1920s societal changes

significant changes

significant changes

• women (19th amendment)

• roaring 20s (entertainment and media)

• segregation (race issues)

• red scare (religious intolerance)

changes in attitude after WWI

• hedonism: “living life in the moment” - as the entertainment industry grew, the opening of dancehalls and clubs encouraged the partying lifestyle

• pacifism: after being confronted with the horrors of the war, many americans were against war, felt violence wasn’t the answer

the film industry

• the average working week dropped from 47 hours to 44 hours so people had more leisure time

• large emerging industries generated a lot of profit and jobs

• Average wages rose, giving more disposable income

• the film industry provided cheap entertainment for millions and for many offered escapism from real life

• stars such as Clara Bow (it girl) broke taboo, inspiring sexual freedom through american society (although not everyone was a fan of this)

radio

• gave americans access to new kinds of music

• establishes national communication

women in work

• increasing numbers of women were entering work (mechanisation and manufacturing industries)

• the expansion in office work, meant that more women were being taken seriously

• women being in the workforce alongside men was a step towards changing the dynamic between the genders and social change

women social changes

• women had the freedom to dress

• their short hair was a sign of liberation

• makeup was popularized (huge makeup advertising market)

• driving cars, smoking, dating

• THESE BENEFITED WORKING CLASS WOMEN TO SOME EXTENT (only the more middle class wealthy women could reap the benefits)

flapper

• the name given to liberated young women

• the embodiment of women's social evolution in the 1920s

• short hair, short skirts, makeup and bright colours, they embraced the hedonistic lifestyle of the 1920s

19th amendment

1920, gave women the vote

rural women’s response to change

• in more rural area women feared and were resistant to the modern lifestyle, they frowned upon it

• they tended to be against alcohol and pro family ad religion

13th amendment

• 1865, abolished slavery

• tensions between the south who were pro slavery and the north who were against it

voting limitations

• even after the American Civil War brought an end to slavery and introduced equality for black Americans, many southern states found ways to limit legal rights of black citizens

• for example many southern states introduced complicated and ambiguous literacy tests in an effort to prevent blacks from voting

• Louisana Literacy Test was a difficult 30-question test black Americans had just 10 minutes to complete and get 100% to vote, test had no mark scheme

Jim Crow laws

• this segregated white and black americans, making them unable to have access to white facilties such as schools, parks, transports, restaurants etc

• all "black only" facilities were severely underfunded making the quality of education and life poor for african americans (racism was systemic)

Birth of a Nation

• an anti-black propaganda movie

• exposed the american population to racist stereotypes: laziness, dumb, sexual predators

• it showed white people (KKK) as the "saviors"this exacerbated racial tensions in america

KKK

• established after the civil war in America, then revived in the 1915 (with help of movie "birth of a nation")

• originated in the south but grew in the north during the 1920s due to the large internal immigration of the black population to the north

• there were 4.5 million members by 1925

role of the KKK

• consisted of WASPS

• they were fighting for white supremacy

• anti-black, anti-jew, anti-foreigner

• they believed they were on a "moral crusade" to protect americas "values"

• they attemped to terrorise black people into submission through: fear tactics, lynchings and inspired race riots throughout america

• also popularized by its important members (governor of alabama and the senator of texas)

Tulsa race riot

• 1921, took place in the green district of black prosperity

• after a 17 year old boy was falsely accused of inappropriate sexual misconduct, this outraged the white population causing them to raid and destroy the greenwood

• killed officially 39 black people

Rosewood massacre

• 1923

• a white woman lied about being acosted by a black man

• rosewood, florida was raided by outraged white americans

• killed officially 6 people, although victim count is expected to be much higher

the decline of the KKK

• by 1925 the KKK’s membership declined rapidly

• “grand dragon” D.C Stephenson was accused of the murder-rape of his assistant

• the case attracted a great deal of publicity

• after he was convicted, the Klan corrupted making many members leave

the black renaissance

• despite poverty and discrimination

• black pride and culture flourished in areas such as Harlem, a hub for african-american artistic expression

• black music such as jazz and blues is why the 1920s are often referred to as the jazz age

• the cotton club: a club for jazz musician which had become very popular

NAACP

• national association for the advancement of colored people

• strives toward "equal rights and opportunities for all"

• determined to challenge white supremacy and abolish segregation laws during the 1920s

• making black people aware of their civil right for e.g voting etc

• Major campaign: against lynching in the south, however they failed to pass the law against lynching , even after revealing its unjustified and sadistic nature

UNIA

• advocating for the progression of black organisation and black power, influencing pride in the culture and colour

• wanting to establish close contact with africa, with attempts to share knowledge and skill to enrich black culture and power.

