Unit 7: Topic 6 - World War I: Home Front Flashcards
How did the United States restrict freedom of speech during WWI?
Restrictions of speech during WWI
- Espionage Act: Made it illegal to obstruct or interfere with the U.S. war effort
- Sedition Act: Amendment to Espionage Act, made it illegal to say anything negative about the government or the war effort
- Schenck v. United States: Supreme Court case prosecuting Charles Schenck for distributing pamphlets telling people not to comply with the draft
- U.S. censored and downplayed reporting of the 1918 Flu Pandemic to avoid decreasing national morale
What was the significance of Schenk v. United States (1919)?
In Schenck v. United States, the Supreme Court found Charles Schenck guilty of violating the Espionage Act by distributing pamphlets telling people to avoid being drafted to fight in WWI. The Court claimed that in times of “clear and present danger”, civil liberties and constitutional rights could be restricted. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes famously compared Schenck’s actions to shouting fire in a crowded theater.
The idea that people’s rights can be restricted during war is common throughout U.S. History. A comparison could be when Abraham Lincoln suspended the right of Habeas Corpus during the Civil War, allowing the government to punish people without a real trial.
What are some examples of the Espionage Act (1917) and the Sedition Act (1918) being used to prosecute U.S. citizens?
The most famous example is when Eugene Debs, a founding member of both the Socialist Party of America and the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) was thrown in jail after giving a fiery anti-WWI speech in Canton, OH. While in jail, Debs ran for President as the Socialist Party candidate and received almost one million votes.
Other examples include a man imprisoned for criticizing civilians that were knitting socks for soldiers and a farmer who compared Germany’s war actions to the U.S. in the Philippines. Overall, roughly 2,000 citizens were prosecuted under the Sedition Act of 1918.
What was the First Red Scare?
After the Russian Revolution began in 1917, many Americans began to fear any radical political ideologies. This created a base of support for restrictive laws and actions including the Espionage Act, the Sedition Acts, and the Palmer Raids. During this time any labor union action or racial unrest was blamed on communist agitators rather than the actual issues (unfair treatment, unfair wages, etc.)
What were the Palmer Raids?
After bombs were found in the mail addressed to prominent politicians in 1919, Attorney General Mitchell Palmer began the Palmer Raids. These raids resulted in the unconstitutional arrests of radicals, socialists, and union leaders. Many of those arrested were immigrants who were then unjustly deported.
J. Edgar Hoover helped Attorney General Palmer plan these raids and began creating lists of suspected radicals. Hoover would become the Director of the FBI from 1924-1970.
How did immigration change during WWI?
WWI helped cause a resurgence in nativist groups. In the years prior to the war, U.S. immigration peaked due to a dramatic increase from Southern Europe, Eastern Europe, and Asia. After WWI, legislation such as the Emergency Quota Act of 1921 and the National Origins Act of 1924 set quotas that decreased the number of immigrants from these regions.
How did migration patterns within the United States change as a result of WWI?
During WWI, the demand for labor increased as the war effort ramped up. At the same time, immigration was decreasing and men were being drafted to fight overseas. As a result, another wave of urbanization occurred as Americans moved to the cities to work factory jobs.
How did the government mobilize the U.S. economy to fight in WWI?
Agencies such as the War Industries Board and the Food Administration made sure that factories were able to create weapons, uniforms, food, and other war-related items as efficiently as possible. The U.S. Government coordinated these efforts in order to best manage the supply chain.
What was the Great Migration?
As the draft for WWI and laws restricting immigration decreased the number of available workers in industrial centers, Black Americans began moving out of the South in the Great Migration. Reasons for the migration included segregation and Jim Crow Laws, lynchings, poll taxes, literacy tests, and other forms of discrimination in the South. The availability of factory jobs in the North provided a way for Black Americans to leave the oppression of the South.
There was still discrimination in the North towards Black people, but the overall situation tended to be an improvement.
What are some examples of discrimination faced by Black Americans in the North during the Great Migration?
While the situation in the North was a general improvement, African-Americans still faced discrimination and violence in the Northern industrial centers.
Chicago Race Riot (1919) - After a Black youth was stoned and drowned while swimming in a white area on Lake Michigan, the police refused to arrest the white aggressor. The confrontations spread across the city culminating in black neighborhoods being destroyed by white mobs. 38 people died and 1,000 Black families were left homeless.
Tulsa Race Massacre (1921) - Violence began as a result of an arrest of a Black teenager and mob justice. The race massacre culminated with the deaths of 300 people (almost entirely African-Americans) and the looting and burning of black neighborhoods by white mobs. References to the massacre were removed from official archives and newspapers in Tulsa and it was largely covered up for decades.
