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USA > WWII Impacts on Society & Economy > Flashcards

WWII Impacts on Society & Economy Flashcards

1
Q

Political evidence that there was great prosperity post-war

A

FDR elected for unprecedented 4th term in office

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2
Q

When did FDR die?

A

April 1945

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3
Q

When was the Smith Act? What did it do?

A

1940

made it illegal to threaten to overthrow government

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4
Q

When was conscription introduced? Under what Act?

A

1940

Selective Service Act

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5
Q

What did war mean for unemployment?

A

virtually full employment

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6
Q

What did prices increase by during war?

A

28%

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7
Q

What did wages increase by during war? Was this more than prices?

A

40%

yes more than prices

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8
Q

What happened to earnings in bottom 20% of society ?

A

rose 68%

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9
Q

What happened to share of N.I for bottom 20% of society? What did this suggest?

A

only rose from 4% to 5.5%

although progress and much higher wages, still a fundamental problem with unequal distribution of wealth

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10
Q

What happened to the N.I of the richest 5%? What was the main reason for this?

A

dropped from 26% to 16%

taxation

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11
Q

Who were the chief gainers economically?

A

middle classes

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12
Q

what % of Americans moved state during war?

A

10%

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13
Q

How many people migrated form the south? who were these majorly?

A

1million

mainly blacks looking for better paid employment

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14
Q

Who controlled rationing? What was it like compared to Britain?

A

War production Board

not as severe as Britain

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15
Q

What happened to life expectancy in USA over course of war?

A

increased by 5years

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16
Q

What happened to the population during war?

A

number of births offset number of battle deaths

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17
Q

How many moved to find work?

A

1 in 8

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18
Q

What did California’s population increase by? why was this?

A

72%
2million people
high concentration of defence plants

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19
Q

Apart from California where were several defence plants built?

A

in some of the poorest states (mainly Southern)

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20
Q

What do historians suggest about the post-war military spending boom?

A

helped to smooth out former economic inequalities within the USA

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21
Q

What did strike action account for in terms of % of working days lost during war?

A

less than 1%

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22
Q

What was notable about what employers introduced?

A

paid holidays and health insurance

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23
Q

What happened to the number of women in work during war?

A

increase by almost 50%

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24
Q

Why were women preferred in employment during war?

A

not subject to conscription

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25
Q

Number of women in work pre-war and what did this rise to during peak?

A

11milllion

rose to 20million

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26
Q

What was the percentage increase in women in the automobile industry?

A

from 5% to 20%

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27
Q

What was the government’s view of equal pay?

A

supportive of via the War Labor Board

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28
Q

who was hostile to equalisation of pay?

A

male-dominated unions

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29
Q

What was notable about the number of African-Americans working for federal government during war?

A

increased

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30
Q

How many African-Americans working for federal government in 1939?

A

50,000

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31
Q

How many African-Americans working for federal government in 1944?

A

200,000

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32
Q

What was notable about African-Americans in the army?

A
  • many regiments segregated
  • few black officers
  • evidence of maltreatment like Axis prisoners
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33
Q

Blacks in industrial jobs averaged what % of white wages at beginning of war?

A

40%

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34
Q

Blacks in industrial jobs averaged what % of white wages by the end of war? was this progress?

A

65%

yes progress, but not equality

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35
Q

When was the first regiment which was non-segregated?

A

only by 1945

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36
Q

How did the government condemn racial discrimination?

A

via Executive Order 8802

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37
Q

When was Executive Order 8802 signed?

A

June 1941

38
Q

What did the Executive Order 8802 mean?

A

outlawed racial discrimination in defence industries

39
Q

Was the Executive Order 8802 progress?

A
  • yes in that it outlawed racial discrimination
  • yes in laying the ground for Truman
  • no in that Congress did not pass it - it was by executive order
40
Q

Who replaced FDR after his death?

A

Truman

41
Q

Who was Philip Randolph?

A

key Civil Rights advancer who threatened march on Washington

42
Q

When did Philip Randolph threaten to march on Washington?

A

1941

43
Q

Who set up the CORE? What does this stand for?

A

Farmer

Congress of Racial Equality

44
Q

Apart from CORE name another group looking to advance Civil Rights during war?

A

National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People

NAACP

45
Q

What was the significance of ‘double V”?

A

African-Americans wanted double victory - at home and in war

46
Q

Who was Chief of Army West Coast Command?

A

Dewitt

47
Q

What was set up for Japanese-Americans?

A

10 relocation centres

48
Q

How many Japanese Americans were forcibly sent to concentration camp ‘relocation centres’?

A

100,000

49
Q

What did the Supreme Court rule in relation to Japanese-Americans? When was this?

A

1944

forbade imprisonment of loyal Japanese-Americans in relocation centres

50
Q

What was USA’s GNP in 1939?

A

$91.3billion

51
Q

Between 1947-60 what did the USA’s population rise by?

A

40million

52
Q

Number of home owners in 1950?

A

9million

53
Q

Number of home owners in 1960?

