THEME 3: b - The impact of the ND on ethnic minorities Flashcards
What legislation helped Native Americans & what did it do?
The Indian Reorganisation act 1934
- encouraged their culture & moved away from assimilation
- reorganised them into self-governing bodies (own police, legal system)
- had control of land sales on reservations & corps to manage resources
What was the effect of the Indian Reorganisation act 1934?
- offered no relief to Native Americans
- their poverty too great to be helped by the CCC of PWA
- in the 40s Native Americans tried to set up pressure groups to promote their developments
- remained the poorest in the US
Why was the ND limited for Black Americans?
- Roosevelt needed the support of Southern democrats - often racist
- blocked any civil rights legislation
- The CCC was run by Souther racists who did little to encourage BA’s to join & If they did, were in segregated camps
How did Black American voting behaviour change?
- traditionally they would vote Republican (Lincon, emancipation)
- In 1940 there was a clear switch to voting for Democrats (Roosevelt all 15 BA wards in 9 major cities, he won 85% of the vote in Harlem)
- in 1936 the Democrats had the first black-American congressman
How did Elanor Roosevelt advocate for black rights?
- she ensured prominent BA’s met the President to explain racial problems they faced
- she made a public statement in 1938 when sat in the ‘coloured’ section of the Conference of Human Welfare on Alabama
- she also openly supported black rights & encouraged Roosevelt to do more for them
What was Executive Order 8802?
- outlawed discrimination in the defence industry
- set up the FEPC (fair employment practices committee)
- at first, they had a limited budget but this grew in line with their strength
How did Black American’s in government change under Roosevelt?
- R did more to employ BA’s in gov
- Mary McLeod Bethune employed under the NYA (national youth admin)
- civil service tripled the amount of BA’s employed
- unofficial positive discrimination
What was the Black American experience in the US military?
- they rushed to enlist after the declaration of war but were often refused by all-white recruitment boards
- NAACP put pressure on R until he pledged BA’s would be recruited according to their & of pop (never attained)
- roles were initially limited to non-combat roles but this changed as more battles were lost
- strict segregation & discrimination still experienced
- However, manpower shortage less to 25 warships being integrated
How many Black Americans were in the military in 1941 and 1945?
- 1941: fewer than 4,000 in armed forces
* 1945: 1.2 mil in military
Why was Executive Order 8802 passed?
- BA leaders called for a 250,000 March on Washington in 1941 to air their grievances on discrimination faced in the workplace
- Roosevelt feared looking like Hitler on the world stage by denying them civil rights
- So he issues Executive Order 8802 which set up the FEPC who regulated discrimination
- RESULT: 4% increase in BA workforce in defence plants
What was the ‘Double V’ campaign?
Victory against the Axis powers for which BA’s fought courageously both in the military & in war work, and victory over prejudice & discrimination at home
What were the consequences of the ‘Double V’ campaign?
- many Americans began to examine their own racial attitudes - still a long way to go for racial equality
- The Campaign for Racial Equality (CRE) was founded in 1942 & encouraged peaceful protests against segregated facilities
What caused the Detriot Race Riots 1934?
Disagreement whether one housing development was for white Americans or Black Americans
* when BA families moved there they had to be protected by police
- all kicked off when a BA hurled verbal insults at the girlfriend of a white sailor
- rumours spread that blacks had raped a white women & whites has attacked a black woman & her baby
- whites began the attacks by hauling them off buses & the violence quickly spread
What were the consequences of the Detroit Riot in 1934?
- 34 killed
- 25 black
- 17 of these killed by police
- 600 injured
- 3/4 of this were BA
- 8,000 arrests
- 85% of these were BA
What was the Hispanic American experience of the ND?
- worked mainly in agriculture
- discrimination & 90% of Hispanic American children were educated in segregated schools
- When the depression hit many were deported if unemployed (over 30s, 400,000 were sent to Mexico)
- Southwestern states banned them from public work schemes
How did Hispanic Americans contribute to the war effort?
- approx 500,000 served in the armed forces
- classed as white, so were not segregated likes blacks
- worked in essential industries (shipyards, mines, aircraft) but on the lowest-paid levels
- Hispanic women gained more independence as they gained higher wages in war industries
- Many Hispanic women recruited in cryptology & communication because many were bilingual
Who were ‘zoot-suiters’?
Young Hispanic Americans who would wear baggy suits - seen as the uniform of lawlessness & immorality
What happened at the LA Riots?
- 1943, sailors from the Chavez Ravine naval base committed random & widespread attacks on Hispanic Americans
- this was in revenge of perceived Hispanic violence against sailors
- the authorities turned a blind eye
- press accused Hispanic Americans of causing violence
What huge issue did Japanese Americans face?
Mass Internment
Why were the Japanese subject to internment?
- Worsening relations with Japan
- they were labelled subversives & perceived as potential spies for the Japanese gov
- increasing fear of attack of the West Coast
- General John L. Dewitt
Who was Dewitt & what did he do?
- Chief of the Army West Coast Command
- set up compulsory relocation - 10 centres set up throughout West
- 100,000 Japanese Americans forcibly sent there
- this was just in Dewitt’s area of command, nowhere else
What happened to homes which the Japanese were forced to leave?
- because they had to leave their property unprotected much looting went on in their absence
- estimated losses worth &400 mil
Why did internment eventually come to an end?
- fear of Japanese attack receded in 1944
* The Supreme Court forbid the internment of loyal Japanese Americans in 1944
Did Japanese Americans recieve compensation for what happened to them?
YES
- not until 1988
- compensation was offered to surviving internees
