Year	Living in California	Living in the Rest of the West*	Living Elsewhere in the U.S.
1870	78.0 %	21.4 %	0.6 %
1880	71.2 %	25.6 %	3.2 %
1890	67.4 %	22.7 %	9.9 %
1900	51.5 %	24.4 %	24.6 %
1910	50.7 %	21.9 %	27.4 %
1920	46.7 %	15.9 %	37.4 %
1930	50.1 %	10.0 %	40.1 %

Ten States with the Largest Population, 1900-2000
1900	1930	1960	2000
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
1. New York	1. New York	1. New York	1. California
2. Pennsylvania	2. Pennsylvania	2. California	2. Texas
3. Illinois	3. Illinois	3. Pennsylvania	3. New York
4. Ohio	4. Ohio	4. Illinois	4. Florida
5. Missouri	5. Texas	5. Ohio	5. Illinois
6. Texas	6. California	6. Texas	6. Pennsylvania
7. Massachusetts	7. Michigan	7. Michigan	7. Ohio
8. Indiana	8. Massachusetts	8. New Jersey	8. Michigan
9. Michigan	9. New Jersey	9. Massachusetts	9. New Jersey
10. Iowa	10. Missouri	10. Florida	10. Georgia

Year	Owned	Rented
1940	44%	56%
1950	55%	45%
1960	62%	38%
1970	63%	37%
1980	65%	35%

Year	Telephone	Radio	Television
1930	40%	39%	0%
1940	39%	72%	0%
1950	60%	90%	10%
1960	80%	95%	85%
1970	90%	100%	95%
1980	92%	100%	99%
1990	93%	100%	99%
2000	94%	100%	99%

Year	Ages 60 and over	Ages 20-59	Ages 0-19
1900	6.4%	49.2%	44.4%
1950	12.2%	53.9%	33.9%
2000	16.2%	55.2%	28.6%

Country	1950	2000
United States	75.7%	21.5%
Canada	3.7%	4.9%
Europe	18.8%	29.5%
Japan	.3%	21.5%
Other	1.5%	27%

Cause of Death	Union Soldiers	Confederate Soldiers
In Combat	28.2%	32.2%
Disease	57.6%	56.7%
As Prisoners of War	7.7%	0%
Other (Including Accidents)	6.4%	10.7%

Ticket	Popular Vote	Electoral Vote
Source: Federal Register
Bush-Cheney	50,456,062	271
Gore-Lieberman	50,996,582	266
Nader-LaDuke	2,858,843	0
Buchanan-Foster	438,760	0

1 A Growing Conflict
British Action	Colonial Response
British station 10,000 troops as a standing army along colonies' western borders to prevent trouble with Native Americans.	Colonists view the troops as a threat.
British issue Proclamation of 1763, prohibiting settlement west of Appalachians.	4 Your answers should follow the pattern of this sample answer. Colonists become angered by this limit. Some ignore the line and continue to cross westward to settle in new lands.
To pay for French and Indian War and stationed troops, Parliament creates new taxes.	Colonists protest, demanding "no taxation without representation."
Parliament imposes Stamp Act, placing a tax on official documents and other papers.	Colonists protest, refuse to pay the tax, set up secret societies, such as the Sons of Liberty, and send delegates to the Stamp Act Congress.
Parliament repeals Stamp Act but passes Townshend Acts, which impose taxes on various goods imported by colonies.	Colonists organize boycotts of British goods. 3 This document is a chart of the British actions and colonial responses that helped to bring about the American Revolution.

Year	Total Waste	Waste Recycled
1970	124	10
1975	125	11
1980	150	15
1985	160	20
1990	210	35
1995	215	55
2000	235	65

Symbols
	Lake
	Salt Lake
	Seasonal Lake
	River
	Waterfall
	Canal
	Mountain Peak
	Highest Mountain Peak

Cities
	City over 1,000,000 population
	City of 250,000 to 1,000,000 population
	City under 250,000 population
	National Capital
	Secondary Capital (State, Province, or Territory)

Type Styles Used to Name Features
	Country
	State, Province, or Territory
	Possession
	Ocean or Sea
	Physical Feature
	Island

Boundaries
	International Boundary
	Secondary Boundary

Group and Region	Goods Traded
Algonquin of the Eastern Woodlands	colored feathers, copper
Apaches of the Plains	meat, hides, salt
Navajo of the Southwest	pottery, blankets, crops
Kwakiutl of the Northwest Coast	fish oil
Ute of the Great Basin	hides, buffalo robes
Choctaw of the Southeast	deerskins, bear oil