A

33million

54
Q

Increase in home owners 1950-60?

A

24million

55
Q

What Conference set up the world bank and IMF?

A

Bretone Woods Conférence of 1944

56
Q

When was the Serviceman’s Readjustment Act?

A

1944

57
Q

What was the other name for the Serviceman’s Readjustment Act?

A

G.I Bill

58
Q

How much of funds put aside for the GI Bill was given out? Why?

A

Only 20% since employment was so available

59
Q

What was paid for and provided for by the government in the GI bill?

A

university fees

guaranteed home loans for veterans

60
Q

What did the provisions of the GI bill mean in wider terms?

A

boosted spending power of those returning from war - which stimulated economy further

61
Q

When was the employment act?

A

1946

62
Q

What did the employment act state?

A

that federal government would enact policies to promote full employment

63
Q

In 1947 what % of global population lived in the USA?

A

7%

64
Q

What fraction of world’s manufactured goods did USA produce in 1947?

A

1/2

65
Q

What % of world’s electricity did USA produce in 1947?

A

43%

66
Q

In 1950 what occurred in employment? why?

A

unemployment rose to 4%

very temporary slump

67
Q

what % of families lived below the poverty line post-war?

A

20%

68
Q

By end of 1940s what was the average American’s income in comparison to the average European?

A

X15 greater

69
Q

Post-war where was much development e.g by Levitt and Sons?

A

West Coast

70
Q

Car sales in 1945
Car sales in 1949
Car sales in 1955

A

69,000 - 1945

  1. 1million - 1949
  2. 9million - 1955
71
Q

In 1946 alone how many babies were born?

A

3.4million

72
Q

Post-war what did the sale of household appliances increase by?

A

X5

73
Q

What did Republicans argue the Wagner Act did?

A

shifted too much power to unions

74
Q

What happened in the 1946 Congressional elections?

A

massive swing
Republicans make gains
Republicans now control Congress

75
Q

What did Congress pass in 1947 to do with unions?

What did the Taft-Hartley Act do?

A

Taft-Hartley Act

curbed union power
outlawed closed shop
made unions swear they were not communist

76
Q

When was a deal signed between Wilson and Reuther?

Who were Wilson and Reuther?

A

1948

Wilson (President of GM) and Reuther (United Automobile Workers) who signed a deal together

77
Q

Government spending 1945

1948 :

A

$95billion

$36.5billion by 1948

78
Q

Name of the type of quick build affordable home with 4 rooms

Where was construction development concentrated?

How many low cost housing units were built in the early 1950s? How many people now lived in the suburbs by 1950s?

A

Cape Cod Box

concentrated on west coast / “sunbelt states”

1million low cost housing units
30% live in suburbs by 1950s

79
Q

Farm income increase over war

A

250%

80
Q

Example of construction company

How much were they selling homes for

What did they include?

What was the colloquial name for the symbols of suburbia?

A

Levitt and Sons

$6,900 including appliances

Levittowns = symbols of suburbia
increases in population “fertility valleys”

81
Q

Increase in population caused what in terms of construction and knock on effects

A
  • demand for more houses
  • new infrastructure e.g schools
    = employment for teachers
82
Q

How was the ‘sprawl’ of cities helping to perpetuate prosperity?

Evidence for this success

A

automobile manufacturers market advantages of having 2 cars within a suburban family

1949 : 5.1million cars sold
1955 : 7.9million cars sold

83
Q

What did the advent of tech innovation such as computers / machinery in production due to WWII innovation lead to an increase in production?

A

35% increase in production 1945-54

84
Q

What did tech innovation do in terms of diversifying the economy?

A

Significant to prosperity as it created new markets

85
Q

Examples of tech innovation

x4

A
  • synthetic rubber
  • electronics
  • fridges
  • TV
86
Q

When was the transistor invented?

By who?

What did this lead to an increase in household appliances?

A

1948

Bell laboratories

X5 increase in household appliances

87
Q

Increase in TV’s ;

1946 -

1960 -

What industry did this stimulate?

By 1960 what fraction of families had TVs?
Relate this to McCarthy

A

1946 - 7,000 TVs

1960 - 50million TVs

Expansion of entertainment / advertising

3/4 of families had TVs by 1960
so McCarthy trials of 1954 were watched widely

88
Q

What did the advent of fridges lead to the rise of?

A

frozen foods industry

89
Q

What was the different between the post-war boom and WWII employment?

A

post-war boom was consumer fuelled and perpetuated

WWII employment was government spending dependent

90
Q

Credit card introduction

How many credit card holders did Sears have by 1960?

A

1950 introduced

1960 : sears has 10million credit card customers

91
Q

What did the credit card show about business confidence?

A

businesses confident that prosperity would continue and that they would be repaid

to the extent that by 1960 Sears had 10million credit card customers who it was willing to provide easy credit

92
Q

what was contributing to the decline in labour unions?

A

white collar workers beginning to outnumber blue for 1st time in US history

largely due to modernisation / computers / big agri business

USA (33 decks)

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