USA 1918-41

what were the economic benefits of WWI

what were the economic benefits of WWI

1. American industry and agriculture grew
-american factory production grew by 35% as there was more demand for supplies in Europe
-this led to 1.3 million more people in work and wages rose
-america supplied 30% of the world's wheat as Europe couldn't produce any so farmers' income grew but 30% too
-many farmers took out loans in order to expand production and make more crops however many struggled to pay these loans back after war

features of the decline of older industries

1. they faced increased competition from newer industries
-coal mining fell as 550 000 homes were fuelled by oil by 1929
-rail faced competition from cars, 26 million were sold in 1929 so these were older industries began to decline and suffer
2. jobs were lost
-combat decreasing demand, companies sacked workers or slashed wages
-this led to violent strikes and economic decline in some regions where particular industries were based as more people became unemployed

Features of cinema industry

-in 1924, 40 million cinema tickets were sold each week as people went after work for leisure
-Charlie Chaplin
-in 1922, films were shown in colour: $2 billion was made per year from tickets
-in 1927, films were released with sound: The Jazz Singer

features of sport industry

-1st grand slam in the major golf tournament made by Bobby Jone in 1930
-Bill Tilden won 7US tennis championships
in 1921, 300 000 people went to watch the baseball World Series
-babe ruth set a record of 60 runs, remained unbeaten until 1961

features of radio industry

-in 1920, 60 000 radios were sold by 1929, 10 million radios were sold
-people were influenced buy adverts on radios

How women's lives changed in the 1920s

1. women were given more freedom
-2 million women joined the workforce and the 19th amendment in 1920 allowed the in vote
-the divorce rate rose by 7% and the brith rate fell
2. some women became flappers
-women challenged the traditional social norms by wearing makeup and short skirts, dancing, smoking
-women flirted with young men, this went against many wishes of older people
-Clara Bow, actress and flapper, became a role model to young women

Features of car industry

-in 1900, 8 million people owned cars but on 1929, 23 million people did
Henry Fords' Model T car was largely responsible for this rise, but its low price meant the car only came in one colour and one design
-October 1921, a model T car was produced every 10s
-by 1925, Model T cost $290 so there was great demand
-this lead to the growth of industries like steel, rubber and glass
-by 1929, 400 000km of roads built for them, this created a lot of jobs and 7% of workers were working in motor industry

What is hire purchase?

You use goods and pay in instalments but goods aren't yours until final payment. Miss the final payment and goods can be repossessed.

Effects hire purchase

1. people bought more things
-costumers were able to pay for things without saving up and so could afford more products
-this helped people afford cars sp by 1929, 75% of cars were bought by hire purchase
2. rise in profits
-more people could buy cars so business profits increased as they sold more
-this led to increased production pf cars in factories and a boom in industry by 1929, 50% of electrical products were bought with hire purchase sp other industries benefitted too

features of advertising and consumerism

1. people were exposed to more products
-by advertising on the radio, (10 million of which were sold in 1929) and in cinema, people experienced adverts even in their leisure time
-encouraging consumerism: variety of brands to choose from and shopping became a leisure
2. people spent more money
-1 million fridges were sold in 1929, helped by the availability of credit so the economy grew
-$850 million was spent on radio equipment and $2 billion was spent by companies on advertising in 1929 to attract consumers

effects of the popularity of the stock market

1. people bought shares in companies
-with the help of loans, 1.5 million Americans bought shares on the stock market which helped business grow
-by selling these, they earned more money and so could buy more shares: it was a cycle
2. share prices began to rise
-as more people invested, shares prices increased and companies sold more of their shares so they could get more money
-by 1929, there were over 1million shares on market and companies hired more people as they sold more of their shares

what are the problems in farming

1. overproduction
-prohibition increased import tariffs abroad and Europe's recovering economy all reduced the demand for food and less was exported to Europe
-2/3 of farmers operated at a loss as prices dropped and went bankrupt
2. Mechanisation was changing farms
-10 times more tractors in 1920 than in 1915 as horses were replaced
-fever people needed to work on the farms so the number of farmhands dropped by 1 million in 1920s

features of dance and music industry

-jazz music became very popular among the young people: Louis Armstrong
-dances like Charleston accompanied by jazz were performed in speakeasies by couples
HOWEVER
-many disliked jazz as it was associated with black culture and drinking alcohol (illegal)
-some Christians didn't like the intimacy of the Charleston between young unmarried couples
-conflicts between modern and traditional views

why were laws introduced

-people feared immigrants
-there was a fear that eastern europeans, catholics, jews, communists were radicalised and were taking American jobs
-immigrants were poor & unable to speak

US immigration laws

927 literacy act = everyone had to complete a reading and writing test1921 emergency quota act = meant that each country could send only 3% of the number of people from their nation, this reduced the number of immigrants to 357000 per year1924 origins act = limited number of immigrants from 357000 to 164000 per year, countries could only send 2% of their nation1929 national origins provision = reduced immigrants from 164000 to 150000 per year

What was the 'open door' policy

it meant that all immigrants were welcome into America as America needed to be populated and needed workers

What was the Red Scare?

