Untitled Flashcards Set

Assembly Line & Scientific Management

The assembly line, developed by Henry Ford, and scientific management, introduced by Frederick Winslow Taylor, increased industrial efficiency and production but also led to worker exploitation and influenced the rise of consumer culture in the 1920s.

Consumer Economy & Credit

The 1920s consumer economy, fueled by advertising and credit purchases, boosted demand for household goods and automobiles but set the stage for the Great Depression due to rising debt and overconsumption.

The First Red Scare (1919-1920)

Fueled by fears of communism after the Bolshevik Revolution, the First Red Scare led to widespread anti-immigrant sentiment and government crackdowns like the Palmer Raids, highlighting postwar anxieties and xenophobia.

Palmer Raids

Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer authorized mass arrests of suspected radicals, reflecting the heightened fear of communism and contributing to the era's growing nativism and anti-immigrant sentiment.

Prohibition (18th Amendment & Volstead Act)

Prohibition, established by the 18th Amendment and enforced by the Volstead Act, aimed to reduce alcohol consumption but instead fueled organized crime and was ultimately repealed by the 21st Amendment.

Nativism & Immigration Restrictions

Driven by xenophobia, the Emergency Quota Act (1921) and National Origins Act (1924) imposed strict immigration limits targeting Southern and Eastern Europeans, reflecting the era's racial and cultural prejudices.

Sacco and Vanzetti Trial

The execution of Italian immigrants Sacco and Vanzetti for robbery and murder, despite questionable evidence, symbolized the era’s anti-immigrant sentiment and fear of radical political ideologies.

Harlem Renaissance

The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement where African American artists, like Langston Hughes and Duke Ellington, celebrated Black identity and creativity, influencing American culture and challenging racial stereotypes.

Scopes Trial (1925)

The Scopes Trial highlighted tensions between science and religion when teacher John Scopes was tried for teaching evolution, symbolizing the clash between modernism and fundamentalism in 1920s America.

Flappers

Flappers represented the new, liberated woman of the 1920s, defying traditional gender roles through fashion, behavior, and attitudes, reflecting broader societal changes toward modernism and women's independence.

The Great Migration

The movement of African Americans from the rural South to Northern cities during and after WWI reshaped urban demographics and fueled cultural movements like the Harlem Renaissance.

The Great Depression Causes

The Great Depression was caused by overproduction, uneven income distribution, stock market speculation, excessive credit use, and weak farm economies, exposing flaws in the 1920s economic boom.

Stock Market Crash of 1929

The 1929 stock market crash, marked by Black Tuesday, signaled the beginning of the Great Depression as rampant speculation, margin buying, and economic instability led to financial collapse.

Hoovervilles

Hoovervilles were shantytowns built by the unemployed during the Great Depression, symbolizing public resentment toward President Hoover’s inadequate response to economic hardship.

New Deal (FDR's 3 Rs)

Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal aimed to provide Relief for the unemployed, Recovery for the economy, and Reform of the financial system to prevent future depressions.

Social Security Act (1935)

The Social Security Act created a federal pension system for the elderly and unemployed, reflecting the New Deal’s focus on long-term economic security and government responsibility for citizens’ welfare.

National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)

The NIRA sought to stabilize industry by regulating wages and production but was declared unconstitutional in Schechter v. U.S., highlighting limits on federal economic intervention.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

The TVA, part of the New Deal, aimed to modernize the Tennessee Valley through dam construction and rural electrification, illustrating government-led regional development and economic recovery efforts.

Court Packing Plan

FDR’s 1937 Court Packing Plan aimed to add justices to the Supreme Court to secure support for New Deal legislation but faced backlash for threatening judicial independence.

Lend-Lease Act (1941)

The Lend-Lease Act allowed the U.S. to supply Allied nations with war materials during WWII, marking a shift from neutrality to active support against Axis powers.

Pearl Harbor Attack (1941)

Japan’s surprise attack on Pearl Harbor led to the U.S. entering WWII, ending isolationist sentiment and marking a pivotal moment in American foreign policy.

Executive Order 9066 & Japanese Internment

Executive Order 9066 authorized the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII, reflecting racial prejudice and wartime fear despite the lack of evidence of espionage.

D-Day (June 6, 1944)

The Allied invasion of Normandy on D-Day was a turning point in WWII, opening a Western front that led to the liberation of France and the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany.

Manhattan Project

The Manhattan Project was a top-secret U.S. initiative that developed the atomic bomb, ultimately leading to Japan’s surrender after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The United Nations (1945)

Founded after WWII, the United Nations aimed to promote international peace and cooperation, representing a shift toward global diplomacy and collective security.