UNIT 1: U.S. BECOMES AN INDUSTRIAL SOCIETY (1877 – 1900)
WHAT FACTORS IN AMERICA LED TO THE RISE OF BIG BUSINESS DURING THE GILDED AGE?
The Gilded Age (1877- 1890s): During this period, America went through dramatic changes in a large variety of ways. Population rose dramatically with the addition of many new types of immigrants that America had not seen previously. The 2nd Industrial Revolution (steel, oil, electricity), led by several key entrepreneurs increased America’s economic strength. Businesses and factories began to grow larger, and used a variety of tactics and strategies to reduce competition. Cities became unsanitary, dangerous, and overcrowded. Although America’s economy seemed to be doing well, the wealth it produced was not evenly distributed, thus creating a large population of poor Americans who faced dangerous working conditions in factories. Poor wages and working conditions would lead to the development of America’s first labor unions. The “Gilded Age”, as a term for this period, comes from the title of a book written by Mark Twain which discussed another major feature of this time period: political corruption. The Gilded Age was a time when wealthy entrepreneurs built lavish homes such as the Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina, constructed by the Vanderbilt family. Signs of wealth such as this have become associated with the Gilded Age, but this period was also characterized by some very influential ideas.
Social Idea / Individualism: Individualism was a powerful cultural force, reinforced in the imagination of Americans through the novels of Horatio Alger. The typical theme in his works was simply that any person could do well and prosper in America, regardless of obstacles, through hard work and opportunity. This “rags to riches” theme has become a part of America’s view of itself.
Social Idea / Social Darwinism: At the same time, the idea of “Social Darwinism” was gaining just as much influence. In 1859, the biologist Charles Darwin wrote his famous book entitled “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection”. In this work, Darwin proposed that animal and plant life as we know it evolved over a long period of time as a result of genetically superior beings continuing to reproduce while genetically inferior beings simply died out. Herbert Spencer, a British philosopher, took Darwin’s ideas about animals/plants and applied them to human society, arguing that society progressed when the fittest people survived through competition and natural selection. Spencer’s phrase, “survival of the fittest”, captures the main idea of Social Darwinism. Business leaders and entrepreneurs embraced these ideas and wished to see them applied to economic life in America. As a result, business came to believe that the government should not interfere in the economy, and that the best businesses should survive through competition, without government regulation.
Economic Idea / Laissez Faire Economics: Many Americans in the Gilded Age embraced the idea of “Laissez-Faire”, a French expression that means “allow things to be done”, without restrictions. The core of this idea is that government’s proper role simply is to maintain the legal system and protect property rights. The laissez-faire attitude of state and federal governments kept taxes and spending low by not imposing regulations on industry, an attitude encouraged by business under the influence of Social Darwinism. Implied in this idea is that government should have no role in regulating business activity. Supporters of Laissez-Faire prefer to let the forces of supply and demand determine economic activities, allowing buyers and sellers to meet freely in the market place, thus allowing prices and products to be determined by the free choices of equals in the marketplace.
Reasons Behind American Productivity: The rise of America as an industrial power can be attributed to at least three major factors: (1) the laissez-faire attitude in the United States led to a wave of entrepreneurs risking their talents and money to start businesses; (2) the vast natural resources available in the United States meant that companies had easy access to the materials needed to support a large variety of industries without importing materials; (3) the huge workforce of the United States, aided by large families and immigration, tripled between 1860 and 1910, providing industry with access to labor. By the early 1900s, American industries were larger and highly competitive, leading owners to encourage free trade and discourage high tariffs.
Reducing Competition / The Tactics of “Big Business”: The goal of any business is to create profits for the entrepreneur or for stockholders. Businesses during the Gilded Age used a variety of tactics to increase profits. One important tactic was to create an “economy of scale”. If a business can purchase its necessary supplies in bulk (reducing their cost), simplify the jobs needed to produce goods (specialization), build large production facilities with efficient technologies (volume), and promote their goods to a large number of people efficiently (marketing), then that business has created an economy of scale. The benefit of an economy of scale is that the business can produce goods quicker and cheaper, allowing that business to operate in poor economic times by cutting prices to increase sales. Many small businesses with higher operating costs were forced out of business. A second tactic used by business was meant to address the fact that, although competition caused lower prices for consumers, it also cut business profits. To stop prices from falling, companies which produced similar products would organize Pools to keep prices at a certain level, informally agreeing with each other not to cut prices too low, thus allowing each business to make a profit. A third tactic, used by Andrew Carnegie, was called Vertical Integration. A vertically integrated company owns all the different businesses it depends on for its operation. This tactic not only saved money but also made the big company bigger. A fourth tactic, known as Horizontal Integration, involved combining many firms doing the same type of business into one large corporation. By purchasing competing companies, a business would reduce competition, thus increasing profits. Because Americans have always been suspicious of a Monopoly (one business being the only producer of a product), Holding Companies (also known as Trusts) were formed to avoid the appearance of a monopoly in certain industries. This fifth tactic involved creating a company called a “holding company” which did not produce anything itself. A holding company’s only job is to manage other businesses. If a holding company manages only businesses that produce only one type of product, then it can ensure that the price for the product is set at a profitable level, without legally being a monopoly. All of these tactics would be used in one way or another by the leading entrepreneurs and Industrialists of the Gilded Age.
Robber Barons or Captains of Industry?: The power of industrialists to have an impact on American society eventually gave rise to two important terms that would be used on them. The “Robber Baron” was an industrialist who engaged in business practices that attempted to reduce economic competition to the benefit of that industrialist, and without giving any consideration to the greater society. The “Captain of Industry” was a successful industrialist who contributed to society by creating new markets, developing new markets, providing jobs, and most importantly, enriched society through acts of philanthropy. Many of the industrialists of the Gilded Age clearly fit into the Robber Baron mold, such as Jay Gould, while men like Andrew Carnegie seem to come much closer to the idea of Captain of Industry.
Cornelius Vanderbilt and Railroads: In the 1830s and 1840s, Cornelius Vanderbilt built his first fortune operating a highly profitable steamship service in New York. He soon turned his business skills to railroads, eventually creating the profitable New York Central and Hudson River Railroad as well as building the first Grand Central Station in New York City. Although he amassed a great deal of wealth, Vanderbilt never shared his wealth with society in any meaningful way. Fortunately, this would not be the case with other entrepreneurs of the period.
Andrew Carnegie and Steel: In 1855, an inventor named Henry Bessemer created a new process for producing extremely strong steel with far less labor and far less expense. The “Bessemer Process” would allow Andrew Carnegie to create a company in Pittsburg that would become known as US Steel, a company that became the largest and most profitable steel company in the world, and that would make Carnegie the 2nd richest man in history. Unlike Vanderbilt, Carnegie took great interest in sharing his wealth with society, and becoming America’s first major philanthropist. Carnegie donated vast amounts of money to education and the arts, channeling it through foundations such as the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is also responsible for the founding of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.
J.P. Morgan: A banker by trade, J.P. Morgan became a significant force in American life, not only by helping to create some of America’s most profitable businesses, but also by advising the Federal Government through difficult economic times and enriching society through his philanthropy. Morgan arranged the creation of General Electric, and purchased US Steel from Andrew Carnegie, improving that business’s profitability. Morgan is also responsible for establishing two of America’s greatest art museums, the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art (New York City) and the Wadsworth Atheneum (CT). He was also a major benefactor of several universities, including Harvard University and Trinity College.
John D. Rockefeller and Standard Oil: Edwin Drake is credited with developing a new process for drilling into the ground to extract oil. Although Drake would make money in this industry, he would not approach the success of John D. Rockefeller, founder of the Standard Oil Company. Rockefeller relied on Horizontal Integration and railroad rebates to create a company that had a virtual monopoly on oil production in the United States. Being a religious man, Rockefeller believed he had an obligation to share his wealth, becoming the most important modern philanthropist in American history. He gave vast amounts of money to medical research that eventually eliminated hookworm and yellow fever. As well, he founded the University of Chicago and Rockefeller University. Much of his money was channeled through church organizations.
George Westinghouse and Electricity: This entrepreneur and engineer was a pioneer in the new industry of electricity. As the founder of the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, this man’s work was responsible for the establishment of the modern electrical system in America, alternating current (AC). The impact of electricity being delivered to homes would lead to the development of a vast array of products that would transform American life.
HOW DID INDUSTRIAL WORKERS RESPOND TO THE HORRIBLE WORKING CONDITIONS OF THE GILDED AGE?
Working Conditions during the Gilded Age: Although people who owned or invested in businesses were becoming quite wealthy, workers in factories did not enjoy much wealth, safety at work, or protection from economic troubles. Because the idea of laissez-faire was so powerful during this period, governments placed few if any restrictions on business owners. And because entrepreneurs wished to make as much profit as possible, the wages, working conditions, and happiness of workers was not a major concern. Many Americans worked in what has come to be called “sweat shops”, places of employment that featured low pay, long hours, dangerous working conditions, exposure to hazardous materials, temperature extremes, and no way to address these problems. Workers who were injured while working could expect no help or sympathy from employers.
Business Tactics Against Unions: Companies used several techniques to discourage the formation of unions, including: (1) requiring contracts, called a “yellow dog contract”, in which workers promised not to join a union; (2) hiring spies to locate people trying to organize unions; (3) firing workers who engaged in union activities; (4) placing the names of suspected union men on a “blacklist” that was shared with other employers so that nobody would hire them; (5) enforcing a “lockout”, preventing workers from coming to work; (6) hiring “strikebreakers” (also called “scabs”), replacement workers for union members who refused to work until the company paid higher wages.
Early Unions: As early as the 1830s, men who had specific skills needed by employers, craft workers, began to form trade unions. By the early 1870s, there were approximately 32 trade unions in existence. The purpose of a trade union is to unite all of the workers in a specific trade in order to negotiate better wages, benefits, and working conditions. Employers had to deal with the unions because they needed these skilled workers to make their businesses work. However, companies did not like unions because paying higher wages and providing safe working conditions cost them more money, thus reducing the profits of the company. They also believed that unions interfered with their rights to use their own property as they wished.
The Knights of Labor: The most important labor union in the late 1800s was the Knights of Labor, a union that represented both skilled and unskilled workers and advocated: (1) an end to child labor; (2) equal pay for women; (3) progressive income tax; (4) worker ownership of mines and factories; (5) an 8-hour workday; (6) arbitration as a way to settle employer-employee disputes. Arbitration is a process in which a third person listens to both employee and employer sides of a dispute, in an attempt to find a fair solution.
American Federation of Labor (AFL): Founded in 1886 by Samuel Gompers, this next union set out to represent the interests of skilled workers. The AFLs goals were to (1) convince companies to accept “collective bargaining” as a legitimate business practice; (2) get companies to agree to having a “closed shop” (union-only workers); (3) gain an 8-hour work day. Gompers did not want unions to become involved in politics or seek political goals. He simply wanted to address the needs of workers and preferred negotiation with employers rather than confrontation.
Industrial Workers of the World (IWW): Nicknamed the “wobblies”, the IWW was a socialist union founded in 1905 that wanted to achieve very different goals than the AFL. It represented unskilled workers and wanted to unite all workers in one nationwide union. It believed in using strikes to achieve its goals and was quite hostile to those who owned companies. Among its founders was Eugene V. Debs, a prominent American socialist who would go on to shape American labor politics into the early 1920s. Its radical ideas and willingness to use strikes led to its decline.
Unions Connected to Socialism?: Early unions were unsuccessful because there were no laws in place to protect their rights to negotiate. As well, the socialist ideas of the German thinker Karl Marx, suggesting that wealth should be more evenly distributed, and that the government should seize all private property, were becoming popular among some American union supporters. These ideas were considered un-American. Since many of the new immigrant factory workers, who came from Eastern Europe, were also in favor of unions, many Americans came to associate Karl Marx and socialism with immigrants. As a result, many Americans became suspicious of the goals labor unions had set. The struggle for union rights led to many violent conflicts during the late 1800s and early 1900s.
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR CONFLICTS BETWEEN WORKERS AND OWNERS?
Great Railroad Strike (1877): The “Panic of 1873” put the United States into a major recession, causing many companies to cut wages nationwide. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad cut wages for its workers beginning in 1874, and, for the third time, cut wages yet again in 1877. Workers in West Virginia went on strike and blocked tracks as a tactic to gain wage gains from the railroad. These workers were joined by 80,000 railroad workers nationwide, creating a general strike in the rail industry. President Hayes called this action on the part of the railroad workers an “insurrection” (threat to the government and order), leading him to order Federal troops to end the strike. These troops were joined by local and state militias in a variety of places. The resulting conflicts left over 100 men dead. This experience of labor-business conflict demonstrated clearly to many Americans the need for peaceful ways to resolve workplace disputes, particularly in vital areas of the economy.
The Haymarket Riot (1886): Although the Knights had some success, this union ultimately failed because of the effects of the Haymarket Riot. The Knights organized a protest in favor of an 8-hour workday, leading 80,000 protestors through the streets of Chicago. Over the next few days, over 70,000 workers went on strike. When violence broke out on a picket line in front of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, police attempts to break it up left 4 men dead. In response, a radical group organized a protest in Chicago’s Haymarket Square, featuring several speakers, and attended by over 3000 people. As the protest was breaking up, police were in the area to ensure order, however one person threw a bomb that ultimately killed a police officer. Police immediately opened fire on the crowd which in turn began to shoot back, leaving 100 injured. Among the men arrested for the bombing were 7 German immigrants and one member of the Knights of Labor. Americans were outraged by the Haymarket Riot and came to associate labor union goals with immigrants and radical politics. The connection to the Knights of Labor quickly led to its decline as a labor union force.
The Homestead Strike (1892): Henry Clay Frick managed a steel mill owned by Andrew Carnegie in Homestead, PA and intended to cut the wages of his employees by 20% when his current contract with the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel, and Tin Workers expired. When the union failed to accept the new contract proposal, Frick went on to lock-out the employees, hired replacement workers (scabs), and hired the Pinkerton National Detective Agency (private security force) to escort the replacement workers to the mill. Violence broke out as the scabs approached the mill on a barge, leaving several strikers and Pinkerton men dead. Pennsylvania’s governor ordered the local militia to protect the scabs, and after four months, the workers ultimately failed. Frick and Carnegie’s union-busting tactics successfully kept unions out of the steel industry for three decades.
The Pullman Strike (1893): George Pullman had created the Pullman Palace Car Company, a business that constructed rail cars. In order to support his company, Pullman created a “company town” in which workers lived, paid rent, and were obliged to buy their food and personal items at Pullman’s stores. When Pullman laid off workers and cut wages, the American Railway Union (ARU), founded by Eugene V. Debs, attempted to negotiate complaints with Pullman, who refused. Since the ARU had unionized workers across the railway industry, Debs encouraged rail workers across the country to boycott Pullman railcars, refusing to service them. The boycott tied up rail traffic and threatened the economy in general. In order to prevent this from happening, railway managers attached U.S. Mail cars to the Pullman cars, knowing that interruption of the U.S. Mail was a federal offense that would force workers to service Pullman cars. In order to support this effort, President Rutherford B. Hayes ordered federal troops to ensure the flow of the mail. Further, a federal court ordered an injunction (court order) demanding that the union halt its boycott of Pullman cars. When the Supreme Court determined that the injunction was constitutional, business gained more power to deal with labor unrest in future situations.
HOW DID THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ATTEMPT TO DEAL WITH THE POWER OF BIG BUSINESS?
Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890): The growing power of Big Business in America to reduce competition and raise prices for consumers led many to pressure Congress for legislation that could address these problems. The purpose of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act was to preserve the efficiency of Big Business while at the same time preventing Big Business from hurting consumers through non-competitive business practices that would result in price increases. The rise of trusts (companies formed to manage other companies that make products), designed to avoid the appearance of horizontal integration, became a threat to the public interest by reducing competition. This law attempts to make destructive, monopolizing trusts illegal. This law had little practical effect, but established America’s concern with the power of Big Business to harm Americans by limiting competition, and then raising prices. Progressives and Farmers favored this law.
United States v. E.C. Knight (1895): Intended to reduce the power of trusts and holding companies, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act never achieved its goal as the Supreme Court interpreted its intent in a way that left Congress with little ability to control the power of business. The roots of U.S. v. E.C. Knight trace back to the American Sugar Company which purchased stock in three other competitors, giving it effective control of 98% of America’s sugar market. The U.S. sued the company under the provisions of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. At this time, Americans were becoming wary of the tremendous power a few large companies were gaining through vertical and horizontal integration. To get around Sherman, many large companies formed Trusts (companies that controlled other companies, rather than producing a product of their own). The U.S. sued the American Sugar Company, posing this question to the Supreme Court: did the American Sugar Company’s purchase of three other competitors create a monopoly that violated the terms of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act? The Court determined that, although American Sugar controlled 98% of the manufacture of sugar, it did not have a monopoly over the direct sale of its product to the public. As a result, the American Sugar Company did not violate the terms of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. As well, the federal government does not have the power to break up this company, even under the interstate commerce clause. This decision gutted the intent of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act since the Court created a distinction between the manufacture of a product and its direct sale to the public, thus creating a new part of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, something Congress did not intend. As a result, the concentration of economic power in the hands of a few large corporations accelerated through the formation of trusts and holding companies.
HOW DID AMERICANS REACT TO THE NEW WAVE OF IMMIGRATION DURING THE GILDED AGE?
The “New Immigration”: From its beginning, America has been a nation of immigrants, composed of people who left Europe for economic, social, or religious reasons. Prior to the Civil War, immigrants to America primarily came from Northern and Western Europe. This “old” immigration pattern would change dramatically. America added 25 million people to its population between 1865 and 1914, but by the late 1890s, more than half of all new arrivals came form eastern and southern Europe, many of them Jewish. This “new” immigration included people from Serbia, Russia, Austria-Hungary, Greece, and Italy.
Europeans Arrive at Ellis Island: By the late 1800s, most European states made it easy to move to America. Here, immigrants could find employment, avoid military service, find religious freedom, and move up the social ladder. Most immigrants settled in cities, living in neighborhoods that were separated into ethnic groups. European immigrants usually arrived at Ellis Island where doctors would screen the new arrivals for health conditions, sending an unlucky few back to Europe if found to be suffering from some ailment.
Asians Arrive at Angel Island: Asian nations such as China and Japan also contributed to the new immigration. Asian immigrants were drawn to America because of severe unemployment, poverty, political turmoil, and famine in their home countries. Angel Island, in San Francisco Bay, processed the new Asian immigrants who may have waited months before learning whether they could remain.
The Return of Nativism: Just as the Irish had in the 1840s and 1850s, many of the new immigrants faced hostility from native-born Americans. This new wave of immigration brought different languages, political ideas, and religions to America’s shores, causing the overwhelmingly white and Protestant American population to feel threatened. Because many of the new arrivals were unskilled, Americans worried that they would be willing to work for cheaper wages, thus driving down wages for everyone. Another significant concern of Americans at the time was the fact that many of the Irish, Polish and Italian immigrants were Roman Catholic. Many Protestants believed that Catholics in the United States would be more loyal to the Pope (religious leader of Catholics worldwide) than they would be to the United States. As a result, many anti-Catholic nativist groups formed to limit the influence of Catholics. Henry Bowers formed just such an organization called the American Protective Association which encouraged Americans to deny employment or votes to Catholics. As a result, only the lowest-paying and most dangerous jobs available could be taken by many Catholics. Nativism also affected Asians as Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882). Originally intended to suspend Chinese immigration for 10 years and deny citizenship, Congress continued to enforce this law until 1943. As well, the San Francisco Board of Education segregated public education, forcing Chinese, Japanese, and Korean children to attend separate schools. Japan felt insulted by this action and pressured President Theodore Roosevelt to reverse San Francisco’s decision in exchange for Japan restricting the number of its emigrants to the United States.
WHAT NEW URBAN PROBLEMS AROSE AND HOW DID AMERICANS RESPOND?
Living Conditions in Cities: The working poor in America’s cities during the Gilded Age lived in horrible conditions. Attention would soon be drawn to these deplorable conditions by a journalist and photographer named Jacob Riis. Working as a police reporter in the 1870s and 1880s brought Riis into the worst neighborhoods of New York City, leaving him shocked at the squalor many people lived in. Armed with his camera, Riis began to document these terrible conditions, finally gathering all of his photos and stories into a book called “How the Other Half Lives” (1890). As a result of this book, New York City began to work toward changing housing laws that would improve living conditions for the poor. Because he had stirred up a lot of “trouble” through his book, Theodore Roosevelt, a friend of Riis’, would give him an important nickname: “muckraker”. The term muckraker is now a common term in the United States for any person who draws attention to social problems that many government leaders would rather ignore.
Dumbbell Tenements: With industrialization, immigration, and urbanization, moving at a rapid pace, cities found that housing their fast-growing populations was becoming a serious problem. In New York City, a law demanded that new structures be built on lots (parcel of land) that measured 25’ by 100’, and that each room have a window. In order to create housing that could meet these demands, and to ensure that landlords could make a profit from building structures, a competition was held for the best design. This competition was won by James Ware whose building design was called a “Dumbbell Tenement”. These buildings were 6 stories high, and shaped in such a way as to look like a dumbbell if viewed from overhead. The shape allowed for a window in each room and a ventilation shaft between the closely built structures. These buildings could pack 300 people into 84 rooms. Although profitable, these structures produced terrible living conditions as residents simply dumped garbage out of their windows, down the shaft, leaving it to rot for weeks or months without removing it. Further, there were too few “water closets” and no effective way to dispose of their “contents”. As a result, the smell surrounding dumbbell tenements became unbearable, and produced dangerous health conditions.
Gospel of Wealth (1889): Although Carnegie was a friend of Herbert Spencer, and accepted the ideas of Social Darwinism, he nevertheless believed in helping the less fortunate, which Spencer was against. So deep was his interest in helping others that Carnegie asked other rich industrialists to accept his idea of the “Gospel of Wealth”. The purpose of this idea was to encourage other rich industrialists to engage in philanthropy (donation of private money to social causes and projects). Although Carnegie believed in Social Darwinism (only fittest in society should survive) and Laissez-Faire economics (no government regulation of business), he also believed that the rich owed something to society in return for their good fortune. Carnegie recognized that Social Darwinism , Laissez-Faire economics, and industrialization could lead to significant and negative social consequences. Although he believed these three factors ultimately worked for the common good of all in the long run, he also wanted to soften the impact of these powerful societal forces.
The Urban Poor, Jane Addams, and Settlement Houses: Immigrants naturally flooded into cities in search of employment, moving into neighborhoods dominated by others from their same countries. They joined native-born Americans in these same cities who were either working class or poverty stricken. In an age of Social Darwinism, few took notice of the growing poverty and social problems in cities. This would change in America as a result of Jane Addams, the founder of the first settlement house in the United States. A settlement house had several purposes: (1) provide social and educational opportunities to the poor; (2) provide basic training in practical skills such as sewing; (3) assist new immigrants adjusting to American life; (4) advocate for immigrant rights; (5) encourage laws against child labor; (6) encourage laws for improved worker safety. Hull House in Chicago, the settlement house founded by Addams, is the most famous, and is credited with being the inspiration for social welfare work in the United States.
More Help for the Urban Poor: Other reformers looked to assist America’s growing urban poor population. The “Social Gospel” was a movement of individuals inspired by the Bible to alleviate the suffering found in cities. Other faith-based groups emerged to assist in this effort including the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), founded by preacher Dwight L. Moody, and the Salvation Army. It is also during the Gilded Age that modern public education began. The need to have educated trained workers for factories and other businesses caused a dramatic rise in public education. Education was also used as a way to teach the language and culture of America to its many new immigrants. This goal came to be called “Americanization”.
The Upside: Not all was doom and gloom for city dwellers during the Gilded Age. Americans with sufficient wealth and leisure time would benefit from several new inventions and several new forms of entertainment. The productivity and inventiveness that came with the rise of industry changed the way Americans lived.
New Technologies: Among the many new inventions and technologies of the Gilded Age were: (1) the typewriter, invented by Christopher Soles, and manufactured by the Remington Company, appearing in 1873; (2) the telephone, invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876; (3) the phonograph, invented by Thomas Edison in 1877; (4) the carbon filament light bulb, invented by Lewis Latimer in 1883; (5) the dishwasher, invented by Josephine Cochrane in 1886; (6) the first portable camera, invented by George Eastman (Kodak), invented in 1888; (7) the gasoline-powered automobile, invented by the Duryea brothers in 1893; (8) the first powered airplane, developed by Wilbur and Orville Wright in 1903. As the years passed, many of these new technological innovations would see dramatic improvements and become the basis of highly successful American industries.
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR POLITICAL ISSUES OF THE GILDED AGE?
The Political Machine and City Governments: The modernization of America during the Gilded Age posed challenges to government at all levels. The rapid growth of cities resulted in an increase in crime, fire, disease, and pollution. Contaminated water from improper sewage disposal resulted in epidemics of typhoid fever and cholera. New city residents needed jobs, police protection, services, and housing. City governments at the time were not yet prepared to deal with these problems. It is at this time that a new approach to city politics would appear. The “political machine” was an informal organization that would take control of many city governments. Many of the “party bosses” of political machines did manage to solve many city problems, but they did so in corrupt ways. Casting a vote during this period was not a secret affair; your name could be found on a register along with the person for whom you voted. This lack of secrecy meant that a successful candidate could identify his supporters and reward them in a variety of ways, including with city jobs and contracts. Bosses also had control of a city’s financial affairs and plans, therefore allowing him privileged information that could bring him benefits. For example, if a Boss knew that the City intended to build a train station on a piece of land, he could purchase that land from the current owner and then resell it to the City for a considerable profit. When the City needed to hire contractors to construct a building or to create roads, the Boss could easily demand a bribe in exchange for awarding a contract. This widespread “graft” – getting money through dishonest means – made many Bosses extremely wealthy.
Boss Tweed and Tamany Hall: New York City was the home of 2 famous examples of Party Bosses. George Plunkitt was one Boss who made a great deal of money while in power, calling his activities “honest graft”. The most infamous however was William “Boss” Tweed, the boss of the Democratic Party Machine in New York City during the 1850s and 1860s. Tammany Hall, as the machine was called, made Boss Tweed exceedingly wealthy as he managed to steal between 75 and 200 million dollars through rigged contracts and kickbacks. His downfall came in the early 1870s after a series of political cartoons created by Thomas Nast drew the attention of many New Yorkers. Nast’s work drew attention to the fact that Tweed was embezzling money from the City. Although much corruption came about as a result of political machines, they did manage to improve living conditions in cities, and also helped to settle and assimilate many new immigrants into American life, especially the Irish.
The Whiskey Ring: America came to learn of a massive scandal in 1875 when Treasury agents conducted a series of raids against liquor distillers. As a result of these raids, Americans came to learn that tax revenues had been stolen in a conspiracy between Republican politicians, government agents, and the distillers themselves. The frustration of Americans with this and other scandals led to a growing mood of reform in national politics.
Modernization Stresses the Civil Service System: Andrew Jackson, first elected in 1828, rewarded his political supporters with government jobs and other benefits. This approach to politics came to be known as the “spoils system” and remained in place for 60 years. By the 1870s however, Americans came to believe that the spoils system was corrupting national government and making it inefficient. President Rutherford B. Hayes (R) was elected in 1876 and believed that national politics needed to be reformed. His attempt to fire people who had gained their jobs through political connections caused a split in the Republican Party between “Stalwarts” (supporters of the spoils system) and “Half-Breeds” (reformers). This split in the party meant that reforms would not occur during his presidency. When the 1880 election came around, the Republicans nominated James A. Garfield, a Half-Breed, who ultimately won the election. Soon after, President Garfield was assassinated by a job-seeking Stalwart, believing that Vice President Chester A. Arthur, also a Stalwart, might give him a job. This series of events led most Americans to demand an end to the spoils system, leading to the passage of the Pendleton Civil Service Act 1883.
Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883) and the Modern Civil Service System: The purposes of this new federal law were to reform the civil service, reduce its corruption and to make civil service more efficient in an increasingly modernizing America. This new law forced civil service job-seekers to take and pass an exam in order to qualify for federal government jobs. Once appointed, civil servants could not be fired for political reasons. As well, this new law reflected public dissatisfaction with the Jacksonian “spoils” approach to staffing the civil service, and made the federal civil service more professional. When Grover Cleveland gained the presidency in 1884, the first Democratic president since 1856, he was flooded with requests from Democratic supporters for jobs. He gained election with the support of angry Republicans, nicknamed “Mugwumps”, who disliked their own party’s nominee, and favored the goals of the Pendleton Act. President Cleveland’s refusal to deal with the issue effectively meant that the goals of the Pendleton Act would have time to be achieved, thus resulting in the establishment of the modern civil service as we know it.
The Secret Ballot (Australian Ballot): Grover Cleveland would resurface in national politics again, recapturing the presidency in 1892. This election was highly significant as it marked another major reform in American politics. This was the first national election in which a president was chosen based entirely on secret votes. Until this time, voting was frequently a public act, a fact that could lead to much corruption in a variety of ways. The “Australian Ballot”, as secret voting is often called, has many advantages that previous forms of voting lacked: (a) all candidates’ names would appear on ballots; (b) locations for voting were official; (c) voters’ identities on the ballots would not be revealed. These changes allowed Americans to vote with a free conscience.
UNIT 2: THE U.S. ENTERS WORLD AFFAIRS (1890 – 1914)
WHY DID AMERICA BECOME A WORLD POWER?
Reasons for European Expansion Overseas (New Imperialism): For several economic reasons, European nations began to expand their influence overseas. Just as in America, European nations had experienced industrialization at a rapid rate. The resulting growth in factories required access to raw materials for the products they produced, and many of these nations lacked the necessary resources. As a result, European nations looked elsewhere for these materials, primarily in Africa and Asia. Since most European nations wished to increase the profitability of their home industries, they began to enforce high tariffs against products from other industrial countries. These tariffs reduced the number of markets for products, causing European nations to look for markets elsewhere. The reduced investment opportunities at home, and the saturation of existing industrial enterprises at home, led many countries to look elsewhere to build their economies.
Imperialism, Colonies, and Protectorates: As European nations began to invest capital in Africa and Asia, these countries also began to exercise control over African and Asian countries in order to protect investments. The control of another smaller nation’s political and economic life by a larger more powerful nation is called Imperialism. Some areas became colonies of the larger nation, while other areas became protectorates. In a protectorate, the imperial power allowed the local rulers to stay in control and protected them both against revolts from within their country, and from invasion from other countries. In exchange for this protection, the local rulers had to follow advice from Europeans on how to govern.
Social Darwinism Spurs American Expansion Overseas: With the settlement of the West relatively complete, and with European nations expanding their influence around the world, many Americans wanted to find new markets of its own to ensure its place in the worldwide economy. Many Americans used the ideas of Social Darwinism - that the strongest nations would survive - to defend overseas expansion, arguing that political, economic, and military competition would determine the strongest nations.
Anglo-Saxonism Spurs American Expansion Overseas: Some Americans, along with many Britons, took these ideas of Social Darwinism even further. The American historian John Fiske argued that English-speaking nations had superior character and systems of government, and were therefore destined to control other nations. This idea became known as Anglo-Saxonism. Another advocate of Anglo-Saxonism was Josiah Strong, an American minister and missionary who linked this idea to Manifest Destiny, arguing that America had succeeded in spreading its culture within the territory of the United States and should therefore take this culture and civilization to other parts of the world. The popularity of Anglo-Saxonism is reflected in the work of English poet Rudyard Kipling. In his poem, “The White Man’s Burden”, Kipling seemed to take the position that white civilization had an obligation to take its superior civilization to other people’s around the world, for their own benefit.
America Builds a Navy: As pressure to spread American economic influence overseas grew, a pressure strengthened by the idea of Anglo-Saxonism, three diplomatic incidents that almost led America into war caused the American government to make plans for an expanded Navy: (1) conflict over Germany’s attempt to take over Samoa in the South Pacific; (2) attack of American sailors in Valparaiso, Chile; (3) support of Venezuela in a border dispute with Great Britain. The central concern behind the drive to build up the Navy was the thought that America would be shut out of worldwide markets by European nations.
Cpt. Alfred T. Mahan Spurs the Navy’s Growth: An officer in the U.S. Navy, Captain Alfred T. Mahan, argued that America needed a bolstered Navy to protect its commercial shipping, to secure its access to markets, and should establish bases worldwide to protect its economic interests. He drew his arguments from “The Influence of Sea Power upon History” a book he had written which examined how a strong navy had assisted many nations as they grew in influence. Mahan’s book persuaded average Americans and Congressional leaders, leading Congress to authorize the construction of a large modern Navy.
The Great White Fleet (1907 - 09): This new nickname for the United States Navy came about as a result of President Theodore Roosevelt’s desire to demonstrate to the rest of the world the increasing power of America’s blue-water navy capabilities. Four squadrons of four battleships each, including escorts, were ordered to circumnavigate the globe, a feat that took less than 15 months. The fleet was greeted with wild excitement in ports throughout the world, and dramatically expanded respect for the United States worldwide.
HOW DID AMERICA BUILD ITS TEMPORARY EMPIRE?
Seward’s Folly – Alaska Purchase: The territory of Alaska, located in the northeastern portion of North America, was owned by the Russians who, at the time, was experiencing a difficult financial period. Britain had controlled all of the territory bordering Alaska, and the Russians feared that a British invasion would result in a loss of Alaska to the British without any financial compensation. As a result, Russian Emperor Alexander II ordered that his Minister to the United States (a diplomat) enter into negotiations with the U.S. to arrange a sale. The Russians negotiated with Secretary of State William Seward, a man who favored American expansion, and who also saw a strategic advantage to the purchase. First, he wished to “reward” an ally, Russia, which had supported the Union during the Civil War. Second, Seward wanted to make Britain nervous about American intentions, a way of “punishing” Britain for its hostility to the Union during the Civil War. Perhaps Seward’s role as Secretary of State in the Lincoln administration influenced his intentions. Nevertheless, Alaska was purchased from the Russians in 1867 for 7.2 million dollars, leading to this territory becoming a state in 1959. The Alaska Purchase is referred to as “Seward’s Folly” because, at the time, many newspaper editors such as Horace Greeley thought the land to be worthless. History would prove that this was indeed a wise purchase as Alaska was rich with natural resources, and its location near Russia proved to be very useful during the Cold War (1945 – 1990).
Cmdr Matthew Perry Opens Trade with Japan: Americans early on saw the potential of opening trade opportunities in Asia. In 1853, the United States sent Commodore Matthew C. Perry to Japan with the intention of establishing a trade treaty. Commodore Perry arrived in Japan with four steam-powered warships equipped with advanced weapons. Upon observing the advanced technology of the Americans, the Japanese felt compelled to sign a trade treaty, granting American ships port privileges and permission to re-supply in Japan. Even though forced into the treaty, the Japanese used this trading opportunity to remake their society and launch their own industrial revolution. Having built a modern navy in a relatively short period of time, the Japanese became an imperial nation, expanding its influence to other parts of Asia. Japan also became a major industrial power.
The Drive to Annex Hawaii: As trade between the United States and Asia grew, American trading vessels increasingly needed access to ports in the Pacific at which to stop, rest, and gather new supplies. The Hawaiian Islands in the center of the Pacific proved to be a convenient location, drawing new settlers who discovered that the climate in Hawaii was perfect for sugarcane. As a result, a thriving new industry came to the islands, creating many rich planters and plantations. When Hawaii went into recession in 1872, the U.S. feared that in its economic downturn, Hawaii would turn to the French or the British for help. To avoid this situation, Congress passed legislation exempting Hawaiian sugar from American tariffs, and later giving the United States exclusive rights to a naval base at Pearl Harbor. As the sugar industry flourished, the planters demanded that the King accept a constitution that limited his authority, a demand that created tension between the planters and native Hawaiians. When the U.S. imposed new sugar tariffs in 1890, Hawaiian sugar became more expensive, leading the planters to seek annexation of Hawaii to the United States.
Queen Liliuokalani Resists Unsuccessfully: The new Queen of Hawaii, Queen Liliuokalani, disliked American influence in Hawaii and attempted to impose a new constitution that recognized her complete authority. The planters reacted by overthrowing Queen Liliuokalani, with the help of the Marines, and asked the U.S. to annex Hawaii. President Grover Cleveland opposed imperial expansion, rejected annexation, and wanted to restore the Queen’s power. Hawaiian leaders waited until President Cleveland left office, successfully gaining annexation five years later.
HOW DID AMERICA ENTER A WAR WITH SPAIN, AND WHAT WERE THE RESULTS?
Jose Marti Begins Rebellion in Cuba against Spain: Cuba had been a Spanish colony whose economy was based upon sugar exports especially to the United States. A first rebellion against Spain in 1868 ended in failure, leading many of the rebels to move to the United States. Among the exiled leaders was Cuban writer Jose Marti. While in America, Marti organized other exiles for an invasion of Cuba. By the early 1890s, the United States had become linked economically to Cuba through sugar imports, and investment in Cuban railroads and sugar plantations. However, when the U.S. placed a tariff on imported sugar, the sale of Cuban sugar in the U.S. fell. The Cuban economy was devastated. Cuban nationalist Jose Marti and his followers then began a rebellion and had taken control of eastern Cuba, declaring the country independent in 1895.
Yellow Journalism Enflames American Opinion Against Spain: At first, the U.S. government stayed neutral. However, many Americans supported the Cuban rebels, comparing the struggle for independence in Cuba with the American Revolution. Support for the rebels increased as a result of a new kind of newspaper reporting: Yellow Journalism. So called because of the yellowish color of the newsprint used by some newspapers, yellow journalism is a style of writing which exaggerates the facts of a situation, or simply invents them, to make stories more sensational. By creating sensational “stories”, newspapers sell more copies, and thus increase advertising revenues (profits). The two most famous practitioners of yellow journalism were newspapers owned by William Randolph Hearst (The New York Journal) and Joseph Pulitzer (The World). The outrageous stories printed by Hearst and Pulitzer enflamed Americans against the Spanish government.
Chaos in Cuba: Cuban rebels hoped to draw the U.S. into the conflict on their side by destroying American business assets in Cuba. Knowing that many Americans already supported them, the rebels hoped that America would act in order to protect its business investments. In the chaos, the Spanish sent 200,000 troops to Cuba to put down the rebellion. In an effort to prevent Cuban villagers from assisting the rebels, the Spanish rounded up civilians, placing them in concentration camps. Unfortunately, many people suffered and died in these camps, outraging Americans.
The USS Maine Explodes: President William McKinley was opposed to American involvement in the conflict, but did offer to help Spain negotiate with the rebels for a peaceful solution. The Spanish offered autonomy to Cubans, that is, the right to control affairs in Cuba, but insisting that Cuba remain part of the Spanish Empire. The rebels refused to speak to the Spanish, and their offer of autonomy angered Cubans who were loyal to Spain, leading the loyalists to riot in Havana. Fearing Americans might be hurt or killed as conditions worsened in Cuba, President McKinley sent the battleship USS Maine to Havana harbor in case Americans needed to be evacuated from the island country. On February 15, 1898, for reasons still unknown, the battleship exploded. At the time however, many Americans came to believe that the Spanish government was behind the “attack” on the USS Maine, a belief encouraged by yellow journalism, and leading to calls for war with Spain featuring the slogan “Remember the Maine”.
The Spanish-American War Begins: Jingoism is a form of nationalism that emphasizes aggression. It was this force that President McKinley faced, not only from members of his Republican Party, but also from Democrats. A jingoistic Congress authorized McKinley to prepare for war by granting him 50 Million dollars. Republicans, worried that if war on Spain was not declared, the Democrats would win the next presidential election, finally succeeded in persuading the President. On April 19, 1898, Congress declared Cuba to be an independent nation, demanded that the Spanish give up its claim to Cuba, and authorized the President to use force if the situation called for it. At the same time however, Congress also passed the Teller Resolution, a statement that America had no intention of annexing Cuba to itself. In response to America’s demands, Spain declared war on the United States.
Theaters of War: Spain was an imperial nation at this time. It had colonies and influence in a variety of places around the world, including in the Caribbean and in the Asian Pacific. When war broke out, a portion of the U.S. Navy, led by Commodore George Dewey, left its port in Hong Kong and sailed to the Philippines, a Spanish colony. The goal here was to prevent the Spanish Navy from sailing towards Cuba, a goal that was achieved quickly. The U.S. then dispatched a portion of its new Navy from San Francisco to the Philippines and, along the way, took control of the Island of Guam, a Spanish possession. Cuba itself also experienced several battles, eventually leading to the defeat of Spain. A nearby Spanish colony, Puerto Rico, came under American control. Lasting only 4 months, and taking only 460 American lives, the Spanish-American War seemed insignificant when compared to the casualties suffered during the Civil War. Indeed, America’s ambassador to England, in a letter written to “Rough Rider” Theodore Roosevelt, referred to the conflict as “a splendid little war”, a nickname that continues in use to this day.
An American Empire?: Having defeated the Spanish, America came into control of territories beyond its border that were quite different culturally. The question of whether America should maintain permanent control of these new territories sparked furious debate.
Opponents of American Imperialism: A group opposed to an imperial America, called the Anti-Imperialist League, believed that annexing new territories violated America’s republican principles. Members of this group included Jane Addams and Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain). Andrew Carnegie opposed annexation, believing that the costs of running an American Empire outweighed the economic benefits. Samuel Gompers (AFL) feared that Filipino labor would drive down the wages of average American workers.
America Becomes an Empire: Despite these opinions, President McKinley decided for annexation, believing that these territories (1) could not be given back to Spain; (2) should not fall under the control of economic competitor nations; (3) could not be ruled by the people already living there as they were “unfit”; (4) America had a responsibility to “civilize” and “Christianize” the local populations.
The Treaty of Paris Ends the Spanish-American War (1898): The war ended when the U.S. and Spain signed the Treaty of Paris in December of 1898, granting independence to Cuba, giving Puerto Rico and Guam to the U.S., and selling the Philippines to the U.S. for $20 million. Although the Treaty of Paris declared Cuba independent, President McKinley took steps to ensure that Cuba would remain tied to the U.S. Although Cuba now had a new constitution, it was forced to include The Platt Amendment, a change written by American Senator Orville Platt.
The Platt Amendment (1901): The purpose of the Platt Amendment was to keep American influence in Cuba without having to occupy the country militarily This Amendment to the Cuban Constitution (1) disallowed power to make treaties that weakened Cuba’s independence or allowed foreign control of any part of its territory; (2) permitted America to maintain naval bases on the island; (3) required minimal Cuban debt to prevent foreign countries from invading to enforce payment; (4) permitted America the right to intervene to protect Cuban independence and to maintain order. This amendment effectively makes Cuba an American protectorate until its repeal in 1934, and reveals Cuba’s strategic importance to America’s political and business interests.
The Foraker Act (1900) and Puerto Rico: A further consideration following the Treaty was how to govern Puerto Rico. The matter was settled when Congress passed the Foraker Act, a law that allowed Puerto Ricans to elect a legislature, but forced them to accept a President and Executive Council appointed by the President of the United States. In 1917, Puerto Ricans were granted American citizenship and, over time, Puerto Ricans gained more control over their government, eventually resulting in their ability to elect their own Governor.
HOW DID AMERICA DEAL WITH ASIA?
American Influence in Asia: By 1899, the United States had several Naval ports throughout the Asian Pacific. American business was gaining an increasing share of Asian markets and was anxious to create more trading opportunities, especially for its oil, steel, and textile industries. America however was not interested in conquering any Asian territories.
A Weakened China Encourages Imperial Aggression: By the early 1890s, Japan had risen as an industrial and military power in Asia, and was becoming increasingly imperialist. In 1894, war broke out between Japan and the much larger China. At issue was China’s control of the Korean peninsula, a potential market for Japanese goods. Japan was victorious in the war, leading China to grant independence to Korea, and giving up control of Manchuria, a portion of mainland China that rested on the border of Russia. This fact disturbed the Russians, leading them to gain French and German support to force Japan out of Manchuria. The First Sino-Japanese War demonstrated to the world that China was a much weaker nation than previously believed.
“Leaseholds” or “Spheres of Influence”: Taking advantage of this fact, the Russians demanded that China lease Manchuria to them. Although Manchuria would still belong to China, the “leasehold” meant that Russia had exclusive rights to control economic development in that region, such as railroad building and mining, with all trading rights and benefits belonging to Russia. A leasehold gave to a dominant nation a “sphere of influence” in another, weaker nation. Many other nations soon demanded a sphere of influence in China, including Britain, France, Japan, and Germany, all imperial countries controlling other weaker nations.
American Encourages the Open Door Policy 1899: Worried about America’s access to Chinese markets, Secretary of State John Hay sent a letter to each country (Russia, Britain, France, Japan, Germany) asking it not to discriminate against other nations wishing to do business in their individual sphere of influence. Each country with a leasehold agreed, and the U.S. expected each nation to live up to the agreement for an “open door” policy regarding trade in China.
The Boxer Rebellion against Western Influence: The economic power of Western nations in China caused many native Chinese to worry about Western influence in their nation, leading to the formation of several groups that actively opposed Western presence. One such group, the Society of Harmonious Fists, nicknamed the “Boxers” because of their physical training style, decided to confront the “foreign devils”. Also on their list of targets were native Chinese who had converted to Christianity through Western missionaries. In 1900 the Boxers, aided by some Chinese troops, attacked several embassies of Western nations, killing well over 200 people, and taking many as prisoners. Upon the killing of the German Ambassador to China, the Western nations (U.S., Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Britain, Italy) were joined by Japan in an attempt to smash the Boxer Rebellion and rescue their people, sending a force of 50,000 to China’s shores. Once the Boxer Rebellion was ended, Secretary of State John Hay persuaded all involved countries to resist colonizing China, leaving control of China to the Chinese, and ensuring future American access to lucrative Chinese markets. This resolution to the crisis has come to be known as the Second Open Door.
HOW DID AMERICA DEAL WITH LATIN AMERICA?
American Economic Interests in Latin America: A considerable portion of Latin America was heavily influenced by Western European imperial powers as a result of the variety of natural resources in the region and its favorable climate for agriculture. Americans had invested vast amounts of money in various Latin American countries, leading to the creation of new businesses and the construction of infrastructure (roads, rail, bridges). America’s business interests in Latin America drew much attention to the economic and political stability of this region.
Big Stick Diplomacy: “Speak softly and carry a big stick!” President Theodore Roosevelt used this phrase to express his view of America’s foreign policy in the early 1900s. Roosevelt believed that America needed to have a military powerful enough to prevent others from thinking of war with the United States, thereby creating peaceful conditions.
Proposal for an International Waterway: In order to ensure that the U.S. Navy could move about the world more quickly, Roosevelt wanted to create an artificial waterway in the Latin American territory of Panama, the northernmost portion of the nation of Columbia. Creating this canal would allow both military and commercial ships to move far more quickly between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In 1901, the U.S. signed the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty with Britain, granting the United States exclusive rights to build a canal in Panama (replaces earlier treaty of 1850), but guaranteeing international access.
Big Stick Diplomacy Gains the Panama Canal: Secretary of State Hay offered Columbia 10 million dollars and a hefty yearly rent if it permitted the U.S. to build the canal and allow it to control a narrow strip of land on either side. Columbia rejected the offer much to the disappointment of Panamanians who saw incredible economic benefits from the project. Panamanian officials staged a revolt in the nation leading President Roosevelt to send 10 battleships to protect Panama from Columbian interference. With the battleships anchored off-shore, the United States recognized Panama as an independent nation, and soon after signed a treaty to allow the canal to be constructed. Roosevelt justified his actions by claiming that all civilization benefitted from the new canal which shrank the distance between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans by 8,000 nautical miles.
The New American Role / International Police Power: European nations had considerable economic involvement in Latin American countries. The United States became concerned about this situation because many Latin American countries were in debt to European banks, and this debt, it was believed, might cause European governments to interfere in the affairs of this region. Because America had considerable economic investment in the region, and wished to keep it stable politically, President Roosevelt addressed Congress in a speech stating a new American policy regarding the entire Western Hemisphere. The ideas in this speech came to be known as the “Roosevelt Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine. Within this concept was a new role in which the United States would serve as an “international police power” for the Western Hemisphere.
The Roosevelt Corollary (1904): The purpose of the Roosevelt Corollary was to expand the Monroe Doctrine as America became increasingly involved in world affairs. In this speech, Roosevelt declared America’s new policy that it would intervene in Latin American affairs to ensure economic and political stability in the region, and would prevent European involvement in the region. America would assume for itself an “international police power” in the Western Hemisphere. This speech demonstrated American economic and political concern for Latin America as a means to protect its own interests. The United States soon put its new policy into action in 1905 when the U.S. Marine Corps was placed in charge of collecting tariffs in the debt-ridden Dominican Republic. This new policy became a source of resentment in Latin America for American power and influence, and shaped the relationship between the two for generations.
Dollar Diplomacy: The growing American influence in Latin America caused resentment in the region. Although the United States would continue to follow the Roosevelt Corollary, a second approach to dealing with Latin America would be developed. “Substituting dollars for bullets” was the approach to Latin America embraced by President William Howard Taft, an approach that would come to be known as “Dollar Diplomacy”. The belief of the Taft Administration was simply that American investment in Latin American countries would increase American business profits while at the same time provide Latin American nations the opportunity to rise out of poverty and political chaos. Although using investment was a preferred method of making Latin America stable politically, it was nevertheless “necessary” for the U.S. to intervene from time to time, such as was the case in Nicaragua between 1911 and 1925.
Formation of U.S.- Latin American Economic Ties: The late 1800s and early 1900s was a crucial time in United States-Latin American relations, establishing a permanent bond between the two economic regions. This political and economic bond would be formalized when both sides agreed to create the Commercial Bureau of the American Republics, an organization that worked to promote cooperation among the nations of the Western Hemisphere. Today, this organization is called the Organization of American States (OAS).
Missionary Diplomacy (Mexico): In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Mexico was becoming increasingly industrialized through foreign investment. Much of the wealth generated by Mexican factories and railroads did not end up in the hands of many Mexican natives. Resentment over this situation boiled over into a revolution. After much turmoil, Mexico came under the iron-fisted and brutal control of Victoriano Huerta. President Woodrow Wilson, disgusted by the tactics of Huerta and by the style of his government, refused to recognize the new Mexican government. President Wilson attempted to enforce a new policy for Latin America, stating that any group that overthrew a Latin American nation would have to establish a government based on law if that government was to receive formal recognition from the United States. The goal of this “missionary diplomacy” was to prevent the rise of more dictatorships in Latin America as this form of government was unstable and threatened American business interests.
The Pancho Villa Raids into the U.S.: President Wilson seized upon an opportunity to overthrow the Huerta government after the arrest of American sailors in Tampico. Wilson ordered American troops to seize the harbor city of Veracruz, expecting the Mexican people to welcome the American fighters. Instead, anti-American riots broke out. This feeling of anti-Americanism was shared by a colorful Mexican outlaw named Pancho Villa. Displeased both by Wilson’s actions and a fraudulent weapons deal with Americans, Pancho Villa led a group of guerillas into a raid of Columbus, NM, resulting in the deaths of at least 16 Americans. In response, President Wilson ordered General John J. Pershing and 6,000 troops to cross into Mexico and capture Pancho Villa. This “punitive expedition” failed, damaging America’s reputation worldwide. This episode with Mexico demonstrates that, although the U.S. may have good intentions for its foreign policy, the way others perceive our power, influence, and intentions may be quite different.
UNIT 3: JIM CROW AND PROGRESSIVISM (1890 – 1914)
HOW WERE AFRICAN-AMERICANS THREATENED POLITICALLY AND SOCIALLY?
Denying the Vote - Poll Taxes and Literacy Tests: The 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prevented any state from limiting access to the vote based on race or “previous condition of servitude”. However, it made no mention of other techniques to limit the vote. Many Southern states began to pass laws that effectively prevented Black men from exercising their right to vote. One such new law required that all people intending to register to vote must pay a $2.00 “poll tax”, a price that was out of reach for most Blacks in this time period. Another type of law required that each potential voter pass a “literacy test”, based on a person’s ability to read and understand a constitutional document. This barrier prevented most Blacks from voting simply because few former slaves learned to read, and few Blacks born after the Civil War obtained an education. Those that could read were often presented with passages to interpret that few Americans could understand.
Denying the Vote - The Grandfather Clause: While poll taxes and literacy tests limited access to the vote for most Blacks, an unintended effect was to prevent many poor Whites from voting as well. One solution to this “problem” was to apply less strict enforcement for White voters. A more effective “solution” was the creation of a new legal approach called the “Grandfather Clause”, a law that allowed any person to vote who had an ancestor who could vote prior to 1867. Since Blacks were unable to vote prior to this date, the Grandfather Clause effectively disenfranchised all Black Southerners. The intention or spirit of the 15th Amendment was to grant the franchise to Black men. The new legal tactics used to prevent Blacks from voting did not legally violate the 15th Amendment. The legislators who passed these laws would claim that no “de jure” segregation had occurred, meaning that, in a strictly legal sense, these laws did not discriminate based on race. In reality however, these laws did discriminate based on race even though race is never mentioned. These laws taken together did create conditions of “de facto” segregation, since segregation was indeed the intent of these laws even though race is not mentioned.
The Rise of Jim Crow Laws: The language of the 14th Amendment declared that “no state” could deny citizens equal protection under the laws. In 1883, the Supreme Court overturned the Civil Rights Act of 1875, a law that barred discrimination in public places, stating in its decision that the 14th Amendment did not apply to private enterprises serving the public. By the mid 1880s, Congress had lost interest in Civil Rights. These two occurrences worked together to encourage Southern States to create a series of laws that segregated White and African-American citizens in all public places. These new segregation laws came to be known as “Jim Crow Laws”, named for a popular song of the time frequently included in “minstrel shows”. [A minstrel show was a popular form of entertainment at the time in which whites performed a variety of skits, songs, and comedy routines that made fun of Blacks, and encouraged stereotypes of their behavior. White entertainers performed in “black face”, and sometimes, even Black performers did the same.] In effect, Whites and Blacks living in the same towns nevertheless could live entirely separate lives. The segregation of the races led to the creation of new informal social rules. For example, if a White man and a Black man were walking toward each other on a sidewalk, it was customary for the Black man to step off the sidewalk until the White man passed. Blacks were expected to tip hats to Whites while no such obligation applied to Whites.
Founding of the Ku Klux Klan: The Ku Klux Klan was originally founded in 1865 as a social organization made up of former Confederate soldiers. The Klan soon evolved into a terrorist organization whose main goal was to establish White Supremacy through intimidation and violence. Among its early members was Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Confederate General who eventually called for the disbanding of the Klan in 1871, finding the violent nature of the group to be morally unacceptable. Members disguised themselves in sheets and hoods, riding into Black neighborhoods, and claiming to be the ghosts of Confederate soldiers. Many forms of terror and violence would be used to discourage Blacks from any form of political participation.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896): The State of Louisiana passed legislation that required the separation of the races in rail transit. Homer Plessy (1/8 African ancestry) refused to leave a rail coach that was designated “Whites Only” and was arrested. Mr. Plessy challenged the Louisiana law, eventually ending up in the Supreme Court, posing this question: did the Louisiana law violate the 13th and 14th Amendments by requiring separate facilities in rail transit? In its decision, the Supreme Court: (1) rejected the 13th Amendment claim out of hand; (2) determined that the Louisiana law did not violate the 14th Amendment protections of political equality of all citizens; (3) the State of Louisiana had the right to create laws according to established social customs as a legitimate basis for legislating, in order to preserve peace and good order.
WHAT WERE THE REACTIONS TO THE EARLY JIM CROW ERA?
Equality through Economic Means - Booker T. Washington: As a result of the great success Tuskegee had become, Washington had risen to a prominent position as a Black leader throughout the United States. In 1895, Washington had been invited to give a speech on race relations at the Atlanta Exposition to a mostly white audience. In that speech, Washington warned that American society in general will suffer if it ignores both the abuses of Blacks and the role Blacks could play in society if treated fairly. A further point of the speech was that Blacks should concentrate of economic progress, and for a time, leave aside focusing on social and political equality through “artificial forcing” when American society was not yet willing to grant it.
Tuskegee Institute (1881): Many Blacks had few marketable skills that they could take to employers, a problem that a former slave (Lewis Adams) and a former slave-owner (George Campbell) wanted to reduce. Working together, these men created the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, and turned to a young, promising, and educated former slave named Booker T. Washington to become the school’s first President. Washington had 2 goals in mind for Tuskegee Institute’s future Black students: train teachers and teach marketable trade skills. These goals reflected Booker T. Washington’s belief that Blacks needed to be economically productive and self-reliant, a condition that he believed would lead Blacks to eventual equality with fellow White citizens. This historically Black college (HBC) exists today as Tuskegee University.
Equality Through Political Means – W.E.B. Du Bois: Washington’s economic approach to seeking equality infuriated another Black leader, W.E.B. Du Bois, leading Du Bois to nickname Washington’s speech the “Atlanta Compromise”. W.E.B. Du Bois was fully in favor of seeking social and political equality through legal and political tactics, believing that this was the best route to ultimate Black equality in America. The conflict between Washington and Du Bois reveals clearly that Black leaders, though seeking the same goals, can differ dramatically regarding the best approach to use. This early difference among Black leaders will reappear again and again as the decades pass.
W.E.B. Du Bois Rises in Prominence: Born soon after the Civil War, W.E.B. Du Bois became a highly educated man, graduating with a Ph. D. from Harvard University and becoming a Professor at Atlanta University, focusing his research on race relations in America. In 1903, Du Bois published his book “The Souls of Black Folk”, a collection of essays dealing with questions of race. He continued to criticize fellow Black leader Booker T. Washington as being far too cautious. Du Bois argued in favor of obtaining political equality through achievement of voting rights and other civil rights.
The Niagara Movement (1906): In order to make this happen, Du Bois founded the Niagara Movement, the purpose of which was to oppose the more co-operative approach and economic focus of Booker T. Washington, and to advocate a more aggressive approach to obtaining legal and political equality for Americans of African descent. Thirty men (Black and White) met in the Canadian town of Fort Erie, and issued a “manifesto” promoting 8 principles, among which were: (1) freedom of speech and criticism; (2) manhood suffrage; (3) abolition of “caste” distinctions based on race; (4) access to training and employment opportunities.
Formation of the NAACP (1909): The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was an organization that came out of the Niagara Movement, and inspired others to work for Black equality through its magazine, “The Crisis”. This organization called for an end to lynching and formal segregation, and advocated civil rights for all Americans. The NAACP would be an important factor in advancing the Civil Rights of all Americans, particularly through its use of the judicial system.
Ida B. Wells Confronts Lynching: The most violent abuse of Blacks during the Jim Crow era was “lynching”, the extra-legal hanging of a Black man by a mob of Whites. One motive behind lynching included a perceived violation of Jim Crow Laws or customs. Another motive included the lynching of a Black man who may have owned property sought by White competitors. A third and frequent motive was an accusation of rape, murder, or attempted murder. Lynchings always occurred without formal charges or legal involvement and were intended to maintain a social order of White supremacy. In order to draw attention to this growing problem, Black journalist Ida B. Wells began a crusade against lynching. An anti-segregation activist, Wells drew attention to the atrocities occurring throughout the United States, especially in the South. In 1895, Wells published “A Red Record”, a book that detailed the terrible nature and frequency of lynchings, called for an end to “mob violence”, and argued for “a fair trial for those accused of crime, and punishment by law after honest conviction”. The attention Wells drew to this issue did not bring legal changes by Congress, but it did bring down dramatically the number of lynchings that took place.
The Wilmington Race Riot (1898): In November of 1898, North Carolina elected its first Democratic Governor and Legislature in many years. Encouraged by this development, a mob of Democrats in Wilmington, led by Alfred Waddell, began an insurrection (rebellion) that left 22 Blacks and several White Republicans dead. Waddell and his mob forced the Republican Mayor and other members of the city government, both White and Black, to resign their positions. Waddell became the Mayor of Wilmington, a city with a majority Black population and also the largest city in North Carolina at the time. Democrats moved swiftly (1) to remove the many North Carolina laws that protected Black citizens from discrimination and (2) to pass the first series of Jim Crow Laws in the state.
The Great Migration – Blacks Migrate Northward: For several reasons, Blacks began to migrate to Northern cities between 1910 and 1940 in large numbers (1.6 million). The main “push” factor behind this migration clearly was the racial climate and the terrorism of the Ku Klux Klan. The “pull” factors in this migration included: (1) better racial climate; (2) prospect for jobs; (3) higher wages; (4) recruitment of Blacks by major industrial factories such as Ford Motor Company. Blacks moved from a largely rural agricultural region to an industrialized urban setting, putting them in competition for jobs with recent European immigrants and poor native-born Whites. Cities that received large numbers of new Black immigrants included Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, New York, Philadelphia, and Boston.
WHY DID PROGRESSIVISM RISE, AND WHO WERE THE MUCKRAKERS?
Progressivism – Dealing with Modern America’s Problems: The era in American history from 1890 to 1920 is known as the Progressive Era. Progressivism was a collection of different ideas and activities about how to fix the problems within American society. Progressives disagreed among themselves on the solutions, but agreed that the government should take a more active role in solving society’s problems caused by urbanization and industrialization. Progressives believed government needed to be fixed and that scientific principles could be used to fix society’s problems. The muckrakers encouraged public debate, leading many Progressives to identify several problems, including: inefficient government; not enough voice for the people in politics; child labor; poverty; dangerous and unfair working conditions; the power of big business; consumer rights to safe products; land use, and; alcohol.
The Muckrakers – Journalism with a Social Purpose: Jacob Riis became one of the first “muckrakers” during the 1890s, drawing attention to the horrible living conditions in New York City that eventually led to reforms. More journalists would follow in his footsteps, practicing a form of journalism we now call “investigative journalism”. The problems brought on by massive immigration, urbanization, and industrialization began to draw the attention of most Americans as a result of many different muckraking journalists. The reforms that muckrakers inspired led to a new movement that would be called Progressivism.
Muckraker - Ida Tarbell and Standard Oil: Working as a journalist for McClure Magazine, Ida Tarbell became interested in the business practices of John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company. Through exhaustive research, Tarbell discovered that this oil giant had used corrupt business practices to gain what would almost become an oil monopoly in America. She soon gathered her various essays into a book called “The History of Standard Oil Company”, publishing it in 1904. The reaction to her research was swift; Congress took steps that eventually broke up Standard Oil into smaller companies by 1911.
Muckraker - Lincoln Steffens and Political Corruption: Also on the staff of McClure Magazine was Lincoln Steffens, another muckraking journalist who focused on political corruption. In his two major works, “The Shame of the Cities” (1904) and “The Struggle for Self-Government”, Steffens drew attention to the political corruption that had affected many American cities. His work drew calls for reform of city government, and targeted the corrupt practices of political machines.
Muckraker - Upton Sinclair and Consumer Safety: The early 1900s saw the rise in “Patent” medicines, potions and elixirs that claimed outrageous healing capabilities. Most of these were nothing more than sugar and water laced with alcohol, caffeine, opium, cocaine, and other questionable substances. A series of articles in Collier’s Magazine drew attention to these fraudulent products. Perhaps the most famous example of consumer safety issues came with the publishing in 1906 of Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle”. In this book, Sinclair exposed to Americans the bizarre range of preservatives that could be found in processed meats. Further, he described in detail the operation of Chicago slaughterhouses and meat packing companies. Readers were treated to stories of meat lying on floors, covered with rats and other vermin, waiting to be processed and shipped across the United States. The impact of Sinclair’s book was swift; in 1906, Congress passed both the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act.
Mother Jones – Early Progressive Leader: She has been called the “grandmother of all agitators”, the “Miner’s Angel”, and the “most dangerous woman in America”. Mary Harris “Mother” Jones was a prominent leader in Progressive causes such as mine safety, labor unions, and child labor beginning in the 1870s and continuing until her death in 1930. After the death of her husband and children during the yellow fever epidemic of 1867, and the loss of her business in the great Chicago Fire of 1871, Mother Jones spent the remainder of her life drawing attention to various Progressive concerns. She courageously defied courts during strikes when she believed that the rights of miners were being violated or their safety threatened. She led a notable campaign against child labor in the early 1900s, drawing attention to an issue that had been largely ignored, and eventually leading to legislation that would end it.
Triangle Shirtwaist Company Fire Inspires Reform: Workplace safety came to national attention in 1911 when the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York went up in flames. Most of the 150 deaths that resulted from the fire could be attributed to the fact that many escape doors had been locked, and few fire-prevention measures were in place in this non-union factory. In response to this tragedy, the City of New York initiated a Factory Investigating Commission, leading to the passage of 36 state laws dealing with workplace safety and labor codes.
WHAT STATE AND LOCAL POLITICAL REFORMS APPEARED DURING THE PROGRESSIVE ERA?
Increasing the Power of the People - Governor Robert M. Lafollette: A major Progressive goal was to increase the participation of average citizens in the political process. Among the leading reformers of the time was Governor Lafollette of Wisconsin. Rather than allowing Party Bosses to select party candidates for elections, Lafollette argued in favor of the “direct primary”, a system in which all party members could vote for the party’s candidate to represent them in a general election. Other political reforms that came about as a result of Governor Lafollette’s lead include the “initiative”, a mechanism that allowed citizens to propose laws that a legislature would be forced to vote upon. Another legislative innovation was the “referendum”, a mechanism that allowed citizens to vote on laws directly, rather than leaving it to the legislature only. In order to increase the accountability of elected leaders, progressives managed to create the “recall”. This mechanism allowed voters to remove from office any official believed to have violated the public’s trust. The initiative, referendum, and recall all relied on reaching a certain threshold of citizen support before being used. As well, each allowed for greater citizen participation in government.
New Forms of Local Government: A deadly hurricane in Galveston, Texas revealed the inability of Political Machines to respond to disasters. A group of business leaders in that city successfully gained permission to run the city. Based on the success of these leaders to rapidly rebuild Galveston, reformers in many other cities demanded the reform of local government structures, based on the model used in Galveston. Eventually, reformers would create two new city government models that proved to be far more effective, spreading nationwide. The “Commission” form of government relies on the direct election of a Board of Commissioners, each Commissioner dedicated to administering a specific department of city government (ie, parks, finance, fire, police, works). Together, the Commissioners then pass ordinances (local laws) and controls funds. The “Council-Manager” form of government relies on the direct election of a City Council, which then elects a Mayor. The City Council also hires a “City Manager” who then appoints the various heads of city government departments. The heads of the departments then carry out the policies set by the Mayor and the City Council. In both the Commission model and the Council-Manager model, cities benefit from an increase in expertise that earlier city government models failed to provide.
WHAT DID THE PROGRESSIVE PRESIDENTS TRY TO ACHIEVE?
Progressive President - Theodore Roosevelt and the Square Deal: “I shall see to it that every man has a Square Deal, no less and no more”. President Roosevelt (Republican) was a Progressive who believed that in domestic affairs, the government had a significant role to play. Although not opposed to large companies, and recognizing the economic benefits they provided, Roosevelt was concerned that they would need regulation by the Federal government to keep them from harming the public should they gain a monopoly over a particular good or service.
Northern Securities v. United States (1904): The first target in his concern for the power of Trusts was J.P. Morgan’s railroad holding company “Northern Securities”, an enterprise that successfully merged the railroads in the northwest of the country. Roosevelt filed suit against Northern Securities under the terms of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act since Northern Securities had a virtual monopoly on rail traffic in the northwest. The conflict eventually ended up in the Supreme Court as “Northern Securities v. United States” (1904), with the Court finding in favor of Roosevelt’s position. The Supreme Court had established that the Federal Government, under the “interstate commerce clause” of the Constitution, had the power to regulate the ownership of companies. As a result of his success, President Roosevelt earned a reputation as a “trustbuster” and became very popular among average Americans who saw him as a fighter for their interests.
Anthracite Coal Strike – Government as Broker: Roosevelt believed that government’s role was to be a “mediator” between groups in conflict, to keep society operating efficiently. His approach was put into action in 1902 when the United Mine Workers in Pennsylvania went on strike demanding increased pay, fewer hours, and union recognition. Anthracite (hard) coal was a necessary product, and Roosevelt feared the consequences of a coal shortage. He appealed to the workers and mine owners to accept arbitration as a means to settle the conflict. Upon the mine owners’ refusal, Roosevelt threatened to send in the Army to run the mines and avoid a coal shortage. The owners finally gave in to arbitration. Roosevelt’s actions in this conflict represented a first step in establishing the Federal government as a broker (negotiator) between powerful groups in society.
The Elkins Act (1903) and the “Gentlemen’s Agreement”: As part of his “Square Deal” series of Progressive reforms, President Roosevelt encouraged the passage of the Elkins Act, a law that strengthened the Interstate Commerce Act by allowing the government to fine railroads that offered rebates to shippers that deviated from published prices. Under this law, both railroads and shippers could face punishment. Because Roosevelt believed that big business was ultimately beneficial to society, he preferred to work with companies informally through a “gentlemen’s agreement”. Although he pushed for the Hepburn Act, a law that strengthened the Interstate Commerce Commission’s ability to set rail rates, the personal relationship Roosevelt established with business leaders led to fewer legal conflicts.
Roosevelt’s Legacy – “Bully Pulpit” and Conservation: Roosevelt referred to his power in the Office of the President as his “bully pulpit” because of the extraordinary ability to get things done. As an enthusiastic outdoorsman, Roosevelt took his concern for nature and the wild and ensured that future generations would have access to America’s natural resources. The passage of the Newlands Reclamation Act funded irrigation and development throughout the West. As well, Roosevelt established the U.S. Forrest Service in 1905, placing his friend Gifford Pinchot in charge. This new agency established and protected many national forests from exploitation by lumber companies. As well, the National Parks system was established, providing access to unspoiled natural settings for millions of Americans. All of these reforms established Roosevelt as the father of “conservation” in the U.S. Upon leaving office in 1909, Roosevelt had transformed the role of the Federal government, making it far more active in the lives of Americans through the many agencies he established.
Progressive President - William Howard Taft: Although quite similar to fellow Republican Theodore Roosevelt, President Taft (1909 – 1913) believed that lowering import tariffs would increase competition and ultimately benefit consumers, a belief not shared by Roosevelt. Soon after gaining office, President Taft called a special session of Congress to lower tariffs, however this decision divided the Republican Party. Negotiations over the new tariffs went on for a long period of time, ultimately leading to the passage of the Payne-Aldrich Tariff, a law that ultimately lowered tariffs only minimally and, in some cases, actually raised them. The controversy created by Taft’s push for lowered tariffs destroyed his reputation as a Progressive reformer.
Pinchot-Ballinger Controversy: Further damaging his reputation was the situation involving his Secretary of the Interior Richard A. Ballinger. Ballinger had offered up a million acres of Federal government land for sale to private developers. Gifford Pinchot, head of the U.S. Forrest Service, accused Ballinger of arranging the sale for personal profit. When the charges were found to be false, Taft fired Pinchot for insubordination. The combination of these two events left the American public suspicious of the Taft Administration, leading to a Democratic victory in the 1910 mid-term elections.
Achievements of the Taft Administration: Though his Administration was weakened, President Taft did have some significant achievements. The Bureau of Mines was established by the Taft Administration in 1910 to monitor the activities of mine operators, particularly as they related to the environment. Also in 1910, the Taft Administration succeeded in passing the Mann-Elkins Act, a law that strengthened Federal control of railroads and established Federal control over new communications technologies. In 1911, the Taft Administration initiated a suit against the American Tobacco Company in which the Supreme Court found that American Tobacco had indeed violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act and had effectively created a monopoly. In 1912, Taft established the Children’s Bureau, an agency that investigated and publicized the problems of child labor. Taft was also responsible for a large number of “trust-busting” cases that were based upon the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
The Election of 1912: As the election of 1912 approached, Theodore Roosevelt felt the need to confront his fellow Republican, President Taft, who Roosevelt believed had betrayed the ideals of the Progressive movement. When it became clear that Taft would again win the nomination of the Republican Party, Roosevelt declared himself an independent candidate, describing himself to be “fit as a bull moose”. Roosevelt became the nominee of a new political party known as the Progressive Party, but far more well-known as the “Bull Moose Party”. The election of 1912 would become a race between two Progressive candidates, Theodore Roosevelt of the Bull Moose Party, and New Jersey Governor Woodrow Wilson for the Democratic Party. Roosevelt’s ideas were gathered into a platform called New Nationalism, a platform that favored: increased regulation of trusts; labor laws for women and children; worker’s compensation for those who were injured. True to his earlier beliefs, Roosevelt wanted to work with industry to preserve the benefits he believed it brought to American society. Wilson’s ideas were gathered into a platform called the New Freedom, a platform that favored: destruction of trusts and monopolies; less government involvement with business; increased “fair” competition in business. Because Taft and Roosevelt split the Republican vote, Woodrow Wilson won the election of 1912.
