Transcript US Prepares for War

U.S. Prepares for War
-”Cash and Carry “ policy begins:
revised neutrality acts to help
Allies, leaves Britain bankrupt
-Axis Powers formed
Germany, Italy, Japan
-Selective Service begins draft
process (age 21-36)
-Roosevelt seeks third term and
wins election
-Lend-Lease policy begun to help
supply allies-Arsenal of
Democracy (neighbor’s house on
fire example)
-Atlantic Charter signed between
U.S. and Britain
resembles 14 points of Wilson
War Plans
-Roosevelt and British leader
Churchill meet
Aug 1941: Atlantic Charter
-Germany is top priority Germany
then Japan
-only an unconditional surrender is
acceptable, Axis powers must
accept all terms
-Battle of the Atlantic: longest
military campaign of WWII
convoy system
Liberty ship building program was
producing great numbers of ships
to supply war
-Allies begin strategic bombing of
Germany to destroy war
capabilities
Hitler’s Mistake
-Battle of Britain has stalled: RAF
holds off German AF
-June 1941 Germany attacks Russia
why? Russia wanted to expand
empire = direct threat to
Germany
-early success but then stalemate
-Russian winter sets in and halts
advance
-Now war is on two fronts: Eastern
and Western Europe
Begins to strain German forces
U.S. enters the War
-U.S. has embargo on Japan for
actions in the Pacific: Roosevelt
limits what Japan can buy,
eventually cuts them off as they
aggressively expand
-U.S. had warning of a possible
Japanese attack somewhere, but
did not know where
Why Pearl Harbor? Easy access and
home of the Pacific Fleet
-Dec. 7th, 1941 Pearl Harbor is
attacked
“day that will live in infamy”
FDR addresses nation, famous quote
-U.S. declares war on Japan and
then Germany, Italy declare war
on U.S.
Americans in the Service
-millions volunteered and millions
more were drafted
16 million serve as GI’s (government
issued)
-GI’s went to basic training for 8
weeks
Knew they were fighting to keep
freedoms
-Women’s Auxiliary Corps
thousands volunteered (350,000)
but they couldn’t serve in combat
-Minorities served in segregated
units
Tuskegee Airmen: first African
American flying force
Life on the Home Front
-War Production Board
industries were retooled to make
war materials conversion of
industry
-Scientists are mobilized
radar, sonar, penicillin, atomic
bomb (Manhattan Project)
Japan would be a very hard invasion,
making a bomb would help prevent
need to invade
-women stepped into many war
materials jobs
“Rosie the Riveter” working
woman of WWII
-Entertainment propaganda
-newsreels

FDR’s Four Freedoms: Freedom of speech and expression; Freedom
of every person to worship God in his own way; Freedom from
want; Freedom from fear
Government Control
-Inflation controlled by price
freezes Office of Price
Administration
-many products rationed to
conserve resources fair
distribution of scarce items
-income taxes increased: to help
finance war, 41% paid by taxes
-War Bonds sold: help fund war,
Liberty gardens reemerge
-Japanese Internment: JapaneseAmericans were put into camps in
the United States
Korematsu v. United States
discriminatory policy??? Made
segregation of Japanese
temporarily legal
Essential Questions
5. Was U.S. involvement in the war inevitable?
6. How and why did WWII impact the
economic, social, cultural, and political life of
the U.S?
7. What led to U.S. entry into WWII?
Review Questions
1.
a.
b.
c.
d.
What action was the STRONGEST
indication that the U.S. was abandoning
neutrality in WWII before Japan’s attack
on Pearl Harbor?
The Tripartite Pack
The Atlantic Charter
The Lend-Lease Act
The Neutrality Act of 1939
“In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we
look forward to a world founded upon four
freedoms. The first is freedom of speech and
expression – everywhere in the world. The second
is freedom of every person to worship God in his
own way – everywhere in the world. The third is
freedom from want… The fourth is freedom from
fear.
2. The “four freedoms” speech helped gain widespread
support in the U.S. for what?
a. Increasing aid to the Allies
b. Decreasing immigration
c. A military and arms buildup
d. A presidential election
3. What action did the federal government
take to organize the nation’s economy
for war?
a. Banned membership in labor unions
b. Set up a rationing system
c. Lowered income tax rates
d. Built factories to produce war goods
4. Policy begun to allow Allies to obtain war
supplies without making them pay for
the materials upfront.
a. Lend-Lease
b. Cash and Carry
c. Appeasement
d. Buying on Margin
5. On December 7, 1941,
a. Germany invaded Poland
b. WWII was over
c. The U.S. re-elected FDR to a third term
d. Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, HI
6. Which statement BEST describes how
Japanese Americans were affected by
WWII?
a. Many were forced into internment camps
b. Many returned to Japan
c. Many remained loyal to Japan
d. Many lost their American citizenship