Downs to Raising the Tariff?

Urban Diversity: new immigrants who were bringing foreign ideas and culture into society --- African Americans were expressing their cultural pride --- flappers and changing gender roles for women in society --- new technology that was advancing the daily lives of people across the nation

What did the Fundamentalists Believe was a Threat to their Traditional Values?

The first Red Scare in the United States occurred during the 1920s. The combination of the fear that foreign ideas would take over the country and that the influx of Russian immigrants came to promote that anarchy resulted in a mass panic. This panic was also caused by economic problems during that time. Because there were more workers than there were jobs, wages decreased, hours increased, and working conditions diminished. As workers got unhappy and attempted to form unions (which was how the RR got started), there were major concerns of potential rebellion, socialism, and anarchy.

What did this Fear Spark in the United States?

The laissez-faire approach, meaning that the government didn't get involved in regulating businesses, seemed to work in the 1920s. There was little anti-trust enforcement during this time, allowing bigger companies to buy out their smaller competitors. This is the complete opposite of what the progressive era is all about and is more like the policies of the gilded age.

What do the Laissez-Faire Approach and the Moving Away from Government Regulations Have in Common/What did they Do?

Fundamentalism in general is pretty much when you go back to the basics. Protestant fundamentalism was when people took a literal interpretation of the Bible and applied it to everyday life and society. Fundamentalists believed that too many Americans were straying from the fundamentals of the Protestant religion. They believed that their religious values were being lost. Everything was getting so out of hand, that they needed to return to basics in order for everything to go back to normal.

What is Protestant Fundamentalism? Who were Protestant Fundamentalists and What did they Believe?

BP: just upset about the changes occurring in the nation SP: upset about the changes and preached a lot EF: not only upset, but they are now ready to act. They blame immigrants for the changes that are happening. This is when xenophobia/nativism begins to come into play EN: Hate groups like the KKK

What is the Difference Between All Four?

As a part of the newly-named Soviet Union, socialism was taking root under Lenin. The way Americans saw it, Russia was even moving towards repressive communism in its government, which is the use of the military to regulate and discipline the people. These drastic changes to the Russian government was now being perceived as un-American. They saw the whole revolution as unruly radicalism of the working class, and they were afraid that something like that would happen in America too. This in turn caused these new Russian immigrants to be perceived as radical communists too.

What was Happening in Russia After the Revolution Took Place? How did the American's Perspective Change?

The part of Europe in which these European immigrants were coming from dramatically changed during this time. From 1880 to 1900, the "old immigrants" from Northern and Western were mainly coming to the United States, whereas from 1900 to 1920, these "new immigrants" came from Eastern and Southern Europe.

What was the Change with Immigration after its increase from 1880 to 1920?

The republicans were mainly in power, so to speak. The republican economic policies made under presidents like Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover greatly contributed to why the economy was doing so well.

What was the Dominant Political Party during the Economic Boom in the 1920s?

Against: African Americans, immigrants, non-Christians, Catholics, Jews, Communists, Internationalists, Anarchists, and Modernists. For: white anglo-saxon Protestants (whom they believed to be the only true Americans)

What was the KKK Against? What were they For?

Post-War Isolationism

What was the Second of the Three Main Reasons Nativism Spiked in the 1920s?

The After-Effects of the Russian Revolution

What was the Third of the Three Main Reasons Why Nativism Spiked during the 1920s?

Americans blamed Hoover for the way everything was handled and for the poor living conditions of millions of Americans.

What were Hoovervilles?

Economic collapse, stock market crash, and the banking crisis. Many people were shocked that this had happened because things drastically turned from really great to really bad. This was the worst economic calamity in all of U.S. history.

What were the Three Critical Problems that Occurred in the U.S. by Late 1929?

Quota Act of 1921: 3% of each nationality based on the census of 1910 Immigration Act of 1924: 2% of each nationality based on the census of 1890

What were the Two Acts that they Passed during this Time and What did they Do?

There wasn't really a start, more so there spikes during certain periods of time. One spike happened during the Gilded Age when there was a large increase in immigration and the competition for jobs became fiercer. Going even farther back, there was a spike in the 1840s/50s when the Irish came over to the U.S. People even formed the "Know-Nothing Party" which was pretty much an anti-immigrant party. At the time, the U.S. was mainly Protestant and the Irish were Catholics, whom the Protestants thought were loyal to the Pope (foreigner).

When did Nativism Really Start in America? (trick question) What about the Irish?

These "new immigrants" came from Eastern and Southern Europe, from countries like Russia, Italy, and Czechoslovakia. These immigrants were not Protestant, in fact, they were mostly either Catholics, Jews, Eastern Orthodox, or Atheists. They were also poor and did not speak English.

Who were the "New Immigrants" and Where did They Come from?

These "old immigrants" came from Northern and Western Europe, from countries like Britain, Germany, and Scandinavia. They were Anglo-Saxons as well as Protestants. They are also known as "wasps" or "white anglo-saxon protestants." So many of them came over, that they were the basic ethnicity of the country. Many of the leaders in the country up to that point had that type of heritage.

Who were the "Old Immigrants" and Where did They Come from? Who are WASPS?

Protestantism was the dominant religion in the country since the beginning. They were found in small, rural towns, mostly in the Bible Belt (which is the upper part of the South). This is where the most religious people lived. They were the primary resistance to change during the 1920s, like technology, religion, women's gender roles, etc. They thought that the religious culture of the country was changing too much and too fast.

Who were the Protestants of the 1920s and Where did they Mostly Live?

They thought that these "new immigrants" were completely wrong. They had the wrong ethnicity, the wrong religion, they were dirt poor, and they didn't even speak English. There were so many cultural, physical, and religious differences that they thought they could not be Americans.

Why did the "Old-Immigrants" Dislike Them?

There was a lot of fear and resentment among many Americans after the Great War. The people saw WW1 as an exception to historic precedent, and wanted to revert back to their old ways of staying out of foreign entanglements after it was over. They thought that it was all the European's fault that this happened and they perceived the outside world as being hostile and troubled. They resisted the international approach of Wilson and they just wanted to step back on the world stage.

Why was Post-War Isolationism a Big Contributor to Nativism?

Washington was fine with having trade relations and some other ties with Europe, he just wanted to stay out of war. There is a difference between nativism and isolationism.

Why was Washington an Example of Good Balance Between National and International Relations?

Regular people began investing in the stock market. It seemed so easy because every company was doing well. It was the great sensation of the 1920s. But their lack of experience would create trouble later on.

Why was the Speculation Boom Involving Stock Market Mania a Problem?

Poor workers still wanted to buy these new appliances, and now they could, with the help of credit. The financial philosophy "buy now, pay later" seemed great, but these workers couldn't actually pay for anything that they were buying. In fact, they were really building up a lot of credit card debt.

Why was the Use of Credit a Problem?

They were pretty significant because they drastically reduced the number of these "undesirable new immigrants" that could come into the country. This in turn completely banned all Asian immigration. This was in fact the most restrictive immigration law in all of U.S. history.

Why were these Two Acts (Mainly the Second One) So Significant?