Progressive President – Woodrow Wilson: Soon after taking office, President Wilson arranged for the passage of the Underwood Tariff Act, a law that reduced import tariffs to half of the 1890s level. Wilson believed that foreign competition would force American industry to become more efficient and would increase competition, thereby reducing the power of trusts, and improving prices for consumers. An important section of the Underwood Act allowed for the direct taxation of American citizens, a provision that would need a Constitutional Amendment to enforce (16th). In order to address the weaknesses in the banking system, President Wilson established the Federal Reserve Act (1913), a law created a Board of Governors that supervised 12 regional banks. The Board would set interest rates for the nation and would also regulate the amount of money in circulation. The law forced independent banks to keep a portion of their assets in a regional Reserve Bank as a “cushion” in case of unanticipated losses. A third reform under the Wilson Administration was the creation of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), an agency that would regulate the trade practices of American business to ensure that competition was fair and that consumers would not be victims of false advertising. Wilson reluctantly came to agree with Roosevelt that big business did benefit Americans and should be regulated rather than broken up entirely.
Clayton Anti-Trust Act (1914) – Cease and Desist: Congress was not satisfied with Wilson’s more cooperative approach to business and passed the Clayton Anti-Trust Act in response. Building on the Sherman Act, the Clayton Act included provisions that: (1) prevented a person from being a director of two or more competing companies; (2) allowed retailers to sell similar products from different producers; (3) prevented companies from selling the same product to different people for different prices; (4) prevented large producers from offering discounts to some retailers who made large volume purchases; (5) allowed unions to exist legally, declaring that they were not a restriction on trade and competition. When illegal activities were proven against a specific business, the Federal Trade Commission could issue “cease and desist” orders. This powerful new tool served to protect the public from unfair business practices. Samuel Gompers of the American Federation of Labor embraced this new law as it seemed to give Unions an official right to exist in American business.
Progressive Era Constitutional Changes: Several new Amendments to the U.S. Constitution were implemented during the Progressive Era.
16th Amendment (1913): This Amendment to the U.S. Constitution gave Congress the power to tax citizens directly in the form of an income tax, to be collected yearly. This Amendment was passed in support of the Underwood Act.
17th Amendment (1913): The political reform in this Amendment finally gave citizens the power to directly elect the Senators that represented their state in Congress. Until this point, Senators were appointed by State legislatures.
18th Amendment (1919): Alcohol and its social effects had long been on the minds of reformers dating back as far as the 2nd Great Awakening. In the early 1900’s, groups such as the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) actively promoted the reduction or elimination of alcohol use as it was believed to be a source of many social and economic ills. One of the most famous anti-alcohol crusaders was Carrie A. Nation, a woman who would enter saloons and use a hatchet to smash up the bar. Her use of vandalism drew much attention to the alcohol problem, leading to the eventual passage of the 18th Amendment. The passage of this Amendment meant that the production, sale, consumption, and transportation of alcohol in the United States would all be criminal activities. The era between 1919 and 1933 would come to be known as Prohibition.
19th Amendment (1920): Although some states did permit women to vote, this was not a universal right. As a result of the work of Women’s Rights Advocates and Suffragettes, dating back as far as 1848 with the Seneca Falls Convention, women had finally succeeded in gaining the right to vote in all state and national elections.
20th Amendment (1933): Following presidential elections, new member of Congress and new Presidents might have to wait as long as until March of the following year to gain their positions officially. This Amendment to the Constitution now established January 20th as inauguration day for the President, Vice-President, and new members of Congress. The purpose of this Amendment was to prevent the “lame-duck” officials recently voted out of office from continuing in their weakened positions for too long.
The Legacy of Progressivism: The various reforms of the Progressive Period changed the nature of American political life. By the end of the Progressive era, Americans looked to the government to play an active role in regulating the economy and solving social problems.
HOW DID PROGRESIVE ERA BUSINESS CHANGE AMERICAN CULTURAL LIFE?
Mail Order Catalogs: By the early 1900s, retail stores had followed in the footsteps of other American businesses. The “chain store” was one of a series of stores owned and operated by the same company. The attraction of the chain store was the low prices it offered consumers and the familiarity of the store’s offerings and layout. The most popular example of the chain store was Woolworth’s, a retail chain that had stores throughout the United States and Canada. In order to reach rural populations, many department stores and chain stores began to publish and distribute “mail-order” catalogs of their goods. Companies such as Sears and Roebuck and Montgomery Ward used catalogs to advertise and then sell many millions of products throughout America.
Kodak Camera: One of the most popular items sold in the mail-order catalogs first appeared in 1900. The “Brownie” was the first low-cost functional camera available to average Americans. Although photography had been around since the 1840s, the cost of photographs was too high for most families to afford, let alone purchasing photographic equipment. The Brownie Kodak camera changed this dramatically and began a popular hobby still pursued by millions of Americans.
Moving Pictures: Another popular form of entertainment in the early 1900s was cinema. First developed in the mid 1890s, moving pictures began to draw large audiences as film makers began to master the possibilities of this new technology. Early films could not capture sound, so films would be sent to movie houses with sheet music that would match the mood of the pictures on the screen.
Skyscrapers: The Bessemer Process, originally used to create cheap steel for the rail industry, was an important technological ingredient in creating the skyscraper. As cities became more congested, builders sought out ways to increase the amount of usable floor space on a given plot of land. The steel produced using the Bessemer Process was strong enough to allow buildings to rise far further from the ground than once believed possible. Skyscrapers began to dominate the skylines of many American cities, thus creating far more profitable use of expensive city real estate. However, these new buildings also brought with them an increase in city congestion.
First in Flight: In 1903, two brothers from Ohio, Orville and Wilbur Wright, became the first Americans to achieve controlled and powered human flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The appearance of the airplane would have significant commercial, governmental, and military applications in the years to come.
The Ford Motor Company: Founded in 1903 by Henry Ford, the Ford Motor Company would go one to shape not only America, but the world at large. Although not the first to invent the automobile, Ford was the first American company to sell cars that consumers could afford. He managed to do this through his greatest innovation, the assembly line. Rather than having a team of workers build a car that sat stationary on a shop floor, Ford figured out that vehicles could be produced far faster and far cheaper if each car were set on a “line” and moved along to various work stations. As the car approached, a worker would perform one or two “jobs” on the car as it passed by his station.
As a result, workers did not have to be skilled, and cars could be produced at a rapid pace. The “Model T” first produced in 1908 became known as the car that “put America on wheels” because it was relatively inexpensive. In order to ensure that more of his cars would be sold, Ford promoted the $5.00 day, a wage which would allow his workers to purchase the cars they produced. Using interchangeable parts on the Model T also made the “Tin Lizzie” an inexpensive vehicle that was easy for owners to fix by themselves. Ford realized that workers were consumers as well, and so he made sure early on that his vehicles could be purchased by middle class consumers. As a result of his innovations, Ford guaranteed the success of his company for many generations.
UNIT 4: THE GREAT WAR AND ITS AFTERMATH (1914 – 1930)
WHAT CAUSED THE OUTBREAK OF WORLD WAR I IN EUROPE?
Cause - European Alliances Form: The roots of World War I can be traced back to the 1860s, when Prussia began a series of wars to unite German states. By 1871, Germany was united, thus changing European politics. In the process of unification, Germany forced France to give up some of its territory, thus making these two great nations enemies. In order to protect itself, Germany formed the Triple Alliance with the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Italy. Russia and France formed the Franco-Russian Alliance which would later be renamed the Triple Entente when neutral Great Britain joined them. The formation of these alliances created great tension in Europe that led to militarism, the rapid build-up of weapons and armies. As an island nation, Great Britain depended on its Navy not only to control its vast colonies worldwide, but also to protect itself from invasion. Since Germany, now the most powerful nation in Europe, was rapidly building a massive Navy of its own, Britain as well began to strengthen its already massive Navy. This naval build-up also increased tension in Europe.
Cause - Imperialism, Nationalism and Self-Determination: Powerful European nations were based on imperialism, the belief that a nation becomes stronger by creating an Empire made up of weaker territories that could add economic strength to the Empire. Most of the time, the weaker territories were made up of people with a different language and culture than the Empire itself. Empires competed for influence against each other and frequently attempted to expand at the expense of some other nation and Empire. This nationalism that powerful nations felt however was also a powerful force in the weaker territories they dominated. Weaker nations understood nationalism in terms of “the right to self-determination”, the idea that people who have a common language and culture should have their own country and government.
Cause - Nationalism in the Balkans: The Balkans is the historical name for the southeastern portion of Europe, taking its name from the Balkans Mountains which runs through the center. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, the different peoples of the Balkans region were controlled by the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire (Muslim). Among the Balkan territories controlled by the Empires were Bosnia, Kosovo, and Serbia. Further complicating the stability of this region was the fact that Serbia, controlled by the Austro-Hungarians, had cultural and linguistic ties to Russia. Many of the peoples in the Balkans became nationalistic, seeking to rid themselves of domination by the Empires that controlled them, and Serbia was one of them. A series of groups formed in Serbia that wanted independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and they were willing to use violence to achieve their goal.
Spark – Assasination of Archduke: In June of 1914, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, travelled to Bosnia, a Balkan land controlled by his Empire. While there, the Archduke was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist named Gavrilo Princip, who belonged to a group known as the “Black Hand”. The assassination was carried out with the knowledge of Serbian leaders who hoped that this would trigger a war with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, thus allowing Serbia to gain independence.
The Alliance System Puts the World at War: The Empire decided it was time to crush Serbia and to end Slavic nationalism in general so that it could control its Balkan territories. In preparation for war, the Empire asked for and gained the support of Kaiser Wilhelm II, leader of Germany. The Serbs however were being supported by the Russians who themselves were looking to its ally France for support. When the Austro-Hungarian Empire finally declared war on Serbia, the two competing alliances in Europe were triggered. Russia aided Serbia causing Germany to declare war on Russia. Since France was an ally of Russia, Germany then declared war on France 2 days later. Eventually, Great Britain would be forced into the conflict as it was needed to aid its allies France and Russia. World War I had begun. With the beginning of the conflict, the names of the two opposing alliances changed as well. The Allies included: France, Russia, Great Britain, and Italy. The Central Powers included: The Austro-Hungarian Empire, Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria.
WHAT EVENTS CAUSED AMERICA TO ENTER WORLD WAR I IN 1917?
America Remains Neutral: President Wilson declared the United States to be neutral, seeking to avoid American involvement in a foreign war. Americans, however, began showing support for one side or the other with many immigrants supporting their homelands. Many Americans, especially on the east coast were of German origin and so naturally sided with Germany. On the other hand, most Americans favored the Allied cause simply because of cultural and historic ties to France and Britain. As well, companies in the United States had strong ties to the Allied countries through investment and joint ventures. Many American banks gave loans to the Allies so that they could afford to arm and supply their troops in the war effort. As a result, American prosperity was increasingly tied to the outcome of the war. Loaned money would be paid back only if the Allies were victorious. Nevertheless, America remained officially neutral for the first 2 years of the war.
Introduction of Submarine Warfare: In order to limit Germany’s access to war supplies, Britain used its Navy to intercept any ship seemingly headed to German ports. These ships would be redirected to British ports where government agents would search through the shipments for contraband (prohibited items, especially war supplies). At this time, Canada and the United States were shipping huge amounts of weapons and war supplies to Britain and France, all of which were sent by ship. Knowing this, the Germans decided to limit the amount of supplies arriving on British and French shores from North America by putting into action its newest and deadliest weapon. The “unterseeboot” was a weapon first perfected by the Germans and proved to be a deadly addition to their arsenal. The submarine, called a “u-boat” at the time, could easily locate merchant ships travelling from North America to Europe and sink these ships without detection or warning, using another new weapon, the torpedo.
Germans Sink the Lusitania: Germany announced to the world that it would sink any ship it found in British waters, and in May of 1915, carried out this threat by sinking the passenger ship Lusitania, taking 128 American lives. Americans were outraged by this atrocity, and President Wilson sent furious protests to Germany, still refusing to let America get dragged into the European war. In March of 1916, Germany sank the French ship Sussex, further angering President Wilson as several Americans were injured in the attack. President Wilson informed Germany that if it continued to attack ships without warning, Germany would face war with the United States. Seeking to avoid this situation because of America’s incredible industrial strength, the Germans issued what came to be known as the Sussex Pledge.
The Sussex Pledge (1916): In order to prevent the United States from entering World War I on the side of the Allies, Germany announced what came to be known as the “Sussex Pledge”. Throughout the war, Germany’s mastery of submarine technology gave it a great advantage in attacking merchant ships supplying the Allies from Canada and America. The sinking of the Lusitania and the Sussex (passenger ships) angered President Wilson who demanded Germany cease this activity. Germany promised to give adequate warning to passing ships it intended to sink, thus allowing passengers to depart first. For a time, Germany ceased unrestricted submarine warfare. The Sussex Pledge kept America out of the war for a while longer, allowing it to remain officially neutral.
Election of 1916: Although American anger at Germany was intense, and Americans sided with the Allied cause, the nation was not yet anxious to go to war. President Wilson went into the election of 1916 on the slogan “He kept us out of the war”, running as the “peace candidate” against Republican Charles Evans Hughes. President Wilson won re-election, having read the mood of Americans accurately. However events would soon bring America into the war.
Zimmerman Telegram Enrages Americans Against Germany: The German government developed a unique plan to keep America out of the war in Europe by attempting to draw Mexico into an alliance. German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmerman instructed the German Ambassador to Mexico (through cable) to offer Mexico the territories it lost in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo if Germany won the war, hoping that Mexican forces could tie down the American military in North America, preventing America from sending troops to Europe. The Mexican Government declined the German offer. However, British intelligence intercepted the message and leaked it to American newspapers, outraging Americans who now called for war with Germany.
President Wilson’s War Message (1917): Since the British had leaked the contents of the Zimmerman Telegram to American newspapers, the outrage caused by Germany’s offer led most Americans to conclude that war with Germany was unavoidable. The final straw came on February 1, 1917 when Germany declared that it would resume unrestricted submarine warfare. Seeing no way to avoid entering the conflict, President Wilson appeared before Congress to deliver what has come to be known as “Wilson’s War Message”, a call to join the “war to end all wars”, a war that might “make the world safe for Democracy”. In his speech to Congress, Wilson explained that Germany had: (1) lifted its ban on unrestricted submarine warfare; (2) been practicing domestic sabotage on our industries; (3) been actively spying on America’s institutions. President Wilson went out of his way to state that America remained friends with the German people and with Americans of German ancestry, but that the German government had provoked the United States. Two days later, Congress declared war on Germany, bringing the United States into World War I on the side of the Allies with whom we shared more substantial cultural, political, and economic ties.
WHAT DOMESTIC CHANGES TOOK PLACE IN AMERICA DURINNG WAR I?
Opposition to the War: Some Americans remained opposed to the war effort, believing that America had no business or role in a European conflict. These “isolationists” were joined in their opposition to the war by a member of Congress. Jeanette Rankin of Montana was the first woman ever elected to Congress, having gained her seat in the election of 1916. Rankin, a suffragette, was also a pacifist (person opposed to all violence and war to solve disputes). Jeanette Rankin was among only a handful of Congressional members to vote against America’s entry into World War I. In 1941, she would be the only member to vote against America’s entry into World War II.
Wilson and the Selective Service Act (Draft): At the time, the United States military had only 110,000 soldiers. The call to war gained only 32,000 volunteers, a number far too small to fight a major war. In order to solve this problem, President Wilson gained the passage of the Selective Service Act (1917), a law that required all men aged 21 – 30 to register for military service. Critics of this law charged that Wilson was acting in an anti-democratic way by forcing men to join the military. However, with patriotic feelings taking over the country, over 2.8 million men would be drafted into military service, with less than 350,000 “dodging” the draft. This law remains in effect today as all men in the United States are still required to register with the Selective Service System upon turning 18 years old.
Propaganda - Committee on Public Information (1917): Now that America was at war, the Federal government took immediate steps to ensure the success of the Allies by creating new organizations to assist in the war effort in a variety of ways. In April 1917, President Wilson called on George Creel to organize and manage the Committee on Public Information (CPI), an agency whose main goal was to influence public opinion in favor of the war effort through the use of propaganda. Many techniques were used to sway public opinion including: (1) creation and distribution of pamphlets and posters; (2) exaggeration of enemy atrocities; (3) creation of stereotyped images of the enemy, such as “the Hun”; (4) use of Hollywood film makers to produce war-related films glorifying the war; (5) formation of patriotic groups. The enthusiasm for the war effort that this effective propaganda created had a terrible effect on Americans of German ancestry as they became frequent targets of fellow Americans.
American Food Administration (1917): Believing that “food will win the war”, President Wilson created the American Food Administration (AFA) in July of 1917, calling on future president Herbert Hoover to be its head. The purpose of this organization was ensure that as much food as possible made it to troops in Europe. In order to encourage this to happen the American Food Administration tried to reduce the consumption of needed foods at home by: (1) encouraging “meatless Mondays”; (2) encouraging “wheatless Wednesdays”; (3) popularizing the slogan “when in doubt, eat potatoes”; (4) encouraging the planting of “Victory Gardens” so that Americans could more easily feed themselves. These small measures were successful in ensuring that food made it to the soldiers in Europe.
Coordinating Production - War Industries Board (1917): Also in July of 1917, President Wilson established the War Industries Board (WIB), a new government agency whose job was to coordinate the purchase and production of war supplies. President Wilson turned to his trusted advisor Bernard Baruch to lead the Board. In order to ensure that all military needs were met, the Board encouraged manufacturers to use “mass production” techniques such as Henry Ford’s assembly line. As well, the Board increased the efficiency of manufacturers by getting them to use standardized parts. Another important role of the Board was to ensure the proper distribution of raw materials to manufacturers. Because the war effort was so important, the Board began to regulate both labor unions and the owners of factories in order to ensure that all necessary materials for the war were produced. As a result, workers made substantial gains in their wages during the course of the war. Because of the efforts of the War Industries Board, American industrial output increased by 20% by the war’s end.
Espionage Act (1917): Fearing that dissent in wartime would jeopardize an American victory, President Wilson gained the passage of the Espionage Act. This new law made it a crime to: (1) pass on misleading information that would jeopardize the efforts of the American military; (2) promote the success of American enemy nations; (3) to cause or attempt to cause men to desert the military; (4) to encourage men to resist the draft. Punishment for those convicted under the terms of the Espionage Act included extremely heavy fines, 20 – 30 years imprisonment, and death for extreme violations.
Sedition Act (1918): Originally passed as an addition to the Espionage Act, the Sedition Act was a new law that made it a crime to: (1) criticize the American government; (2) use abusive language about the U.S. Flag or American military. This law also allowed the United States Postmaster to deny the delivery of mail to any known dissenter of government policy during wartime.
IWW Opposes the War: The leaders of this radical union did not support America’s efforts in WWI and created anti-war literature which it began to distribute on American streets. Fearing that their union might become a target of government action, leaders decided to cease distributing this literature, but the damage had already been done. The Department of Justice organized raids on 48 IWW halls throughout the country which led to the trial and conviction of 101 men under the terms of the Espionage Act, claiming that the men were conspiring to hinder the Draft and encouraging desertion.
Schenck v. United States (1919): The Espionage Act clearly limited free speech during wartime, leaving many Americans to wonder if this law was constitutional. The actions of a young man named Charles Schenck would force the Supreme Court to deliver a ruling that would settle this question. Charles Schenck, a member of the Socialist Party, encouraged young men to resist the wartime draft by distributing anti-draft pamphlets. Authorities believed his activities violated the federal Espionage Act. He was charged and jailed under this Act, and he subsequently challenged his incarceration. The main question put before the Supreme Court was whether the limitations on free speech, found in the Espionage Act, violated First Amendment protection of free speech. The decision of the Court: (1) determined that the Espionage Act was constitutional; (2) stated that the circumstances in which speech is exercised are legitimate considerations in legislated limitations on speech. The court held that wartime was just such a circumstance; (3) introduced a new legal standard by which to judge the unacceptable consequences of speech: if it causes a “clear and present danger”. This decision clarified the idea that the right to free speech is not absolute, that it must be balanced against national interests that are judged to be essential. In illustrating this point, the court used the example of yelling “Fire” in a crowded movie theater, another famous legacy of this decision.
Free Speech vs. National Security – Eugene Debs: Aware of the terms of the Espionage Act, Eugene Debs, a founder of the IWW and a prominent member of the Socialist Party, crafted and delivered a speech in Canton, OH critical of the American government and criticizing the draft. Debs was charged under the Espionage Act, leading to a case that eventually ended up in the Supreme Court (Debs v. United States, 1919). Deciding that the Debs case was similar in nature to the Schenck case, Debs was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment. His sentence would later be commuted to time served in 1921. The legacy of the Espionage Act and the related Supreme Court cases is clear: individual constitutional rights may be limited by circumstances and national interest.
WHAT WERE THE IMPORTANT TURNING POINTS DURING WORLD WAR I?
World War I Prior to America’s Entry: New war technologies and new forms of warfare made their appearance in the “Great War”. Fighting between the Allies and the Central Powers occurred primarily in the Western Front (in which Germany confronted France and Britain) and in the Eastern Front (in which Germany confronted Russia).
Trench Warfare Creates a “Meat Grinder”: In order to avoid some of the devastating killing power of heavy artillery, both sides in the war started to dig deep trenches that stretched for miles, to provide cover. As a means to protect the trenches, a new weapon called the machine gun was used to mow down those attempting to attack the trenches. The space between the trenches was referred to as “No Man’s Land” which was heavily scarred by craters left by artillery shells. Barbed wire and other obstacles were introduced to prevent troops from crossing No Man’s Land. In spite of these difficulties, the goal of trench warfare was to send men “over the top” of their trenches across No Man’s Land, and attack the men in the opposing trenches. Troops fixed bayonets to the end of their rifles for use in the opposing trenches should they arrive. As well, the use of hand grenades deepened the horror of trench warfare. Both sides in the war continued to fight in this manner, leading to hundreds of thousands of deaths in major battles.
New Technologies Confront the Trenches: The Germans first introduced poison gas to trench warfare in 1915. Mustard Gas in particular would be thrown into opposing trenches which would than cause vomiting, suffocation, and blindness. As a result, troops were soon issued gas masks to lessen the effects, and both sides in the war began to use gas for the duration of the war. A second new technology was introduced by the British in late 1915 when the first tank appeared on the battlefield. The tank provided protection in No Man’s Land, could crush barbed wire, and could cross over trenches. Although unreliable in World War I, the tank would be perfected and used heavily in World War II. A third and promising new technology would also see its introduction to the battlefield during this conflict: the airplane. Planes were initially employed as effective scouting vehicles, but were soon used to drop bombs on opposing trenches. As both sides took to the air, planes were soon equipped with machine guns, leading to “dogfights” over the battlefield between opposing planes.
The Russian Revolution: During the war, Russia was led by Czar Nicholas II, a man who mismanaged its war with Germany in unimaginable ways. Many of his troops fought without proper footwear or equipment in freezing temperatures. He made poor military decisions that left Russia weakened. Further adding to his troubles was the fact that food shortages throughout the Russian Empire left many people starving. The combination of his war mismanagement and a suffering population led to the outbreak of riots in March 1917. Czar Nicholas abdicated the throne, leaving Russia in the hands of a provisional government. This new government wished to remain in the war, angering the Russian people. When it seemed unable to address food and fuel shortages, the provisional government itself was overthrown by the communist Bolshevik Party.
Russia Becomes the First Communist Nation (1917): Led by Vladimir Lenin, the Bolsheviks moved fast to take Russia out of the war, signing a treaty with Germany that gave up significant western Russian lands. This withdrawal from the war allowed Germany to concentrate on the Western front. Americans reacted to the Russian withdrawal with anger since it allowed Germany to fight harder. Since Russia became a communist nation in 1917, and because communism is somewhat similar to socialism, Americans came to distrust labor and union movements more and more as these movements frequently expressed socialist ideas. It is this event that would cause Americans to remain suspicious of unions for many more decades.
America Faces Combat: President Wilson appointed Major General John “Black Jack” Pershing to command the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in Europe. General Pershing insisted that American troops be fully trained prior to entering combat. General Pershing also insisted that the AEF operate in Europe as an army of its own rather than be used simply to support the armies of France and Britain. American infantry soldiers, nicknamed “doughboys”, brought renewed optimism to the Allies since the doughboys were fresh, eager, and anxious for action. Pershing led the AEF in its main mission to drive Germany out of France. In particular, America’s main contributions were its activities in the Aisne Offensive (repelling Germany’s advances further into France) and the Battle of the Argonne Forest (which finally pushed Germany out of France). America’s contribution of fresh forces led to Germany’s ultimate surrender and the ending of World War I. The American military came out of this war as a capable and modern Army.
American Heroes of World War I: Ironically, Alvin York initially tried to avoid fighting in World War I, believing that, as a Christian, he was forbidden to kill. Individuals who wish to avoid war because of moral beliefs are called “conscientious objectors”. However, York came to believe that the war had a just cause and came to serve in the infantry. During the battle of Argonne Forest, Sergeant York distinguished himself in the defense of his platoon by charging a German machine gun next, killing between 9 and 25 Germans, capturing their machine guns, and taking 132 German prisoners. York was awarded both the American Medal of Honor and the French Croix de Guerre. A second notable American hero made his living as a race car driver prior to the war. Eddie Rickenbacker led the first all-American plane squadron, the 94th Aero Squadron. Rickenbacker became the most successful American combat pilot of the war, having fought in 134 air battles and downing 26 enemy aircraft. Rickenbacker would be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his efforts.
HOW DID THE ALLIES ATTEMPT TO ESTABLISH PEACE?
Allied Victory over the Central Powers Changes the World: The Central Powers agreed to an armistice beginning at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month 1918, and this end to World War I brought massive changes to the world. Several empires ceased to exist (Austro-Hungarian, Russian, German, Ottoman), several new independent nations gained independence or were created (most importantly, Czechoslovakia), and Europe was in ruins.
Negotiating Peace Terms: The formal end to World War I would be negotiated over a period of 5 months and would include delegates from 27 countries. Delegates met in the French town of Versailles to establish a new peace, led by the “Big Four”: Woodrow Wilson (USA), David Lloyd George (Britain), Georges Clemenceau (France), and Vittorio Orlando (Italy). President Wilson arrived in France guided by the idea that there should be a “peace without victory”. Wilson wanted the conclusion of the war to ensure that the victorious nations treat the defeated nations as equals.
President Wilson’s Fourteen Points (1918): President Wilson brought with him to Versailles a plan for peace called the “Fourteen Points” that he hoped would guide the negotiations of the final treaty. The main goal of the Fourteen Points was to propose principles that would eliminate the general causes of war. President Wilson’s speech to Congress advocated: free trade; disarmament; freedom of the seas; impartial adjustment of colonial claims; open diplomacy rather than secret agreements; the right of national self-determination. The 14th, and most important point, called for the creation of the “League of Nations”, an international organization that would help settle disputes to preserve peace and prevent future wars.
Wilsonian Idealism: This phrase is used to refer to the President’s ideas about peace and democracy, ideas that many found to be either naïve or dangerous. Many in Europe worried that Wilson’s insistence on the idea of “national self-determination” (that nations be created based on ethnicity and national identity) might lead to political instability since many languages and ethnicities were scattered throughout Europe. Wilson’s hope for “peace without victory” was not to be. The French and the British wanted Germany to suffer for its role in the war, and both nations wanted to ensure that Germany could never again become a military threat in Europe. Germany was forced to accept the harsh conditions of the Treaty of Versailles.
The Treaty of Versailles (1919): Under the terms of the Treaty, Germany (1) was stripped of its armed forces; (2) forced to pay reparations (monetary damages for destruction); (3) was forced to accept blame and guilt for starting the war; (4) was forced to give up control of some territories. Nine new countries were created, including Poland and Czechoslovakia. The severity of the terms imposed on Germany, the humiliation of accepting blame, and worldwide depression created the conditions that lead to Hitler’s rise, sowing the seeds of World War II.
WHAT MAJOR EVENTS AFFECTED AMERICA FOLLOWING WORLD WAR I?
Irreconcilables and Reservationists – Senate Rejects Treaty Ratification: Once the terms of the Treaty of Versailles were established, President Wilson then had to get the U.S. Senate to approve the treaty. The President soon learned that there was fierce opposition to the treaty, particularly the part that called for the creation of the “League of Nations”. One group of Senators, called the “Irreconcilables”, refused to even discuss the Treaty because it believed the League of Nations would entangle America in alliances that George Washington had warned against over 100 years earlier. A second group led by Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, nicknamed the “Reservationists”, was willing to consider signing the Treaty if changes were made to the proposed League of Nations. The main concern was that the League, as described in the Treaty, could declare war and would require member nations to follow suit. This was unacceptable to the Reservationists since the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war. If Wilson could amend the treaty to allow Congress to approve any military action before troops were committed, then the Reservationists might be willing to approve. Wilson refused to arrange such changes, and as a result, the Senate refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles. America went on to make peace treaties with each of the Central Powers separately. The League of Nations did come into existence. However, without American participation, it would ultimately fail as an institution designed to keep world peace.
Aftermath of the War at Home: After World War I ended, rapid inflation resulted when government agencies removed their controls from the American economy. Inflation increased the “cost of living” (food, clothing, shelter, and other essentials people needed). The number of members in unions increased greatly during the war, and the unions themselves became better organized. Because business leaders wanted to decrease their power, a large number of strikes occurred as a result of labor-management disputes. Because Americans now distrusted unions because of their association with socialism and communism, unions came to be seen as disloyal and unpatriotic. The numerous strikes in the U.S. in 1919 made Americans fear that Communists, or “reds” might take control. This led to the panic known as the “Red Scare”.
Two Competing Visions of Society: The Bolshevik Revolution which took place in Russia put in place a new form of government: communism. Vladimir Lenin, the Bolshevik leader soon changed the name of Russia to the United Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and founded an international organization called the “Communist International” (1919). The purpose of this new organization was to coordinate the activities of other socialist and communist parties worldwide to spread this new form of government. The threat of communism coming to America frightened many because communism advocated government ownership of all property. In practice, communism never included democracy and enforced state atheism. All of these aspects of communism were opposed to the American way of life which included the “pursuit of happiness” (property), democracy, and freedom of religion.
The First Red Scare: Further worrying Americans was the fact that several letters sent to prominent Americans throughout the United States were intercepted by the Post office which discovered that they contained bombs. In May of 1919, socialists, communists, and union members staged a parade protesting the imprisonment of union leader Eugene Debs. This parade turned into a riot that left 2 dead and 40 injured. In June of 1919, eight bombs in eight cities exploded at the same time, leading many to believe that a communist conspiracy to overthrow America was underway. One of these bombs damaged the home of U.S. Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer.
The Palmer Raids: Palmer organized a new division within the Justice Department that came to be known as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), putting J. Edgar Hoover in charge. Believing that a “blaze of revolution” was “burning up the foundations of society”, Hoover organized a series of raids that came to known as the Palmer Raids. The purpose was to disrupt the activities of radical organizers who might be threatening American society. Many of the raids focused on immigrants, already suspected of importing communist ideas into America’s unions. Ignoring the civil liberties of many, the Palmer Raids resulted in the detainment of thousands of people and the deportation of hundreds. The Red Scare and Palmer Raids shaped the opinions of Americans about unions, socialism, and immigrants for decades.
American Desire for Isolationism: With the memory of World War I still fresh, many Americans simply wanted to retreat from the world stage, especially European politics. This attitude of wishing to withdraw from international concerns came to be known as “isolationism”. The realities of the post-war world made this view unrealistic however. America’s economic and industrial strength, its need for markets, and its new role as a world leader made isolationism impossible. America soon turned its attention to the world economy and arms control.
The Dawes Plan to Bring Economic Stability: Allied nations had difficulty making payments on the money they owed to American banks as a result of wartime loans. High American tariffs made it difficult for the Allies to sell goods in America, and the reparation payments they were expecting from Germany drove that nation into depression, leaving it unable to make payments in full. In order to solve these problems, American Diplomat Charles G. Dawes came to an agreement with the British, French, and German governments. American banks would make loans to Germany so that it could honor its reparations obligations of the Treaty of Versailles. In exchange, Britain and France agreed that they would accept smaller payments from Germany, thus allowing them to pay back more on their war debts in America.
The Washington Naval Conference Encourages Disarmament: Even though the world was at peace, many nations continued to build up their navies, a fact that worried the American government. In order to encourage disarmament, Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes called for a major naval conference during which he proposed a 10-year moratorium on the construction of new battleships, and the destruction of a certain number of existing ships. These proposals were formalized in the Five Power Naval Limitation Treaty (signed by the United States, Britain, France, Italy, and Japan). This attempt at preserving peace did not address any concerns about land forces or weapons. Although it signed the Treaty, Japan was angered because it limited this island nation to a navy smaller than that of the American or the British.
UNIT 5: PROSPERITY AND DEPRESSION (1919 – 1939)
HOW DID POPULAR CULTURE CHANGE IN THE 1920s?
Prohibition (1919 – 1933): The passage of the Volstead Act (18th Amendment) banning the distilling, sale, distribution, and consumption of alcohol across the United States created a dramatic shift in lifestyle. Beginning in 1920, the enforcement of Prohibition was handed over to the federal Treasury Department, thus creating a whole new force of “G Men”, agents responsible for carrying out the various parts of the 18th Amendment. This dramatic increase in federal police powers drove the production and consumption of alcohol underground. In the towns and cities, many Americans “wet their whistles” at secret bars called “speakeasies”. In the countryside, “shiners” and “bootleggers” distilled liquor and sold it through secret channels. The desire for liquor amongst Americans provided a golden opportunity for organized crime. The notorious gangster Al Capone of Chicago made millions of dollars during Prohibition by smuggling liquor into the U.S. from Canada, and then distributing it throughout the country. Liquor also came into the U.S. from the Caribbean. An unintended effect of Prohibition was to create a sophisticated organized crime network that continues to this day. Prohibition finally came to an end in 1933 with the passage of the 21st Amendment. Although designed to reduce crime and social problems, Prohibition actually increased problems and reduced Americans’ respect for law.
Automobiles: Henry Ford radically changed American life with his affordable automobiles. The isolation of rural life ended as people could now live farther away from their workplace. Living patterns changed as a result, allowing for the increased development of “suburbs” around cities to which “auto commuters” could drive after work. The automobile would also begin to affect social patterns as young couples could now drive off, away from the prying eyes of parents. The automobile has become an enduring American symbol of freedom.
The Harlem Renaissance: As African-Americans migrated to northern cities in large numbers, they brought with them a desire to take advantage of the greater freedom they experienced. The concentration of many blacks in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City led to an explosion of artistic creativity that has influenced American and world culture ever since. Black literature came to have a powerful influence in the 1920s as a result of 3 notable writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Chuck McKay’s poetry describing the Black experience of racism in such poems as “The Lynching” and “If We Must Die” gained a wide audience. Langston Hughes used his work to encourage fellow blacks to embrace their own history and achievements. Zora Neale Hurston published novels in the 1930s that featured strong Black women as central characters as she explored the rural side of Black culture.
Jazz and Blues: The first truly American music to gain worldwide popularity had its roots in “Dixieland Blues” and “ragtime”, two forms of music common in the South and familiar to southern Blacks. As part of the Great Migration, Duke Ellington had moved to New York City and began to play a new form of music that came to be called Jazz. Although influenced by the earlier forms of Dixieland and Ragtime, Jazz included an improvisational aspect that electrified music lovers. As a gifted pianist, Duke Ellington played this new form of music at the great “Cotton Club” in Harlem as well as in many speakeasies. Indeed, Jazz became the “soundtrack” of the 1920s and the illegal alcohol culture. Another pioneer of Jazz music was also a migrant from the south, Louis Armstrong. With his trumpet in hand, Armstrong migrated to Chicago from Louisiana and created another form of Jazz, taking advantage of the creative freedom in Chicago’s South Side. Another form of music, based on themes and sounds from African American spirituals, came to be known as blues. Among the earliest pioneers of the blues was Bessie Smith, a soulful vocalist who sang of unfulfilled love, poverty, and hard times. Also among the earliest blues pioneers was Robert Johnson, the great blues guitarist and singer. Johnson’s influence on blues guitar playing can still be heard echoing through such bands as the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and Lynrd Skynrd.
Popular Culture: Americans began to have an increasing number of entertainment choices during the 1920s. Movies finally developed the technology to record sound, and in 1927, “The Jazz Singer” became the first “Talkie”, leading to an explosion of movie making that became the “Golden Age of Hollywood”. New heroes appeared on the American scene as sports became professionalized. Baseball became extremely popular during the 1920s and 1930s, making such names as Babe Ruth a household name. Boxing as well became a favorite pastime as Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney drew thousands to their fights. Americans were also fascinated with flight and eagerly followed the career of Charles Lindbergh, an aviator who became the first man to cross the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Paris in 1927, and becoming a national hero.
Radio: Perhaps the most influential technological development of the Jazz Age (nickname for the 1920s) was the invention of the radio. In 1913 an American engineer named Edwin Armstrong solved the practical problem of transmitting sound through the air without using wires. His discovery led to the beginning of the radio industry in 1920 when the Westinghouse Company broadcast the news of President Harding’s election through the first public radio station, KDKA in Pittsburgh. By 1926, The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) had set up a “network” of radio stations broadcasting the same content. In 1928, the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) also established permanent networks of radio stations to distribute daily programming, becoming a rival to NBC. Soon after, most American homes had a radio in their living rooms, becoming a major form of entertainment. Americans could enjoy music, sports broadcasts, “soap operas”, comedy programs, public events, and news reports. Although radio was free to listeners, the programming they enjoyed would be interrupted by advertisements from those wishing to sell their products to consumers. It is through the sales of advertising that radio made its profits.
Marketing and Advertising: The new medium of radio boosted the growth of marketing and advertising as a means to make money. “Ad Agencies” crafted messages for clients that would help them sell their products to a wide audience. Advertising, especially on radio, was used to convince Americans that they needed new products. Ads linked products with qualities that were popular in the modern era, such as convenience, leisure, success, fashion, and style. Radio was even used to publicize a new product of the time, sliced-bread.
Birth of Mass Media: The term “mass media” refers to forms of communication that reach broad audiences, and includes such forms as movies, newspapers, magazines, and most importantly, radio. As a result of the mass media, the regional differences in culture and lifestyle throughout the United States began to disappear. From coast to coast, Americans now consumed the same forms of entertainment, received the same information, bought the same products, and were exposed to new ideas all at the same time. America was beginning to form a truly national culture as a result of the new communication technologies.
The Lost Generation and the Ashcan Realists: Not all Americans embraced the rapid pace of modern life and the increasingly commercialized culture it created. A group of writers who came to be known as the “Lost Generation” were deeply disillusioned by World War I and had come to see American life as superficial and empty. Among the most notable of this group was Ernest Hemingway, who expressed his disappointment in novels such as “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and “A Farewell to Arms”. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece “The Great Gatsby” was highly critical of the materialistic “American Dream”. Edith Wharton criticized the arrogance of the rich and the well-placed in her novel “The Age of Innocence”. Sinclair Lewis in his novels “Main Street” and “Babbitt” described the absurd nature of small town life. Painters as well expressed the emptiness they experienced as a result of modern life. Among the “Ashcan Realists” was Edward Hopper who explored the loneliness of modern life in paintings such as “The Automat”. [an automat is a place where patrons purchased food and drinks from vending machines]
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR SOCIAL CHALLENGES OF THE 1920s?
Revival of Nativism: Several forces worked together to again stir nativist feelings across the United States. The poor economic conditions immediately following World War I left many scrambling for work. Immigration from the south and east of Europe began to pick up. As well, many Americans still harbored resentment at Germans and communists that was then extended to all immigrants. Many came to believe that the returning doughboys had to compete for jobs with new immigrants. Strikes, bombings, and poor economic conditions left many Americans blaming immigrants, and they expressed their feelings in a variety of ways.
Revival of the Ku Klux Klan: Claiming to fight for “Americanism”, a newly revived Klan added Catholics, Jews, and immigrants to its list of “undesirables”, and was at the forefront of lobbying for greater immigration restrictions. William J. Simmons, leader of the Klan during the 1920s, used modern marketing techniques to increase membership to an astonishing 4 million Americans, and had spread its influence throughout the North promoting a vision of a white, Protestant America.
The Sacco and Vanzetti Trial: In early 1920, two people were murdered in Massachusetts. Living nearby were two Italian immigrants, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, both of whom were “anarchists” (people who oppose all forms of government). Sacco and Vanzetti were charged with the murders and put on trial based on questionable evidence. The nativist feelings of most Americans at the time, including the jury, combined with sensational newspaper coverage, led to their conviction and execution. Although historians continue to debate the guilt of these two men, the Sacco and Vanzetti case clearly reveals the attitude of Americans at the time toward immigrants.
Congress Restricts Immigration: The public mood of wishing to “Keep America American” finally resulted in Congressional action. In 1921, Congress passed the Emergency Quota Act, a law that restricted immigration to 3% of the total number of people in any ethnic group already living in the United States. As a result, this law attempted to restrict immigration based on ethnicity and national origin. Further immigration restrictions were imposed in 1924 with the passage of the National Origins Act. Attempting to restrict immigrants from the south and east of Europe, this law set quotas based on the ethnic balance of America from 40 years earlier, prior to the “New Immigration” that began in the late 1890s. The standards set by the National Origins Act favored immigrants from the north and west of Europe, and would remain in place for another 40 years.
Rise of Black Nationalism: Stressing racial pride, Marcus Garvey became a new and prominent voice for millions of Black Americans. Garvey preached “Negro Nationalism”, an idea that glorified Black culture and traditions. In order to spread his message, Garvey organized the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), challenging Blacks to become educated and economically self-sufficient. Going further than previous Black leaders, Garvey encouraged a “Back to Africa” movement, believing that Blacks needed to be separated from Whites because they would never find freedom in America. Middle class Blacks and artists in the Harlem Renaissance were repulsed by Garvey and UNIA. The federal government also worried that his inflammatory speech could lead to riots in cities. Although ultimately convicted of mail fraud, Garvey’s message of Black pride would later resurface in different forms during the decades to come.
1924 Native American Suffrage Act: Native Americans had a unique status in American society. Those that chose to live off of reservations were permitted to have American citizenship while those who remained in the jurisdiction of the Reservations were excluded. Congress finally granted all Native Americans full citizenship rights, including the suffrage, in 1924 with the passage of the Native American Suffrage Act, regardless of whether they lived on or off a reservation.
Changes for Women in the 1920s: The status of women began to change dramatically with the passage of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote. Women began to challenge the traditional image of womanhood presented to them in popular magazines, and began to carve out more independent identities. Contributing to this change were the ideas of Sigmund Freud, a psychoanalyst whose ideas about sexuality had become topics of public conversation. The freedom granted by the automobile left women with new opportunities to socialize with men in ways that were denied to them previously. Women began increasingly to take jobs and attend college, providing them the opportunity to live single and to avoid or delay marriage. All of these changes regarding the place and role of women in society came to be known as the “New Morality”. Fashion reflected the new independence of women, and the “Flapper” made great strides in changing the image of women. A flapper was a young woman who wore her hair short, wore short, sleeveless skirts, lived alone, held a job, drank illegal liquor, and smoked cigarettes. Adding to the challenge of the New Morality were the efforts of Margaret Sanger, a public health nurse in New York. Sanger argued that the standard of living for all people, especially for women, would rise if birth control were used. In order to educate women and encourage the use of contraceptives, Sanger founded the American Birth Control League in 1921, which later came to known as Planned Parenthood. Sanger’s work allowed women to take more control of their sexuality and popularize the use of contraceptives in the United States.
The Rise of Fundamentalism: Not all Americans embraced the New Morality and the nature of modern society. Others came to believe that America had lost its traditional values and morality and needed to get back to the “Fundamentals”, especially in religious terms. Fundamentalists are Christians who believe that the Bible is literally true, that the idea that humans “evolved” over millions of years was false, and that Creationism is accurate (the world and humans were created exactly as described in the Book of Genesis). Popularizing the fundamentalist view were two national figures, both flamboyant preachers who delivered their message in a very theatrical fashion. Aimee Semple McPherson employed tent revivals and faith healings to draw followers to hear her message while Billy Sunday riled crowds with fiery, dramatic sermons.
The Scopes Monkey Trial: Modernists and Fundamentalists would collide in one of the most famous trials in American history, and it began with the 1925 Tennessee law that banned the teaching of evolution in public schools. John Scopes, a biology teacher from Dayton, TN decided to challenge this law by teaching the ideas of Charles Darwin. Scopes was charged with violating the Tennessee law and was placed on trial in the summer of 1925. Representing the prosecution, and the “Creationist” side, was William Jennings Bryan, the 3-time presidential candidate. Representing Scopes was famed trial attorney Clarence Darrow. The 8-day trial resulted in the conviction of Scopes who then had to pay a $100 fine. The soaring arguments from Bryan and Darrow were broadcast live throughout the country and captured the attention of the entire nation. Although his conviction would later be overturned, the Scopes Monkey Trial clearly demonstrated the tension in America between traditionalists and modernists.
WHAT WERE KEY ASPECTS OF THE BOOM AND BUST CYCLE OF THE 1920s AND 1930s?
President Warren G. Harding: Following the turmoil of World War I, Americans were ready for a change. In 1920, Republican Warren G. Harding was swept into the presidency with over 60% of the popular vote, based on his promise of a “return to normalcy”. President Harding was extremely popular with Americans because of his easygoing and likable personality. As the 1920s began, Americans enjoyed a new standard of living. Wages increased and work hours decreased. At the same time, unions lost influence and membership. Employers promoted an “open shop” (workers not required to join a union). In order to discourage union membership, employers began to use “Welfare Capitalism”, an approach to employees where employees were able to purchase stock in the company, participate in profit sharing, and receive health and other benefits. Welfare capitalism made unions seem increasingly unnecessary. The “roaring 20s”, as this era came to be called, was so named because of the extended period of prosperity Americans enjoyed. That prosperity came about as a result of the economic policies of the Harding administration, particularly those encouraged by two key members: Andrew Mellon and Herbert Hoover.
Supply-Side Economics Fuels Prosperity: Through the influence of Andrew Mellon, Harding’s Secretary of the Treasury, the Harding Administration applied the idea of “supply-side economics” to reduce taxes. This idea suggested that lower taxes would allow businesses and consumers to spend and invest their extra money, resulting in economic growth. This economic growth would increase the amount of money made by Americans so that, in the end, government would collect more taxes at a lower rate. Andrew Mellon convinced Congress to reduce income tax rates dramatically, resulting in a .5% tax rate for most Americans, and a 25% tax rate for the richest Americans.
Co-Operative Individualism: Harding’s Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover used a friendlier approach to business than did the Progressive Presidents. Secretary Hoover encouraged manufacturers to form their own organizations and share information with the federal government in order to stimulate the economy. This information could then be used to identify and target new markets for products. This approach to business came to be known as “cooperative individualism”. Indeed, Hoover worked hard to assist many industries, especially aviation and radio, by founding many bureaus within the Commerce Department that worked to coordinate the development of these new industries, and to find new markets for others.
The Teapot Dome Scandal Taints the Harding Administration: When he arrived in Washington, Harding brought with him a group of friends who came to be known as the “Ohio Gang”, giving many of them powerful positions. Several of his drinking and poker buddies would take advantage of their positions for their own gain, creating several scandals. The most infamous would involve Albert Fall and bribery. The Federal government owns vast stretches of land throughout the United States. In Wyoming, one federally-owned land was also a rich source of oil. On that land sits a rock formation that looks like the dome of a teapot, thus earning that patch of land a nickname: “teapot dome”. The oil produced in this field was once controlled by the Navy, however in 1921, President Hoover shifted control to the Department of the Interior, headed by Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall. In 1922, Secretary Fall leased this rich oil land to oil operator Harry Sinclair for a cheap rate. The Senate became suspicious of this deal when it learned that Sinclair had twice “loaned” Secretary Fall $100,000. Albert Fall would be convicted of accepting bribes and sent to prison. Harding however would never know the extent of all the scandals that became attached to his name as he died of a heart attack in office during the summer of 1923.
President Calvin Coolidge: Harding’s death immediately brought his Vice-President Calvin Coolidge into the presidency. Nicknamed “Silent Cal” because of his withdrawn and quiet nature, President Coolidge was easily re-elected President in 1924 on the slogan “Keep Cool with Coolidge”. President Coolidge believed that government should interfere with business as little as possible, once stating that “the business of the American people is business”. Coolidge continued to follow the economic policies of Andrew Mellon and Herbert Hoover, thus continuing America’s economic prosperity through the 1920s.
President Herbert Hoover: Because President Coolidge decided not to run for office in 1928, the Republicans chose Herbert Hoover as their candidate. The Democrats nominated New York Governor Alfred E. Smith, the first Catholic to win a major party nomination. Many Protestants at the time believed that if Smith won the presidency, then the Catholic Church might rule the U.S. These charges, which disgusted Herbert Hoover, had an impact, leading to his election as President. In his inauguration speech, President Hoover declared “I have no fears for the future of our country…it is bright with hope”. Given the prosperity of the times, President Hoover seemed to have every reason to be optimistic, especially given the success of the Stock Market at the time of his election.
The Stock Market: The stock market was established in the late 1700s as a place for buying and selling shares of companies. The world’s most prominent stock market is the New York Stock Exchange located on Wall Street, New York City. Prosperous times during the 1920s caused many Americans to invest their money in the many companies offering “shares” or “stock” in their business. When a person buys a stock in a company, that person becomes a part owner of that company and is entitled to a share of the profits, known as dividends. Investors purchased stocks from “brokers”, agents who handle the buying and selling of stocks on behalf of companies. The more stocks a person owns, the more dividends they can earn. To purchase a stock is to “bet” that the company you invest in will continue to be profitable, and in the 1920s, it seemed that the stock market was always a “bull market” (financial climate of optimism, that the economy is growing and business profitable). Few expected a “bear market” (financial climate of pessimism, that the economy is shrinking and business unprofitable).
Purchasing Stocks on Margin: Because Americans were so optimistic that stocks would continue to rise in price and provide profits, many began to purchase their stocks on “margin”, a purchasing arrangement in which an investor pays only 10% of stock’s price, with the promise that the other 90% would be paid at a later date. If the value of a stock continued to rise, it would be very easy for the investor to make money simply by selling the stock at a new higher price, and pocketing the profit without having risked much of her own money. Purchasing stocks in this fashion, betting that the price will rise and bring a quick profit, came to be known as “speculation”. In the late 1920s, new investors bid stock prices up without looking at a company’s prospects for earning future profits.
Black Tuesday: By late 1929, a lack of new investors in the stock market caused stock prices to drop and the bull market came to an end. As the bear market took hold, stock brokers began to issue a “margin call”, a request that investors who purchased stock on margin now pay the remaining 90% of the stock purchase price owed. Investors responded by placing their stocks up for sale, causing the stock market to plummet further. Stock prices fell dramatically on October 29, 1929, Black Tuesday, resulting in a $10 to $15 billion loss in value. While this did not cause the Great Depression, it did undermine the economy’s ability to hold out against its other weaknesses. The “Stock Market Crash” of 1929 would end the incredible prosperity of the 1920s.
How Banks Make Profit: Banks are private businesses that make their profits through providing financial services. The least profitable side of banking is to offer a place for people to store their money, in savings or checking accounts. Banks will take the money deposited in these accounts and then offer it to others in search of loans for homes, businesses, or other investments. Banks will also invest this deposited money in stocks or other financial instruments. When a bank loans money, it expects that money to be paid back with interest. It is this side of banking that can be very profitable. As a result, banks never store all of the money it has on deposit; it uses it to make loans and other investments.
Banks Weakened by Crash – Bank Runs: When the stock market crashed, banks were severely weakened in two ways: (1) much of the money banks had loaned was to stock speculators who could no longer repay their loans; (2) banks had invested in the Stock Market, leaving them holding stocks that were now worth far less than the money paid for them. If a bank “collapsed”, that is, went out of business because it had lost all its money, then people who had money deposited in the collapsed bank would never get their money back. As banks began to collapse, many Americans became panicked and ran to their banks at the same time to withdraw their deposits. These “bank runs” caused even more banks to collapse. By 1932, 10% of America’s banks had closed, and those still open had cut back the amount of loans they were willing to make. Since “credit” was increasingly difficult to get because few people were able to borrow money, the economy quickly fell into recession.
Economic Factors: Efficient machinery used in “mass production” such as the assembly line led to the overproduction of goods, and Americans could not afford to buy all the goods produced. The uneven distribution of wealth added to the country’s economic problems. More than two thirds of the nation’s families earned less than $2500 a year. Workers’ wages did not increase fast enough to keep up with production of goods. The 1920s also saw the appearance of “installment purchasing” in which Americans could purchase large items, such as large appliances and cars, by making a “down payment”, and then agreeing to pay the remainder in monthly installments. Paying off installment debts left little money to purchase other goods. The decrease in sales of other goods led to workers being laid off from their jobs, resulting in a chain reaction that further hurt the economy.
The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act (1930) Deepens the Depression: Although President Hoover argued against it, Congress passed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act in 1930, believing that raising the prices of imported goods would allow American manufacturers to sell more of their goods, and would protect manufacturers from foreign competition. This new tariff, rather than improving American business, worsened what had now become a depression. Americans purchased less from abroad because of the now higher costs of imported products, the intended effect of the new tariff. The unintended effect however was that other nations now placed tariffs on American products. As a result, American manufacturers now exported 80% less than they did in 1929.
Errors of The Federal Reserve : The main function of the Federal Reserve is to regulate the amount of money in circulation in the American economy. During the booming 1920s, the Federal Reserve set low interest rates on money made available to banks. This fact had two effects in causing the Great Depression: (1) the low interest rate encouraged banks to make risky loans; (2) the low interest rate encouraged businesses to borrow money, thinking the economy was strong. The “Fed” then made a second error: it raised interest rates too high, thus reducing the amount of credit available and bringing economic activity to a standstill.
HOW DID AMERICANS REACT TO THE BEGINNING OF THE DEPRESSION?
Protesting Economic Conditions: As conditions worsened, many Americans began to protest the poor economic conditions that left many broke and hungry. Beginning in 1931, “hunger marches” began to occur throughout the nation to the slogan “feed the hungry and tax the rich”. Farmers began losing their properties to banks which had foreclosed on them for failure to make payments. Some desperate farmers began to destroy portions of their own crops in order to drive up the price of agricultural products.
The Bonus Army: Perhaps the most notorious incident in the early Great Depression was the “Bonus Army”. Following World War I, the doughboys were promised that each would receive a $1000 bonus for their service in 1945. In 1931 Congressman Wright Patman, recognizing the suffering of these veterans, introduced a bill in Congress that would authorize early payment of the bonus. In order to encourage passage of this legislation, veterans from around the country began to march to Washington, with 15,000 eventually setting up makeshift camps in various locations around the Capitol. When the bill was defeated, some veterans returned home while others remained in Washington, “squatting” in abandoned buildings. President Hoover eventually ordered the military to clear the buildings and camps. The use of teargas and violence led to press coverage that ruined President Hoover’s reputation as the election of 1932 approached.
Life During the Great Depression: As unemployment soared, Americans began to lose their homes, often being evicted by court officers known as “bailiffs”. Having nowhere to go, many of these homeless people would form communities of shacks and shanties on unused public lands. Blaming the President for their difficulties, these communities came to be known as “Hoovervilles”. Others took to roaming around the country in search of jobs by walking, hitchhiking, or “riding the rails”. These desperate wanderers came to known as “hobos”. Those who remained in their hometowns frequently joined “breadlines” and attended “soup kitchens” in order to eat. Towns, cities, and private charities such as the YMCA attempted to meet the immediate needs of the hungry.
The Dust Bowl: Farmers as well faced hard times during the Great Depression. The Wheat Belt (from the Dakotas to Texas) experienced a severe drought beginning in the late 1920s and extending until the late 1930s. The lack of moisture in the ground brought about by the drought loosened the soils, turning them to dust. Just as this happened, a long period of severe wind storms battered the Great Plains, creating clouds of dust bad enough to suffocate animals and people unfortunate enough to be caught outdoors when they hit. This “Dust Bowl” eventually caused many to migrate westward to California in search of better opportunities. Because many of these people came from Oklahoma, these farmer migrants came to be known as “Okies”.
President Hoover Reacts: Initially, President Hoover believed that “relief” (money given directly to those suffering) was a responsibility of local and state governments, along with charitable organizations. However, when these failed to address people’s immediate concerns, Congress passed the Emergency Relief and Construction Act, a law that provided 1.5 billion dollars for public works projects and made 300 million dollars available to states to deliver relief. President Hoover eventually signed this bill, and then he created the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, a federal agency designed to stimulate the economy. With these two steps, President Hoover had created a new federal role in the lives of Americans during peacetime.
HOW DID THE NEW DEAL ENLARGE THE ROLE OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT?
The Election of 1932 – The New Deal: Referring to the Great Depression and President Hoover’s response to it, the Democratic nominee, in his acceptance speech stated: “Republican leaders not only have failed in material things, they have failed in national vision…I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a ‘new deal’ for the American people”. With these words, the expression “New Deal” has become forever associated with Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), the winner of the 1932 presidential election. Upon taking office, FDR moved at a frantic pace to pass 15 major pieces of legislation to address the problems of the Great Depression that came to be known as the “First New Deal”.
The First Hundred Days: Between March 9, 1933 and June 16, 1933, a period that has come to be known as the “Hundred Days”, FDR led the most productive session of law-making in American history. Along with his advisers, a group of talented men who came to be known as the “Brain Trust”, FDR’s first act in office was to settle the banking crisis by gaining the passage of the Emergency Banking Relief Act. This new law required that all banks be licensed by the Treasury Department and that they “open their books” for inspection by federal officials.
Fireside Chats Hearten the Public: Taking advantage of the power of radio, FDR immediately shared the contents of the Emergency Banking Act through a national radio address, stating that “it is safer to keep your money in a reopened bank than under the mattress”. With 60 million Americans listening that night, FDR had single-handedly ended the banking crisis as the next day, deposits outnumbered withdrawals. FDR would play a crucial role during the Great Depression by communicating with Americans via radio in what came to be called “Fireside Chats”. His frequent radio broadcasts lifted the mood of the nation in a time of suffering. Also lifting national spirits in 1933 was the fact that Prohibition was coming to an end with the passage of the 21st Amendment. One of the most popular songs of the time, “Happy Days are Here Again”, reflected the relief of Americans that alcohol consumption was again legal. FDR would use radio to communicate to the American people the goals of the many new agencies his Administration had created in the first Hundred Days.
Securities Exchange Commission (SEC): In order to protect future investors, Congress passed the Securities Act, a law that required all companies that sold stocks and bonds to provide truthful information to investors about the state of their companies and their financial products. In order to oversee the demands of this new law, Congress created a new government agency to be known as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It main goals, then and now, are to prevent fraud and to regulate the stock market.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): Congress passed the Glass-Steagall Act which separated banks into Investment Banks (dealing with corporations) and Commercial Banks. This new law prevented commercial banks from investing depositors’ money in the stock market, a major problem that led to the Great Depression. A second major part of this law was the formation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). This agency provides government insurance for depositors’ funds up to $100,000. As a result, if a bank failed, deposits of up to $100,000 would be protected by the federal government. This new agency restored confidence in the banking system.
Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA): Attempting to deal with the problems of farmers, Congress created the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, based on the idea that farmers grew too much food, thus lowering the price of agricultural products. Under this new law, farmers would be paid not to grow certain crops or raise certain animals. Many across the country began to plow fields under, slaughter millions of animals, and dump dairy products. As time passed, the prices for agricultural products rose. Although this move helped large commercial farms which focused on one crop, owners of smaller farms with diverse crops did not benefit as much. Furthermore, sharecroppers were hurt by this legislation as the land they worked was taken out of production, leaving many, especially African Americans, homeless.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA): In order to assist the particularly hard hit Tennessee Valley, the TVA was created in order to achieve several goals: (1) control flooding by building dams; (2) generate electricity using the flood-control dams; (3) bring electricity to rural part of the South; (4) stimulate economic activity in the South using newly available electricity. The TVA’s ultimate goal was to rapidly modernize portions of the South and stimulate economic growth in the region.
National Recovery Administration (NRA): Congress passed the National Industrial Recovery Act with the intention of stimulating manufacturing in a variety of industries. Congress encouraged industries to develop voluntary rules that would govern fair competition and fair wages. In order to encourage this to happen, Congress created a new agency, the National Recovery Administration (NRA), and created a blue eagle logo that businesses could display if they chose to follow the rules created for its industry. It was hoped that NRA businesses would gain more customers by volunteering to honor rules and codes for its industries. Because large companies made the industry rules, and because they could afford to pay the wages they set, smaller companies were left out of this program. Further, since membership as an NRA business was voluntary, many simply chose not to join. The Supreme Court ultimately found that this agency was unconstitutional, but by this time, the goals of the NRA had failed miserably.
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC): This work relief program was open to men aged 18 – 25, and was administered by the Forestry Service. Men would work on a variety of works projects including tree-planting, fire fighting, and park construction. Hanging Rock Park, located in Stokes County, NC was constructed through the CCC. Men would camp near their work projects, live in camps, and be paid $30 each month, $25 of which had to be sent back to family. The CCC also taught many thousands to read while working in the camps.
Federal Emergency Relief Agency (FERA): The purpose of this agency was to make money available to state and local governments which would create relief projects for their people. Many of the projects that were started by using FERA money were criticized as not being sensible in the long run. To this criticism, Henry Hopkins, FERA’s head, famously responded: “people don’t eat in the long run – they eat every day”.
Public Works Administration (PWA): Because 1/3 of the men unemployed during the Great Depression were in the construction industry, Congress created the PWA, a work relief program that led to the employment of men to build highways, dams, sewer systems, schools, and other government facilities. PWA would hire construction companies to complete the projects which would then hire men. Because these companies worked on federal contracts, they were required not to discriminate in the hiring process. As a result, many of the racial barriers in the construction industry were broken down.
Works Progress Administration (WPA): The actions of the federal government in the New Deal succeeded in boosting the morale of Americans, but it was unable to end the Great Depression. Always willing to experiment with new ideas to address the economic difficulties of the time, FDR launched the “Second New Deal” in 1935. Among this new series of programs was the Works Progress Administration (WPA). This largest of the work relief programs was dedicated to the construction of roads (650,000 miles), bridges (124,000), public buildings (125,000), parks (8,000), and airports (853). Over 8.5 million men would work on WPA projects by the time it ended. Even artists, musicians, actors, and writers would gain employment in their fields under the WPA.
Wagner Act (1935) and Changes in Labor: Written by Senator Robert Wagner (D), the purposes of the Wagner Act were to (1) guarantee the rights of workers to organize trade unions; (2) require secret balloting when workers voted on whether or not to have a union; (3) allow workers to bargain collectively with employers. Formally called the National Labor Relations Act, this law created the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and established the dispute mechanism known as “binding arbitration” for difficult disputes between employers and individual workers. A worker could take a complaint to the NLRB which would then listen to both sides and then make a binding decision which the employer had to respect. Further, the NLRB could investigate employers who were suspected of engaging in unfair employment practices.
Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO): The Wagner Act led to increased union activities and the creation of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). This new organization led by union organizers had as its goal the unionization of many of America’s industries, especially automobile and steel. It soon branched out to organize workers in a variety of fields, skilled and unskilled. In order to encourage further unionization, the CIO developed a new strategy called the “sit-down strike” in which workers would simply stop working and sit down at their workplace. By doing this, employers could not send in replacement workers, forcing them to negotiate. It was this technique that eventually led to the formation of America’s largest union in 1937, the United Auto Workers (UAW). Watching over much of this change in labor relations was Frances Perkins, FDR’s Secretary of Labor, who served from 1933 to 1945 and was America’s first female Cabinet member. Secretary Perkins played a role in the administration of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), passed in 1938. This law established for the first time a national “minimum wage” and guaranteed “time and a half” for hours worked over the national standard of 40 hours per week.
Social Security Administration: Perhaps the most important program established by the FDR and the Brain Trust was the Social Security Administration. This far reaching program had several goals: (1) provide a retirement benefit to workers at age 65; (2) provide temporary unemployment benefits to workers who lose their jobs; (3) provide welfare payments to needy people; (4) provide income to the disabled who are unable to work; (5) provide assistance to poor mothers with dependent children. In order to fund this program, employees and employers would contribute a portion of wages earned to the federal government in the form of a tax on paychecks. In its original form, farmers and domestic workers were left out of the Social Security system.
WHO CRITICIZED THE NEW DEAL AND WHY?
Right Wing Criticism of the New Deal: Until the FDR Administration, the federal government generally created balanced budgets: the amount of money spent by the government equaled the amount of money collected in taxes. FDR’s massive programs cost far more than the government took in through taxation. In order to pay for his programs, FDR borrowed money that the federal government would eventually have to pay back, with interest. This situation, called “deficit spending” (spending more money than taxes coming in) created a great deal of anger among business leaders, causing many of them to form the “American Liberty League”. The purpose of this organization was to oppose the New Deal and “teach the necessity of respect for the rights of person and property”. Many Americans believed that FDR had gone too far in his use of the federal government and tax dollars to solve the problems of the Great Depression.
Left Wing Criticism of the New Deal: Other Americans believed that FDR had not gone far enough in his use of the federal government and tax dollars. These Americans wanted the federal government to actively shift wealth from the rich and distribute it to middle-income and poor citizens. These folks would find their concerns expressed by 3 key figures of the Great Depression. Huey Long was a popular though corrupt Senator from Louisiana who founded an organization called the “Share Our Wealth Society”. Senator Long planned on running for president in 1936 but was assassinated before the election. A second critic who argued for greater redistribution was Father Charles Coughlin, a Catholic Priest from Detroit who broadcast his views weekly in a popular radio program. Fr. Coughlin organized the “National Union for Social Justice” which many Democrats feared would become a political party. A third threat from the left came from a California doctor named Francis Townshend. The “Townshend Plan” would have all Americans retire at age 60, giving them a pension of $200 each month which would have to be spent. Townshend believed that this would open up employment for younger workers and stimulate the economy.
FDR’s Second Term: In spite of his critics on the right and the left, FDR won re-election in 1936. Earlier in 1936, the Agricultural Adjustment Act, one of the New Deal reforms, was found by the Supreme Court to be unconstitutional. FDR became worried about the future of his New Deal programs, especially since the Supreme Court was about to hear cases regarding the Wagner Act and the Social Security Administration.
The Court Packing Plan: In order to prevent the Court from striking down more of his programs, FDR launched what came to be known as the “Court Packing Plan”. He sent a bill to Congress that would allow FDR to appoint an additional Justice to the Supreme Court for every Supreme Court Justice who had reached the age of 70 but did not retire within 6 months. If this law had passed, it would have allowed FDR to increase the number of Justices on the Court. And since the President appoints Justices, he could ensure the appointment of judges who supported his New Deal programs. The “court packing plan” angered many Americans as it seemed FDR was jeopardizing the independence of the Judiciary, and upsetting the “separation of powers” of constitutional government. However, the bill was never passed, and the Supreme Court went on to approve both the Wagner Act and Social Security. FDRs plan hurt his reputation and prevented the passage of any more New Deal reforms.
WHAT WAS THE LEGACY OF THE NEW DEAL?
Legacy of the New Deal: The New Deal had limited success in easing the Great Depression, but it did give Americans a stronger sense of security and stability. One significant legacy of the New Deal was that it created a new role for the federal government as a “broker” between different parties in conflict, such as workers and employers. A second important legacy of the New Deal was that it created a new public attitude regarding government. Americans expected the federal government to play an active role in their lives. Americans now demanded that the federal government provide a “safety net” and “safeguards” that would protect them from economic disaster.
UNIT 6: WORLD WAR II AND THE COLD WAR (1930 – 1963)
HOW DID AMERICA TRY TO AVOID WAR IN EUROPE?
Seeking to Avoid World War – The Kellogg-Briand Pact: In 1928, with the memory of World War I still fresh, the United States, France, and 62 other nations joined together in an agreement to try and outlaw war and to emphasize negotiation as a means to resolving conflicts between nations. This pact called for: (a) the reduction in the number of warships; (b) reduction in warship manufacture; (c) the reduction in the number of available armaments; (c) land forces to remain as they were; (d) the creation of a way to prevent war from breaking out. Although the intent of this pact is understandable, its utter failure, as would eventually be the case, reveals the difficulty of maintaining peace between nations in conflict.
The U.S. Passes The Neutrality Acts: Many Americans came to believe that the sale of weapons to other nations encouraged aggression between countries. In the mid and late 1930s, tension between European nations began to increase as a result of the aggression shown by Germany and Italy. Adding to this tension was the fact that Spain had fallen into a Civil War. Beginning in 1935, Congress passed a series of laws that came to be known as the “Neutrality Acts which (1) banned the sale of weapons to warring nations; (2) banned loans to warring nations; (3) required warring nations purchasing non-war related materials to pay cash up front; (4) required nations to send their own ships to make these purchases. Congress passed these laws believing that one factor dragging America into World War I was attack on its shipping to Europe. The isolationist mood in America was heightened when the Nye Commission, a congressional investigation, reported that America had been influenced to enter World War I by arms and weapons manufacturers in order to make profits.
Quarantine Speech: Recognizing that violence between nations was increasing, President Roosevelt delivered a speech in October 1937 in which he called for a “quarantine of the aggressor nations”. FDR hoped that international refusal to trade with such nations might discourage them from resorting to warfare as a means to settling conflicts. FDRs idealism would not be realized as the nature of governments around the world increasingly turned to non-democratic systems.
WHAT WERE THE EVENTS THAT LED TO THE OUTBREAK OF WORLD WAR II IN EUROPE?
Japan Falls to Military Control: Although Japan had developed an industrialized economy, this island nation lacked the natural resources to supply its industries. As the world’s trading nations turned to protective tariffs during the Depression, Japan had difficulty obtaining what it needed to sustain its economy. In order to solve this problem, the Japanese military invaded the resource-rich Chinese territory of Manchuria. When the Japanese Prime Minister objected to this military action, he was assassinated, leaving control of Japan in the hands of military leaders who believed democracy to be “un-Japanese”. The Japanese would go on to invade the rest of China in 1937, beginning the 2nd Sino-Japanese war, and with the seeming approval of Emperor Hirohito, the traditional leader of Japan.
Benito Mussolini and Fascism: Italy abandoned democracy as early as 1922 when a charismatic leader rose to power. Benito Mussolini and his followers took power when he threatened to march on Rome, claiming to do so to protect Italy from communism. Mussolini brought with him a new form of government now known as “Fascism”, a form which: (1) embraces a form of nationalism that rejects individual rights; (2) uses centralized planning of economic activity, but allows private property; (3) features rule by dictatorship, and indoctrinates citizens through heavy propaganda; (4) emphasizes military conquest and the building of an empire. Nicknamed “Il Duce”, Mussolini worked quickly to settle the chaos of the Depression and bring order back to Italy.
