Test 2 Review Flashcards
San Francisco/ and the Earthquake
- San Francisco became an industrial city. SF incorporated modern tech (such as power lines) which was good for urban living but left the city in flames when they broke during the earthquake –> city officials blamed the fire and ruptured pipes on the supposed drying of the water supply, but that wasn’t the truth
- Earth rebuilding was planned by the elites. Streets widened and poor neighborhoods were not rebuilt/replaced except for Chinatown. “Rising like a phoenix from the ashes” –> rebuilt the same areas. City dwellers downplayed the risks and consequences of natural disasters
- The earthquake and the rebuilding spurred progressive reform activism.
Significant “progressive” political measures in CA
- included the middle class concerned about corruption (anti-railroad, anti-political parties)
- women concerned about social/moral issues and demanding the right to vote
- labor unrest/ dissatisfaction from workers met with violent responses –> riots/strikes
- anti-immigrant mindsets as there was racism and status anxiety (anti-Japanese legislation: Alien Land Act that prevented the Japanese from owning land)
- Politics: direct democracy
Initiative: allows registered voters in CA to sign petitions in order to place laws on the ballots for popular rejection/approval
Referendum: once the legislature passes a law, anyone who gathers enough signs of registered voters can place it on the ballot and give voters a chance to repeal the law
Believed this would provide another method for voters to overrule corrupt politicians in the legislature
Recall: anyone who thinks an elected state official is unsatisfactory can gather signatures from registered voters and give voters a chance to remove an official from office
PROBLEMS W/ DIRECT DEMOCRACY: Political campaign consultants can gather signatures to qualify virtually any ballot measure for a high fee. Large corporations can use their ample funds to gain to translate their economic clout into political outcomes.
EX. FIGURES: Hiram Johnson, Laura Gordon, Clara Foltz
LA oil
- (1900-1926) CA produced more oil than any other state in the country –> fuel oil needed a bit of refining at first but later replaced coal on railroads, ships, locomotives, factories
- Oil in CA discovered in rapidly growing urban regions –> became basis of enormous wealth. Edward Doheny drilled the first well and then more in a lot more towns–>subsequent oil rush
-Oil industry triggered industrial development in LA (pumps, pipes, tanks, truck/cars, etc)
-Laws encouraged drilling at first but then due to frequent fires, leaks, industrial accidents gradually restricted oil drilling laws.
Water/LA/SF
-RECLAMATION ACT OF 1902: provided funds for examination for construction and maintenance of irrigation works for the storage, diversion, and development of water for the reclamation of arid and semiarid lands
- SF- Hetch Hetchy Dam: SF had a long-proposed plan for taking water from the Sierras however there were already preexisting water company contracts and the proposed place was in Yosemite national park
- LA - Owen’s Valley: LA developers/businesses vs. Owens Valley farmers. Fred Eaton proposed that LA take Owen’s Valley and Reclamation services had eyes on it for themselves –> OV residents upset that LA was going to build a dam:
PROPOSITION: reclamation builds a dam and sells water to LA.
RESULT: Roosevelt sided w LA and removed reclamation service
-LA didn’t need the water for the current population but instead was acquired for future development (driven by real estate and business interests)– growth strategy. Convinced citizens that they were running out of water to gather support. ECOLOGICAL CHANGES: draining of Owen’s lake – Mono Lake drained later in 20th century but there was a growth in active environmentalists so LA was forced to move north for water resources
Hollywood
Film industry: moved from NY to California for 4 reasons:
- Filming far from NY helped make legal harassment difficult
- CA sun helped with filming “indoor” scenes
- Abundance of varied sceneries (urban areas, ocean, desert, forest, mountain)
- LA was eager to subsidize the industry and LA was able to offer attractive land deals for studios.
- Films gave Hollywood a certain glamourous look –> became hot tourist spot
Development of Mexican community in LA/ zoot suit riots
- Mex revolution brought thousands of immigrants. Created Mexican Afuera or Mexico away in LA. Revolution, railroad, cont. immigration, ties w family, and location meant a diff type of immigrant idea (aka not like Japanese, Chinese, etc.
- Cultural forms- business, theaters, baseball, religion changes
- Most Mex didn’t want to conform to American culture, held their own standards passions to display loyalties to their Mex background/culture
- During the Depression: sent immigrants “back” to Mex on trains even tho many were born in US and didn’t speak Spanish –> threw them on trains w no context to where they were going
- Thought it would free up jobs (supported by unions)
- Zoot Suit Riots: Zoot suits- baggy wool pants and oversized coats seen as unpatriotic during WW2 bc of rationing of wool
- Verbal fight btwn sailors and zoot suit wearers ended in beating of one of the sailors –> sailors went on rampage and headed to Mex Ame communities to attack
- Racist in nature since they were attacking only minorities and some who weren’t even wearing zoot suits
But news reporters painted rioters as heroes for fighting against a supposed Mex wave crime
SD’s Panama exposition and its military might
- Opening of Panama canal –> SD perfect “first stop”
- SD set on 20th C path w agriculture, resort tourism, and educ
- Urban expansion strategy: become base for navy
- Military would fun econ growth of city without need for industrial development (SD could keep its touristy feel)
Dust Bowl Migrants
- ## Before Mexican and filipino workers dominated, and they were militant in terms of unions and striking, leading to agribusiness violence but the more militant Mexican workers were fired when dust bowl migrants came into California, because the migrants were less willing to unionize and strike. Certainly the “okies” were treated with prejudice by the agricultural towns, but they were welcomed by farm interests, because they could be more easily exploited
EPIC (end poverty now) campaign
-Upton Sinclair (author and socialist) nominated by dem party for governor because of his plan to “end poverty in California”. – PLAN: massive public works program, sweeping tax reform, guaranteed pensions.
-Conservative opposition saw it as a threat to “sovietize” CA
-Result: had created a two-political party system: R&D in CA
-Thought new deal was going to solve the economic crisis from the depression and created an “Americanized” version of socialism
Japanese Internment
o Japanese exclusion opposed by governor and USDA bc they knew the importance of Japanese farming community to the nation’s food supply didn’t want to cut that off mid war
o Racism of the population demanded Jap removal (included military members)
o Jap rushed into camps and fields were left unpicked temporary farm labor crisis
- CA turned back to Mex labor bracero program brought Mex to CA farms then were supposed to be returned to Mex
WW2 tranformations
o More women in the workforce, especially war production
o Feminist- patriotism
o Photographs in color
- Japanese Internment
Describe 3 ways CA had been transformed from the 1890s-1940s. Of the 3 transformations, which do you think was the most significant and why?
- Work opportunities for women
- The progressive era allowed moral compasses to be explored. women were now allowed to vote. California became the sixth state that permitted women to vote equally with men, further becoming a state where women around the nation could go in order to have a voice
- Film industry developed after filming moved from New York to California. As Hollywood became a stand-in for the movie industry, Hollywood itself created a glamourous outlook on California à so much so that it became a tourist place. In a way, California transformed by furthering the film industry.
- Cars: As street car system was developing, automobiles were crucial to L.A development. LA took advantage of Federal Road Act to begin building freeways. As many people came to California, the usage of cars increased rapidly. Mexicans and Whites owned cars nearly at the same rate even though Mexicans had lower per capita income.
