Postwar Politics of the 1920s

Postwar Politics of the 1920s

• Nativism is prejudice against foreign-born people.
• Communism is an economic and political system based on a single-party government ruled by a dictatorship.
• The Palmer Raids were a series of raids launched by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer in August 1919.
• Anarchists oppose any form of government.
• Sacco and Vanzetti were victims of nativist attitudes.
• The Quota System aimed to limit the number of immigrants from specific countries entering the U.S.
• The Red Scare was sparked by the fear of communism.
• Many believed communism threatened American life and would abolish capitalism.
• The KKK re-emerged in 1915, fueled by hostility toward immigrants and fear of communism.
• The KKK targeted Roman Catholics, Jews, African-Americans, and other foreign-born people.
• The Palmer Raids revealed that fear of foreigners and foreign ideas can erode civil liberties.
• The Emergency Quota Act of 1921 aimed to cut European immigration to the U.S.
• Harding's presidency was characterized by poor judgment and prioritizing loyalty over integrity.
• Harding's "Ohio gang" was composed of unqualified friends and political allies involved in scandals.
• The Teapot Dome Scandal involved Secretary of Interior Albert B. Fall leasing naval oil reserves to private companies for personal gain.
• Buying goods on credit led to increased consumer debt, weakening the economy.
• When people were unable to afford payments, they stopped spending, further contributing to the Great Depression.
• The Greenwood District in Tulsa, known as "Black Wall Street," was economically successful.
• It allowed Black Americans to be successful easily compared to anywhere else.
• Before the Tulsa Race Massacre, Dick Rowland was accused of assaulting a white woman, resulting in demands for his lynching.
• During the Tulsa Race Massacre, many people experienced PTSD and anxiety.
• The Tulsa Race Massacre destroyed Black businesses and instilled lasting trauma, impacting race relations and economics.

Harlem Renaissance

• The Harlem Renaissance was a literary, artistic, intellectual, and social movement celebrating Black culture from the 1910s to mid-1930s.
• It paved the way for the New Negro Movement.
• Bessie Smith was a legendary blues singer.
• Bill Robinson was a famous tap dancer, actor, and pioneer for Black performers.
• Josephine Baker was an entertainer, singer, dancer, and civil rights activist.
• Langston Hughes was a poet, novelist, and playwright of the Harlem Renaissance.
• Nella Larsen was a writer associated with the Harlem Renaissance.
• Selma Burke was a sculptor and educator.
• Alice Dunbar Nelson was a poet, journalist, and activist who wrote about gender and racial issues.
• Louis Armstrong was a jazz trumpeter and vocalist.

Culture of the Roaring Twenties

• Prohibition led to illegal speakeasies, bootlegging, organized crime, and increased violence.
• Speakeasies were illegal bars.
• Bootleggers transported alcohol illegally.
• Flappers challenged traditional gender norms, valuing independence and personal freedom.
• Prohibition led to the rise of organized crime, increased violence, and alcohol trade.
• Prohibition hurt other industries, such as restaurants, and reduced government revenue.
• The Scopes Trial represented the conflict between religious fundamentalism and modern science.
• Scopes was accused of violating the Butler Act by teaching evolution in public schools.
• Clarence Darrow defended Scopes.
• William Jennings Bryan led the prosecution.
• The automobile provided easier travel, boosted local economies, created jobs, and increased mobility.
• Route 66 led to the development of towns, motels, diners, and gas stations.

The Great Depression

• The Dust Bowl devastated agriculture, leading to crop failures, economic collapse, and migration.
• Buying on margin caused the stock market to lose value, affecting people's investments, also contributed to the Great Depression.
• Credit contributed to the Great depression because it lead to excessive consumer debt and when people could no longer afford payments they stopped spending.
• Banks allowed people to take out loans, but they did not have the money to liquidate them.
• Hoover believed scientific thinking should be independent of government intervention.
• Hoover was against direct government aid and preferred charities to provide relief which was overall unable to address the great depression.
• Hoovervilles were shanty towns of homeless people during the Great Depression.

The New Deal

• Franklin Roosevelt addressed the Great Depression and the banking crisis, reassuring people of the safety of reopened banks.
• FDR's three main goals for the New Deal were Reform, Recovery, and Relief.
• Reform focused on banking and finance regulations to prevent another depression.
• Recovery aimed to stimulate and stabilize the economy through federal spending and job creation.
• Relief provided direct assistance to Americans, including farmers and the unemployed.
• During FDR's "First 100 Days," Congress passed 77 laws to revive the economy through public works projects.
• The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) aimed to reduce crop production to help farmers by having the government pay farmers to leave the land unseeded.
• The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) aimed to improve the unemployment rates of young boys and reforestation.
• The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) addressed economic and environmental challenges in the Tennessee Valley.
• The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) aimed to restore trust in banks.
• The Federal Emergency Relief Act (FERA) aimed to assist with economic distress, jobs, and financial aid after the depression
• The Social Security Act (SSA) helped the unemployed, retired, and others receive payments.
• The New Deal expanded the government's role in the economy.
• Some favored the New Deal for protecting workers' rights and restoring trust in banks.
• Others opposed it because they felt it didn't allocate enough aid, led to too much deficit spending on direct relief, controlling business, and socializing the economy.