Joseph Stalin and the USSR: Following the death of Vladimir Lenin in 1924, the new leader of the USSR and the Soviet Party would become Joseph Stalin. The influence of communism would expand under Stalin’s rule as he spread the communist form of government to smaller nations on the edges of the USSR. Dramatic changes would occur under Stalin as he enforced what came to be called the “5-Year Plan”, a strategy to rapidly industrialize the Soviet Union. In addition to this action, Stalin “collectivized” agriculture by taking property away from its original owners and combining all farmlands into giant agricultural enterprises. Opponents to his restructuring of the Soviet economy would soon find themselves imprisoned and performing slave-labor in concentration camps located in the north of Soviet territory. The Soviet Union became officially atheist, eliminated all individual rights, eliminated private property, eliminated democracy, and intended to spread its way of life worldwide.
The Rise of Adolf Hitler: The dark-haired and blue-eyed Adolf Hitler, an Austrian, fought in the trenches of World War I with the Germans and won two Iron Cross decorations for bravery. Like many Germans, Hitler was appalled by the Treaty of Versailles and soon joined a new political party called the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party). Hitler soon rose to the senior leadership of the Nazi Party, leading a failed attempt to seize power in 1923. During his resulting jail term, Hitler composed a book entitled “Mein Kampf” (My Struggle) in which Hitler explained his political beliefs and vision for the Nazi Party and Germany.
Goals of the Nazi Party: An admirer of Benito Mussolini, Hitler came to form a brand of fascism for Germany, creating a Nazi Party that: (1) embraced fascism as Mussolini crafted it; (2) was violently anti-Communist; (3) called for the unification of all German-speaking peoples; (4) declared Germans to be a “master-race” called Aryans, especially the blond-haired and blue-eyed; (5) believed Germans needed more space, advocating a policy of creating “Lebensraum” (living-space) for Germans; (6) wanted to enslave the Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe; (7) advocated the extermination of the Jews, a people Hitler blamed for Germany’s loss in World War I. Hitler and the Nazis used the democratic process to gain election to the Reichstag (legislature) in 1932. Democracy came to an end in Germany in 1934 when the Nazi-dominated Reichstag declared Hitler dictator. Once in power, Hitler immediately began to rebuild the German military, effectively ending the Depression in his nation. He soon took on a new title, “Der Fuhrer”, and his Nazi rule of Germany would come to be known as the “Third Reich”.
Nazi Aggression Rises: Hitler openly began violating the terms of the Treaty of Versailles in 1935 as he commenced his rebuilding of the German military. Rather than enforce the Treaty by going to war against Germany, European leaders tried to negotiate with Hitler. With his military rebuilt, and following his policy of Lebensraum, Hitler sent troops into Austria in 1938, successfully uniting the two nations under Nazi rule. The “Austrian Anschluss”, as this event came to be called, was the first step in Hitler’s plan to unify all German-speaking peoples.
The Munich Pact Seeks to Avoid European War: Having successfully taken Austria with no reaction from the rest of Europe, Hitler turned his attention to the Sudetenland, a portion of Czechoslovakia that had a majority of German-speaking citizens. Hitler demanded that the Sudetenland be turned over to German control. France, Britain, and the USSR threatened Germany if it attempted to take the Sudetenland by force. In order to avoid war, representatives from Great Britain, France, and Italy met with Hitler in the German city of Munich, September 29, 1938. In what came to be known as the “Munich Pact”, all agreed that Hitler could have the Sudetenland if he promised that Germany would make no further attempts to take more territory elsewhere. Neville Chamberlain, Prime Minister of Great Britain, arrived home famously declaring that Europe had “a peace with honor…peace in our time”. The deal reached at Munich has since been described as an act of “appeasement”: giving in to the demands of an aggressor. Hitler interpreted this act of appeasement on the part of European nations as a sign of weakness and lack of willingness to confront him.
Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact: In March of 1939, Hitler demanded the return of the Polish city of Danzig, another territory that had a majority German-speaking population. Britain and France declared that if Germany used force against Poland to capture Danzig, they would support Poland. Since Poland lies between Germany and the USSR, and since Hitler did not wish to fight the Soviets, he proposed an agreement with the Soviets that they would not fight each other militarily. The “Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact” meant that Hitler had only to worry about war on one front. Also in the Nazi-Soviet Pact was a secret agreement that Germany and the USSR would eventually divide Poland in half, each taking the portion closest to its border. The world was shocked that Hitler would make a deal with a communist nation, since fascism claims to be opposed to communism. The USSR however liked the idea of free capitalist nations tearing each other apart while the USSR sat alone at peace.
September 1st, 1939: It is on this date the Nazi Germany invaded Poland, and two days later, France and Britain declared war on Germany: World War II had begun. The Polish Army was quickly defeated as a result of a new style of warfare introduced by the Germans. “Blitzkrieg” (lightning war) is a military style in which a large wave of tanks moves swiftly towards a target, supported by airplanes delivering bombs, and with landed paratroopers cutting supply lines of opposing forces. Germany then moved eastward through the Netherlands and Belgium, taking France by late June 1940. The French had foolishly relied on a series of forts built along its border with Germany, known as the “Maginot Line”, as its primary defense. The Maginot Line was built following World War I to defend France against future German aggression, however the French left their border with Belgium undefended, an opening exploited by Hitler.
The Allies: Great Britain, Russia, the United States (France and Poland)
The Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan
WHAT WERE THE FACTORS THAT LED TO AMERICA’S ENTRY INTO WWII?
The Four Freedoms: The United States remained officially neutral as World War II began. In his “State of the Union” address in January 1941, President Roosevelt expressed a set of ideals that have since come to be known as the “Four Freedoms”. In the back of his mind was the vision of the world that dictators such as Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin were attempting to create. In opposition to this vision, FDR suggested that nations should create a world based upon four essential human freedoms: (1) freedom of speech; (2) freedom of religion; (3) freedom from want; (4) freedom from fear (violence and aggression), especially at the hands of other nations.
The Lend-Lease Act (1941): With the Germans occupying Europe, and Britain having defended itself in the Battle of Britain, FDR came to believe that the Neutrality Acts may be jeopardizing American security. The European democracies, if they all fell to the dictatorships, would leave America alone to defend itself. In order to assist the British and the French, FDR devised the Lend-Lease Act, a law that allowed the United States to loan or lease any weapons or materials needed by any nation that was “vital to the defense of the United States”. FDR also argued that the Lend-Lease Act would prevent American soldiers from having to join the war. Soon the U.S. was shipping war materials to be used by France and Britain. In June of 1941, Germany broke its non-aggression pact with the Soviets when it invaded that country. As a result, FDR authorized the USSR as a recipient of American aid since it was now at war with the greater enemy, Germany. As American aid began flowing to Europe, the German navy, especially its submarines, began sinking tons of goods headed to Europe. Since America was not at war, FDR was not able to dispatch the U.S. Navy to sink German ships. Instead, FDR declared that the entire western portion of the Atlantic Ocean was part of the western hemisphere, creating a “hemispheric defense zone”, a move that allowed him to send the U.S. Navy out on patrols to identify the location of German subs, information that would then be shared with the British.
The Atlantic Charter: In August of 1941, FDR met with his friend, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, Winston Churchill, who was the son of a prominent British father and American mother. Winston Churchill would become one of the great men of Western history as a result of his role in World War II. The purpose of their meeting in Newfoundland, Canada, was to form an agreement for the post-war world (assuming the free nations won!) that would become known as the Atlantic Charter, a document that encouraged a world committed to: (1) non-aggression; (2) free trade; (3) freedom of the seas; (4) economic advancement; (5) national self-determination. Soon after 15 other nations would sign the Atlantic Charter.
Pearl Harbor: By 1940, the United States and Japan had been economic rivals in the Pacific for many decades. Japan however relied on the United States as a trading partner, obtaining many of its raw materials from America, including 80% of its oil supply and much needed scrap iron and steel. Great Britain had many territories in Asia that it could no longer defend as it had to send most of its warships to the Atlantic to fight the Germans. In order to discourage Japan from becoming aggressive toward British targets in Asia, FDR restricted the sale of “strategic materials” to Japan, especially iron and airplane fuel. Furious with FDR’s decision, the Japanese immediately joined an alliance with Germany and Italy. Further angering Japan was the fact that the United States was now sending Lend-Lease aid to China, with whom Japan was at war. FDR informed Japan that the United States would continue its oil embargo if it did not withdraw from China and Southeast Asia. On December 7th, 1941, the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, killing over 2000 men, and destroying several battleships, destroyers, boats, and planes.
FDR’s War Message: On December 8th, 1941, FDR addressed Congress, seeking a declaration of war: “Yesterday, December 7th, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan…No matter how long it will take us…the American people in their righteous anger will win through to absolute victory”. Congress immediately passed a declaration of war; the United States had formally joined World War II.
WHAT DOMESTIC CHANGES TOOK PLACE DURING WORLD WAR II?
Selective Services Act: Even though America was not at war in June of 1940, the fall of France convinced Congress to pass the Selective Services and Training Act, a law that established America’s first peacetime draft. Soon after Pear Harbor, over 60,000 immediately enlisted in the Army. New recruits received 8 weeks of Basic Training, and received their military clothing stamped “Government Issue”, thus leading to the nickname “GI” for American soldiers.
African Americans Join the Military: At the outbreak of World War II, the U.S. military was a segregated institution, with Blacks being trained separately and organized into their own units, usually headed by white officers. The segregated nature of the military left many Blacks reluctant to support a country that denied them basic rights. In order to encourage Black citizens to enlist in the military, many Black newspapers across the country launched the “Double V” campaign, a publicity effort that encouraged Blacks to enlist to achieve a double victory – victory over Hitler’s racism abroad and the racism at home. Initially, the military would not send Black units into combat, but pressure from Black leaders forced Roosevelt to send them into action. Once in combat, African American troops performed well in a variety of ways. Perhaps the most famous example was the 99th Pursuit Squadron, better known as the “Tuskegee Airmen”, helping to win the Battle of Anzio in Italy. Also serving with distinction was the 761st Tank Battalion which played a key role in the “Battle of the Bulge”. The success of Black units in World War II led to full integration of the military by President Truman in 1948.
Women’s Army Corp (WAC): Women for the first time were enlisted in the U.S. military with the formation of the Women’s Army Corp (WAC), headed by Colonel Oveta Culp Hobby. Women were assigned to take over clerical and administrative jobs in order to free men for combat. Women were also used to deliver planes when the military created the “Women’s Airforce Service Pilots” (WASP). Soon after, the Coast Guard, Navy, and Marines established their own women’s units to assist in the war effort. Eventually, over 68,000 other women would serve as military nurses.
War Production Board: As in World War I, the federal government created the War Production Board (WPB) to co-ordinate the production of materials and weapons, and to allocate raw materials efficiently. In order to encourage rapid production, the government used the “cost-plus” system in which the government agreed to pay the full cost of production plus a guaranteed percentage as profit. This move encouraged production since the more a manufacturer produced, the more money that could be made. The auto industry was immediately converted to produce military vehicles, planes, ammunition, and weapons. Shipbuilding as well went into overdrive with the production innovations of Henry Kaiser, a man who applied Henry Ford’s assembly line techniques, adding his own innovation of “pre-fabricating” parts to be brought to assembly. The most famous vessel Kaiser produced was the “Liberty Ship”, a basic cargo ship that played an essential role in the war. In order to prevent conflicts between the military and the WPB, Roosevelt established the “Office of War Mobilization”.
Rosie the Riveter: As men left factories to fight in Europe, Africa, and the Pacific, the federal government launched a publicity campaign to attract women to industrial jobs supporting the war. “Rosie the Riveter” was the main personality used in advertising to attract women, and eventually, over 2.5 million women would serve in shipyards, aircraft factories, and other industrial enterprises. The experience of women in factories eventually changed America’s view of what work women were capable of performing, leading to greater employment opportunities following the war.
Blacks and Hispanics Contribute: Under the pressure of A. Phillip Randolph, a Black union leader, President Roosevelt issued an executive over in June 1941, declaring that “there shall be no discrimination in the employment of workers in defense industries or government”. In order to enforce this order, Roosevelt established the “Fair Employment Practices Commission”, the first federal government civil rights agency. As well, the federal government created the “Bracero Program”, a plan to allow over 200,000 Mexican citizens legally to enter the United States to assist in the harvest of crops and maintenance of roads, primarily in the Southwest United States. The Bracero Program continued until 1964.
Life During the War: In order to ensure that materials made it to the front lines, the American domestic economy went through several changes, guided by the “Office of Price Administration” (OPA), a federal agency Roosevelt used to stabilize wages and prices, and control inflation. As well, Roosevelt used the “War Labor Board” to prevent strikes over wage conflicts. “Rationing” (limiting amounts) of food went into effect, with each household given coupon books to obtain processed foods (using “Blue Points”) and staple foods such as meats, fats, and oils (using “Red Points”). Coupons were issued for a large variety of items. Americans were also encouraged to plant “Victory Gardens” and gather scrap materials that could be used in production.
The Zoot Suit Riots: Los Angeles is home to a significant population of Mexican Americans. During the early war years, many Mexican teenagers took to wearing “Zoot Suits”, a suit that featured knee length jackets with wide lapels, along with baggy pleated pants. This fashion statement angered many Americans as it seemed that much needed fabric was being wasted. Most men wore a “Victory Suit”, a garment that used very little fabric. The tension between the Zoot Suiters and others in Los Angeles broke out into full scale riots when a rumor circulated that Zoot Suiters had attacked several sailors. More than 2500 soldiers and sailors entered Mexican neighborhoods attacking Mexican tennagers for several days. Los Angeles eventually banned the Zoot Suit. This experience however did not prevent over 465,000 Mexicans and Puerto Ricans from joining the U.S. military, 17 eventually winning the Medal of Honor.
Paying for the War: In order to obtain the needed money to pay for the war, the federal government raised taxes. Since taxes alone could not raise enough money, the government began to issue war bonds, known as “Series E Bonds”. Citizens would “loan” the government money buy purchasing bonds which the government would then pay back with interest 10 years later. Through taxation and war bonds, the government was able to pay the $300 billion dollar cost of the war, a cost that equaled all the money spent by the federal government from the time of Washington to the Roosevelt Administration.
Internment of Japanese Americans: Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, many Americans became suspicious of the large Japanese-American population living on the West Coast, believing that they could be spies supporting the Japanese war effort. Based on these fears, President Roosevelt issued an executive order declaring the West Coast a military zone, thus giving him the power to remove from daily life any citizen of Japanese ancestry. For the duration of the war, Japanese citizens were forced to live in “internment camps” located further inland. Not all Japanese citizens followed the government order willingly.
Korematsu v. United States (1944): Fred Korematsu, an American of Japanese ancestry, refused to leave his home for a Japanese relocation camp. He was in direct violation of President Roosevelt’s executive order and of Congress’ law ordering the relocation of all Japanese on the west coast. Korematsu challenged the executive order and Congress, posing these two questions to the Court: (a) did the President have the right to issue an executive order relocating the Japanese, as a legitimate action as part of his role as “Commander in Chief” of the Armed Forces? (2) did Congress have the power to produce this legislation as part of its power to make and manage war? The Court decided that: (1) the President used his power with proper authority; (2) the Congress used its power with proper authority; (3) the circumstances of wartime justified these actions, in spite of peacetime hindsight. This decision reinforced executive and the legislative powers to override 14th Amendment guarantees of due process in times of national crisis. One Justice remarked that the issue of race was beside the point; the executive and legislative branches needed to be free to act on the best judgment it could make in the circumstances. Soon after, the Supreme Court stated that no loyal citizen could be held against their will, leading to the closing of the camps in early 1945. No Japanese was ever convicted of espionage during the war, and many served in the Pacific campaign with distinction.
WHAT WERE THE MILITARY AND POLITICAL TURNING POINTS OF WWII?
Three Theaters of War: World War II would take place in three general locations worldwide. First, the North African Campaign originally pitted the British against the Germans as Germany attempted to take the British held Egypt, home to the Suez Canal, a major waterway that linked Britain to its colonial possessions of India, Hong Kong, and Australia. The Suez Canal was also important because of the access it granted to Middle East oil, an important resource for any military at war. Second, the European Campaign pitted the Allies against the Axis Powers over control of Europe. Nazi Germany had taken control of much of the western portion of Europe and had started a second front by choosing to invade the USSR. The Allied goal was to push Hitler back into Germany both from the west (Britain and the United States) and from the east (USSR). Third, the Pacific campaign was designed to destroy Japan. The Japanese were waging war on the Chinese, Vietnamese, and the Koreans in an attempt to expand their Empire. When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the United States changed the nature of the Pacific campaign by vowing to destroy Japan and obtaining unconditional surrender of the Japanese Empire.
The European Campaign: Once the Germans had taken Poland, the German Blitzkrieg moved swiftly through Belgium to take France. Hitler then set his sights on Great Britain, launching a merciless series of aerial bombing raids that came to be known as the Battle of Britain. Though ultimately unsuccessful, Europe itself was firmly under Nazi occupation by 1940. Once the United States joined the war in 1941, American military leaders began to work with the British to plan Operation Overlord, better known as D-Day, a mission designed to re-take Europe from the Germans by launching an amphibious assault from Great Britain and pushing them back to Berlin. In the midst of planning, President Roosevelt met with Prime Minister Churchill in Casablanca, Morocco. The two men agreed at the “Casablanca Conference” to step up the bombing of Germany to demoralize its people and destroy its ability to produce war materials. They also agreed to attack the Italians, considering Italy the “soft underbelly” of Europe, and believing the Italians would quit the war once attacked. Roosevelt then met with Stalin at the “Tehran Conference” where the two men agreed that the USSR would launch a full scale attack of Germany once the Allies invaded France. The two men also agreed that Germany would be divided following the war. The war began to turn against Hitler when he failed to win the “Battle of Stalingrad”, an effort to destroy the industrial capability of the USSR, and to claim the rich sources of oil nearby. The D-Day invasion finally took place on June 6th, 1944 and had miraculously succeeded in landing Allied troops in France, beginning the slow push against the Germans. As the Allies moved closer to Germany, Hitler staged one last desperate attempt to cut off Allied supplies. In what has become known as the “Battle of the Bulge”, American forces successfully defended against the German attack, pushing the Germans back beyond their own borders. As the Allies moved into Berlin from the west, and the Soviets from the east, Adolf Hitler committed suicide on April 30th, 1945, with Germany finally surrendering on May 7th, 1945. The next day was proclaimed “V-E Day” (Victory in Europe) throughout Europe and the United States, leading to jubilant celebrations.
The Pacific Campaign Against Japan: Soon after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the Japanese took the Philippines from American control. The American plan to destroy Japan had 2 parts: (1) starting in Australia, General MacArthur would move from island to island, eventually taking the north coast of New Guinea in order to launch an invasion to retake the Philippines; (2) starting in Hawaii, Admiral Chester Nimitz would move through the Central Pacific one island at a time to move closer to Japan, a campaign that came to be known as “island-hopping”. As Admiral Nimitz moved, major battles would be fought and won by the U.S. in the “Battle of Midway”, the “Battle of Iwo Jima”, and most importantly the “Battle of Okinawa”, an island close enough to Japan to allow a full-scale invasion. The ferocity of the Japanese in these battles came to be a major concern in planning for an invasion of Japan itself. Japanese soldiers were guided by the warrior ideal of “bushido”, a samurai code which demanded death before surrender. As well, the “kamikaze” attacks in which Japanese pilots would undertake suicide missions to destroy American vessels left American military leaders dreading the amount of American lives that would be lost in an invasion of Japan.
The Manhattan Project: In a letter sent to President Roosevelt in 1939, Albert Einstein warned that the Germans were experimenting with the idea of a nuclear bomb. When Roosevelt learned that the British had proven that this was indeed possible, the President organized a secret project to develop the atomic bomb called “The Manhattan Project”. Based in Los Alamos, NM, and headed by physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, the Manhattan Project finally detonated the first nuclear bomb during testing in July of 1945.
Ending the War with Japan: Deciding that the incredible loss of American life was too high a cost, President Truman opted to use this new weapon to bring an end to the war with Japan. The Allies sent a message to the Japanese leadership, warning of “prompt and utter destruction” if Japan did not surrender. Receiving no response, President Truman ordered that the atomic bomb be dropped on the industrial city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The bomb, nicknamed “Little Boy”, was delivered to its target in a B-29 bomber called the “Enola Gay”, instantly killing over 100,000 people. Again receiving no response from the Japanese, President Truman ordered a bomb, nicknamed “Fat Man” to be dropped on Nagasaki, killing 75,000 people instantly on August 9th, 1945. Japan surrendered unconditionally on August 15th, 1945, a day celebrated as “V-J Day” (Victory in Japan). World War II had ended.
The International Military Tribunal (IMT): “The wrongs we seek to condemn and punish have been so calculated, so malignant, so devastating, that civilization cannot tolerate their being ignored because it cannot survive their being repeated”. With these words of Robert Jackson, chief counsel of the United States, the Nuremberg Trials began. Immediately following World War II, the United States, Britain, France, and the USSR created the International Military Tribunal to punish the leaders of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan for the terrible nature in which they waged the Second World War. Trials were held in Nuremberg, Germany, the location where Hitler had staged many of his rallies, eventually sentencing many officers to death or lengthy prison sentences. The “Nuremberg Trials” paid particular attention to those who had planned and carried out the awful scheme of the Holocaust. Trials were also conducted in Tokyo where Japanese officers were also sentenced either to prison or to death. The IMT and the trials it conducted would later have an influence on the nature of international law.
WHAT WAS THE COLD WAR, AND HOW DID IT BEGIN?
The Cold War: The unlikely alliance of the U.S. and Great Britain with the USSR would eventually end at the conclusion of World War II since the goals of these nations differed so greatly. As expressed in the Atlantic Charter, the U.S. and Great Britain, along with many other free democracies, envisioned a world of freedom, free trade, and national self-determination. The USSR however was committed to spreading communist ideas worldwide. The Soviets felt threatened by Western European countries, a legitimate fear, since it had twice been invaded through Poland during the 20th century by a hostile Germany. As a result, the Soviets wished to protect itself from further aggression from Western Europe. The period between 1946 and 1991 came to be called the “Cold War”, an extended period of competition and hostility between the United States and the Soviet Union, based on the very different visions of the world each side had. Because of the political, economic, and military strength and influence of the U.S. and the USSR, both these countries would become known as “superpowers”. As well, both of these nations would soon gather ally countries throughout the world as a result of shared visions of the world, or through economic and political incentives. The seeds of the Cold War were planted during two conferences between the “Big Three” (Great Britain, the U.S., and USSR) as World War II wound down.
Yalta Conference: In February of 1945, the “Big Three”, President Roosevelt, PM Churchill, and Premier Stalin, met at the Soviet resort town of Yalta (on the Black Sea) to make arrangements for the world following the war. Three main issues were discussed that would later lead to tensions between the U.S. and the USSR. First on the table was what to do about Poland. When Germany invaded Poland to start the war, the government of Poland fled to Britain during the remainder of the war. When the USSR liberated Poland in 1944, the Soviets encouraged Polish communists to set up a communist government there. With two possible governments in the waiting, the Big Three decided that the Soviet Polish government would be recognized by the West if it included members of the pre-war Polish government. The Big Three also agreed that free elections would be held as soon as possible. [True elections never took place, leading to communist control of Poland, leaving many in Poland to believe they had been betrayed by the West, condemning Poland to communism.] Second, the Big Three agreed to issue the “Declaration of Liberated Europe”. The stated goal of the Declaration was to assert “the right of all people to choose the form of government under which they will live”, expressing the intention that free elections would be held in nations recently freed from German control. Third, the fate of Germany had to be planned, a nation that was blamed from initiating two world wars. The Big Three agreed that the Western portion of Germany would be divided into zones to be controlled by Great Britain, France, and the United States, while the Eastern half of Germany would be controlled by the USSR. The capitol of Germany, Berlin, was located in the Soviet zone. Berlin as well would be similarly divided into four zones, with the Western portion of Berlin controlled by Great Britain, France, and the United States in the west of the city, while the USSR would control the eastern half. The Big Three also agreed that the USSR could take reparations from Germany in the form of trade goods and agricultural products, while the West would take industrial and rail equipment. The nature and amount of German reparations became a major source of tension over the next few years.
Potsdam Conference: In July of 1945, President Truman met with Joseph Stalin in the German town of Potsdam, near the capitol of Berlin. Truman was concerned that an industrially weakened Germany would threaten the economic recovery of Europe. His main fear was that Germans would turn to communism out of desperation. Stalin insisted on reparations from Germany, and began stripping the Soviet zone of industrial equipment for use back home, even though this portion of Germany was largely agricultural. Truman succeeded in gaining an agreement at Potsdam that Stalin felt forced to accept if he was to gain any reparations from Germany. The terms of the agreement included: (1) Truman would give the Soviets industrial equipment from the Allies’ zones, but the Soviets had to pay for it with food shipments; (2) Allies would accept the German-Polish border set by the Soviets. It was at this conference that Truman told Stalin of the successful testing of the nuclear bomb. Stalin felt he was being threatened into this agreement. The Allies controlled Germany’s industrial heartland, leaving the Soviets increasingly suspicious of Western intentions. Stalin refused to uphold the Declaration of Liberated Europe created at Yalta, and established pro-Soviet governments in Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. These nations became known as “satellite nations”, though not directly controlled by the USSR, they were forced to remain friendly to it.
The Iron Curtain: Eastern Europe became effectively communist, a fact that Winston Churchill pointed out in a speech at Fulton, Missouri, stating that “…an ‘iron curtain’ has descended across the continent”. The expression “iron curtain” expressed the idea that Europe had become firmly divided, with free, democratic, and capitalist nations in Western Europe, and communist nations in Eastern Europe. Tension between “the West” and the “the East” increased rapidly.
The Soviet View of the World: In early 1946, the U.S. State Department asked its most knowledgeable diplomat in the USSR, George Kennan, to explain Soviet behavior. Kennan expressed his view of the Soviets in what became known as the “Long Telegram”. In it he discussed Russian insecurity and fear of the West, and the Soviet belief that the West would eventually try to destroy communism. He stated that the Soviets saw themselves as bringing in an economic and political system that was far superior to capitalism, and that the West was discouraging human progress. Kennan proposed a long-term containment of Russian expansion, leading to President Truman to create a new foreign policy of containment, keeping Communism within its present territory.
HOW DID AMERICA DEAL WITH THE COLD WAR IN ITS EARLY STAGES?
The Truman Doctrine (1947) and its Application: In a speech to Congress in March 1947, President Truman declared the American position that it would assist any nations that resisted communist aggression. Truman stated that the U.S. would “…aid free peoples who are resisting subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures.” The “Truman Doctrine”, or “containment”, as this new policy came to be called, shaped American foreign policy for at least two decades. This new policy came at a time when the USSR had refused to leave Iran after WWII, trying to ensure access to oil. American threats led to their departure. The Soviets also set their sights on Turkey, again trying to establish a foothold in the Middle East and access to oil. Again, American support of Turkey and threats of military action caused the Soviets to back down. The Soviet Union then began to support local Greek communists trying to seize power there. Because Great Britain could not afford to aid the Greeks anymore, the U.S. pledged over 400 million dollars to oppose communist influence and expansion in Turkey, Greece, and elsewhere. As a result of these three incidents, the American government came to believe that the USSR was determined to achieve world domination. The American policy of containment led to direct involvement later in the Korean War, the Vietnam conflict, and numerous struggles in Latin America and elsewhere.
The Marshall Plan: In June 1947, President Truman relied on Secretary of State George Marshall, also a WWII general, to craft an economic plan that set as its goals the rebuilding of Western European economies, and preventing further nations from falling to communism. The United States poured billions of dollars in aid into Western Europe in the form of food, supplies, and most importantly, industrial machinery and expertise. This program was formally known as the European Recovery Program, but is more easily recognizable as the “Marshall Plan”. Although the benefits of this program were offered to the Soviet Union and Eastern European nations, the Soviets rejected the offer, further increasing tensions between the West and the Soviet world. The Marshall Plan was successful both in weakening the appeal of communism in Western Europe, and successfully rebuilding the western European economy. As a further result, new trade markets were opened for both the U.S. and Western European nations.
Central Intelligence Agency: In September of 1947, Congress passed the National Security Act, a law that created the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), a wing of the federal government that was authorized to collect information about foreign governments, corporations, organizations, and people. The CIA would then analyze the information it had gathered and share it with Congress and the President so that they could make informed decisions about foreign policy. The CIA was also authorized to carry out covert missions “against hostile foreign states or groups, or in support of friendly foreign states or groups, but which are so planned and conducted that any U.S. government responsibility for them is not evident to unauthorized persons”. The CIA was also granted by Congress the ability to keep secret its budget and personnel, and to provide “cover stories” for defectors and foreigners friendly to the goals of the United States. This fiercely anti-communist agency was tasked with gathering information (intelligence) about the Soviet Union, a task made difficult by the fact that the USSR was a closed society. In order to gather more information, the CIA developed a plane, the “U-2”, which could take photographs from extremely high elevations that could provide needed information. The CIA also conducted many Cold War missions that involved destabilizing foreign governments and, in some cases, assassination.
WHAT WERE THE EARLY COLD WAR CONFLICTS WORLDWIDE?
The Berlin Airlift: The U.S. came to believe that Western Europe’s recovery depended on the revitalization of the German economy, and also thought that the USSR was trying to undermine Germany’s recovery. In early 1948, the West decided that it would merge the three free zones of Germany and form the Federal Republic of Germany, better known as West Germany, with Germans controlling it. Further, the Western controlled portions of Berlin would be similarly merged. The Soviets responded by creating the German Democratic Republic, better known as East Germany. Believing the creation of West Germany would prevent the Soviets from gaining their reparations, the USSR decided to confront the West by cutting off all access to West Berlin, preventing food and supplies from delivery there. Rather than send in troops and initiating a “hot war”, President Truman ordered what has become known as the “Berlin Airlift”, a series of supply shipments delivering needed food and materials to West Berliners by air, beginning in June 1948. Stalin backed down in the spring of 1949, lifting the blockade of West Berlin. This diplomatic victory for the United States demonstrated the West’s determination to contain communism.
Birth of Communist China: After years of Civil War between Chinese nationalists, led by Chang Kai-shek, and communists, led by Mao Zedong, the communist forces finally won out in 1949, leading to the formation of the Peoples’ Republic of China. The Chinese nationalist leaders fled to the island of Taiwan, forming a government that had American support. China’s fall to communism shocked Americans, and when Red China formed an alliance with the USSR, the West became even more fearful that both of these communist nations would support communist movements in other nations. Also alarming Americans was the fact that the Soviet Union had successfully tested its first nuclear weapon in 1949, a weapon based on nuclear secrets stolen from the United States by American communist spies such as Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Now that China had firmly established communism in Asia, the United States worked even harder to rebuild the Japanese government and economy, believing that a democratic Japan was the key to defending Asia against the further spread of communism, just as Germany was considered the key to stopping communism in Europe.
The Korean War: Because Japan had occupied Korea during World War II, its defeat meant that control had to pass to others. The Allies divided Korea at the 38th parallel, giving control of North Korea to the USSR while the United States governed South Korea, however no agreement was reached for the unification of the two Koreas. In June of 1950, the Soviet-backed North Korea invaded South Korea, causing President Truman to follow America’s policy of containment by sending naval and air power to support the government of South Korea. Truman also succeeded in getting the United Nations to send troops into action, as well as sending American forces into South Korea under the leadership of General Douglas MacArthur. The military response by the U.N. and the U.S. was described by President Truman as a “Police Action”, and not a war since no formal declaration was ever made. China was drawn into the conflict when General MacArthur had successfully pushed the North Koreans to the border of China at the Yalu River, a fact that the Chinese believed was a threat. Chairman Mao ordered hundreds of thousands of troops across the border, pushing MacArthur back across the 38th parallel. MacArthur wanted to expand the war to include China, but received no support from President Truman. After MacArthur publicly criticized the President for this, Truman fired the well-respected General MacArthur in April 1951. Truman wished to maintain a “limited war” that would avoid direct confrontation with the Chinese and Soviets, a war that would endanger Europe and bring about a possible nuclear war. American and U.S. forces succeeded in pushing the North Koreans and Chinese back to the 38th parallel. An armistice was finally reached in early 1953, leaving the border separating the Koreas at the 38th parallel. No treaty has yet been signed to end this conflict, and American forces remain in South Korea at the 38th parallel. The United States came to view Asia as vulnerable to communism, leading America to build up its military, sign protective treaties with Asian nations, and to become more involved militarily in Asia.
The Cold War Heats Up: Upon the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953, leadership of the USSR would soon fall to Nikita Khrushchev, a man who once declared “we will bury capitalism…your grandchildren will live under communism”. Tensions heightened when the Soviets shot down a U-2 spy plane taking pictures over Soviet territory. The “U-2 Incident” in 1960, for which President Eisenhower refused to apologize, created greater mistrust between the two superpowers.
Cuba Falls to Communism: By 1959, economic ties between the U.S. and Cuba remained strong under the leadership of its corrupt President, Fulgencio Batista. A group of Cuban communists, under the leadership of Fidel Castro, successfully toppled the Batista government in 1959. Castro immediately established ties with the Soviet Union, seized all foreign-owned assets (including American), and completely restructured Cuba as a communist nation. Khrushchev immediately saw an opportunity and expressed his intention to build up Cuba militarily. In response, President Eisenhower authorized the CIA to develop a covert plan to arm anti-communist Cubans to invade the island nation, hoping to stir up rebellion against Castro. This plan soon fell into the hands of President Kennedy who authorized the mission in April 1961. La Brigada, the name of the anti-communist Cubans, failed miserably as its boats ran aground at the “Bay of Pigs”. As well, Kennedy refused to send air support to assist La Brigada, an attempt to cover up American involvement in the plot. Within days of the invasion, Castro had captured or killed almost all of the 1400 members of La Brigada. The failed invasion at the Bay of Pigs revealed to the world that the U.S. had attempted to overthrow the government of a neighboring country.
Cuban Missile Crisis: Soon after the Bay of Pigs, the Soviets began to ship large amounts of weapons to Cuba. In October of 1962, American U-2 spy planes gathered photographic evidence that the Soviets were constructing nuclear missile silos, capable of launching nuclear warheads that could hit virtually all parts of the United States. President Kennedy ordered a naval blockade of Cuba to prevent more weapons and supplies from reaching Cuba, an action which he called a “quarantine”, since a blockade was technically an act of war. After extended secret negotiations with Khrushchev, President Kennedy gained the removal of Soviet nuclear weapons from Cuba in exchange for a promise not to invade Cuba and a promise to remove American missiles in Turkey. The Cuban Missile Crisis had brought the world to the brink of nuclear war during those tense 13 days in October of 1962. The consequences of a nuclear war drove the U.S. and the USSR to sign the “Limited Test Ban Treaty” in 1963, a treaty that hoped to slow the arms race and prevent the further release of nuclear fallout into the atmosphere, authorizing only underground testing.
Berlin Wall: The most visible symbol of the Cold War came to be the Berlin Wall, constructed beginning in August of 1961. Berlin was firmly in communist East Germany, but the western half of the city belonged to West Germany. Many East Germans, wishing to escape communism flooded into to West Berlin, a situation that Khrushchev could no longer tolerate. In order to prevent this embarrassing flood of people fleeing to the West, Khrushchev ordered his military to build a 96 mile barrier around the entire western half of Berlin, with checkpoints and guards all around the perimeter. Approximately 200 people were shot while attempting to enter free West Berlin during the wall’s almost 30-year existence.
WHAT INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS APPEARED THAT ATTEMPTED TO KEEP PEACE DURING THE COLD WAR?
Birth of the United Nations: In April 1945, the United Nations, an international body of nations came into existence with the first 50 nations becoming official members. Like the earlier League of Nations, the United Nations was designed to promote peace and settle conflicts without the use of military force, wherever possible. Each member nation would be given one vote in the General Assembly when resolutions were proposed. As well, the UN had a Security Council that had a total of 11 member states, 5 of which would be permanent members that included Britain, France, the United States, the Soviet Union, and China, the five nations that worked together to defeat the Axis Powers in World War II. The Security Council was responsible for maintaining peace, investigating threats to peace, and, if necessary, asking member nations to contribute military forces to enforce resolutions of the General Assembly. It is this military possibility of enforcing international resolutions that made the UN far more effective than the League of Nations. The UN also crafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a document that lists 30 human rights that were believed to be universally applicable to all people in all places.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): The events of the Berlin Airlift and blockade convinced free nations on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean that the Soviets intended to spread communist influence, militarily if necessary. In order to gain greater security, the U.S. formed a treaty with Western European nations called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a mutual defense alliance in which each member nation agreed to assist any other nation that might be attacked. The original treaty members included: the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Portugal, the Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, and Iceland. The United States had now become committed to maintaining the security of Europe.
The Warsaw Pact: When NATO admitted West Germany to NATO in 1955, the Soviets responded by forming the Warsaw Pact, a treaty organization that was a mutual defense alliance against aggression from the West. Members of the Warsaw Pact included: USSR, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and East Germany.
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO): Immediately following the Korean Conflict, the United States signed several mutual defense agreements with Asian nations, forming the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. Member nations included: the United States, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Australia.
Alliance for Progress: Looking to prevent the further spread of communism in Latin America, President Kennedy proposed the formation of the Alliance for Progress. The primary goal of this organization was to create a “free and prosperous Latin America” that would not be vulnerable to communist revolutions. In order to stabilize Latin America, the Alliance for Progress created a series of aid projects building schools and housing, developing health care systems, and working for land reform. While many countries such as Chile, Columbia, Venezuela, and several Central American Republics used the programs to bring real effective change, the people in other Latin American countries failed to benefit from Alliance programs as a result of the corruption of their leaders.
Organization of American States (OAS): In existence since 1890, the Organization of American States took on a new role following World War II. The organization became re-dedicated to fighting communism in the Americas in 1948 with the creation of a new Charter and the world’s first general declaration of human rights standards.
WHAT DOMESTIC CHANGES OCCURRED FOLLOWING WWII?
G.I. Bill: The federal government took several steps near the end and following World War II to ensure that the post-war economy would be strong. One of the most significant laws in American history was the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (1944), better known as the “GI Bill”. This law provided all World War II veterans with low-interest or no-interest loans that could be used to buy homes, start businesses, or attend college. The impact of the GI Bill was significant as it led to a rapid increase in college enrollment and a massive housing boom, leading to the development of suburbs as we know them today.
The Rise of Suburbs: One of the most famous examples of these new suburbs was “Levittown”, a new community located in New York. The brainchild of Bill Levitt, Levittown was a planned community made up of hundreds of mass-produced, similar looking homes that were easily affordable. Suburbs such as these sprang up all over America, leading to an unprecedented level of home ownership to 61% among all Americans. Americans believed that the suburbs provided a better way of life, and the federal government encouraged this growth by granting income tax deductions to those making mortgage payments. Leading the charge into suburbia were veterans making use of the GI Bill.
Middle Class: The post-war years were a time of incredible economic prosperity for Americans who now enjoyed the largest amount of “disposable income” yet. Americans began to furnish their homes with all kinds of new appliances and conveniences, even spending money on a “second car”. The incredible economic activity during the post-war years led to the development of a large “middle class” in which a great percentage of Americans worked well-paying jobs and lived rather comfortably.
Baby Boomers: Following World War II and the Korean War, the American birthrate exploded. Between 1945 and 1961, 65 million Americans were born, with 1 child being born every 7 seconds at its height. The children born between these years have come to be known as the “Baby Boomers”. This incredible production of children was caused by the fact that many had postponed starting families until the conclusion of the war. Also adding to the flurry of new children was the increasing prosperity of the post-war economy and affordable housing. Popular culture glorified pregnancy (in marriage), parenthood, and large families.
UNIT 7: RECOVERY, PROSPERITY, AND TURMOIL (1945 – 1980)
HOW DID AMERICANS CONFRONT COMMUNISM ON THE HOME FRONT?
Second Red Scare: During the 1950s, rumors and accusations of Communists in the United States led to fears that Communists were attempting to take over the world. The “Second Red Scare” began in September 1945, and escalated into a general fear of Communist subversion - an effort to secretly weaken American society and overthrow its government. The fear that communists were working to overthrow the American government led many to suspect that American communist sympathizers might be found in all parts of American society, government, and military. This suspicion led to federal government action in a variety of ways.
The Loyalty Review Program: In early 1947, President Truman established the “Loyalty Review Program” to ensure that no communists had infiltrated the federal government. Truman also wished to prove that Democrats could be as anti-communist as Republicans. The personal background of over 6 million government employees was investigated, causing some 2000 employees to quit their jobs and leading to the dismissal of 212 believed to be security risks.
House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC): Although in existence since 1938, HUAC gained tremendous importance and visibility when FBI director J. Edgar Hoover urged the committee not only to actively investigate the possibility of communist subversion, but to seek out those who might have communist sympathies or friends who were sympathizers. Though not confirmed at the time, Hoover’s suspicion of communist infiltration of American society was proven to be correct in 1995 when the U.S. government finally revealed the existence of “Project Venona”. In 1946, American and British cryptographers discovered the code used by the Soviets to communicate with its spies in the United States. Well over 3000 messages had been exchanged between the USSR and the U.S. during the Cold War. That Project Venona had cracked the code was kept secret as this achievement led to the gathering of critical intelligence.
HUAC and Hollywood: “Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of the Communist Party”. It is with these words that HUAC frequently began its interrogation of witnesses brought before the committee, words heard by many in the entertainment industry. HUAC targeted Hollywood in particular because of the immense power of movies and other entertainment forms to manipulate the opinions of the American public in general. Eventually, 151 actors, writers, directors, and broadcasters would be placed on a “blacklist” if deemed to hold communist sympathies, a designation that prevented them from being hired in the entertainment industry.
HUAC and Alger Hiss: In 1948, HUAC called the prominent editor of Time Magazine to testify before the committee. Whitaker Chambers had himself once been a communist and spy, but had quit both in 1938. In his testimony before HUAC, Chambers claimed that several government officials had once been, or continued to be, communists. Most prominent on his list was Alger Hiss, a diplomat in the Roosevelt Administration, whom Chambers claimed had given him secret State Department documents in 1937. On the committee was California Representative Richard Nixon, who dug deep into the Alger Hiss case, eventually locating evidence that Alger Hiss had indeed been in possession of secret papers. Because Hiss denied being a communist, he was convicted of perjury, eventually serving 44 months in prison. The Alger Hiss case further worried Americans that the U.S. government had been infiltrated by communist sympathizers.
HUAC and the Rosenbergs: The detonation of the USSRs first nuclear weapon in 1949 led many Americans to believe that the science that led to this achievement had been stolen from the United States. A British scientist pointed the finger at Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, an American couple who were members of the Communist Party. The couple was arrested and put on trial for espionage, eventually being executed in 1953. This action was controversial at the time because many believed that the Rosenbergs were simply victims of the anti-communist mood in America brought on by the Second Red Scare. Convincing evidence of their guilt would not be confirmed to Americans generally until the existence of Project Venona was revealed in 1995, as secret messages proved that the Rosenbergs had indeed transmitted American nuclear secrets to the Soviets.
The Taft-Hartley Act: In 1947, Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act, a law that was intended to reduce communist influence in the nations labor unions, and that required union leaders to take oaths that they were not communists. Many union leaders did not object to this requirement, while others refused the oath. The President of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the main union umbrella group, launched his own campaign to rid the union movement of communists, eventually expelling 11 unions from membership which would not remove their communist leaders.
The Pledge of Allegiance is Changed: Originally, the Pledge of Allegiance was written by a magazine editor to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ landing in the new world. In its original form, the Pledge did not contain the words “under God”. In 1954, President Eisenhower urged Congress to add the words “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance in order to create a clear distinction between the religious freedom of America and the hostility to religion in the USSR. This addition was also intended to unify the American public in the face of the Cold War.
McCarthyism Grips America: Taking advantage of the heightened tension of the Second Red Scare was Senator Joseph R. McCarthy who had won his Senate race in 1946 by accusing his opponent of being a communist. As the basis of his Senate career, McCarthy went on to accuse many members of the State Department and the Democratic Party of protecting communists. Americans came to believe these accusations at the same time that the McCarran Act (1950) was passed, a law that criminalized any activity that contributed to the “establishment of a totalitarian government”. In 1952, Senator McCarthy became the chairman of the Senate subcommittee on investigations when his Republican Party took control of the Congress. His investigation turned into a witch hunt as he searched for disloyalty based on poor evidence and fear. He frequently ruined reputations by badgering witnesses without the proper evidence to back up his charge of communism. This tactic came to be known as McCarthyism.
Downfall of McCarthy: Senator McCarthy’s downfall came when he began investigating the Army, believing that communists could be found within it. In 1954, Americans watched the Army-McCarthy hearings on the new technology of television. In the midst of the hearings, McCarthy lashed out at an Army Lawyer named Joseph Welch, pointing out that a member of his law firm had once been a communist. Angered by the possibility that a young man’s entire future would be ruined by McCarthy’s needless comment, Joseph Welch uttered the words that destroyed McCarthy: “Until this moment, I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness…You have done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?” Americans could finally see with their own eyes how McCarthy attacked witnesses, and his popularity faded.
HOW DID AMERICANS CONFRONT THE WORLDWIDE SOVIET THREAT?
National Defense in the 1950s: When President Truman chose not to run for the Presidency, the election of 1952 became a critical turning point. The Republicans had nominated Dwight D. Eisenhower, the General who had organized the successful D-Day invasion of World War II and who was widely regarded as an American hero. With the campaign slogan “I like Ike”, Eisenhower easily won the election against his Democratic opponent, Adlai Stevenson. President Eisenhower came into office believing that communism could not be defeated through a series of small wars to contain its spread. He also believed that a strong economy would prevent communist influence in the United States. As a result of these beliefs, President Eisenhower developed a new defense policy that came to be known as “massive retaliation”, the use of nuclear threats as a way to maintain peace. Building up the American nuclear arsenal from 1,000 to 18,000 bombs during his Presidency was far less expensive than maintaining a massive military and funding conventional warfare. Eisenhower subtly used nuclear threats to bring an end to the Korean War and to end Chinese attacks on the island of Taiwan. In order to make massive nuclear retaliation possible, Eisenhower encouraged the development of technologies that could deliver nuclear missiles anywhere in the world. The B-52 Bomber was developed for the purpose of flying across continents to drop nuclear bombs. The Polaris submarine was launched in 1960, a weapon that could deliver nuclear bombs. Most importantly, the Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was developed, a rocket technology that could deliver nuclear weapons to its target across thousands of miles. These new technologies played a role in what has come to be known as “brinkmanship”, the willingness to go to the brink of war in an effort to force the other side to back down.
Federal-Aid Highway Act (1956): One Cold War project of the Eisenhower Administration had incredible economic and social effects. In 1956, Congress passed the Federal-Aid Highway Act, a law that dedicated 25 Billion dollars to the construction of 41,000 miles of roads linking the entire United States. What is generally known as the “interstate system” was originally intended to allow easy movement of the military from one part of the U.S. to another should the nation be invaded by a foreign power. The commercial effects of the interstate system are difficult to overestimate, as are the effects it has had on daily life in the U.S. The linking of cities nationwide has allowed families to live further apart without losing contact. As well, the interstates accelerated the growth of suburbs.
The Launch of Sputnik (1957): Americans in the 1950s were confident that they had developed superior technologies when compared to the Soviets. This belief was shattered on October 4th, 1957 when the Soviets successfully launched “Sputnik”, the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth. Not only could the Soviets potentially use satellites to spy on the United States and its actions around the globe, the fact that the Soviets delivered the satellite to orbit demonstrated that they had excellent missile technology. As well, Americans came to believe that there was a “missile gap”, that the USSR had far more missiles than the U.S. Congress moved fast in reaction to Sputnik by creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a new agency of the federal government designed to co-ordinate missile research and space exploration. The launching of Sputnik and the creation of NASA mark the beginning of the “Space Race”, a period of competition between the U.S. and the USSR to master satellite and missile technology. The primary motivation of the Space Race was to be the first to use satellites and rockets for military applications. A second result of Sputnik was the passage of the National Defense Education Act, a law which increased funds for the study of math, science, and foreign languages. Congress believed that high school and university students needed to better develop these skills so that many of them could contribute to the Cold War as research scientists and diplomats. The Space Race would eventually lead to a competition to reach the Moon. The United States took a critical step toward this goal in 1962 when John Glenn became the first American astronaut to orbit the Earth. The U.S. would eventually become the first nation to land a man on the Moon when astronaut Neil Armstrong took his first step in 1969.
Citizens React to Threat of Nuclear War: The real possibility of nuclear war caused many citizens to devise ways to survive the blast. Schools ran “duck and cover” drills in which students would duck under their desks and cover their heads. The Civil Defense Agency worked with communities to identify specific buildings as bomb shelters and develop plans for survivors after an attack. Many individual families constructed bomb shelters in their backyards or dug into the foundations of their homes, stocking them with food and supplies. The practicality of these measures is questionable, but these activities did give people a sense of control. Although the detonation of a nuclear weapon could certainly wipe out people in great numbers, the real threat comes from nuclear “fallout”, the radiation left over after a blast. Fallout would kill far more people than the actual bomb itself.
Eisenhower’s Farewell Address: Upon leaving office in January 1961, President Eisenhower delivered a speech intended to warn Americans about a new threat to American security and liberty. Eisenhower warned that the powerful cooperation between the military and the industries that supplied and developed weapons may threaten Americans politically, socially, and even spiritually. In particular, Eisenhower was concerned that weapons manufacturers may be gaining so much power that they could influence Congress to get into wars needlessly simply because the manufacturers wished to make profits by selling weapons. The arms race triggered by the Cold War disturbed President Eisenhower, and he worried that this new “military industrial complex” (a phrase he introduces) might corrupt American life.
A New Foreign Policy - Détente: The intense hostility of the Cold War would ease when Richard Nixon, Vice President under Eisenhower, won the Presidency in 1968. Nixon had come to believe that the 2 superpowers had to adjust to the growing role of other nations and regions, especially China, Japan, and Western Europe. Along with his National Security Advisor, Henry Kissinger, Nixon introduced a policy of easing tensions between the superpowers that came to be known as “détente”. Having had no contact with China since it became communist in 1949, Nixon decided that a diplomatic relationship needed to be established. In 1972, Nixon travelled to China successfully opening diplomatic relations with the Chinese. The Soviets were encouraged by Nixon’s success and soon proposed a “summit” between the 2 superpowers. President Nixon arrived for the Moscow Summit in May of 1972 where both sides agreed to the historic Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I). The terms of this treaty set limitations on nuclear arms, opened trade between the nations, and encouraged the exchange of scientific information. A second round of talks in 1979 led to the SALT II treaty which set limits on the development of new missile systems. At least for a time, the U.S. and the USSR had established a positive direction in their relationship as Cold War rivals.
WHO WERE THE KEY GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS WHO LED THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT?
Congress of Racial Equality (CORE): Founded in Chicago in 1942, CORE joined the NAACP as a movement of people attempting to bring about racial equality in the United States. Although the “separate but equal” principle established in the Plessy v. Ferguson case permitted segregation in America since 1896, it did not make it mandatory. CORE was inspired by the “sit-down” strikes of the labor movement to apply this same strategy to begin integrating businesses in Northern cities. CORE members would enter restaurants that served Whites only and, if denied service, would simply sit down, refusing to leave. Using th “sit-in” technique, CORE succeeded in integrating many restaurants, theaters, and other public facilities in cities such as Chicago, Detroit, and Syracuse. CORE would become a critical part of what would become known as the Civil Rights Movement.
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC): Immediately following this success of the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1956, Martin Luther King Jr formed another important group of the Civil Rights movement, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), composed of African-American ministers who set as their goal the end of segregation in voting, transportation, housing, and accommodations.
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP): The NAACP, founded in 1909 by W.E.B. DuBois, would be an important factor in advancing the Civil Rights of all Americans, particularly through its use of the judicial system. This organization provided funding and legal expertise throughout the Civil Rights era for individuals challenging federal, state, and local laws that violated the spirit of the 14th Amendment. Notable contributions would include legal guidance in Brown v. Board and the Montgomery Bus Boycott, among many other legal challenges.
Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC): In order to co-ordinate the Sit-Ins inspired by the Greensboro Four, students organized the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), an organization that attracted both White and Black volunteers. In addition to arranging Sit-Ins, SNCC sent volunteers into rural areas to register African-American voters. SNCC enjoyed great success in integrating public facilities in dozens of Southern communities.
The Freedom Riders: Even though segregated interstate bus transportation was now outlawed, some Southern communities left this service segregated. In order to draw attention to this in 1961, CORE leader James Farmer organized what came to be known as “Freedom Rides”, a technique in which White and Black students would purchase bus tickets in Northern communities to arrive in segregated Southern communities that had not integrated their bus terminals. Frequently, Freedom Riders were greeted by violence at the hands of White mobs, but not on the scale found in Birmingham, Alabama. The Birmingham police chief, Eugene “Bull” Connor, knowing that Freedom Riders were about to arrive in his city, contacted the local Ku Klux Klan to greet and then beat the arrivals. Baseball bats, chains, and pipes were used to bloody the Freedom Riders, drawing national attention. In late 1962, the federal government finally began to enforce the integration of interstate bus terminals.
WHAT WERE THE KEY EVENTS THAT LED TO THE ACHIEVEMENT OF FULL CIVIL RIGHTS IN 1965?
Brown v. Board of Education, Topeka, Kansas (1954): In 1951, the parents of Linda Brown, an American schoolgirl of African ancestry, applied for their daughter’s admission to a public school in Topeka, KS that was designated for whites only. The Board of Education denied their application, following the constitutional principle of “separate but equal” established in the Plessy decision. In a class action lawsuit, the Browns sued the Board of Education in a case that eventually went to the Supreme Court. The question before the Court was whether the existence of “separate but equal” facilities in Topeka violated the equal protection clause (with regard to race) of the 14th Amendment? The case was argued for the plaintiffs by a young NAACP lawyer named Thurgood Marshall, a man who would later become the first African-American to be appointed to the Supreme Court. Hearing the case was a Court headed by Chief Justice Earl Warren, and his time as the head of the Court is referred to as the “Warren Court”, a period between 1953 and 1969. The decision: (1) determined that separate facilities in education are inherently unequal; (2) stated that segregation by race “…generates a feeling of inferiority as to their status in the community [affecting] their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone…”; (3) insisted that by suggesting inferiority systemically violated the 14th Amendment. A follow-up case in 1955 ordered the integration of public education “with all deliberate speed”. This decision finally ended the principle of “separate but equal” in education, and became one very important factor in spurring the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, inspiring challenges to Jim Crow laws in other areas of American life.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott: In December 1955, a seamstress named Rosa Parks boarded a bus, taking her place behind the white section, as was the law in Montgomery, AL. In order to allow a White man to sit down, the driver ordered Parks to rise and give up her seat. Not only was Parks arrested, her arrest attracted the attention of the NAACP who convinced her to challenge the segregated bus system in court. Days after her arrest, African-American leaders organized support for Parks by calling all Blacks to “boycott” Montgomery busses, to refuse to ride them. National attention soon focused on the Montgomery Bus Boycott, leading to protests throughout the country. At the head of the boycott was a young pastor named Martin Luther King Jr. MLK believed that the way to end segregation was to use “non-violent passive resistance” in the face of unjust laws, a strategy designed to sway the opinions of fellow Americans to demand an end to all segregation in American society. MLK’s strategy would become the primary technique in the Civil Rights movement. The boycott would last more than a year before the Supreme Court finally declared Alabama’s bus segregation law to be unconstitutional. Immediately following this success, MLK formed another important group of the Civil Rights movement, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), composed of African-American ministers who set as their goal the end of segregation in voting, transportation, housing, and accommodations.
The Little Rock Nine: In September of 1957, 9 Black students intended to register at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, an institution with 2000 White students. Governor Orval Faubus, in order to prevent this from happening, ordered the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the students from entering the school. The troops were joined by a huge mob of Whites threatening and intimidating these young people. A District Court ordered Faubus to withdraw the troops, however the Governor did nothing to prevent the angry White mob from leaving. When the Black students finally entered the school, violence broke out, leaving two Black reporters beaten, and windows in the school broken. Believing federal authority was being challenged, President Eisenhower ordered 1,000 Army troops to Little Rock who then encircled the school and escorted the Black students to their classes, a situation that would last for a year. Not willing to integrate, Governor Faubus ordered that the 3 high schools in Little Rock be closed for the following school year. Integration attempts would not resume until 1959.
The Civil Rights Act (1957): A first step in protecting the civil rights of Blacks came in 1957 with the passage of a law that created the new Civil Rights division within the Justice Department that was authorized to investigate anyone attempting to interfere with the right to vote. The SCLC, encouraged by this new legislation, began a campaign to register 2 million Black voters.
The Greensboro Four: In February 1960, four friends from North Carolina A & T walked into the downtown Woolworth’s to purchase school supplies and then sit at the lunch counter for coffee. The Black students knew they would be denied service, and when they were, they simply sat at the counter until closing time, vowing to return every day to do the same until they finally received the same service as White patrons. With this simple act, the “Sit-In” movement was born, a movement that spread to 100 cities throughout the South by 1961, and attracted nationwide attention. Even though sit-in participants were insulted, intimidated, and sometimes beaten, they followed MLK’s technique of non-violent passive resistance, refusing to react violently.
Integrating Higher Education: A veteran of the Air Force, African-American James Meredith held in his hand a federal court order demanding that the University of Mississippi register him for the place he had earned. Segregationist Governor Ross Barnett stepped in to prevent Meredith from registering, defying Supreme Court rulings which ended segregated education. In order to ensure compliance with federal authority, President Kennedy ordered 500 federal marshals to escort Meredith to the campus, only to be greeted by an angry and violent mob that eventually sparked a full riot. In order to avoid further violence, Kennedy ordered several thousand troops to the campus where they remained for the rest of the year. Meredith was escorted to classes under federal guard until his graduation.
The Stand in the Schoolhouse Door – Gov. Wallace: A similar situation unfolded when newly elected Alabama Governor George Wallace attempted to defy the federal government’s demand that education be desegregated. “I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny, and I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, and segregation forever”. These words from his inaugural speech in 1963 would be played out in what has come to be known as “The Stand in the Schoolhouse Door”. Governor Wallace, in an attempt to prevent the enrollement of a Black female student, stood in the doorway at the University of Alabama, soon to be greeted by the new student and the federal marshals escorting her. After a brief speech, Wallace stood aside. Both Governors Faubus and Wallace viewed their defiance as a struggle between states rights vs. federal rights.
MLK’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail (1963): In April of 1963, MLK was arrested in Birmingham during a protest. His goal in Birmingham was to purposely draw attention to the need for a new civil rights law. The Kennedy Administration seemed to move too slow on this issue, so MLK hoped to force the Administration to pay attention. While in prison, MLK composed the famous “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” in which he defended “civil disobedience” as a thoroughly American practice, and tried to awaken the conscience of good, but silent white people. In his letter, he stated that Americans of African ancestry are tired of the word “wait”. The injustice of some laws must be exposed through non-violent resistance. The soul of America is freedom and the people are co-authors with God in seeking this freedom for all people. MLK’s arrest in Birmingham, and subsequent letter, captured national attention, focusing it on the on-going struggle for civil rights, and forcing the Kennedy Administration to craft civil rights legislation. His letter also reveals the grounding of the civil rights movement in Christian faith.
March on Washington (1963): In August of 1963, MLK organized the “March on Washington” to build public support that would influence Congress to pass civil rights legislation. His goal was to encourage the use of the Federal government’s power to remove all barriers to full citizenship for all Americans. It was at this march, attended by over 200,000 Americans of all races, that MLK delivered one of the greatest speeches in world history, entitled “I Have a Dream”: “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…’…that my four little children will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character…”. With public support behind it, Congress finally passed civil rights legislation.
Civil Rights Act (1964): The Civil Rights Act of 1964 marks the high point of the Civil Rights Movement as this law finally brings full equality to all Americans. The main portions of this new law: (1) gives all citizens equal access to public facilities; (2) gives the Attorney-General the power to enforce school desegregation; (3) requires private business to end discrimination; (4) establishes the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) to monitor employment practices.
Voting Rights Act (1965): The success of the Civil Rights Act however exposed the vulnerability of voting rights. In the works since 1962, the 24th Amendment was finally ratified in 1964, an Amendment that finally eliminated poll taxes. All barriers to African-American voting were finally eliminated with the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965, a law which gives the Federal government the authority to register voters, removing this authority from state governments.
WHO WERE THE KEY GROUPS WHO WORKED OUTSIDE THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT SEEKING BLACK EQUALITY?
Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam: At the forefront of rejecting MLK’s non-violent approach in the early 1960s was the Nation of Islam, a uniquely American brand of Islam founded in Detroit in 1930 that was reserved only for African-Americans. Among its beliefs was that “White Devils” were opposed to Blacks, and were manipulating them against their own self-interest. NOI encouraged blacks to become educated and economically self-sufficient. Although not in favor of violence, the Nation of Islam was very much interested in self-defense. Its most powerful spokesman in this time period was Malcolm X, a gifted speaker who referred to the March on Washington as the “Farce on Washington”. Malcolm X encouraged Black separation from American society, rejecting integration as undesirable, once proclaiming it will be either “the Ballot or the Bullet”.
Black Power Movement: By the mid 1960s, nonviolence was criticized by some Americans for failing to improve economic conditions for Blacks. Young African Americans advanced the idea of “Black Power”, an idea that stressed pride in African American culture and was opposed to cultural assimilation. Black Power encouraged Blacks to embrace their African heritage by studying African history, adopting African styles of dress, and taking traditional African names. Black Power was an idea that had its roots in people like Marcus Garvey and UNIA, but took a more militant stand. Black Power was popularized by Stokely Carmichael, a man who rejected non-violence and was opposed to integration. His brand of “Black Nationalism” would inspire the formation of other groups.
Black Panthers: In 1966, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale had become enraged by police brutality facing African-Americans, especially in their home city of Oakland. In response, they formed the Black Panther Party, an organization dedicated to the self-defense of Black communities. The Panthers believed that a revolution was necessary to end Black oppression and encouraged Blacks to arm themselves and prepare to force Whites to grant effective equal rights. In particular, the Panthers wanted Black communities to gain control of the major institutions in Black neighborhoods such as schools, police, hospitals, and housing. Their distinctive uniform of black berets and black leather jackets attracted many to their cause, spreading the Party into other areas of the country.
WHAT WERE THE KEY EVENTS IN THE VIETNAM CONFLICT?
Background of American Involvement in Vietnam: Control of Vietnam changed hands many times since the turn of the 20th century. France controlled Indochina for many years prior to WWII. Japan invaded the territory and asserted control over Vietnam. A communist-nationalist group called the Vietminh, led by Ho Chi Minh, and supported by the U.S. rose up to oppose the Japanese. After WWII, the French again asserted control over Vietnam. The Vietminh again rose up to seek independence from the French, finally defeating them in 1954. In Geneva Switzerland, in an agreement called the “Geneva Accords, all sides agreed to (1) divide Vietnam at the 17th parallel; (2) Ho Chi Minh would control the North; (3) Ngo Dinh Diem (pro-west) would control the South; (4) free elections in 1956 would be held and would unite Vietnam under one government; (5) Cambodia would be recognized as an independent nation. In 1956, Ngo Dinh Diem refused the electoral process, believing that the north would not hold genuinely free elections. The United States naturally sided with Diem, following its policy of containment.
The Domino Theory: President Eisenhower also believed in the “Domino Theory” which stated that if Vietnam fell to communism, all of Southeast Asia would do the same. Fresh in his mind was the fact that Mao Zedong had successfully taken over China in 1949, founding the People’s Republic of China (communist), a close neighbor of Vietnam. As well, the United States had fought a stalemate war in Korea. Civil war soon broke out in Vietnam over control of the nation. As a result, the U.S. began advising the South Vietnamese government, and then became formally involved in the Vietnam Conflict in 1964, guided by the belief that if Vietnam fell to Communism, all of Southeast Asia might fall as well.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964): Responding to an alleged attack on an American warship, Congress authorized President Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) “to take all necessary steps, including the use of armed force, to assist any member or protocol state of the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty (SEATO) requesting assistance in defense of its freedom”. Essentially, Congress handed the President all of its war powers. This resolution becomes the legal basis for American involvement in the Vietnam conflict, and demonstrating the influence of the “Domino Theory” in foreign policy. There is some question about whether an American warship was actually attacked, and so has led many Americans to become highly suspicious of the government as it acts in world affairs.
American Military Involvement: Soon after the Gulf of Tonkin incident, the Vietcong, a communist rebel militia operating in South Vietnam and working closely with the North Vietnamese Army (NVA), began attacking bases where American advisers were stationed. In response, LBJ to ordered air strikes on North Vietnam, gaining the approval of the American people who at that time believed America needed to assist South Vietnam. LBJ was also supported by his Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara and his National Security Adviser McGeorge Bundy. Beginning in March 1965, LBJ ordered “Operation Rolling Thunder” into action, as aerial bombing campaign of North Vietnam that lasted until 1968. Also in March 1965, LBJ ordered combat troops to Vietnam who would fight alongside the South Vietnamese Army against both the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese Army. At the helm of American military operations in Vietnam was General William Westmoreland. A great deal of fighting during the Vietnam War took place in the dense jungles of that country. In order to clear this away, the American military made use of a powerful herbicide known as “Agent Orange”, a chemical that left many veterans vulnerable to cancer and producing children with birth defects. Another controversial weapon used during the war was “Napalm”, a gasoline-based bomb that inflicted incredible burns on victims, killing many more simply by suffocating them as the gasoline drained oxygen from the area. By 1966, over 300,000 Americans were fighting in Vietnam, with many Americans believing they could win. As American casualties increased, many American citizens began questioning involvement in the war, leading to a widespread anti-war movement. The influence of television in turning Americans against the war was powerful as citizens would find daily “body counts” on the evening news. As well, for the first time, Americans could see with their own eyes the devastation of war through almost live broadcasts of events in Vietnam, making this conflict the first “televised war”.
The Ho Chi Minh Trail: Although the United States had undoubtedly the most powerful conventional military in the world, it struggled to succeed in Vietnam as the North Vietnamese fought a guerilla campaign of hit-and-run attacks, taking advantage of the geography of the country. Making use of ancient paths and creating new ones, the North Vietnamese transported men and materials to Vietcong and NVA fighting in the South. What came to be known as the “Ho Chi Minh Trail” was a source of frustration to the American military because this network of pathways was so versatile and difficult to interrupt. Trails would snake through mountains, make use of waterways, and even pass through the neighboring countries of Laos and Cambodia.
The Tet Offensive: On January 30, 1968, during the Vietnamese New Year known as “Tet”, the Vietcong and NVA launched a series of coordinated surprise attacks on American bases and targets throughout South Vietnam. In the short run, the Tet Offensive seemed like a victory for the Communists. Americans watched in horror the news reports and images from Vietnam. As days passed however, the American military turned the tide, effectively fending off Communist forces. Militarily, Tet became a disaster for the Communists, but it turned into a political victory for the Communists as this conflict turned many Americans against the war. Up until the Tet Offensive, LBJ’s Administration portrayed American military involvement in Vietnam as making great progress that would lead to victory. News footage of the Tet Offensive painted a different picture, leading many Americans to question government information about the war. This doubt of the government came to be known as the “credibility gap”.
As a result of the perceived American defeat during Tet, General Westmoreland stepped down. As well, President Johnson refused to seek the nomination of the Democratic Party for President in 1968.
My Lai Incident: American opinion against the war was further enflamed when news broke about a massacre of South Vietnamese civilians by American soldiers at a hamlet called My Lai. Led by Lieutenant William Calley, a platoon of soldiers massacred up to 500 men, women, and children, raping some, and mutilating the bodies of the dead. Although My Lai had been suspected of harboring Communist guerillas and sympathizers, the extreme violence used at My Lai shocked the world. Lt. Calley would be court-martialed and sentenced to prison.
Vietnamization: In 1968, Republican Richard Nixon won the Presidency and was determined to end the Vietnam War. Nixon worked closely with his closest aide, Harvard professor Henry Kissinger, both of whom wished to use diplomacy to bring peace to the region. Nixon also favored “Vietnamization”, a policy of withdrawing American troops from Vietnam in favor of letting the South Vietnamese take over the fighting. In order to put pressure on the North Vietnamese to negotiate, President Nixon ordered air-strikes against North Vietnam. Without informing Congress, Nixon also ordered air-strikes on neighboring Cambodia as many Vietcong fled across the border to use this country as a sanctuary from fighting. In April of 1970, President Nixon had announced that he had ordered troops to invade Cambodia to destroy Vietcong military bases there. Congress was enraged by this action, especially when they learned that Nixon had acted without informing them. As a result, Congress repealed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution giving the President complete authority over war efforts in Vietnam. The invasion of Cambodia set off protests at universities nationwide, most notably at Kent State University. During the protest, National Guard soldiers had fired on demonstrators without an order to do so, killing four.
Pentagon Papers: The credibility gap hit its peak in 1971 when the American public received proof that the U.S. government and its officials had been lying to them about the conduct of the Vietnam War. Daniel Ellsberg, a former Defense Department worker, “leaked” to the New York Times a top-secret report commissioned by then Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. “The Pentagon Papers”, as this report would be called, was a history of American involvement in Vietnam by all Administrations that had anything to do with the conflict. The Pentagon Papers confirmed that the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations had made efforts to make the Vietnam conflict look better than it was when they addressed Congress and the press. Further, the Papers proved that Presidents had expanded the War without the consent of Congress. Although President Nixon was not included in the Pentagon Papers, he nevertheless attempted to prevent their release, eventually having Daniel Ellsberg charged under the Espionage Act of 1917 when they were. New York Times v. U.S. (1971) made it to the Supreme Court, with the Justices siding with the New York Times and Ellsberg, arguing that the First Amendment protected the printing of the Pentagon Papers. Support for the war eroded even further as a result.
Paris Peace Accords: In 1972, the United States began a bombing campaign of North Vietnam that came to be called the “Christmas Bombings” that eventually led to the resumption of peace talks, with both sides agreeing finally to end the war. The Paris Peace Accords formally ended American military involvement in Vietnam and, for a time, brought an end to fighting between North and South Vietnam. The Paris Peace Accords never clarified the ultimate fate of Vietnam or its possible unification.
Fall of Saigon: Two years after the U.S. pulled its military out of Vietnam, the North Vietnamese launched a full scale invasion of the South. Although the United States had promised to defend the South against any possible invasion, President Gerald Ford was unable to persuade Congress to fund assistance to South Vietnam. As a result, the North Vietnamese communists succeeded in taking over the South, including its capital Saigon, renaming it Ho Chi Minh City.
26th Amendment: Since the draft was in place, many young people were forced to serve in Vietnam, with the average age of a soldier at 19 years of age, down from 25 years in World War II. The draft became a major focus of many anti-war protests. Student activists had frequently pointed out that young men were sent to war yet did not have the right to vote. As a result of student activism, the 26th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, standardizing the national voting age at 18 years.
War Powers Act (1973): Following the tragedy of the Vietnam War, Congress passed the War Powers Act in 1973, a law intended to re-establish limits on Executive power in military affairs. Under the provisions of this law: (1) the President must inform Congress of troop commitments to a foreign country within 48 hours of their deployment; (2) the President must withdraw troops in 60 - 90 days unless Congress explicitly approves of the troop deployment. This law reflects the on-going struggle between the executive and legislative branches of government in military and foreign affairs. The legacy of Vietnam also includes the expenditure of $150 billion, 58,000 deaths, and increased suspicion about government.
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR SOCIAL MOVEMENTS OF THE 1960s AND 1970s?
