Transcript World War Two: The Home Front

America on the
Home Front
World War II
The America First Movement
Despite the onset of war in Europe, an overwhelming majority
of the American people wanted to stay out of the new war if
they could. The AFC tapped into this widespread anti-war
feeling in the years leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor
and the U.S. entry into the war.
On June 20, 1940 Lindbergh spoke to a rally in Los Angeles
billed as "Peace and Preparedness Mass Meeting". In his
speech of that day, Lindbergh criticized those movements he
perceived as leading America into the war. He proclaimed that
the United States was in a position that made it virtually
impregnable and he pointed out that when interventionists
said "the defense of England" they really meant "defeat of
Germany."
Prominent Members
The America First Committee had its share of prominent
businessmen as well as the sympathies of political
figures like Senator Burton K. Wheeler, Senator Gerald
P. Nye, and U.S. ambassador to Britain Joseph P.
Kennedy, with its most prominent spokesman being
Charles A. Lindbergh.
Other celebrities supporting America First were novelist
Sinclair Lewis, Time Magazine editor Henry Luce, poet
E.E.Cummings, author Gore Vidal (as a student at
Phillips Exeter Academy), Alice Roosevelt Longworth,
film producer Walt Disney and actress Lillian Gish.
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright attempted to join, but the
board thought he had a "reputation for immorality".
Differing View
Theodor S. Geisel and other Americans
fought against an American attitude that
amounted to “burying our heads in the
sand.”
They praised Roosevelt’s Lend-Lease Act
of March 1941, and believed we needed to
do more to aid Britain as the lone Western
European power to stand up to German
aggression.
Geisel’s Political Cartoons
December 5, 1941
December 8, 1941
Signs of racism?
Stoking “nativist” fires
Presidential Action
Upon the bombing of Pearl Harbor and pursuant to the Alien
Enemies Act, Presidential Proclamations 2525, 2526 and
2527 were issued designating Japanese, German and Italian
nationals as enemy aliens.
Information from the CDI was used to locate and incarcerate
foreign nationals from Japan, Germany and Italy (although
Germany or Italy didn't declare war on the U.S. until
December 11).
On February 19, 1942, soon after the beginning of World War
II, FDR signed Executive Order 9066. The evacuation order
commenced the round-up of roughly 120,000 Americans of
Japanese heritage to one of 10 internment camps—officially
called "relocation centers"—in California, Idaho, Utah,
Arizona, Wyoming, Colorado, and Arkansas.
Internment Camps
Italian & German Internment
According to the Immigration &
Naturalization Service, The U.S. also took
custody of 3,278 Italians and 10,905
Germans and placed them in detention
centers during the war. These numbers
included, however, those who were
released or paroled, voluntary internees
(family members) and those deported to
the United States from 15 Latin American
countries.
Racism in movie cartoons:
Donald & Bugs went to war
Women in the Workforce
Rosie the Riveter
By the Numbers
Over six million
women entered the
workforce between
1941 and 1945.
Another three million
volunteered with the
Red Cross.
200,000 women
served in the war.
African Americans
In 1941, under pressure from
A. Philip Randolph and other
prominent African-American
leaders, President Roosevelt
issued Executive Order 8802,
stating that there should be "no
discrimination in the
employment of workers in
defense industries or
Government because of race,
creed, color, or national origin."
The Committee on Fair
Employment Practices was
established to handle
discrimination complaints.
Racial Tension in Detroit
By the summer of 1943, tensions between the
African American population and White
population of Detroit were growing. One of the
reasons behind this growing tension was that 18
months after Pearl Harbor, Detroit's population
had grown by 350,000 people, 50,000 of those
people were African Americans, many of whom
came from the South in search for work in
Detroit's newly converted defense production
factories.
Race Riots of 1943
Riots erupted over the course of three
days and 34 people were killed, 25 of
those were African Americans. Out of the
approximately 600 injured, African
Americans accounted for more than 75
percent, and of the roughly 1,800 people
who were arrested over the course of the
3 day riots, African Americans accounted
for 85 percent.
“Double V"
Black leaders during the Second World
War adopted this phrase to describe the
specific type of battle African-Americans
would have to fight, a battle on two
fronts—for "victory over our enemies at
home and victory over our enemies on the
battlefields abroad."
By the Numbers
By 1945, blacks comprised fifteen percent of
Detroit's automobile industry workforce--a huge
increase over the pre-World War II employment
figures.
Estimated number of African-Americans who
moved out of the South in 1943: 700,000
Estimated number of African-Americans who
moved to Los Angeles, California in 1943:
120,000
Turning Ploughshares to Swords
Between 1940 and 1945 automotive firms made
almost $29 billion worth of military materials, a
fifth of the country’s entire output. The list
included 2,600,000 military trucks and 660,000
jeeps, but production extended well beyond
motor vehicles. Automotive firms provided onehalf of the machine guns and carbides made in
the United States during the war, 60 percent of
the tanks, all the armored cars, and 85 percent
of the military helmets and aerial bombs.
F4U Corsair Production Line
Airplane factory in Stratford, Connecticut, World War II,
which produced over 6,000 Corsairs- fighter planes with
fold-up wings for use on board aircraft carriers.
Bombers Being Made on Production Line
Seemingly endless lines of B-24 Liberators on the
production line at the Ford Willow Run plant in Detroit
were valuable to America's war effort during World War II.
Hiding an Airplane Factory
in California
7/30/1942-Hammond, Indiana- Workmen of the Hammond, IN, plant
of the Pullman Standard car manufacturing company are shown
looking over a few of the huge "M-4" tanks which have just been
completed. A 75 mm cannon is carried on a revolving turret thus
enabling the gunner to swing in a complete circle. The M-4s will
soon be battling the enemies of the United Nations in every quarter
of the globe.
By the Numbers
U.S. Military Bomber Aircraft built by
American workers between 1941 and
1945: 49,123
... Fighter Aircraft: 63,933
... Cargo Aircraft: 14,710
... Total U.S. Military Aircraft: 127,766
Ships produced by U.S. Maritime
shipyards between 1939 and 1945: 5,777
Unemployment Statistics
Percent of the American labor force unemployed in 1940: 14.6%
Percent of the American labor force unemployed in 1941: 9.9%
Percent of the American labor force unemployed in 1942: 4.7%
Percent of the American labor force unemployed in 1943: 1.9%
Percent of the American labor force unemployed in 1944: 1.2%
Percent of the American labor force unemployed in 1945: 1.9%
More production, fewer cars
Industrial production nearly doubled during
World War II. Agricultural production, on the
other hand, dropped by 17% during the war
years.
Estimated number of motor vehicles registered
in the United States in 1940: 32.4 million
Estimated number of motor vehicles registered
in the United States in 1945: 31 Million
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Victory Gardens
Victory gardens,
tended by 16.5 million
households, provided
40% of the fresh
produce consumed
on the home front
during the war.
Rationing
War Bonds
The War Finance Committees, in charge of the loan drives,
sold a total of $185.7 billion in securities. This incredible
mass selling achievement (for helping to finance the war) has
not been matched, before or since. By the end of World War
II, over 85 million Americans had invested in War Bonds, a
number unmatched by any other country.
Even Bugs Bunny gets into War
Bonds the act:
Scrap Collection Drives: 7 million
tons of scrap paper, and 18 million
tons of scrap metal
At the movies
The World at War
Could the average American escape it?
Was there any way to get through a day
on the Home Front without thinking about,
contributing to, or hearing about this war?
Do we fight wars like this today?