Roaring Twenties: Assembly Line & Red Scare

Roaring Twenties

• The assembly line revolutionized manufacturing by enhancing efficiency and lowering production costs.
• The assembly line enabled mass production of affordable automobiles, such as the Model T.
• The flapper represented the new, modern woman of the 1920s.
• Flappers were independent, fashionable, and willing to defy social conventions.
• The First Red Scare involved fear of communism and radical ideologies after the Russian Revolution.
• This fear led to widespread suspicion and suppression of perceived subversives.
• Mitchell Palmer, as U.S. Attorney General, directed the "Palmer Raids" to arrest and deport suspected communists and anarchists.
• The National Origins Act of 1924 restricted immigration using nationality-based quotas.
• These quotas favored Northern and Western Europeans, while limiting immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe and Asia.
• "Return to Normalcy" was Warren G. Harding's campaign slogan.
• The slogan advocated a return to pre-WWI isolationism and traditional values.
• General attitude towards foreign affairs in the 1920s involved an isolationist approach.
• The U.S. avoided involvement in international conflicts, focusing on domestic prosperity.
• The Sacco and Vanzetti case involved two Italian immigrants and anarchists convicted of murder.
• The controversial trial reflected anti-immigrant and anti-radical sentiment, and they were executed in 1927.
• Harding and Coolidge's financial policies included pro-business measures.
• Policies include tax cuts for the wealthy.
• Minimal government regulation and the promotion of economic growth through laissez-faire capitalism.
• Bootleggers produced alcohol illegally during Prohibition.
• Speakeasies were secret bars that sold illegal alcohol.
• Major inventions of the time included the radio, automobile advancements, and household appliances.
• The Scopes Trial in 1925 involved teacher John Scopes being prosecuted for teaching evolution.
• The trial highlighted the conflict between modern science and religious fundamentalism.

Great Depression

• Overproduction contributed to the Great Depression.
• Stock market speculation and the crash of 1929 contributed to the Great Depression.
• Banking failures contributed to the Great Depression.
• Declining consumer spending contributed to the Great Depression.
• International trade issues contributed to the Great Depression.
• Conditions during the Great Depression included severe unemployment.
• Widespread poverty existed.
• Hoovervilles (shantytowns) sprang up.
• Foreclosures increased.
• Workers migrated in search of employment, illustrated by Dust Bowl migrants.
• The Dust Bowl was an environmental disaster in the Great Plains.
• It was caused by drought and poor farming practices.
• John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath depicted the struggles of displaced farmers.
• Herbert Hoover believed in limited government intervention and "rugged individualism."
• His programs included the National Credit Corporation, which was meant to support failing banks.
• Other programs include the Organization of Unemployment Relief.
• He also initiated the Reconstruction Finance Corporation.
• The Reconstruction Finance Corporation provided loans to banks and businesses.
• The Bonus Army was composed of WWI veterans who marched on Washington in 1932.
• They demanded early payment of their bonuses, but the government forcibly dispersed the protesters.
• This damaged Hoover's reputation.
• The Smoot-Hawley Tariff of 1930 raised tariffs on imported goods.
• This worsened global trade and deepened the Depression.

FDR and the New Deal

• The New Deal was a series of programs and policies introduced by Franklin D. Roosevelt.
• The programs combatted the Great Depression.
• Roosevelt was advised by a "Brain Trust" of expert economists and policymakers.
• Fireside chats were radio broadcasts by FDR.
• They reassured and informed the public about New Deal initiatives and the state of the nation.
• The First Hundred Days was a period of intensive legislative activity.
• Key New Deal programs were introduced during this period.
• The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulated the stock market.
• It prevented abuses and restored investor confidence.
• The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insured bank deposits.
• It protected savings and restored trust in the banking system.
• The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) aimed to raise crop prices.
• The AAA reduced agricultural production.
• It was struck down in U.S. v. Butler (1936) for unconstitutional taxation.
• The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) provided jobs for young men.
• Jobs included environmental conservation projects.
• The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was created to provide regional economic development.
• Included affordable electricity in the Tennessee Valley.
• The National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) promoted fair competition and workers' rights.
• It was struck down in Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States (1935) for overreaching federal authority.
• The American Liberty League was a conservative group.
• They opposed the New Deal as government overreach.
• Huey Long was a populist senator.
• He advocated the "Share Our Wealth" program to redistribute wealth.
• Father Coughlin was a radio priest critical of FDR.
• He promoted social justice and opposed capitalism.
• Francis Townsend proposed a pension plan for the elderly.
• This influenced the development of Social Security.

Second New Deal

• The Works Progress Administration (WPA) provided jobs through public works projects.
• Projects included infrastructure and arts programs.
• Social Security established pensions for retirees.
• Included unemployment insurance and support for the disabled through payroll taxes.
• The Wagner Act (National Labor Relations Act) guaranteed workers' rights to unionize.
• Guaranteed the right to bargain collectively, addressing labor disputes.
• Labor unrest during FDR's presidency included sit-down strikes.
• It also increased union activity highlighted tensions between workers and employers.
• The Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) was a union organization.
• It promoted industrial unionism and worker protections under John Lewis.
• FDR's court packing attempt in 1937 was a controversial plan.
• The plan expanded the Supreme Court to secure favorable rulings for New Deal programs.
• Failed due to public and political opposition.
• Francis Perkins was the first female Cabinet member.
• Served as Secretary of Labor and influenced labor policies.
• Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady who championed social justice.
• She championed civil rights and humanitarian causes.
• Mary McLeod Bethune was an African American educator.
• She advocated for racial equality within the New Deal.
• The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 established minimum wage.
• It also established maximum work hours, and child labor regulations.
• The Good Neighbor Policy was a U.S. policy toward Latin America.
• It promoted non-intervention and cooperative relations.
• Problems with New Deal implementation included limited benefits for African Americans.
• Inconsistent enforcement of labor laws.
• Also experienced corporate resistance.
• The Roosevelt Recession of 1937 was an economic downturn.
• It was caused by reduced New Deal spending and a loss of consumer confidence.
• The Indian Reorganization Act reversed previous assimilation policies.
• It promoted Native American self-governance and cultural preservation.
• Deficit spending was adopted by FDR to stimulate economic recovery.
• Deficit spending was based on John Maynard Keynes' theories (Keynesian economics).

World War II

• The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 led to U.S. entry into WWII.
• D-Day was the Allied invasion of Normandy in 1944.
• It marked a turning point in Europe.
• FDR's Four Freedoms were his vision of global human rights.
• They include freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.
• WWII increased roles for women and African Americans in the workforce.
• Japanese Americans faced internment.
• The Double V Campaign was an African American initiative.
• It promoted victory against fascism abroad and racism at home.
• Korematsu v. United States was during wartime.
• The Supreme Court upheld the internment of Japanese Americans as a "military necessity."
• The use of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a moral and strategic debate.
• Debated whether it would end the war.
• Mobilization on the homefront included rationing.
• Selling war bonds helped support the war effort.
• Industrial production increased to support the war effort.
• Cash and Carry was a policy allowing the U.S. to supply Allies with war materials.
• This was done while remaining officially neutral.
• Lend-Lease was a policy allowing the U.S. to supply Allies with war materials.
• This was done while remaining officially neutral.
• The Yalta Conference was an Allied meeting.
• It discussed post-war Europe, including plans for United Nations creation and dividing Germany.