The Birth of Rock and Roll: A new music form would develop in the early 1950s that blended country, gospel, and rhythm and blues. “Rock and Roll”, although popularized for white audiences by Elvis Presley in 1956, was a form of music that developed in the South, was drawn from a variety of musical influences, and was based primarily in Black musical styles. This new music would soon become the basis of a growing “youth culture”, a phenomenon which makes its first real appearance in the post-war era, and which for the first time divided entertainment by generations. Presley’s contribution to Rock and Roll was essentially the popularization of Black music for White audiences, effectively blurring racial barriers. American youth in the 1950s gravitated to this new music and, especially for the Baby Boomers, provided the “soundtrack” for that generation’s later activities in the 1960s. The political nature of Folk Music, popularized by Bob Dylan, would become associated with the Civil Rights Movement. The expressive sounds of Soul would be spurred on by James Brown early in the 1960s, soon becoming associated with the Black Power Movement of the late 1960s. The efforts of Barry Gordy in Detroit created the “Motown” sound, a music form popular with both Black and White audiences that featured short, up-beat, “story” songs of love gained and lost. The Beatles revolutionized Rock and Roll upon their arrival in America in 1964 by opening up the “British Invasion”, internationalizing Rock music, and pioneering a more mature and thoughtful approach to popular music. The various forms of music that emerged with the birth of Rock and Roll would serve as backdrop for the massive social and political changes of the chaotic 1960s.
The Youth Movement: During the 1960s, a youth movement developed that challenged American politics, its social system, and the values of the time, largely inspired by the 1950s “beat” movement which openly criticized American society. Students concerned about injustices in political and social issues formed Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), expressing their views in the Port Huron Statement, a document that outlined their criticisms of American life and its lack of justice for many groups within it. SDS would be active in the Anti-War Movement of the 1960s, inspiring many draftees to burn their draft cards. Founded at the University of California, Berkley in 1964, the Free Speech Movement challenged freedom of expression limitations on university campuses by “demonstrating” against the administration of that school. Up until this time, most university campuses viewed students in a parental fashion, imposing curfews, and supervising the personal lives of their students. This idea, known as “in loco parentis”, became a source of irritation and outrage for Baby Boomers just entering college. The tactics used by the Free Speech Movement, borrowed from Civil Rights pioneers, and became the model for college demonstrations around the country.
The Counterculture: Instead of “challenging the system”, some youth sought to create their own society, becoming known as “hippies”, and leading what came to be known as the “Counterculture”. They lived a life that promoted flamboyant dress, rock music, drug use, and free and independent living. At the core of this movement was a utopian ideal of living that they believed was closer to nature, full of love, empathy, tolerance, and cooperation. Communes, in which members shared everything and worked together, were formed when hippies “dropped out” of society. The City of San Francisco became a haven for this new hippie culture in 1965, settling in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. Young people from around the United States began to flock to Haight-Ashbury, bringing with them all kinds of new ideas and inspiring new forms of music such as Acid Rock, popularized by the Jefferson Airplane, and giving birth to the “Jam Band” concept made famous by the Grateful Dead. The hippie movement spread across the United States, popularized by the new music they created. Many hippies began to separate themselves entirely from society, moving to plots of land in rural areas, attempting to create “Utopian” communities, or “communes”, based on some ideal of justice and sharing. The high point of the Counterculture came in 1969 at a massive concert known as “Woodstock Festival” in upstate New York, attended by nearly 500,000 people. The counterculture declined soon after Woodstock as some hippie communities became places where criminal activity was common. A subsequent music festival known as the Altamont Free Concert later in 1969, headlined by the Rolling Stones, marked the beginning of the end of the Counterculture as one man was murdered there by the Hell’s Angels who were hired to provide security. The “end of the 60s” was also heralded by the murders directed by Charles Manson, the leader of a hippie commune that cast suspicion on hippies generally throughout the United States.
The Rise of Feminism: Although women had succeeded in gaining the vote in 1920 with the passage of the 19th Amendment, and although women had made some advances in access to employment, many women in the late 1950s and early 1960s had become frustrated by the limited options they faced in life. It seemed to many that women were expected to be housewives and mothers, and this domestic role denied women the opportunity to explore their own potential. This feeling was captured by a woman named Betty Friedan in 1963 when she published her book “The Feminine Mystique”. The purpose of Friedan’s book was to expose the isolation and frustration that many women experienced while fulfilling traditional female roles of mother and housewife. This book was an account of women’s experiences, and details their yearnings for more opportunities to be part of the public sphere of American life. Also prominent in the Feminist movement of the 1970s was Gloria Steinem, a former Playboy “Bunny” who founded “Ms. Magazine”, a periodical that analyzed social and political issues from a feminist point of view. As well, Gloria Steinem founded a “Pro-Choice” movement that advocated the rights of women to gain access to abortion, or “reproductive freedom” as she described it. The goal of Feminism was to create a society in which women would be equal to men in all affairs, including education, employment, and politics.
National Organization for Women (NOW): Betty Friedan, considered the founder of modern Feminism, through her book, inspired the formation of discussion groups across the United States which ultimately led to the formation in 1966 of the National Organization for Women (NOW). Women now had a formal organization that would lobby for women’s social, legal, and political rights. NOW soon focused its efforts on gaining passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), a proposal that sought to guarantee the equality of all Americans, regardless of sex. Opponents of the ERA feared that it would make women eligible for combat and the draft just as men were, and might threaten their place in many industries which was protected by labor laws. The opposition to ERA was led by a fiery Conservative named Phyllis Schlafly, who organized the “Stop ERA” campaign of the 1970s. The ERA ultimately failed to gain ratification by the early 1980s, though it has been reintroduced several times.
Roe v. Wade (1973): The right of a woman legally to have access to an abortion in the United States came about as a result of a Supreme Court challenge in 1973. The State of Texas created a law which stated that no woman may obtain an abortion of her child except if a mother’s life was threatened by continuing the pregnancy. Jane Roe (pseudonym) challenged this law when she became pregnant. The questions put before the Court were: (1) do Americans have a “right to privacy” which would protect a woman in making a decision for abortion? (2) is there a constitutional right to privacy flowing from the Bill of Rights generally, and from the 14th Amendment’s due process clause? The decision of the Court determined that: (1) Americans do have a right to privacy, inferred in the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th Amendments; (2) this right to privacy extends to marriage, procreation, contraception, and abortion; (3) a fetus is not a legal person under the 14th Amendment; (4) no state can limit access to abortion during the first trimester; (5) states may legislate abortion when the child is in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters. This decision made access to abortion a legal choice for women. Because of the intensely personal nature of this issue, abortion has remained a highly charged political issue that divides the American public.
Latino Activism: Following the example of the civil rights movement, many Latino Americans in the early 1960s began to confront the limited education and employment opportunities available to them. The most prominent example of Latino activism came when Caesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta organized the National Farm Workers Association, a group that sought to increase the wages and benefits of the agricultural workers laboring in California’s vast agricultural industry, an industry that was highly dependent on migrant Latino labor. With the help of numerous college students and Civil Rights organizations, Chavez organized a boycott of grapes, a very profitable crop produced in California. Over the 5 years of the boycott, the profits from California grapes decreased dramatically, finally leading in 1970 to an agreement on the part of the grape growers to increase the wages of agricultural workers and improve working conditions. In the process of the boycott, 2 groups representing Latino labor merged to form the United Farm Workers (UFW), a union that continues to represent the interests of agricultural workers of all backgrounds across the United States. Another important activist effort came with the formation of Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO), a student group dedicated to confronting discrimination on college campuses. A third example of Latino activism came in the form of a new political party named La Raza Unida (the United People) started in 1969. The purpose of this new party was to promote Latino (also called “Chicano”) interests socially and politically. The most controversial achievement of Latino activism was the passage of the Bilingual Education Act (1968), a federal law that directed school districts with significant Latino populations to provide education to the children of immigrants in Spanish while they learned English.
Environmental Movement: The launch of the Environmental Movement came in 1962 when a marine-biologist named Rachel Carson published her influential book “Silent Spring”, a work that examined the effects of pesticides on ecosystems. In particular, Carson explored the impact of DDT, used to reduce mosquito populations. It seemed that DDT significantly reduced the population of fish and birds along with mosquitoes. This best-selling book led to a general concern among Americans that the environment was threatened by human activity, leading to many legislative changes designed to address the problems pointed out by this new and powerful movement. Among the achievements of the Environmental Movement of the 1960s and 1970s were: (1) the passage of Clean Air Acts, laws designed to reduce harmful emissions into the atmosphere; (2) the passage of the Clean Water Act of 1972, a law designed to prevent the contamination of water sources by industries; (3) the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970, an agency whose mission is to oversee American environmental policy and standards.
WHAT WERE THE KEY POLITICAL EVENTS OF THE 1960s AND 1970s?
New Frontier: Taken from his acceptance speech to become the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee in 1960, the term New Frontier refers to the series of programs and priorities John F. Kennedy (JFK) would purse during his Presidency. The New Frontier was designed to achieve several goals. In order to boost the economy, President Kennedy urged the passage of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, a law that sought to lower tariffs and encourage more international trade. JFK also gained an increase in the national minimum wage. A second goal of the Kennedy Administration was to improve housing by creating a new cabinet-level agency called Housing and Urban Affairs. The goal of this agency was to improve the conditions of housing for middle and lower income Americans and stimulate economic development in cities. A third goal of the New Frontier was to increase American international aid. To this end, Kennedy ordered the creation of the Peace Corps in 1961, an agency of the federal government that would “promote world peace and friendship…which shall make available to interested countries men and women of the United States qualified for service abroad…to help the peoples of such countries”. Since its beginning, almost 200,000 American citizens have shared their time working in poor and underdeveloped nations on educational, agricultural, and community development programs. A fourth goal of the New Frontier was to strengthen national defense by encouraging the use of the U.S. Army Special Forces in “counterinsurgency”, that is, in assisting people in other nations who opposed communist attempts to take over their nations. JFK popularized the Special Forces by encouraging use of the “Green Beret”, a distinctive head cover for Special Forces members. Kennedy also increased the size of the military overall. A fifth goal of the New Frontier was to boost the Space Program by ensuring that NASA had available funds to pioneer the exploration of space and develop the technologies necessary to achieve this goal.
Kennedy Assassination: JFK’s time in the presidency would be short-lived as he would be assassinated in Dallas on November 22nd, 1963, an event that devastated Americans, and would become the first of several significant assassinations during the 1960s. Kennedy’s killer would be an unknown young man named Lee Harvey Oswald who seemed to have no clear motive. Oswald himself would be killed 2 days later by a strip club owner named Jack Ruby, a man reputed to have ties to the Mafia. Americans were puzzled by this bizarre assassination and demanded answers. An investigative body was created to provide answers to the concerns of Americans, a body headed by Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren. After 10 months of study, the Warren Commission issued the “Warren Report” in 1964. At the time of the assassination, many Americans suspected that the USSR was behind the killing as Oswald had once defected to the USSR. Others believed that the Kennedy’s past involvement with the Mafia (bootlegging, elections, Mob investigations) may have played a part. The Warren Commission concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in the assassination and was not part of a conspiracy involving other participants. Although new forensic evidence suggests that Oswald indeed acted alone, the Warren Report itself has left this matter unresolved for many Americans who still suspect that Oswald was acting on behalf of a larger group of conspirators. Congress used the Kennedy assassination as a reason to clarify the vague language of the Constitution regarding the death of the President. The 25th Amendment was ratified in 1967 which states clearly that, upon the death of the President, the sitting Vice President would assume the office of the Presidency.
The Great Society: Upon the death of JFK, Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) assumed the Presidency. Elected to a term of his own in 1964, LBJ initiated an extensive series of 60 programs over the next 3 years that would come to be known as the “Great Society”, programs designed to achieve 2 main goals that included the elimination of poverty (War on Poverty) and the elimination of racial injustice. In addressing problems of health and welfare, Johnson created 3 significant new programs: (1) Medicare, a health insurance program for all senior citizens that would be funded by the Social Security system; (2) Medicaid, a medical insurance system for low-income Americans; (3) Child Nutrition Act, a law that established a school breakfast program. In addressing problems of Education, LBJ crated 3 significant programs: (1) Elementary and Secondary Education Act, providing aid to students and adult education; (2) Higher Education Act, a law that created assistance to college students by providing loans, scholarships, and work-study programs; (3) Head Start, a program that provides services to low-income Americans to assist in the health and preparation of their children for public school. In addressing problems of poverty, LBJ created 2 significant programs: (1) Office of Economic Opportunity, an agency that attempted to improve life in inner cities, especially through the creation of Job Corps, a training program for “at-risk” youth; (2) Housing and Urban Development, a federal government agency that would provide subsidies (financial assistance) that would increase the availability of “public housing”. Also among Great Society programs was Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA). The purpose of VISTA was to provide a workforce of volunteers dedicated to assisting poor communities throughout the United States in education, economic development, and community development, goals similar to the Peace Corps, but goals to be achieved domestically. LBJ also created the National Endowment for the Humanities, a new agency of the federal government designed to provide grants that would support education, research, and projects in the Humanities. Grant money would be given to educational institutions, museums, public broadcasting, and educational foundations across the United States.
Robert Kennedy Assassination: When LBJ decided not to run for re-election in 1968, a host of candidates entered the Democratic Party’s race to become the presidential nominee. Among the field of candidates was Robert F. Kennedy (RFK), the younger brother of JFK who had served as Attorney General in the Kennedy Administration. Robert Kennedy ran a campaign that inspired millions of young Americans as he challenged both the direction of American foreign policy in Vietnam and domestic policy regarding race and materialism. While in Indianapolis in the midst of his campaign, RFK soon learned of the assassination of Martin Luther King by a white supremacist named James Earl Ray. On April 4, 1968, the day of King’s assassination, RFK delivered a heartfelt speech that soothed the outrage of people in Indianapolis, but could not prevent the outbreak of riots elsewhere in the nation. The RFK campaign began to attract great support when he arrived for the primary in California, a primary which he won against his opponents. In the early hours of June 5, 1968, having just delivered a speech to his supporters, RFK was assassinated in a hotel kitchen by Sirhan Sirhan, a young Palestinian angered by America’s support of Israel.
1968 Democratic National Convention: Several factors contributed to the mayhem and violence that took place at the Democratic National Convention at Chicago in 1968. Recent assassinations, anti-war protests, and deepening suspicion of government angered many Americans who descended on Chicago to express this anger. Anti-war protestors gathered in the parks and streets of Chicago. Determined to showcase his city and its achievements, Mayor Richard Daley determined to keep peace and order in his streets. Almost 10,000 protestors, encouraged by SDS and the “Yippies”, came to Chicago to persuade the Democrats to include an anti-war platform in their 1968 campaign. Tensions between the protestors and the massive numbers of police officers boiled over into violence that was captured by live television broadcasts of the events. Protestors chanted “the whole world is watching”. Indeed they were. Most Americans watching were repulsed by the protestors and approved of the police force’s attempts to break up the protests.
The Election of 1968: Running on a platform of “Law and Order”, the Republican nominee Richard Millhouse Nixon, Vice-President under Eisenhower, won the Presidency. Many Americans had grown tired of the chaos and social upheaval of the 1960s and looked to Nixon to provide relief. No doubt, the televised events of the Democratic convention played a significant role in Nixon’s election. Although a man of great intelligence, President Nixon had a very distrustful and suspicious character, believing that he had been robbed of the Presidency in 1960 as a result of voter fraud in Chicago, and media favoritism toward John Kennedy. Although Nixon had many achievements during his first term in the Presidency, both domestic and foreign, he nevertheless felt that the media and “northeastern liberals” were “out to get him”. It is this resentful and suspicious nature that would lead to a most tragic event in American political history.
The Watergate Burglary: The Watergate Complex is a series of apartments, offices, and hotel rooms located in Washington DC. It is here that the Democratic Party had its campaign offices in preparation for the 1972 election campaign. Nixon supporters and advisers were worried that, even though Nixon was popular and had many achievements, he was not assured re-election in 1972. And even thought the Democrats had nominated a poor candidate, George McGovern, Nixon’s advisers seemed to share Nixon’s suspicion and distrust. Without Nixon’s knowledge, several advisers who belonged to the Committee to Re-Elect the President (CRP) instructed James McCord, a CRP member, and 4 others to burglarize the Democratic Party’s offices at the Watergate, hoping to obtain information about that party’s strategy for the 1972 election. While the burglary was in process, a security guard noticed that something was going on and called the police who soon arrested the men. When police determined that one of the burglars was a member of CRP, White House officials began to burn incriminating documents.
The Cover Up Begins: Nixon’s fatal mistake was his attempt to cover up the burglary rather than admit that members of his campaign had broken the law. Nixon pressured the CIA to stop the FBI from investigating the burglary since this would expose the fact that CRP had been the source of the money to pay the burglars. One member of the FBI, Mark Felt, was outraged by this attempt to block the search for justice, and so began secretly to share what he knew about the investigation to a pair of reporters from the Washington Post. The reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, used Mark Felt’s information and began to write a series of articles about the break in that kept the Watergate story alive.
Nixon ordered his Press Secretary to deny any White House involvement in the burglary, and Americans seemed quite willing to believe this as they re-elected President Nixon in a landslide.
The Cover Up Unravels: The work of Woodward and Bernstein, and the 1973 trial of the Watergate burglars, led to the creation of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, headed by Senator Sam J. Ervin of North Carolina. The work of this Select Committee was assisted by the fact that the burglar John McCord was convinced to cooperate and share the information he knew. Armed with this information, the Select Committee was able to gain confessions of involvement from numerous Nixon officials, especially that of White House advisor John Dean. John Dean pointed the finger to Attorney General John Mitchell as the man who originally ordered the Watergate burglary. John Dean also named President Nixon as the main creator of the cover-up. These shocking accusations needed to be supported by evidence which Dean could not provide. When the Select Committee learned that President Nixon had a taping system in the Oval Office that recorded all his conversations, the Committee demanded that Nixon turn over the tapes. Nixon refused stating that the content of the conversations might jeopardize national security, and that he was protected by “executive privilege”. The special prosecutor for the Watergate cases, Leon Jaworski, sued Nixon to release the tapes in a case that eventually ended up in the Supreme Court.
United States v. Nixon (1974): The Supreme Court determined that (1) the President had to turn over the tapes; (2) Congress and Courts had the right to the tapes as an appropriate use power in a federal criminal matter, under Article III of the Constitution; (3) executive privilege can be claimed only in matters that may jeopardize national security. Protecting the President from criminal prosecution was not a matter of national security. President Nixon released his tapes, revealing that he had a role in covering up the crime, not in planning or carrying out the crime. Had Nixon gone to the public when he first learned of the crime, it is likely he could have remained in office. Because he was active in the cover-up however, he became the first President to resign in August of 1974. Vice President Gerald Ford would assume the Presidency until his defeat in the election of 1976 by Democrat Jimmy Carter of Georgia.
UNIT 8: UNITED STATES SINCE THE VIETNAM WAR (1973 – PRESENT)
HOW WERE RIGHTS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR CITIZENS EXPANDED SINCE 1973?
Title IX Enhances Female Opportunity: “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal assistance”. This section of the Education Amendments of 1972 brought dramatic changes to the place of women in all education activities in the United States. This legislation guarantees equal access to all academic programs, dormitory access, athletics, clubs, and bands. The most dramatic impact came in the area of athletics which now mandated equal funding for male and female sports, proportionate to student funding.
Texas v. Johnson (1989) Approves Flag-Burning: While participating in a protest against the Reagan Administration at the Republican National Convention in 1984, Gregory Johnson burned an American flag as a means of expressing his opinion. Johnson was convicted of violating a Texas law against vandalizing a respected object. Johnson appealed his conviction to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which overturned his conviction. The State of Texas then appealed this decision to the Supreme Court. In its decision, the Supreme Court declared that “Under the circumstances, Johnson’s burning of the flag constituted expressive conduct, permitting him to invoke the First Amendment”. In its decision, the Court acknowledged that non-verbal forms of free expression are permitted under the Constitution. As a result of this case, the act of burning the American flag as a means of free speech was found to be constitutional.
Americans with Disabilities Act (1990): In the early 1970s, the “Independent Living” movement worked to protect the rights of people of all levels of ability to live freely in society, and also advocated for the rights of the disabled to live outside of institutions. The culmination of this movement came in 1990 with the passage of the ADA. Under this new Civil Rights legislation, citizens are to be protected from discrimination based upon a “physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity”. As a result of this law, employers are required to make reasonable accommodations to allow disabled employees to perform their jobs.
Sandra Day O’Connor: In 1981, President Ronald Reagan nominated the first woman to join the Supreme Court, Sandra Day O’Connor. Justice O’Connor served on the Supreme Court from 1981 – 2005, and is currently the Chancellor of the College of William and Mary.
Clarence Thomas: The second African American to serve on the Supreme Court was Clarence Thomas, appointed by George H.W. Bush in 1991 (the first was Thurgood Marshall, counsel in the Brown v. Board 1954 case). Prior to his appointment, Justice Thomas worked as Assistant Secretary in the Civil Rights division of the Department of Education, and also served as the Chairman of the Equal Opportunities Commission. Justice Thomas was considered controversial as he was a conservative African American on the Court.
HOW DID AMERICA ATTEMPT TO EXPAND OPPORTUNITY FOR AFRICAN-AMERICANS?
Affirmative Action: The idea of “Affirmative Action” began with an executive order in 1961 by President Kennedy that all projects funded with federal dollars “that take affirmative action” to ensure that no discrimination exists in hiring and employment practices. The idea of “Affirmative Action” soon evolved into a comprehensive policy used by government, education, and business. The goal of Affirmative Action is to ensure opportunities in education, business, and government be made available and accessible to all Americans regardless of race or gender. The Johnson Administration took this idea further by adding the goal of correcting “the effects of past and present discrimination”. Following government’s lead, education and business made attempts to increase the diversity of students and employees, in many cases, altering standards to achieve the targeted level of diversity. The goal of achieving racial diversity has led to several court challenges, especially in education.
Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg (1971): In an effort to further integrate its schools and create diversity, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools initiated a program known as “bussing” (where blacks are bussed out of neighborhoods to white schools, and vice versa). This program was challenged, making its way to the Supreme Court which faced the following question: Are the use of (1) “bussing”, (2) manipulation of school district boundaries, and (3) the use of “ratios” (establishing percentages of white to black students) constitutional as techniques for integrating public education? The Court found that, to give meaning to Brown v. Board and other school decisions mandating desegregation in public education, the three techniques of bussing, boundary manipulation, and ratios were all constitutional approaches to desegregating education. This decision accelerates the use of bussing programs throughout the nation, leading to bitter conflicts and political divisions during the 1970s. The phenomenon of “white flight” (white families moving their children to private and parochial schools) begins to take hold in urban areas.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978): The University of California had a special program for its medical school in which a certain number of places were “set aside” for minority applicants. Alan Bakke was denied admission to the medical school even though he had higher test scores than some of the minority students who gained entry to the school. Bakke sued the University in a case that ended up in the Supreme Court, posing these questions: (1) did the University’s minority admission criteria violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment? (2) are racial considerations always unconstitutional in university admissions programs? The Court determined that (1) the particular program used in this case did violate the 14th Amendment; (2) race can only be considered as one of several factors in “Affirmative Action” programs so long as “quotas” are not used; (3) a substantial state interest must be proven before imposing limitations on the 14th Amendment. Affirmative Action is a term used to describe an active effort to improve employment or educational opportunities for minorities (also for women). This decision forced schools and employers to change the way they ran affirmative action programs in ways that did not make race the sole determinant in admissions or hiring.
WHAT ARE THE TWO MAIN POLITICAL VIEWPOINTS IN THE UNITED STATES?
American Political Spectrum: There are two primary political positions in American politics that provide a vision of what America should be and what it should stand for. The first position is known as “Liberal”, and those that follow this view tend to be found in the Democratic Party. The second position is known as “Conservative”, and those that follow this view tend to be found in the Republican Party.
The Left Wing - Liberal Views: Resulting from the influence of the Progressive movement and the New Deal, Liberals believe that government should regulate the economy to protect people from the power of large corporations and wealthy elites. They believe the government should help the disadvantaged through social programs and taxing the wealthy. They believe most social problems have their roots in economic inequality.
The Right Wing - Conservative Views: Conservatives believe that the free enterprise system (with little government intervention) is the way to organize society. They oppose high taxes and government programs that transfer wealth from the rich to the less wealthy. They believe that most social problems result from issues of morality and personal failings.
The Left and the Right Confront Domestic Changes 1969 – Present: The problems posed by modern democratic life in America are difficult to resolve. Both primary political views identify the sources of problems differently, and thus propose different solutions to identified problems. Are problems the result of modern life itself, and thus in need of government solutions? Or, are problems the result of individual mismanagement of one’s personal life, thus no need for government solutions? Attempts to address America’s problems will be attempted from both perspectives as power in the Congress and in the Presidency swings back and forth between Liberals to Conservatives.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION (R)?
New Federalism: “I reject the patronizing idea that government in Washington, DC is inevitably more wise and more efficient than government at the state or local level…”. With these words, President Nixon expressed a new policy for federal government action in the United States. New Federalism was an approach to government in which the federal government would engage in “revenue-sharing”, sending federal dollars to state and local agencies to spend as they wished. Although intended to increase the power of state and local governments to serve the needs of their citizens, the true impact of New Federalism was to increase the power of the federal government as state and local agencies came to rely on federal funding. The federal government soon attached “strings” to the money it sent out, requiring state and local governments to meet certain conditions in order to receive federal money, thus increasing federal influence.
Nixon, School Desegregation, and the Southern Strategy: As a Quaker, President Nixon believed that racism was a great moral failure of the United States, and expressed his view that American society should be “color-blind”. Mindful of maintaining Southern support for the Republican Party however, Nixon created a school integration plan as part of his “Southern Strategy” to gain Southern support. “I am convinced that while legal segregation is totally wrong, forced integration of housing or education is just wrong”. It is to “bussing” that Nixon is referring, a practice in which school districts moved children out of their neighborhoods to attend schools in other areas, thus creating an acceptable level of integration of White and Black students, even if created artificially. The practice of bussing was used in many school districts around the country, causing a great deal of chaos and protest. Nixon’s resistance to the practice of bussing, along with the overturning of Johnson administration Civil Rights policies, successfully brought much of the South into the Republican Party.
Détente - Nixon Opens Relations with China: In the late 1950s and early 1960s, relations between China and the Soviet Union began to worsen, leading to what is known as the Sino-Soviet split. President Nixon decided to take advantage of this split between the two former partners in order to increase America’s position in the Cold War. In early 1971, China extended an invitation to the American Table Tennis team to come to Moscow for a demonstration competition. The invitation was significant as America had cut off relations with China after the Communist Revolution in 1949, and no American had been permitted to China for the past 20 years. The success of this “Ping Pong” diplomacy led to President Nixon’s trip to China in early 1972. Nixon met directly with Chinese leader Chairman Mao Tse-Tung, opening formal diplomatic relations with that communist country. The easing of tensions between the West and communist nations came to be known as Détente.
Détente – Relations with the USSR: Soviet Leader Leonid Brezhnev feared that a Chinese-American alliance would threaten the Soviet Union’s place in the world. Having watched tensions ease between China and the U.S., Premier Brezhnev gave in to American pressure to meet. In May of 1972, President Nixon and his wife flew to Moscow for a series of high-level negotiations, meetings that have since come to be called “summit meetings”. During this first Soviet-American summit, several important agreements were reached: (1) an increase in Soviet-American trade; (2) SALT I (Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty) in which both sides agreed to limit the size of their nuclear arsenals; (3) the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, in which both sides agreed not to develop weapons systems designed to intercept in-coming nuclear missiles. These agreements solidified Nixon’s policy of Détente as its approach to communist nations, with Premier Brezhnez declaring that a new era of “peaceful coexistence” between the superpowers had been established.
Stagflation: For the first time, in 1971, the United States was in the position of importing more goods than it exported. This happened because American manufacturing facilities were old and inefficient in comparison to the more modern and productive manufacturing capabilities of Germany and Japan. Unable to compete effectively, American plants began to close in the late 1960s and early 1970s, leading to millions of American jobs lost. A new economic condition arose, called “stagflation” in which inflation of prices occurred at the same time as the economy slowed, and unemployment rose. Unsure of how to address this new problem, the Nixon Administration attempted to control inflation but cutting government spending and raising taxes. The hope with this strategy was that increased taxes would drive down purchasing of goods, thus driving down the price of goods in general. Nixon would not get to see the results of this strategy as Americans vigorously protested tax increases. Nixon also attempted to have the Federal Reserve raise interest rates in an attempt to reduce consumer spending. This too met with failure.
Wage and Price Controls: In 1970, Congress passed the Economic Stabilization Act, a law that would give the President the power to set wages and prices throughout the economy. Although President Nixon was opposed to permanent wage and price controls, in August of 1971, Nixon did impose a temporary 90-day wage and price freeze (mandatory for large corporations), the first since World War II. Although these controls were relaxed after the first 90 days, the intended effect of reducing unemployment did not occur.
1973 Oil Crisis: In October of 1973, an Arab coalition led by Egypt and Syria (Soviet allies), attacked Israel in what has come to be known as the Yom Kippur War. The United States came to the aid of Israel with weapons airlifted to Israel at President Nixon’s order. Israel’s ultimate victory in this conflict however came at a high cost to the United States. In retaliation for American support of Israel in the Yom Kippur War, OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries), a worldwide oil cartel, announced an oil embargo against the United States, cutting oil production, and raising prices. This energy crisis forced President Nixon to take drastic measures to reduce oil consumption. In January 1974, President Nixon signed a bill that set the national speed limit at 55 miles per hour. The impact of the 1973 Oil Crisis on the American economy was dramatic, and illustrated clearly for the first time how dependent the American economy was on Middle East oil, much of which was controlled by Arab-Muslim countries.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE FORD ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Presidential Pardon: The resignation of President Nixon in August 1974, as a result of the Watergate scandal, brought Vice President Gerald R. Ford to the Presidency. On September 8th, 1974, President Ford addressed the American public in a nationwide broadcast in which he explained that it was in the best interest of the nation that former President Nixon be pardoned for any crimes he may have committed while President. He went on to state that the Watergate scandal was “an American tragedy in which we all have played a part. It could go on and on, or someone must write the end to it. I have concluded that only I can do that, and if I can, I must”. President Ford believed that by pardoning Nixon, the country could put Watergate behind it and focus on the economic crisis at hand. Many have since come to believe that Ford’s decision, practical though it may have been, cost him much political support, weakening his chances for re-election in 1976.
WIN – Whip Inflation Now: The Ford Administration had to deal with the continuing problem of inflation. Ford believed that the source of the problem was overconsumption on the part of the American people. In order to encourage a reduction in consumption, President Ford addressed the American people in October 1974, asking them to “Whip Inflation Now”. “If you can’t spare a penny from your food budget, surely you can cut the food you waste by 5%”. He urged people to wear “WIN” buttons as a way to spread the message. He formed a Whip Inflation Now committee, composed of 22 citizens, which encouraged businesses to pledge not to raise prices.
Special Education: Although the Ford Administration struggled with the economy, one great achievement came with the passage of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act in 1975. As a result of this law, Special Education was implemented throughout American public schools, ensuring that educational opportunities were available to all citizens, regardless of specific challenges.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE CARTER ADMINISTRATION (D)?
Election of 1976: The anger and bitterness of the American people over both the Watergate scandal and Ford’s pardon of Nixon were too much to overcome for President Ford in the year of America’s Bicentennial year. Americans blamed the Republican Party for much of America’s problems and so turned to the relatively unknown Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter. A World War II navy veteran, peanut farmer, and Governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter would become President with 50.1% of the vote in 1976.
Pardon of Vietnam Draft Dodgers: On his first day in Office, President Carter issued an Executive Order granting an amnesty (pardon) to all Vietnam-era draft dodgers, fulfilling one of his campaign promises.
Stonewall Riots (1969) and the Gay Rights Movement: Homosexuals in the 1950s and 1960s faced persecution from American society in general, and also faced harassment at the hands of local police forces in the restaurants and bars they attended. At the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City, a police raid in 1969 got out of hand leading to a series of riots and protests over the next few days. Gay activists soon organized, seeking an end to discrimination based on sexual orientation. The Gay Rights movement gained support from President Carter in a variety of ways: (1) Carter opposed a California initiative that would have banned homosexuals from serving in public schools; (2) Carter was the first President to meet with Gay rights activists. As a former President, Carter has declared that he “opposes all forms of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and believes there should be equal protection under the law for people who differ in sexual orientation”. He has also come out in favor of “civil unions” and an end to the ban on gays in the military.
American Control of Panama Canal Ended (1977): The Panama Canal, an important waterway linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, had been built with the backing of President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, and controlled by the United States since its opening in 1914. Against majority opinion, President Carter approved the Panama Canal Treaties, a series of documents that handed control of the Panama Canal to the nation of Panama. Many Americans opposed this decision as it seemed to transfer control of an important American asset to an unstable country led by an unelected General.
Airline Deregulation Act (1978): Until 1978, the airline industry was heavily regulated by the federal government. Many came to believe as well that the airlines that existed were using tactics that hurt the American consumer by limiting competition. Beginning in 1975, Congress began to investigate the airline industry and review the heavy regulation placed upon it. President Carter signed the Airline Deregulation Act in 1978, a law that was designed to increase competition in the airline industry by: (1) making it easier to start a new airline; (2) eliminating government control of ticket prices; (3) allowed international carriers to operate domestic routes. Overall, the American public benefitted from de-regulation of the airline industry, gaining lower fares and increased service.
Department of Energy (1977): In response to the 1973 Oil Crisis, President Carter proposed and gained the creation of a new cabinet-level agency, the Department of Energy. This new Department would be responsible for the creation of national energy policy and oversight of nuclear safety. Among its specific responsibilities are supervision of the nuclear weapons program, production of nuclear reactors for the Navy, radioactive waste disposal, domestic energy production, and energy conservation.
National Energy Act (1978): Believing that overconsumption of oil and other uses of energy by Americans posed significant economic problems, President Carter encouraged Americans to support a “war” against overconsumption. As part of this war, President Carter urged the passage of the National Energy Act, a law that required public utilities to encourage a reduction in the demand for electricity by performing energy conservation audits. Carter also came out in favor of research into renewable energy sources such as solar power. Despite these measures, Americans saw little progress from the Carter Administration in dealing with economic difficulties, much of which Carter seemed to be blaming on energy consumption.
Three Mile Island Nuclear Accident (1979): Three Mile Island is a commercial nuclear power plant located outside of Harrisburg, PA. In March1979, a partial melt-down in one of its reactors occurred, leading to the release of small amounts of radiation. Confusing reports about what had occurred had left the American public fearful of nuclear power, a fact made worse by the release 12 days earlier of a popular movie entitled “The China Syndrome”, about a nuclear accident. Subsequent research has revealed that the small amount of radiation released during the accident did not increase cancer rates in the area, but the suspicion of nuclear power after the Three Mile Island Accident effectively led to the end of nuclear power plant construction in the United States between 1980 and 1984. Mistrust of nuclear power continues as tougher standards have been put into place regulating the construction of new plants.
The “Malaise” Speech (1979): In July 1979, President Carter delivered a televised speech to the American people, speaking primarily about a “crisis of confidence”. “I want to talk to you about a fundamental threat to American democracy…we can see this crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our nation…in a nation that was proud of hard work, strong families, close-knit communities, and our faith in God; too many of us now worship self-indulgence, and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns…we’ve discovered that owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning…I’m asking you for your own good and for your nation’s security to take no unnecessary trips, to use carpools…to obey the speed limit, and to set your thermostats to save fuel…” This pessimistic view of America did not sit well with the American public, leading many to turn away from President Carter.
The Iranian Revolution (1979): Iran had been an American ally since 1953 when the United States helped its leader, the Shah of Iran, gain power in that nation. The Shah ensured that American would have access to Middle East oil. In 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini led an Islamic Fundamentalist revolution in Iran, successfully replacing the Shah as the leader of Iran. The Shah fled Iran, eventually gaining asylum (protection) in the United States. In response, the Muslim revolutionaries seized the American Embassy in Tehran (capital), taking 52 Americans hostage. In response to the hostage taking, the United States froze all Iranian assets held in American banks, totaling $8 billion dollars. The hostages would eventually be held captive for 444 days. The Iranian revolution gave rise to Muslim Fundamentalist forces in other Islamic countries, causing internal struggles between modernists and fundamentalists, and leading to much bloodshed over political control.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REAGAN ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Election of 1980: With the 1980 election looming, President Carter suffered in public opinion polls as a result of the poor economy, his “Malaise Speech”, and his seeming inability to gain the release of the 52 hostages in Iran. Carter’s opponent would be the former actor and Governor of California, Republican Ronald Reagan. Compared to the negative tone of Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan brought to the campaign a boundless optimism about America’s future which Americans found refreshing. Reagan would go on to win a landslide victory in 1980, ushering in what has come to be called the “Reagan Revolution”. On inauguration day, Iran released the 52 American hostages, even though the Carter Administration had negotiated their release. A prominent conservative, Ronald Reagan benefitted from the rebirth of Conservatism, a political point of view that grew slowly from the founding of “National Review” (magazine) by William F. Buckley in 1955. In his inaugural address President Reagan set the tone for his administration when he states: “Government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem”.
Rebirth of Conservatism: The revival of conservative ideas occurred for two reasons. Some Americans felt that liberal ideas were leading the U.S. toward communism. Because communism rejected religion, Americans with deep religious faith saw communism as a struggle over values. Liberalism, which focused on economic welfare, lost the support of many religious Americans who turned to conservatism. In 1964, the new conservative movement had enough influence to enable conservative Barry Goldwater to win the Republican nomination for president. From that defeat to the landslide victory of conservative Ronald Reagan in 1980, American society moved decisively in a conservative direction. Many Americans looked to conservative ideas out of fear that society had lost touch with traditional values during the 1960s and 1970s. The Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade (legalizing abortion) and the limitation of prayer in public schools shocked deeply religious Americans. Many Americans wanted a return to stability, putting behind them the upheavals of the 1960s and 1970s. Among those seeking a return to “normalcy” was a group called the “Moral Majority” made up of religious conservatives led by Jerry Falwell, a popular televangelist. The Moral Majority, through a network of ministers nationwide, awakened religious conservatives to the power of politics. Ronald Reagan offered hope to these and other conservative voters, often referred to as the “New Right Coalition”.
Reaganomics (Supply-Side Economics): Ronald Reagan entered the Presidency at a time when the U.S. economy was extremely weak. In order to address this problem, Reagan employed a new economic strategy of encouraging the Federal Reserve to maintain high interest rates, but also creating massive tax cuts. This blend of monetarist and supply-side economics came to be called “Reaganomics”. Reagan’s theory was that lowering tax rates would free up money to be used for investment in new businesses, which would then lead to increased employment, which then would lead to an increase in the amount of goods produced for people who would now have the money to purchase them. This intended effect was known as “trickle down” economics, that wealth would trickle down to the Middle and Lower class through investment by the richest Americans. Government would eventually suffer no loss of income as more taxpayers would be paying taxes at a lower rate. In the short term, this would mean that the budget deficit would increase, a problem Reagan attempted to address by reducing expenditures on social programs such as welfare, food stamps, school lunch programs, student loans, unemployment benefits, and housing subsidies. The budget deficit never closed during Reagan’s presidency, resulting in an increased national debt. Reagan also believed in taking government out of business affairs, encouraging deregulation of cable television, the auto industry, and further deregulation of the airline industry.
Reagan Takes on Air Traffic Controllers and Unions: Soon into his Administration, Reagan was confronted by a strike by federal air traffic controllers, a strike that was prohibited for government unions. Declaring the situation an emergency, Reagan announced that if the air traffic controller did not report to work within 48 hours, “they have forfeited their jobs and will be terminated”. True to his word, Reagan fired 11,345 air traffic controllers, effectively busting the union that represented them. Reagan’s actions encouraged many private employers to confront their own unions.
Election of 1984: By 1984, the American economy had rebounded significantly, with all economic indicators showing significant growth and lowered unemployment. The Democrats nominated former Vice President Walter Mondale to challenge Ronald Reagan. The Mondale ticket included Geraldine Ferarro, the first woman to be nominated Vice President by a major political party. Americans attributed the improved economy to Reagan’s decisions, rewarding him with the largest Presidential victory in American history, losing only the state of Minnesota, Mondale’s home state.
The War on Drugs: Believing the use of recreational drugs to be detrimental to American society, Reagan signed a bill that increased funding for the “War on Drugs”, a law that established mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses. Reagan was joined in the fight against drug use by First Lady Nancy Reagan who spear-headed a national anti-drug campaign known as “Just Say No”, targeting teenagers and young adults.
Immigration Reform and Control Act (1986): By the mid 1980s, many Americans became concerned with the use of illegal immigrants by employers. In response, President Reagan signed the IRCA in 1986, a law that made it illegal for employers to hire or recruit illegal immigrants. As well, the law held employers responsible for knowing the immigration status of its employees. Recognizing that many American jobs were held by illegal immigrants, Reagan also approved an amnesty provision for any illegal immigrant who could establish that s/he had been in the United States continuously since January 1, 1982, a provision that offered protection to as many as 3 million immigrants. At the signing of this legislation, Reagan declared that this new law would “improve the lives of individuals who must hide in the shadows, without access to the many benefits of a free and open society…[and] if they choose, they may become Americans”.
Challenger Disaster (1986): President Nixon launched the Space Shuttle Program in 1972, a project of NASA that involved sending re-usable manned space craft into orbit for the delivery of satellites, the construction of the International Space Station, and research purposes. The first successful shuttle launch occurred in 1981. However, in January of 1986, the Space Shuttle “Challenger” exploded as it attempted to reach orbit, killing all seven astronauts aboard, including the first “teacher in space”, Christa McAuliffe. On the night of the disaster, President Reagan addressed the nation, stating that “we will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them…as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and slipped the surly bonds on Earth to touch the face of God”. The Space Shuttle Program was grounded for almost 3 years after the Challenger disaster as scientists and engineers investigated the incident.
Iran-Contra Affair: The Reagan Administration was committed to confronting communist insurgents worldwide as the Cold War continued. In Nicaragua, an anti-communist rebel group known as the “Contras” was working to overthrow the communist Sandinista government. Officials in the Reagan Administration supported the Contras in a less-than-legal fashion by secretly selling weapons to Iran, and then funneling the money to the Contras in Nicaragua. When this activity became public in 1986, President Reagan claimed that this activity had occurred without his knowledge. A commission to investigate the scandal was appointed by President Reagan, leading to the conviction of several Reagan Administration officials for violating federal law. There was not enough evidence to prove that President Reagan knew of this operation. A congressional investigation concluded that “if the President did not know what his national security advisers were doing, he should have”. As a result of this scandal, Reagan’s popularity dropped significantly.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GEORGE H.W. BUSH ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Election of 1988: Having served as Reagan’s Vice President for 8 years, George H.W. Bush landed the Republican nomination for President in 1988. Opposing him was Democratic nominee Governor Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts. Bush would win the Presidency largely because of Ronald Reagan’s sustained popularity, and the Dukakis campaigns many mistakes. In the heat of the campaign, George H.W. Bush issued a solemn promise of “No New Taxes”. This was a promise he would live to regret.
“No New Taxes” Pledge Broken: Faced with budget deficits left over from the Reagan presidency, and believing his ability to act internationally depended on keeping the U.S. financially sound, President Bush was determined to get the federal budget under control. With a Democratic-controlled Congress, President Bush found that the only way to bring the deficit under control was to raise taxes. This tax increase occurred at the same time as a mild recession hit the country. As well, many corporations were “down-sizing” at the time, leading to an increase in unemployment. Many of President Bush’s supporters felt betrayed by the broken pledge, eroding the President’s support.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION (D)?
New Democrats: Following the disastrous losses to Reagan and Bush in the 1980s, many in the Democratic Party believed that the party was out of step with the American people. In order to re-vision the Democrats, a new group called the Democratic Leadership Council was formed to produce new goals that might lead the Democratic Party back into the White House. Among the new issues New Democrats would pursue were: (1) welfare reform; (2) middle-class tax cuts; (3) deregulation; (4) free trade. Among the leading “New Democrats” was the young Governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton.
Election of 1992: Bill Clinton won the nomination of the Democratic Party to face Republican incumbent President George H.W. Bush. This election would be memorable as the two major parties were challenged a third popular candidate running as an independent, Ross Perot. Many believe that Ross Perot drew more votes from President Bush’s usual supporters than he did from Bill Clinton, thus leading to Clinton’s election. President Clinton selected Tennessee Senator Al Gore to serve as his Vice President.
NAFTA (1993): Although initiated by President Bush, the North American Free Trade Agreement would be signed into law by President Clinton in 1993. The purpose of NAFTA was to encourage trade between Canada, the United States, and Mexico by eliminating the majority of tariffs among the 3 nations. Another important provision of NAFTA was the removal of investment restrictions, thus allowing capital to flow freely. Opponents of NAFTA believed that American jobs would be lost to Mexico, and feared that the lack of labor rights in the agreement would leave workers unprotected both in the U.S. and in Mexico.
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”: In the tradition of a New Democrat seeking a “Third Way”, President Clinton early on in his Administration proposed a new policy for the Armed Forces. Until 1993, homosexuals were not permitted to serve in the armed forces, a position that Clinton challenged during the 1992 campaign. However, he faced stiff resistance to changing this policy from the Republicans in Congress. In an attempt to fulfill his campaign statements, Congress passed, and President Clinton signed, the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. Potential members of the Armed Services who were homosexual would be permitted to serve if they did not reveal their homosexuality, and recruiters would not ask about it. Clinton was criticized by many on the left for not pushing harder to allow homosexuals to serve openly.
Healthcare Reform Fails: Another campaign promise President Clinton made in 1992 was to seek healthcare reform. Many Americans lacked health insurance, and the bills that came from a major medical incident, even for the insured, could wipe out a family’s finances. At the head of the taskforce appointed to review healthcare options was the President’s wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton. The goal of the plan was to guarantee health benefits for all Americans. The plan quickly ran into opposition from business leaders, who feared increased business costs, from insurance companies, and from the American Medical Association. Republicans opposed the plan because it seemed too costly, was too complicated, and would require far too much government involvement. Ultimately, the plan to reform healthcare failed miserably, hurting the Clinton Presidency.
Contract with America: The mid-term elections of 1994 would be disastrous for the Democratic Party. A new coalition of conservative Republicans, led by Newt Gingrich, campaigned on a new “Contract with America”, a platform that promised significant Welfare reform, term limits, a balanced budget amendment, and a desire to control federal spending. For the first time in 40 years, the Republican Party gained a majority in the House of Representatives. Although the House, with its new Republican majority, passed most of what it had promised, Senate opposition and presidential vetoes stalled the Contract with America platform. The one significant change that did take place came with the passage of the Welfare Reform Act, a law that significantly reduced the number of people on Welfare nationwide through a series of tougher standards and incentives to employers to hire people who had been on Welfare.
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (1996): Major changes to addressing illegal immigration would come in 1996 when President Clinton signed the IIRIRA in 1996. Among its provisions were: (1) families sponsoring an immigrant must be above the poverty level; (2) strengthening of penalties for those caught smuggling illegal immigrants; (3) addition of 5,000 Border Patrol agents; (4) easier standards by which to deport undocumented aliens. These measures were passed as a means to address the increasing population of illegal immigrants into the U.S.
Election of 1996: By 1996, the American economy was booming, and President Clinton seemed to be given the credit for this by the American people. President Clinton would face Republican nominee Senator Robert Dole and Ross Perot, who had since created a new political party, the Reform Party. Although President Clinton would win the Presidency, Republicans won control of both houses of Congress.
Lewinsky Scandal Leads to Impeachment: It seemed that scandal, real or imagined, never sat far from President Clinton. Early in his first term, he had been charged with benefitting from illegal loans made to Whitewater Development, an Arkansas real estate company. Attorney General Janet Reno appointed an independent panel to investigate the charge, a panel which went on to appoint an independent counsel, Kenneth Starr. When evidence of a personal relationship between President Clinton and a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky, came to light, Kenneth Starr was directed to investigate that matter as well. Complicating matters further, another woman, Paula Jones of Arkansas, came forward with allegations of sexual harassment at the hands of then Governor Bill Clinton. It was alleged that the President had perjured himself (lied) under oath in a deposition regarding his sexual conduct. Kenneth Starr sent a report to the Senate Judiciary Committee, claiming the President had committed perjury, abused Presidential power, and obstructed Justice. In December of 1998, the House passed two articles of impeachment against the President, leading to a nationally-televised trial in the Senate. Although President Clinton survived impeachment, his reputation was badly damaged as a result both of the allegations and the impeachment proceedings.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GEORGE W. BUSH ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Election of 2000: Having served 2 full terms, Bill Clinton was unable to run for President in 2000. The Democrats nominated his Vice President, Al Gore, who would face the Republican nominee, George W. Bush, son of President George H.W. Bush, who faced fellow Republican John McCain in the Primary. The election was hotly contested, and did not produce a clear winner. Although Al Gore won the popular vote (48.4 – 47.9), no candidate had yet won the 270 Electoral College votes needed to gain election. The race was particularly close in the state of Florida, requiring that votes be re-counted. Because the vote could not be completed by the state-mandated deadline, the Gore team went to the Florida Supreme Court to gain a deadline extension. The Bush team then went to the Supreme Court of the United States to determine if the Florida Court had acted constitutionally by extending the deadline. In November 2000, the deadline having expired, yet without all of the votes re-counted, Florida officials certified George W. Bush the winner, thus giving him the Presidency. Many Democrats were suspicious of this result as the Governor of Florida was Jeb Bush, George Bush’s brother. Although the Florida Supreme Court ordered all Florida counties to begin a hand recount of all ballots, the Supreme Court of the United States order the re-count stopped, stating that the hand re-counts violated equal protection, and that federal law and the Constitution both demand that Electoral College votes must be cast on the same day. Since Florida missed the Electoral College deadline, its votes would not count. This Supreme Court ruling left Bush the certified winner of Florida, and thus President of the United States.
Graying of America: A variety of factors had contributed to the ageing of the American population by the early 2000s. First, advances in medical technology created a significant decrease in mortality rates. Second, life expectancy in general was increasing. Third, fertility rates among younger Americans were lower than in generations past. The increasing percentage of older Americans has led to the formation of advocacy groups interested in promoting the interests of older Americans, such as the American Association of Retired People.
No Child Left Behind: President Bush proposed major reforms to education, eventually signing NCLB into law in early 2001. The idea behind this legislation was that, by setting high standards for education, and creating measurable goals through standardized testing, positive individual outcomes for students could be achieved. NCLB also increased accountability for states and school districts. In order to receive federal education funding, states and school districts were required to follow NCLB guidelines.
Election of 2004: As the incumbent, President Bush faced the Democratic nominee for President, John Kerry, in the 2004 election. John Kerry was a Vietnam veteran and Senator from Massachusetts. The Democrats hoped that Kerry’s wartime credentials, along with President Bush’s avoidance of the Vietnam draft, could overcome President Bush’s role as Commander in Chief as the Afghanistan and Iraq wars raged. The Bush campaign focused its attention on the War on Terror, in light of the 9/11 tragedy. Americans opted not to “change horses midstream” and re-elected President Bush to another term.
WHAT WERE THE MAIN TECHNOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC CHANGES SINCE 1973?
Technology and Economic Changes: In 1946, the world’s first electronic digital computer, called ENIAC was created. Weighing over 30 tons, the machine took up as much floor space as a medium-sized house. The development of integrated circuits and microprocessors led to the development of the Personal Computer in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Digital electronics made worldwide communications possible with the creation of the Internet, a global information system. The roots of this networking system began with the U.S. Defense Department’s Advanced Research Project Agency in 1969. Known as ARPANET, this system linked government agencies, defense contractors, and scientists at various universities. The use of the Internet expanded by almost 300% between 1977 and 2000. The Internet also created a “dot.com” economy selling products and advertising online. Computer networks could link employees within an office or branch regardless of distance. By the late 1990s, many workers used a home computer and electronic mail to “telecommute” - do their jobs at home via their computer. Computer technology and the Internet helped to create a global economy.
Bill Gates and Silicon Valley: The main sources of innovation in computer technology and marketing can be found in the work of Bill Gates. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Bill Gates and a partner started Microsoft. In partnership with IBM, the world was introduced to the PC (personal computer), revolutionizing communications worldwide. As well, Gates developed and marketed an operating system that has become the dominant model in the computer world, “Windows”. Computer technology would see many improvements and innovations as a result of the concentration of technology talent in “Silicon Valley”, located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay area. Silicon Valley has since become a term referring to the vast pool of talent that produces innovations in the high-tech industry in general. The computer and technology industries have led to great economic benefits, and have influenced the shape of the world economy, ushering in an “Information Age”.
NASDAQ in the 1990s: The use of computers, the internet, and information technology in general has changed dramatically the way capital flows in the stock market. Investors can now purchase and sell stocks using NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations), an electronic, screen-based securities trading market. The introduction of instantaneous trade of stocks has accelerated the flow of capital among companies, and has linked traders worldwide.
The Development of New Trading Blocs: Several new trading regions, or blocs, were formed partly in response to the new possibilities created by computer technologies. (1) In 1994, NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) was created to increase international trade between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. (2) In 1993, the European Union (EU) was created to promote economic and political cooperation among European nations. The EU formed a common bank and a common currency (euro) for member nations, lifting trade barriers between members and setting import policies for outside countries. (3) The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) was an attempt to create a Pacific trade community to rival the EU, however political differences kept its members from working together. (4) The World Trade Organization (WTO) administered international trade agreements and helped settle trade disputes.
WHAT WERE SIGNIFICANT INTERNATIONAL EVENTS SINCE 1973?
“Live Aid” Addresses Famine in Ethiopia (1985): A series of famines hit the African nation of Ethiopia in the early 1980s, affecting 8 million people, and leaving 1 million dead. In order to generate monetary relief for Ethiopians, musicians Bob Geldof and Midge Ure organized an internationally televised concert held both in Britain and in the United States. The event included many of the popular musicians of the day, and raised millions of dollars from viewers. Further funds were raised when many of these same musicians released recordings such as “We Are the World”, donating the proceeds to famine relief.
Nelson Mandela and the End of Apartheid in South Africa: In the nation of South Africa, a government policy of racial separation known as “Apartheid” was established in 1948 and would continue until 1994. This system classified South Africans as “Black”, “White”, “Indian”, and “Colored”, and was designed to maintain White supremacy in the nation. Blacks were stripped of national citizenship, and assigned limited citizenship as part of a “Bantustan”, a tribal homeland. All aspects of South African life were segregated, including education. Rising in opposition to this system was Nelson Mandela, the leader of an anti-Apartheid group known as the African National Congress (ANC). In early 1962, Mandela was arrested and imprisoned for sabotage and political activities against the state, ultimately serving 27 years in prison until his release in 1990. Mandela’s plight was supported heavily in Western nations during the 1980s, leading to public pressure for his release. Mandela again took the leadership of the ANC and began negotiations with the South African government, ultimately bringing an end to Apartheid in 1994. Mandela would go on to become the President of a legally multi-racial South Africa in 1994 based upon free and open elections. For his efforts, Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 which he shared with South African President F.W. de Klerk.
Peacekeeping Fails in Somalia (1993): In January of 1991, the African nation of Somalia fell into a bitter civil war over control of the nation. The civil war led to the destruction of agriculture, plunging the nation into famine conditions. The international community responded by sending food aid to the nation, however the warring clan leaders stole the food shipments in order to feed their fighters and supporters. After a brief ceasefire, the United Nations sent 50 observers to oversee the distribution of food. In 1992, President George Bush put the U.S. military to work air-dropping food supplies to remote parts of Somalia. These efforts however failed to stop the great suffering and death of many Somalis, leaving many displaced. The most resistant of the clan leaders was General Mohammed Aidid’s faction, and so the U.S. military launched a raid on what it believed was his headquarters. The 17-minute raid killed 73 elders, rather than Aidid, and thoroughly angered the Somali people against American military presence in the country. UN and American presence in Somalia began as a peace-keeping mission but soon ended in disaster in what has come to be known as the “Battle of Mogadishu”. American forces attempted to capture the leadership of General Aidid’s faction in the city of Mogadishu, however a series of missteps, the downing of two Blackhawk helicopters, and risky rescue attempts left 18 American soldiers dead. As a result of this failed attempt at peacekeeping, the Clinton Administration became far more reluctant to use the U.S. military to intervene in third world conflicts that did not directly bear on American interests.
WHAT WERE THE KEY EVENTS IN THE FINAL STAGES OF THE COLD WAR?
Helsinki Accords (1975): President Ford wished to continue the policy of Détente with the communist world, and so, in 1975, he pulled together the leaders of NATO and the Warsaw Pact for a series of meetings. The agreements made came to be known as the Helsinki Accords, and included the West’s recognition of the borders of Eastern Europe (communist) following World War II, while the Soviets promised to recognize certain basic human rights, including the right of people to move across national borders. The subsequent Soviet failure to honor human rights began to turn many Americans away from the idea of Détente with the Soviet Union.
President Carter and the Soviet Union: “Our commitment to human rights must be absolute…the powerful must not persecute the weak, and human dignity must be enhanced”. This guiding principal for foreign policy led President Carter to identify publicly the Soviet Union as a chief violator of human rights. In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, a move that caused President Carter to ban the sale of grain to the Soviet Union, and to boycott the 1980 Olympic Games, being held in Moscow. Efforts at Détente with the Soviet Union seemed to be at an end.
The Reagan Doctrine: President Reagan adopted a new foreign policy that rejected containment and détente in favor of a new stance toward the USSR of “peace through strength”. He launched the largest peacetime military buildup in American history. Reagan believed that the U.S. should support guerrilla groups trying to overthrow Communist or pro-Soviet governments. This became known as the Reagan Doctrine, and led to U.S. involvement in the Middle East and Central America.
The “Evil Empire” Speech: President Reagan’s attitude toward the Soviet Union became crystal clear during a 1983 speech in which he declared: “In your discussions of nuclear freeze proposals, I urge you to beware the temptation of pride, the temptation of blithely declaring yourselves above it all and label both sides equally at fault, to ignore the facts of history and the aggressive impulses of an evil empire…”. Since the Soviet Union at the time was installing new nuclear weapons in its west, President Reagan order the deployment of nuclear weapons in Western Europe in response.
Space Defense Initiative (SDI): Also known as “Star Wars”, SDI was a proposal made by President Reagan in 1983 that the United States should develop a new nuclear defense system composed of ground- and space- based nuclear weapons designed to destroy any in-coming Soviet missiles before they landed in the United States. This controversial proposal seemed to indicate that the United States was shifting away from reliance on the “mutually assured destruction” (MAD) policy in which both the United States and the Soviet Union were restrained in their use of nuclear weapons simply because each knew their use would put an end to both nations. SDI seemed to suggest that the U.S. might be preparing for a more aggressive approach to the Soviet Union. Indeed, this new defense system did worry Soviet leadership. Although it has yet to become functional in the manner Reagan intended, the research conducted in the pursuit of SDI has vastly accelerated the sophistication of American missile technology.
Mikhail Gorbachev Becomes Soviet Premier: In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became the leader of the Soviet Union after a tumultuous period in which 2 Soviet leaders died within a few short years. By the time he took office, the Soviet economy was struggling, and Gorbachev believed that drastic reform measures were needed. Among the first of his reforms was a policy known as “Glasnost”, a shift away from strict government secrecy and censorship, and toward greater “openness” regarding government activity and freedom of expression. The second reform Gorbachev introduced came to be known as “Perestroika”, a proposal to completely “restructure” the Soviet economy, away from strict centralized control, and toward greater opportunities for investment and profit-seeking. Gorbachev’s policies of Glasnost and Perestroika began to influence change in Eastern European satellite nations.
“Tear Down This Wall”: “General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe…tear down this wall”. Reagan’s famous words, delivered at the Brandenburg Gate of the Berlin Wall, became a turning point in the Cold War. Throughout his entire life, Ronald Reagan was a strong opponent of communism, and his actions during his Presidency seemed to confirm he would act on his beliefs. Surprisingly however, President Reagan soon developed a warm personal friendship with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that would eventually ease tensions between the world’s two superpowers, ultimately bringing an end to the Cold War.
The INF Treaty (1987): In December 1987, Reagan and Gorbachev signed the Intermediate -Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty that, for the first time, called for the destruction of significant numbers of nuclear weapons. Many historians agree that the INF Treaty marked the beginning of the end of the Cold War. Reagan came to believe that Gorbachev was sincere in winding down the Cold War. Gorbachev now felt confident that the threat of war had been reduced, and so allowed him to decrease military spending and to focus on his political and economic reforms. Ironically, his drive for economic reform would lead to the end of the Soviet Union and the dominance of communism in Eastern Europe.
Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989): The political and economic reforms of Gorbachev in the Soviet Union led to a revolution that spread to East Germany where on November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall was finally torn down. Within a year, East and West Germany had formally reunited. The most visible symbol of the Cold War was gone.
The Collapse of Soviet Communism: By the late 1980s, the Soviet economy suffered from inefficient central planning and huge expenditures on the arms race. Peaceful revolutions replaced Communist rulers with democratically elected governments in Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria. In August 1991, a group of Communist officials staged a coup against Gorbachev. With the leadership of Russian President Boris Yeltsin, the coup was put down and Gorbachev was released. Gorbachev announced the end of the Soviet Union and most former Soviet republics joined a federation called the Commonwealth of Independent States. The Cold War was over.
Tiananmen Square: China to Remain Communist: Despite the end of communism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, China’s communist leaders were determined to remain in power. China continued to repress political speech and dissent. In May 1989, Chinese students and workers held several weeks of protests against the authoritarian Chinese government, and demonstrations in favor of democracy. Held in Beijing, China’s capital, the protests were organized in response to the death of a pro-market, pro-democracy advocate named Hu Yaobang. In early June, Chinese government tanks and soldiers ended the protests held in historic Tiananmen Square, leaving 241 dead, and over 7,000 wounded. The Chinese government banned foreign press from the nation, and made numerous arrests, cracking down on any pro-democracy activities. Clearly, China was going to remain committed to its unique brand of communism.
WHAT KEY EVENTS SHAPED AMERICAN ACTIONS IN ADDRESSING TERRORISM?
Birth of Israel: Following World War I, the British took control of Palestine, a region of the Middle East that was predominantly Arab and Muslim. In 1922, the League of Nations had given the British a “mandate over Palestine” with the goal of resettling Jews in what they considered their homeland, as described in the Bible. The “Zionist Movement”, Jews who wished to re-establish control in Israel, were encouraged by this mandate. Over the decades, the Jewish population in Palestine increased dramatically, increasing tensions between the newly arrived Jews and Arab Muslims. The Jewish immigration into Palestine accelerated rapidly when the world came to discover the atrocities of the Holocaust. In 1948, the United Nations partitioned (divided) Palestine, creating the nation of Israel, and promising to create the nation of Palestine. Because the capitol of Jerusalem was important to both Jews and Muslims, the U.N. declared it an international city. The fact that Palestine was never established has been a source of anger between Jews and Muslims ever since.
Palestine Liberation Organization (1964): Angered by the displacement of Palestinians by the creation of the state of Israel, Arab Muslims came together in 1964 to create the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1964. Over the years, the goal of the PLO would evolve into a demand for a Palestinian state. Based in Syrian, Jordan, and Lebanon (nations surrounding Israel), the PLO would conduct guerrilla attacks on Israel and its bases. The PLO’s most visible leader was Yasser Arafat, a man who spent much of his life fighting against Israel in search of Palestinian self-determination. The PLO would be a major factor in the events of the Middle East for several decades.
The Six-Day War (1967): Tensions between Egypt and Israel came to a head in 1967 when Israel launched an attack on Egypt. Jordan became involved as it had a mutual defense treaty with Egypt. Israel would end up victorious in this conflict, obtaining new territories that it believed were necessary for Israel’s security in the midst of a hostile region filled with Muslim nations hostile to Israel’s existence. Among the lands it claimed were the Sinai Peninsula (on the border with Egypt), the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights.
Yom Kippur War (1973): In October of 1973, an Arab coalition led by Egypt and Syria (Soviet allies), attacked Israel in what has come to be known as the Yom Kippur War. The purpose of the conflict was to retake territories lost in the Six-Day War. The United States came to the aid of Israel with weapons airlifted to Israel at President Nixon’s order. Although determining the winner of this conflict is difficult, the most important outcome of the Yom Kippur War was that it brought Egypt and Israel into meaningful negotiations for the first time.
Camp David Accords (1978): Camp David is a presidential retreat in the suburbs of Washington DC, and it would become the location of President Carter’s greatest success. Wishing to ease tensions in the Middle East, President Jimmy Carter held 12 days of secret meetings with Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin. Hostile toward each other since 1948, Egypt and Israel settled long-standing disputes while at Camp David that would lead to the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty (1979). Among the terms of the treaty were: (1) end of war between the two nations; (2) Egyptian recognition of Israel as a nation; (3) Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula, captured during the Six-Day War; (4) right of Israeli ships to use the Suez Canal and neighboring waterways. This treaty would make Egypt the first Arab state to recognize the right of Israel to exist as a nation. Sadly, Anwar el-Sadat would soon be assassinated in his own country in 1981 by Muslim extremists who were angered by the Treaty with Israel. Among those behind his assassination was Omar Abdel Rahman, the man behind the first attack on the World Trade Center in 1993.
1982 Invasion of Lebanon: Israel launched an attack on southern Lebanon in 1982. The goal of this attack was to weaken the PLO and its infrastructure based in Lebanon. Israel would continue to occupy southern Lebanon for 2 more years, and would continue to maintain a “buffer zone” to enhance Israeli security. Although the PLO was weakened in this conflict, Muslim anger at Israel’s actions led to the creation of another Muslim organization known as Hezbollah, a group based in Lebanon, opposed to Israel, and supported by Iran and Syria.
Background of 911: The United States is the most powerful of all the “Western Nations”. The countries of Western Europe, Canada, the US, and many Latin American nations have a tradition of democracy, capitalism, individual rights, science, technology, and religious tolerance. Western nations seek trade and business opportunities in all parts of the world, and have been especially active in the Middle East due to its great supply of oil, a resource desperately needed by western industrialized countries. Most Middle Eastern countries in possession of oil are dominated by Muslim governments.
Islamic Fundamentalism: Within many of these Muslim nations is a fierce group of “Muslim Fundamentalists” who deeply resent the presence of Western Nations in their countries. A Muslim Fundamentalist is a person who interprets the Quran (scripture) literally, including the body of religious law called the Shariah, which includes many harsh punishments for crimes. Muslim Fundamentalists do not believe in a separation of religion and government, and wish to create governments in their own nations that rule by the Quran and Shariah. Muslim Fundamentalists are especially angered by the economic and cultural influence of Western nations in their region, and have set as their main goal the end of Western influence in Muslim countries. The United States, as the strongest of the Western nations, has become the main target of resentment by Muslim Fundamentalist extremists who feel insulted and humiliated by a long series of events. Several Western actions and Muslim extremist actions shaping this conflict include the following:
Early 1900s: Western nations invest in oil companies in the Middle East, in cooperation with local leaders, taking away much profit;
1918: Defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, leading to control of Middle Eastern nations (Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine) by Western nations, especially France and Britain;
1948: Creation of the state of Israel in Palestine by the United Nations forces the Palestinians (Muslim Arabs) out of their long-held territory without being given a homeland of their own as promised by the United Nations;
1953: The U.S. overthrows the Iranian government and puts in place and supports a new leader (the Shah of Iran) who guarantees Western access to oil;
1967: Israel launches the “6-Day War” in which it takes control of lands from its Muslim Arab neighbors, including the Gaza strip, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights. Israel is supported militarily by the United States;
1973: Egypt and Syria launch the Yom Kippur War against Israel in order to reclaim lands lost in the Six-Day War;
1979: Iranian Revolution begins in which a Muslim leader, Ayatollah Khomeini takes power from the U.S. supported Shah of Iran, creating the first Muslim Fundamentalist government;
1979: Iran Hostage Crisis begins in which Iranian students capture and hold 52 Americans taken from the US Embassy in the capital city of Tehran, and holding them for 444 days until their release January 20, 1981;
1979: USSR invades Afghanistan / the U.S. sends weapons and support to those fighting the Soviets, including Osama Bin Laden;
1980: Iran-Iraq War begins in which the U.S. sends weapons and support to the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in hopes he will defeat Iran;
1988: Al Quaeda is formed by veterans of the Soviet-Afghan war, with Osama Bin Laden soon taking over as leader / Al Quaeda’s goals are to end Western influence in Muslim nations and to establish Muslim Fundamentalist governments;
1991: Persian Gulf War begins when Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein invades neighbor Kuwait / Kuwait is next to Saudi Arabia, a nation that has no military of its own / Saudi Arabia asks the U.S. to send its military to defend Kuwait / America creates bases in Saudi Arabia, home to the holiest city in Islam, Mecca / American presence in Saudi Arabia deeply offends Muslim Fundamentalists;
1993: World Trade Center bombed for the first time, though unsuccessfully, by Muslim Fundamentalists;
1998: United States Embassies bombed simultaneously in Tanzania and Kenya by Muslim extremists / Osama bin Laden linked
2000: Al Quaeda attacks the USS Cole in a Yemen harbor (country near Saudi Arabia);
2001: Al Quaeda plans and executes a devastating attack on the World Trade Center in New York City, leaving thousands dead.
The Bush Doctrine: In a speech delivered on September 20th, 2001, President Bush announced a new foreign policy for the United States that soon came to be known as the “Bush Doctrine”, and initiating what has come to be known as the “War on Terror”. The main points of the President’s speech included: (1) the U.S. has been attacked by terrorists (Al Quaeda); (2) Terrorists are self-appointed and totalitarian; (3) America is committed fully to defeating terrorism. President Bush redefines America’s foreign policy, foreshadowing a pre-emptive approach to defeating terrorism. The core of the Bush Doctrine included several aspects, including: (1) the right of the U.S. to launch “pre-emptive strikes” against nations that might threaten it; (2) the right of the U.S. to act unilaterally, that is alone; (3) the right to depose foreign governments that might be a threat to the U.S.; (4) the encouragement of democracy, especially in the Middle East, as a way to protect American security and defeat terrorism. The difficulty in dealing with terrorism is that it is not confined to participants from one country, and no nation’s government has challenged America. Although the terrorists America faces come from a few identifiable countries, the governments of these nations are not committed to the same project as the Muslim Fundamentalist terrorists. Indeed, some of these countries face challenges to their own authority from these same Muslim Fundamentalists. In a further speech delivered in 2002, President Bush shocked the world by declaring that terrorist activity was supported by an “Axis of Evil”, and actually naming the countries of Iran, Iraq, and North Korea as members of this group.
Invasion of Afghanistan: The attack on America September 11th, 2001 led to the invasion of Afghanistan by the United States in an effort called Operation Enduring Freedom, supported by a large coalition of countries. Afghanistan, led by its government known as the “Taliban”, permitted Osama Bin Laden to use that nation as a base for Al Quaeda training and operations. The purpose of Operation Enduring Freedom was to secure Osama Bin Laden and others involved in the plotting and execution of the 911 attack on the World Trade Center in New York.
Invasion of Iraq: In March of 2003, the U.S. launched its attack on Iraq, claiming that Saddam Hussein supported international terrorism and had “weapons of mass destruction” (WMD). In order to build support for the war in Iraq, President Bush sent his Secretary of State Colin Powell to the United Nations to state the case for war. Saddam Hussein was eventually captured, put on trial, and hanged. President Bush claimed that this war was necessary as part of the War on Terror. The failure to discover WMD in Iraq, and the total lack of evidence that Saddam Hussein had anything to do with 911, have both created a significant amount of international anger directed toward the U.S. American forces remain both in Iraq and Afghanistan, seeking to stabilize those nations and create sustainable democratic governments.
Domestic Changes: The War on Terror has led to two significant changes within the United States: (1) passage of The Patriot Act, a law that increased the ability of law enforcement to conduct searches of all types in order to discover information related to terrorist activity within the U.S.; (2) creation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), a new cabinet-level agency charged with protecting American territory from terrorist attacks. As result of the DHS, American air travel has been significantly altered with new standards for airport security.
