The Dark Side of America in the 1920s

A collection of flashcards covering key terms and events related to the social and political issues in America during the 1920s.

Influenza Pandemic

A deadly epidemic in 1918 that infected 25% of Americans and killed 675,000 in the U.S. and at least 50 million worldwide.

Nativism

Prejudice against foreign-born people, evident through immigration quotas and the rise of groups like the Ku Klux Klan.

The Great Migration

The movement of hundreds of thousands of African Americans from the South to northern industrial cities seeking better opportunities.

The Red Scare

A period of intense fear of communism and radical leftism following the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia.

The Palmer Raids

A series of government actions led by A. Mitchell Palmer aimed at arresting and deporting radical leftists and anarchists in the U.S.

Sacco and Vanzetti

Two Italian anarchists charged with robbery and murder whose trial highlighted issues of nativism and bias against immigrants.

Emergency Quota Act (1921)

Law limiting immigration from the Eastern hemisphere to 3% of the population based on the 1910 census.

Prohibition

The nationwide ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol due to the 18th Amendment, which aimed to reduce social problems.

Al Capone

A notorious Chicago gangster who led a massive bootlegging operation during Prohibition and was eventually convicted for tax evasion.

The Scopes Trial

A famous legal case in 1925 where a teacher was tried for teaching evolution in violation of the Butler Act, symbolizing the clash between science and religion.

Fundamentalism

A religious movement emphasizing a strict interpretation of the Bible and often opposing modernist views during the 1920s.

Speakeasies

Secret bars or clubs that illegally sold alcohol during Prohibition.

Ku Klux Klan (KKK)

A hate group that re-emerged in the 1920s, promoting white supremacy and opposing immigrants, Catholics, Jews, and African Americans.

The 21st Amendment

The constitutional amendment that repealed Prohibition, unique for being the first amendment to revoke another.