America Theme 3 Timelines

Immigration

Late 19th/Early 20th More immigrants coming from Eastern and Southern Europe
1911 The Dillingham Commission said that the new type of immigrants were not assimilating and racially inferior
1921 Emergency Quotas Act restricted the number of immigrants to 3% of the total number of people originating from that country in the 1910 census
1929 National Origins Formula Act capped the limit at 150,000 immigrants and banned Asian immigrants all together
1952 Immigration and Nationality Act revises the laws and reissues quotas which many people disagreed with
1953 Refugee and Relief Act allows 214000 refugees from europe outside the set numerical limit
1959-1962 200,000 Cubans fled to the US escaping the communist takeover
1975 After fall of Saigon, the US took in 130,000 Vietnamese immigrants which changed the make up of most cities

Women

20s Labour saving devices meant that women had more free time. the development of speakeasies meant that some women were able to go out without societal judgement. however, flappers were still just a small proportion of women and many remained working with an actual rise of 3 million in the decade
New Deal ADFC provided some benefits for women but as a rule men came first
1930 The Housewife League were set up by black women in Detroit and they encouraged women to shop in black run stores and to organise local help for those in need
1940 Only 16% of married women worked due to childcare issues
WW2 1/2 of women who worked left when it ended. Black women were sometimes turned away from positions due to beliefs that they held sexual diseases. Number of married women working rose by 8%. 3 million worked in agriculture in june 1943 alone. number of people who thought women shouldn’t work decreased by 70% during the war
Many women left their jobs after the war when federally funded childcare shut down, attitudes changed again into the 50s with people thinking that married women should not be working
1960s Women identified many economic problems such as married women not having paid employment, unpaid work and the lack od an equal rights act
1963 The Feminine Mystique was released by Betty Friedan which caused middle class women to start to become aware of the negatives of their own experiences
Civil Rights Act 1964 prohibits discimination based on race, colour, religion, sex and national origin
1966 Jane Daniel got a longer sentence than her male counterpart and NOW found that the Act violated Title VII and the act was struck down
1967 Weeks vs Southern Bell This was taken on by NOW after she argued that Title VII had been violated. supreme Court ruled in her favour
1967 Executive Order 11375 signed by President Johnson reinforced Title VII of the Civil Rights Act which banned discrimination of the basis of sex in federal hiring and government contracters
1971 Eisenstadt vs Baird. Baird was charged with distributing birth control to unmarried women and an appeal eventually reached the Supreme Court. Later cases used this ruling to recognise the right of single people to engage in sexual activity

Popular Culture

1926 The first national radio station NBC opened with an American football game
1930 Hays Code was started and would continue until 1966. Many studios began to build a morality code into their contracts for the stars who were basically owned by the companies
1950 Only 9% owned a television
1952 Eisenhower used the new television to push his political campaign
As broadcast news developed, they gained more prime time broadcasting and more people watched the news and then discussed it at home
1960 the Kennedy and Nixon debates were a demonstration of the new expectations on politicians. 70 million people tuned in
1980 98% owned a television