WHAT FACTORS IN AMERICA LED TO THE RISE OF BIG BUSINESS DURING THE GILDED AGE?
The Gilded Age (1877- 1890s): During this period, America went through dramatic changes in a large variety of ways. Population rose dramatically with the addition of many new types of immigrants that America had not seen previously. The 2nd Industrial Revolution (steel, oil, electricity), led by several key entrepreneurs increased America’s economic strength. Businesses and factories began to grow larger, and used a variety of tactics and strategies to reduce competition. Cities became unsanitary, dangerous, and overcrowded. Although America’s economy seemed to be doing well, the wealth it produced was not evenly distributed, thus creating a large population of poor Americans who faced dangerous working conditions in factories. Poor wages and working conditions would lead to the development of America’s first labor unions. The “Gilded Age”, as a term for this period, comes from the title of a book written by Mark Twain which discussed another major feature of this time period: political corruption. The Gilded Age was a time when wealthy entrepreneurs built lavish homes such as the Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina, constructed by the Vanderbilt family. Signs of wealth such as this have become associated with the Gilded Age, but this period was also characterized by some very influential ideas.
Social Idea / Individualism: Individualism was a powerful cultural force, reinforced in the imagination of Americans through the novels of Horatio Alger. The typical theme in his works was simply that any person could do well and prosper in America, regardless of obstacles, through hard work and opportunity. This “rags to riches” theme has become a part of America’s view of itself.
Social Idea / Social Darwinism: At the same time, the idea of “Social Darwinism” was gaining just as much influence. In 1859, the biologist Charles Darwin wrote his famous book entitled “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection”. In this work, Darwin proposed that animal and plant life as we know it evolved over a long period of time as a result of genetically superior beings continuing to reproduce while genetically inferior beings simply died out. Herbert Spencer, a British philosopher, took Darwin’s ideas about animals/plants and applied them to human society, arguing that society progressed when the fittest people survived through competition and natural selection. Spencer’s phrase, “survival of the fittest”, captures the main idea of Social Darwinism. Business leaders and entrepreneurs embraced these ideas and wished to see them applied to economic life in America. As a result, business came to believe that the government should not interfere in the economy, and that the best businesses should survive through competition, without government regulation.
Economic Idea / Laissez Faire Economics: Many Americans in the Gilded Age embraced the idea of “Laissez-Faire”, a French expression that means “allow things to be done”, without restrictions. The core of this idea is that government’s proper role simply is to maintain the legal system and protect property rights. The laissez-faire attitude of state and federal governments kept taxes and spending low by not imposing regulations on industry, an attitude encouraged by business under the influence of Social Darwinism. Implied in this idea is that government should have no role in regulating business activity. Supporters of Laissez-Faire prefer to let the forces of supply and demand determine economic activities, allowing buyers and sellers to meet freely in the market place, thus allowing prices and products to be determined by the free choices of equals in the marketplace.
Reasons Behind American Productivity: The rise of America as an industrial power can be attributed to at least three major factors: (1) the laissez-faire attitude in the United States led to a wave of entrepreneurs risking their talents and money to start businesses; (2) the vast natural resources available in the United States meant that companies had easy access to the materials needed to support a large variety of industries without importing materials; (3) the huge workforce of the United States, aided by large families and immigration, tripled between 1860 and 1910, providing industry with access to labor. By the early 1900s, American industries were larger and highly competitive, leading owners to encourage free trade and discourage high tariffs.
Reducing Competition / The Tactics of “Big Business”: The goal of any business is to create profits for the entrepreneur or for stockholders. Businesses during the Gilded Age used a variety of tactics to increase profits. One important tactic was to create an “economy of scale”. If a business can purchase its necessary supplies in bulk (reducing their cost), simplify the jobs needed to produce goods (specialization), build large production facilities with efficient technologies (volume), and promote their goods to a large number of people efficiently (marketing), then that business has created an economy of scale. The benefit of an economy of scale is that the business can produce goods quicker and cheaper, allowing that business to operate in poor economic times by cutting prices to increase sales. Many small businesses with higher operating costs were forced out of business. A second tactic used by business was meant to address the fact that, although competition caused lower prices for consumers, it also cut business profits. To stop prices from falling, companies which produced similar products would organize Pools to keep prices at a certain level, informally agreeing with each other not to cut prices too low, thus allowing each business to make a profit. A third tactic, used by Andrew Carnegie, was called Vertical Integration. A vertically integrated company owns all the different businesses it depends on for its operation. This tactic not only saved money but also made the big company bigger. A fourth tactic, known as Horizontal Integration, involved combining many firms doing the same type of business into one large corporation. By purchasing competing companies, a business would reduce competition, thus increasing profits. Because Americans have always been suspicious of a Monopoly (one business being the only producer of a product), Holding Companies (also known as Trusts) were formed to avoid the appearance of a monopoly in certain industries. This fifth tactic involved creating a company called a “holding company” which did not produce anything itself. A holding company’s only job is to manage other businesses. If a holding company manages only businesses that produce only one type of product, then it can ensure that the price for the product is set at a profitable level, without legally being a monopoly. All of these tactics would be used in one way or another by the leading entrepreneurs and Industrialists of the Gilded Age.
Robber Barons or Captains of Industry?: The power of industrialists to have an impact on American society eventually gave rise to two important terms that would be used on them. The “Robber Baron” was an industrialist who engaged in business practices that attempted to reduce economic competition to the benefit of that industrialist, and without giving any consideration to the greater society. The “Captain of Industry” was a successful industrialist who contributed to society by creating new markets, developing new markets, providing jobs, and most importantly, enriched society through acts of philanthropy. Many of the industrialists of the Gilded Age clearly fit into the Robber Baron mold, such as Jay Gould, while men like Andrew Carnegie seem to come much closer to the idea of Captain of Industry.
Cornelius Vanderbilt and Railroads: In the 1830s and 1840s, Cornelius Vanderbilt built his first fortune operating a highly profitable steamship service in New York. He soon turned his business skills to railroads, eventually creating the profitable New York Central and Hudson River Railroad as well as building the first Grand Central Station in New York City. Although he amassed a great deal of wealth, Vanderbilt never shared his wealth with society in any meaningful way. Fortunately, this would not be the case with other entrepreneurs of the period.
Andrew Carnegie and Steel: In 1855, an inventor named Henry Bessemer created a new process for producing extremely strong steel with far less labor and far less expense. The “Bessemer Process” would allow Andrew Carnegie to create a company in Pittsburg that would become known as US Steel, a company that became the largest and most profitable steel company in the world, and that would make Carnegie the 2nd richest man in history. Unlike Vanderbilt, Carnegie took great interest in sharing his wealth with society, and becoming America’s first major philanthropist. Carnegie donated vast amounts of money to education and the arts, channeling it through foundations such as the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is also responsible for the founding of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.
J.P. Morgan: A banker by trade, J.P. Morgan became a significant force in American life, not only by helping to create some of America’s most profitable businesses, but also by advising the Federal Government through difficult economic times and enriching society through his philanthropy. Morgan arranged the creation of General Electric, and purchased US Steel from Andrew Carnegie, improving that business’s profitability. Morgan is also responsible for establishing two of America’s greatest art museums, the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art (New York City) and the Wadsworth Atheneum (CT). He was also a major benefactor of several universities, including Harvard University and Trinity College.
John D. Rockefeller and Standard Oil: Edwin Drake is credited with developing a new process for drilling into the ground to extract oil. Although Drake would make money in this industry, he would not approach the success of John D. Rockefeller, founder of the Standard Oil Company. Rockefeller relied on Horizontal Integration and railroad rebates to create a company that had a virtual monopoly on oil production in the United States. Being a religious man, Rockefeller believed he had an obligation to share his wealth, becoming the most important modern philanthropist in American history. He gave vast amounts of money to medical research that eventually eliminated hookworm and yellow fever. As well, he founded the University of Chicago and Rockefeller University. Much of his money was channeled through church organizations.
George Westinghouse and Electricity: This entrepreneur and engineer was a pioneer in the new industry of electricity. As the founder of the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, this man’s work was responsible for the establishment of the modern electrical system in America, alternating current (AC). The impact of electricity being delivered to homes would lead to the development of a vast array of products that would transform American life.
HOW DID INDUSTRIAL WORKERS RESPOND TO THE HORRIBLE WORKING CONDITIONS OF THE GILDED AGE?
Working Conditions during the Gilded Age: Although people who owned or invested in businesses were becoming quite wealthy, workers in factories did not enjoy much wealth, safety at work, or protection from economic troubles. Because the idea of laissez-faire was so powerful during this period, governments placed few if any restrictions on business owners. And because entrepreneurs wished to make as much profit as possible, the wages, working conditions, and happiness of workers was not a major concern. Many Americans worked in what has come to be called “sweat shops”, places of employment that featured low pay, long hours, dangerous working conditions, exposure to hazardous materials, temperature extremes, and no way to address these problems. Workers who were injured while working could expect no help or sympathy from employers.
Business Tactics Against Unions: Companies used several techniques to discourage the formation of unions, including: (1) requiring contracts, called a “yellow dog contract”, in which workers promised not to join a union; (2) hiring spies to locate people trying to organize unions; (3) firing workers who engaged in union activities; (4) placing the names of suspected union men on a “blacklist” that was shared with other employers so that nobody would hire them; (5) enforcing a “lockout”, preventing workers from coming to work; (6) hiring “strikebreakers” (also called “scabs”), replacement workers for union members who refused to work until the company paid higher wages.
Early Unions: As early as the 1830s, men who had specific skills needed by employers, craft workers, began to form trade unions. By the early 1870s, there were approximately 32 trade unions in existence. The purpose of a trade union is to unite all of the workers in a specific trade in order to negotiate better wages, benefits, and working conditions. Employers had to deal with the unions because they needed these skilled workers to make their businesses work. However, companies did not like unions because paying higher wages and providing safe working conditions cost them more money, thus reducing the profits of the company. They also believed that unions interfered with their rights to use their own property as they wished.
The Knights of Labor: The most important labor union in the late 1800s was the Knights of Labor, a union that represented both skilled and unskilled workers and advocated: (1) an end to child labor; (2) equal pay for women; (3) progressive income tax; (4) worker ownership of mines and factories; (5) an 8-hour workday; (6) arbitration as a way to settle employer-employee disputes. Arbitration is a process in which a third person listens to both employee and employer sides of a dispute, in an attempt to find a fair solution.
American Federation of Labor (AFL): Founded in 1886 by Samuel Gompers, this next union set out to represent the interests of skilled workers. The AFLs goals were to (1) convince companies to accept “collective bargaining” as a legitimate business practice; (2) get companies to agree to having a “closed shop” (union-only workers); (3) gain an 8-hour work day. Gompers did not want unions to become involved in politics or seek political goals. He simply wanted to address the needs of workers and preferred negotiation with employers rather than confrontation.
Industrial Workers of the World (IWW): Nicknamed the “wobblies”, the IWW was a socialist union founded in 1905 that wanted to achieve very different goals than the AFL. It represented unskilled workers and wanted to unite all workers in one nationwide union. It believed in using strikes to achieve its goals and was quite hostile to those who owned companies. Among its founders was Eugene V. Debs, a prominent American socialist who would go on to shape American labor politics into the early 1920s. Its radical ideas and willingness to use strikes led to its decline.
Unions Connected to Socialism?: Early unions were unsuccessful because there were no laws in place to protect their rights to negotiate. As well, the socialist ideas of the German thinker Karl Marx, suggesting that wealth should be more evenly distributed, and that the government should seize all private property, were becoming popular among some American union supporters. These ideas were considered un-American. Since many of the new immigrant factory workers, who came from Eastern Europe, were also in favor of unions, many Americans came to associate Karl Marx and socialism with immigrants. As a result, many Americans became suspicious of the goals labor unions had set. The struggle for union rights led to many violent conflicts during the late 1800s and early 1900s.
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR CONFLICTS BETWEEN WORKERS AND OWNERS?
Great Railroad Strike (1877): The “Panic of 1873” put the United States into a major recession, causing many companies to cut wages nationwide. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad cut wages for its workers beginning in 1874, and, for the third time, cut wages yet again in 1877. Workers in West Virginia went on strike and blocked tracks as a tactic to gain wage gains from the railroad. These workers were joined by 80,000 railroad workers nationwide, creating a general strike in the rail industry. President Hayes called this action on the part of the railroad workers an “insurrection” (threat to the government and order), leading him to order Federal troops to end the strike. These troops were joined by local and state militias in a variety of places. The resulting conflicts left over 100 men dead. This experience of labor-business conflict demonstrated clearly to many Americans the need for peaceful ways to resolve workplace disputes, particularly in vital areas of the economy.
The Haymarket Riot (1886): Although the Knights had some success, this union ultimately failed because of the effects of the Haymarket Riot. The Knights organized a protest in favor of an 8-hour workday, leading 80,000 protestors through the streets of Chicago. Over the next few days, over 70,000 workers went on strike. When violence broke out on a picket line in front of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, police attempts to break it up left 4 men dead. In response, a radical group organized a protest in Chicago’s Haymarket Square, featuring several speakers, and attended by over 3000 people. As the protest was breaking up, police were in the area to ensure order, however one person threw a bomb that ultimately killed a police officer. Police immediately opened fire on the crowd which in turn began to shoot back, leaving 100 injured. Among the men arrested for the bombing were 7 German immigrants and one member of the Knights of Labor. Americans were outraged by the Haymarket Riot and came to associate labor union goals with immigrants and radical politics. The connection to the Knights of Labor quickly led to its decline as a labor union force.
The Homestead Strike (1892): Henry Clay Frick managed a steel mill owned by Andrew Carnegie in Homestead, PA and intended to cut the wages of his employees by 20% when his current contract with the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel, and Tin Workers expired. When the union failed to accept the new contract proposal, Frick went on to lock-out the employees, hired replacement workers (scabs), and hired the Pinkerton National Detective Agency (private security force) to escort the replacement workers to the mill. Violence broke out as the scabs approached the mill on a barge, leaving several strikers and Pinkerton men dead. Pennsylvania’s governor ordered the local militia to protect the scabs, and after four months, the workers ultimately failed. Frick and Carnegie’s union-busting tactics successfully kept unions out of the steel industry for three decades.
The Pullman Strike (1893): George Pullman had created the Pullman Palace Car Company, a business that constructed rail cars. In order to support his company, Pullman created a “company town” in which workers lived, paid rent, and were obliged to buy their food and personal items at Pullman’s stores. When Pullman laid off workers and cut wages, the American Railway Union (ARU), founded by Eugene V. Debs, attempted to negotiate complaints with Pullman, who refused. Since the ARU had unionized workers across the railway industry, Debs encouraged rail workers across the country to boycott Pullman railcars, refusing to service them. The boycott tied up rail traffic and threatened the economy in general. In order to prevent this from happening, railway managers attached U.S. Mail cars to the Pullman cars, knowing that interruption of the U.S. Mail was a federal offense that would force workers to service Pullman cars. In order to support this effort, President Rutherford B. Hayes ordered federal troops to ensure the flow of the mail. Further, a federal court ordered an injunction (court order) demanding that the union halt its boycott of Pullman cars. When the Supreme Court determined that the injunction was constitutional, business gained more power to deal with labor unrest in future situations.
HOW DID THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ATTEMPT TO DEAL WITH THE POWER OF BIG BUSINESS?
Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890): The growing power of Big Business in America to reduce competition and raise prices for consumers led many to pressure Congress for legislation that could address these problems. The purpose of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act was to preserve the efficiency of Big Business while at the same time preventing Big Business from hurting consumers through non-competitive business practices that would result in price increases. The rise of trusts (companies formed to manage other companies that make products), designed to avoid the appearance of horizontal integration, became a threat to the public interest by reducing competition. This law attempts to make destructive, monopolizing trusts illegal. This law had little practical effect, but established America’s concern with the power of Big Business to harm Americans by limiting competition, and then raising prices. Progressives and Farmers favored this law.
United States v. E.C. Knight (1895): Intended to reduce the power of trusts and holding companies, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act never achieved its goal as the Supreme Court interpreted its intent in a way that left Congress with little ability to control the power of business. The roots of U.S. v. E.C. Knight trace back to the American Sugar Company which purchased stock in three other competitors, giving it effective control of 98% of America’s sugar market. The U.S. sued the company under the provisions of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. At this time, Americans were becoming wary of the tremendous power a few large companies were gaining through vertical and horizontal integration. To get around Sherman, many large companies formed Trusts (companies that controlled other companies, rather than producing a product of their own). The U.S. sued the American Sugar Company, posing this question to the Supreme Court: did the American Sugar Company’s purchase of three other competitors create a monopoly that violated the terms of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act? The Court determined that, although American Sugar controlled 98% of the manufacture of sugar, it did not have a monopoly over the direct sale of its product to the public. As a result, the American Sugar Company did not violate the terms of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. As well, the federal government does not have the power to break up this company, even under the interstate commerce clause. This decision gutted the intent of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act since the Court created a distinction between the manufacture of a product and its direct sale to the public, thus creating a new part of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, something Congress did not intend. As a result, the concentration of economic power in the hands of a few large corporations accelerated through the formation of trusts and holding companies.
HOW DID AMERICANS REACT TO THE NEW WAVE OF IMMIGRATION DURING THE GILDED AGE?
The “New Immigration”: From its beginning, America has been a nation of immigrants, composed of people who left Europe for economic, social, or religious reasons. Prior to the Civil War, immigrants to America primarily came from Northern and Western Europe. This “old” immigration pattern would change dramatically. America added 25 million people to its population between 1865 and 1914, but by the late 1890s, more than half of all new arrivals came form eastern and southern Europe, many of them Jewish. This “new” immigration included people from Serbia, Russia, Austria-Hungary, Greece, and Italy.
Europeans Arrive at Ellis Island: By the late 1800s, most European states made it easy to move to America. Here, immigrants could find employment, avoid military service, find religious freedom, and move up the social ladder. Most immigrants settled in cities, living in neighborhoods that were separated into ethnic groups. European immigrants usually arrived at Ellis Island where doctors would screen the new arrivals for health conditions, sending an unlucky few back to Europe if found to be suffering from some ailment.
Asians Arrive at Angel Island: Asian nations such as China and Japan also contributed to the new immigration. Asian immigrants were drawn to America because of severe unemployment, poverty, political turmoil, and famine in their home countries. Angel Island, in San Francisco Bay, processed the new Asian immigrants who may have waited months before learning whether they could remain.
The Return of Nativism: Just as the Irish had in the 1840s and 1850s, many of the new immigrants faced hostility from native-born Americans. This new wave of immigration brought different languages, political ideas, and religions to America’s shores, causing the overwhelmingly white and Protestant American population to feel threatened. Because many of the new arrivals were unskilled, Americans worried that they would be willing to work for cheaper wages, thus driving down wages for everyone. Another significant concern of Americans at the time was the fact that many of the Irish, Polish and Italian immigrants were Roman Catholic. Many Protestants believed that Catholics in the United States would be more loyal to the Pope (religious leader of Catholics worldwide) than they would be to the United States. As a result, many anti-Catholic nativist groups formed to limit the influence of Catholics. Henry Bowers formed just such an organization called the American Protective Association which encouraged Americans to deny employment or votes to Catholics. As a result, only the lowest-paying and most dangerous jobs available could be taken by many Catholics. Nativism also affected Asians as Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882). Originally intended to suspend Chinese immigration for 10 years and deny citizenship, Congress continued to enforce this law until 1943. As well, the San Francisco Board of Education segregated public education, forcing Chinese, Japanese, and Korean children to attend separate schools. Japan felt insulted by this action and pressured President Theodore Roosevelt to reverse San Francisco’s decision in exchange for Japan restricting the number of its emigrants to the United States.
WHAT NEW URBAN PROBLEMS AROSE AND HOW DID AMERICANS RESPOND?
Living Conditions in Cities: The working poor in America’s cities during the Gilded Age lived in horrible conditions. Attention would soon be drawn to these deplorable conditions by a journalist and photographer named Jacob Riis. Working as a police reporter in the 1870s and 1880s brought Riis into the worst neighborhoods of New York City, leaving him shocked at the squalor many people lived in. Armed with his camera, Riis began to document these terrible conditions, finally gathering all of his photos and stories into a book called “How the Other Half Lives” (1890). As a result of this book, New York City began to work toward changing housing laws that would improve living conditions for the poor. Because he had stirred up a lot of “trouble” through his book, Theodore Roosevelt, a friend of Riis’, would give him an important nickname: “muckraker”. The term muckraker is now a common term in the United States for any person who draws attention to social problems that many government leaders would rather ignore.
Dumbbell Tenements: With industrialization, immigration, and urbanization, moving at a rapid pace, cities found that housing their fast-growing populations was becoming a serious problem. In New York City, a law demanded that new structures be built on lots (parcel of land) that measured 25’ by 100’, and that each room have a window. In order to create housing that could meet these demands, and to ensure that landlords could make a profit from building structures, a competition was held for the best design. This competition was won by James Ware whose building design was called a “Dumbbell Tenement”. These buildings were 6 stories high, and shaped in such a way as to look like a dumbbell if viewed from overhead. The shape allowed for a window in each room and a ventilation shaft between the closely built structures. These buildings could pack 300 people into 84 rooms. Although profitable, these structures produced terrible living conditions as residents simply dumped garbage out of their windows, down the shaft, leaving it to rot for weeks or months without removing it. Further, there were too few “water closets” and no effective way to dispose of their “contents”. As a result, the smell surrounding dumbbell tenements became unbearable, and produced dangerous health conditions.
Gospel of Wealth (1889): Although Carnegie was a friend of Herbert Spencer, and accepted the ideas of Social Darwinism, he nevertheless believed in helping the less fortunate, which Spencer was against. So deep was his interest in helping others that Carnegie asked other rich industrialists to accept his idea of the “Gospel of Wealth”. The purpose of this idea was to encourage other rich industrialists to engage in philanthropy (donation of private money to social causes and projects). Although Carnegie believed in Social Darwinism (only fittest in society should survive) and Laissez-Faire economics (no government regulation of business), he also believed that the rich owed something to society in return for their good fortune. Carnegie recognized that Social Darwinism , Laissez-Faire economics, and industrialization could lead to significant and negative social consequences. Although he believed these three factors ultimately worked for the common good of all in the long run, he also wanted to soften the impact of these powerful societal forces.
The Urban Poor, Jane Addams, and Settlement Houses: Immigrants naturally flooded into cities in search of employment, moving into neighborhoods dominated by others from their same countries. They joined native-born Americans in these same cities who were either working class or poverty stricken. In an age of Social Darwinism, few took notice of the growing poverty and social problems in cities. This would change in America as a result of Jane Addams, the founder of the first settlement house in the United States. A settlement house had several purposes: (1) provide social and educational opportunities to the poor; (2) provide basic training in practical skills such as sewing; (3) assist new immigrants adjusting to American life; (4) advocate for immigrant rights; (5) encourage laws against child labor; (6) encourage laws for improved worker safety. Hull House in Chicago, the settlement house founded by Addams, is the most famous, and is credited with being the inspiration for social welfare work in the United States.
More Help for the Urban Poor: Other reformers looked to assist America’s growing urban poor population. The “Social Gospel” was a movement of individuals inspired by the Bible to alleviate the suffering found in cities. Other faith-based groups emerged to assist in this effort including the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), founded by preacher Dwight L. Moody, and the Salvation Army. It is also during the Gilded Age that modern public education began. The need to have educated trained workers for factories and other businesses caused a dramatic rise in public education. Education was also used as a way to teach the language and culture of America to its many new immigrants. This goal came to be called “Americanization”.
The Upside: Not all was doom and gloom for city dwellers during the Gilded Age. Americans with sufficient wealth and leisure time would benefit from several new inventions and several new forms of entertainment. The productivity and inventiveness that came with the rise of industry changed the way Americans lived.
New Technologies: Among the many new inventions and technologies of the Gilded Age were: (1) the typewriter, invented by Christopher Soles, and manufactured by the Remington Company, appearing in 1873; (2) the telephone, invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876; (3) the phonograph, invented by Thomas Edison in 1877; (4) the carbon filament light bulb, invented by Lewis Latimer in 1883; (5) the dishwasher, invented by Josephine Cochrane in 1886; (6) the first portable camera, invented by George Eastman (Kodak), invented in 1888; (7) the gasoline-powered automobile, invented by the Duryea brothers in 1893; (8) the first powered airplane, developed by Wilbur and Orville Wright in 1903. As the years passed, many of these new technological innovations would see dramatic improvements and become the basis of highly successful American industries.
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR POLITICAL ISSUES OF THE GILDED AGE?
The Political Machine and City Governments: The modernization of America during the Gilded Age posed challenges to government at all levels. The rapid growth of cities resulted in an increase in crime, fire, disease, and pollution. Contaminated water from improper sewage disposal resulted in epidemics of typhoid fever and cholera. New city residents needed jobs, police protection, services, and housing. City governments at the time were not yet prepared to deal with these problems. It is at this time that a new approach to city politics would appear. The “political machine” was an informal organization that would take control of many city governments. Many of the “party bosses” of political machines did manage to solve many city problems, but they did so in corrupt ways. Casting a vote during this period was not a secret affair; your name could be found on a register along with the person for whom you voted. This lack of secrecy meant that a successful candidate could identify his supporters and reward them in a variety of ways, including with city jobs and contracts. Bosses also had control of a city’s financial affairs and plans, therefore allowing him privileged information that could bring him benefits. For example, if a Boss knew that the City intended to build a train station on a piece of land, he could purchase that land from the current owner and then resell it to the City for a considerable profit. When the City needed to hire contractors to construct a building or to create roads, the Boss could easily demand a bribe in exchange for awarding a contract. This widespread “graft” – getting money through dishonest means – made many Bosses extremely wealthy.
Boss Tweed and Tamany Hall: New York City was the home of 2 famous examples of Party Bosses. George Plunkitt was one Boss who made a great deal of money while in power, calling his activities “honest graft”. The most infamous however was William “Boss” Tweed, the boss of the Democratic Party Machine in New York City during the 1850s and 1860s. Tammany Hall, as the machine was called, made Boss Tweed exceedingly wealthy as he managed to steal between 75 and 200 million dollars through rigged contracts and kickbacks. His downfall came in the early 1870s after a series of political cartoons created by Thomas Nast drew the attention of many New Yorkers. Nast’s work drew attention to the fact that Tweed was embezzling money from the City. Although much corruption came about as a result of political machines, they did manage to improve living conditions in cities, and also helped to settle and assimilate many new immigrants into American life, especially the Irish.
The Whiskey Ring: America came to learn of a massive scandal in 1875 when Treasury agents conducted a series of raids against liquor distillers. As a result of these raids, Americans came to learn that tax revenues had been stolen in a conspiracy between Republican politicians, government agents, and the distillers themselves. The frustration of Americans with this and other scandals led to a growing mood of reform in national politics.
Modernization Stresses the Civil Service System: Andrew Jackson, first elected in 1828, rewarded his political supporters with government jobs and other benefits. This approach to politics came to be known as the “spoils system” and remained in place for 60 years. By the 1870s however, Americans came to believe that the spoils system was corrupting national government and making it inefficient. President Rutherford B. Hayes (R) was elected in 1876 and believed that national politics needed to be reformed. His attempt to fire people who had gained their jobs through political connections caused a split in the Republican Party between “Stalwarts” (supporters of the spoils system) and “Half-Breeds” (reformers). This split in the party meant that reforms would not occur during his presidency. When the 1880 election came around, the Republicans nominated James A. Garfield, a Half-Breed, who ultimately won the election. Soon after, President Garfield was assassinated by a job-seeking Stalwart, believing that Vice President Chester A. Arthur, also a Stalwart, might give him a job. This series of events led most Americans to demand an end to the spoils system, leading to the passage of the Pendleton Civil Service Act 1883.
Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883) and the Modern Civil Service System: The purposes of this new federal law were to reform the civil service, reduce its corruption and to make civil service more efficient in an increasingly modernizing America. This new law forced civil service job-seekers to take and pass an exam in order to qualify for federal government jobs. Once appointed, civil servants could not be fired for political reasons. As well, this new law reflected public dissatisfaction with the Jacksonian “spoils” approach to staffing the civil service, and made the federal civil service more professional. When Grover Cleveland gained the presidency in 1884, the first Democratic president since 1856, he was flooded with requests from Democratic supporters for jobs. He gained election with the support of angry Republicans, nicknamed “Mugwumps”, who disliked their own party’s nominee, and favored the goals of the Pendleton Act. President Cleveland’s refusal to deal with the issue effectively meant that the goals of the Pendleton Act would have time to be achieved, thus resulting in the establishment of the modern civil service as we know it.
The Secret Ballot (Australian Ballot): Grover Cleveland would resurface in national politics again, recapturing the presidency in 1892. This election was highly significant as it marked another major reform in American politics. This was the first national election in which a president was chosen based entirely on secret votes. Until this time, voting was frequently a public act, a fact that could lead to much corruption in a variety of ways. The “Australian Ballot”, as secret voting is often called, has many advantages that previous forms of voting lacked: (a) all candidates’ names would appear on ballots; (b) locations for voting were official; (c) voters’ identities on the ballots would not be revealed. These changes allowed Americans to vote with a free conscience.
UNIT 2: THE U.S. ENTERS WORLD AFFAIRS (1890 – 1914)
WHY DID AMERICA BECOME A WORLD POWER?
Reasons for European Expansion Overseas (New Imperialism): For several economic reasons, European nations began to expand their influence overseas. Just as in America, European nations had experienced industrialization at a rapid rate. The resulting growth in factories required access to raw materials for the products they produced, and many of these nations lacked the necessary resources. As a result, European nations looked elsewhere for these materials, primarily in Africa and Asia. Since most European nations wished to increase the profitability of their home industries, they began to enforce high tariffs against products from other industrial countries. These tariffs reduced the number of markets for products, causing European nations to look for markets elsewhere. The reduced investment opportunities at home, and the saturation of existing industrial enterprises at home, led many countries to look elsewhere to build their economies.
Imperialism, Colonies, and Protectorates: As European nations began to invest capital in Africa and Asia, these countries also began to exercise control over African and Asian countries in order to protect investments. The control of another smaller nation’s political and economic life by a larger more powerful nation is called Imperialism. Some areas became colonies of the larger nation, while other areas became protectorates. In a protectorate, the imperial power allowed the local rulers to stay in control and protected them both against revolts from within their country, and from invasion from other countries. In exchange for this protection, the local rulers had to follow advice from Europeans on how to govern.
Social Darwinism Spurs American Expansion Overseas: With the settlement of the West relatively complete, and with European nations expanding their influence around the world, many Americans wanted to find new markets of its own to ensure its place in the worldwide economy. Many Americans used the ideas of Social Darwinism - that the strongest nations would survive - to defend overseas expansion, arguing that political, economic, and military competition would determine the strongest nations.
Anglo-Saxonism Spurs American Expansion Overseas: Some Americans, along with many Britons, took these ideas of Social Darwinism even further. The American historian John Fiske argued that English-speaking nations had superior character and systems of government, and were therefore destined to control other nations. This idea became known as Anglo-Saxonism. Another advocate of Anglo-Saxonism was Josiah Strong, an American minister and missionary who linked this idea to Manifest Destiny, arguing that America had succeeded in spreading its culture within the territory of the United States and should therefore take this culture and civilization to other parts of the world. The popularity of Anglo-Saxonism is reflected in the work of English poet Rudyard Kipling. In his poem, “The White Man’s Burden”, Kipling seemed to take the position that white civilization had an obligation to take its superior civilization to other people’s around the world, for their own benefit.
America Builds a Navy: As pressure to spread American economic influence overseas grew, a pressure strengthened by the idea of Anglo-Saxonism, three diplomatic incidents that almost led America into war caused the American government to make plans for an expanded Navy: (1) conflict over Germany’s attempt to take over Samoa in the South Pacific; (2) attack of American sailors in Valparaiso, Chile; (3) support of Venezuela in a border dispute with Great Britain. The central concern behind the drive to build up the Navy was the thought that America would be shut out of worldwide markets by European nations.
Cpt. Alfred T. Mahan Spurs the Navy’s Growth: An officer in the U.S. Navy, Captain Alfred T. Mahan, argued that America needed a bolstered Navy to protect its commercial shipping, to secure its access to markets, and should establish bases worldwide to protect its economic interests. He drew his arguments from “The Influence of Sea Power upon History” a book he had written which examined how a strong navy had assisted many nations as they grew in influence. Mahan’s book persuaded average Americans and Congressional leaders, leading Congress to authorize the construction of a large modern Navy.
The Great White Fleet (1907 - 09): This new nickname for the United States Navy came about as a result of President Theodore Roosevelt’s desire to demonstrate to the rest of the world the increasing power of America’s blue-water navy capabilities. Four squadrons of four battleships each, including escorts, were ordered to circumnavigate the globe, a feat that took less than 15 months. The fleet was greeted with wild excitement in ports throughout the world, and dramatically expanded respect for the United States worldwide.
HOW DID AMERICA BUILD ITS TEMPORARY EMPIRE?
Seward’s Folly – Alaska Purchase: The territory of Alaska, located in the northeastern portion of North America, was owned by the Russians who, at the time, was experiencing a difficult financial period. Britain had controlled all of the territory bordering Alaska, and the Russians feared that a British invasion would result in a loss of Alaska to the British without any financial compensation. As a result, Russian Emperor Alexander II ordered that his Minister to the United States (a diplomat) enter into negotiations with the U.S. to arrange a sale. The Russians negotiated with Secretary of State William Seward, a man who favored American expansion, and who also saw a strategic advantage to the purchase. First, he wished to “reward” an ally, Russia, which had supported the Union during the Civil War. Second, Seward wanted to make Britain nervous about American intentions, a way of “punishing” Britain for its hostility to the Union during the Civil War. Perhaps Seward’s role as Secretary of State in the Lincoln administration influenced his intentions. Nevertheless, Alaska was purchased from the Russians in 1867 for 7.2 million dollars, leading to this territory becoming a state in 1959. The Alaska Purchase is referred to as “Seward’s Folly” because, at the time, many newspaper editors such as Horace Greeley thought the land to be worthless. History would prove that this was indeed a wise purchase as Alaska was rich with natural resources, and its location near Russia proved to be very useful during the Cold War (1945 – 1990).
Cmdr Matthew Perry Opens Trade with Japan: Americans early on saw the potential of opening trade opportunities in Asia. In 1853, the United States sent Commodore Matthew C. Perry to Japan with the intention of establishing a trade treaty. Commodore Perry arrived in Japan with four steam-powered warships equipped with advanced weapons. Upon observing the advanced technology of the Americans, the Japanese felt compelled to sign a trade treaty, granting American ships port privileges and permission to re-supply in Japan. Even though forced into the treaty, the Japanese used this trading opportunity to remake their society and launch their own industrial revolution. Having built a modern navy in a relatively short period of time, the Japanese became an imperial nation, expanding its influence to other parts of Asia. Japan also became a major industrial power.
The Drive to Annex Hawaii: As trade between the United States and Asia grew, American trading vessels increasingly needed access to ports in the Pacific at which to stop, rest, and gather new supplies. The Hawaiian Islands in the center of the Pacific proved to be a convenient location, drawing new settlers who discovered that the climate in Hawaii was perfect for sugarcane. As a result, a thriving new industry came to the islands, creating many rich planters and plantations. When Hawaii went into recession in 1872, the U.S. feared that in its economic downturn, Hawaii would turn to the French or the British for help. To avoid this situation, Congress passed legislation exempting Hawaiian sugar from American tariffs, and later giving the United States exclusive rights to a naval base at Pearl Harbor. As the sugar industry flourished, the planters demanded that the King accept a constitution that limited his authority, a demand that created tension between the planters and native Hawaiians. When the U.S. imposed new sugar tariffs in 1890, Hawaiian sugar became more expensive, leading the planters to seek annexation of Hawaii to the United States.
Queen Liliuokalani Resists Unsuccessfully: The new Queen of Hawaii, Queen Liliuokalani, disliked American influence in Hawaii and attempted to impose a new constitution that recognized her complete authority. The planters reacted by overthrowing Queen Liliuokalani, with the help of the Marines, and asked the U.S. to annex Hawaii. President Grover Cleveland opposed imperial expansion, rejected annexation, and wanted to restore the Queen’s power. Hawaiian leaders waited until President Cleveland left office, successfully gaining annexation five years later.
HOW DID AMERICA ENTER A WAR WITH SPAIN, AND WHAT WERE THE RESULTS?
Jose Marti Begins Rebellion in Cuba against Spain: Cuba had been a Spanish colony whose economy was based upon sugar exports especially to the United States. A first rebellion against Spain in 1868 ended in failure, leading many of the rebels to move to the United States. Among the exiled leaders was Cuban writer Jose Marti. While in America, Marti organized other exiles for an invasion of Cuba. By the early 1890s, the United States had become linked economically to Cuba through sugar imports, and investment in Cuban railroads and sugar plantations. However, when the U.S. placed a tariff on imported sugar, the sale of Cuban sugar in the U.S. fell. The Cuban economy was devastated. Cuban nationalist Jose Marti and his followers then began a rebellion and had taken control of eastern Cuba, declaring the country independent in 1895.
Yellow Journalism Enflames American Opinion Against Spain: At first, the U.S. government stayed neutral. However, many Americans supported the Cuban rebels, comparing the struggle for independence in Cuba with the American Revolution. Support for the rebels increased as a result of a new kind of newspaper reporting: Yellow Journalism. So called because of the yellowish color of the newsprint used by some newspapers, yellow journalism is a style of writing which exaggerates the facts of a situation, or simply invents them, to make stories more sensational. By creating sensational “stories”, newspapers sell more copies, and thus increase advertising revenues (profits). The two most famous practitioners of yellow journalism were newspapers owned by William Randolph Hearst (The New York Journal) and Joseph Pulitzer (The World). The outrageous stories printed by Hearst and Pulitzer enflamed Americans against the Spanish government.
Chaos in Cuba: Cuban rebels hoped to draw the U.S. into the conflict on their side by destroying American business assets in Cuba. Knowing that many Americans already supported them, the rebels hoped that America would act in order to protect its business investments. In the chaos, the Spanish sent 200,000 troops to Cuba to put down the rebellion. In an effort to prevent Cuban villagers from assisting the rebels, the Spanish rounded up civilians, placing them in concentration camps. Unfortunately, many people suffered and died in these camps, outraging Americans.
The USS Maine Explodes: President William McKinley was opposed to American involvement in the conflict, but did offer to help Spain negotiate with the rebels for a peaceful solution. The Spanish offered autonomy to Cubans, that is, the right to control affairs in Cuba, but insisting that Cuba remain part of the Spanish Empire. The rebels refused to speak to the Spanish, and their offer of autonomy angered Cubans who were loyal to Spain, leading the loyalists to riot in Havana. Fearing Americans might be hurt or killed as conditions worsened in Cuba, President McKinley sent the battleship USS Maine to Havana harbor in case Americans needed to be evacuated from the island country. On February 15, 1898, for reasons still unknown, the battleship exploded. At the time however, many Americans came to believe that the Spanish government was behind the “attack” on the USS Maine, a belief encouraged by yellow journalism, and leading to calls for war with Spain featuring the slogan “Remember the Maine”.
The Spanish-American War Begins: Jingoism is a form of nationalism that emphasizes aggression. It was this force that President McKinley faced, not only from members of his Republican Party, but also from Democrats. A jingoistic Congress authorized McKinley to prepare for war by granting him 50 Million dollars. Republicans, worried that if war on Spain was not declared, the Democrats would win the next presidential election, finally succeeded in persuading the President. On April 19, 1898, Congress declared Cuba to be an independent nation, demanded that the Spanish give up its claim to Cuba, and authorized the President to use force if the situation called for it. At the same time however, Congress also passed the Teller Resolution, a statement that America had no intention of annexing Cuba to itself. In response to America’s demands, Spain declared war on the United States.
Theaters of War: Spain was an imperial nation at this time. It had colonies and influence in a variety of places around the world, including in the Caribbean and in the Asian Pacific. When war broke out, a portion of the U.S. Navy, led by Commodore George Dewey, left its port in Hong Kong and sailed to the Philippines, a Spanish colony. The goal here was to prevent the Spanish Navy from sailing towards Cuba, a goal that was achieved quickly. The U.S. then dispatched a portion of its new Navy from San Francisco to the Philippines and, along the way, took control of the Island of Guam, a Spanish possession. Cuba itself also experienced several battles, eventually leading to the defeat of Spain. A nearby Spanish colony, Puerto Rico, came under American control. Lasting only 4 months, and taking only 460 American lives, the Spanish-American War seemed insignificant when compared to the casualties suffered during the Civil War. Indeed, America’s ambassador to England, in a letter written to “Rough Rider” Theodore Roosevelt, referred to the conflict as “a splendid little war”, a nickname that continues in use to this day.
An American Empire?: Having defeated the Spanish, America came into control of territories beyond its border that were quite different culturally. The question of whether America should maintain permanent control of these new territories sparked furious debate.
Opponents of American Imperialism: A group opposed to an imperial America, called the Anti-Imperialist League, believed that annexing new territories violated America’s republican principles. Members of this group included Jane Addams and Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain). Andrew Carnegie opposed annexation, believing that the costs of running an American Empire outweighed the economic benefits. Samuel Gompers (AFL) feared that Filipino labor would drive down the wages of average American workers.
America Becomes an Empire: Despite these opinions, President McKinley decided for annexation, believing that these territories (1) could not be given back to Spain; (2) should not fall under the control of economic competitor nations; (3) could not be ruled by the people already living there as they were “unfit”; (4) America had a responsibility to “civilize” and “Christianize” the local populations.
The Treaty of Paris Ends the Spanish-American War (1898): The war ended when the U.S. and Spain signed the Treaty of Paris in December of 1898, granting independence to Cuba, giving Puerto Rico and Guam to the U.S., and selling the Philippines to the U.S. for $20 million. Although the Treaty of Paris declared Cuba independent, President McKinley took steps to ensure that Cuba would remain tied to the U.S. Although Cuba now had a new constitution, it was forced to include The Platt Amendment, a change written by American Senator Orville Platt.
The Platt Amendment (1901): The purpose of the Platt Amendment was to keep American influence in Cuba without having to occupy the country militarily This Amendment to the Cuban Constitution (1) disallowed power to make treaties that weakened Cuba’s independence or allowed foreign control of any part of its territory; (2) permitted America to maintain naval bases on the island; (3) required minimal Cuban debt to prevent foreign countries from invading to enforce payment; (4) permitted America the right to intervene to protect Cuban independence and to maintain order. This amendment effectively makes Cuba an American protectorate until its repeal in 1934, and reveals Cuba’s strategic importance to America’s political and business interests.
The Foraker Act (1900) and Puerto Rico: A further consideration following the Treaty was how to govern Puerto Rico. The matter was settled when Congress passed the Foraker Act, a law that allowed Puerto Ricans to elect a legislature, but forced them to accept a President and Executive Council appointed by the President of the United States. In 1917, Puerto Ricans were granted American citizenship and, over time, Puerto Ricans gained more control over their government, eventually resulting in their ability to elect their own Governor.
HOW DID AMERICA DEAL WITH ASIA?
American Influence in Asia: By 1899, the United States had several Naval ports throughout the Asian Pacific. American business was gaining an increasing share of Asian markets and was anxious to create more trading opportunities, especially for its oil, steel, and textile industries. America however was not interested in conquering any Asian territories.
A Weakened China Encourages Imperial Aggression: By the early 1890s, Japan had risen as an industrial and military power in Asia, and was becoming increasingly imperialist. In 1894, war broke out between Japan and the much larger China. At issue was China’s control of the Korean peninsula, a potential market for Japanese goods. Japan was victorious in the war, leading China to grant independence to Korea, and giving up control of Manchuria, a portion of mainland China that rested on the border of Russia. This fact disturbed the Russians, leading them to gain French and German support to force Japan out of Manchuria. The First Sino-Japanese War demonstrated to the world that China was a much weaker nation than previously believed.
“Leaseholds” or “Spheres of Influence”: Taking advantage of this fact, the Russians demanded that China lease Manchuria to them. Although Manchuria would still belong to China, the “leasehold” meant that Russia had exclusive rights to control economic development in that region, such as railroad building and mining, with all trading rights and benefits belonging to Russia. A leasehold gave to a dominant nation a “sphere of influence” in another, weaker nation. Many other nations soon demanded a sphere of influence in China, including Britain, France, Japan, and Germany, all imperial countries controlling other weaker nations.
American Encourages the Open Door Policy 1899: Worried about America’s access to Chinese markets, Secretary of State John Hay sent a letter to each country (Russia, Britain, France, Japan, Germany) asking it not to discriminate against other nations wishing to do business in their individual sphere of influence. Each country with a leasehold agreed, and the U.S. expected each nation to live up to the agreement for an “open door” policy regarding trade in China.
The Boxer Rebellion against Western Influence: The economic power of Western nations in China caused many native Chinese to worry about Western influence in their nation, leading to the formation of several groups that actively opposed Western presence. One such group, the Society of Harmonious Fists, nicknamed the “Boxers” because of their physical training style, decided to confront the “foreign devils”. Also on their list of targets were native Chinese who had converted to Christianity through Western missionaries. In 1900 the Boxers, aided by some Chinese troops, attacked several embassies of Western nations, killing well over 200 people, and taking many as prisoners. Upon the killing of the German Ambassador to China, the Western nations (U.S., Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Britain, Italy) were joined by Japan in an attempt to smash the Boxer Rebellion and rescue their people, sending a force of 50,000 to China’s shores. Once the Boxer Rebellion was ended, Secretary of State John Hay persuaded all involved countries to resist colonizing China, leaving control of China to the Chinese, and ensuring future American access to lucrative Chinese markets. This resolution to the crisis has come to be known as the Second Open Door.
HOW DID AMERICA DEAL WITH LATIN AMERICA?
American Economic Interests in Latin America: A considerable portion of Latin America was heavily influenced by Western European imperial powers as a result of the variety of natural resources in the region and its favorable climate for agriculture. Americans had invested vast amounts of money in various Latin American countries, leading to the creation of new businesses and the construction of infrastructure (roads, rail, bridges). America’s business interests in Latin America drew much attention to the economic and political stability of this region.
Big Stick Diplomacy: “Speak softly and carry a big stick!” President Theodore Roosevelt used this phrase to express his view of America’s foreign policy in the early 1900s. Roosevelt believed that America needed to have a military powerful enough to prevent others from thinking of war with the United States, thereby creating peaceful conditions.
Proposal for an International Waterway: In order to ensure that the U.S. Navy could move about the world more quickly, Roosevelt wanted to create an artificial waterway in the Latin American territory of Panama, the northernmost portion of the nation of Columbia. Creating this canal would allow both military and commercial ships to move far more quickly between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In 1901, the U.S. signed the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty with Britain, granting the United States exclusive rights to build a canal in Panama (replaces earlier treaty of 1850), but guaranteeing international access.
Big Stick Diplomacy Gains the Panama Canal: Secretary of State Hay offered Columbia 10 million dollars and a hefty yearly rent if it permitted the U.S. to build the canal and allow it to control a narrow strip of land on either side. Columbia rejected the offer much to the disappointment of Panamanians who saw incredible economic benefits from the project. Panamanian officials staged a revolt in the nation leading President Roosevelt to send 10 battleships to protect Panama from Columbian interference. With the battleships anchored off-shore, the United States recognized Panama as an independent nation, and soon after signed a treaty to allow the canal to be constructed. Roosevelt justified his actions by claiming that all civilization benefitted from the new canal which shrank the distance between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans by 8,000 nautical miles.
The New American Role / International Police Power: European nations had considerable economic involvement in Latin American countries. The United States became concerned about this situation because many Latin American countries were in debt to European banks, and this debt, it was believed, might cause European governments to interfere in the affairs of this region. Because America had considerable economic investment in the region, and wished to keep it stable politically, President Roosevelt addressed Congress in a speech stating a new American policy regarding the entire Western Hemisphere. The ideas in this speech came to be known as the “Roosevelt Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine. Within this concept was a new role in which the United States would serve as an “international police power” for the Western Hemisphere.
The Roosevelt Corollary (1904): The purpose of the Roosevelt Corollary was to expand the Monroe Doctrine as America became increasingly involved in world affairs. In this speech, Roosevelt declared America’s new policy that it would intervene in Latin American affairs to ensure economic and political stability in the region, and would prevent European involvement in the region. America would assume for itself an “international police power” in the Western Hemisphere. This speech demonstrated American economic and political concern for Latin America as a means to protect its own interests. The United States soon put its new policy into action in 1905 when the U.S. Marine Corps was placed in charge of collecting tariffs in the debt-ridden Dominican Republic. This new policy became a source of resentment in Latin America for American power and influence, and shaped the relationship between the two for generations.
Dollar Diplomacy: The growing American influence in Latin America caused resentment in the region. Although the United States would continue to follow the Roosevelt Corollary, a second approach to dealing with Latin America would be developed. “Substituting dollars for bullets” was the approach to Latin America embraced by President William Howard Taft, an approach that would come to be known as “Dollar Diplomacy”. The belief of the Taft Administration was simply that American investment in Latin American countries would increase American business profits while at the same time provide Latin American nations the opportunity to rise out of poverty and political chaos. Although using investment was a preferred method of making Latin America stable politically, it was nevertheless “necessary” for the U.S. to intervene from time to time, such as was the case in Nicaragua between 1911 and 1925.
Formation of U.S.- Latin American Economic Ties: The late 1800s and early 1900s was a crucial time in United States-Latin American relations, establishing a permanent bond between the two economic regions. This political and economic bond would be formalized when both sides agreed to create the Commercial Bureau of the American Republics, an organization that worked to promote cooperation among the nations of the Western Hemisphere. Today, this organization is called the Organization of American States (OAS).
Missionary Diplomacy (Mexico): In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Mexico was becoming increasingly industrialized through foreign investment. Much of the wealth generated by Mexican factories and railroads did not end up in the hands of many Mexican natives. Resentment over this situation boiled over into a revolution. After much turmoil, Mexico came under the iron-fisted and brutal control of Victoriano Huerta. President Woodrow Wilson, disgusted by the tactics of Huerta and by the style of his government, refused to recognize the new Mexican government. President Wilson attempted to enforce a new policy for Latin America, stating that any group that overthrew a Latin American nation would have to establish a government based on law if that government was to receive formal recognition from the United States. The goal of this “missionary diplomacy” was to prevent the rise of more dictatorships in Latin America as this form of government was unstable and threatened American business interests.
The Pancho Villa Raids into the U.S.: President Wilson seized upon an opportunity to overthrow the Huerta government after the arrest of American sailors in Tampico. Wilson ordered American troops to seize the harbor city of Veracruz, expecting the Mexican people to welcome the American fighters. Instead, anti-American riots broke out. This feeling of anti-Americanism was shared by a colorful Mexican outlaw named Pancho Villa. Displeased both by Wilson’s actions and a fraudulent weapons deal with Americans, Pancho Villa led a group of guerillas into a raid of Columbus, NM, resulting in the deaths of at least 16 Americans. In response, President Wilson ordered General John J. Pershing and 6,000 troops to cross into Mexico and capture Pancho Villa. This “punitive expedition” failed, damaging America’s reputation worldwide. This episode with Mexico demonstrates that, although the U.S. may have good intentions for its foreign policy, the way others perceive our power, influence, and intentions may be quite different.
UNIT 3: JIM CROW AND PROGRESSIVISM (1890 – 1914)
HOW WERE AFRICAN-AMERICANS THREATENED POLITICALLY AND SOCIALLY?
Denying the Vote - Poll Taxes and Literacy Tests: The 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prevented any state from limiting access to the vote based on race or “previous condition of servitude”. However, it made no mention of other techniques to limit the vote. Many Southern states began to pass laws that effectively prevented Black men from exercising their right to vote. One such new law required that all people intending to register to vote must pay a $2.00 “poll tax”, a price that was out of reach for most Blacks in this time period. Another type of law required that each potential voter pass a “literacy test”, based on a person’s ability to read and understand a constitutional document. This barrier prevented most Blacks from voting simply because few former slaves learned to read, and few Blacks born after the Civil War obtained an education. Those that could read were often presented with passages to interpret that few Americans could understand.
Denying the Vote - The Grandfather Clause: While poll taxes and literacy tests limited access to the vote for most Blacks, an unintended effect was to prevent many poor Whites from voting as well. One solution to this “problem” was to apply less strict enforcement for White voters. A more effective “solution” was the creation of a new legal approach called the “Grandfather Clause”, a law that allowed any person to vote who had an ancestor who could vote prior to 1867. Since Blacks were unable to vote prior to this date, the Grandfather Clause effectively disenfranchised all Black Southerners. The intention or spirit of the 15th Amendment was to grant the franchise to Black men. The new legal tactics used to prevent Blacks from voting did not legally violate the 15th Amendment. The legislators who passed these laws would claim that no “de jure” segregation had occurred, meaning that, in a strictly legal sense, these laws did not discriminate based on race. In reality however, these laws did discriminate based on race even though race is never mentioned. These laws taken together did create conditions of “de facto” segregation, since segregation was indeed the intent of these laws even though race is not mentioned.
The Rise of Jim Crow Laws: The language of the 14th Amendment declared that “no state” could deny citizens equal protection under the laws. In 1883, the Supreme Court overturned the Civil Rights Act of 1875, a law that barred discrimination in public places, stating in its decision that the 14th Amendment did not apply to private enterprises serving the public. By the mid 1880s, Congress had lost interest in Civil Rights. These two occurrences worked together to encourage Southern States to create a series of laws that segregated White and African-American citizens in all public places. These new segregation laws came to be known as “Jim Crow Laws”, named for a popular song of the time frequently included in “minstrel shows”. [A minstrel show was a popular form of entertainment at the time in which whites performed a variety of skits, songs, and comedy routines that made fun of Blacks, and encouraged stereotypes of their behavior. White entertainers performed in “black face”, and sometimes, even Black performers did the same.] In effect, Whites and Blacks living in the same towns nevertheless could live entirely separate lives. The segregation of the races led to the creation of new informal social rules. For example, if a White man and a Black man were walking toward each other on a sidewalk, it was customary for the Black man to step off the sidewalk until the White man passed. Blacks were expected to tip hats to Whites while no such obligation applied to Whites.
Founding of the Ku Klux Klan: The Ku Klux Klan was originally founded in 1865 as a social organization made up of former Confederate soldiers. The Klan soon evolved into a terrorist organization whose main goal was to establish White Supremacy through intimidation and violence. Among its early members was Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Confederate General who eventually called for the disbanding of the Klan in 1871, finding the violent nature of the group to be morally unacceptable. Members disguised themselves in sheets and hoods, riding into Black neighborhoods, and claiming to be the ghosts of Confederate soldiers. Many forms of terror and violence would be used to discourage Blacks from any form of political participation.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896): The State of Louisiana passed legislation that required the separation of the races in rail transit. Homer Plessy (1/8 African ancestry) refused to leave a rail coach that was designated “Whites Only” and was arrested. Mr. Plessy challenged the Louisiana law, eventually ending up in the Supreme Court, posing this question: did the Louisiana law violate the 13th and 14th Amendments by requiring separate facilities in rail transit? In its decision, the Supreme Court: (1) rejected the 13th Amendment claim out of hand; (2) determined that the Louisiana law did not violate the 14th Amendment protections of political equality of all citizens; (3) the State of Louisiana had the right to create laws according to established social customs as a legitimate basis for legislating, in order to preserve peace and good order.
WHAT WERE THE REACTIONS TO THE EARLY JIM CROW ERA?
Equality through Economic Means - Booker T. Washington: As a result of the great success Tuskegee had become, Washington had risen to a prominent position as a Black leader throughout the United States. In 1895, Washington had been invited to give a speech on race relations at the Atlanta Exposition to a mostly white audience. In that speech, Washington warned that American society in general will suffer if it ignores both the abuses of Blacks and the role Blacks could play in society if treated fairly. A further point of the speech was that Blacks should concentrate of economic progress, and for a time, leave aside focusing on social and political equality through “artificial forcing” when American society was not yet willing to grant it.
Tuskegee Institute (1881): Many Blacks had few marketable skills that they could take to employers, a problem that a former slave (Lewis Adams) and a former slave-owner (George Campbell) wanted to reduce. Working together, these men created the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, and turned to a young, promising, and educated former slave named Booker T. Washington to become the school’s first President. Washington had 2 goals in mind for Tuskegee Institute’s future Black students: train teachers and teach marketable trade skills. These goals reflected Booker T. Washington’s belief that Blacks needed to be economically productive and self-reliant, a condition that he believed would lead Blacks to eventual equality with fellow White citizens. This historically Black college (HBC) exists today as Tuskegee University.
Equality Through Political Means – W.E.B. Du Bois: Washington’s economic approach to seeking equality infuriated another Black leader, W.E.B. Du Bois, leading Du Bois to nickname Washington’s speech the “Atlanta Compromise”. W.E.B. Du Bois was fully in favor of seeking social and political equality through legal and political tactics, believing that this was the best route to ultimate Black equality in America. The conflict between Washington and Du Bois reveals clearly that Black leaders, though seeking the same goals, can differ dramatically regarding the best approach to use. This early difference among Black leaders will reappear again and again as the decades pass.
W.E.B. Du Bois Rises in Prominence: Born soon after the Civil War, W.E.B. Du Bois became a highly educated man, graduating with a Ph. D. from Harvard University and becoming a Professor at Atlanta University, focusing his research on race relations in America. In 1903, Du Bois published his book “The Souls of Black Folk”, a collection of essays dealing with questions of race. He continued to criticize fellow Black leader Booker T. Washington as being far too cautious. Du Bois argued in favor of obtaining political equality through achievement of voting rights and other civil rights.
The Niagara Movement (1906): In order to make this happen, Du Bois founded the Niagara Movement, the purpose of which was to oppose the more co-operative approach and economic focus of Booker T. Washington, and to advocate a more aggressive approach to obtaining legal and political equality for Americans of African descent. Thirty men (Black and White) met in the Canadian town of Fort Erie, and issued a “manifesto” promoting 8 principles, among which were: (1) freedom of speech and criticism; (2) manhood suffrage; (3) abolition of “caste” distinctions based on race; (4) access to training and employment opportunities.
Formation of the NAACP (1909): The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was an organization that came out of the Niagara Movement, and inspired others to work for Black equality through its magazine, “The Crisis”. This organization called for an end to lynching and formal segregation, and advocated civil rights for all Americans. The NAACP would be an important factor in advancing the Civil Rights of all Americans, particularly through its use of the judicial system.
Ida B. Wells Confronts Lynching: The most violent abuse of Blacks during the Jim Crow era was “lynching”, the extra-legal hanging of a Black man by a mob of Whites. One motive behind lynching included a perceived violation of Jim Crow Laws or customs. Another motive included the lynching of a Black man who may have owned property sought by White competitors. A third and frequent motive was an accusation of rape, murder, or attempted murder. Lynchings always occurred without formal charges or legal involvement and were intended to maintain a social order of White supremacy. In order to draw attention to this growing problem, Black journalist Ida B. Wells began a crusade against lynching. An anti-segregation activist, Wells drew attention to the atrocities occurring throughout the United States, especially in the South. In 1895, Wells published “A Red Record”, a book that detailed the terrible nature and frequency of lynchings, called for an end to “mob violence”, and argued for “a fair trial for those accused of crime, and punishment by law after honest conviction”. The attention Wells drew to this issue did not bring legal changes by Congress, but it did bring down dramatically the number of lynchings that took place.
The Wilmington Race Riot (1898): In November of 1898, North Carolina elected its first Democratic Governor and Legislature in many years. Encouraged by this development, a mob of Democrats in Wilmington, led by Alfred Waddell, began an insurrection (rebellion) that left 22 Blacks and several White Republicans dead. Waddell and his mob forced the Republican Mayor and other members of the city government, both White and Black, to resign their positions. Waddell became the Mayor of Wilmington, a city with a majority Black population and also the largest city in North Carolina at the time. Democrats moved swiftly (1) to remove the many North Carolina laws that protected Black citizens from discrimination and (2) to pass the first series of Jim Crow Laws in the state.
The Great Migration – Blacks Migrate Northward: For several reasons, Blacks began to migrate to Northern cities between 1910 and 1940 in large numbers (1.6 million). The main “push” factor behind this migration clearly was the racial climate and the terrorism of the Ku Klux Klan. The “pull” factors in this migration included: (1) better racial climate; (2) prospect for jobs; (3) higher wages; (4) recruitment of Blacks by major industrial factories such as Ford Motor Company. Blacks moved from a largely rural agricultural region to an industrialized urban setting, putting them in competition for jobs with recent European immigrants and poor native-born Whites. Cities that received large numbers of new Black immigrants included Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, New York, Philadelphia, and Boston.
WHY DID PROGRESSIVISM RISE, AND WHO WERE THE MUCKRAKERS?
Progressivism – Dealing with Modern America’s Problems: The era in American history from 1890 to 1920 is known as the Progressive Era. Progressivism was a collection of different ideas and activities about how to fix the problems within American society. Progressives disagreed among themselves on the solutions, but agreed that the government should take a more active role in solving society’s problems caused by urbanization and industrialization. Progressives believed government needed to be fixed and that scientific principles could be used to fix society’s problems. The muckrakers encouraged public debate, leading many Progressives to identify several problems, including: inefficient government; not enough voice for the people in politics; child labor; poverty; dangerous and unfair working conditions; the power of big business; consumer rights to safe products; land use, and; alcohol.
The Muckrakers – Journalism with a Social Purpose: Jacob Riis became one of the first “muckrakers” during the 1890s, drawing attention to the horrible living conditions in New York City that eventually led to reforms. More journalists would follow in his footsteps, practicing a form of journalism we now call “investigative journalism”. The problems brought on by massive immigration, urbanization, and industrialization began to draw the attention of most Americans as a result of many different muckraking journalists. The reforms that muckrakers inspired led to a new movement that would be called Progressivism.
Muckraker - Ida Tarbell and Standard Oil: Working as a journalist for McClure Magazine, Ida Tarbell became interested in the business practices of John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company. Through exhaustive research, Tarbell discovered that this oil giant had used corrupt business practices to gain what would almost become an oil monopoly in America. She soon gathered her various essays into a book called “The History of Standard Oil Company”, publishing it in 1904. The reaction to her research was swift; Congress took steps that eventually broke up Standard Oil into smaller companies by 1911.
Muckraker - Lincoln Steffens and Political Corruption: Also on the staff of McClure Magazine was Lincoln Steffens, another muckraking journalist who focused on political corruption. In his two major works, “The Shame of the Cities” (1904) and “The Struggle for Self-Government”, Steffens drew attention to the political corruption that had affected many American cities. His work drew calls for reform of city government, and targeted the corrupt practices of political machines.
Muckraker - Upton Sinclair and Consumer Safety: The early 1900s saw the rise in “Patent” medicines, potions and elixirs that claimed outrageous healing capabilities. Most of these were nothing more than sugar and water laced with alcohol, caffeine, opium, cocaine, and other questionable substances. A series of articles in Collier’s Magazine drew attention to these fraudulent products. Perhaps the most famous example of consumer safety issues came with the publishing in 1906 of Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle”. In this book, Sinclair exposed to Americans the bizarre range of preservatives that could be found in processed meats. Further, he described in detail the operation of Chicago slaughterhouses and meat packing companies. Readers were treated to stories of meat lying on floors, covered with rats and other vermin, waiting to be processed and shipped across the United States. The impact of Sinclair’s book was swift; in 1906, Congress passed both the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act.
Mother Jones – Early Progressive Leader: She has been called the “grandmother of all agitators”, the “Miner’s Angel”, and the “most dangerous woman in America”. Mary Harris “Mother” Jones was a prominent leader in Progressive causes such as mine safety, labor unions, and child labor beginning in the 1870s and continuing until her death in 1930. After the death of her husband and children during the yellow fever epidemic of 1867, and the loss of her business in the great Chicago Fire of 1871, Mother Jones spent the remainder of her life drawing attention to various Progressive concerns. She courageously defied courts during strikes when she believed that the rights of miners were being violated or their safety threatened. She led a notable campaign against child labor in the early 1900s, drawing attention to an issue that had been largely ignored, and eventually leading to legislation that would end it.
Triangle Shirtwaist Company Fire Inspires Reform: Workplace safety came to national attention in 1911 when the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York went up in flames. Most of the 150 deaths that resulted from the fire could be attributed to the fact that many escape doors had been locked, and few fire-prevention measures were in place in this non-union factory. In response to this tragedy, the City of New York initiated a Factory Investigating Commission, leading to the passage of 36 state laws dealing with workplace safety and labor codes.
WHAT STATE AND LOCAL POLITICAL REFORMS APPEARED DURING THE PROGRESSIVE ERA?
Increasing the Power of the People - Governor Robert M. Lafollette: A major Progressive goal was to increase the participation of average citizens in the political process. Among the leading reformers of the time was Governor Lafollette of Wisconsin. Rather than allowing Party Bosses to select party candidates for elections, Lafollette argued in favor of the “direct primary”, a system in which all party members could vote for the party’s candidate to represent them in a general election. Other political reforms that came about as a result of Governor Lafollette’s lead include the “initiative”, a mechanism that allowed citizens to propose laws that a legislature would be forced to vote upon. Another legislative innovation was the “referendum”, a mechanism that allowed citizens to vote on laws directly, rather than leaving it to the legislature only. In order to increase the accountability of elected leaders, progressives managed to create the “recall”. This mechanism allowed voters to remove from office any official believed to have violated the public’s trust. The initiative, referendum, and recall all relied on reaching a certain threshold of citizen support before being used. As well, each allowed for greater citizen participation in government.
New Forms of Local Government: A deadly hurricane in Galveston, Texas revealed the inability of Political Machines to respond to disasters. A group of business leaders in that city successfully gained permission to run the city. Based on the success of these leaders to rapidly rebuild Galveston, reformers in many other cities demanded the reform of local government structures, based on the model used in Galveston. Eventually, reformers would create two new city government models that proved to be far more effective, spreading nationwide. The “Commission” form of government relies on the direct election of a Board of Commissioners, each Commissioner dedicated to administering a specific department of city government (ie, parks, finance, fire, police, works). Together, the Commissioners then pass ordinances (local laws) and controls funds. The “Council-Manager” form of government relies on the direct election of a City Council, which then elects a Mayor. The City Council also hires a “City Manager” who then appoints the various heads of city government departments. The heads of the departments then carry out the policies set by the Mayor and the City Council. In both the Commission model and the Council-Manager model, cities benefit from an increase in expertise that earlier city government models failed to provide.
WHAT DID THE PROGRESSIVE PRESIDENTS TRY TO ACHIEVE?
Progressive President - Theodore Roosevelt and the Square Deal: “I shall see to it that every man has a Square Deal, no less and no more”. President Roosevelt (Republican) was a Progressive who believed that in domestic affairs, the government had a significant role to play. Although not opposed to large companies, and recognizing the economic benefits they provided, Roosevelt was concerned that they would need regulation by the Federal government to keep them from harming the public should they gain a monopoly over a particular good or service.
Northern Securities v. United States (1904): The first target in his concern for the power of Trusts was J.P. Morgan’s railroad holding company “Northern Securities”, an enterprise that successfully merged the railroads in the northwest of the country. Roosevelt filed suit against Northern Securities under the terms of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act since Northern Securities had a virtual monopoly on rail traffic in the northwest. The conflict eventually ended up in the Supreme Court as “Northern Securities v. United States” (1904), with the Court finding in favor of Roosevelt’s position. The Supreme Court had established that the Federal Government, under the “interstate commerce clause” of the Constitution, had the power to regulate the ownership of companies. As a result of his success, President Roosevelt earned a reputation as a “trustbuster” and became very popular among average Americans who saw him as a fighter for their interests.
Anthracite Coal Strike – Government as Broker: Roosevelt believed that government’s role was to be a “mediator” between groups in conflict, to keep society operating efficiently. His approach was put into action in 1902 when the United Mine Workers in Pennsylvania went on strike demanding increased pay, fewer hours, and union recognition. Anthracite (hard) coal was a necessary product, and Roosevelt feared the consequences of a coal shortage. He appealed to the workers and mine owners to accept arbitration as a means to settle the conflict. Upon the mine owners’ refusal, Roosevelt threatened to send in the Army to run the mines and avoid a coal shortage. The owners finally gave in to arbitration. Roosevelt’s actions in this conflict represented a first step in establishing the Federal government as a broker (negotiator) between powerful groups in society.
The Elkins Act (1903) and the “Gentlemen’s Agreement”: As part of his “Square Deal” series of Progressive reforms, President Roosevelt encouraged the passage of the Elkins Act, a law that strengthened the Interstate Commerce Act by allowing the government to fine railroads that offered rebates to shippers that deviated from published prices. Under this law, both railroads and shippers could face punishment. Because Roosevelt believed that big business was ultimately beneficial to society, he preferred to work with companies informally through a “gentlemen’s agreement”. Although he pushed for the Hepburn Act, a law that strengthened the Interstate Commerce Commission’s ability to set rail rates, the personal relationship Roosevelt established with business leaders led to fewer legal conflicts.
Roosevelt’s Legacy – “Bully Pulpit” and Conservation: Roosevelt referred to his power in the Office of the President as his “bully pulpit” because of the extraordinary ability to get things done. As an enthusiastic outdoorsman, Roosevelt took his concern for nature and the wild and ensured that future generations would have access to America’s natural resources. The passage of the Newlands Reclamation Act funded irrigation and development throughout the West. As well, Roosevelt established the U.S. Forrest Service in 1905, placing his friend Gifford Pinchot in charge. This new agency established and protected many national forests from exploitation by lumber companies. As well, the National Parks system was established, providing access to unspoiled natural settings for millions of Americans. All of these reforms established Roosevelt as the father of “conservation” in the U.S. Upon leaving office in 1909, Roosevelt had transformed the role of the Federal government, making it far more active in the lives of Americans through the many agencies he established.
Progressive President - William Howard Taft: Although quite similar to fellow Republican Theodore Roosevelt, President Taft (1909 – 1913) believed that lowering import tariffs would increase competition and ultimately benefit consumers, a belief not shared by Roosevelt. Soon after gaining office, President Taft called a special session of Congress to lower tariffs, however this decision divided the Republican Party. Negotiations over the new tariffs went on for a long period of time, ultimately leading to the passage of the Payne-Aldrich Tariff, a law that ultimately lowered tariffs only minimally and, in some cases, actually raised them. The controversy created by Taft’s push for lowered tariffs destroyed his reputation as a Progressive reformer.
Pinchot-Ballinger Controversy: Further damaging his reputation was the situation involving his Secretary of the Interior Richard A. Ballinger. Ballinger had offered up a million acres of Federal government land for sale to private developers. Gifford Pinchot, head of the U.S. Forrest Service, accused Ballinger of arranging the sale for personal profit. When the charges were found to be false, Taft fired Pinchot for insubordination. The combination of these two events left the American public suspicious of the Taft Administration, leading to a Democratic victory in the 1910 mid-term elections.
Achievements of the Taft Administration: Though his Administration was weakened, President Taft did have some significant achievements. The Bureau of Mines was established by the Taft Administration in 1910 to monitor the activities of mine operators, particularly as they related to the environment. Also in 1910, the Taft Administration succeeded in passing the Mann-Elkins Act, a law that strengthened Federal control of railroads and established Federal control over new communications technologies. In 1911, the Taft Administration initiated a suit against the American Tobacco Company in which the Supreme Court found that American Tobacco had indeed violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act and had effectively created a monopoly. In 1912, Taft established the Children’s Bureau, an agency that investigated and publicized the problems of child labor. Taft was also responsible for a large number of “trust-busting” cases that were based upon the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
The Election of 1912: As the election of 1912 approached, Theodore Roosevelt felt the need to confront his fellow Republican, President Taft, who Roosevelt believed had betrayed the ideals of the Progressive movement. When it became clear that Taft would again win the nomination of the Republican Party, Roosevelt declared himself an independent candidate, describing himself to be “fit as a bull moose”. Roosevelt became the nominee of a new political party known as the Progressive Party, but far more well-known as the “Bull Moose Party”. The election of 1912 would become a race between two Progressive candidates, Theodore Roosevelt of the Bull Moose Party, and New Jersey Governor Woodrow Wilson for the Democratic Party. Roosevelt’s ideas were gathered into a platform called New Nationalism, a platform that favored: increased regulation of trusts; labor laws for women and children; worker’s compensation for those who were injured. True to his earlier beliefs, Roosevelt wanted to work with industry to preserve the benefits he believed it brought to American society. Wilson’s ideas were gathered into a platform called the New Freedom, a platform that favored: destruction of trusts and monopolies; less government involvement with business; increased “fair” competition in business. Because Taft and Roosevelt split the Republican vote, Woodrow Wilson won the election of 1912.