• Repartition "back to africa" inspired black americans to go back to their country of origin and try to help development and escape racism

impact of black political movement

• many 1920s newspapers (The baltimore, Afro- American) help spread views and inspire the african american population

• UNIA inspired Black americans to start their own buisnesses in order to boycott large stores who discriminate black staff, this caused the development of the black middle class

Scopes-Monkey trial

• trialed July 1925

• predominantly in the southern / midwest area (the Bible Belt) , people were very religious, therefore implemented laws to keep "city vices" away from their fundamentalist christian ways of life

• One of these laws was banning the teaching of Darwin theory of evolution, which dissproves the creation of mankind decribed in the bible.

• teacher John Scopes taught the theory to his class in Tennessee

The trial of July 1925

• the first trial ever in history to be broadcasted

• Scopes from defended by a famous criminal lawyer Clarence Darrow

• against was fundamentalist William Jennings Brian

• Scopes was fined 100 for breaking the anti-evolution law however the trial focused mainly on the arguments for and against evolution, hence why it was regarded as a victory for Darrow and Modernists

the red scare

• America's hostility towards immigrants was a integral factor causing the red scare

• with a new influx of immigrants arriving in america, they felt as if their WASP population was being diluted with the arrival of new culture

• The worry was exacerbated by the 1917 Bolshevik revolution which created the first communist state

• Americans therefore worried that eastern and southern european immigrants brought communist and anarchist ideals to the US

the strikes

• Fears of the "reds" ( ppl w/ "un-american" ideals)

• A wave of strikes in 1919 w/ 400'000 workers, convinced americans that communists were trying to disrupt their way of life

• they felt as if it was some sort of uprising, that was a threat to the US government

• the strikes were due to terrible working conditions and low pay,

• these strike (WWI) inspired many other strikes in Boston

• for eg: coal-miners, steel-workers

• however the strikes were regarded as the start of a communist uprising

the bombings

• the fear of radicalism intensified by a series of bombing incidents in 1919

• one bombing destroyed part of the house of the attorney general, Mitchel Palmer

• this led to mobs and police attacking socialists during the parades on may day

• raids of socialist organizations , books and pamphlets seized

palmer raids

• In retaliation to the bombing of his home, Mitchell palmer rounded up anyone he believed to be a "red"

• during the palmer raids between 4000-6000 suspected communists were arrested , 556 deportations of immigrants black of jews

• throughout the 1920s the "red scare" was often used as an excuse to attack any group that was disliked, ie: jews, black people, catholics and new immigrants

Sacco and Vanzetti

• On may 5 1920 , two italian born men were arrested for murder and robbery of a shoe factory, they were sentenced to death

• these men were self proclaimed anarchists and opposers to capitalism

• the trial was reported in countries all across the world and the verdicts sparked outrage amongst the supporters (bombing of US embassy in paris)

• the evidence against them was insufficient compared to their defence and they had strong evidence proving their innocence

• proved prejudice against hyphenated americans

how America contained immigration

• 1921 immigration quota act

• 1924 Nations origins act

• 1929 150’000 cap

immigration quota act

• 1921- new immigrants restricted to 3% of the proportion of immigrants from that nationality existing in the US at the time

national origins act

• 1924, the quota is reduced to 2%

• many americans were of irish and british descent ,

• numbers from these countries remained however other were barred completely

150’000 cap

• 1929- only 150'000 immigrants were allowed in each year white europeans allocated 85% of this number

• Asians barred completely

• Eastern european virtually banned

• by 1930 immigration of non-whites virtually stopped