A fear of communism in the U.S.

What was the Palmer Raids?

Raids against immigrants suspected of dangerous activity and communists, reaction to the Red Scare

features of the Red Scare and The Palmer Raids

1. communists were feared
-the 1917 Russian revolution unsettled Americans and immigrants were feared to be communists
-in 1919, there were 3600 strikes by workers and 40 mail bombs were sent to important politicians by anarchists
2. Raids on radical groups (Palmer Raids)
-General Intelligence Divison spied on and arrested radicals between 1919-20, deporting 600 radicals and arresting many others
-this increased the support for immigrant restrictions and weakened the power of trade unions who had communists members

What was the Sacco and Vanzetti case?

In 1920, two Italian immigrants were convicted of armed robbery and murder, They were made out to be anarchists, and despite numerous protests, the government executed them.

Features of the Sacco and Vanzetti Case

-one may 5 1920 after picking up a car associated with the shooting of a guard and a paymaster at a factory, Sacco and Vanzetti were arrested
-they were linked to anarchism and the mail bombs so were feared as anti-capitalist
-the two Italians were executed despite having alibis, they were found guilty and sentenced to death by electrocution
-executed in 1927 after worldwide protests and the judge was known as anti-anarchist

What were Jim Crow laws?

They were laws that enforced the strict separation of the races:
-black people had different toilets/ parts of the restaurant/ railway carriage/ opportunities at school especially in southern states
-this increased racist violence as racism was normalised and there were many beating of black people

how were black americans' life like?

-even after slaves were liberated, black people were seen as second-class citizens (many worked in unskilled jobs like farm labour)
-many who had money moved to northern states and settled in places like Harlem to escape the race riots and the living standard in the South

What was the Klu Klux Klan?

White supremacists who attacked African Americans and tried to maintain slavery

features of the KKK

1. strong beliefs in white supremacy
-inspired by the 1915 film: Birth of aa Nation, they saw black people as evil and them as heroes and so beat black people
-they thought that Anglo-Saxon Protestants were superior and should fight Jews/immigrants
2. they grew in political power
-by 1923, the klan had 5 million members and had sympathisers in the police, politics, courts
-they performed a protest in Washington in 1925 and agrees against any equality

What was the Monkey Trial?

in 1925 a modernist teacher in Tennessee, John Scopes tried teaching evolution event tough it was prohibited

features on the Money Trial

1. differences between fundamentalists and Darwinists
-Fundamentalists believed everything in the Bible literally and christened evangelists preached these traditional values
-Modernists wanted to re-interpret the Bible but teaching of evolution's banned in Tennesse as part of the Butler Act
2. John Scope's trial raised awareness of religious debate
-after teaching about evolution in 1925, Scopes was put on trial, his lawyer, Darrow, challenged the law: this put creationism vs modernism in the courts
-Scopes was fined and found guilty but fundamentalism was mocked in national newspapers and the trial was widely reported on the radio

What was the Butler Act?

forbidding the teaching the evolution

What was prohibition?

banning of alcohol in 1920

features of the prohibition and the gangsters

1. harder to get alcohol as it was illegal
-thousands of jobs were lost as the 18th amendment stopped the manufacture/ distribution of alcohol
-people got alcohol from speakeasies or Moonshine (homemade alcohol) or smuggling it in from Canada by gangs
2. organised crimes grew
-gangs grew larger to produce alcohol: Al Capone earned $105 million a year from alcohol, brothels and gambling as pat of his gang
-violence increased, 200 people murdered in Chicago by November 1924 and ordinary people became part of this criminal activity buy buying alcohol

features of the Wall Street Crash

1. share prices dropped
-by 1929, $64 billion shares on Wall Street as people bought/sold stocks but a loss of confidence in the stock market caused many people to sell their shares quickly
-on black Thursday, prices fell rapidly as people panic sold; shares lost $26 billion and banks had to call back loans as they didn't have enough money
2. there was deflation
-as credit reduced and businesses failed, over production means that prices fell and businesses couldn't pay wages so more workers were stacked
-banks failed so people had no savings and couldn't afford food: Europe cut trade with the USA