Progressive President – Woodrow Wilson: Soon after taking office, President Wilson arranged for the passage of the Underwood Tariff Act, a law that reduced import tariffs to half of the 1890s level. Wilson believed that foreign competition would force American industry to become more efficient and would increase competition, thereby reducing the power of trusts, and improving prices for consumers. An important section of the Underwood Act allowed for the direct taxation of American citizens, a provision that would need a Constitutional Amendment to enforce (16th). In order to address the weaknesses in the banking system, President Wilson established the Federal Reserve Act (1913), a law created a Board of Governors that supervised 12 regional banks. The Board would set interest rates for the nation and would also regulate the amount of money in circulation. The law forced independent banks to keep a portion of their assets in a regional Reserve Bank as a “cushion” in case of unanticipated losses. A third reform under the Wilson Administration was the creation of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), an agency that would regulate the trade practices of American business to ensure that competition was fair and that consumers would not be victims of false advertising. Wilson reluctantly came to agree with Roosevelt that big business did benefit Americans and should be regulated rather than broken up entirely.
Clayton Anti-Trust Act (1914) – Cease and Desist: Congress was not satisfied with Wilson’s more cooperative approach to business and passed the Clayton Anti-Trust Act in response. Building on the Sherman Act, the Clayton Act included provisions that: (1) prevented a person from being a director of two or more competing companies; (2) allowed retailers to sell similar products from different producers; (3) prevented companies from selling the same product to different people for different prices; (4) prevented large producers from offering discounts to some retailers who made large volume purchases; (5) allowed unions to exist legally, declaring that they were not a restriction on trade and competition. When illegal activities were proven against a specific business, the Federal Trade Commission could issue “cease and desist” orders. This powerful new tool served to protect the public from unfair business practices. Samuel Gompers of the American Federation of Labor embraced this new law as it seemed to give Unions an official right to exist in American business.
Progressive Era Constitutional Changes: Several new Amendments to the U.S. Constitution were implemented during the Progressive Era.
16th Amendment (1913): This Amendment to the U.S. Constitution gave Congress the power to tax citizens directly in the form of an income tax, to be collected yearly. This Amendment was passed in support of the Underwood Act.
17th Amendment (1913): The political reform in this Amendment finally gave citizens the power to directly elect the Senators that represented their state in Congress. Until this point, Senators were appointed by State legislatures.
18th Amendment (1919): Alcohol and its social effects had long been on the minds of reformers dating back as far as the 2nd Great Awakening. In the early 1900’s, groups such as the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) actively promoted the reduction or elimination of alcohol use as it was believed to be a source of many social and economic ills. One of the most famous anti-alcohol crusaders was Carrie A. Nation, a woman who would enter saloons and use a hatchet to smash up the bar. Her use of vandalism drew much attention to the alcohol problem, leading to the eventual passage of the 18th Amendment. The passage of this Amendment meant that the production, sale, consumption, and transportation of alcohol in the United States would all be criminal activities. The era between 1919 and 1933 would come to be known as Prohibition.
19th Amendment (1920): Although some states did permit women to vote, this was not a universal right. As a result of the work of Women’s Rights Advocates and Suffragettes, dating back as far as 1848 with the Seneca Falls Convention, women had finally succeeded in gaining the right to vote in all state and national elections.
20th Amendment (1933): Following presidential elections, new member of Congress and new Presidents might have to wait as long as until March of the following year to gain their positions officially. This Amendment to the Constitution now established January 20th as inauguration day for the President, Vice-President, and new members of Congress. The purpose of this Amendment was to prevent the “lame-duck” officials recently voted out of office from continuing in their weakened positions for too long.
The Legacy of Progressivism: The various reforms of the Progressive Period changed the nature of American political life. By the end of the Progressive era, Americans looked to the government to play an active role in regulating the economy and solving social problems.
HOW DID PROGRESIVE ERA BUSINESS CHANGE AMERICAN CULTURAL LIFE?
Mail Order Catalogs: By the early 1900s, retail stores had followed in the footsteps of other American businesses. The “chain store” was one of a series of stores owned and operated by the same company. The attraction of the chain store was the low prices it offered consumers and the familiarity of the store’s offerings and layout. The most popular example of the chain store was Woolworth’s, a retail chain that had stores throughout the United States and Canada. In order to reach rural populations, many department stores and chain stores began to publish and distribute “mail-order” catalogs of their goods. Companies such as Sears and Roebuck and Montgomery Ward used catalogs to advertise and then sell many millions of products throughout America.
Kodak Camera: One of the most popular items sold in the mail-order catalogs first appeared in 1900. The “Brownie” was the first low-cost functional camera available to average Americans. Although photography had been around since the 1840s, the cost of photographs was too high for most families to afford, let alone purchasing photographic equipment. The Brownie Kodak camera changed this dramatically and began a popular hobby still pursued by millions of Americans.
Moving Pictures: Another popular form of entertainment in the early 1900s was cinema. First developed in the mid 1890s, moving pictures began to draw large audiences as film makers began to master the possibilities of this new technology. Early films could not capture sound, so films would be sent to movie houses with sheet music that would match the mood of the pictures on the screen.
Skyscrapers: The Bessemer Process, originally used to create cheap steel for the rail industry, was an important technological ingredient in creating the skyscraper. As cities became more congested, builders sought out ways to increase the amount of usable floor space on a given plot of land. The steel produced using the Bessemer Process was strong enough to allow buildings to rise far further from the ground than once believed possible. Skyscrapers began to dominate the skylines of many American cities, thus creating far more profitable use of expensive city real estate. However, these new buildings also brought with them an increase in city congestion.
First in Flight: In 1903, two brothers from Ohio, Orville and Wilbur Wright, became the first Americans to achieve controlled and powered human flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The appearance of the airplane would have significant commercial, governmental, and military applications in the years to come.
The Ford Motor Company: Founded in 1903 by Henry Ford, the Ford Motor Company would go one to shape not only America, but the world at large. Although not the first to invent the automobile, Ford was the first American company to sell cars that consumers could afford. He managed to do this through his greatest innovation, the assembly line. Rather than having a team of workers build a car that sat stationary on a shop floor, Ford figured out that vehicles could be produced far faster and far cheaper if each car were set on a “line” and moved along to various work stations. As the car approached, a worker would perform one or two “jobs” on the car as it passed by his station.
As a result, workers did not have to be skilled, and cars could be produced at a rapid pace. The “Model T” first produced in 1908 became known as the car that “put America on wheels” because it was relatively inexpensive. In order to ensure that more of his cars would be sold, Ford promoted the $5.00 day, a wage which would allow his workers to purchase the cars they produced. Using interchangeable parts on the Model T also made the “Tin Lizzie” an inexpensive vehicle that was easy for owners to fix by themselves. Ford realized that workers were consumers as well, and so he made sure early on that his vehicles could be purchased by middle class consumers. As a result of his innovations, Ford guaranteed the success of his company for many generations.
UNIT 4: THE GREAT WAR AND ITS AFTERMATH (1914 – 1930)
WHAT CAUSED THE OUTBREAK OF WORLD WAR I IN EUROPE?
Cause - European Alliances Form: The roots of World War I can be traced back to the 1860s, when Prussia began a series of wars to unite German states. By 1871, Germany was united, thus changing European politics. In the process of unification, Germany forced France to give up some of its territory, thus making these two great nations enemies. In order to protect itself, Germany formed the Triple Alliance with the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Italy. Russia and France formed the Franco-Russian Alliance which would later be renamed the Triple Entente when neutral Great Britain joined them. The formation of these alliances created great tension in Europe that led to militarism, the rapid build-up of weapons and armies. As an island nation, Great Britain depended on its Navy not only to control its vast colonies worldwide, but also to protect itself from invasion. Since Germany, now the most powerful nation in Europe, was rapidly building a massive Navy of its own, Britain as well began to strengthen its already massive Navy. This naval build-up also increased tension in Europe.
Cause - Imperialism, Nationalism and Self-Determination: Powerful European nations were based on imperialism, the belief that a nation becomes stronger by creating an Empire made up of weaker territories that could add economic strength to the Empire. Most of the time, the weaker territories were made up of people with a different language and culture than the Empire itself. Empires competed for influence against each other and frequently attempted to expand at the expense of some other nation and Empire. This nationalism that powerful nations felt however was also a powerful force in the weaker territories they dominated. Weaker nations understood nationalism in terms of “the right to self-determination”, the idea that people who have a common language and culture should have their own country and government.
Cause - Nationalism in the Balkans: The Balkans is the historical name for the southeastern portion of Europe, taking its name from the Balkans Mountains which runs through the center. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, the different peoples of the Balkans region were controlled by the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire (Muslim). Among the Balkan territories controlled by the Empires were Bosnia, Kosovo, and Serbia. Further complicating the stability of this region was the fact that Serbia, controlled by the Austro-Hungarians, had cultural and linguistic ties to Russia. Many of the peoples in the Balkans became nationalistic, seeking to rid themselves of domination by the Empires that controlled them, and Serbia was one of them. A series of groups formed in Serbia that wanted independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and they were willing to use violence to achieve their goal.
Spark – Assasination of Archduke: In June of 1914, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, travelled to Bosnia, a Balkan land controlled by his Empire. While there, the Archduke was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist named Gavrilo Princip, who belonged to a group known as the “Black Hand”. The assassination was carried out with the knowledge of Serbian leaders who hoped that this would trigger a war with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, thus allowing Serbia to gain independence.
The Alliance System Puts the World at War: The Empire decided it was time to crush Serbia and to end Slavic nationalism in general so that it could control its Balkan territories. In preparation for war, the Empire asked for and gained the support of Kaiser Wilhelm II, leader of Germany. The Serbs however were being supported by the Russians who themselves were looking to its ally France for support. When the Austro-Hungarian Empire finally declared war on Serbia, the two competing alliances in Europe were triggered. Russia aided Serbia causing Germany to declare war on Russia. Since France was an ally of Russia, Germany then declared war on France 2 days later. Eventually, Great Britain would be forced into the conflict as it was needed to aid its allies France and Russia. World War I had begun. With the beginning of the conflict, the names of the two opposing alliances changed as well. The Allies included: France, Russia, Great Britain, and Italy. The Central Powers included: The Austro-Hungarian Empire, Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria.
WHAT EVENTS CAUSED AMERICA TO ENTER WORLD WAR I IN 1917?
America Remains Neutral: President Wilson declared the United States to be neutral, seeking to avoid American involvement in a foreign war. Americans, however, began showing support for one side or the other with many immigrants supporting their homelands. Many Americans, especially on the east coast were of German origin and so naturally sided with Germany. On the other hand, most Americans favored the Allied cause simply because of cultural and historic ties to France and Britain. As well, companies in the United States had strong ties to the Allied countries through investment and joint ventures. Many American banks gave loans to the Allies so that they could afford to arm and supply their troops in the war effort. As a result, American prosperity was increasingly tied to the outcome of the war. Loaned money would be paid back only if the Allies were victorious. Nevertheless, America remained officially neutral for the first 2 years of the war.
Introduction of Submarine Warfare: In order to limit Germany’s access to war supplies, Britain used its Navy to intercept any ship seemingly headed to German ports. These ships would be redirected to British ports where government agents would search through the shipments for contraband (prohibited items, especially war supplies). At this time, Canada and the United States were shipping huge amounts of weapons and war supplies to Britain and France, all of which were sent by ship. Knowing this, the Germans decided to limit the amount of supplies arriving on British and French shores from North America by putting into action its newest and deadliest weapon. The “unterseeboot” was a weapon first perfected by the Germans and proved to be a deadly addition to their arsenal. The submarine, called a “u-boat” at the time, could easily locate merchant ships travelling from North America to Europe and sink these ships without detection or warning, using another new weapon, the torpedo.
Germans Sink the Lusitania: Germany announced to the world that it would sink any ship it found in British waters, and in May of 1915, carried out this threat by sinking the passenger ship Lusitania, taking 128 American lives. Americans were outraged by this atrocity, and President Wilson sent furious protests to Germany, still refusing to let America get dragged into the European war. In March of 1916, Germany sank the French ship Sussex, further angering President Wilson as several Americans were injured in the attack. President Wilson informed Germany that if it continued to attack ships without warning, Germany would face war with the United States. Seeking to avoid this situation because of America’s incredible industrial strength, the Germans issued what came to be known as the Sussex Pledge.
The Sussex Pledge (1916): In order to prevent the United States from entering World War I on the side of the Allies, Germany announced what came to be known as the “Sussex Pledge”. Throughout the war, Germany’s mastery of submarine technology gave it a great advantage in attacking merchant ships supplying the Allies from Canada and America. The sinking of the Lusitania and the Sussex (passenger ships) angered President Wilson who demanded Germany cease this activity. Germany promised to give adequate warning to passing ships it intended to sink, thus allowing passengers to depart first. For a time, Germany ceased unrestricted submarine warfare. The Sussex Pledge kept America out of the war for a while longer, allowing it to remain officially neutral.
Election of 1916: Although American anger at Germany was intense, and Americans sided with the Allied cause, the nation was not yet anxious to go to war. President Wilson went into the election of 1916 on the slogan “He kept us out of the war”, running as the “peace candidate” against Republican Charles Evans Hughes. President Wilson won re-election, having read the mood of Americans accurately. However events would soon bring America into the war.
Zimmerman Telegram Enrages Americans Against Germany: The German government developed a unique plan to keep America out of the war in Europe by attempting to draw Mexico into an alliance. German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmerman instructed the German Ambassador to Mexico (through cable) to offer Mexico the territories it lost in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo if Germany won the war, hoping that Mexican forces could tie down the American military in North America, preventing America from sending troops to Europe. The Mexican Government declined the German offer. However, British intelligence intercepted the message and leaked it to American newspapers, outraging Americans who now called for war with Germany.
President Wilson’s War Message (1917): Since the British had leaked the contents of the Zimmerman Telegram to American newspapers, the outrage caused by Germany’s offer led most Americans to conclude that war with Germany was unavoidable. The final straw came on February 1, 1917 when Germany declared that it would resume unrestricted submarine warfare. Seeing no way to avoid entering the conflict, President Wilson appeared before Congress to deliver what has come to be known as “Wilson’s War Message”, a call to join the “war to end all wars”, a war that might “make the world safe for Democracy”. In his speech to Congress, Wilson explained that Germany had: (1) lifted its ban on unrestricted submarine warfare; (2) been practicing domestic sabotage on our industries; (3) been actively spying on America’s institutions. President Wilson went out of his way to state that America remained friends with the German people and with Americans of German ancestry, but that the German government had provoked the United States. Two days later, Congress declared war on Germany, bringing the United States into World War I on the side of the Allies with whom we shared more substantial cultural, political, and economic ties.
WHAT DOMESTIC CHANGES TOOK PLACE IN AMERICA DURINNG WAR I?
Opposition to the War: Some Americans remained opposed to the war effort, believing that America had no business or role in a European conflict. These “isolationists” were joined in their opposition to the war by a member of Congress. Jeanette Rankin of Montana was the first woman ever elected to Congress, having gained her seat in the election of 1916. Rankin, a suffragette, was also a pacifist (person opposed to all violence and war to solve disputes). Jeanette Rankin was among only a handful of Congressional members to vote against America’s entry into World War I. In 1941, she would be the only member to vote against America’s entry into World War II.
Wilson and the Selective Service Act (Draft): At the time, the United States military had only 110,000 soldiers. The call to war gained only 32,000 volunteers, a number far too small to fight a major war. In order to solve this problem, President Wilson gained the passage of the Selective Service Act (1917), a law that required all men aged 21 – 30 to register for military service. Critics of this law charged that Wilson was acting in an anti-democratic way by forcing men to join the military. However, with patriotic feelings taking over the country, over 2.8 million men would be drafted into military service, with less than 350,000 “dodging” the draft. This law remains in effect today as all men in the United States are still required to register with the Selective Service System upon turning 18 years old.
Propaganda - Committee on Public Information (1917): Now that America was at war, the Federal government took immediate steps to ensure the success of the Allies by creating new organizations to assist in the war effort in a variety of ways. In April 1917, President Wilson called on George Creel to organize and manage the Committee on Public Information (CPI), an agency whose main goal was to influence public opinion in favor of the war effort through the use of propaganda. Many techniques were used to sway public opinion including: (1) creation and distribution of pamphlets and posters; (2) exaggeration of enemy atrocities; (3) creation of stereotyped images of the enemy, such as “the Hun”; (4) use of Hollywood film makers to produce war-related films glorifying the war; (5) formation of patriotic groups. The enthusiasm for the war effort that this effective propaganda created had a terrible effect on Americans of German ancestry as they became frequent targets of fellow Americans.
American Food Administration (1917): Believing that “food will win the war”, President Wilson created the American Food Administration (AFA) in July of 1917, calling on future president Herbert Hoover to be its head. The purpose of this organization was ensure that as much food as possible made it to troops in Europe. In order to encourage this to happen the American Food Administration tried to reduce the consumption of needed foods at home by: (1) encouraging “meatless Mondays”; (2) encouraging “wheatless Wednesdays”; (3) popularizing the slogan “when in doubt, eat potatoes”; (4) encouraging the planting of “Victory Gardens” so that Americans could more easily feed themselves. These small measures were successful in ensuring that food made it to the soldiers in Europe.
Coordinating Production - War Industries Board (1917): Also in July of 1917, President Wilson established the War Industries Board (WIB), a new government agency whose job was to coordinate the purchase and production of war supplies. President Wilson turned to his trusted advisor Bernard Baruch to lead the Board. In order to ensure that all military needs were met, the Board encouraged manufacturers to use “mass production” techniques such as Henry Ford’s assembly line. As well, the Board increased the efficiency of manufacturers by getting them to use standardized parts. Another important role of the Board was to ensure the proper distribution of raw materials to manufacturers. Because the war effort was so important, the Board began to regulate both labor unions and the owners of factories in order to ensure that all necessary materials for the war were produced. As a result, workers made substantial gains in their wages during the course of the war. Because of the efforts of the War Industries Board, American industrial output increased by 20% by the war’s end.
Espionage Act (1917): Fearing that dissent in wartime would jeopardize an American victory, President Wilson gained the passage of the Espionage Act. This new law made it a crime to: (1) pass on misleading information that would jeopardize the efforts of the American military; (2) promote the success of American enemy nations; (3) to cause or attempt to cause men to desert the military; (4) to encourage men to resist the draft. Punishment for those convicted under the terms of the Espionage Act included extremely heavy fines, 20 – 30 years imprisonment, and death for extreme violations.
Sedition Act (1918): Originally passed as an addition to the Espionage Act, the Sedition Act was a new law that made it a crime to: (1) criticize the American government; (2) use abusive language about the U.S. Flag or American military. This law also allowed the United States Postmaster to deny the delivery of mail to any known dissenter of government policy during wartime.
IWW Opposes the War: The leaders of this radical union did not support America’s efforts in WWI and created anti-war literature which it began to distribute on American streets. Fearing that their union might become a target of government action, leaders decided to cease distributing this literature, but the damage had already been done. The Department of Justice organized raids on 48 IWW halls throughout the country which led to the trial and conviction of 101 men under the terms of the Espionage Act, claiming that the men were conspiring to hinder the Draft and encouraging desertion.
Schenck v. United States (1919): The Espionage Act clearly limited free speech during wartime, leaving many Americans to wonder if this law was constitutional. The actions of a young man named Charles Schenck would force the Supreme Court to deliver a ruling that would settle this question. Charles Schenck, a member of the Socialist Party, encouraged young men to resist the wartime draft by distributing anti-draft pamphlets. Authorities believed his activities violated the federal Espionage Act. He was charged and jailed under this Act, and he subsequently challenged his incarceration. The main question put before the Supreme Court was whether the limitations on free speech, found in the Espionage Act, violated First Amendment protection of free speech. The decision of the Court: (1) determined that the Espionage Act was constitutional; (2) stated that the circumstances in which speech is exercised are legitimate considerations in legislated limitations on speech. The court held that wartime was just such a circumstance; (3) introduced a new legal standard by which to judge the unacceptable consequences of speech: if it causes a “clear and present danger”. This decision clarified the idea that the right to free speech is not absolute, that it must be balanced against national interests that are judged to be essential. In illustrating this point, the court used the example of yelling “Fire” in a crowded movie theater, another famous legacy of this decision.
Free Speech vs. National Security – Eugene Debs: Aware of the terms of the Espionage Act, Eugene Debs, a founder of the IWW and a prominent member of the Socialist Party, crafted and delivered a speech in Canton, OH critical of the American government and criticizing the draft. Debs was charged under the Espionage Act, leading to a case that eventually ended up in the Supreme Court (Debs v. United States, 1919). Deciding that the Debs case was similar in nature to the Schenck case, Debs was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment. His sentence would later be commuted to time served in 1921. The legacy of the Espionage Act and the related Supreme Court cases is clear: individual constitutional rights may be limited by circumstances and national interest.
WHAT WERE THE IMPORTANT TURNING POINTS DURING WORLD WAR I?
World War I Prior to America’s Entry: New war technologies and new forms of warfare made their appearance in the “Great War”. Fighting between the Allies and the Central Powers occurred primarily in the Western Front (in which Germany confronted France and Britain) and in the Eastern Front (in which Germany confronted Russia).
Trench Warfare Creates a “Meat Grinder”: In order to avoid some of the devastating killing power of heavy artillery, both sides in the war started to dig deep trenches that stretched for miles, to provide cover. As a means to protect the trenches, a new weapon called the machine gun was used to mow down those attempting to attack the trenches. The space between the trenches was referred to as “No Man’s Land” which was heavily scarred by craters left by artillery shells. Barbed wire and other obstacles were introduced to prevent troops from crossing No Man’s Land. In spite of these difficulties, the goal of trench warfare was to send men “over the top” of their trenches across No Man’s Land, and attack the men in the opposing trenches. Troops fixed bayonets to the end of their rifles for use in the opposing trenches should they arrive. As well, the use of hand grenades deepened the horror of trench warfare. Both sides in the war continued to fight in this manner, leading to hundreds of thousands of deaths in major battles.
New Technologies Confront the Trenches: The Germans first introduced poison gas to trench warfare in 1915. Mustard Gas in particular would be thrown into opposing trenches which would than cause vomiting, suffocation, and blindness. As a result, troops were soon issued gas masks to lessen the effects, and both sides in the war began to use gas for the duration of the war. A second new technology was introduced by the British in late 1915 when the first tank appeared on the battlefield. The tank provided protection in No Man’s Land, could crush barbed wire, and could cross over trenches. Although unreliable in World War I, the tank would be perfected and used heavily in World War II. A third and promising new technology would also see its introduction to the battlefield during this conflict: the airplane. Planes were initially employed as effective scouting vehicles, but were soon used to drop bombs on opposing trenches. As both sides took to the air, planes were soon equipped with machine guns, leading to “dogfights” over the battlefield between opposing planes.
The Russian Revolution: During the war, Russia was led by Czar Nicholas II, a man who mismanaged its war with Germany in unimaginable ways. Many of his troops fought without proper footwear or equipment in freezing temperatures. He made poor military decisions that left Russia weakened. Further adding to his troubles was the fact that food shortages throughout the Russian Empire left many people starving. The combination of his war mismanagement and a suffering population led to the outbreak of riots in March 1917. Czar Nicholas abdicated the throne, leaving Russia in the hands of a provisional government. This new government wished to remain in the war, angering the Russian people. When it seemed unable to address food and fuel shortages, the provisional government itself was overthrown by the communist Bolshevik Party.
Russia Becomes the First Communist Nation (1917): Led by Vladimir Lenin, the Bolsheviks moved fast to take Russia out of the war, signing a treaty with Germany that gave up significant western Russian lands. This withdrawal from the war allowed Germany to concentrate on the Western front. Americans reacted to the Russian withdrawal with anger since it allowed Germany to fight harder. Since Russia became a communist nation in 1917, and because communism is somewhat similar to socialism, Americans came to distrust labor and union movements more and more as these movements frequently expressed socialist ideas. It is this event that would cause Americans to remain suspicious of unions for many more decades.
America Faces Combat: President Wilson appointed Major General John “Black Jack” Pershing to command the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in Europe. General Pershing insisted that American troops be fully trained prior to entering combat. General Pershing also insisted that the AEF operate in Europe as an army of its own rather than be used simply to support the armies of France and Britain. American infantry soldiers, nicknamed “doughboys”, brought renewed optimism to the Allies since the doughboys were fresh, eager, and anxious for action. Pershing led the AEF in its main mission to drive Germany out of France. In particular, America’s main contributions were its activities in the Aisne Offensive (repelling Germany’s advances further into France) and the Battle of the Argonne Forest (which finally pushed Germany out of France). America’s contribution of fresh forces led to Germany’s ultimate surrender and the ending of World War I. The American military came out of this war as a capable and modern Army.
American Heroes of World War I: Ironically, Alvin York initially tried to avoid fighting in World War I, believing that, as a Christian, he was forbidden to kill. Individuals who wish to avoid war because of moral beliefs are called “conscientious objectors”. However, York came to believe that the war had a just cause and came to serve in the infantry. During the battle of Argonne Forest, Sergeant York distinguished himself in the defense of his platoon by charging a German machine gun next, killing between 9 and 25 Germans, capturing their machine guns, and taking 132 German prisoners. York was awarded both the American Medal of Honor and the French Croix de Guerre. A second notable American hero made his living as a race car driver prior to the war. Eddie Rickenbacker led the first all-American plane squadron, the 94th Aero Squadron. Rickenbacker became the most successful American combat pilot of the war, having fought in 134 air battles and downing 26 enemy aircraft. Rickenbacker would be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his efforts.
HOW DID THE ALLIES ATTEMPT TO ESTABLISH PEACE?
Allied Victory over the Central Powers Changes the World: The Central Powers agreed to an armistice beginning at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month 1918, and this end to World War I brought massive changes to the world. Several empires ceased to exist (Austro-Hungarian, Russian, German, Ottoman), several new independent nations gained independence or were created (most importantly, Czechoslovakia), and Europe was in ruins.
Negotiating Peace Terms: The formal end to World War I would be negotiated over a period of 5 months and would include delegates from 27 countries. Delegates met in the French town of Versailles to establish a new peace, led by the “Big Four”: Woodrow Wilson (USA), David Lloyd George (Britain), Georges Clemenceau (France), and Vittorio Orlando (Italy). President Wilson arrived in France guided by the idea that there should be a “peace without victory”. Wilson wanted the conclusion of the war to ensure that the victorious nations treat the defeated nations as equals.
President Wilson’s Fourteen Points (1918): President Wilson brought with him to Versailles a plan for peace called the “Fourteen Points” that he hoped would guide the negotiations of the final treaty. The main goal of the Fourteen Points was to propose principles that would eliminate the general causes of war. President Wilson’s speech to Congress advocated: free trade; disarmament; freedom of the seas; impartial adjustment of colonial claims; open diplomacy rather than secret agreements; the right of national self-determination. The 14th, and most important point, called for the creation of the “League of Nations”, an international organization that would help settle disputes to preserve peace and prevent future wars.
Wilsonian Idealism: This phrase is used to refer to the President’s ideas about peace and democracy, ideas that many found to be either naïve or dangerous. Many in Europe worried that Wilson’s insistence on the idea of “national self-determination” (that nations be created based on ethnicity and national identity) might lead to political instability since many languages and ethnicities were scattered throughout Europe. Wilson’s hope for “peace without victory” was not to be. The French and the British wanted Germany to suffer for its role in the war, and both nations wanted to ensure that Germany could never again become a military threat in Europe. Germany was forced to accept the harsh conditions of the Treaty of Versailles.
The Treaty of Versailles (1919): Under the terms of the Treaty, Germany (1) was stripped of its armed forces; (2) forced to pay reparations (monetary damages for destruction); (3) was forced to accept blame and guilt for starting the war; (4) was forced to give up control of some territories. Nine new countries were created, including Poland and Czechoslovakia. The severity of the terms imposed on Germany, the humiliation of accepting blame, and worldwide depression created the conditions that lead to Hitler’s rise, sowing the seeds of World War II.
WHAT MAJOR EVENTS AFFECTED AMERICA FOLLOWING WORLD WAR I?
Irreconcilables and Reservationists – Senate Rejects Treaty Ratification: Once the terms of the Treaty of Versailles were established, President Wilson then had to get the U.S. Senate to approve the treaty. The President soon learned that there was fierce opposition to the treaty, particularly the part that called for the creation of the “League of Nations”. One group of Senators, called the “Irreconcilables”, refused to even discuss the Treaty because it believed the League of Nations would entangle America in alliances that George Washington had warned against over 100 years earlier. A second group led by Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, nicknamed the “Reservationists”, was willing to consider signing the Treaty if changes were made to the proposed League of Nations. The main concern was that the League, as described in the Treaty, could declare war and would require member nations to follow suit. This was unacceptable to the Reservationists since the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war. If Wilson could amend the treaty to allow Congress to approve any military action before troops were committed, then the Reservationists might be willing to approve. Wilson refused to arrange such changes, and as a result, the Senate refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles. America went on to make peace treaties with each of the Central Powers separately. The League of Nations did come into existence. However, without American participation, it would ultimately fail as an institution designed to keep world peace.
Aftermath of the War at Home: After World War I ended, rapid inflation resulted when government agencies removed their controls from the American economy. Inflation increased the “cost of living” (food, clothing, shelter, and other essentials people needed). The number of members in unions increased greatly during the war, and the unions themselves became better organized. Because business leaders wanted to decrease their power, a large number of strikes occurred as a result of labor-management disputes. Because Americans now distrusted unions because of their association with socialism and communism, unions came to be seen as disloyal and unpatriotic. The numerous strikes in the U.S. in 1919 made Americans fear that Communists, or “reds” might take control. This led to the panic known as the “Red Scare”.
Two Competing Visions of Society: The Bolshevik Revolution which took place in Russia put in place a new form of government: communism. Vladimir Lenin, the Bolshevik leader soon changed the name of Russia to the United Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and founded an international organization called the “Communist International” (1919). The purpose of this new organization was to coordinate the activities of other socialist and communist parties worldwide to spread this new form of government. The threat of communism coming to America frightened many because communism advocated government ownership of all property. In practice, communism never included democracy and enforced state atheism. All of these aspects of communism were opposed to the American way of life which included the “pursuit of happiness” (property), democracy, and freedom of religion.
The First Red Scare: Further worrying Americans was the fact that several letters sent to prominent Americans throughout the United States were intercepted by the Post office which discovered that they contained bombs. In May of 1919, socialists, communists, and union members staged a parade protesting the imprisonment of union leader Eugene Debs. This parade turned into a riot that left 2 dead and 40 injured. In June of 1919, eight bombs in eight cities exploded at the same time, leading many to believe that a communist conspiracy to overthrow America was underway. One of these bombs damaged the home of U.S. Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer.
The Palmer Raids: Palmer organized a new division within the Justice Department that came to be known as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), putting J. Edgar Hoover in charge. Believing that a “blaze of revolution” was “burning up the foundations of society”, Hoover organized a series of raids that came to known as the Palmer Raids. The purpose was to disrupt the activities of radical organizers who might be threatening American society. Many of the raids focused on immigrants, already suspected of importing communist ideas into America’s unions. Ignoring the civil liberties of many, the Palmer Raids resulted in the detainment of thousands of people and the deportation of hundreds. The Red Scare and Palmer Raids shaped the opinions of Americans about unions, socialism, and immigrants for decades.
American Desire for Isolationism: With the memory of World War I still fresh, many Americans simply wanted to retreat from the world stage, especially European politics. This attitude of wishing to withdraw from international concerns came to be known as “isolationism”. The realities of the post-war world made this view unrealistic however. America’s economic and industrial strength, its need for markets, and its new role as a world leader made isolationism impossible. America soon turned its attention to the world economy and arms control.
The Dawes Plan to Bring Economic Stability: Allied nations had difficulty making payments on the money they owed to American banks as a result of wartime loans. High American tariffs made it difficult for the Allies to sell goods in America, and the reparation payments they were expecting from Germany drove that nation into depression, leaving it unable to make payments in full. In order to solve these problems, American Diplomat Charles G. Dawes came to an agreement with the British, French, and German governments. American banks would make loans to Germany so that it could honor its reparations obligations of the Treaty of Versailles. In exchange, Britain and France agreed that they would accept smaller payments from Germany, thus allowing them to pay back more on their war debts in America.
The Washington Naval Conference Encourages Disarmament: Even though the world was at peace, many nations continued to build up their navies, a fact that worried the American government. In order to encourage disarmament, Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes called for a major naval conference during which he proposed a 10-year moratorium on the construction of new battleships, and the destruction of a certain number of existing ships. These proposals were formalized in the Five Power Naval Limitation Treaty (signed by the United States, Britain, France, Italy, and Japan). This attempt at preserving peace did not address any concerns about land forces or weapons. Although it signed the Treaty, Japan was angered because it limited this island nation to a navy smaller than that of the American or the British.
UNIT 5: PROSPERITY AND DEPRESSION (1919 – 1939)
HOW DID POPULAR CULTURE CHANGE IN THE 1920s?
Prohibition (1919 – 1933): The passage of the Volstead Act (18th Amendment) banning the distilling, sale, distribution, and consumption of alcohol across the United States created a dramatic shift in lifestyle. Beginning in 1920, the enforcement of Prohibition was handed over to the federal Treasury Department, thus creating a whole new force of “G Men”, agents responsible for carrying out the various parts of the 18th Amendment. This dramatic increase in federal police powers drove the production and consumption of alcohol underground. In the towns and cities, many Americans “wet their whistles” at secret bars called “speakeasies”. In the countryside, “shiners” and “bootleggers” distilled liquor and sold it through secret channels. The desire for liquor amongst Americans provided a golden opportunity for organized crime. The notorious gangster Al Capone of Chicago made millions of dollars during Prohibition by smuggling liquor into the U.S. from Canada, and then distributing it throughout the country. Liquor also came into the U.S. from the Caribbean. An unintended effect of Prohibition was to create a sophisticated organized crime network that continues to this day. Prohibition finally came to an end in 1933 with the passage of the 21st Amendment. Although designed to reduce crime and social problems, Prohibition actually increased problems and reduced Americans’ respect for law.
Automobiles: Henry Ford radically changed American life with his affordable automobiles. The isolation of rural life ended as people could now live farther away from their workplace. Living patterns changed as a result, allowing for the increased development of “suburbs” around cities to which “auto commuters” could drive after work. The automobile would also begin to affect social patterns as young couples could now drive off, away from the prying eyes of parents. The automobile has become an enduring American symbol of freedom.
The Harlem Renaissance: As African-Americans migrated to northern cities in large numbers, they brought with them a desire to take advantage of the greater freedom they experienced. The concentration of many blacks in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City led to an explosion of artistic creativity that has influenced American and world culture ever since. Black literature came to have a powerful influence in the 1920s as a result of 3 notable writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Chuck McKay’s poetry describing the Black experience of racism in such poems as “The Lynching” and “If We Must Die” gained a wide audience. Langston Hughes used his work to encourage fellow blacks to embrace their own history and achievements. Zora Neale Hurston published novels in the 1930s that featured strong Black women as central characters as she explored the rural side of Black culture.
Jazz and Blues: The first truly American music to gain worldwide popularity had its roots in “Dixieland Blues” and “ragtime”, two forms of music common in the South and familiar to southern Blacks. As part of the Great Migration, Duke Ellington had moved to New York City and began to play a new form of music that came to be called Jazz. Although influenced by the earlier forms of Dixieland and Ragtime, Jazz included an improvisational aspect that electrified music lovers. As a gifted pianist, Duke Ellington played this new form of music at the great “Cotton Club” in Harlem as well as in many speakeasies. Indeed, Jazz became the “soundtrack” of the 1920s and the illegal alcohol culture. Another pioneer of Jazz music was also a migrant from the south, Louis Armstrong. With his trumpet in hand, Armstrong migrated to Chicago from Louisiana and created another form of Jazz, taking advantage of the creative freedom in Chicago’s South Side. Another form of music, based on themes and sounds from African American spirituals, came to be known as blues. Among the earliest pioneers of the blues was Bessie Smith, a soulful vocalist who sang of unfulfilled love, poverty, and hard times. Also among the earliest blues pioneers was Robert Johnson, the great blues guitarist and singer. Johnson’s influence on blues guitar playing can still be heard echoing through such bands as the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and Lynrd Skynrd.
Popular Culture: Americans began to have an increasing number of entertainment choices during the 1920s. Movies finally developed the technology to record sound, and in 1927, “The Jazz Singer” became the first “Talkie”, leading to an explosion of movie making that became the “Golden Age of Hollywood”. New heroes appeared on the American scene as sports became professionalized. Baseball became extremely popular during the 1920s and 1930s, making such names as Babe Ruth a household name. Boxing as well became a favorite pastime as Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney drew thousands to their fights. Americans were also fascinated with flight and eagerly followed the career of Charles Lindbergh, an aviator who became the first man to cross the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Paris in 1927, and becoming a national hero.
Radio: Perhaps the most influential technological development of the Jazz Age (nickname for the 1920s) was the invention of the radio. In 1913 an American engineer named Edwin Armstrong solved the practical problem of transmitting sound through the air without using wires. His discovery led to the beginning of the radio industry in 1920 when the Westinghouse Company broadcast the news of President Harding’s election through the first public radio station, KDKA in Pittsburgh. By 1926, The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) had set up a “network” of radio stations broadcasting the same content. In 1928, the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) also established permanent networks of radio stations to distribute daily programming, becoming a rival to NBC. Soon after, most American homes had a radio in their living rooms, becoming a major form of entertainment. Americans could enjoy music, sports broadcasts, “soap operas”, comedy programs, public events, and news reports. Although radio was free to listeners, the programming they enjoyed would be interrupted by advertisements from those wishing to sell their products to consumers. It is through the sales of advertising that radio made its profits.
Marketing and Advertising: The new medium of radio boosted the growth of marketing and advertising as a means to make money. “Ad Agencies” crafted messages for clients that would help them sell their products to a wide audience. Advertising, especially on radio, was used to convince Americans that they needed new products. Ads linked products with qualities that were popular in the modern era, such as convenience, leisure, success, fashion, and style. Radio was even used to publicize a new product of the time, sliced-bread.
Birth of Mass Media: The term “mass media” refers to forms of communication that reach broad audiences, and includes such forms as movies, newspapers, magazines, and most importantly, radio. As a result of the mass media, the regional differences in culture and lifestyle throughout the United States began to disappear. From coast to coast, Americans now consumed the same forms of entertainment, received the same information, bought the same products, and were exposed to new ideas all at the same time. America was beginning to form a truly national culture as a result of the new communication technologies.
The Lost Generation and the Ashcan Realists: Not all Americans embraced the rapid pace of modern life and the increasingly commercialized culture it created. A group of writers who came to be known as the “Lost Generation” were deeply disillusioned by World War I and had come to see American life as superficial and empty. Among the most notable of this group was Ernest Hemingway, who expressed his disappointment in novels such as “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and “A Farewell to Arms”. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece “The Great Gatsby” was highly critical of the materialistic “American Dream”. Edith Wharton criticized the arrogance of the rich and the well-placed in her novel “The Age of Innocence”. Sinclair Lewis in his novels “Main Street” and “Babbitt” described the absurd nature of small town life. Painters as well expressed the emptiness they experienced as a result of modern life. Among the “Ashcan Realists” was Edward Hopper who explored the loneliness of modern life in paintings such as “The Automat”. [an automat is a place where patrons purchased food and drinks from vending machines]
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR SOCIAL CHALLENGES OF THE 1920s?
Revival of Nativism: Several forces worked together to again stir nativist feelings across the United States. The poor economic conditions immediately following World War I left many scrambling for work. Immigration from the south and east of Europe began to pick up. As well, many Americans still harbored resentment at Germans and communists that was then extended to all immigrants. Many came to believe that the returning doughboys had to compete for jobs with new immigrants. Strikes, bombings, and poor economic conditions left many Americans blaming immigrants, and they expressed their feelings in a variety of ways.
Revival of the Ku Klux Klan: Claiming to fight for “Americanism”, a newly revived Klan added Catholics, Jews, and immigrants to its list of “undesirables”, and was at the forefront of lobbying for greater immigration restrictions. William J. Simmons, leader of the Klan during the 1920s, used modern marketing techniques to increase membership to an astonishing 4 million Americans, and had spread its influence throughout the North promoting a vision of a white, Protestant America.
The Sacco and Vanzetti Trial: In early 1920, two people were murdered in Massachusetts. Living nearby were two Italian immigrants, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, both of whom were “anarchists” (people who oppose all forms of government). Sacco and Vanzetti were charged with the murders and put on trial based on questionable evidence. The nativist feelings of most Americans at the time, including the jury, combined with sensational newspaper coverage, led to their conviction and execution. Although historians continue to debate the guilt of these two men, the Sacco and Vanzetti case clearly reveals the attitude of Americans at the time toward immigrants.
Congress Restricts Immigration: The public mood of wishing to “Keep America American” finally resulted in Congressional action. In 1921, Congress passed the Emergency Quota Act, a law that restricted immigration to 3% of the total number of people in any ethnic group already living in the United States. As a result, this law attempted to restrict immigration based on ethnicity and national origin. Further immigration restrictions were imposed in 1924 with the passage of the National Origins Act. Attempting to restrict immigrants from the south and east of Europe, this law set quotas based on the ethnic balance of America from 40 years earlier, prior to the “New Immigration” that began in the late 1890s. The standards set by the National Origins Act favored immigrants from the north and west of Europe, and would remain in place for another 40 years.
Rise of Black Nationalism: Stressing racial pride, Marcus Garvey became a new and prominent voice for millions of Black Americans. Garvey preached “Negro Nationalism”, an idea that glorified Black culture and traditions. In order to spread his message, Garvey organized the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), challenging Blacks to become educated and economically self-sufficient. Going further than previous Black leaders, Garvey encouraged a “Back to Africa” movement, believing that Blacks needed to be separated from Whites because they would never find freedom in America. Middle class Blacks and artists in the Harlem Renaissance were repulsed by Garvey and UNIA. The federal government also worried that his inflammatory speech could lead to riots in cities. Although ultimately convicted of mail fraud, Garvey’s message of Black pride would later resurface in different forms during the decades to come.
1924 Native American Suffrage Act: Native Americans had a unique status in American society. Those that chose to live off of reservations were permitted to have American citizenship while those who remained in the jurisdiction of the Reservations were excluded. Congress finally granted all Native Americans full citizenship rights, including the suffrage, in 1924 with the passage of the Native American Suffrage Act, regardless of whether they lived on or off a reservation.
Changes for Women in the 1920s: The status of women began to change dramatically with the passage of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote. Women began to challenge the traditional image of womanhood presented to them in popular magazines, and began to carve out more independent identities. Contributing to this change were the ideas of Sigmund Freud, a psychoanalyst whose ideas about sexuality had become topics of public conversation. The freedom granted by the automobile left women with new opportunities to socialize with men in ways that were denied to them previously. Women began increasingly to take jobs and attend college, providing them the opportunity to live single and to avoid or delay marriage. All of these changes regarding the place and role of women in society came to be known as the “New Morality”. Fashion reflected the new independence of women, and the “Flapper” made great strides in changing the image of women. A flapper was a young woman who wore her hair short, wore short, sleeveless skirts, lived alone, held a job, drank illegal liquor, and smoked cigarettes. Adding to the challenge of the New Morality were the efforts of Margaret Sanger, a public health nurse in New York. Sanger argued that the standard of living for all people, especially for women, would rise if birth control were used. In order to educate women and encourage the use of contraceptives, Sanger founded the American Birth Control League in 1921, which later came to known as Planned Parenthood. Sanger’s work allowed women to take more control of their sexuality and popularize the use of contraceptives in the United States.
The Rise of Fundamentalism: Not all Americans embraced the New Morality and the nature of modern society. Others came to believe that America had lost its traditional values and morality and needed to get back to the “Fundamentals”, especially in religious terms. Fundamentalists are Christians who believe that the Bible is literally true, that the idea that humans “evolved” over millions of years was false, and that Creationism is accurate (the world and humans were created exactly as described in the Book of Genesis). Popularizing the fundamentalist view were two national figures, both flamboyant preachers who delivered their message in a very theatrical fashion. Aimee Semple McPherson employed tent revivals and faith healings to draw followers to hear her message while Billy Sunday riled crowds with fiery, dramatic sermons.
The Scopes Monkey Trial: Modernists and Fundamentalists would collide in one of the most famous trials in American history, and it began with the 1925 Tennessee law that banned the teaching of evolution in public schools. John Scopes, a biology teacher from Dayton, TN decided to challenge this law by teaching the ideas of Charles Darwin. Scopes was charged with violating the Tennessee law and was placed on trial in the summer of 1925. Representing the prosecution, and the “Creationist” side, was William Jennings Bryan, the 3-time presidential candidate. Representing Scopes was famed trial attorney Clarence Darrow. The 8-day trial resulted in the conviction of Scopes who then had to pay a $100 fine. The soaring arguments from Bryan and Darrow were broadcast live throughout the country and captured the attention of the entire nation. Although his conviction would later be overturned, the Scopes Monkey Trial clearly demonstrated the tension in America between traditionalists and modernists.
WHAT WERE KEY ASPECTS OF THE BOOM AND BUST CYCLE OF THE 1920s AND 1930s?
President Warren G. Harding: Following the turmoil of World War I, Americans were ready for a change. In 1920, Republican Warren G. Harding was swept into the presidency with over 60% of the popular vote, based on his promise of a “return to normalcy”. President Harding was extremely popular with Americans because of his easygoing and likable personality. As the 1920s began, Americans enjoyed a new standard of living. Wages increased and work hours decreased. At the same time, unions lost influence and membership. Employers promoted an “open shop” (workers not required to join a union). In order to discourage union membership, employers began to use “Welfare Capitalism”, an approach to employees where employees were able to purchase stock in the company, participate in profit sharing, and receive health and other benefits. Welfare capitalism made unions seem increasingly unnecessary. The “roaring 20s”, as this era came to be called, was so named because of the extended period of prosperity Americans enjoyed. That prosperity came about as a result of the economic policies of the Harding administration, particularly those encouraged by two key members: Andrew Mellon and Herbert Hoover.
Supply-Side Economics Fuels Prosperity: Through the influence of Andrew Mellon, Harding’s Secretary of the Treasury, the Harding Administration applied the idea of “supply-side economics” to reduce taxes. This idea suggested that lower taxes would allow businesses and consumers to spend and invest their extra money, resulting in economic growth. This economic growth would increase the amount of money made by Americans so that, in the end, government would collect more taxes at a lower rate. Andrew Mellon convinced Congress to reduce income tax rates dramatically, resulting in a .5% tax rate for most Americans, and a 25% tax rate for the richest Americans.
Co-Operative Individualism: Harding’s Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover used a friendlier approach to business than did the Progressive Presidents. Secretary Hoover encouraged manufacturers to form their own organizations and share information with the federal government in order to stimulate the economy. This information could then be used to identify and target new markets for products. This approach to business came to be known as “cooperative individualism”. Indeed, Hoover worked hard to assist many industries, especially aviation and radio, by founding many bureaus within the Commerce Department that worked to coordinate the development of these new industries, and to find new markets for others.
The Teapot Dome Scandal Taints the Harding Administration: When he arrived in Washington, Harding brought with him a group of friends who came to be known as the “Ohio Gang”, giving many of them powerful positions. Several of his drinking and poker buddies would take advantage of their positions for their own gain, creating several scandals. The most infamous would involve Albert Fall and bribery. The Federal government owns vast stretches of land throughout the United States. In Wyoming, one federally-owned land was also a rich source of oil. On that land sits a rock formation that looks like the dome of a teapot, thus earning that patch of land a nickname: “teapot dome”. The oil produced in this field was once controlled by the Navy, however in 1921, President Hoover shifted control to the Department of the Interior, headed by Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall. In 1922, Secretary Fall leased this rich oil land to oil operator Harry Sinclair for a cheap rate. The Senate became suspicious of this deal when it learned that Sinclair had twice “loaned” Secretary Fall $100,000. Albert Fall would be convicted of accepting bribes and sent to prison. Harding however would never know the extent of all the scandals that became attached to his name as he died of a heart attack in office during the summer of 1923.
President Calvin Coolidge: Harding’s death immediately brought his Vice-President Calvin Coolidge into the presidency. Nicknamed “Silent Cal” because of his withdrawn and quiet nature, President Coolidge was easily re-elected President in 1924 on the slogan “Keep Cool with Coolidge”. President Coolidge believed that government should interfere with business as little as possible, once stating that “the business of the American people is business”. Coolidge continued to follow the economic policies of Andrew Mellon and Herbert Hoover, thus continuing America’s economic prosperity through the 1920s.
President Herbert Hoover: Because President Coolidge decided not to run for office in 1928, the Republicans chose Herbert Hoover as their candidate. The Democrats nominated New York Governor Alfred E. Smith, the first Catholic to win a major party nomination. Many Protestants at the time believed that if Smith won the presidency, then the Catholic Church might rule the U.S. These charges, which disgusted Herbert Hoover, had an impact, leading to his election as President. In his inauguration speech, President Hoover declared “I have no fears for the future of our country…it is bright with hope”. Given the prosperity of the times, President Hoover seemed to have every reason to be optimistic, especially given the success of the Stock Market at the time of his election.
The Stock Market: The stock market was established in the late 1700s as a place for buying and selling shares of companies. The world’s most prominent stock market is the New York Stock Exchange located on Wall Street, New York City. Prosperous times during the 1920s caused many Americans to invest their money in the many companies offering “shares” or “stock” in their business. When a person buys a stock in a company, that person becomes a part owner of that company and is entitled to a share of the profits, known as dividends. Investors purchased stocks from “brokers”, agents who handle the buying and selling of stocks on behalf of companies. The more stocks a person owns, the more dividends they can earn. To purchase a stock is to “bet” that the company you invest in will continue to be profitable, and in the 1920s, it seemed that the stock market was always a “bull market” (financial climate of optimism, that the economy is growing and business profitable). Few expected a “bear market” (financial climate of pessimism, that the economy is shrinking and business unprofitable).
Purchasing Stocks on Margin: Because Americans were so optimistic that stocks would continue to rise in price and provide profits, many began to purchase their stocks on “margin”, a purchasing arrangement in which an investor pays only 10% of stock’s price, with the promise that the other 90% would be paid at a later date. If the value of a stock continued to rise, it would be very easy for the investor to make money simply by selling the stock at a new higher price, and pocketing the profit without having risked much of her own money. Purchasing stocks in this fashion, betting that the price will rise and bring a quick profit, came to be known as “speculation”. In the late 1920s, new investors bid stock prices up without looking at a company’s prospects for earning future profits.
Black Tuesday: By late 1929, a lack of new investors in the stock market caused stock prices to drop and the bull market came to an end. As the bear market took hold, stock brokers began to issue a “margin call”, a request that investors who purchased stock on margin now pay the remaining 90% of the stock purchase price owed. Investors responded by placing their stocks up for sale, causing the stock market to plummet further. Stock prices fell dramatically on October 29, 1929, Black Tuesday, resulting in a $10 to $15 billion loss in value. While this did not cause the Great Depression, it did undermine the economy’s ability to hold out against its other weaknesses. The “Stock Market Crash” of 1929 would end the incredible prosperity of the 1920s.
How Banks Make Profit: Banks are private businesses that make their profits through providing financial services. The least profitable side of banking is to offer a place for people to store their money, in savings or checking accounts. Banks will take the money deposited in these accounts and then offer it to others in search of loans for homes, businesses, or other investments. Banks will also invest this deposited money in stocks or other financial instruments. When a bank loans money, it expects that money to be paid back with interest. It is this side of banking that can be very profitable. As a result, banks never store all of the money it has on deposit; it uses it to make loans and other investments.
Banks Weakened by Crash – Bank Runs: When the stock market crashed, banks were severely weakened in two ways: (1) much of the money banks had loaned was to stock speculators who could no longer repay their loans; (2) banks had invested in the Stock Market, leaving them holding stocks that were now worth far less than the money paid for them. If a bank “collapsed”, that is, went out of business because it had lost all its money, then people who had money deposited in the collapsed bank would never get their money back. As banks began to collapse, many Americans became panicked and ran to their banks at the same time to withdraw their deposits. These “bank runs” caused even more banks to collapse. By 1932, 10% of America’s banks had closed, and those still open had cut back the amount of loans they were willing to make. Since “credit” was increasingly difficult to get because few people were able to borrow money, the economy quickly fell into recession.
Economic Factors: Efficient machinery used in “mass production” such as the assembly line led to the overproduction of goods, and Americans could not afford to buy all the goods produced. The uneven distribution of wealth added to the country’s economic problems. More than two thirds of the nation’s families earned less than $2500 a year. Workers’ wages did not increase fast enough to keep up with production of goods. The 1920s also saw the appearance of “installment purchasing” in which Americans could purchase large items, such as large appliances and cars, by making a “down payment”, and then agreeing to pay the remainder in monthly installments. Paying off installment debts left little money to purchase other goods. The decrease in sales of other goods led to workers being laid off from their jobs, resulting in a chain reaction that further hurt the economy.
The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act (1930) Deepens the Depression: Although President Hoover argued against it, Congress passed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act in 1930, believing that raising the prices of imported goods would allow American manufacturers to sell more of their goods, and would protect manufacturers from foreign competition. This new tariff, rather than improving American business, worsened what had now become a depression. Americans purchased less from abroad because of the now higher costs of imported products, the intended effect of the new tariff. The unintended effect however was that other nations now placed tariffs on American products. As a result, American manufacturers now exported 80% less than they did in 1929.
Errors of The Federal Reserve : The main function of the Federal Reserve is to regulate the amount of money in circulation in the American economy. During the booming 1920s, the Federal Reserve set low interest rates on money made available to banks. This fact had two effects in causing the Great Depression: (1) the low interest rate encouraged banks to make risky loans; (2) the low interest rate encouraged businesses to borrow money, thinking the economy was strong. The “Fed” then made a second error: it raised interest rates too high, thus reducing the amount of credit available and bringing economic activity to a standstill.
HOW DID AMERICANS REACT TO THE BEGINNING OF THE DEPRESSION?
Protesting Economic Conditions: As conditions worsened, many Americans began to protest the poor economic conditions that left many broke and hungry. Beginning in 1931, “hunger marches” began to occur throughout the nation to the slogan “feed the hungry and tax the rich”. Farmers began losing their properties to banks which had foreclosed on them for failure to make payments. Some desperate farmers began to destroy portions of their own crops in order to drive up the price of agricultural products.
The Bonus Army: Perhaps the most notorious incident in the early Great Depression was the “Bonus Army”. Following World War I, the doughboys were promised that each would receive a $1000 bonus for their service in 1945. In 1931 Congressman Wright Patman, recognizing the suffering of these veterans, introduced a bill in Congress that would authorize early payment of the bonus. In order to encourage passage of this legislation, veterans from around the country began to march to Washington, with 15,000 eventually setting up makeshift camps in various locations around the Capitol. When the bill was defeated, some veterans returned home while others remained in Washington, “squatting” in abandoned buildings. President Hoover eventually ordered the military to clear the buildings and camps. The use of teargas and violence led to press coverage that ruined President Hoover’s reputation as the election of 1932 approached.
Life During the Great Depression: As unemployment soared, Americans began to lose their homes, often being evicted by court officers known as “bailiffs”. Having nowhere to go, many of these homeless people would form communities of shacks and shanties on unused public lands. Blaming the President for their difficulties, these communities came to be known as “Hoovervilles”. Others took to roaming around the country in search of jobs by walking, hitchhiking, or “riding the rails”. These desperate wanderers came to known as “hobos”. Those who remained in their hometowns frequently joined “breadlines” and attended “soup kitchens” in order to eat. Towns, cities, and private charities such as the YMCA attempted to meet the immediate needs of the hungry.
The Dust Bowl: Farmers as well faced hard times during the Great Depression. The Wheat Belt (from the Dakotas to Texas) experienced a severe drought beginning in the late 1920s and extending until the late 1930s. The lack of moisture in the ground brought about by the drought loosened the soils, turning them to dust. Just as this happened, a long period of severe wind storms battered the Great Plains, creating clouds of dust bad enough to suffocate animals and people unfortunate enough to be caught outdoors when they hit. This “Dust Bowl” eventually caused many to migrate westward to California in search of better opportunities. Because many of these people came from Oklahoma, these farmer migrants came to be known as “Okies”.
President Hoover Reacts: Initially, President Hoover believed that “relief” (money given directly to those suffering) was a responsibility of local and state governments, along with charitable organizations. However, when these failed to address people’s immediate concerns, Congress passed the Emergency Relief and Construction Act, a law that provided 1.5 billion dollars for public works projects and made 300 million dollars available to states to deliver relief. President Hoover eventually signed this bill, and then he created the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, a federal agency designed to stimulate the economy. With these two steps, President Hoover had created a new federal role in the lives of Americans during peacetime.
HOW DID THE NEW DEAL ENLARGE THE ROLE OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT?
The Election of 1932 – The New Deal: Referring to the Great Depression and President Hoover’s response to it, the Democratic nominee, in his acceptance speech stated: “Republican leaders not only have failed in material things, they have failed in national vision…I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a ‘new deal’ for the American people”. With these words, the expression “New Deal” has become forever associated with Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), the winner of the 1932 presidential election. Upon taking office, FDR moved at a frantic pace to pass 15 major pieces of legislation to address the problems of the Great Depression that came to be known as the “First New Deal”.
The First Hundred Days: Between March 9, 1933 and June 16, 1933, a period that has come to be known as the “Hundred Days”, FDR led the most productive session of law-making in American history. Along with his advisers, a group of talented men who came to be known as the “Brain Trust”, FDR’s first act in office was to settle the banking crisis by gaining the passage of the Emergency Banking Relief Act. This new law required that all banks be licensed by the Treasury Department and that they “open their books” for inspection by federal officials.
Fireside Chats Hearten the Public: Taking advantage of the power of radio, FDR immediately shared the contents of the Emergency Banking Act through a national radio address, stating that “it is safer to keep your money in a reopened bank than under the mattress”. With 60 million Americans listening that night, FDR had single-handedly ended the banking crisis as the next day, deposits outnumbered withdrawals. FDR would play a crucial role during the Great Depression by communicating with Americans via radio in what came to be called “Fireside Chats”. His frequent radio broadcasts lifted the mood of the nation in a time of suffering. Also lifting national spirits in 1933 was the fact that Prohibition was coming to an end with the passage of the 21st Amendment. One of the most popular songs of the time, “Happy Days are Here Again”, reflected the relief of Americans that alcohol consumption was again legal. FDR would use radio to communicate to the American people the goals of the many new agencies his Administration had created in the first Hundred Days.
Securities Exchange Commission (SEC): In order to protect future investors, Congress passed the Securities Act, a law that required all companies that sold stocks and bonds to provide truthful information to investors about the state of their companies and their financial products. In order to oversee the demands of this new law, Congress created a new government agency to be known as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It main goals, then and now, are to prevent fraud and to regulate the stock market.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): Congress passed the Glass-Steagall Act which separated banks into Investment Banks (dealing with corporations) and Commercial Banks. This new law prevented commercial banks from investing depositors’ money in the stock market, a major problem that led to the Great Depression. A second major part of this law was the formation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). This agency provides government insurance for depositors’ funds up to $100,000. As a result, if a bank failed, deposits of up to $100,000 would be protected by the federal government. This new agency restored confidence in the banking system.
Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA): Attempting to deal with the problems of farmers, Congress created the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, based on the idea that farmers grew too much food, thus lowering the price of agricultural products. Under this new law, farmers would be paid not to grow certain crops or raise certain animals. Many across the country began to plow fields under, slaughter millions of animals, and dump dairy products. As time passed, the prices for agricultural products rose. Although this move helped large commercial farms which focused on one crop, owners of smaller farms with diverse crops did not benefit as much. Furthermore, sharecroppers were hurt by this legislation as the land they worked was taken out of production, leaving many, especially African Americans, homeless.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA): In order to assist the particularly hard hit Tennessee Valley, the TVA was created in order to achieve several goals: (1) control flooding by building dams; (2) generate electricity using the flood-control dams; (3) bring electricity to rural part of the South; (4) stimulate economic activity in the South using newly available electricity. The TVA’s ultimate goal was to rapidly modernize portions of the South and stimulate economic growth in the region.
National Recovery Administration (NRA): Congress passed the National Industrial Recovery Act with the intention of stimulating manufacturing in a variety of industries. Congress encouraged industries to develop voluntary rules that would govern fair competition and fair wages. In order to encourage this to happen, Congress created a new agency, the National Recovery Administration (NRA), and created a blue eagle logo that businesses could display if they chose to follow the rules created for its industry. It was hoped that NRA businesses would gain more customers by volunteering to honor rules and codes for its industries. Because large companies made the industry rules, and because they could afford to pay the wages they set, smaller companies were left out of this program. Further, since membership as an NRA business was voluntary, many simply chose not to join. The Supreme Court ultimately found that this agency was unconstitutional, but by this time, the goals of the NRA had failed miserably.
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC): This work relief program was open to men aged 18 – 25, and was administered by the Forestry Service. Men would work on a variety of works projects including tree-planting, fire fighting, and park construction. Hanging Rock Park, located in Stokes County, NC was constructed through the CCC. Men would camp near their work projects, live in camps, and be paid $30 each month, $25 of which had to be sent back to family. The CCC also taught many thousands to read while working in the camps.
Federal Emergency Relief Agency (FERA): The purpose of this agency was to make money available to state and local governments which would create relief projects for their people. Many of the projects that were started by using FERA money were criticized as not being sensible in the long run. To this criticism, Henry Hopkins, FERA’s head, famously responded: “people don’t eat in the long run – they eat every day”.
Public Works Administration (PWA): Because 1/3 of the men unemployed during the Great Depression were in the construction industry, Congress created the PWA, a work relief program that led to the employment of men to build highways, dams, sewer systems, schools, and other government facilities. PWA would hire construction companies to complete the projects which would then hire men. Because these companies worked on federal contracts, they were required not to discriminate in the hiring process. As a result, many of the racial barriers in the construction industry were broken down.
Works Progress Administration (WPA): The actions of the federal government in the New Deal succeeded in boosting the morale of Americans, but it was unable to end the Great Depression. Always willing to experiment with new ideas to address the economic difficulties of the time, FDR launched the “Second New Deal” in 1935. Among this new series of programs was the Works Progress Administration (WPA). This largest of the work relief programs was dedicated to the construction of roads (650,000 miles), bridges (124,000), public buildings (125,000), parks (8,000), and airports (853). Over 8.5 million men would work on WPA projects by the time it ended. Even artists, musicians, actors, and writers would gain employment in their fields under the WPA.
Wagner Act (1935) and Changes in Labor: Written by Senator Robert Wagner (D), the purposes of the Wagner Act were to (1) guarantee the rights of workers to organize trade unions; (2) require secret balloting when workers voted on whether or not to have a union; (3) allow workers to bargain collectively with employers. Formally called the National Labor Relations Act, this law created the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and established the dispute mechanism known as “binding arbitration” for difficult disputes between employers and individual workers. A worker could take a complaint to the NLRB which would then listen to both sides and then make a binding decision which the employer had to respect. Further, the NLRB could investigate employers who were suspected of engaging in unfair employment practices.
Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO): The Wagner Act led to increased union activities and the creation of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). This new organization led by union organizers had as its goal the unionization of many of America’s industries, especially automobile and steel. It soon branched out to organize workers in a variety of fields, skilled and unskilled. In order to encourage further unionization, the CIO developed a new strategy called the “sit-down strike” in which workers would simply stop working and sit down at their workplace. By doing this, employers could not send in replacement workers, forcing them to negotiate. It was this technique that eventually led to the formation of America’s largest union in 1937, the United Auto Workers (UAW). Watching over much of this change in labor relations was Frances Perkins, FDR’s Secretary of Labor, who served from 1933 to 1945 and was America’s first female Cabinet member. Secretary Perkins played a role in the administration of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), passed in 1938. This law established for the first time a national “minimum wage” and guaranteed “time and a half” for hours worked over the national standard of 40 hours per week.
Social Security Administration: Perhaps the most important program established by the FDR and the Brain Trust was the Social Security Administration. This far reaching program had several goals: (1) provide a retirement benefit to workers at age 65; (2) provide temporary unemployment benefits to workers who lose their jobs; (3) provide welfare payments to needy people; (4) provide income to the disabled who are unable to work; (5) provide assistance to poor mothers with dependent children. In order to fund this program, employees and employers would contribute a portion of wages earned to the federal government in the form of a tax on paychecks. In its original form, farmers and domestic workers were left out of the Social Security system.
WHO CRITICIZED THE NEW DEAL AND WHY?
Right Wing Criticism of the New Deal: Until the FDR Administration, the federal government generally created balanced budgets: the amount of money spent by the government equaled the amount of money collected in taxes. FDR’s massive programs cost far more than the government took in through taxation. In order to pay for his programs, FDR borrowed money that the federal government would eventually have to pay back, with interest. This situation, called “deficit spending” (spending more money than taxes coming in) created a great deal of anger among business leaders, causing many of them to form the “American Liberty League”. The purpose of this organization was to oppose the New Deal and “teach the necessity of respect for the rights of person and property”. Many Americans believed that FDR had gone too far in his use of the federal government and tax dollars to solve the problems of the Great Depression.
Left Wing Criticism of the New Deal: Other Americans believed that FDR had not gone far enough in his use of the federal government and tax dollars. These Americans wanted the federal government to actively shift wealth from the rich and distribute it to middle-income and poor citizens. These folks would find their concerns expressed by 3 key figures of the Great Depression. Huey Long was a popular though corrupt Senator from Louisiana who founded an organization called the “Share Our Wealth Society”. Senator Long planned on running for president in 1936 but was assassinated before the election. A second critic who argued for greater redistribution was Father Charles Coughlin, a Catholic Priest from Detroit who broadcast his views weekly in a popular radio program. Fr. Coughlin organized the “National Union for Social Justice” which many Democrats feared would become a political party. A third threat from the left came from a California doctor named Francis Townshend. The “Townshend Plan” would have all Americans retire at age 60, giving them a pension of $200 each month which would have to be spent. Townshend believed that this would open up employment for younger workers and stimulate the economy.
FDR’s Second Term: In spite of his critics on the right and the left, FDR won re-election in 1936. Earlier in 1936, the Agricultural Adjustment Act, one of the New Deal reforms, was found by the Supreme Court to be unconstitutional. FDR became worried about the future of his New Deal programs, especially since the Supreme Court was about to hear cases regarding the Wagner Act and the Social Security Administration.
The Court Packing Plan: In order to prevent the Court from striking down more of his programs, FDR launched what came to be known as the “Court Packing Plan”. He sent a bill to Congress that would allow FDR to appoint an additional Justice to the Supreme Court for every Supreme Court Justice who had reached the age of 70 but did not retire within 6 months. If this law had passed, it would have allowed FDR to increase the number of Justices on the Court. And since the President appoints Justices, he could ensure the appointment of judges who supported his New Deal programs. The “court packing plan” angered many Americans as it seemed FDR was jeopardizing the independence of the Judiciary, and upsetting the “separation of powers” of constitutional government. However, the bill was never passed, and the Supreme Court went on to approve both the Wagner Act and Social Security. FDRs plan hurt his reputation and prevented the passage of any more New Deal reforms.
WHAT WAS THE LEGACY OF THE NEW DEAL?
Legacy of the New Deal: The New Deal had limited success in easing the Great Depression, but it did give Americans a stronger sense of security and stability. One significant legacy of the New Deal was that it created a new role for the federal government as a “broker” between different parties in conflict, such as workers and employers. A second important legacy of the New Deal was that it created a new public attitude regarding government. Americans expected the federal government to play an active role in their lives. Americans now demanded that the federal government provide a “safety net” and “safeguards” that would protect them from economic disaster.
UNIT 6: WORLD WAR II AND THE COLD WAR (1930 – 1963)
HOW DID AMERICA TRY TO AVOID WAR IN EUROPE?
Seeking to Avoid World War – The Kellogg-Briand Pact: In 1928, with the memory of World War I still fresh, the United States, France, and 62 other nations joined together in an agreement to try and outlaw war and to emphasize negotiation as a means to resolving conflicts between nations. This pact called for: (a) the reduction in the number of warships; (b) reduction in warship manufacture; (c) the reduction in the number of available armaments; (c) land forces to remain as they were; (d) the creation of a way to prevent war from breaking out. Although the intent of this pact is understandable, its utter failure, as would eventually be the case, reveals the difficulty of maintaining peace between nations in conflict.
The U.S. Passes The Neutrality Acts: Many Americans came to believe that the sale of weapons to other nations encouraged aggression between countries. In the mid and late 1930s, tension between European nations began to increase as a result of the aggression shown by Germany and Italy. Adding to this tension was the fact that Spain had fallen into a Civil War. Beginning in 1935, Congress passed a series of laws that came to be known as the “Neutrality Acts which (1) banned the sale of weapons to warring nations; (2) banned loans to warring nations; (3) required warring nations purchasing non-war related materials to pay cash up front; (4) required nations to send their own ships to make these purchases. Congress passed these laws believing that one factor dragging America into World War I was attack on its shipping to Europe. The isolationist mood in America was heightened when the Nye Commission, a congressional investigation, reported that America had been influenced to enter World War I by arms and weapons manufacturers in order to make profits.
Quarantine Speech: Recognizing that violence between nations was increasing, President Roosevelt delivered a speech in October 1937 in which he called for a “quarantine of the aggressor nations”. FDR hoped that international refusal to trade with such nations might discourage them from resorting to warfare as a means to settling conflicts. FDRs idealism would not be realized as the nature of governments around the world increasingly turned to non-democratic systems.
WHAT WERE THE EVENTS THAT LED TO THE OUTBREAK OF WORLD WAR II IN EUROPE?
Japan Falls to Military Control: Although Japan had developed an industrialized economy, this island nation lacked the natural resources to supply its industries. As the world’s trading nations turned to protective tariffs during the Depression, Japan had difficulty obtaining what it needed to sustain its economy. In order to solve this problem, the Japanese military invaded the resource-rich Chinese territory of Manchuria. When the Japanese Prime Minister objected to this military action, he was assassinated, leaving control of Japan in the hands of military leaders who believed democracy to be “un-Japanese”. The Japanese would go on to invade the rest of China in 1937, beginning the 2nd Sino-Japanese war, and with the seeming approval of Emperor Hirohito, the traditional leader of Japan.
Benito Mussolini and Fascism: Italy abandoned democracy as early as 1922 when a charismatic leader rose to power. Benito Mussolini and his followers took power when he threatened to march on Rome, claiming to do so to protect Italy from communism. Mussolini brought with him a new form of government now known as “Fascism”, a form which: (1) embraces a form of nationalism that rejects individual rights; (2) uses centralized planning of economic activity, but allows private property; (3) features rule by dictatorship, and indoctrinates citizens through heavy propaganda; (4) emphasizes military conquest and the building of an empire. Nicknamed “Il Duce”, Mussolini worked quickly to settle the chaos of the Depression and bring order back to Italy.
