America's History, For the AP_ - James A. Henretta

Domestic and Global Challenges, 1890-1945

U.S. Foreign Policy Failures

  • Military intervention in foreign nations often led to worsening conditions rather than improvement.

  • Example: In Haiti, U.S. marines suppressed peasant revolts, aiding local elites in consolidating power.

  • Result: U.S. involvement established conditions that facilitated harsh dictatorships in Haiti lasting into the 20th century.

Cultural Conflicts in the 1920s

Urban Growth

  • By 1929, 93 U.S. cities had populations over 100,000.

  • New York: Population exceeded 7 million.

  • Los Angeles: Population soared to 1.2 million.

  • Urban lifestyles differed greatly from rural experiences, leading to significant cultural conflicts.

Prohibition Movement

  • Achieved national prohibition of alcohol with the Eighteenth Amendment in 1917 (ratified and enacted in January 1920).

    • Driven by rural, native-born Protestants; influenced by anti-German sentiment during WWI.

  • Urban areas saw widespread disregard for prohibition.

    • Speakeasies became popular, especially in cities like Chicago.

    • This led to significant profits for organized crime figures (e.g., Al Capone).

  • Many Americans traveled to Mexico for legal access to liquor and other vices.

Opposing Views on Prohibition

  • Prohibitionists viewed it as a moral and health victory.

  • Urban populations flaunted the law, reflecting a cultural divide.

Evolution and Education Controversies

  • Rise of fundamentalist Protestants led to attempts to enforce biblical creationism in schools.

  • 1925 Tennessee law prohibited the teaching of evolution; challenged by the ACLU in the Scopes trial.

  • Media coverage highlighted deeper cultural conflicts, notably described as "the monkey trial."

Nativism

  • A wave of anti-immigrant sentiment emerged, particularly against Southern and Eastern European immigrants.

  • Led to significant immigration restrictions via the National Origins Act of 1924, dramatically limiting desiring immigrants and favoring Western Hemisphere entrants.

  • Additional measures at the state level targeted Asian immigrants, exemplified by California laws restricting land ownership by "aliens ineligible to citizenship."

Resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK)

  • The KKK saw a national resurgence in the 1920s, fueled by societal unrest and racial tensions.

    • Glorified by the film "Birth of a Nation"; adopted a platform emphasizing white Protestant supremacy.

  • Targeted not only African Americans but also immigrants, Catholics, and Jews.

  • Membership peaked with over three million; KKK wielded political influence and engaged in violent tactics.

    • Cooperation with organizations like the Anti-Saloon League to enforce prohibition laws.

Presidential Election of 1928

  • Conflicts over race, religion, and ethnicity shaped the electoral climate.

  • Democrats nominated Al Smith, the first Catholic candidate, but faced significant opposition from rural Protestant voters.

  • Herbert Hoover won decisively, highlighting divisions within the American electorate.

The Harlem Renaissance

  • Post-WWI, a cultural movement flourished, fostering new forms of African American art and expression in Harlem:

    • Key figures included poets like Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston.

    • Jazz emerged as a significant musical form, largely credited to black musicians like Louis Armstrong.

  • The UNIA, led by Marcus Garvey, promoting black nationalism and economic independence, gained substantial traction in the 1920s.