features of intervention and volunteerism

1. Hoover believed volunteerism would help the US
-he believed the gov shouldn't interfere in the economy and that markets would fit it themselves (Laissez Faire attitude), they shouldn't interfere with people's lives and give handouts to help them
2. The gov used intervention to help in the Depression
-1930 Hawley-Smoot tariff raised import taxes on food by 40% so Americans would buy their own food and not from other countries to help local businesses
-1932 emergency relief and construction act gave loans to promote building which increased the number of jobs and helped the economy

features of Unemployment and Hoovervilles

1. People lost their jobs and savings as industries struggled
-9000 banks closed from 1930-33 ($2.5 billion was lost in savings): farming income fell to $2 billion in 1932 (1/3 of 1929)
-combined with the Dust Bowl, farmers migrated having lost their land; wages in industry fell by 50% in 1933 and even Ford was making workers redundant
2. many moved to Hoovervilles (named after president for doing little help)
-1/4 of the workforce were unemployed in 1933 and couldnt pay their rents so they set up shanty towns (Hoovervilles) and got help from charities, immigrates also moved to those towns

What was the Dust Bowl?

Drought conditions with strong winds that blew dirt everywhere

features of the bonus marches

1. WWI veterans had been promised bonuses
-to make up for lost wages during the war, veterans were promised a $625 bonus payable in 1945
-many became unemployed and lost savings in the depression so wanted to promised bonus in order to feed their families
2. they marched to Washington
-1932, 20 000 bonus marchers marched in order to pressure Hoover
-Hoover called the US army who teargassed them with 100 being injured and some even dying, this destroyed Hoover's reputation as he had se the police against war veterans

what is teargassed

a gas that hurts the eyes and makes them produce tears, used in order to control crowds of people

When was Roosevelt elected?

1932

What was the Emergency Banking Act? first new deal

All banks were closed for 4 days so government officials could inspect the accounts. Only banks that were properly managed were allowed to reopen.
this allowed to rebuild confidence and end the banking crisis

What were fireside chats?

radio addresses in which Roosevelt spoke directly to the American people about new laws
he did this 30 time increasing support for himself and the New Deal

TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority) first new deal

-part of the new deal to create employment and reduce effects of the dust bowl in Tennessee Valley
-up to 20 dams were built, creating jobs and allowing the flooding in the area to be controlled for farmers
-generated hydro-electric for local farms which boosted productivity and revived the economy
-helped 7 states to recover

AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Administration) first new deal

-stop over production to increase prices
-paid farmers to keep areas of land empty and limit the number of crops/animals they kept
-6million pigs were killed and because there was less wheat/cotton grown, prices rose: this helped farmers to make profit

FCA (Farm Credit Administration) first new deal

-farmers were helped if they struggled with mortgages
-improved mortgages arrangements for 20% of farmers
-more could now afford to pay their mortgages so were more likely yo keep their lands and jobs: this made sure the number of farmers wasn't reduced

NRA (National Recovery Administration) first new deal

-businesses were encourages to join the NRA
-was popular amongst the public as it controlled prices, wages and working hours
-2.3 million businesses took part, displaying the Blue Eagle symbol to show they were part of it, this helped to improve working conditions across America

NIRA (National Industrial Recovery Act) first new deal

-allowed workers to join union (3.9 million were in a union by 1939)
-they could fight for better pay/hours/conditions helping them to earn more and improve the economy

FERA (Federal Emergency Relief Act) first new deal

-Roosevelt provided a basic income for the unemployed
-gave $500 million to states to help the unemployed
-allowed the unemployed to feed their families in the short time whilst looking for a job

CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) first new deal

-encouraged people to return to work
-gave young men outdoor paid jobs: 500 000 had joined it by 1935

PWA (Public Works Administration) first new deal

$3.3 billion were given to build structures (e.g dams) to create more jobs

why was there a second new deal

because the first new deal helped but was not enough

WPA (Works Progress Administration), second new deal

-provided work relief for the unemployed
-$11 billion to employ 8 million Americans in short term work, providing the income and experience as part of the 2nd New Deal (very similar to first new deal)
-helped families with their incomes during winter
-variety of projects: manual construction projects (roads, schools, hospitals) and training programmes for the young
-helped the arts industry (e.g writers) and gave women sewing and teaching programmes

NLRA (National Labor Relations Act), second new deal

-workers were entitled to join a union
-this banned unions which were funded by companies and firing members because they were part of a union
-union membership rose to 9 million by 1940, allowing factory workers and craftspeople to campaign of better pay/working hours
-protection was given to unions and workers:
NLRB supervised union negotiations and defended workers who were fired because they were part of unions, 226 lawyers were involved to decrease unemployment

what was the NLRB, second new deal

National Labor Relations Board - supervised union negotiations

SSA (Social Security Act), second new deal

-created a federal pension system
-empoyees paid 1% of their total income into pension scheme (later rose to 3%) alongside money paid into it from a tax on employers
-paid back in retirement which increased the willing to work
-created unemployment insurance and grants to help the unemployed
-employers of over 8 people paid a tax which provided unemployment pay to feed families
-families with unemployed parents were given money to support the children, this helped 7000 people