Joseph Stalin and the USSR: Following the death of Vladimir Lenin in 1924, the new leader of the USSR and the Soviet Party would become Joseph Stalin. The influence of communism would expand under Stalin’s rule as he spread the communist form of government to smaller nations on the edges of the USSR. Dramatic changes would occur under Stalin as he enforced what came to be called the “5-Year Plan”, a strategy to rapidly industrialize the Soviet Union. In addition to this action, Stalin “collectivized” agriculture by taking property away from its original owners and combining all farmlands into giant agricultural enterprises. Opponents to his restructuring of the Soviet economy would soon find themselves imprisoned and performing slave-labor in concentration camps located in the north of Soviet territory. The Soviet Union became officially atheist, eliminated all individual rights, eliminated private property, eliminated democracy, and intended to spread its way of life worldwide.
The Rise of Adolf Hitler: The dark-haired and blue-eyed Adolf Hitler, an Austrian, fought in the trenches of World War I with the Germans and won two Iron Cross decorations for bravery. Like many Germans, Hitler was appalled by the Treaty of Versailles and soon joined a new political party called the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party). Hitler soon rose to the senior leadership of the Nazi Party, leading a failed attempt to seize power in 1923. During his resulting jail term, Hitler composed a book entitled “Mein Kampf” (My Struggle) in which Hitler explained his political beliefs and vision for the Nazi Party and Germany.
Goals of the Nazi Party: An admirer of Benito Mussolini, Hitler came to form a brand of fascism for Germany, creating a Nazi Party that: (1) embraced fascism as Mussolini crafted it; (2) was violently anti-Communist; (3) called for the unification of all German-speaking peoples; (4) declared Germans to be a “master-race” called Aryans, especially the blond-haired and blue-eyed; (5) believed Germans needed more space, advocating a policy of creating “Lebensraum” (living-space) for Germans; (6) wanted to enslave the Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe; (7) advocated the extermination of the Jews, a people Hitler blamed for Germany’s loss in World War I. Hitler and the Nazis used the democratic process to gain election to the Reichstag (legislature) in 1932. Democracy came to an end in Germany in 1934 when the Nazi-dominated Reichstag declared Hitler dictator. Once in power, Hitler immediately began to rebuild the German military, effectively ending the Depression in his nation. He soon took on a new title, “Der Fuhrer”, and his Nazi rule of Germany would come to be known as the “Third Reich”.
Nazi Aggression Rises: Hitler openly began violating the terms of the Treaty of Versailles in 1935 as he commenced his rebuilding of the German military. Rather than enforce the Treaty by going to war against Germany, European leaders tried to negotiate with Hitler. With his military rebuilt, and following his policy of Lebensraum, Hitler sent troops into Austria in 1938, successfully uniting the two nations under Nazi rule. The “Austrian Anschluss”, as this event came to be called, was the first step in Hitler’s plan to unify all German-speaking peoples.
The Munich Pact Seeks to Avoid European War: Having successfully taken Austria with no reaction from the rest of Europe, Hitler turned his attention to the Sudetenland, a portion of Czechoslovakia that had a majority of German-speaking citizens. Hitler demanded that the Sudetenland be turned over to German control. France, Britain, and the USSR threatened Germany if it attempted to take the Sudetenland by force. In order to avoid war, representatives from Great Britain, France, and Italy met with Hitler in the German city of Munich, September 29, 1938. In what came to be known as the “Munich Pact”, all agreed that Hitler could have the Sudetenland if he promised that Germany would make no further attempts to take more territory elsewhere. Neville Chamberlain, Prime Minister of Great Britain, arrived home famously declaring that Europe had “a peace with honor…peace in our time”. The deal reached at Munich has since been described as an act of “appeasement”: giving in to the demands of an aggressor. Hitler interpreted this act of appeasement on the part of European nations as a sign of weakness and lack of willingness to confront him.
Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact: In March of 1939, Hitler demanded the return of the Polish city of Danzig, another territory that had a majority German-speaking population. Britain and France declared that if Germany used force against Poland to capture Danzig, they would support Poland. Since Poland lies between Germany and the USSR, and since Hitler did not wish to fight the Soviets, he proposed an agreement with the Soviets that they would not fight each other militarily. The “Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact” meant that Hitler had only to worry about war on one front. Also in the Nazi-Soviet Pact was a secret agreement that Germany and the USSR would eventually divide Poland in half, each taking the portion closest to its border. The world was shocked that Hitler would make a deal with a communist nation, since fascism claims to be opposed to communism. The USSR however liked the idea of free capitalist nations tearing each other apart while the USSR sat alone at peace.
September 1st, 1939: It is on this date the Nazi Germany invaded Poland, and two days later, France and Britain declared war on Germany: World War II had begun. The Polish Army was quickly defeated as a result of a new style of warfare introduced by the Germans. “Blitzkrieg” (lightning war) is a military style in which a large wave of tanks moves swiftly towards a target, supported by airplanes delivering bombs, and with landed paratroopers cutting supply lines of opposing forces. Germany then moved eastward through the Netherlands and Belgium, taking France by late June 1940. The French had foolishly relied on a series of forts built along its border with Germany, known as the “Maginot Line”, as its primary defense. The Maginot Line was built following World War I to defend France against future German aggression, however the French left their border with Belgium undefended, an opening exploited by Hitler.
The Allies: Great Britain, Russia, the United States (France and Poland)
The Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan
WHAT WERE THE FACTORS THAT LED TO AMERICA’S ENTRY INTO WWII?
The Four Freedoms: The United States remained officially neutral as World War II began. In his “State of the Union” address in January 1941, President Roosevelt expressed a set of ideals that have since come to be known as the “Four Freedoms”. In the back of his mind was the vision of the world that dictators such as Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin were attempting to create. In opposition to this vision, FDR suggested that nations should create a world based upon four essential human freedoms: (1) freedom of speech; (2) freedom of religion; (3) freedom from want; (4) freedom from fear (violence and aggression), especially at the hands of other nations.
The Lend-Lease Act (1941): With the Germans occupying Europe, and Britain having defended itself in the Battle of Britain, FDR came to believe that the Neutrality Acts may be jeopardizing American security. The European democracies, if they all fell to the dictatorships, would leave America alone to defend itself. In order to assist the British and the French, FDR devised the Lend-Lease Act, a law that allowed the United States to loan or lease any weapons or materials needed by any nation that was “vital to the defense of the United States”. FDR also argued that the Lend-Lease Act would prevent American soldiers from having to join the war. Soon the U.S. was shipping war materials to be used by France and Britain. In June of 1941, Germany broke its non-aggression pact with the Soviets when it invaded that country. As a result, FDR authorized the USSR as a recipient of American aid since it was now at war with the greater enemy, Germany. As American aid began flowing to Europe, the German navy, especially its submarines, began sinking tons of goods headed to Europe. Since America was not at war, FDR was not able to dispatch the U.S. Navy to sink German ships. Instead, FDR declared that the entire western portion of the Atlantic Ocean was part of the western hemisphere, creating a “hemispheric defense zone”, a move that allowed him to send the U.S. Navy out on patrols to identify the location of German subs, information that would then be shared with the British.
The Atlantic Charter: In August of 1941, FDR met with his friend, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, Winston Churchill, who was the son of a prominent British father and American mother. Winston Churchill would become one of the great men of Western history as a result of his role in World War II. The purpose of their meeting in Newfoundland, Canada, was to form an agreement for the post-war world (assuming the free nations won!) that would become known as the Atlantic Charter, a document that encouraged a world committed to: (1) non-aggression; (2) free trade; (3) freedom of the seas; (4) economic advancement; (5) national self-determination. Soon after 15 other nations would sign the Atlantic Charter.
Pearl Harbor: By 1940, the United States and Japan had been economic rivals in the Pacific for many decades. Japan however relied on the United States as a trading partner, obtaining many of its raw materials from America, including 80% of its oil supply and much needed scrap iron and steel. Great Britain had many territories in Asia that it could no longer defend as it had to send most of its warships to the Atlantic to fight the Germans. In order to discourage Japan from becoming aggressive toward British targets in Asia, FDR restricted the sale of “strategic materials” to Japan, especially iron and airplane fuel. Furious with FDR’s decision, the Japanese immediately joined an alliance with Germany and Italy. Further angering Japan was the fact that the United States was now sending Lend-Lease aid to China, with whom Japan was at war. FDR informed Japan that the United States would continue its oil embargo if it did not withdraw from China and Southeast Asia. On December 7th, 1941, the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, killing over 2000 men, and destroying several battleships, destroyers, boats, and planes.
FDR’s War Message: On December 8th, 1941, FDR addressed Congress, seeking a declaration of war: “Yesterday, December 7th, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan…No matter how long it will take us…the American people in their righteous anger will win through to absolute victory”. Congress immediately passed a declaration of war; the United States had formally joined World War II.
WHAT DOMESTIC CHANGES TOOK PLACE DURING WORLD WAR II?
Selective Services Act: Even though America was not at war in June of 1940, the fall of France convinced Congress to pass the Selective Services and Training Act, a law that established America’s first peacetime draft. Soon after Pear Harbor, over 60,000 immediately enlisted in the Army. New recruits received 8 weeks of Basic Training, and received their military clothing stamped “Government Issue”, thus leading to the nickname “GI” for American soldiers.
African Americans Join the Military: At the outbreak of World War II, the U.S. military was a segregated institution, with Blacks being trained separately and organized into their own units, usually headed by white officers. The segregated nature of the military left many Blacks reluctant to support a country that denied them basic rights. In order to encourage Black citizens to enlist in the military, many Black newspapers across the country launched the “Double V” campaign, a publicity effort that encouraged Blacks to enlist to achieve a double victory – victory over Hitler’s racism abroad and the racism at home. Initially, the military would not send Black units into combat, but pressure from Black leaders forced Roosevelt to send them into action. Once in combat, African American troops performed well in a variety of ways. Perhaps the most famous example was the 99th Pursuit Squadron, better known as the “Tuskegee Airmen”, helping to win the Battle of Anzio in Italy. Also serving with distinction was the 761st Tank Battalion which played a key role in the “Battle of the Bulge”. The success of Black units in World War II led to full integration of the military by President Truman in 1948.
Women’s Army Corp (WAC): Women for the first time were enlisted in the U.S. military with the formation of the Women’s Army Corp (WAC), headed by Colonel Oveta Culp Hobby. Women were assigned to take over clerical and administrative jobs in order to free men for combat. Women were also used to deliver planes when the military created the “Women’s Airforce Service Pilots” (WASP). Soon after, the Coast Guard, Navy, and Marines established their own women’s units to assist in the war effort. Eventually, over 68,000 other women would serve as military nurses.
War Production Board: As in World War I, the federal government created the War Production Board (WPB) to co-ordinate the production of materials and weapons, and to allocate raw materials efficiently. In order to encourage rapid production, the government used the “cost-plus” system in which the government agreed to pay the full cost of production plus a guaranteed percentage as profit. This move encouraged production since the more a manufacturer produced, the more money that could be made. The auto industry was immediately converted to produce military vehicles, planes, ammunition, and weapons. Shipbuilding as well went into overdrive with the production innovations of Henry Kaiser, a man who applied Henry Ford’s assembly line techniques, adding his own innovation of “pre-fabricating” parts to be brought to assembly. The most famous vessel Kaiser produced was the “Liberty Ship”, a basic cargo ship that played an essential role in the war. In order to prevent conflicts between the military and the WPB, Roosevelt established the “Office of War Mobilization”.
Rosie the Riveter: As men left factories to fight in Europe, Africa, and the Pacific, the federal government launched a publicity campaign to attract women to industrial jobs supporting the war. “Rosie the Riveter” was the main personality used in advertising to attract women, and eventually, over 2.5 million women would serve in shipyards, aircraft factories, and other industrial enterprises. The experience of women in factories eventually changed America’s view of what work women were capable of performing, leading to greater employment opportunities following the war.
Blacks and Hispanics Contribute: Under the pressure of A. Phillip Randolph, a Black union leader, President Roosevelt issued an executive over in June 1941, declaring that “there shall be no discrimination in the employment of workers in defense industries or government”. In order to enforce this order, Roosevelt established the “Fair Employment Practices Commission”, the first federal government civil rights agency. As well, the federal government created the “Bracero Program”, a plan to allow over 200,000 Mexican citizens legally to enter the United States to assist in the harvest of crops and maintenance of roads, primarily in the Southwest United States. The Bracero Program continued until 1964.
Life During the War: In order to ensure that materials made it to the front lines, the American domestic economy went through several changes, guided by the “Office of Price Administration” (OPA), a federal agency Roosevelt used to stabilize wages and prices, and control inflation. As well, Roosevelt used the “War Labor Board” to prevent strikes over wage conflicts. “Rationing” (limiting amounts) of food went into effect, with each household given coupon books to obtain processed foods (using “Blue Points”) and staple foods such as meats, fats, and oils (using “Red Points”). Coupons were issued for a large variety of items. Americans were also encouraged to plant “Victory Gardens” and gather scrap materials that could be used in production.
The Zoot Suit Riots: Los Angeles is home to a significant population of Mexican Americans. During the early war years, many Mexican teenagers took to wearing “Zoot Suits”, a suit that featured knee length jackets with wide lapels, along with baggy pleated pants. This fashion statement angered many Americans as it seemed that much needed fabric was being wasted. Most men wore a “Victory Suit”, a garment that used very little fabric. The tension between the Zoot Suiters and others in Los Angeles broke out into full scale riots when a rumor circulated that Zoot Suiters had attacked several sailors. More than 2500 soldiers and sailors entered Mexican neighborhoods attacking Mexican tennagers for several days. Los Angeles eventually banned the Zoot Suit. This experience however did not prevent over 465,000 Mexicans and Puerto Ricans from joining the U.S. military, 17 eventually winning the Medal of Honor.
Paying for the War: In order to obtain the needed money to pay for the war, the federal government raised taxes. Since taxes alone could not raise enough money, the government began to issue war bonds, known as “Series E Bonds”. Citizens would “loan” the government money buy purchasing bonds which the government would then pay back with interest 10 years later. Through taxation and war bonds, the government was able to pay the $300 billion dollar cost of the war, a cost that equaled all the money spent by the federal government from the time of Washington to the Roosevelt Administration.
Internment of Japanese Americans: Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, many Americans became suspicious of the large Japanese-American population living on the West Coast, believing that they could be spies supporting the Japanese war effort. Based on these fears, President Roosevelt issued an executive order declaring the West Coast a military zone, thus giving him the power to remove from daily life any citizen of Japanese ancestry. For the duration of the war, Japanese citizens were forced to live in “internment camps” located further inland. Not all Japanese citizens followed the government order willingly.
Korematsu v. United States (1944): Fred Korematsu, an American of Japanese ancestry, refused to leave his home for a Japanese relocation camp. He was in direct violation of President Roosevelt’s executive order and of Congress’ law ordering the relocation of all Japanese on the west coast. Korematsu challenged the executive order and Congress, posing these two questions to the Court: (a) did the President have the right to issue an executive order relocating the Japanese, as a legitimate action as part of his role as “Commander in Chief” of the Armed Forces? (2) did Congress have the power to produce this legislation as part of its power to make and manage war? The Court decided that: (1) the President used his power with proper authority; (2) the Congress used its power with proper authority; (3) the circumstances of wartime justified these actions, in spite of peacetime hindsight. This decision reinforced executive and the legislative powers to override 14th Amendment guarantees of due process in times of national crisis. One Justice remarked that the issue of race was beside the point; the executive and legislative branches needed to be free to act on the best judgment it could make in the circumstances. Soon after, the Supreme Court stated that no loyal citizen could be held against their will, leading to the closing of the camps in early 1945. No Japanese was ever convicted of espionage during the war, and many served in the Pacific campaign with distinction.
WHAT WERE THE MILITARY AND POLITICAL TURNING POINTS OF WWII?
Three Theaters of War: World War II would take place in three general locations worldwide. First, the North African Campaign originally pitted the British against the Germans as Germany attempted to take the British held Egypt, home to the Suez Canal, a major waterway that linked Britain to its colonial possessions of India, Hong Kong, and Australia. The Suez Canal was also important because of the access it granted to Middle East oil, an important resource for any military at war. Second, the European Campaign pitted the Allies against the Axis Powers over control of Europe. Nazi Germany had taken control of much of the western portion of Europe and had started a second front by choosing to invade the USSR. The Allied goal was to push Hitler back into Germany both from the west (Britain and the United States) and from the east (USSR). Third, the Pacific campaign was designed to destroy Japan. The Japanese were waging war on the Chinese, Vietnamese, and the Koreans in an attempt to expand their Empire. When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the United States changed the nature of the Pacific campaign by vowing to destroy Japan and obtaining unconditional surrender of the Japanese Empire.
The European Campaign: Once the Germans had taken Poland, the German Blitzkrieg moved swiftly through Belgium to take France. Hitler then set his sights on Great Britain, launching a merciless series of aerial bombing raids that came to be known as the Battle of Britain. Though ultimately unsuccessful, Europe itself was firmly under Nazi occupation by 1940. Once the United States joined the war in 1941, American military leaders began to work with the British to plan Operation Overlord, better known as D-Day, a mission designed to re-take Europe from the Germans by launching an amphibious assault from Great Britain and pushing them back to Berlin. In the midst of planning, President Roosevelt met with Prime Minister Churchill in Casablanca, Morocco. The two men agreed at the “Casablanca Conference” to step up the bombing of Germany to demoralize its people and destroy its ability to produce war materials. They also agreed to attack the Italians, considering Italy the “soft underbelly” of Europe, and believing the Italians would quit the war once attacked. Roosevelt then met with Stalin at the “Tehran Conference” where the two men agreed that the USSR would launch a full scale attack of Germany once the Allies invaded France. The two men also agreed that Germany would be divided following the war. The war began to turn against Hitler when he failed to win the “Battle of Stalingrad”, an effort to destroy the industrial capability of the USSR, and to claim the rich sources of oil nearby. The D-Day invasion finally took place on June 6th, 1944 and had miraculously succeeded in landing Allied troops in France, beginning the slow push against the Germans. As the Allies moved closer to Germany, Hitler staged one last desperate attempt to cut off Allied supplies. In what has become known as the “Battle of the Bulge”, American forces successfully defended against the German attack, pushing the Germans back beyond their own borders. As the Allies moved into Berlin from the west, and the Soviets from the east, Adolf Hitler committed suicide on April 30th, 1945, with Germany finally surrendering on May 7th, 1945. The next day was proclaimed “V-E Day” (Victory in Europe) throughout Europe and the United States, leading to jubilant celebrations.
The Pacific Campaign Against Japan: Soon after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the Japanese took the Philippines from American control. The American plan to destroy Japan had 2 parts: (1) starting in Australia, General MacArthur would move from island to island, eventually taking the north coast of New Guinea in order to launch an invasion to retake the Philippines; (2) starting in Hawaii, Admiral Chester Nimitz would move through the Central Pacific one island at a time to move closer to Japan, a campaign that came to be known as “island-hopping”. As Admiral Nimitz moved, major battles would be fought and won by the U.S. in the “Battle of Midway”, the “Battle of Iwo Jima”, and most importantly the “Battle of Okinawa”, an island close enough to Japan to allow a full-scale invasion. The ferocity of the Japanese in these battles came to be a major concern in planning for an invasion of Japan itself. Japanese soldiers were guided by the warrior ideal of “bushido”, a samurai code which demanded death before surrender. As well, the “kamikaze” attacks in which Japanese pilots would undertake suicide missions to destroy American vessels left American military leaders dreading the amount of American lives that would be lost in an invasion of Japan.
The Manhattan Project: In a letter sent to President Roosevelt in 1939, Albert Einstein warned that the Germans were experimenting with the idea of a nuclear bomb. When Roosevelt learned that the British had proven that this was indeed possible, the President organized a secret project to develop the atomic bomb called “The Manhattan Project”. Based in Los Alamos, NM, and headed by physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, the Manhattan Project finally detonated the first nuclear bomb during testing in July of 1945.
Ending the War with Japan: Deciding that the incredible loss of American life was too high a cost, President Truman opted to use this new weapon to bring an end to the war with Japan. The Allies sent a message to the Japanese leadership, warning of “prompt and utter destruction” if Japan did not surrender. Receiving no response, President Truman ordered that the atomic bomb be dropped on the industrial city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The bomb, nicknamed “Little Boy”, was delivered to its target in a B-29 bomber called the “Enola Gay”, instantly killing over 100,000 people. Again receiving no response from the Japanese, President Truman ordered a bomb, nicknamed “Fat Man” to be dropped on Nagasaki, killing 75,000 people instantly on August 9th, 1945. Japan surrendered unconditionally on August 15th, 1945, a day celebrated as “V-J Day” (Victory in Japan). World War II had ended.
The International Military Tribunal (IMT): “The wrongs we seek to condemn and punish have been so calculated, so malignant, so devastating, that civilization cannot tolerate their being ignored because it cannot survive their being repeated”. With these words of Robert Jackson, chief counsel of the United States, the Nuremberg Trials began. Immediately following World War II, the United States, Britain, France, and the USSR created the International Military Tribunal to punish the leaders of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan for the terrible nature in which they waged the Second World War. Trials were held in Nuremberg, Germany, the location where Hitler had staged many of his rallies, eventually sentencing many officers to death or lengthy prison sentences. The “Nuremberg Trials” paid particular attention to those who had planned and carried out the awful scheme of the Holocaust. Trials were also conducted in Tokyo where Japanese officers were also sentenced either to prison or to death. The IMT and the trials it conducted would later have an influence on the nature of international law.
WHAT WAS THE COLD WAR, AND HOW DID IT BEGIN?
The Cold War: The unlikely alliance of the U.S. and Great Britain with the USSR would eventually end at the conclusion of World War II since the goals of these nations differed so greatly. As expressed in the Atlantic Charter, the U.S. and Great Britain, along with many other free democracies, envisioned a world of freedom, free trade, and national self-determination. The USSR however was committed to spreading communist ideas worldwide. The Soviets felt threatened by Western European countries, a legitimate fear, since it had twice been invaded through Poland during the 20th century by a hostile Germany. As a result, the Soviets wished to protect itself from further aggression from Western Europe. The period between 1946 and 1991 came to be called the “Cold War”, an extended period of competition and hostility between the United States and the Soviet Union, based on the very different visions of the world each side had. Because of the political, economic, and military strength and influence of the U.S. and the USSR, both these countries would become known as “superpowers”. As well, both of these nations would soon gather ally countries throughout the world as a result of shared visions of the world, or through economic and political incentives. The seeds of the Cold War were planted during two conferences between the “Big Three” (Great Britain, the U.S., and USSR) as World War II wound down.
Yalta Conference: In February of 1945, the “Big Three”, President Roosevelt, PM Churchill, and Premier Stalin, met at the Soviet resort town of Yalta (on the Black Sea) to make arrangements for the world following the war. Three main issues were discussed that would later lead to tensions between the U.S. and the USSR. First on the table was what to do about Poland. When Germany invaded Poland to start the war, the government of Poland fled to Britain during the remainder of the war. When the USSR liberated Poland in 1944, the Soviets encouraged Polish communists to set up a communist government there. With two possible governments in the waiting, the Big Three decided that the Soviet Polish government would be recognized by the West if it included members of the pre-war Polish government. The Big Three also agreed that free elections would be held as soon as possible. [True elections never took place, leading to communist control of Poland, leaving many in Poland to believe they had been betrayed by the West, condemning Poland to communism.] Second, the Big Three agreed to issue the “Declaration of Liberated Europe”. The stated goal of the Declaration was to assert “the right of all people to choose the form of government under which they will live”, expressing the intention that free elections would be held in nations recently freed from German control. Third, the fate of Germany had to be planned, a nation that was blamed from initiating two world wars. The Big Three agreed that the Western portion of Germany would be divided into zones to be controlled by Great Britain, France, and the United States, while the Eastern half of Germany would be controlled by the USSR. The capitol of Germany, Berlin, was located in the Soviet zone. Berlin as well would be similarly divided into four zones, with the Western portion of Berlin controlled by Great Britain, France, and the United States in the west of the city, while the USSR would control the eastern half. The Big Three also agreed that the USSR could take reparations from Germany in the form of trade goods and agricultural products, while the West would take industrial and rail equipment. The nature and amount of German reparations became a major source of tension over the next few years.
Potsdam Conference: In July of 1945, President Truman met with Joseph Stalin in the German town of Potsdam, near the capitol of Berlin. Truman was concerned that an industrially weakened Germany would threaten the economic recovery of Europe. His main fear was that Germans would turn to communism out of desperation. Stalin insisted on reparations from Germany, and began stripping the Soviet zone of industrial equipment for use back home, even though this portion of Germany was largely agricultural. Truman succeeded in gaining an agreement at Potsdam that Stalin felt forced to accept if he was to gain any reparations from Germany. The terms of the agreement included: (1) Truman would give the Soviets industrial equipment from the Allies’ zones, but the Soviets had to pay for it with food shipments; (2) Allies would accept the German-Polish border set by the Soviets. It was at this conference that Truman told Stalin of the successful testing of the nuclear bomb. Stalin felt he was being threatened into this agreement. The Allies controlled Germany’s industrial heartland, leaving the Soviets increasingly suspicious of Western intentions. Stalin refused to uphold the Declaration of Liberated Europe created at Yalta, and established pro-Soviet governments in Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. These nations became known as “satellite nations”, though not directly controlled by the USSR, they were forced to remain friendly to it.
The Iron Curtain: Eastern Europe became effectively communist, a fact that Winston Churchill pointed out in a speech at Fulton, Missouri, stating that “…an ‘iron curtain’ has descended across the continent”. The expression “iron curtain” expressed the idea that Europe had become firmly divided, with free, democratic, and capitalist nations in Western Europe, and communist nations in Eastern Europe. Tension between “the West” and the “the East” increased rapidly.
The Soviet View of the World: In early 1946, the U.S. State Department asked its most knowledgeable diplomat in the USSR, George Kennan, to explain Soviet behavior. Kennan expressed his view of the Soviets in what became known as the “Long Telegram”. In it he discussed Russian insecurity and fear of the West, and the Soviet belief that the West would eventually try to destroy communism. He stated that the Soviets saw themselves as bringing in an economic and political system that was far superior to capitalism, and that the West was discouraging human progress. Kennan proposed a long-term containment of Russian expansion, leading to President Truman to create a new foreign policy of containment, keeping Communism within its present territory.
HOW DID AMERICA DEAL WITH THE COLD WAR IN ITS EARLY STAGES?
The Truman Doctrine (1947) and its Application: In a speech to Congress in March 1947, President Truman declared the American position that it would assist any nations that resisted communist aggression. Truman stated that the U.S. would “…aid free peoples who are resisting subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures.” The “Truman Doctrine”, or “containment”, as this new policy came to be called, shaped American foreign policy for at least two decades. This new policy came at a time when the USSR had refused to leave Iran after WWII, trying to ensure access to oil. American threats led to their departure. The Soviets also set their sights on Turkey, again trying to establish a foothold in the Middle East and access to oil. Again, American support of Turkey and threats of military action caused the Soviets to back down. The Soviet Union then began to support local Greek communists trying to seize power there. Because Great Britain could not afford to aid the Greeks anymore, the U.S. pledged over 400 million dollars to oppose communist influence and expansion in Turkey, Greece, and elsewhere. As a result of these three incidents, the American government came to believe that the USSR was determined to achieve world domination. The American policy of containment led to direct involvement later in the Korean War, the Vietnam conflict, and numerous struggles in Latin America and elsewhere.
The Marshall Plan: In June 1947, President Truman relied on Secretary of State George Marshall, also a WWII general, to craft an economic plan that set as its goals the rebuilding of Western European economies, and preventing further nations from falling to communism. The United States poured billions of dollars in aid into Western Europe in the form of food, supplies, and most importantly, industrial machinery and expertise. This program was formally known as the European Recovery Program, but is more easily recognizable as the “Marshall Plan”. Although the benefits of this program were offered to the Soviet Union and Eastern European nations, the Soviets rejected the offer, further increasing tensions between the West and the Soviet world. The Marshall Plan was successful both in weakening the appeal of communism in Western Europe, and successfully rebuilding the western European economy. As a further result, new trade markets were opened for both the U.S. and Western European nations.
Central Intelligence Agency: In September of 1947, Congress passed the National Security Act, a law that created the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), a wing of the federal government that was authorized to collect information about foreign governments, corporations, organizations, and people. The CIA would then analyze the information it had gathered and share it with Congress and the President so that they could make informed decisions about foreign policy. The CIA was also authorized to carry out covert missions “against hostile foreign states or groups, or in support of friendly foreign states or groups, but which are so planned and conducted that any U.S. government responsibility for them is not evident to unauthorized persons”. The CIA was also granted by Congress the ability to keep secret its budget and personnel, and to provide “cover stories” for defectors and foreigners friendly to the goals of the United States. This fiercely anti-communist agency was tasked with gathering information (intelligence) about the Soviet Union, a task made difficult by the fact that the USSR was a closed society. In order to gather more information, the CIA developed a plane, the “U-2”, which could take photographs from extremely high elevations that could provide needed information. The CIA also conducted many Cold War missions that involved destabilizing foreign governments and, in some cases, assassination.
WHAT WERE THE EARLY COLD WAR CONFLICTS WORLDWIDE?
The Berlin Airlift: The U.S. came to believe that Western Europe’s recovery depended on the revitalization of the German economy, and also thought that the USSR was trying to undermine Germany’s recovery. In early 1948, the West decided that it would merge the three free zones of Germany and form the Federal Republic of Germany, better known as West Germany, with Germans controlling it. Further, the Western controlled portions of Berlin would be similarly merged. The Soviets responded by creating the German Democratic Republic, better known as East Germany. Believing the creation of West Germany would prevent the Soviets from gaining their reparations, the USSR decided to confront the West by cutting off all access to West Berlin, preventing food and supplies from delivery there. Rather than send in troops and initiating a “hot war”, President Truman ordered what has become known as the “Berlin Airlift”, a series of supply shipments delivering needed food and materials to West Berliners by air, beginning in June 1948. Stalin backed down in the spring of 1949, lifting the blockade of West Berlin. This diplomatic victory for the United States demonstrated the West’s determination to contain communism.
Birth of Communist China: After years of Civil War between Chinese nationalists, led by Chang Kai-shek, and communists, led by Mao Zedong, the communist forces finally won out in 1949, leading to the formation of the Peoples’ Republic of China. The Chinese nationalist leaders fled to the island of Taiwan, forming a government that had American support. China’s fall to communism shocked Americans, and when Red China formed an alliance with the USSR, the West became even more fearful that both of these communist nations would support communist movements in other nations. Also alarming Americans was the fact that the Soviet Union had successfully tested its first nuclear weapon in 1949, a weapon based on nuclear secrets stolen from the United States by American communist spies such as Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Now that China had firmly established communism in Asia, the United States worked even harder to rebuild the Japanese government and economy, believing that a democratic Japan was the key to defending Asia against the further spread of communism, just as Germany was considered the key to stopping communism in Europe.
The Korean War: Because Japan had occupied Korea during World War II, its defeat meant that control had to pass to others. The Allies divided Korea at the 38th parallel, giving control of North Korea to the USSR while the United States governed South Korea, however no agreement was reached for the unification of the two Koreas. In June of 1950, the Soviet-backed North Korea invaded South Korea, causing President Truman to follow America’s policy of containment by sending naval and air power to support the government of South Korea. Truman also succeeded in getting the United Nations to send troops into action, as well as sending American forces into South Korea under the leadership of General Douglas MacArthur. The military response by the U.N. and the U.S. was described by President Truman as a “Police Action”, and not a war since no formal declaration was ever made. China was drawn into the conflict when General MacArthur had successfully pushed the North Koreans to the border of China at the Yalu River, a fact that the Chinese believed was a threat. Chairman Mao ordered hundreds of thousands of troops across the border, pushing MacArthur back across the 38th parallel. MacArthur wanted to expand the war to include China, but received no support from President Truman. After MacArthur publicly criticized the President for this, Truman fired the well-respected General MacArthur in April 1951. Truman wished to maintain a “limited war” that would avoid direct confrontation with the Chinese and Soviets, a war that would endanger Europe and bring about a possible nuclear war. American and U.S. forces succeeded in pushing the North Koreans and Chinese back to the 38th parallel. An armistice was finally reached in early 1953, leaving the border separating the Koreas at the 38th parallel. No treaty has yet been signed to end this conflict, and American forces remain in South Korea at the 38th parallel. The United States came to view Asia as vulnerable to communism, leading America to build up its military, sign protective treaties with Asian nations, and to become more involved militarily in Asia.
The Cold War Heats Up: Upon the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953, leadership of the USSR would soon fall to Nikita Khrushchev, a man who once declared “we will bury capitalism…your grandchildren will live under communism”. Tensions heightened when the Soviets shot down a U-2 spy plane taking pictures over Soviet territory. The “U-2 Incident” in 1960, for which President Eisenhower refused to apologize, created greater mistrust between the two superpowers.
Cuba Falls to Communism: By 1959, economic ties between the U.S. and Cuba remained strong under the leadership of its corrupt President, Fulgencio Batista. A group of Cuban communists, under the leadership of Fidel Castro, successfully toppled the Batista government in 1959. Castro immediately established ties with the Soviet Union, seized all foreign-owned assets (including American), and completely restructured Cuba as a communist nation. Khrushchev immediately saw an opportunity and expressed his intention to build up Cuba militarily. In response, President Eisenhower authorized the CIA to develop a covert plan to arm anti-communist Cubans to invade the island nation, hoping to stir up rebellion against Castro. This plan soon fell into the hands of President Kennedy who authorized the mission in April 1961. La Brigada, the name of the anti-communist Cubans, failed miserably as its boats ran aground at the “Bay of Pigs”. As well, Kennedy refused to send air support to assist La Brigada, an attempt to cover up American involvement in the plot. Within days of the invasion, Castro had captured or killed almost all of the 1400 members of La Brigada. The failed invasion at the Bay of Pigs revealed to the world that the U.S. had attempted to overthrow the government of a neighboring country.
Cuban Missile Crisis: Soon after the Bay of Pigs, the Soviets began to ship large amounts of weapons to Cuba. In October of 1962, American U-2 spy planes gathered photographic evidence that the Soviets were constructing nuclear missile silos, capable of launching nuclear warheads that could hit virtually all parts of the United States. President Kennedy ordered a naval blockade of Cuba to prevent more weapons and supplies from reaching Cuba, an action which he called a “quarantine”, since a blockade was technically an act of war. After extended secret negotiations with Khrushchev, President Kennedy gained the removal of Soviet nuclear weapons from Cuba in exchange for a promise not to invade Cuba and a promise to remove American missiles in Turkey. The Cuban Missile Crisis had brought the world to the brink of nuclear war during those tense 13 days in October of 1962. The consequences of a nuclear war drove the U.S. and the USSR to sign the “Limited Test Ban Treaty” in 1963, a treaty that hoped to slow the arms race and prevent the further release of nuclear fallout into the atmosphere, authorizing only underground testing.
Berlin Wall: The most visible symbol of the Cold War came to be the Berlin Wall, constructed beginning in August of 1961. Berlin was firmly in communist East Germany, but the western half of the city belonged to West Germany. Many East Germans, wishing to escape communism flooded into to West Berlin, a situation that Khrushchev could no longer tolerate. In order to prevent this embarrassing flood of people fleeing to the West, Khrushchev ordered his military to build a 96 mile barrier around the entire western half of Berlin, with checkpoints and guards all around the perimeter. Approximately 200 people were shot while attempting to enter free West Berlin during the wall’s almost 30-year existence.
WHAT INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS APPEARED THAT ATTEMPTED TO KEEP PEACE DURING THE COLD WAR?
Birth of the United Nations: In April 1945, the United Nations, an international body of nations came into existence with the first 50 nations becoming official members. Like the earlier League of Nations, the United Nations was designed to promote peace and settle conflicts without the use of military force, wherever possible. Each member nation would be given one vote in the General Assembly when resolutions were proposed. As well, the UN had a Security Council that had a total of 11 member states, 5 of which would be permanent members that included Britain, France, the United States, the Soviet Union, and China, the five nations that worked together to defeat the Axis Powers in World War II. The Security Council was responsible for maintaining peace, investigating threats to peace, and, if necessary, asking member nations to contribute military forces to enforce resolutions of the General Assembly. It is this military possibility of enforcing international resolutions that made the UN far more effective than the League of Nations. The UN also crafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a document that lists 30 human rights that were believed to be universally applicable to all people in all places.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): The events of the Berlin Airlift and blockade convinced free nations on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean that the Soviets intended to spread communist influence, militarily if necessary. In order to gain greater security, the U.S. formed a treaty with Western European nations called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a mutual defense alliance in which each member nation agreed to assist any other nation that might be attacked. The original treaty members included: the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Portugal, the Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, and Iceland. The United States had now become committed to maintaining the security of Europe.
The Warsaw Pact: When NATO admitted West Germany to NATO in 1955, the Soviets responded by forming the Warsaw Pact, a treaty organization that was a mutual defense alliance against aggression from the West. Members of the Warsaw Pact included: USSR, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and East Germany.
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO): Immediately following the Korean Conflict, the United States signed several mutual defense agreements with Asian nations, forming the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. Member nations included: the United States, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Australia.
Alliance for Progress: Looking to prevent the further spread of communism in Latin America, President Kennedy proposed the formation of the Alliance for Progress. The primary goal of this organization was to create a “free and prosperous Latin America” that would not be vulnerable to communist revolutions. In order to stabilize Latin America, the Alliance for Progress created a series of aid projects building schools and housing, developing health care systems, and working for land reform. While many countries such as Chile, Columbia, Venezuela, and several Central American Republics used the programs to bring real effective change, the people in other Latin American countries failed to benefit from Alliance programs as a result of the corruption of their leaders.
Organization of American States (OAS): In existence since 1890, the Organization of American States took on a new role following World War II. The organization became re-dedicated to fighting communism in the Americas in 1948 with the creation of a new Charter and the world’s first general declaration of human rights standards.
WHAT DOMESTIC CHANGES OCCURRED FOLLOWING WWII?
G.I. Bill: The federal government took several steps near the end and following World War II to ensure that the post-war economy would be strong. One of the most significant laws in American history was the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (1944), better known as the “GI Bill”. This law provided all World War II veterans with low-interest or no-interest loans that could be used to buy homes, start businesses, or attend college. The impact of the GI Bill was significant as it led to a rapid increase in college enrollment and a massive housing boom, leading to the development of suburbs as we know them today.
The Rise of Suburbs: One of the most famous examples of these new suburbs was “Levittown”, a new community located in New York. The brainchild of Bill Levitt, Levittown was a planned community made up of hundreds of mass-produced, similar looking homes that were easily affordable. Suburbs such as these sprang up all over America, leading to an unprecedented level of home ownership to 61% among all Americans. Americans believed that the suburbs provided a better way of life, and the federal government encouraged this growth by granting income tax deductions to those making mortgage payments. Leading the charge into suburbia were veterans making use of the GI Bill.
Middle Class: The post-war years were a time of incredible economic prosperity for Americans who now enjoyed the largest amount of “disposable income” yet. Americans began to furnish their homes with all kinds of new appliances and conveniences, even spending money on a “second car”. The incredible economic activity during the post-war years led to the development of a large “middle class” in which a great percentage of Americans worked well-paying jobs and lived rather comfortably.
Baby Boomers: Following World War II and the Korean War, the American birthrate exploded. Between 1945 and 1961, 65 million Americans were born, with 1 child being born every 7 seconds at its height. The children born between these years have come to be known as the “Baby Boomers”. This incredible production of children was caused by the fact that many had postponed starting families until the conclusion of the war. Also adding to the flurry of new children was the increasing prosperity of the post-war economy and affordable housing. Popular culture glorified pregnancy (in marriage), parenthood, and large families.
UNIT 7: RECOVERY, PROSPERITY, AND TURMOIL (1945 – 1980)
HOW DID AMERICANS CONFRONT COMMUNISM ON THE HOME FRONT?
Second Red Scare: During the 1950s, rumors and accusations of Communists in the United States led to fears that Communists were attempting to take over the world. The “Second Red Scare” began in September 1945, and escalated into a general fear of Communist subversion - an effort to secretly weaken American society and overthrow its government. The fear that communists were working to overthrow the American government led many to suspect that American communist sympathizers might be found in all parts of American society, government, and military. This suspicion led to federal government action in a variety of ways.
The Loyalty Review Program: In early 1947, President Truman established the “Loyalty Review Program” to ensure that no communists had infiltrated the federal government. Truman also wished to prove that Democrats could be as anti-communist as Republicans. The personal background of over 6 million government employees was investigated, causing some 2000 employees to quit their jobs and leading to the dismissal of 212 believed to be security risks.
House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC): Although in existence since 1938, HUAC gained tremendous importance and visibility when FBI director J. Edgar Hoover urged the committee not only to actively investigate the possibility of communist subversion, but to seek out those who might have communist sympathies or friends who were sympathizers. Though not confirmed at the time, Hoover’s suspicion of communist infiltration of American society was proven to be correct in 1995 when the U.S. government finally revealed the existence of “Project Venona”. In 1946, American and British cryptographers discovered the code used by the Soviets to communicate with its spies in the United States. Well over 3000 messages had been exchanged between the USSR and the U.S. during the Cold War. That Project Venona had cracked the code was kept secret as this achievement led to the gathering of critical intelligence.
HUAC and Hollywood: “Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of the Communist Party”. It is with these words that HUAC frequently began its interrogation of witnesses brought before the committee, words heard by many in the entertainment industry. HUAC targeted Hollywood in particular because of the immense power of movies and other entertainment forms to manipulate the opinions of the American public in general. Eventually, 151 actors, writers, directors, and broadcasters would be placed on a “blacklist” if deemed to hold communist sympathies, a designation that prevented them from being hired in the entertainment industry.
HUAC and Alger Hiss: In 1948, HUAC called the prominent editor of Time Magazine to testify before the committee. Whitaker Chambers had himself once been a communist and spy, but had quit both in 1938. In his testimony before HUAC, Chambers claimed that several government officials had once been, or continued to be, communists. Most prominent on his list was Alger Hiss, a diplomat in the Roosevelt Administration, whom Chambers claimed had given him secret State Department documents in 1937. On the committee was California Representative Richard Nixon, who dug deep into the Alger Hiss case, eventually locating evidence that Alger Hiss had indeed been in possession of secret papers. Because Hiss denied being a communist, he was convicted of perjury, eventually serving 44 months in prison. The Alger Hiss case further worried Americans that the U.S. government had been infiltrated by communist sympathizers.
HUAC and the Rosenbergs: The detonation of the USSRs first nuclear weapon in 1949 led many Americans to believe that the science that led to this achievement had been stolen from the United States. A British scientist pointed the finger at Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, an American couple who were members of the Communist Party. The couple was arrested and put on trial for espionage, eventually being executed in 1953. This action was controversial at the time because many believed that the Rosenbergs were simply victims of the anti-communist mood in America brought on by the Second Red Scare. Convincing evidence of their guilt would not be confirmed to Americans generally until the existence of Project Venona was revealed in 1995, as secret messages proved that the Rosenbergs had indeed transmitted American nuclear secrets to the Soviets.
The Taft-Hartley Act: In 1947, Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act, a law that was intended to reduce communist influence in the nations labor unions, and that required union leaders to take oaths that they were not communists. Many union leaders did not object to this requirement, while others refused the oath. The President of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the main union umbrella group, launched his own campaign to rid the union movement of communists, eventually expelling 11 unions from membership which would not remove their communist leaders.
The Pledge of Allegiance is Changed: Originally, the Pledge of Allegiance was written by a magazine editor to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ landing in the new world. In its original form, the Pledge did not contain the words “under God”. In 1954, President Eisenhower urged Congress to add the words “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance in order to create a clear distinction between the religious freedom of America and the hostility to religion in the USSR. This addition was also intended to unify the American public in the face of the Cold War.
McCarthyism Grips America: Taking advantage of the heightened tension of the Second Red Scare was Senator Joseph R. McCarthy who had won his Senate race in 1946 by accusing his opponent of being a communist. As the basis of his Senate career, McCarthy went on to accuse many members of the State Department and the Democratic Party of protecting communists. Americans came to believe these accusations at the same time that the McCarran Act (1950) was passed, a law that criminalized any activity that contributed to the “establishment of a totalitarian government”. In 1952, Senator McCarthy became the chairman of the Senate subcommittee on investigations when his Republican Party took control of the Congress. His investigation turned into a witch hunt as he searched for disloyalty based on poor evidence and fear. He frequently ruined reputations by badgering witnesses without the proper evidence to back up his charge of communism. This tactic came to be known as McCarthyism.
Downfall of McCarthy: Senator McCarthy’s downfall came when he began investigating the Army, believing that communists could be found within it. In 1954, Americans watched the Army-McCarthy hearings on the new technology of television. In the midst of the hearings, McCarthy lashed out at an Army Lawyer named Joseph Welch, pointing out that a member of his law firm had once been a communist. Angered by the possibility that a young man’s entire future would be ruined by McCarthy’s needless comment, Joseph Welch uttered the words that destroyed McCarthy: “Until this moment, I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness…You have done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?” Americans could finally see with their own eyes how McCarthy attacked witnesses, and his popularity faded.
HOW DID AMERICANS CONFRONT THE WORLDWIDE SOVIET THREAT?
National Defense in the 1950s: When President Truman chose not to run for the Presidency, the election of 1952 became a critical turning point. The Republicans had nominated Dwight D. Eisenhower, the General who had organized the successful D-Day invasion of World War II and who was widely regarded as an American hero. With the campaign slogan “I like Ike”, Eisenhower easily won the election against his Democratic opponent, Adlai Stevenson. President Eisenhower came into office believing that communism could not be defeated through a series of small wars to contain its spread. He also believed that a strong economy would prevent communist influence in the United States. As a result of these beliefs, President Eisenhower developed a new defense policy that came to be known as “massive retaliation”, the use of nuclear threats as a way to maintain peace. Building up the American nuclear arsenal from 1,000 to 18,000 bombs during his Presidency was far less expensive than maintaining a massive military and funding conventional warfare. Eisenhower subtly used nuclear threats to bring an end to the Korean War and to end Chinese attacks on the island of Taiwan. In order to make massive nuclear retaliation possible, Eisenhower encouraged the development of technologies that could deliver nuclear missiles anywhere in the world. The B-52 Bomber was developed for the purpose of flying across continents to drop nuclear bombs. The Polaris submarine was launched in 1960, a weapon that could deliver nuclear bombs. Most importantly, the Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was developed, a rocket technology that could deliver nuclear weapons to its target across thousands of miles. These new technologies played a role in what has come to be known as “brinkmanship”, the willingness to go to the brink of war in an effort to force the other side to back down.
Federal-Aid Highway Act (1956): One Cold War project of the Eisenhower Administration had incredible economic and social effects. In 1956, Congress passed the Federal-Aid Highway Act, a law that dedicated 25 Billion dollars to the construction of 41,000 miles of roads linking the entire United States. What is generally known as the “interstate system” was originally intended to allow easy movement of the military from one part of the U.S. to another should the nation be invaded by a foreign power. The commercial effects of the interstate system are difficult to overestimate, as are the effects it has had on daily life in the U.S. The linking of cities nationwide has allowed families to live further apart without losing contact. As well, the interstates accelerated the growth of suburbs.
The Launch of Sputnik (1957): Americans in the 1950s were confident that they had developed superior technologies when compared to the Soviets. This belief was shattered on October 4th, 1957 when the Soviets successfully launched “Sputnik”, the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth. Not only could the Soviets potentially use satellites to spy on the United States and its actions around the globe, the fact that the Soviets delivered the satellite to orbit demonstrated that they had excellent missile technology. As well, Americans came to believe that there was a “missile gap”, that the USSR had far more missiles than the U.S. Congress moved fast in reaction to Sputnik by creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a new agency of the federal government designed to co-ordinate missile research and space exploration. The launching of Sputnik and the creation of NASA mark the beginning of the “Space Race”, a period of competition between the U.S. and the USSR to master satellite and missile technology. The primary motivation of the Space Race was to be the first to use satellites and rockets for military applications. A second result of Sputnik was the passage of the National Defense Education Act, a law which increased funds for the study of math, science, and foreign languages. Congress believed that high school and university students needed to better develop these skills so that many of them could contribute to the Cold War as research scientists and diplomats. The Space Race would eventually lead to a competition to reach the Moon. The United States took a critical step toward this goal in 1962 when John Glenn became the first American astronaut to orbit the Earth. The U.S. would eventually become the first nation to land a man on the Moon when astronaut Neil Armstrong took his first step in 1969.
Citizens React to Threat of Nuclear War: The real possibility of nuclear war caused many citizens to devise ways to survive the blast. Schools ran “duck and cover” drills in which students would duck under their desks and cover their heads. The Civil Defense Agency worked with communities to identify specific buildings as bomb shelters and develop plans for survivors after an attack. Many individual families constructed bomb shelters in their backyards or dug into the foundations of their homes, stocking them with food and supplies. The practicality of these measures is questionable, but these activities did give people a sense of control. Although the detonation of a nuclear weapon could certainly wipe out people in great numbers, the real threat comes from nuclear “fallout”, the radiation left over after a blast. Fallout would kill far more people than the actual bomb itself.
Eisenhower’s Farewell Address: Upon leaving office in January 1961, President Eisenhower delivered a speech intended to warn Americans about a new threat to American security and liberty. Eisenhower warned that the powerful cooperation between the military and the industries that supplied and developed weapons may threaten Americans politically, socially, and even spiritually. In particular, Eisenhower was concerned that weapons manufacturers may be gaining so much power that they could influence Congress to get into wars needlessly simply because the manufacturers wished to make profits by selling weapons. The arms race triggered by the Cold War disturbed President Eisenhower, and he worried that this new “military industrial complex” (a phrase he introduces) might corrupt American life.
A New Foreign Policy - Détente: The intense hostility of the Cold War would ease when Richard Nixon, Vice President under Eisenhower, won the Presidency in 1968. Nixon had come to believe that the 2 superpowers had to adjust to the growing role of other nations and regions, especially China, Japan, and Western Europe. Along with his National Security Advisor, Henry Kissinger, Nixon introduced a policy of easing tensions between the superpowers that came to be known as “détente”. Having had no contact with China since it became communist in 1949, Nixon decided that a diplomatic relationship needed to be established. In 1972, Nixon travelled to China successfully opening diplomatic relations with the Chinese. The Soviets were encouraged by Nixon’s success and soon proposed a “summit” between the 2 superpowers. President Nixon arrived for the Moscow Summit in May of 1972 where both sides agreed to the historic Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I). The terms of this treaty set limitations on nuclear arms, opened trade between the nations, and encouraged the exchange of scientific information. A second round of talks in 1979 led to the SALT II treaty which set limits on the development of new missile systems. At least for a time, the U.S. and the USSR had established a positive direction in their relationship as Cold War rivals.
WHO WERE THE KEY GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS WHO LED THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT?
Congress of Racial Equality (CORE): Founded in Chicago in 1942, CORE joined the NAACP as a movement of people attempting to bring about racial equality in the United States. Although the “separate but equal” principle established in the Plessy v. Ferguson case permitted segregation in America since 1896, it did not make it mandatory. CORE was inspired by the “sit-down” strikes of the labor movement to apply this same strategy to begin integrating businesses in Northern cities. CORE members would enter restaurants that served Whites only and, if denied service, would simply sit down, refusing to leave. Using th “sit-in” technique, CORE succeeded in integrating many restaurants, theaters, and other public facilities in cities such as Chicago, Detroit, and Syracuse. CORE would become a critical part of what would become known as the Civil Rights Movement.
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC): Immediately following this success of the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1956, Martin Luther King Jr formed another important group of the Civil Rights movement, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), composed of African-American ministers who set as their goal the end of segregation in voting, transportation, housing, and accommodations.
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP): The NAACP, founded in 1909 by W.E.B. DuBois, would be an important factor in advancing the Civil Rights of all Americans, particularly through its use of the judicial system. This organization provided funding and legal expertise throughout the Civil Rights era for individuals challenging federal, state, and local laws that violated the spirit of the 14th Amendment. Notable contributions would include legal guidance in Brown v. Board and the Montgomery Bus Boycott, among many other legal challenges.
Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC): In order to co-ordinate the Sit-Ins inspired by the Greensboro Four, students organized the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), an organization that attracted both White and Black volunteers. In addition to arranging Sit-Ins, SNCC sent volunteers into rural areas to register African-American voters. SNCC enjoyed great success in integrating public facilities in dozens of Southern communities.
The Freedom Riders: Even though segregated interstate bus transportation was now outlawed, some Southern communities left this service segregated. In order to draw attention to this in 1961, CORE leader James Farmer organized what came to be known as “Freedom Rides”, a technique in which White and Black students would purchase bus tickets in Northern communities to arrive in segregated Southern communities that had not integrated their bus terminals. Frequently, Freedom Riders were greeted by violence at the hands of White mobs, but not on the scale found in Birmingham, Alabama. The Birmingham police chief, Eugene “Bull” Connor, knowing that Freedom Riders were about to arrive in his city, contacted the local Ku Klux Klan to greet and then beat the arrivals. Baseball bats, chains, and pipes were used to bloody the Freedom Riders, drawing national attention. In late 1962, the federal government finally began to enforce the integration of interstate bus terminals.
WHAT WERE THE KEY EVENTS THAT LED TO THE ACHIEVEMENT OF FULL CIVIL RIGHTS IN 1965?
Brown v. Board of Education, Topeka, Kansas (1954): In 1951, the parents of Linda Brown, an American schoolgirl of African ancestry, applied for their daughter’s admission to a public school in Topeka, KS that was designated for whites only. The Board of Education denied their application, following the constitutional principle of “separate but equal” established in the Plessy decision. In a class action lawsuit, the Browns sued the Board of Education in a case that eventually went to the Supreme Court. The question before the Court was whether the existence of “separate but equal” facilities in Topeka violated the equal protection clause (with regard to race) of the 14th Amendment? The case was argued for the plaintiffs by a young NAACP lawyer named Thurgood Marshall, a man who would later become the first African-American to be appointed to the Supreme Court. Hearing the case was a Court headed by Chief Justice Earl Warren, and his time as the head of the Court is referred to as the “Warren Court”, a period between 1953 and 1969. The decision: (1) determined that separate facilities in education are inherently unequal; (2) stated that segregation by race “…generates a feeling of inferiority as to their status in the community [affecting] their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone…”; (3) insisted that by suggesting inferiority systemically violated the 14th Amendment. A follow-up case in 1955 ordered the integration of public education “with all deliberate speed”. This decision finally ended the principle of “separate but equal” in education, and became one very important factor in spurring the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, inspiring challenges to Jim Crow laws in other areas of American life.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott: In December 1955, a seamstress named Rosa Parks boarded a bus, taking her place behind the white section, as was the law in Montgomery, AL. In order to allow a White man to sit down, the driver ordered Parks to rise and give up her seat. Not only was Parks arrested, her arrest attracted the attention of the NAACP who convinced her to challenge the segregated bus system in court. Days after her arrest, African-American leaders organized support for Parks by calling all Blacks to “boycott” Montgomery busses, to refuse to ride them. National attention soon focused on the Montgomery Bus Boycott, leading to protests throughout the country. At the head of the boycott was a young pastor named Martin Luther King Jr. MLK believed that the way to end segregation was to use “non-violent passive resistance” in the face of unjust laws, a strategy designed to sway the opinions of fellow Americans to demand an end to all segregation in American society. MLK’s strategy would become the primary technique in the Civil Rights movement. The boycott would last more than a year before the Supreme Court finally declared Alabama’s bus segregation law to be unconstitutional. Immediately following this success, MLK formed another important group of the Civil Rights movement, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), composed of African-American ministers who set as their goal the end of segregation in voting, transportation, housing, and accommodations.
The Little Rock Nine: In September of 1957, 9 Black students intended to register at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, an institution with 2000 White students. Governor Orval Faubus, in order to prevent this from happening, ordered the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the students from entering the school. The troops were joined by a huge mob of Whites threatening and intimidating these young people. A District Court ordered Faubus to withdraw the troops, however the Governor did nothing to prevent the angry White mob from leaving. When the Black students finally entered the school, violence broke out, leaving two Black reporters beaten, and windows in the school broken. Believing federal authority was being challenged, President Eisenhower ordered 1,000 Army troops to Little Rock who then encircled the school and escorted the Black students to their classes, a situation that would last for a year. Not willing to integrate, Governor Faubus ordered that the 3 high schools in Little Rock be closed for the following school year. Integration attempts would not resume until 1959.
The Civil Rights Act (1957): A first step in protecting the civil rights of Blacks came in 1957 with the passage of a law that created the new Civil Rights division within the Justice Department that was authorized to investigate anyone attempting to interfere with the right to vote. The SCLC, encouraged by this new legislation, began a campaign to register 2 million Black voters.
The Greensboro Four: In February 1960, four friends from North Carolina A & T walked into the downtown Woolworth’s to purchase school supplies and then sit at the lunch counter for coffee. The Black students knew they would be denied service, and when they were, they simply sat at the counter until closing time, vowing to return every day to do the same until they finally received the same service as White patrons. With this simple act, the “Sit-In” movement was born, a movement that spread to 100 cities throughout the South by 1961, and attracted nationwide attention. Even though sit-in participants were insulted, intimidated, and sometimes beaten, they followed MLK’s technique of non-violent passive resistance, refusing to react violently.
Integrating Higher Education: A veteran of the Air Force, African-American James Meredith held in his hand a federal court order demanding that the University of Mississippi register him for the place he had earned. Segregationist Governor Ross Barnett stepped in to prevent Meredith from registering, defying Supreme Court rulings which ended segregated education. In order to ensure compliance with federal authority, President Kennedy ordered 500 federal marshals to escort Meredith to the campus, only to be greeted by an angry and violent mob that eventually sparked a full riot. In order to avoid further violence, Kennedy ordered several thousand troops to the campus where they remained for the rest of the year. Meredith was escorted to classes under federal guard until his graduation.
The Stand in the Schoolhouse Door – Gov. Wallace: A similar situation unfolded when newly elected Alabama Governor George Wallace attempted to defy the federal government’s demand that education be desegregated. “I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny, and I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, and segregation forever”. These words from his inaugural speech in 1963 would be played out in what has come to be known as “The Stand in the Schoolhouse Door”. Governor Wallace, in an attempt to prevent the enrollement of a Black female student, stood in the doorway at the University of Alabama, soon to be greeted by the new student and the federal marshals escorting her. After a brief speech, Wallace stood aside. Both Governors Faubus and Wallace viewed their defiance as a struggle between states rights vs. federal rights.
MLK’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail (1963): In April of 1963, MLK was arrested in Birmingham during a protest. His goal in Birmingham was to purposely draw attention to the need for a new civil rights law. The Kennedy Administration seemed to move too slow on this issue, so MLK hoped to force the Administration to pay attention. While in prison, MLK composed the famous “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” in which he defended “civil disobedience” as a thoroughly American practice, and tried to awaken the conscience of good, but silent white people. In his letter, he stated that Americans of African ancestry are tired of the word “wait”. The injustice of some laws must be exposed through non-violent resistance. The soul of America is freedom and the people are co-authors with God in seeking this freedom for all people. MLK’s arrest in Birmingham, and subsequent letter, captured national attention, focusing it on the on-going struggle for civil rights, and forcing the Kennedy Administration to craft civil rights legislation. His letter also reveals the grounding of the civil rights movement in Christian faith.
March on Washington (1963): In August of 1963, MLK organized the “March on Washington” to build public support that would influence Congress to pass civil rights legislation. His goal was to encourage the use of the Federal government’s power to remove all barriers to full citizenship for all Americans. It was at this march, attended by over 200,000 Americans of all races, that MLK delivered one of the greatest speeches in world history, entitled “I Have a Dream”: “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…’…that my four little children will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character…”. With public support behind it, Congress finally passed civil rights legislation.
Civil Rights Act (1964): The Civil Rights Act of 1964 marks the high point of the Civil Rights Movement as this law finally brings full equality to all Americans. The main portions of this new law: (1) gives all citizens equal access to public facilities; (2) gives the Attorney-General the power to enforce school desegregation; (3) requires private business to end discrimination; (4) establishes the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) to monitor employment practices.
Voting Rights Act (1965): The success of the Civil Rights Act however exposed the vulnerability of voting rights. In the works since 1962, the 24th Amendment was finally ratified in 1964, an Amendment that finally eliminated poll taxes. All barriers to African-American voting were finally eliminated with the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965, a law which gives the Federal government the authority to register voters, removing this authority from state governments.
WHO WERE THE KEY GROUPS WHO WORKED OUTSIDE THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT SEEKING BLACK EQUALITY?
Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam: At the forefront of rejecting MLK’s non-violent approach in the early 1960s was the Nation of Islam, a uniquely American brand of Islam founded in Detroit in 1930 that was reserved only for African-Americans. Among its beliefs was that “White Devils” were opposed to Blacks, and were manipulating them against their own self-interest. NOI encouraged blacks to become educated and economically self-sufficient. Although not in favor of violence, the Nation of Islam was very much interested in self-defense. Its most powerful spokesman in this time period was Malcolm X, a gifted speaker who referred to the March on Washington as the “Farce on Washington”. Malcolm X encouraged Black separation from American society, rejecting integration as undesirable, once proclaiming it will be either “the Ballot or the Bullet”.
Black Power Movement: By the mid 1960s, nonviolence was criticized by some Americans for failing to improve economic conditions for Blacks. Young African Americans advanced the idea of “Black Power”, an idea that stressed pride in African American culture and was opposed to cultural assimilation. Black Power encouraged Blacks to embrace their African heritage by studying African history, adopting African styles of dress, and taking traditional African names. Black Power was an idea that had its roots in people like Marcus Garvey and UNIA, but took a more militant stand. Black Power was popularized by Stokely Carmichael, a man who rejected non-violence and was opposed to integration. His brand of “Black Nationalism” would inspire the formation of other groups.
Black Panthers: In 1966, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale had become enraged by police brutality facing African-Americans, especially in their home city of Oakland. In response, they formed the Black Panther Party, an organization dedicated to the self-defense of Black communities. The Panthers believed that a revolution was necessary to end Black oppression and encouraged Blacks to arm themselves and prepare to force Whites to grant effective equal rights. In particular, the Panthers wanted Black communities to gain control of the major institutions in Black neighborhoods such as schools, police, hospitals, and housing. Their distinctive uniform of black berets and black leather jackets attracted many to their cause, spreading the Party into other areas of the country.
WHAT WERE THE KEY EVENTS IN THE VIETNAM CONFLICT?
Background of American Involvement in Vietnam: Control of Vietnam changed hands many times since the turn of the 20th century. France controlled Indochina for many years prior to WWII. Japan invaded the territory and asserted control over Vietnam. A communist-nationalist group called the Vietminh, led by Ho Chi Minh, and supported by the U.S. rose up to oppose the Japanese. After WWII, the French again asserted control over Vietnam. The Vietminh again rose up to seek independence from the French, finally defeating them in 1954. In Geneva Switzerland, in an agreement called the “Geneva Accords, all sides agreed to (1) divide Vietnam at the 17th parallel; (2) Ho Chi Minh would control the North; (3) Ngo Dinh Diem (pro-west) would control the South; (4) free elections in 1956 would be held and would unite Vietnam under one government; (5) Cambodia would be recognized as an independent nation. In 1956, Ngo Dinh Diem refused the electoral process, believing that the north would not hold genuinely free elections. The United States naturally sided with Diem, following its policy of containment.
The Domino Theory: President Eisenhower also believed in the “Domino Theory” which stated that if Vietnam fell to communism, all of Southeast Asia would do the same. Fresh in his mind was the fact that Mao Zedong had successfully taken over China in 1949, founding the People’s Republic of China (communist), a close neighbor of Vietnam. As well, the United States had fought a stalemate war in Korea. Civil war soon broke out in Vietnam over control of the nation. As a result, the U.S. began advising the South Vietnamese government, and then became formally involved in the Vietnam Conflict in 1964, guided by the belief that if Vietnam fell to Communism, all of Southeast Asia might fall as well.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964): Responding to an alleged attack on an American warship, Congress authorized President Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) “to take all necessary steps, including the use of armed force, to assist any member or protocol state of the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty (SEATO) requesting assistance in defense of its freedom”. Essentially, Congress handed the President all of its war powers. This resolution becomes the legal basis for American involvement in the Vietnam conflict, and demonstrating the influence of the “Domino Theory” in foreign policy. There is some question about whether an American warship was actually attacked, and so has led many Americans to become highly suspicious of the government as it acts in world affairs.
American Military Involvement: Soon after the Gulf of Tonkin incident, the Vietcong, a communist rebel militia operating in South Vietnam and working closely with the North Vietnamese Army (NVA), began attacking bases where American advisers were stationed. In response, LBJ to ordered air strikes on North Vietnam, gaining the approval of the American people who at that time believed America needed to assist South Vietnam. LBJ was also supported by his Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara and his National Security Adviser McGeorge Bundy. Beginning in March 1965, LBJ ordered “Operation Rolling Thunder” into action, as aerial bombing campaign of North Vietnam that lasted until 1968. Also in March 1965, LBJ ordered combat troops to Vietnam who would fight alongside the South Vietnamese Army against both the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese Army. At the helm of American military operations in Vietnam was General William Westmoreland. A great deal of fighting during the Vietnam War took place in the dense jungles of that country. In order to clear this away, the American military made use of a powerful herbicide known as “Agent Orange”, a chemical that left many veterans vulnerable to cancer and producing children with birth defects. Another controversial weapon used during the war was “Napalm”, a gasoline-based bomb that inflicted incredible burns on victims, killing many more simply by suffocating them as the gasoline drained oxygen from the area. By 1966, over 300,000 Americans were fighting in Vietnam, with many Americans believing they could win. As American casualties increased, many American citizens began questioning involvement in the war, leading to a widespread anti-war movement. The influence of television in turning Americans against the war was powerful as citizens would find daily “body counts” on the evening news. As well, for the first time, Americans could see with their own eyes the devastation of war through almost live broadcasts of events in Vietnam, making this conflict the first “televised war”.
The Ho Chi Minh Trail: Although the United States had undoubtedly the most powerful conventional military in the world, it struggled to succeed in Vietnam as the North Vietnamese fought a guerilla campaign of hit-and-run attacks, taking advantage of the geography of the country. Making use of ancient paths and creating new ones, the North Vietnamese transported men and materials to Vietcong and NVA fighting in the South. What came to be known as the “Ho Chi Minh Trail” was a source of frustration to the American military because this network of pathways was so versatile and difficult to interrupt. Trails would snake through mountains, make use of waterways, and even pass through the neighboring countries of Laos and Cambodia.
The Tet Offensive: On January 30, 1968, during the Vietnamese New Year known as “Tet”, the Vietcong and NVA launched a series of coordinated surprise attacks on American bases and targets throughout South Vietnam. In the short run, the Tet Offensive seemed like a victory for the Communists. Americans watched in horror the news reports and images from Vietnam. As days passed however, the American military turned the tide, effectively fending off Communist forces. Militarily, Tet became a disaster for the Communists, but it turned into a political victory for the Communists as this conflict turned many Americans against the war. Up until the Tet Offensive, LBJ’s Administration portrayed American military involvement in Vietnam as making great progress that would lead to victory. News footage of the Tet Offensive painted a different picture, leading many Americans to question government information about the war. This doubt of the government came to be known as the “credibility gap”.
As a result of the perceived American defeat during Tet, General Westmoreland stepped down. As well, President Johnson refused to seek the nomination of the Democratic Party for President in 1968.
My Lai Incident: American opinion against the war was further enflamed when news broke about a massacre of South Vietnamese civilians by American soldiers at a hamlet called My Lai. Led by Lieutenant William Calley, a platoon of soldiers massacred up to 500 men, women, and children, raping some, and mutilating the bodies of the dead. Although My Lai had been suspected of harboring Communist guerillas and sympathizers, the extreme violence used at My Lai shocked the world. Lt. Calley would be court-martialed and sentenced to prison.
Vietnamization: In 1968, Republican Richard Nixon won the Presidency and was determined to end the Vietnam War. Nixon worked closely with his closest aide, Harvard professor Henry Kissinger, both of whom wished to use diplomacy to bring peace to the region. Nixon also favored “Vietnamization”, a policy of withdrawing American troops from Vietnam in favor of letting the South Vietnamese take over the fighting. In order to put pressure on the North Vietnamese to negotiate, President Nixon ordered air-strikes against North Vietnam. Without informing Congress, Nixon also ordered air-strikes on neighboring Cambodia as many Vietcong fled across the border to use this country as a sanctuary from fighting. In April of 1970, President Nixon had announced that he had ordered troops to invade Cambodia to destroy Vietcong military bases there. Congress was enraged by this action, especially when they learned that Nixon had acted without informing them. As a result, Congress repealed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution giving the President complete authority over war efforts in Vietnam. The invasion of Cambodia set off protests at universities nationwide, most notably at Kent State University. During the protest, National Guard soldiers had fired on demonstrators without an order to do so, killing four.
Pentagon Papers: The credibility gap hit its peak in 1971 when the American public received proof that the U.S. government and its officials had been lying to them about the conduct of the Vietnam War. Daniel Ellsberg, a former Defense Department worker, “leaked” to the New York Times a top-secret report commissioned by then Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. “The Pentagon Papers”, as this report would be called, was a history of American involvement in Vietnam by all Administrations that had anything to do with the conflict. The Pentagon Papers confirmed that the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations had made efforts to make the Vietnam conflict look better than it was when they addressed Congress and the press. Further, the Papers proved that Presidents had expanded the War without the consent of Congress. Although President Nixon was not included in the Pentagon Papers, he nevertheless attempted to prevent their release, eventually having Daniel Ellsberg charged under the Espionage Act of 1917 when they were. New York Times v. U.S. (1971) made it to the Supreme Court, with the Justices siding with the New York Times and Ellsberg, arguing that the First Amendment protected the printing of the Pentagon Papers. Support for the war eroded even further as a result.
Paris Peace Accords: In 1972, the United States began a bombing campaign of North Vietnam that came to be called the “Christmas Bombings” that eventually led to the resumption of peace talks, with both sides agreeing finally to end the war. The Paris Peace Accords formally ended American military involvement in Vietnam and, for a time, brought an end to fighting between North and South Vietnam. The Paris Peace Accords never clarified the ultimate fate of Vietnam or its possible unification.
Fall of Saigon: Two years after the U.S. pulled its military out of Vietnam, the North Vietnamese launched a full scale invasion of the South. Although the United States had promised to defend the South against any possible invasion, President Gerald Ford was unable to persuade Congress to fund assistance to South Vietnam. As a result, the North Vietnamese communists succeeded in taking over the South, including its capital Saigon, renaming it Ho Chi Minh City.
26th Amendment: Since the draft was in place, many young people were forced to serve in Vietnam, with the average age of a soldier at 19 years of age, down from 25 years in World War II. The draft became a major focus of many anti-war protests. Student activists had frequently pointed out that young men were sent to war yet did not have the right to vote. As a result of student activism, the 26th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, standardizing the national voting age at 18 years.
War Powers Act (1973): Following the tragedy of the Vietnam War, Congress passed the War Powers Act in 1973, a law intended to re-establish limits on Executive power in military affairs. Under the provisions of this law: (1) the President must inform Congress of troop commitments to a foreign country within 48 hours of their deployment; (2) the President must withdraw troops in 60 - 90 days unless Congress explicitly approves of the troop deployment. This law reflects the on-going struggle between the executive and legislative branches of government in military and foreign affairs. The legacy of Vietnam also includes the expenditure of $150 billion, 58,000 deaths, and increased suspicion about government.
WHAT WERE THE MAJOR SOCIAL MOVEMENTS OF THE 1960s AND 1970s?
