1920s-30s

Great migration (great flight)

What: Movement of millions of African Americans from the rural South to Northern cities
Why: Escape Jim Crow laws, racial violence; seek factory jobs
Significance: Changed Northern cities; led to Harlem Renaissance; increased racial tensions

Harlem Renaissance

What: Cultural movement celebrating Black art, music, and literature
Why: Result of Great Migration and growing Black middle class
Significance: Redefined African American identity; challenged racism

Scopes Trial

What: Trial over teaching evolution in schools
Why: Tennessee law banned evolution
Significance: Symbolized conflict between modern science and religious fundamentalism

KKK Revival

What: Resurgence of Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s
Why: Fear of immigrants, Catholics, Jews, and African Americans
Significance: Showed strong resistance to social change and diversity

Flapper, New Woman (Margaret Sanger)

What: Women who challenged traditional gender roles
Why: More independence after WWI; access to birth control
Significance: Expanded women’s rights; changed social norms

Prohibition (18th amendment)

What: Banned production and sale of alcohol
Why: Moral reform and temperance movement
Significance: Led to organized crime; largely considered a failure

Youth Culture

What: Teenagers gaining independence and influence
Why: More leisure time and disposable income
Significance: Helped spread new music, fashion, and values

Eugenics

What: Belief in improving society by controlling reproduction
Why: Misuse of science and racism
Significance: Led to forced sterilizations and immigration limits

First Red Scare

First Red Scare (1919–1920)

What: Widespread fear of communism and anarchism in the U.S.
Why: Russian Revolution, labor strikes, anarchist bombings
Significance: Led to arrests, deportations, and violations of civil liberties

Nativism and Xenophobia

What: Hostility toward immigrants and foreigners
Why: Fear of job competition, cultural change, and radical ideas
Significance: Fueled immigration restrictions and discrimination

National Origins Act

What: Law limiting immigration based on national origin
Why: Preserve traditional American culture and reduce immigration
Significance: Favored Northern Europeans; severely restricted others

Sacco and Vanzetti

What: Two Italian immigrants accused of murder
Why: Linked to anarchist beliefs
Significance: Case showed bias against immigrants and radicals

Laissez-Faire policies (Harding and Coolidge)

What: Minimal government interference in business
Why: Belief in free markets
Significance: Economic boom but weak regulation

Consumerism and Credit

What: Buying goods using installment plans
Why: Mass production and advertising
Significance: Short-term prosperity; long-term debt problems

Modernism

What: Rejection of traditional beliefs and values
Why: Impact of WWI and rapid change
Significance: Influenced art, literature, and culture

Increase in leisure time

What: Increased free time for workers
Why: Shorter workdays, higher wages
Significance: Growth of entertainment industries

Golden Age of Sports

What: Sports heroes became national icons
Why: Radio and mass media
Significance: Unified Americans; created celebrities

Age of the Silver Screen

What: Rise of movies and Hollywood
Why: New technology and mass entertainment
Significance: Shaped American culture and values

Jazz Age

What: Popularity of jazz music
Why: African American cultural influence
Significance: Symbol of freedom and modern culture

Buying on the Margin

What: Purchasing stocks with borrowed money
Why: Speculation during the 1920s
Significance: Made stock market crash worse

Stock Market Crash of 1929

What: Sudden collapse of stock prices
Why: Over-speculation and margin buying
Significance: Triggered the Great Depression

Causes of the Great Depression

What: Economic collapse
Why: Overproduction, unequal wealth, bank failures
Significance: Longest economic crisis in U.S. history

Bonus Army

What: WWI veterans demanding early bonus payment
Why: Economic hardship
Significance: Hurt Hoover’s reputation

Hoovers Response

What: Limited government action
Why: Belief in self-reliance
Significance: Seen as ineffective

How the GD impacted Americans

What: Mass unemployment and poverty
Why: Business failures and bank closures
Significance: Changed attitudes toward government help

Dust Bowl

What: Severe drought and dust storms
Why: Poor farming practices
Significance: Forced migration; worsened Depression

New Deal

What: Series of programs to combat Depression
Why: Economic emergency
Significance: Expanded federal government role

What program was designed to give government jobs and reduce unemployment?

What: Government jobs program (works progress administration WPA)
Why: Reduce unemployment
Significance: Built infrastructure; employed millions

What program gave jobs to young men working to help the environment?

CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps)

What: Jobs for young men
Why: Conservation and relief
Significance: Environmental improvements

What act paid farmers to reduce production?

AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Act)

What: Paid farmers to reduce production
Why: Raise crop prices
Significance: Helped farmers but controversial

What act gave money to the elderly and unemployed?

SSA (Social Security Act)

What: Pensions for elderly and unemployed
Why: Long-term economic security
Significance: Still exists today

What insured bank deposits?

FDIC

What: Insured bank deposits
Why: Restore trust in banks
Significance: Prevented bank panics

What program regulated the stock market?

SEC

What: Regulated the stock market
Why: Prevent fraud
Significance: Increased investor confidence

Which program provided federal funds to states for relief?

🏢 FERA (Federal Emergency Relief Administration)

What: Provided federal funds to states for relief programs
Why: Help the unemployed and poor
Significance: First major federal relief program; set stage for later New Deal agencies

What act protected labor unions?

Wagner Act

What: Protected labor unions
Why: Improve worker rights
Significance: Strengthened unions

Public Works

What: Government-funded construction projects
Why: Create jobs and improve infrastructure
Significance: Reduced unemployment and modernized the nation

Blue Eagle Codes

🦅 Blue Eagle Codes

What: Symbol used by businesses following New Deal industrial codes
Why: Encourage fair wages and hours
Significance: Promoted cooperation; later ruled unconstitutional

Direct Assistance

🤝 Direct Assistance

What: Government giving money or aid directly to people
Why: Immediate relief during the Great Depression
Significance: Marked a shift in government responsibility for citizens

Socialism

🚩 Socialism

What: Economic system where government controls major industries
Why: Address wealth inequality and worker exploitation
Significance: Feared in the U.S.; associated with the Red Scare

Liberalism

🏛 Liberalism

What: Political belief in government action to protect individual rights and promote equality
Why: Response to industrialization and economic inequality
Significance: Influenced New Deal policies and expanded federal government role

What was the criticism of the new deal?

What: Opposed by both conservatives and liberals
Why: Too much or too little government
Significance: Sparked debate over federal power