FSA (Farm Security Administration), second new deal

-helped farmers struggling for money: helped rural people buy land for farming rather than working as renters on wealthy farms
-gave $1 billion in loans by 1941 to buy land to resettle families

AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Administration ), second new deal

-continued to limit production of crops by taxing farmers who grew more products than they were allowed
-gov could control the amount of produce from farms so prices rose and farmers could make profit

Banking Act, second new deal

-board of governors of the federal reserve system was created in 1935 by Roosevelt
-they had financial powers (e.g setting interest rate) so powerful banks had less power
-by increasing central powers, banks became more stable and none were closed in 1936
-interest could be carefully monitored and controlled by the gov so another stock market crash was less likely yo happen

EHFA (Electric Home and Farm Authority), second new deal

-electrical appliances were installer in the houses of farmers and other rural communities with loans from the EHFA
-farmers could use modern methods of farming making farming quicker, cheaper and more efficient

REA (Rural Electrification Administration), second new deal

-as farms were rural, it wasn't profitable for utility companies to supply electricity (only 10% of farms had it in 1930)
-it gave loans to give farms electricity so that by 1945, 40% of farms had it

Roosevelt's aims and the New Deal

1. RECOVERY: farm income rose, banks reopened, unemployment fell by 3 million
-unemployment was still not at the level of 1929 (3.2%) but it decreased and was 17.2% in 1939
-farm income wasnt as high either until WW2 but again, it rose
2. RELIEF: WPA, SSA, 35% of people received governmental relief
-varied from states and some still needed more money and houses to live it but it made big improvements
3. REFORM: SSA, unions, rural electrification, financial regulation
-still large gap between rich/poor, wages men/women and black/white people but less bigger gaps than before

features of the Supreme Court opposition

1. it closed down alphabet agencies
-many judges against Roosevelt claimed the Alphabet Agencies were unconstitutional as they took away the power of state govs
-they agreed the NRA was to have no control over trade and the AAA could not be forced on states as this was against constitution
2.Roosevelt tried to get majority in the court
-judges were appointed by the president, in 1937, he asked congress to add 6 more judges in order to give him a majority of supporters in the supreme court
-this was called court packing and typical of a dictator and was refused but 2 of the existing judges began to back him, giving Roosevelt a majority in the Supreme Court

features of the republican opposition

1. republicans disagreed fundamentally with the democrats
-republicans disliked Roosevelt and the federal gov gaining too much power
-they hated him for spending so much money often by borrowing it or raising taxes
2. republicans gained power in congress
-1938, due to a recession, they gained more seats in congress and formed a coalition with some democrats from the southern states
-they voted to cut spending on work relief programmes and block any New Deal measures and investigate the Alphabet agencies

features of business opposition & the liberty league

1. businessmen disliked the new deal
-they disliked the gov being so powerful with high taxes, preferred laissez faire attitude
-hated the NRA setting working hours and pay and allowing unions to challenge businesses as it granted workers too much power
2. Liberty league was set up to paint Roosevelt as anti-business
-founded in 1934 and distributed leaflets/broadcast speeches to try and show the new deal as a threat to individuals
-only 150 000 people joined it and it was closed in 1940 after the Supreme Court began backing Roosevelt (so it wasnt a success)

Who was Heuy Long?

a left wing senator

Features of Huey Longs 'share our wealth' programme

1. he believed the New deal didn't go far enough
-he said the NRA was controlled by big businesses, the AAA left poor farmers homeless, and the gap between rich/poor was too big
-felt the SSA didn't go far enough and too many Americans were poor
2. set up 'Share our Wealth' programme
-founded in 1934, it aimed to take a part of the income of wealthy Americans and give poor Americans $2500 per year
-8 million people joined the Share Our Wealth club: his proposals were radical but he was shot in 1935 so it never went far

who was Father Coughlin

-Catholic Priest
-Founded the National Union for Social Justice.
-Attacked the New Deal.
-Anti-Semitic and Fascist

features of Father Coughlin's Social Justice campaign

1. he spread his messages on the New Deal
-he would broadcast his sermons via radio to 30 million people
-his political opinions were taken seriously by politicians/public and he initially supported the New Deal
2. set up the national union of social justice
-he claimed that the depression was caused by Wall Street financiers and wanted banking reforms and more fair taxes
-he campaigned in November 1934 to nationalise the US economy by setting up the NUSJ, many of his ideas were realised in the second new deal so his influenced declined after it