Year	Native Americans	Europeans	Africans
1492	5 million	none	none
1650	2.75 million	.1 million	.1 million
1780	.9 million	2.25 million	.5 million

Cause	Effect
Persecution of Puritans in England
Puritan belief in hard work
Roger Williams’s dissenting beliefs
Rapid colonial expansion in New England
Defeat of King Philip

Region	Interaction
New Mexico
Virginia
New England
Pennsylvania

Economic Activities
New England colonies
Massachusetts	shipbuilding, shipping, fishing,lumber, rum, meat products
New Hampshire	ship masts, lumber, fishing, trade, shipping, livestock, foodstuffs
Connecticut	rum, iron foundries, shipbuilding
Rhode Island	snuff, livestock
Middle colonies
New York	furs, wheat, glass, shoes, livestock, shipping, shipbuilding, rum, beer, snuff
Delaware	trade, foodstuffs
New Jersey	trade, foodstuffs, copper
Pennsylvania	flax, shipbuilding
Southern colonies
Virginia	tobacco, wheat, cattle, iron
Maryland	tobacco, wheat, snuff
North Carolina	naval supplies, tobacco, furs
South Carolina	rice, indigo, silk
Georgia	indigo, rice, naval supplies, lumber

Average Age at Marriage
Group	Males	Females
Puritan	26	23
Virginians	26	19
Quakers
in Delaware	31	29
in Penn. & N.J.	26	22
Philadelphians	26	23
Frontier People	21	19
Modern Americans	25	24

Who Could Divorce
Puritans:	Yes
Virginians:	No
Quakers:	No
Source: David Hackett Fischer, Albion’s Seed

Kings and Queens of England, 1685–1820
James II	1685–1688
William III&Mary II	1689–1702
Anne	1702–1714
George I	1714–1727
George II	1727–1760
George III	1760–1820

UNITED STATES
Strengths	Weaknesses
• familiarity of home ground • leadership of George Washington and other officers • inspiring cause of the independence	• most soldiers untrained and undisciplined • shortage of food and ammunition • inferior navy • no central government to enforce wartime policies

GREAT BRITAIN
Strengths	Weaknesses
• strong, well-trained army and navy • strong central government with available funds • support of colonial Loyalists and Native Americans	• large distance separating Britain from battlefields • troops unfamiliar with terrain • weak military leaders • sympathy of certain British politicans for the American cause

Table of Contents for the Living Constitution
Preamble	154
Article 1	154
Article 2	160
Article 3	162
Article 4	164
Article 5	164
Article 6	165
Article 7	165
Bill of Rights	166
Amendments 11–27	168
Tracing Themes: Voting Rights	174
Assessment	176
Projects for Citizenship	178

Requirements for Holding Federal Office
POSITION	MINIMUM AGE	RESIDENCY	CITIZENSHIP
Representative	25	state in which elected	7 years
Senator	30	state in which elected	9 years
President	35	14 years in the United States	natural-born
Supreme Court Justice	none	none	none

HAMILTON	JEFFERSON
• Concentrating power in federal government • Fear of mob rule • Republic led by a well-educated elite • Loose interpretation of the Constitution • National bank constitutional (loose interpretation) • Economy based on shipping and manufacturing • Payment of national and state debts (favoring creditors) • Supporters: merchants, manufacturers, landowners, investors, lawyers, clergy	• Sharing power with state and local governments; limited national government • Fear of absolute power or ruler • Democracy of virtuous farmers and tradespeople • Strict interpretation of the Constitution • National bank unconstitutional (strict interpretation) • Economy based on farming • Payment of only the national debt (favoring debtors) • Supporters: the “plain people” (farmers, tradespeople)

Economies
North	South
Agriculture	Agriculture
Manufacturing	Manufacturing

job	Year	Monthly Earnings
Source: Historical Statistics of the United States
Artisan	1830	$ 45
Laborer	1830	$ 26
Teacher, male	1840	$ 15
Teacher, female	1840	$ 7
Northern farmhand	1850	$ 13
Southern farmhand	1850	$ 9

Job	Monthly Salary
Source: Employment and Statistics, June 1996, U.S. Department of Labor; Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1994.
Teacher—elementary	$ 2,758
Teacher—high school	$ 2,900
Construction worker	$ 2,399
Service worker	$ 1,518

Trail	Motivations
Oregon Trail
Mormon Trail
Santa Fe Trail

Membership in House of Representatives
Year	Members from Free States	Members from Slave States
1800	77	65
1810	105	81
1820	123	90
1830	142	100
1840	141	91
1850	144	90

