3.2 The War and the Economy Flashcards
Impact on WW2 on Economy
national income, wealth and industrial production doubled
1940- gross national product= $99.7 billion
1945-$211 billion
1947- USA producing 57% of world’s steel, 43% electricity, 62% oil- global economic power
July 1944- international monetary fund to stabilize national currencies
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development- lend money to other countries for post war reconstruction
raised taxes- $137 billion- total cost of war= $304 billion
used war bonds- 1941, launched a number of war bond drives to sell as many as they could. 1946- 85 million americans bought $185 billion of bonds
wage increases in the steel industry
unemployment- 1933= 12.8 million, 25% of workforce, 1940= 8.1 million, 14.6%, 1945= 1 million, 1.9%
12 million men went into armed forces
created 17 million jobs, average wages rising 30%
drop in wealth inequality, 23.7%- 16.8%
Impact of WW2 on Women
provided opportunities for women to enter jobs that had never been open to them before e.g. defense industry
faced challenges in overcoming cultural stereotypes against working women, finding childcare during working hours
350,000 served in armed forces
after war, fired from factory jobs- however third of women older than 14 worked outside the home
5 million women entered the workforce 1940-45
1943- aircraft industry was majority women
majority of women took over factory or office jobs
women earnt more than ever before- however still less than men
achieved a degree of financial self-reliance
seven childcare centres, servicing 150,000 children were built encouraged by Elanor Roosevelt- she wanted industry leaders to build childcare facilities- efforts didn’t meet the full need for childcare
Rosie the Riveter- tough yet feminine to reassure men that women would not become too masculine, there were lessons on how to do makeup, cosmetics never were rationed
Impact of WW2 on Native Americans
loss of identity- integrating with American culture
Navajos were employed as communications soldiers serving in the Pacific Theatre of operations
420 Navajos men were code talkers from a population of 500,000
Impact of WW2 on Hispanic Americans
3 June 1943- Zoot Suit Riots in Los Angeles
White Sailors claimed to be attacked by a Mexican American wearing a new fashion suit associated with ethnic minorities, the ‘zoot suit’
50 sailors went around LA stripping anyone wearing a zoot suit
riots reached a peak on June 7 when sailors beat up a Mexican-American youth for wearing a zoot suit, and only came to an end on 8 June when white sailors were confined to their barracks.
Eleanor Roosevelt caused uproar by writing directly to the female head of the California State Chamber of Commerce, claiming the riots were racially motivated attack against Mexican Americans
Impact Of WW2 on black Americans
until 1948, the US armed forces were segregated
when US first joined to war in 1941, there was less than 4,000 black Americans serving and only 12 black Americans were officers
end of the war- 21.2 million black Americans were in the forces, including female black Americans in the auxiliary armed forces
they still faced racial discrimination, all-white draft boards decided which branch of the armed forces a person would be allocated to or whether they would be accepted for military service
majority of black Americans served in non-combat roles such as supply or transportation- act of racial discrimination as many politicians believed Black Americans would perform poorly in combat
Tuskegee Airmen- most celebrated black American combat unit was the 332nd Fighter Group of the 15th US Army Air Force. Trained in Tuskegee in Alabama. Men and officers were all black. Known as the ‘red tails’. From May 1943- June 1945, they never lost a single bomber they were escorting to enemy fighters. Faced criticism from white southern Congressmen- they disliked black americans gaining combat experience, also didn’t like that they were given officer status. Eleanor Roosevelt helped champion the airmen’s cause and keep the group operational
Impact of WW2 on Japanese Americans
after Pearl Harbour, December 1941, all of the US Japanese-American population who lived mainly on the West Coast were forced to leave their homes and were relocated to interment camps in the desert areas of the West.
400,000 were relocated in this fashion
they were divided into two groups: ISSEI- Japanese who immigrated to the USA; NISEI- Japanese Americans born and educated in the USA.
Even though the USA was at war with Germany and Italy, they didn’t treat the citizens as a whole ethnic group for internment and loss of their civil rights.
several lawsuits challenged the right of the US government to intern NISEI
Impact of WW2 on Ethnic Minorities (as a whole)
ethnic minorities made up a relatively small proportion of the US population, just over 10%, but they played an important role in winning the war. even though they fought bravely, they faced racial discrimination in the military and many were forced into separate racially segregated units. when ethnic minority servicemen returned home, they still found that they were barred from whites-only facilities such as restaurants, dance halls and hotels
The Double ‘V’ campaign
-the desire to serve the US in the armed forces and the need to fight racial discrimination led to this campaign
-Inspired by one of the biggest selling black American newspapers, the Pittsburgh Courier, with sales of 200,000 nationwide
-Other newspapers with large black American readership joined in the campaign
-to promote partroism, they included the American flag with every subscription to the campaign and a request that those involved bought US government war bonds to help finance the war.
-received support from white Hollywood stars, such as Lana Turner.
-After the war, it turned into the single V, demanding racial equality at home
Women and the war effort
-100,000 served in the Women’s Army Corps
-350,000 served in the armed forces
-thousands became nurses
-6 million women entered the workforce for the first time
-By the end of the war, 18 million women helped the US win the war
-became involved in male dominated industries such as welding, machining, building aircraft and repairing tanks
HOWEVER
the independence they got in the war was short-lived. They were expected to give up their jobs after the war to look after their families
The contribution of young people to the war effort
20 million become junior members of the American Red Cross, such as making toys, clothing and furniture
-Many others joined the workforce to help out
-Played an important role in Civil Defence, i.e coastal watching and watching for enemy aircraft
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Migration to urban and industrial centres
-people moved to bases away from home during the war
-15 million people moved permanently
-black Americans continued the Great Migration
-many uses the war to escape rural poverty
-In 1940, half of white families and 905 of black families living In rural areas lived in poverty
The growth of new industries
WW2
-creating the world’s first atomic weapon (The Manhattan Project)
-cost $2 billion and employed more than 100,000 people
-the new nuclear industry became an important part of US defence industry
-aircraft industry- single largest section of the war economy costing $45 billion. Airplanes that carried the atomic bombs
-these war industries stimulated the development of electronics, radio communications, new methods of construction and military production, which became a dominant feature of the Cold War
