Transcript Chapter 24
As "doughboys" left for France, Americans at home mobilized [mobilized: to organize people or resources for action, such as war]—organized the nation's resources—for war. Actors helped publicly- raised money and entertained troops Women went to work› Although the number of women in the workforce stayed about the same throughout the war, the number of occupations in which they worked rose sharply › typists, cashiers, salesclerks, and telephone operators. Women worked in plants, assembling explosives, electrical appliances, airplanes, and cars. Many took jobs in the iron and steel industry pacifist: a person who opposes all wars, usually on moral or religious grounds › Henry Ford’s Peace Ship › Some just opposed to all wars- U.S. set an example by staying out › Woman’s Peace Party: an organization, established by a group of pacifist women in 1915 in response to World War I beginning in Europe, that called for arms limitations and mediation to take the place of combat in Europe › conscientious objectors-someone who opposes war for religious or moral reasons and therefore refuses to serve in the armed forces. Didn’t serve= go to jail The Government Uses Propaganda to "Sell" the War › Committee on Public Information: a government agency created by President Woodrow Wilson in 1917, during World War I, to promote prowar propaganda to the American public] (CPI). hired reporters, artists, movie directors, writers, and historians to create a massive propaganda campaign Movies, posters, books, leaflets- in different languages Four-Minute Men- made 4 minute speeches(written by CPI) in favor of the war Patriotic Fervor Sweeps the Country › loyalty parades families waved flags and wore patriotic costumes. Marchers shouted slogans like "Keep the flag flying" and "Down with the Kaiser." › Conserved Materials › anti-German hysteria Employers in war industries fired German American workers Can’t play German music, read German books, or teach German in schools sauerkraut became "liberty cabbage" and liverwurst, "liberty sausage Americans Buy Liberty Bonds to Fund the War › World War I cost the United States about $35.5 billion. About one fourth of that cost came from taxes, which increased drastically during the war. October 1917, Congress passed the War Revenue Act, It also reduced the level of taxable income to $1,000. As a result, the number of Americans paying income tax increased from 437,000 in 1916 to 4.4 million in 1918. › The government raised the rest of the money through the sale of bonds bond: a certificate issued by a government or company that promises to pay back borrowed money at a fixed rate of interest on a specific date Liberty Bond: a government-issued bond sold during World War I to raise money for the Allied war effort New Government Agencies Organize Industry for War › July 1917, War Industries Board (WIB) created to direct industrial production › had the authority to tell factories what goods to produce and how much to make. › Less material in clothes= shorter skirts, need for metal= no corsets › worked to ensure the cooperation of unions in the war effort Food and Fuel Help Win the War › Food Administration set up to oversee production and distribution of food and fuel Lead by Herbert Hoover raised crop prices to encourage farmers to produce more food and began a campaign that urged Americans to conserve food and reduce waste. Slogan:"Food will win the war” Meatless Mondays and Wheatless Wednesdays “Victory Gardens” “heatless Mondays." "gasless Sundays“ Daylights savings time introduced World safe for democracy- but U.S. still segregated Support or Not Support? Employers in northern cities desperately needed workers › Great Migration: beginning during World War I, the mass movement of millions of African Americans from the rural South to cities in the North and Midwest in order to take jobs in industry. Immigrants Face Forced "Americanization“ › Most immigrants, like most Americans, supported the war. › Nevertheless, rumors of enemy agents sparked anti-immigrant sentiments › American Protective League- self-appointed patriot group › Intolerance also led to attacks on German Americans The Government Cracks Down on Dissent › Fear of espionage: the use of spying to gather information Espionage Act: a law passed by Congress in 1917 to make it illegal to spy, interfere with government foreign policy, or resist the military draft. also gave the postmaster general broad powers to refuse mail delivery of any materials that might encourage disloyalty. Sedition Act: a law passed by Congress in 1918 to make it illegal to say anything disloyal, profane, or abusive about the government or the war effort Hundreds of people were arrested for offenses such as criticizing the draft or wartime taxes. Socialists and Wobblies Speak Out Against the War › Wobblies: a nickname for members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), an anticapitalist labor organization founded in 1905 Many arrested, and a few even lynched › In all, the government arrested and tried more than 1,500 people under the Espionage and Sedition acts. Approximately 1,000 were convicted › Supreme Court Holds it constitutional in Schenck vs United States: the 1919 Supreme Court case that declared that Charles Schenck's propaganda efforts against the military draft were illegal under the Espionage Act of 1918 and were not protected by his First Amendment right to freedom of speech