Major Political Parties 1850–1860
Party	Established	Major Platform
Free-Soil	1848	• anti extension of slavery • pro-labor
Know-Nothing	1854 (as American Party)	• anti-immigration • anti-Catholic
Whig	Organized 1834	• pro-business • divided on slavery
Republican	1854	• opposed expansion of slavery into territories “Democratic Party”
Democratic	1840 (The Democratic-Republican party adopted as official name)	• states’ rights • limited government • divided on slavery

Party	Candidate	Electoral votes	Popular votes
Republican	Abraham Lincoln	180	1,865,593
Southern Democratic	J.C. Breckinridge	72	848,356
Constitutional Union	John Bell	39	592,906
Northern Democratic	Stephen Douglas	12	1,382,713

KEY EVENT	FUEL FOR SECESSION
Wilmot Proviso of 1846
Compromise of 1850
Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
Election of 1860

One American’s Story

As a young man, Andrew Johnson—who succeeded Abraham Lincoln as president—entered politics in Tennessee. He won several important offices, including those of congressman, governor, and U.S. senator.

After secession, Johnson was the only senator from a Confederate state to remain loyal to the Union. A former slave-owner, by 1863 Johnson supported abolition. He hated wealthy Southern planters, whom he held responsible for dragging poor whites into the war. Early in 1865, he endorsed harsh punishment for the rebellion’s leaders.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ANDREW JOHNSON

“The time has arrived when the American people should understand what crime is, and that it should be punished, and its penalties enforced and inflicted.… Treason must be made odious … traitors must be punished and impoverished … their social power must be destroyed. I say, as to the leaders, punishment. I say leniency, conciliation, and amnesty to the thousands whom they have misled and deceived.”
—quoted in Reconstruction: The Ending of the Civil War

A photo of Andrew Johnson./> <caption><strong>Andrew Johnson, the 17th president of the United States</strong></caption>
</imggroup> <p>On becoming president, Johnson faced not only the issue of whether to punish or
pardon former Confederates but also a larger problem: how to bring the defeated Confederate states
back into the Union.</p> </div> <level4 id=

Lincoln’s Plan for Reconstruction

Reconstruction was the period during which the United States began to rebuild after the Civil War, lasting from 1865 to 1877. The term also refers to the process the federal government used to readmit the Confederate states. Complicating the process was the fact that Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, and Congress had differing ideas on how Reconstruction should be handled.

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Lincoln’s Ten-Percent Plan

Lincoln, before his death, had made it clear that he favored a lenient Reconstruction policy. Lincoln believed that secession was constitutionally impossible and therefore that the Confederate states had never left the Union. He contended that it was individuals, not states, who had rebelled and that the Constitution gave the president the power to pardon individuals. Lincoln wished to make the South’s return to the Union as quick and easy as possible.

In December 1863, President Lincoln announced his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, also known as the Ten-Percent Plan. The government would pardon all Confederates—except high-ranking Confederate officials and those accused of crimes against prisoners of war—who would swear allegiance to the Union. After ten percent of those on the 1860 voting lists took this oath of allegiance, a Confederate state could form a new state government and gain representation in Congress.

Under Lincoln’s terms, four states—Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Virginia—moved toward readmission to the Union. However, Lincoln’s moderate Reconstruction plan angered a minority of Republicans in Congress, known as Radical Republicans. Led by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts and Representative Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania, the Radicals wanted to destroy the political power of former slaveholders. Most of all, they wanted African Americans to be given full citizenship and the right to vote. In 1865, the idea of African-American suffrage was truly radical; no other country that had abolished slavery had given former slaves the vote.

Key Player: Thaddeus Stevens 1792–1868 A photo of Thaddeus Stevens.

The Radical Republican leader Thaddeus Stevens had a commanding physical presence and was famous for his quick wit and sarcasm. One colleague called him “a rude jouster in political and personal warfare.”

Before serving in Congress, he had practiced law in Pennsylvania, where he defended runaway slaves. Stevens hated slavery and in time came to hate white Southerners as well. He declared, “I look upon every man who would permit slavery … as a traitor to liberty and disloyal to God.”

After Stevens died, at his own request he was buried in an integrated cemetery, because he wanted to show in death “the principles which I advocated throughout a long life: Equality of Man before his Creator.”

