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I. Society after WWII

I. Society after WWII. 1945-1953. Timeline to Review!. (2) Hitler Dies‐Germany ’ s surrender was inevitable‐Hitler committed suicide… Germany was left to lose war. (3) V‐E Day‐(May 8, 1945)‐Germany/Italy officially surrender‐War in Europe ends.

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I. Society after WWII

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  1. I. Society after WWII 1945-1953

  2. Timeline to Review! • (2) Hitler Dies‐Germany’s surrender was inevitable‐Hitler committed suicide… Germany was left to lose war. • (3) V‐E Day‐(May 8, 1945)‐Germany/Italy officially surrender‐War in Europe ends. • (4) Potsdam Conference (1945)‐Truman/Atlee/ Stalin discuss attack of Japan. • (5) Atomic Bombs‐decision to use was Truman’s‐to end WWII with fewer American lives lost. • (6) V‐J Day (Aug 15, 1945) –Japan surrenders WWII is over.

  3. FACTS about the 1940’s • Population 132,122,000 • Unemployed in 1940 - 8,120,000 • National Debt $43 Billion • Average Salary $1,299. Teacher's salary $1,441 • Minimum Wage $.43 per hour • 55% of U.S. homes have indoor plumbing • Antarctica is discovered to be a continent • Life expectancy 68.2 female, 60.8 male • Auto deaths 34,500 • Supreme Court decides blacks do have a right to vote • World War II changed the order of world power, the United States and the USSR became super powers • Cold War begins.

  4. More on the 1940s! On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson donned a Brooklyn Dodgers uniform and he became the first African American to play major league baseball in the 20th century.

  5. After WWII, returning vets faced a severe housing shortage •In response to the crisis, developers used assembly‐line methods to mass‐produce houses. •Developer William Levitt bragged that his company could build a home in 16 minutes for $7,000. •(16) Levittown, PA‐first American Suburbs were born.

  6. A. President Harry Truman • 1945-1952: became president after the death of FDR (with less than four months as vice president) DIO: April 12, 1945–January 20, 1953 Vice Prez: None (1945–1949),Alben Barkley (1949–1953) Born: May 8, 1884 Died: December 26, 1972 State From: Missouri Political Party: Democrat Political Platform: Fair Deal

  7. B. Problems with demobilization 1.By mid-1946, 9 million men and women had been discharged from the military, and America was afraid of a post-WWI economy repeat. 2. The top priority of America was to prevent a depression but still help the returning veterans.

  8. 3. The G.I. Bill of Rights accomplished this by offering government loans to veterans to build homes, start businesses, and go to college.

  9. Registration Day at Harvard after the G.I. Bill of Rights

  10. 4.Despite the wartime fear that a depression would come, it NEVER did! a. Plants that once produced wartime materials switched to consumer goods b. Employment levels remained high

  11. c. Americans spent money they had saved during the war d. The agricultural output of other countries was ruined by the war and they all began to import from America. • Experts who predicted a postwar depression were proved wrong as they failed to consider the $135 billion in savings Americans had accumulated from defense work, service pay, and investments in war bonds. • Americans were ready to buy consumer goods.

  12. C. Problems for workers- women and African Americans 1. Businesses were pressured to hire returning veterans, which forced African Americans and women back out of the workforce.

  13. 2.“Rosie the –Riveter” was retired, and women were encouraged to go back to being homemakers even though many women wanted to remain in the workforce.

  14. Lifestyle American Women were expected to live:

  15. 3. Labor unrest a. Inflation post-WWII was a problem b. Price controls were lifted and prices skyrocketed. Beef prices were so high that people began selling horsemeat and calling Truman “Horsemeat Harry”. One persistent postwar issue involved… labor strikes. •In 1946 alone, 4.5 million discontented workers, including steel workers, coal miners and railroad workers went on strike.

