Boston Police Strike Flashcards

Boston Police Strike

• Aimed for union recognition; resulted in the firing of the entire police force when the strike failed.

Calvin Coolidge

• Governor of Massachusetts who supported firing police during the strike; gained public backing and became the Republican VP nominee in 1920.

Adkins vs. Children's Hospital

• Supreme Court decision that invalidated a minimum wage law for women in Washington, D.C., reversing previous gains from Muller vs. Oregon; led to a downturn in labor union membership.

Welfare Capitalism

• System promoting management's responsibility for employees’ well-being; intended to diminish union influence.

Henry Ford and the Model T

• Ford pioneered welfare capitalism and revolutionary production methods, introducing the moving assembly line; made the Model T affordable for middle-class America.

Red Scare of the 1920s

• Period marked by intense anti-communist sentiment post-WWI, leading to government raids and suspension of civil liberties against suspected subversives.

Palmer Raids

• Federal raids targeting radicals, resulting in the arrest of 6,000 individuals without legal representation; linked to Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer’s fears of a conspiracy against the government.

Sacco and Vanzetti Trial

• Italian immigrants accused of murder during a robbery; coercively sentenced to death amid biases linked to their radical affiliations, reflecting the tension of ethnic and political divides post-war.

Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

• Led by Jane Addams, advocating for peace and social justice; faced backlash during the Red Scare for its anti-imperialist stance.

Return to Normalcy

• Warren G. Harding's campaign slogan in the 1920 election, promising a restoration to pre-WWI American life.

Warren G. Harding

• Republican presidential candidate in 1920, championing policies of normalcy, which began a period of Republican dominance in government.

Washington Naval Conference

• Landmark military conference in 1921 involving 9 nations, addressing Pacific interests and marking the first arms control agreement aimed at preserving peace.

Kellogg-Briand Pact

• International agreement prohibiting war as a means of conflict resolution, initially signed by the US, Germany, and France.

Dawes Plan

• Economic proposal to resolve WWI reparations; facilitated Germany’s payments and ended Allied occupation.

Teapot Dome Scandal

• Major corruption scandal during Harding's presidency, involving bribery over oil reserve leases, leading to Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall's imprisonment.

Dollar Diplomacy

• Financial efforts to secure loans and influence through military intervention; often benefitted local elites over the intended recipients.

Prohibition and Al Capone

• Alcohol ban inspired partly by anti-German sentiment; led to illegal drinking establishments that enriched gangsters, notably Al Capone.

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

• Founded during the Red Scare to defend free speech; involved in legal challenges against laws infringing on civil rights, including the Scopes Trial.

Scopes Trial

• 1925 case challenging Tennessee's ban on teaching evolution; represented a clash between modern and traditional values.

Immigration Act of 1917

• Legislation prohibiting entry to specific groups, including illiterates and those categorized as undesirable; imposed restrictions on Asian immigration.

Emergency Quota Act (1921)

• Introduced immigration restrictions based on nationality, enforcing a quota system to limit entries into the US.

National Origins Immigration Act (1924)

• Further tightened immigration rules; set limits based on early 20th-century demographics, dramatically reducing entries from southern and eastern Europe.

Revival of the KKK

• The resurgence of the Klan post-1920 film depicted its members favorably; gained massive support and expanded its discrimination to include immigrants and religious minorities.

Birth of a Nation

• A highly controversial film glorifying the KKK’s actions during the Reconstruction era, supported by President Wilson.

Herbert Hoover

• Republican presidential candidate in 1928; believed in minimal government intervention in the economy, influencing the onset of the Great Depression.

Harlem Renaissance

• A cultural movement in the 1920s showcasing African American arts, centered in Harlem, NYC, contributing to a renewed sense of racial identity.

Langston Hughes

• Prominent poet who voiced the optimism and pride of the Harlem Renaissance; celebrated African American beauty and cultural heritage.

Zora Neale Hurston

• Influential writer emphasizing African American culture's vibrancy independent of oppression narratives; documented Southern Black folklore.

Jazz Age

• Cultural era beginning in the 1920s, characterized by the rise of jazz music, blending influences like blues and ragtime for innovative improvisation.

Louis Armstrong

• Influential jazz trumpeter from New Orleans known for his improvisational skills; played a key role in shaping jazz as a major music genre.

Duke Ellington

• Renowned jazz composer and bandleader in the 1920s, contributing significantly to the evolution of jazz music.

Marcus Garvey

• Founded the UNIA advocating for Black nationalism and the separation of black and white societies; faced legal barriers leading to the organization's decline.

Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA)

• Aimed to organize Black workers and promote Black separatism, facilitating trade with Africa and advocating for the rights of African Americans.

Lost Generation

• Term coined by Gertrude Stein describing artists and writers disillusioned by WWI and feeling alienated from mainstream American culture during the 1920s.

F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsby

• Novelist critiquing American society's materialism and moral decay through the lens of the Jazz Age in his celebrated work.

Sinclair Lewis and Babbitt

• Critically depicted middle-class banalities and conformity in American society; first American Nobel laureate in literature for his incisive critiques.

Charles Lindbergh

• Aviator famed for his groundbreaking solo flight from New York to Paris; promoted advancements in commercial aviation and air mail services.

Margaret Sanger

• Birth control activist who established the first US clinic and led the movement towards reproductive rights, founding what would evolve into Planned Parenthood.

Consumer Credit

• Emergence of new borrowing options during the 1920s, such as installment plans, contributing to economic growth and precipitating the Great Depression.

Car Culture

• Auto ownership surged; Americans held 80% of the world’s cars by the decade's end, transforming industries and lifestyles through highway infrastructure and urban sprawl.

Hollywood

• Epicenter of the global film industry, producing a vast majority of films by 1920, playing a significant role in spreading American culture worldwide.

The Jazz Singer

• Pioneering 1927 film recognized as the first feature with synchronized dialogue, marking the transition to "talkies" and ending the silent film era.

Flappers

• Young women representing social and sexual liberation in the 1920s; characterized by distinctive fashion choices and a break from traditional norms.