Radical Reaction

In July 1864, the Radicals responded to the Ten-Percent Plan by passing the Wade-Davis Bill, which proposed that Congress, not the president, be responsible for Reconstruction. It also declared that for a state government to be formed, a majority—not just ten percent—of those eligible to vote in 1860 would have to take a solemn oath to support the Constitution.

Lincoln used a pocket veto to kill the Wade-Davis Bill after Congress adjourned. According to the Constitution, a president has ten days to either sign or veto a bill passed by Congress. If the president does neither, the bill will automatically become law. When a bill is passed less than ten days before the end of a congressional session, the president can prevent its becoming law by simply ignoring, or “pocketing,” it. The Radicals called Lincoln’s pocket veto an outrage and asserted that Congress had supreme authority over Reconstruction. The stage was set for a presidential-congressional showdown.

Johnson’s Plan

Lincoln’s assassination in April 1865 left his successor, the Democrat Andrew Johnson, to deal with the Reconstruction controversy. A staunch Unionist, Johnson had often expressed his intent to deal harshly with Confederate leaders. Most white Southerners therefore considered Johnson a traitor to his region, while Radicals believed that he was one of them. Both were wrong.

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In a photo, two Confederate officers stand by Lee.

Former Confederate officers George Washington Custis Lee, Robert E. Lee, and Walter Taylor, photographed in 1865

Johnson Continues Lincoln’s Policies

In May 1865, with Congress in recess, Johnson announced his own plan, Presidential Reconstruction. He declared that each remaining Confederate state—Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas—could be readmitted to the Union if it would meet several conditions. Each state would have to withdraw its secession, swear allegiance to the Union, annul Confederate war debts, and ratify the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery.

To the dismay of Thaddeus Stevens and the Radicals, Johnson’s plan differed little from Lincoln’s. The one major difference was that Johnson wished to prevent most high-ranking Confederates and wealthy Southern landowners from taking the oath needed for voting privileges. The Radicals were especially upset that Johnson’s plan, like Lincoln’s, failed to address the needs of former slaves in three areas: land, voting rights, and protection under the law.

If Johnson’s policies angered Radicals, they relieved most white Southerners. Johnson’s support of states’ rights instead of a strong central government reassured the Southern states. Although Johnson supported abolition, he was not in favor of former slaves gaining the right to vote—he pardoned more than 13,000 former Confederates because he believed that “white men alone must manage the South.”

The remaining Confederate states quickly agreed to Johnson’s terms. Within a few months, these states—all except Texas—held conventions to draw up new state constitutions, to set up new state governments, and to elect representatives to Congress. However, some Southern states did not fully comply with the conditions for returning to the Union. For example, Mississippi did not ratify the Thirteenth Amendment.

Despite such instances of noncompliance, in December 1865, the newly elected Southern legislators arrived in Washington to take their seats. Fifty-eight of them had previously sat in the Congress of the Confederacy, six had served in the Confederate cabinet, and four had fought against the United States as Confederate generals. Johnson pardoned them all—a gesture that infuriated the Radicals and made African Americans feel they had been betrayed. In an 1865 editorial, an African-American newspaper publisher responded to Johnson’s actions.

A PERSONAL VOICE

PHILIP A. BELL

“The war does not appear to us to be ended, nor rebellion suppressed. They have commenced reconstruction on disloyal principles. If rebel soldiers are allowed to mumble through oaths of allegiance, and vote Lee’s officers into important offices, and if Legislatures, elected by such voters, are allowed to define the provisions of the Amnesty Proclamation, then were our conquests vain.… Already we see the fruits of this failure on the part of Government to mete out full justice to the loyal blacks, and retribution to the disloyal whites.”
—quoted in Witness for Freedom: African American Voices on Race, Slavery, and Emancipation

Presidential Reconstruction Comes to a Standstill

When the 39th Congress convened in December 1865, the Radical Republican legislators, led by Thaddeus Stevens, disputed Johnson’s claim that Reconstruction was complete. Many of them believed that the Southern states were not much different

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from the way they had been before the war. As a result, Congress refused to admit the newly elected Southern legislators.

At the same time, moderate Republicans pushed for new laws to remedy weaknesses they saw in Johnson’s plan. In February 1866, Congress voted to continue and enlarge the Freedmen’s Bureau. The bureau, established by Congress in the last month of the war, assisted former slaves and poor whites in the South by distributing clothing and food. In addition, the Freedmen’s Bureau set up more than 40 hospitals, approximately 4,000 schools, 61 industrial institutes, and 74 teacher-training centers.

Affrican-American children gather outside a log cabin with a sign that reads Freedman's School.