  16. 4. The Taft-Hartley Act(1947) a. gave judges the power to end some Strikes, outlawed some strikes, and outlawed closed-shop agreements. It also restricted unions’ political contributions and made union officers swear they were not communist • Good for employers ‐not the workers. • Truman actually vetoed, but it passed. He would enforce it 12 times during his presidency.

  17. b. Taft-Hartley Act passed to try and slow worker unrest- it actually reduced the power of labor unions and stirred angry debate.

  18. D. 1948 Election 1. Truman was unpopular due to high inflation and labor unrest 2. He did take a strong stand on civil rights-The Committee on Civil Rightswas formed to look at racial issues.

  19. a. He banned racial discrimination in the military and in federal job hiring. (first seen in mixed military units in the Korean War) b. Anti-lynching laws, anti-poll tax measures

  20. 3. Southern Democrats were outraged by the African American demand for equal rights as well as Truman’s actions.

  21. 4. The Democratic Party Splits in 3 a. Harry Truman-platform included the repeal of the Taft-Hartley Act, better Social Security plan, increase federal aid for housing, education, and agriculture(notice continuation of FDR’s “New Deal”) and a strong continued stance on Civil Rights.

  22. b. Strom Thurmond-headed the Dixiecrat party. This was the States’ Rights Party which were the southern states that were Democratic but unlike Truman wanted continued segregation c. Henry Wallace-headed the new Progressive Party. These Democrats wanted to continue the New Deal and improve relations with the Soviet Union

  23. Strom Thurmond • South Carolina’s Gov. in 1948 • U.S. Senator from 1954 through January 2003. His record stands as the longest serving and oldest Senator in US history with 48 years at age 100. He died on June 26, 2003.

  24. 5. Republicans in 1948 a. The Repubs see a 3-way split and sense victory. b. New York Governor Thomas Dewey was nominated by the Republicans.

  25. 6. Truman wins 1948!! • In one of the great upsets of U.S. Political History, Truman won the election in 1948 with 303 electoral votes to Dewey’s 189 electoral votes

  26. 1948 Election MapTruman=Red Dewey=Blue Thurmond=Dixiecrat(D) Truman (303), (R) Dewey (189), (S’R) Thurmond (39)

  27. E. The Fair Deal • He promised Americans a continuation to FDR’s New Deal with a series of new reforms : • Full employment • Higher minimum wage • National Health insurance • Construction of affordable housing • Increased aid to farmers • Expansion of welfare benefits (and to more people)

  28. F. 22nd Amendment 1. Proposed March 24, 1947 2. “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of the President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some otherperson was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.”

  29. 3. Total a person shall serve as POTUS –no more than 10 years 4. Proposed due to the four elections of FDR 5. Ratified on March 1, 1951 6. Did not apply to Truman – but he decided not to seek another term in 1952

  30. G. McCarthyism–New Red Scare 1. Series of events in 1949 –1950 producedwidespread fear of communism similar to the Red Scare of 1919-1920 2. Alger Hiss, President of the Carnegie Foundation of International Peace, worked for the State Department before and during World War II.

  31. 3. Hiss was charged with being a member of the Communist party and giving the Soviets secrets. 4. Hiss was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison – he denied the charges.

  32. 5. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg: couple tried and convicted of selling atomic bomb secrets to the Soviets 6. The Rosenbergs were executed for their crimes

  33. 7. 1950, Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin charged the State Department was riddled with traitors. He claimed to know 205 communists with important positions 8. These accusations created a sense of hysteria across the country. Although he never showed any proof of the list, a series of communist hearings took place.

  34. 9.McCarthyism is often compared to the Salem Witch Trials -as 1 was accused of comm. they had to give another name to take the focus off themselves. Many lives were destroyed as a result.

  35. 10. Army-McCarthy Hearings- He accused the Army of being full of communists; they accused him of illegal acts. Hearings were held on TV so people could witness how crazy he was, thus deflating his image. This brought an end to the hysteria and ended his career. • House Un-American Activities Committee • The McCarthyismEra was investigatedby this committee…it was not exactly constitutional.

  36. M C C A R T H Y I S M

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