The Birth of Rock and Roll: A new music form would develop in the early 1950s that blended country, gospel, and rhythm and blues. “Rock and Roll”, although popularized for white audiences by Elvis Presley in 1956, was a form of music that developed in the South, was drawn from a variety of musical influences, and was based primarily in Black musical styles. This new music would soon become the basis of a growing “youth culture”, a phenomenon which makes its first real appearance in the post-war era, and which for the first time divided entertainment by generations. Presley’s contribution to Rock and Roll was essentially the popularization of Black music for White audiences, effectively blurring racial barriers. American youth in the 1950s gravitated to this new music and, especially for the Baby Boomers, provided the “soundtrack” for that generation’s later activities in the 1960s. The political nature of Folk Music, popularized by Bob Dylan, would become associated with the Civil Rights Movement. The expressive sounds of Soul would be spurred on by James Brown early in the 1960s, soon becoming associated with the Black Power Movement of the late 1960s. The efforts of Barry Gordy in Detroit created the “Motown” sound, a music form popular with both Black and White audiences that featured short, up-beat, “story” songs of love gained and lost. The Beatles revolutionized Rock and Roll upon their arrival in America in 1964 by opening up the “British Invasion”, internationalizing Rock music, and pioneering a more mature and thoughtful approach to popular music. The various forms of music that emerged with the birth of Rock and Roll would serve as backdrop for the massive social and political changes of the chaotic 1960s.
The Youth Movement: During the 1960s, a youth movement developed that challenged American politics, its social system, and the values of the time, largely inspired by the 1950s “beat” movement which openly criticized American society. Students concerned about injustices in political and social issues formed Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), expressing their views in the Port Huron Statement, a document that outlined their criticisms of American life and its lack of justice for many groups within it. SDS would be active in the Anti-War Movement of the 1960s, inspiring many draftees to burn their draft cards. Founded at the University of California, Berkley in 1964, the Free Speech Movement challenged freedom of expression limitations on university campuses by “demonstrating” against the administration of that school. Up until this time, most university campuses viewed students in a parental fashion, imposing curfews, and supervising the personal lives of their students. This idea, known as “in loco parentis”, became a source of irritation and outrage for Baby Boomers just entering college. The tactics used by the Free Speech Movement, borrowed from Civil Rights pioneers, and became the model for college demonstrations around the country.
The Counterculture: Instead of “challenging the system”, some youth sought to create their own society, becoming known as “hippies”, and leading what came to be known as the “Counterculture”. They lived a life that promoted flamboyant dress, rock music, drug use, and free and independent living. At the core of this movement was a utopian ideal of living that they believed was closer to nature, full of love, empathy, tolerance, and cooperation. Communes, in which members shared everything and worked together, were formed when hippies “dropped out” of society. The City of San Francisco became a haven for this new hippie culture in 1965, settling in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. Young people from around the United States began to flock to Haight-Ashbury, bringing with them all kinds of new ideas and inspiring new forms of music such as Acid Rock, popularized by the Jefferson Airplane, and giving birth to the “Jam Band” concept made famous by the Grateful Dead. The hippie movement spread across the United States, popularized by the new music they created. Many hippies began to separate themselves entirely from society, moving to plots of land in rural areas, attempting to create “Utopian” communities, or “communes”, based on some ideal of justice and sharing. The high point of the Counterculture came in 1969 at a massive concert known as “Woodstock Festival” in upstate New York, attended by nearly 500,000 people. The counterculture declined soon after Woodstock as some hippie communities became places where criminal activity was common. A subsequent music festival known as the Altamont Free Concert later in 1969, headlined by the Rolling Stones, marked the beginning of the end of the Counterculture as one man was murdered there by the Hell’s Angels who were hired to provide security. The “end of the 60s” was also heralded by the murders directed by Charles Manson, the leader of a hippie commune that cast suspicion on hippies generally throughout the United States.
The Rise of Feminism: Although women had succeeded in gaining the vote in 1920 with the passage of the 19th Amendment, and although women had made some advances in access to employment, many women in the late 1950s and early 1960s had become frustrated by the limited options they faced in life. It seemed to many that women were expected to be housewives and mothers, and this domestic role denied women the opportunity to explore their own potential. This feeling was captured by a woman named Betty Friedan in 1963 when she published her book “The Feminine Mystique”. The purpose of Friedan’s book was to expose the isolation and frustration that many women experienced while fulfilling traditional female roles of mother and housewife. This book was an account of women’s experiences, and details their yearnings for more opportunities to be part of the public sphere of American life. Also prominent in the Feminist movement of the 1970s was Gloria Steinem, a former Playboy “Bunny” who founded “Ms. Magazine”, a periodical that analyzed social and political issues from a feminist point of view. As well, Gloria Steinem founded a “Pro-Choice” movement that advocated the rights of women to gain access to abortion, or “reproductive freedom” as she described it. The goal of Feminism was to create a society in which women would be equal to men in all affairs, including education, employment, and politics.
National Organization for Women (NOW): Betty Friedan, considered the founder of modern Feminism, through her book, inspired the formation of discussion groups across the United States which ultimately led to the formation in 1966 of the National Organization for Women (NOW). Women now had a formal organization that would lobby for women’s social, legal, and political rights. NOW soon focused its efforts on gaining passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), a proposal that sought to guarantee the equality of all Americans, regardless of sex. Opponents of the ERA feared that it would make women eligible for combat and the draft just as men were, and might threaten their place in many industries which was protected by labor laws. The opposition to ERA was led by a fiery Conservative named Phyllis Schlafly, who organized the “Stop ERA” campaign of the 1970s. The ERA ultimately failed to gain ratification by the early 1980s, though it has been reintroduced several times.
Roe v. Wade (1973): The right of a woman legally to have access to an abortion in the United States came about as a result of a Supreme Court challenge in 1973. The State of Texas created a law which stated that no woman may obtain an abortion of her child except if a mother’s life was threatened by continuing the pregnancy. Jane Roe (pseudonym) challenged this law when she became pregnant. The questions put before the Court were: (1) do Americans have a “right to privacy” which would protect a woman in making a decision for abortion? (2) is there a constitutional right to privacy flowing from the Bill of Rights generally, and from the 14th Amendment’s due process clause? The decision of the Court determined that: (1) Americans do have a right to privacy, inferred in the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th Amendments; (2) this right to privacy extends to marriage, procreation, contraception, and abortion; (3) a fetus is not a legal person under the 14th Amendment; (4) no state can limit access to abortion during the first trimester; (5) states may legislate abortion when the child is in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters. This decision made access to abortion a legal choice for women. Because of the intensely personal nature of this issue, abortion has remained a highly charged political issue that divides the American public.
Latino Activism: Following the example of the civil rights movement, many Latino Americans in the early 1960s began to confront the limited education and employment opportunities available to them. The most prominent example of Latino activism came when Caesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta organized the National Farm Workers Association, a group that sought to increase the wages and benefits of the agricultural workers laboring in California’s vast agricultural industry, an industry that was highly dependent on migrant Latino labor. With the help of numerous college students and Civil Rights organizations, Chavez organized a boycott of grapes, a very profitable crop produced in California. Over the 5 years of the boycott, the profits from California grapes decreased dramatically, finally leading in 1970 to an agreement on the part of the grape growers to increase the wages of agricultural workers and improve working conditions. In the process of the boycott, 2 groups representing Latino labor merged to form the United Farm Workers (UFW), a union that continues to represent the interests of agricultural workers of all backgrounds across the United States. Another important activist effort came with the formation of Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO), a student group dedicated to confronting discrimination on college campuses. A third example of Latino activism came in the form of a new political party named La Raza Unida (the United People) started in 1969. The purpose of this new party was to promote Latino (also called “Chicano”) interests socially and politically. The most controversial achievement of Latino activism was the passage of the Bilingual Education Act (1968), a federal law that directed school districts with significant Latino populations to provide education to the children of immigrants in Spanish while they learned English.
Environmental Movement: The launch of the Environmental Movement came in 1962 when a marine-biologist named Rachel Carson published her influential book “Silent Spring”, a work that examined the effects of pesticides on ecosystems. In particular, Carson explored the impact of DDT, used to reduce mosquito populations. It seemed that DDT significantly reduced the population of fish and birds along with mosquitoes. This best-selling book led to a general concern among Americans that the environment was threatened by human activity, leading to many legislative changes designed to address the problems pointed out by this new and powerful movement. Among the achievements of the Environmental Movement of the 1960s and 1970s were: (1) the passage of Clean Air Acts, laws designed to reduce harmful emissions into the atmosphere; (2) the passage of the Clean Water Act of 1972, a law designed to prevent the contamination of water sources by industries; (3) the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970, an agency whose mission is to oversee American environmental policy and standards.
WHAT WERE THE KEY POLITICAL EVENTS OF THE 1960s AND 1970s?
New Frontier: Taken from his acceptance speech to become the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee in 1960, the term New Frontier refers to the series of programs and priorities John F. Kennedy (JFK) would purse during his Presidency. The New Frontier was designed to achieve several goals. In order to boost the economy, President Kennedy urged the passage of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, a law that sought to lower tariffs and encourage more international trade. JFK also gained an increase in the national minimum wage. A second goal of the Kennedy Administration was to improve housing by creating a new cabinet-level agency called Housing and Urban Affairs. The goal of this agency was to improve the conditions of housing for middle and lower income Americans and stimulate economic development in cities. A third goal of the New Frontier was to increase American international aid. To this end, Kennedy ordered the creation of the Peace Corps in 1961, an agency of the federal government that would “promote world peace and friendship…which shall make available to interested countries men and women of the United States qualified for service abroad…to help the peoples of such countries”. Since its beginning, almost 200,000 American citizens have shared their time working in poor and underdeveloped nations on educational, agricultural, and community development programs. A fourth goal of the New Frontier was to strengthen national defense by encouraging the use of the U.S. Army Special Forces in “counterinsurgency”, that is, in assisting people in other nations who opposed communist attempts to take over their nations. JFK popularized the Special Forces by encouraging use of the “Green Beret”, a distinctive head cover for Special Forces members. Kennedy also increased the size of the military overall. A fifth goal of the New Frontier was to boost the Space Program by ensuring that NASA had available funds to pioneer the exploration of space and develop the technologies necessary to achieve this goal.
Kennedy Assassination: JFK’s time in the presidency would be short-lived as he would be assassinated in Dallas on November 22nd, 1963, an event that devastated Americans, and would become the first of several significant assassinations during the 1960s. Kennedy’s killer would be an unknown young man named Lee Harvey Oswald who seemed to have no clear motive. Oswald himself would be killed 2 days later by a strip club owner named Jack Ruby, a man reputed to have ties to the Mafia. Americans were puzzled by this bizarre assassination and demanded answers. An investigative body was created to provide answers to the concerns of Americans, a body headed by Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren. After 10 months of study, the Warren Commission issued the “Warren Report” in 1964. At the time of the assassination, many Americans suspected that the USSR was behind the killing as Oswald had once defected to the USSR. Others believed that the Kennedy’s past involvement with the Mafia (bootlegging, elections, Mob investigations) may have played a part. The Warren Commission concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in the assassination and was not part of a conspiracy involving other participants. Although new forensic evidence suggests that Oswald indeed acted alone, the Warren Report itself has left this matter unresolved for many Americans who still suspect that Oswald was acting on behalf of a larger group of conspirators. Congress used the Kennedy assassination as a reason to clarify the vague language of the Constitution regarding the death of the President. The 25th Amendment was ratified in 1967 which states clearly that, upon the death of the President, the sitting Vice President would assume the office of the Presidency.
The Great Society: Upon the death of JFK, Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) assumed the Presidency. Elected to a term of his own in 1964, LBJ initiated an extensive series of 60 programs over the next 3 years that would come to be known as the “Great Society”, programs designed to achieve 2 main goals that included the elimination of poverty (War on Poverty) and the elimination of racial injustice. In addressing problems of health and welfare, Johnson created 3 significant new programs: (1) Medicare, a health insurance program for all senior citizens that would be funded by the Social Security system; (2) Medicaid, a medical insurance system for low-income Americans; (3) Child Nutrition Act, a law that established a school breakfast program. In addressing problems of Education, LBJ crated 3 significant programs: (1) Elementary and Secondary Education Act, providing aid to students and adult education; (2) Higher Education Act, a law that created assistance to college students by providing loans, scholarships, and work-study programs; (3) Head Start, a program that provides services to low-income Americans to assist in the health and preparation of their children for public school. In addressing problems of poverty, LBJ created 2 significant programs: (1) Office of Economic Opportunity, an agency that attempted to improve life in inner cities, especially through the creation of Job Corps, a training program for “at-risk” youth; (2) Housing and Urban Development, a federal government agency that would provide subsidies (financial assistance) that would increase the availability of “public housing”. Also among Great Society programs was Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA). The purpose of VISTA was to provide a workforce of volunteers dedicated to assisting poor communities throughout the United States in education, economic development, and community development, goals similar to the Peace Corps, but goals to be achieved domestically. LBJ also created the National Endowment for the Humanities, a new agency of the federal government designed to provide grants that would support education, research, and projects in the Humanities. Grant money would be given to educational institutions, museums, public broadcasting, and educational foundations across the United States.
Robert Kennedy Assassination: When LBJ decided not to run for re-election in 1968, a host of candidates entered the Democratic Party’s race to become the presidential nominee. Among the field of candidates was Robert F. Kennedy (RFK), the younger brother of JFK who had served as Attorney General in the Kennedy Administration. Robert Kennedy ran a campaign that inspired millions of young Americans as he challenged both the direction of American foreign policy in Vietnam and domestic policy regarding race and materialism. While in Indianapolis in the midst of his campaign, RFK soon learned of the assassination of Martin Luther King by a white supremacist named James Earl Ray. On April 4, 1968, the day of King’s assassination, RFK delivered a heartfelt speech that soothed the outrage of people in Indianapolis, but could not prevent the outbreak of riots elsewhere in the nation. The RFK campaign began to attract great support when he arrived for the primary in California, a primary which he won against his opponents. In the early hours of June 5, 1968, having just delivered a speech to his supporters, RFK was assassinated in a hotel kitchen by Sirhan Sirhan, a young Palestinian angered by America’s support of Israel.
1968 Democratic National Convention: Several factors contributed to the mayhem and violence that took place at the Democratic National Convention at Chicago in 1968. Recent assassinations, anti-war protests, and deepening suspicion of government angered many Americans who descended on Chicago to express this anger. Anti-war protestors gathered in the parks and streets of Chicago. Determined to showcase his city and its achievements, Mayor Richard Daley determined to keep peace and order in his streets. Almost 10,000 protestors, encouraged by SDS and the “Yippies”, came to Chicago to persuade the Democrats to include an anti-war platform in their 1968 campaign. Tensions between the protestors and the massive numbers of police officers boiled over into violence that was captured by live television broadcasts of the events. Protestors chanted “the whole world is watching”. Indeed they were. Most Americans watching were repulsed by the protestors and approved of the police force’s attempts to break up the protests.
The Election of 1968: Running on a platform of “Law and Order”, the Republican nominee Richard Millhouse Nixon, Vice-President under Eisenhower, won the Presidency. Many Americans had grown tired of the chaos and social upheaval of the 1960s and looked to Nixon to provide relief. No doubt, the televised events of the Democratic convention played a significant role in Nixon’s election. Although a man of great intelligence, President Nixon had a very distrustful and suspicious character, believing that he had been robbed of the Presidency in 1960 as a result of voter fraud in Chicago, and media favoritism toward John Kennedy. Although Nixon had many achievements during his first term in the Presidency, both domestic and foreign, he nevertheless felt that the media and “northeastern liberals” were “out to get him”. It is this resentful and suspicious nature that would lead to a most tragic event in American political history.
The Watergate Burglary: The Watergate Complex is a series of apartments, offices, and hotel rooms located in Washington DC. It is here that the Democratic Party had its campaign offices in preparation for the 1972 election campaign. Nixon supporters and advisers were worried that, even though Nixon was popular and had many achievements, he was not assured re-election in 1972. And even thought the Democrats had nominated a poor candidate, George McGovern, Nixon’s advisers seemed to share Nixon’s suspicion and distrust. Without Nixon’s knowledge, several advisers who belonged to the Committee to Re-Elect the President (CRP) instructed James McCord, a CRP member, and 4 others to burglarize the Democratic Party’s offices at the Watergate, hoping to obtain information about that party’s strategy for the 1972 election. While the burglary was in process, a security guard noticed that something was going on and called the police who soon arrested the men. When police determined that one of the burglars was a member of CRP, White House officials began to burn incriminating documents.
The Cover Up Begins: Nixon’s fatal mistake was his attempt to cover up the burglary rather than admit that members of his campaign had broken the law. Nixon pressured the CIA to stop the FBI from investigating the burglary since this would expose the fact that CRP had been the source of the money to pay the burglars. One member of the FBI, Mark Felt, was outraged by this attempt to block the search for justice, and so began secretly to share what he knew about the investigation to a pair of reporters from the Washington Post. The reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, used Mark Felt’s information and began to write a series of articles about the break in that kept the Watergate story alive.
Nixon ordered his Press Secretary to deny any White House involvement in the burglary, and Americans seemed quite willing to believe this as they re-elected President Nixon in a landslide.
The Cover Up Unravels: The work of Woodward and Bernstein, and the 1973 trial of the Watergate burglars, led to the creation of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, headed by Senator Sam J. Ervin of North Carolina. The work of this Select Committee was assisted by the fact that the burglar John McCord was convinced to cooperate and share the information he knew. Armed with this information, the Select Committee was able to gain confessions of involvement from numerous Nixon officials, especially that of White House advisor John Dean. John Dean pointed the finger to Attorney General John Mitchell as the man who originally ordered the Watergate burglary. John Dean also named President Nixon as the main creator of the cover-up. These shocking accusations needed to be supported by evidence which Dean could not provide. When the Select Committee learned that President Nixon had a taping system in the Oval Office that recorded all his conversations, the Committee demanded that Nixon turn over the tapes. Nixon refused stating that the content of the conversations might jeopardize national security, and that he was protected by “executive privilege”. The special prosecutor for the Watergate cases, Leon Jaworski, sued Nixon to release the tapes in a case that eventually ended up in the Supreme Court.
United States v. Nixon (1974): The Supreme Court determined that (1) the President had to turn over the tapes; (2) Congress and Courts had the right to the tapes as an appropriate use power in a federal criminal matter, under Article III of the Constitution; (3) executive privilege can be claimed only in matters that may jeopardize national security. Protecting the President from criminal prosecution was not a matter of national security. President Nixon released his tapes, revealing that he had a role in covering up the crime, not in planning or carrying out the crime. Had Nixon gone to the public when he first learned of the crime, it is likely he could have remained in office. Because he was active in the cover-up however, he became the first President to resign in August of 1974. Vice President Gerald Ford would assume the Presidency until his defeat in the election of 1976 by Democrat Jimmy Carter of Georgia.
UNIT 8: UNITED STATES SINCE THE VIETNAM WAR (1973 – PRESENT)
HOW WERE RIGHTS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR CITIZENS EXPANDED SINCE 1973?
Title IX Enhances Female Opportunity: “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal assistance”. This section of the Education Amendments of 1972 brought dramatic changes to the place of women in all education activities in the United States. This legislation guarantees equal access to all academic programs, dormitory access, athletics, clubs, and bands. The most dramatic impact came in the area of athletics which now mandated equal funding for male and female sports, proportionate to student funding.
Texas v. Johnson (1989) Approves Flag-Burning: While participating in a protest against the Reagan Administration at the Republican National Convention in 1984, Gregory Johnson burned an American flag as a means of expressing his opinion. Johnson was convicted of violating a Texas law against vandalizing a respected object. Johnson appealed his conviction to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which overturned his conviction. The State of Texas then appealed this decision to the Supreme Court. In its decision, the Supreme Court declared that “Under the circumstances, Johnson’s burning of the flag constituted expressive conduct, permitting him to invoke the First Amendment”. In its decision, the Court acknowledged that non-verbal forms of free expression are permitted under the Constitution. As a result of this case, the act of burning the American flag as a means of free speech was found to be constitutional.
Americans with Disabilities Act (1990): In the early 1970s, the “Independent Living” movement worked to protect the rights of people of all levels of ability to live freely in society, and also advocated for the rights of the disabled to live outside of institutions. The culmination of this movement came in 1990 with the passage of the ADA. Under this new Civil Rights legislation, citizens are to be protected from discrimination based upon a “physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity”. As a result of this law, employers are required to make reasonable accommodations to allow disabled employees to perform their jobs.
Sandra Day O’Connor: In 1981, President Ronald Reagan nominated the first woman to join the Supreme Court, Sandra Day O’Connor. Justice O’Connor served on the Supreme Court from 1981 – 2005, and is currently the Chancellor of the College of William and Mary.
Clarence Thomas: The second African American to serve on the Supreme Court was Clarence Thomas, appointed by George H.W. Bush in 1991 (the first was Thurgood Marshall, counsel in the Brown v. Board 1954 case). Prior to his appointment, Justice Thomas worked as Assistant Secretary in the Civil Rights division of the Department of Education, and also served as the Chairman of the Equal Opportunities Commission. Justice Thomas was considered controversial as he was a conservative African American on the Court.
HOW DID AMERICA ATTEMPT TO EXPAND OPPORTUNITY FOR AFRICAN-AMERICANS?
Affirmative Action: The idea of “Affirmative Action” began with an executive order in 1961 by President Kennedy that all projects funded with federal dollars “that take affirmative action” to ensure that no discrimination exists in hiring and employment practices. The idea of “Affirmative Action” soon evolved into a comprehensive policy used by government, education, and business. The goal of Affirmative Action is to ensure opportunities in education, business, and government be made available and accessible to all Americans regardless of race or gender. The Johnson Administration took this idea further by adding the goal of correcting “the effects of past and present discrimination”. Following government’s lead, education and business made attempts to increase the diversity of students and employees, in many cases, altering standards to achieve the targeted level of diversity. The goal of achieving racial diversity has led to several court challenges, especially in education.
Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg (1971): In an effort to further integrate its schools and create diversity, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools initiated a program known as “bussing” (where blacks are bussed out of neighborhoods to white schools, and vice versa). This program was challenged, making its way to the Supreme Court which faced the following question: Are the use of (1) “bussing”, (2) manipulation of school district boundaries, and (3) the use of “ratios” (establishing percentages of white to black students) constitutional as techniques for integrating public education? The Court found that, to give meaning to Brown v. Board and other school decisions mandating desegregation in public education, the three techniques of bussing, boundary manipulation, and ratios were all constitutional approaches to desegregating education. This decision accelerates the use of bussing programs throughout the nation, leading to bitter conflicts and political divisions during the 1970s. The phenomenon of “white flight” (white families moving their children to private and parochial schools) begins to take hold in urban areas.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978): The University of California had a special program for its medical school in which a certain number of places were “set aside” for minority applicants. Alan Bakke was denied admission to the medical school even though he had higher test scores than some of the minority students who gained entry to the school. Bakke sued the University in a case that ended up in the Supreme Court, posing these questions: (1) did the University’s minority admission criteria violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment? (2) are racial considerations always unconstitutional in university admissions programs? The Court determined that (1) the particular program used in this case did violate the 14th Amendment; (2) race can only be considered as one of several factors in “Affirmative Action” programs so long as “quotas” are not used; (3) a substantial state interest must be proven before imposing limitations on the 14th Amendment. Affirmative Action is a term used to describe an active effort to improve employment or educational opportunities for minorities (also for women). This decision forced schools and employers to change the way they ran affirmative action programs in ways that did not make race the sole determinant in admissions or hiring.
WHAT ARE THE TWO MAIN POLITICAL VIEWPOINTS IN THE UNITED STATES?
American Political Spectrum: There are two primary political positions in American politics that provide a vision of what America should be and what it should stand for. The first position is known as “Liberal”, and those that follow this view tend to be found in the Democratic Party. The second position is known as “Conservative”, and those that follow this view tend to be found in the Republican Party.
The Left Wing - Liberal Views: Resulting from the influence of the Progressive movement and the New Deal, Liberals believe that government should regulate the economy to protect people from the power of large corporations and wealthy elites. They believe the government should help the disadvantaged through social programs and taxing the wealthy. They believe most social problems have their roots in economic inequality.
The Right Wing - Conservative Views: Conservatives believe that the free enterprise system (with little government intervention) is the way to organize society. They oppose high taxes and government programs that transfer wealth from the rich to the less wealthy. They believe that most social problems result from issues of morality and personal failings.
The Left and the Right Confront Domestic Changes 1969 – Present: The problems posed by modern democratic life in America are difficult to resolve. Both primary political views identify the sources of problems differently, and thus propose different solutions to identified problems. Are problems the result of modern life itself, and thus in need of government solutions? Or, are problems the result of individual mismanagement of one’s personal life, thus no need for government solutions? Attempts to address America’s problems will be attempted from both perspectives as power in the Congress and in the Presidency swings back and forth between Liberals to Conservatives.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION (R)?
New Federalism: “I reject the patronizing idea that government in Washington, DC is inevitably more wise and more efficient than government at the state or local level…”. With these words, President Nixon expressed a new policy for federal government action in the United States. New Federalism was an approach to government in which the federal government would engage in “revenue-sharing”, sending federal dollars to state and local agencies to spend as they wished. Although intended to increase the power of state and local governments to serve the needs of their citizens, the true impact of New Federalism was to increase the power of the federal government as state and local agencies came to rely on federal funding. The federal government soon attached “strings” to the money it sent out, requiring state and local governments to meet certain conditions in order to receive federal money, thus increasing federal influence.
Nixon, School Desegregation, and the Southern Strategy: As a Quaker, President Nixon believed that racism was a great moral failure of the United States, and expressed his view that American society should be “color-blind”. Mindful of maintaining Southern support for the Republican Party however, Nixon created a school integration plan as part of his “Southern Strategy” to gain Southern support. “I am convinced that while legal segregation is totally wrong, forced integration of housing or education is just wrong”. It is to “bussing” that Nixon is referring, a practice in which school districts moved children out of their neighborhoods to attend schools in other areas, thus creating an acceptable level of integration of White and Black students, even if created artificially. The practice of bussing was used in many school districts around the country, causing a great deal of chaos and protest. Nixon’s resistance to the practice of bussing, along with the overturning of Johnson administration Civil Rights policies, successfully brought much of the South into the Republican Party.
Détente - Nixon Opens Relations with China: In the late 1950s and early 1960s, relations between China and the Soviet Union began to worsen, leading to what is known as the Sino-Soviet split. President Nixon decided to take advantage of this split between the two former partners in order to increase America’s position in the Cold War. In early 1971, China extended an invitation to the American Table Tennis team to come to Moscow for a demonstration competition. The invitation was significant as America had cut off relations with China after the Communist Revolution in 1949, and no American had been permitted to China for the past 20 years. The success of this “Ping Pong” diplomacy led to President Nixon’s trip to China in early 1972. Nixon met directly with Chinese leader Chairman Mao Tse-Tung, opening formal diplomatic relations with that communist country. The easing of tensions between the West and communist nations came to be known as Détente.
Détente – Relations with the USSR: Soviet Leader Leonid Brezhnev feared that a Chinese-American alliance would threaten the Soviet Union’s place in the world. Having watched tensions ease between China and the U.S., Premier Brezhnev gave in to American pressure to meet. In May of 1972, President Nixon and his wife flew to Moscow for a series of high-level negotiations, meetings that have since come to be called “summit meetings”. During this first Soviet-American summit, several important agreements were reached: (1) an increase in Soviet-American trade; (2) SALT I (Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty) in which both sides agreed to limit the size of their nuclear arsenals; (3) the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, in which both sides agreed not to develop weapons systems designed to intercept in-coming nuclear missiles. These agreements solidified Nixon’s policy of Détente as its approach to communist nations, with Premier Brezhnez declaring that a new era of “peaceful coexistence” between the superpowers had been established.
Stagflation: For the first time, in 1971, the United States was in the position of importing more goods than it exported. This happened because American manufacturing facilities were old and inefficient in comparison to the more modern and productive manufacturing capabilities of Germany and Japan. Unable to compete effectively, American plants began to close in the late 1960s and early 1970s, leading to millions of American jobs lost. A new economic condition arose, called “stagflation” in which inflation of prices occurred at the same time as the economy slowed, and unemployment rose. Unsure of how to address this new problem, the Nixon Administration attempted to control inflation but cutting government spending and raising taxes. The hope with this strategy was that increased taxes would drive down purchasing of goods, thus driving down the price of goods in general. Nixon would not get to see the results of this strategy as Americans vigorously protested tax increases. Nixon also attempted to have the Federal Reserve raise interest rates in an attempt to reduce consumer spending. This too met with failure.
Wage and Price Controls: In 1970, Congress passed the Economic Stabilization Act, a law that would give the President the power to set wages and prices throughout the economy. Although President Nixon was opposed to permanent wage and price controls, in August of 1971, Nixon did impose a temporary 90-day wage and price freeze (mandatory for large corporations), the first since World War II. Although these controls were relaxed after the first 90 days, the intended effect of reducing unemployment did not occur.
1973 Oil Crisis: In October of 1973, an Arab coalition led by Egypt and Syria (Soviet allies), attacked Israel in what has come to be known as the Yom Kippur War. The United States came to the aid of Israel with weapons airlifted to Israel at President Nixon’s order. Israel’s ultimate victory in this conflict however came at a high cost to the United States. In retaliation for American support of Israel in the Yom Kippur War, OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries), a worldwide oil cartel, announced an oil embargo against the United States, cutting oil production, and raising prices. This energy crisis forced President Nixon to take drastic measures to reduce oil consumption. In January 1974, President Nixon signed a bill that set the national speed limit at 55 miles per hour. The impact of the 1973 Oil Crisis on the American economy was dramatic, and illustrated clearly for the first time how dependent the American economy was on Middle East oil, much of which was controlled by Arab-Muslim countries.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE FORD ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Presidential Pardon: The resignation of President Nixon in August 1974, as a result of the Watergate scandal, brought Vice President Gerald R. Ford to the Presidency. On September 8th, 1974, President Ford addressed the American public in a nationwide broadcast in which he explained that it was in the best interest of the nation that former President Nixon be pardoned for any crimes he may have committed while President. He went on to state that the Watergate scandal was “an American tragedy in which we all have played a part. It could go on and on, or someone must write the end to it. I have concluded that only I can do that, and if I can, I must”. President Ford believed that by pardoning Nixon, the country could put Watergate behind it and focus on the economic crisis at hand. Many have since come to believe that Ford’s decision, practical though it may have been, cost him much political support, weakening his chances for re-election in 1976.
WIN – Whip Inflation Now: The Ford Administration had to deal with the continuing problem of inflation. Ford believed that the source of the problem was overconsumption on the part of the American people. In order to encourage a reduction in consumption, President Ford addressed the American people in October 1974, asking them to “Whip Inflation Now”. “If you can’t spare a penny from your food budget, surely you can cut the food you waste by 5%”. He urged people to wear “WIN” buttons as a way to spread the message. He formed a Whip Inflation Now committee, composed of 22 citizens, which encouraged businesses to pledge not to raise prices.
Special Education: Although the Ford Administration struggled with the economy, one great achievement came with the passage of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act in 1975. As a result of this law, Special Education was implemented throughout American public schools, ensuring that educational opportunities were available to all citizens, regardless of specific challenges.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE CARTER ADMINISTRATION (D)?
Election of 1976: The anger and bitterness of the American people over both the Watergate scandal and Ford’s pardon of Nixon were too much to overcome for President Ford in the year of America’s Bicentennial year. Americans blamed the Republican Party for much of America’s problems and so turned to the relatively unknown Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter. A World War II navy veteran, peanut farmer, and Governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter would become President with 50.1% of the vote in 1976.
Pardon of Vietnam Draft Dodgers: On his first day in Office, President Carter issued an Executive Order granting an amnesty (pardon) to all Vietnam-era draft dodgers, fulfilling one of his campaign promises.
Stonewall Riots (1969) and the Gay Rights Movement: Homosexuals in the 1950s and 1960s faced persecution from American society in general, and also faced harassment at the hands of local police forces in the restaurants and bars they attended. At the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City, a police raid in 1969 got out of hand leading to a series of riots and protests over the next few days. Gay activists soon organized, seeking an end to discrimination based on sexual orientation. The Gay Rights movement gained support from President Carter in a variety of ways: (1) Carter opposed a California initiative that would have banned homosexuals from serving in public schools; (2) Carter was the first President to meet with Gay rights activists. As a former President, Carter has declared that he “opposes all forms of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and believes there should be equal protection under the law for people who differ in sexual orientation”. He has also come out in favor of “civil unions” and an end to the ban on gays in the military.
American Control of Panama Canal Ended (1977): The Panama Canal, an important waterway linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, had been built with the backing of President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, and controlled by the United States since its opening in 1914. Against majority opinion, President Carter approved the Panama Canal Treaties, a series of documents that handed control of the Panama Canal to the nation of Panama. Many Americans opposed this decision as it seemed to transfer control of an important American asset to an unstable country led by an unelected General.
Airline Deregulation Act (1978): Until 1978, the airline industry was heavily regulated by the federal government. Many came to believe as well that the airlines that existed were using tactics that hurt the American consumer by limiting competition. Beginning in 1975, Congress began to investigate the airline industry and review the heavy regulation placed upon it. President Carter signed the Airline Deregulation Act in 1978, a law that was designed to increase competition in the airline industry by: (1) making it easier to start a new airline; (2) eliminating government control of ticket prices; (3) allowed international carriers to operate domestic routes. Overall, the American public benefitted from de-regulation of the airline industry, gaining lower fares and increased service.
Department of Energy (1977): In response to the 1973 Oil Crisis, President Carter proposed and gained the creation of a new cabinet-level agency, the Department of Energy. This new Department would be responsible for the creation of national energy policy and oversight of nuclear safety. Among its specific responsibilities are supervision of the nuclear weapons program, production of nuclear reactors for the Navy, radioactive waste disposal, domestic energy production, and energy conservation.
National Energy Act (1978): Believing that overconsumption of oil and other uses of energy by Americans posed significant economic problems, President Carter encouraged Americans to support a “war” against overconsumption. As part of this war, President Carter urged the passage of the National Energy Act, a law that required public utilities to encourage a reduction in the demand for electricity by performing energy conservation audits. Carter also came out in favor of research into renewable energy sources such as solar power. Despite these measures, Americans saw little progress from the Carter Administration in dealing with economic difficulties, much of which Carter seemed to be blaming on energy consumption.
Three Mile Island Nuclear Accident (1979): Three Mile Island is a commercial nuclear power plant located outside of Harrisburg, PA. In March1979, a partial melt-down in one of its reactors occurred, leading to the release of small amounts of radiation. Confusing reports about what had occurred had left the American public fearful of nuclear power, a fact made worse by the release 12 days earlier of a popular movie entitled “The China Syndrome”, about a nuclear accident. Subsequent research has revealed that the small amount of radiation released during the accident did not increase cancer rates in the area, but the suspicion of nuclear power after the Three Mile Island Accident effectively led to the end of nuclear power plant construction in the United States between 1980 and 1984. Mistrust of nuclear power continues as tougher standards have been put into place regulating the construction of new plants.
The “Malaise” Speech (1979): In July 1979, President Carter delivered a televised speech to the American people, speaking primarily about a “crisis of confidence”. “I want to talk to you about a fundamental threat to American democracy…we can see this crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our nation…in a nation that was proud of hard work, strong families, close-knit communities, and our faith in God; too many of us now worship self-indulgence, and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns…we’ve discovered that owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning…I’m asking you for your own good and for your nation’s security to take no unnecessary trips, to use carpools…to obey the speed limit, and to set your thermostats to save fuel…” This pessimistic view of America did not sit well with the American public, leading many to turn away from President Carter.
The Iranian Revolution (1979): Iran had been an American ally since 1953 when the United States helped its leader, the Shah of Iran, gain power in that nation. The Shah ensured that American would have access to Middle East oil. In 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini led an Islamic Fundamentalist revolution in Iran, successfully replacing the Shah as the leader of Iran. The Shah fled Iran, eventually gaining asylum (protection) in the United States. In response, the Muslim revolutionaries seized the American Embassy in Tehran (capital), taking 52 Americans hostage. In response to the hostage taking, the United States froze all Iranian assets held in American banks, totaling $8 billion dollars. The hostages would eventually be held captive for 444 days. The Iranian revolution gave rise to Muslim Fundamentalist forces in other Islamic countries, causing internal struggles between modernists and fundamentalists, and leading to much bloodshed over political control.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REAGAN ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Election of 1980: With the 1980 election looming, President Carter suffered in public opinion polls as a result of the poor economy, his “Malaise Speech”, and his seeming inability to gain the release of the 52 hostages in Iran. Carter’s opponent would be the former actor and Governor of California, Republican Ronald Reagan. Compared to the negative tone of Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan brought to the campaign a boundless optimism about America’s future which Americans found refreshing. Reagan would go on to win a landslide victory in 1980, ushering in what has come to be called the “Reagan Revolution”. On inauguration day, Iran released the 52 American hostages, even though the Carter Administration had negotiated their release. A prominent conservative, Ronald Reagan benefitted from the rebirth of Conservatism, a political point of view that grew slowly from the founding of “National Review” (magazine) by William F. Buckley in 1955. In his inaugural address President Reagan set the tone for his administration when he states: “Government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem”.
Rebirth of Conservatism: The revival of conservative ideas occurred for two reasons. Some Americans felt that liberal ideas were leading the U.S. toward communism. Because communism rejected religion, Americans with deep religious faith saw communism as a struggle over values. Liberalism, which focused on economic welfare, lost the support of many religious Americans who turned to conservatism. In 1964, the new conservative movement had enough influence to enable conservative Barry Goldwater to win the Republican nomination for president. From that defeat to the landslide victory of conservative Ronald Reagan in 1980, American society moved decisively in a conservative direction. Many Americans looked to conservative ideas out of fear that society had lost touch with traditional values during the 1960s and 1970s. The Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade (legalizing abortion) and the limitation of prayer in public schools shocked deeply religious Americans. Many Americans wanted a return to stability, putting behind them the upheavals of the 1960s and 1970s. Among those seeking a return to “normalcy” was a group called the “Moral Majority” made up of religious conservatives led by Jerry Falwell, a popular televangelist. The Moral Majority, through a network of ministers nationwide, awakened religious conservatives to the power of politics. Ronald Reagan offered hope to these and other conservative voters, often referred to as the “New Right Coalition”.
Reaganomics (Supply-Side Economics): Ronald Reagan entered the Presidency at a time when the U.S. economy was extremely weak. In order to address this problem, Reagan employed a new economic strategy of encouraging the Federal Reserve to maintain high interest rates, but also creating massive tax cuts. This blend of monetarist and supply-side economics came to be called “Reaganomics”. Reagan’s theory was that lowering tax rates would free up money to be used for investment in new businesses, which would then lead to increased employment, which then would lead to an increase in the amount of goods produced for people who would now have the money to purchase them. This intended effect was known as “trickle down” economics, that wealth would trickle down to the Middle and Lower class through investment by the richest Americans. Government would eventually suffer no loss of income as more taxpayers would be paying taxes at a lower rate. In the short term, this would mean that the budget deficit would increase, a problem Reagan attempted to address by reducing expenditures on social programs such as welfare, food stamps, school lunch programs, student loans, unemployment benefits, and housing subsidies. The budget deficit never closed during Reagan’s presidency, resulting in an increased national debt. Reagan also believed in taking government out of business affairs, encouraging deregulation of cable television, the auto industry, and further deregulation of the airline industry.
Reagan Takes on Air Traffic Controllers and Unions: Soon into his Administration, Reagan was confronted by a strike by federal air traffic controllers, a strike that was prohibited for government unions. Declaring the situation an emergency, Reagan announced that if the air traffic controller did not report to work within 48 hours, “they have forfeited their jobs and will be terminated”. True to his word, Reagan fired 11,345 air traffic controllers, effectively busting the union that represented them. Reagan’s actions encouraged many private employers to confront their own unions.
Election of 1984: By 1984, the American economy had rebounded significantly, with all economic indicators showing significant growth and lowered unemployment. The Democrats nominated former Vice President Walter Mondale to challenge Ronald Reagan. The Mondale ticket included Geraldine Ferarro, the first woman to be nominated Vice President by a major political party. Americans attributed the improved economy to Reagan’s decisions, rewarding him with the largest Presidential victory in American history, losing only the state of Minnesota, Mondale’s home state.
The War on Drugs: Believing the use of recreational drugs to be detrimental to American society, Reagan signed a bill that increased funding for the “War on Drugs”, a law that established mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses. Reagan was joined in the fight against drug use by First Lady Nancy Reagan who spear-headed a national anti-drug campaign known as “Just Say No”, targeting teenagers and young adults.
Immigration Reform and Control Act (1986): By the mid 1980s, many Americans became concerned with the use of illegal immigrants by employers. In response, President Reagan signed the IRCA in 1986, a law that made it illegal for employers to hire or recruit illegal immigrants. As well, the law held employers responsible for knowing the immigration status of its employees. Recognizing that many American jobs were held by illegal immigrants, Reagan also approved an amnesty provision for any illegal immigrant who could establish that s/he had been in the United States continuously since January 1, 1982, a provision that offered protection to as many as 3 million immigrants. At the signing of this legislation, Reagan declared that this new law would “improve the lives of individuals who must hide in the shadows, without access to the many benefits of a free and open society…[and] if they choose, they may become Americans”.
Challenger Disaster (1986): President Nixon launched the Space Shuttle Program in 1972, a project of NASA that involved sending re-usable manned space craft into orbit for the delivery of satellites, the construction of the International Space Station, and research purposes. The first successful shuttle launch occurred in 1981. However, in January of 1986, the Space Shuttle “Challenger” exploded as it attempted to reach orbit, killing all seven astronauts aboard, including the first “teacher in space”, Christa McAuliffe. On the night of the disaster, President Reagan addressed the nation, stating that “we will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them…as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and slipped the surly bonds on Earth to touch the face of God”. The Space Shuttle Program was grounded for almost 3 years after the Challenger disaster as scientists and engineers investigated the incident.
Iran-Contra Affair: The Reagan Administration was committed to confronting communist insurgents worldwide as the Cold War continued. In Nicaragua, an anti-communist rebel group known as the “Contras” was working to overthrow the communist Sandinista government. Officials in the Reagan Administration supported the Contras in a less-than-legal fashion by secretly selling weapons to Iran, and then funneling the money to the Contras in Nicaragua. When this activity became public in 1986, President Reagan claimed that this activity had occurred without his knowledge. A commission to investigate the scandal was appointed by President Reagan, leading to the conviction of several Reagan Administration officials for violating federal law. There was not enough evidence to prove that President Reagan knew of this operation. A congressional investigation concluded that “if the President did not know what his national security advisers were doing, he should have”. As a result of this scandal, Reagan’s popularity dropped significantly.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GEORGE H.W. BUSH ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Election of 1988: Having served as Reagan’s Vice President for 8 years, George H.W. Bush landed the Republican nomination for President in 1988. Opposing him was Democratic nominee Governor Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts. Bush would win the Presidency largely because of Ronald Reagan’s sustained popularity, and the Dukakis campaigns many mistakes. In the heat of the campaign, George H.W. Bush issued a solemn promise of “No New Taxes”. This was a promise he would live to regret.
“No New Taxes” Pledge Broken: Faced with budget deficits left over from the Reagan presidency, and believing his ability to act internationally depended on keeping the U.S. financially sound, President Bush was determined to get the federal budget under control. With a Democratic-controlled Congress, President Bush found that the only way to bring the deficit under control was to raise taxes. This tax increase occurred at the same time as a mild recession hit the country. As well, many corporations were “down-sizing” at the time, leading to an increase in unemployment. Many of President Bush’s supporters felt betrayed by the broken pledge, eroding the President’s support.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION (D)?
New Democrats: Following the disastrous losses to Reagan and Bush in the 1980s, many in the Democratic Party believed that the party was out of step with the American people. In order to re-vision the Democrats, a new group called the Democratic Leadership Council was formed to produce new goals that might lead the Democratic Party back into the White House. Among the new issues New Democrats would pursue were: (1) welfare reform; (2) middle-class tax cuts; (3) deregulation; (4) free trade. Among the leading “New Democrats” was the young Governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton.
Election of 1992: Bill Clinton won the nomination of the Democratic Party to face Republican incumbent President George H.W. Bush. This election would be memorable as the two major parties were challenged a third popular candidate running as an independent, Ross Perot. Many believe that Ross Perot drew more votes from President Bush’s usual supporters than he did from Bill Clinton, thus leading to Clinton’s election. President Clinton selected Tennessee Senator Al Gore to serve as his Vice President.
NAFTA (1993): Although initiated by President Bush, the North American Free Trade Agreement would be signed into law by President Clinton in 1993. The purpose of NAFTA was to encourage trade between Canada, the United States, and Mexico by eliminating the majority of tariffs among the 3 nations. Another important provision of NAFTA was the removal of investment restrictions, thus allowing capital to flow freely. Opponents of NAFTA believed that American jobs would be lost to Mexico, and feared that the lack of labor rights in the agreement would leave workers unprotected both in the U.S. and in Mexico.
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”: In the tradition of a New Democrat seeking a “Third Way”, President Clinton early on in his Administration proposed a new policy for the Armed Forces. Until 1993, homosexuals were not permitted to serve in the armed forces, a position that Clinton challenged during the 1992 campaign. However, he faced stiff resistance to changing this policy from the Republicans in Congress. In an attempt to fulfill his campaign statements, Congress passed, and President Clinton signed, the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. Potential members of the Armed Services who were homosexual would be permitted to serve if they did not reveal their homosexuality, and recruiters would not ask about it. Clinton was criticized by many on the left for not pushing harder to allow homosexuals to serve openly.
Healthcare Reform Fails: Another campaign promise President Clinton made in 1992 was to seek healthcare reform. Many Americans lacked health insurance, and the bills that came from a major medical incident, even for the insured, could wipe out a family’s finances. At the head of the taskforce appointed to review healthcare options was the President’s wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton. The goal of the plan was to guarantee health benefits for all Americans. The plan quickly ran into opposition from business leaders, who feared increased business costs, from insurance companies, and from the American Medical Association. Republicans opposed the plan because it seemed too costly, was too complicated, and would require far too much government involvement. Ultimately, the plan to reform healthcare failed miserably, hurting the Clinton Presidency.
Contract with America: The mid-term elections of 1994 would be disastrous for the Democratic Party. A new coalition of conservative Republicans, led by Newt Gingrich, campaigned on a new “Contract with America”, a platform that promised significant Welfare reform, term limits, a balanced budget amendment, and a desire to control federal spending. For the first time in 40 years, the Republican Party gained a majority in the House of Representatives. Although the House, with its new Republican majority, passed most of what it had promised, Senate opposition and presidential vetoes stalled the Contract with America platform. The one significant change that did take place came with the passage of the Welfare Reform Act, a law that significantly reduced the number of people on Welfare nationwide through a series of tougher standards and incentives to employers to hire people who had been on Welfare.
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (1996): Major changes to addressing illegal immigration would come in 1996 when President Clinton signed the IIRIRA in 1996. Among its provisions were: (1) families sponsoring an immigrant must be above the poverty level; (2) strengthening of penalties for those caught smuggling illegal immigrants; (3) addition of 5,000 Border Patrol agents; (4) easier standards by which to deport undocumented aliens. These measures were passed as a means to address the increasing population of illegal immigrants into the U.S.
Election of 1996: By 1996, the American economy was booming, and President Clinton seemed to be given the credit for this by the American people. President Clinton would face Republican nominee Senator Robert Dole and Ross Perot, who had since created a new political party, the Reform Party. Although President Clinton would win the Presidency, Republicans won control of both houses of Congress.
Lewinsky Scandal Leads to Impeachment: It seemed that scandal, real or imagined, never sat far from President Clinton. Early in his first term, he had been charged with benefitting from illegal loans made to Whitewater Development, an Arkansas real estate company. Attorney General Janet Reno appointed an independent panel to investigate the charge, a panel which went on to appoint an independent counsel, Kenneth Starr. When evidence of a personal relationship between President Clinton and a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky, came to light, Kenneth Starr was directed to investigate that matter as well. Complicating matters further, another woman, Paula Jones of Arkansas, came forward with allegations of sexual harassment at the hands of then Governor Bill Clinton. It was alleged that the President had perjured himself (lied) under oath in a deposition regarding his sexual conduct. Kenneth Starr sent a report to the Senate Judiciary Committee, claiming the President had committed perjury, abused Presidential power, and obstructed Justice. In December of 1998, the House passed two articles of impeachment against the President, leading to a nationally-televised trial in the Senate. Although President Clinton survived impeachment, his reputation was badly damaged as a result both of the allegations and the impeachment proceedings.
WHAT WERE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GEORGE W. BUSH ADMINISTRATION (R)?
Election of 2000: Having served 2 full terms, Bill Clinton was unable to run for President in 2000. The Democrats nominated his Vice President, Al Gore, who would face the Republican nominee, George W. Bush, son of President George H.W. Bush, who faced fellow Republican John McCain in the Primary. The election was hotly contested, and did not produce a clear winner. Although Al Gore won the popular vote (48.4 – 47.9), no candidate had yet won the 270 Electoral College votes needed to gain election. The race was particularly close in the state of Florida, requiring that votes be re-counted. Because the vote could not be completed by the state-mandated deadline, the Gore team went to the Florida Supreme Court to gain a deadline extension. The Bush team then went to the Supreme Court of the United States to determine if the Florida Court had acted constitutionally by extending the deadline. In November 2000, the deadline having expired, yet without all of the votes re-counted, Florida officials certified George W. Bush the winner, thus giving him the Presidency. Many Democrats were suspicious of this result as the Governor of Florida was Jeb Bush, George Bush’s brother. Although the Florida Supreme Court ordered all Florida counties to begin a hand recount of all ballots, the Supreme Court of the United States order the re-count stopped, stating that the hand re-counts violated equal protection, and that federal law and the Constitution both demand that Electoral College votes must be cast on the same day. Since Florida missed the Electoral College deadline, its votes would not count. This Supreme Court ruling left Bush the certified winner of Florida, and thus President of the United States.
Graying of America: A variety of factors had contributed to the ageing of the American population by the early 2000s. First, advances in medical technology created a significant decrease in mortality rates. Second, life expectancy in general was increasing. Third, fertility rates among younger Americans were lower than in generations past. The increasing percentage of older Americans has led to the formation of advocacy groups interested in promoting the interests of older Americans, such as the American Association of Retired People.
No Child Left Behind: President Bush proposed major reforms to education, eventually signing NCLB into law in early 2001. The idea behind this legislation was that, by setting high standards for education, and creating measurable goals through standardized testing, positive individual outcomes for students could be achieved. NCLB also increased accountability for states and school districts. In order to receive federal education funding, states and school districts were required to follow NCLB guidelines.
Election of 2004: As the incumbent, President Bush faced the Democratic nominee for President, John Kerry, in the 2004 election. John Kerry was a Vietnam veteran and Senator from Massachusetts. The Democrats hoped that Kerry’s wartime credentials, along with President Bush’s avoidance of the Vietnam draft, could overcome President Bush’s role as Commander in Chief as the Afghanistan and Iraq wars raged. The Bush campaign focused its attention on the War on Terror, in light of the 9/11 tragedy. Americans opted not to “change horses midstream” and re-elected President Bush to another term.
WHAT WERE THE MAIN TECHNOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC CHANGES SINCE 1973?
Technology and Economic Changes: In 1946, the world’s first electronic digital computer, called ENIAC was created. Weighing over 30 tons, the machine took up as much floor space as a medium-sized house. The development of integrated circuits and microprocessors led to the development of the Personal Computer in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Digital electronics made worldwide communications possible with the creation of the Internet, a global information system. The roots of this networking system began with the U.S. Defense Department’s Advanced Research Project Agency in 1969. Known as ARPANET, this system linked government agencies, defense contractors, and scientists at various universities. The use of the Internet expanded by almost 300% between 1977 and 2000. The Internet also created a “dot.com” economy selling products and advertising online. Computer networks could link employees within an office or branch regardless of distance. By the late 1990s, many workers used a home computer and electronic mail to “telecommute” - do their jobs at home via their computer. Computer technology and the Internet helped to create a global economy.
Bill Gates and Silicon Valley: The main sources of innovation in computer technology and marketing can be found in the work of Bill Gates. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Bill Gates and a partner started Microsoft. In partnership with IBM, the world was introduced to the PC (personal computer), revolutionizing communications worldwide. As well, Gates developed and marketed an operating system that has become the dominant model in the computer world, “Windows”. Computer technology would see many improvements and innovations as a result of the concentration of technology talent in “Silicon Valley”, located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay area. Silicon Valley has since become a term referring to the vast pool of talent that produces innovations in the high-tech industry in general. The computer and technology industries have led to great economic benefits, and have influenced the shape of the world economy, ushering in an “Information Age”.
NASDAQ in the 1990s: The use of computers, the internet, and information technology in general has changed dramatically the way capital flows in the stock market. Investors can now purchase and sell stocks using NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations), an electronic, screen-based securities trading market. The introduction of instantaneous trade of stocks has accelerated the flow of capital among companies, and has linked traders worldwide.
The Development of New Trading Blocs: Several new trading regions, or blocs, were formed partly in response to the new possibilities created by computer technologies. (1) In 1994, NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) was created to increase international trade between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. (2) In 1993, the European Union (EU) was created to promote economic and political cooperation among European nations. The EU formed a common bank and a common currency (euro) for member nations, lifting trade barriers between members and setting import policies for outside countries. (3) The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) was an attempt to create a Pacific trade community to rival the EU, however political differences kept its members from working together. (4) The World Trade Organization (WTO) administered international trade agreements and helped settle trade disputes.
WHAT WERE SIGNIFICANT INTERNATIONAL EVENTS SINCE 1973?
“Live Aid” Addresses Famine in Ethiopia (1985): A series of famines hit the African nation of Ethiopia in the early 1980s, affecting 8 million people, and leaving 1 million dead. In order to generate monetary relief for Ethiopians, musicians Bob Geldof and Midge Ure organized an internationally televised concert held both in Britain and in the United States. The event included many of the popular musicians of the day, and raised millions of dollars from viewers. Further funds were raised when many of these same musicians released recordings such as “We Are the World”, donating the proceeds to famine relief.
Nelson Mandela and the End of Apartheid in South Africa: In the nation of South Africa, a government policy of racial separation known as “Apartheid” was established in 1948 and would continue until 1994. This system classified South Africans as “Black”, “White”, “Indian”, and “Colored”, and was designed to maintain White supremacy in the nation. Blacks were stripped of national citizenship, and assigned limited citizenship as part of a “Bantustan”, a tribal homeland. All aspects of South African life were segregated, including education. Rising in opposition to this system was Nelson Mandela, the leader of an anti-Apartheid group known as the African National Congress (ANC). In early 1962, Mandela was arrested and imprisoned for sabotage and political activities against the state, ultimately serving 27 years in prison until his release in 1990. Mandela’s plight was supported heavily in Western nations during the 1980s, leading to public pressure for his release. Mandela again took the leadership of the ANC and began negotiations with the South African government, ultimately bringing an end to Apartheid in 1994. Mandela would go on to become the President of a legally multi-racial South Africa in 1994 based upon free and open elections. For his efforts, Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 which he shared with South African President F.W. de Klerk.
Peacekeeping Fails in Somalia (1993): In January of 1991, the African nation of Somalia fell into a bitter civil war over control of the nation. The civil war led to the destruction of agriculture, plunging the nation into famine conditions. The international community responded by sending food aid to the nation, however the warring clan leaders stole the food shipments in order to feed their fighters and supporters. After a brief ceasefire, the United Nations sent 50 observers to oversee the distribution of food. In 1992, President George Bush put the U.S. military to work air-dropping food supplies to remote parts of Somalia. These efforts however failed to stop the great suffering and death of many Somalis, leaving many displaced. The most resistant of the clan leaders was General Mohammed Aidid’s faction, and so the U.S. military launched a raid on what it believed was his headquarters. The 17-minute raid killed 73 elders, rather than Aidid, and thoroughly angered the Somali people against American military presence in the country. UN and American presence in Somalia began as a peace-keeping mission but soon ended in disaster in what has come to be known as the “Battle of Mogadishu”. American forces attempted to capture the leadership of General Aidid’s faction in the city of Mogadishu, however a series of missteps, the downing of two Blackhawk helicopters, and risky rescue attempts left 18 American soldiers dead. As a result of this failed attempt at peacekeeping, the Clinton Administration became far more reluctant to use the U.S. military to intervene in third world conflicts that did not directly bear on American interests.
WHAT WERE THE KEY EVENTS IN THE FINAL STAGES OF THE COLD WAR?
Helsinki Accords (1975): President Ford wished to continue the policy of Détente with the communist world, and so, in 1975, he pulled together the leaders of NATO and the Warsaw Pact for a series of meetings. The agreements made came to be known as the Helsinki Accords, and included the West’s recognition of the borders of Eastern Europe (communist) following World War II, while the Soviets promised to recognize certain basic human rights, including the right of people to move across national borders. The subsequent Soviet failure to honor human rights began to turn many Americans away from the idea of Détente with the Soviet Union.
President Carter and the Soviet Union: “Our commitment to human rights must be absolute…the powerful must not persecute the weak, and human dignity must be enhanced”. This guiding principal for foreign policy led President Carter to identify publicly the Soviet Union as a chief violator of human rights. In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, a move that caused President Carter to ban the sale of grain to the Soviet Union, and to boycott the 1980 Olympic Games, being held in Moscow. Efforts at Détente with the Soviet Union seemed to be at an end.
The Reagan Doctrine: President Reagan adopted a new foreign policy that rejected containment and détente in favor of a new stance toward the USSR of “peace through strength”. He launched the largest peacetime military buildup in American history. Reagan believed that the U.S. should support guerrilla groups trying to overthrow Communist or pro-Soviet governments. This became known as the Reagan Doctrine, and led to U.S. involvement in the Middle East and Central America.
The “Evil Empire” Speech: President Reagan’s attitude toward the Soviet Union became crystal clear during a 1983 speech in which he declared: “In your discussions of nuclear freeze proposals, I urge you to beware the temptation of pride, the temptation of blithely declaring yourselves above it all and label both sides equally at fault, to ignore the facts of history and the aggressive impulses of an evil empire…”. Since the Soviet Union at the time was installing new nuclear weapons in its west, President Reagan order the deployment of nuclear weapons in Western Europe in response.
Space Defense Initiative (SDI): Also known as “Star Wars”, SDI was a proposal made by President Reagan in 1983 that the United States should develop a new nuclear defense system composed of ground- and space- based nuclear weapons designed to destroy any in-coming Soviet missiles before they landed in the United States. This controversial proposal seemed to indicate that the United States was shifting away from reliance on the “mutually assured destruction” (MAD) policy in which both the United States and the Soviet Union were restrained in their use of nuclear weapons simply because each knew their use would put an end to both nations. SDI seemed to suggest that the U.S. might be preparing for a more aggressive approach to the Soviet Union. Indeed, this new defense system did worry Soviet leadership. Although it has yet to become functional in the manner Reagan intended, the research conducted in the pursuit of SDI has vastly accelerated the sophistication of American missile technology.
Mikhail Gorbachev Becomes Soviet Premier: In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became the leader of the Soviet Union after a tumultuous period in which 2 Soviet leaders died within a few short years. By the time he took office, the Soviet economy was struggling, and Gorbachev believed that drastic reform measures were needed. Among the first of his reforms was a policy known as “Glasnost”, a shift away from strict government secrecy and censorship, and toward greater “openness” regarding government activity and freedom of expression. The second reform Gorbachev introduced came to be known as “Perestroika”, a proposal to completely “restructure” the Soviet economy, away from strict centralized control, and toward greater opportunities for investment and profit-seeking. Gorbachev’s policies of Glasnost and Perestroika began to influence change in Eastern European satellite nations.
“Tear Down This Wall”: “General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe…tear down this wall”. Reagan’s famous words, delivered at the Brandenburg Gate of the Berlin Wall, became a turning point in the Cold War. Throughout his entire life, Ronald Reagan was a strong opponent of communism, and his actions during his Presidency seemed to confirm he would act on his beliefs. Surprisingly however, President Reagan soon developed a warm personal friendship with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that would eventually ease tensions between the world’s two superpowers, ultimately bringing an end to the Cold War.
The INF Treaty (1987): In December 1987, Reagan and Gorbachev signed the Intermediate -Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty that, for the first time, called for the destruction of significant numbers of nuclear weapons. Many historians agree that the INF Treaty marked the beginning of the end of the Cold War. Reagan came to believe that Gorbachev was sincere in winding down the Cold War. Gorbachev now felt confident that the threat of war had been reduced, and so allowed him to decrease military spending and to focus on his political and economic reforms. Ironically, his drive for economic reform would lead to the end of the Soviet Union and the dominance of communism in Eastern Europe.
Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989): The political and economic reforms of Gorbachev in the Soviet Union led to a revolution that spread to East Germany where on November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall was finally torn down. Within a year, East and West Germany had formally reunited. The most visible symbol of the Cold War was gone.
The Collapse of Soviet Communism: By the late 1980s, the Soviet economy suffered from inefficient central planning and huge expenditures on the arms race. Peaceful revolutions replaced Communist rulers with democratically elected governments in Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria. In August 1991, a group of Communist officials staged a coup against Gorbachev. With the leadership of Russian President Boris Yeltsin, the coup was put down and Gorbachev was released. Gorbachev announced the end of the Soviet Union and most former Soviet republics joined a federation called the Commonwealth of Independent States. The Cold War was over.
Tiananmen Square: China to Remain Communist: Despite the end of communism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, China’s communist leaders were determined to remain in power. China continued to repress political speech and dissent. In May 1989, Chinese students and workers held several weeks of protests against the authoritarian Chinese government, and demonstrations in favor of democracy. Held in Beijing, China’s capital, the protests were organized in response to the death of a pro-market, pro-democracy advocate named Hu Yaobang. In early June, Chinese government tanks and soldiers ended the protests held in historic Tiananmen Square, leaving 241 dead, and over 7,000 wounded. The Chinese government banned foreign press from the nation, and made numerous arrests, cracking down on any pro-democracy activities. Clearly, China was going to remain committed to its unique brand of communism.
WHAT KEY EVENTS SHAPED AMERICAN ACTIONS IN ADDRESSING TERRORISM?
Birth of Israel: Following World War I, the British took control of Palestine, a region of the Middle East that was predominantly Arab and Muslim. In 1922, the League of Nations had given the British a “mandate over Palestine” with the goal of resettling Jews in what they considered their homeland, as described in the Bible. The “Zionist Movement”, Jews who wished to re-establish control in Israel, were encouraged by this mandate. Over the decades, the Jewish population in Palestine increased dramatically, increasing tensions between the newly arrived Jews and Arab Muslims. The Jewish immigration into Palestine accelerated rapidly when the world came to discover the atrocities of the Holocaust. In 1948, the United Nations partitioned (divided) Palestine, creating the nation of Israel, and promising to create the nation of Palestine. Because the capitol of Jerusalem was important to both Jews and Muslims, the U.N. declared it an international city. The fact that Palestine was never established has been a source of anger between Jews and Muslims ever since.
Palestine Liberation Organization (1964): Angered by the displacement of Palestinians by the creation of the state of Israel, Arab Muslims came together in 1964 to create the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1964. Over the years, the goal of the PLO would evolve into a demand for a Palestinian state. Based in Syrian, Jordan, and Lebanon (nations surrounding Israel), the PLO would conduct guerrilla attacks on Israel and its bases. The PLO’s most visible leader was Yasser Arafat, a man who spent much of his life fighting against Israel in search of Palestinian self-determination. The PLO would be a major factor in the events of the Middle East for several decades.
The Six-Day War (1967): Tensions between Egypt and Israel came to a head in 1967 when Israel launched an attack on Egypt. Jordan became involved as it had a mutual defense treaty with Egypt. Israel would end up victorious in this conflict, obtaining new territories that it believed were necessary for Israel’s security in the midst of a hostile region filled with Muslim nations hostile to Israel’s existence. Among the lands it claimed were the Sinai Peninsula (on the border with Egypt), the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights.
Yom Kippur War (1973): In October of 1973, an Arab coalition led by Egypt and Syria (Soviet allies), attacked Israel in what has come to be known as the Yom Kippur War. The purpose of the conflict was to retake territories lost in the Six-Day War. The United States came to the aid of Israel with weapons airlifted to Israel at President Nixon’s order. Although determining the winner of this conflict is difficult, the most important outcome of the Yom Kippur War was that it brought Egypt and Israel into meaningful negotiations for the first time.
Camp David Accords (1978): Camp David is a presidential retreat in the suburbs of Washington DC, and it would become the location of President Carter’s greatest success. Wishing to ease tensions in the Middle East, President Jimmy Carter held 12 days of secret meetings with Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin. Hostile toward each other since 1948, Egypt and Israel settled long-standing disputes while at Camp David that would lead to the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty (1979). Among the terms of the treaty were: (1) end of war between the two nations; (2) Egyptian recognition of Israel as a nation; (3) Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula, captured during the Six-Day War; (4) right of Israeli ships to use the Suez Canal and neighboring waterways. This treaty would make Egypt the first Arab state to recognize the right of Israel to exist as a nation. Sadly, Anwar el-Sadat would soon be assassinated in his own country in 1981 by Muslim extremists who were angered by the Treaty with Israel. Among those behind his assassination was Omar Abdel Rahman, the man behind the first attack on the World Trade Center in 1993.
1982 Invasion of Lebanon: Israel launched an attack on southern Lebanon in 1982. The goal of this attack was to weaken the PLO and its infrastructure based in Lebanon. Israel would continue to occupy southern Lebanon for 2 more years, and would continue to maintain a “buffer zone” to enhance Israeli security. Although the PLO was weakened in this conflict, Muslim anger at Israel’s actions led to the creation of another Muslim organization known as Hezbollah, a group based in Lebanon, opposed to Israel, and supported by Iran and Syria.
Background of 911: The United States is the most powerful of all the “Western Nations”. The countries of Western Europe, Canada, the US, and many Latin American nations have a tradition of democracy, capitalism, individual rights, science, technology, and religious tolerance. Western nations seek trade and business opportunities in all parts of the world, and have been especially active in the Middle East due to its great supply of oil, a resource desperately needed by western industrialized countries. Most Middle Eastern countries in possession of oil are dominated by Muslim governments.
Islamic Fundamentalism: Within many of these Muslim nations is a fierce group of “Muslim Fundamentalists” who deeply resent the presence of Western Nations in their countries. A Muslim Fundamentalist is a person who interprets the Quran (scripture) literally, including the body of religious law called the Shariah, which includes many harsh punishments for crimes. Muslim Fundamentalists do not believe in a separation of religion and government, and wish to create governments in their own nations that rule by the Quran and Shariah. Muslim Fundamentalists are especially angered by the economic and cultural influence of Western nations in their region, and have set as their main goal the end of Western influence in Muslim countries. The United States, as the strongest of the Western nations, has become the main target of resentment by Muslim Fundamentalist extremists who feel insulted and humiliated by a long series of events. Several Western actions and Muslim extremist actions shaping this conflict include the following:
Early 1900s: Western nations invest in oil companies in the Middle East, in cooperation with local leaders, taking away much profit;
1918: Defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, leading to control of Middle Eastern nations (Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine) by Western nations, especially France and Britain;
1948: Creation of the state of Israel in Palestine by the United Nations forces the Palestinians (Muslim Arabs) out of their long-held territory without being given a homeland of their own as promised by the United Nations;
1953: The U.S. overthrows the Iranian government and puts in place and supports a new leader (the Shah of Iran) who guarantees Western access to oil;
1967: Israel launches the “6-Day War” in which it takes control of lands from its Muslim Arab neighbors, including the Gaza strip, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights. Israel is supported militarily by the United States;
1973: Egypt and Syria launch the Yom Kippur War against Israel in order to reclaim lands lost in the Six-Day War;
1979: Iranian Revolution begins in which a Muslim leader, Ayatollah Khomeini takes power from the U.S. supported Shah of Iran, creating the first Muslim Fundamentalist government;
1979: Iran Hostage Crisis begins in which Iranian students capture and hold 52 Americans taken from the US Embassy in the capital city of Tehran, and holding them for 444 days until their release January 20, 1981;
1979: USSR invades Afghanistan / the U.S. sends weapons and support to those fighting the Soviets, including Osama Bin Laden;
1980: Iran-Iraq War begins in which the U.S. sends weapons and support to the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in hopes he will defeat Iran;
1988: Al Quaeda is formed by veterans of the Soviet-Afghan war, with Osama Bin Laden soon taking over as leader / Al Quaeda’s goals are to end Western influence in Muslim nations and to establish Muslim Fundamentalist governments;
1991: Persian Gulf War begins when Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein invades neighbor Kuwait / Kuwait is next to Saudi Arabia, a nation that has no military of its own / Saudi Arabia asks the U.S. to send its military to defend Kuwait / America creates bases in Saudi Arabia, home to the holiest city in Islam, Mecca / American presence in Saudi Arabia deeply offends Muslim Fundamentalists;
1993: World Trade Center bombed for the first time, though unsuccessfully, by Muslim Fundamentalists;
1998: United States Embassies bombed simultaneously in Tanzania and Kenya by Muslim extremists / Osama bin Laden linked
2000: Al Quaeda attacks the USS Cole in a Yemen harbor (country near Saudi Arabia);
2001: Al Quaeda plans and executes a devastating attack on the World Trade Center in New York City, leaving thousands dead.
The Bush Doctrine: In a speech delivered on September 20th, 2001, President Bush announced a new foreign policy for the United States that soon came to be known as the “Bush Doctrine”, and initiating what has come to be known as the “War on Terror”. The main points of the President’s speech included: (1) the U.S. has been attacked by terrorists (Al Quaeda); (2) Terrorists are self-appointed and totalitarian; (3) America is committed fully to defeating terrorism. President Bush redefines America’s foreign policy, foreshadowing a pre-emptive approach to defeating terrorism. The core of the Bush Doctrine included several aspects, including: (1) the right of the U.S. to launch “pre-emptive strikes” against nations that might threaten it; (2) the right of the U.S. to act unilaterally, that is alone; (3) the right to depose foreign governments that might be a threat to the U.S.; (4) the encouragement of democracy, especially in the Middle East, as a way to protect American security and defeat terrorism. The difficulty in dealing with terrorism is that it is not confined to participants from one country, and no nation’s government has challenged America. Although the terrorists America faces come from a few identifiable countries, the governments of these nations are not committed to the same project as the Muslim Fundamentalist terrorists. Indeed, some of these countries face challenges to their own authority from these same Muslim Fundamentalists. In a further speech delivered in 2002, President Bush shocked the world by declaring that terrorist activity was supported by an “Axis of Evil”, and actually naming the countries of Iran, Iraq, and North Korea as members of this group.
Invasion of Afghanistan: The attack on America September 11th, 2001 led to the invasion of Afghanistan by the United States in an effort called Operation Enduring Freedom, supported by a large coalition of countries. Afghanistan, led by its government known as the “Taliban”, permitted Osama Bin Laden to use that nation as a base for Al Quaeda training and operations. The purpose of Operation Enduring Freedom was to secure Osama Bin Laden and others involved in the plotting and execution of the 911 attack on the World Trade Center in New York.
Invasion of Iraq: In March of 2003, the U.S. launched its attack on Iraq, claiming that Saddam Hussein supported international terrorism and had “weapons of mass destruction” (WMD). In order to build support for the war in Iraq, President Bush sent his Secretary of State Colin Powell to the United Nations to state the case for war. Saddam Hussein was eventually captured, put on trial, and hanged. President Bush claimed that this war was necessary as part of the War on Terror. The failure to discover WMD in Iraq, and the total lack of evidence that Saddam Hussein had anything to do with 911, have both created a significant amount of international anger directed toward the U.S. American forces remain both in Iraq and Afghanistan, seeking to stabilize those nations and create sustainable democratic governments.
Domestic Changes: The War on Terror has led to two significant changes within the United States: (1) passage of The Patriot Act, a law that increased the ability of law enforcement to conduct searches of all types in order to discover information related to terrorist activity within the U.S.; (2) creation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), a new cabinet-level agency charged with protecting American territory from terrorist attacks. As result of the DHS, American air travel has been significantly altered with new standards for airport security.