One important project of the Freedmen’s Bureau was establishing primary schools, like the one shown here, for the children of former slaves.

Civil Rights Act of 1866

Two months later, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which gave African Americans citizenship and forbade states from passing discriminatory laws—black codes—that severely restricted African Americans’ lives. Mississippi and South Carolina had first enacted black codes in 1865, and other Southern states had rapidly followed suit.

Black codes had the effect of restoring many of the restrictions of slavery by prohibiting blacks from carrying weapons, serving on juries, testifying against whites, marrying whites, and traveling without permits. In some states, African Americans were forbidden to own land. Even worse, in many areas resentful whites used violence to keep blacks from improving their position in society. To many members of Congress, the passage of black codes indicated that the South had not given up the idea of keeping African Americans in bondage.

Johnson shocked everyone when he vetoed both the Freedmen’s Bureau Act and the Civil Rights Act. Congress, Johnson contended, had gone far beyond anything “contemplated by the authors of the Constitution.” These vetoes proved to be the opening shots in a battle between the president and Congress. By rejecting the two acts, Johnson alienated the moderate Republicans who were trying to improve his Reconstruction plan. He also angered the Radicals by appearing to support Southerners who denied African Americans their full rights. Johnson had not been in office a year when presidential Reconstruction ground to a halt.

Congressional Reconstruction

Angered by Johnson’s actions, radical and moderate Republican factions decided to work together to shift the control of the Reconstruction process from the executive branch to the legislature, beginning a period of “congressional Reconstruction.”

Moderates and Radicals Join Forces

In mid-1866, moderate Republicans joined with Radicals to override the president’s vetoes of the Civil Rights and Freedmen’s Bureau acts. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 became the first major legislation ever enacted over a presidential veto. In addition, Congress drafted the Fourteenth Amendment, which provided a constitutional basis for the Civil Rights Act.

The Fourteenth Amendment made “all persons born or naturalized in the United States” citizens of the country. All were entitled to equal protection of the law, and no state could deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due

380

process of law. The amendment did not specifically give African Americans the vote. However, it did specify that if any state prevented a portion of its male citizens from voting, that state would lose a percentage of its congressional seats equal to the percentage of citizens kept from the polls. Another provision barred most Confederate leaders from holding federal or state offices unless they were permitted to do so by a two-thirds-majority vote of Congress.

Congress adopted the Fourteenth Amendment and sent it to the states for approval. If the Southern states had voted to ratify it, most Northern legislators and their constituents would have been satisfied to accept them back into the Union. President Johnson, however, believed that the amendment treated former Confederate leaders too harshly and that it was wrong to force states to accept an amendment that their legislators had no part in drafting. Therefore, he advised the Southern states to reject the amendment. All but Tennessee did reject it, and the amendment was not ratified until 1868.

1866 Congressional Elections

The question of who should control Reconstruction became one of the central issues in the bitter 1866 congressional elections. Johnson, accompanied by General Ulysses S. Grant, went on a speaking tour, urging voters to elect representatives who agreed with his Reconstruction policy. But his train trip from Washington to St. Louis and Chicago and back was a disaster. Johnson offended many voters with his rough language and behavior. His audiences responded by jeering at him and cheering Grant.

In addition, race riots in Memphis, Tennessee, and New Orleans, Louisiana, caused the deaths of at least 80 African Americans. Such violence convinced Northern voters that the federal government must step in to protect former slaves. In the 1866 elections, moderate and Radical Republicans won a landslide victory over Democrats. The Republicans gained a two-thirds majority in Congress, ensuring them the numbers they needed to override presidential vetoes. By March 1867, the 40th Congress was ready to move ahead with its Reconstruction policy.

Reconstruction Act of 1867

Radicals and moderates joined in passing the Reconstruction Act of 1867, which did not recognize state governments formed under the Lincoln and Johnson plans—except for that of Tennessee, which had ratified the Fourteenth Amendment and had been readmitted to the Union. The act divided the other ten former Confederate states into five military districts, each headed by a Union general. The voters in the districts—including African-American men—would elect delegates to conventions in which new state

Major Reconstruction Legislation, 1865–1870
Legislation	Provisions
Freedmen’s Bureau Acts (1865–1866)	Offered assistance, such as medical aid and education, to freed slaves and war refugees
Civil Rights Act of 1866	Granted citizenship and equal protection under the law to African Americans
Fourteenth Amendment (ratified 1868)	Makes all persons “born or naturalized in the United States” citizens; stipulates that states that prevented male citizens from voting would lose a percentage of their congressional seats; barred most Confederate leaders from holding political offices
Reconstruction Act of 1867	Abolished governments formed in the former Confederate states; divided those states into five military districts; set up requirements for readmission to the Union
Fifteenth Amendment (ratified 1870)	States that no one can be kept from voting because of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude”
Enforcement Act of 1870	Protected the voting rights of African Americans and gave the federal government power to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment

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A map shows the Confederate States in different military districts.

DESCRIPTION:

The map shows the Confederate States, the year they were readmitted to the Union, and the General in command of their military district.

Virginia, 1870, General John Schofield
North Carolina,1868, General Daniel Sickles
South Carolina, 1868, General Daniel Sickles
Georgia, 1870, General John Pope
Florida, 1868, General John Pope
Alabama, 1868, General John Pope
Mississippi, 1870, General Edward Ord
Arkansas, 1868, General Edward Ord
Louisiana, 1868, General Philip Sheridan
Texas, 1870, General Philip Sheridan
Tennessee, 1866, was not in a miliatry district

Southern Military Districts, 1867

constitutions would be drafted. In order for a state to reenter the Union, its constitution had to ensure African-American men the vote, and the state had to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment.

Johnson vetoed the Reconstruction Act of 1867 because he believed it was in conflict with the Constitution. Congress promptly overrode the veto.

Johnson Impeached

Radical leaders felt President Johnson was not carrying out his constitutional obligation to enforce the Reconstruction Act. For instance, Johnson removed military officers who attempted to enforce the act. The Radicals looked for grounds on which to impeach the president—that is, to formally charge him with misconduct in office. The House of Representatives has the sole power to impeach federal officials, who are then tried in the Senate.

In March 1867, Congress had passed the Tenure of Office Act, which stated that the president could not remove cabinet officers “during the term of the president by whom they may have been appointed” without the consent of the Senate. One purpose of this act was to protect Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, the Radicals’ ally.

Johnson, along with many others, was certain that the Tenure of Office Act was unconstitutional. To force a court test of the act, Johnson fired Secretary of War Stanton. His action provided the Radicals with the opportunity they needed—the House brought 11 charges of impeachment against Johnson, 9 of which were based on his violation of the Tenure of Office Act. Johnson’s lawyers disputed these charges by pointing out that President Lincoln, not Johnson, had appointed Secretary Stanton, so the act did not apply.

A ticket to the impeachment of Andrew Johnson.

The lucky holders of tickets like this one could see Johnson’s impeachment proceedings in 1868.

Johnson’s trial before the Senate took place from March to May 1868. On the day the final vote was taken at the trial, tension

382

mounted in the jammed Senate galleries. Would the Radicals get the two-thirds vote needed for conviction? People in the Senate chamber held their breath as one by one the senators gave their verdicts. When the last senator declared “Not guilty,” the vote was 35 to 19, one short of the two-thirds majority needed.

A campaign poster reads National Union Republican Nomination. For President, U.S. Grant. For Vice-President, Schuyler Colfax.

A campaign poster supporting the Republican ticket in the election of 1868

Ulysses S. Grant Elected

The Democrats knew that they could not win the 1868 presidential election with Johnson, so they nominated the wartime governor of New York, Horatio Seymour. Seymour’s Republican opponent was the Civil War hero Ulysses S. Grant. In November, Grant won the presidency by a wide margin in the electoral college, but the popular vote was less decisive. Out of almost 6 million ballots cast, Grant received a majority of only 306,592 votes. About 500,000 Southern African Americans had voted, most of them for Grant, bringing home the importance of the African-American vote to the Republican Party.

After the election, the Radicals feared that pro-Confederate Southern whites might try to limit black suffrage. Therefore, the Radicals introduced the Fifteenth Amendment, which states that no one can be kept from voting because of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” The amendment would also affect Northern states, many of which at this time barred African Americans from voting.

The Fifteenth Amendment, which was ratified by the states in 1870, was an important victory for the Radicals. Some Southern governments refused to enforce the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, and some white Southerners used violence to prevent African Americans from voting. In response, Congress passed the Enforcement Act of 1870, giving the federal government more power to punish those who tried to prevent African Americans from exercising their rights.

Such political achievements were not, however, the only changes taking place during Reconstruction. The period was also a time of profound social and economic changes in the South.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Andrew Johnson

• Reconstruction

• Radical Republicans

• Thaddeus Stevens

• Wade-Davis Bill

• Freedmen’s Bureau

• black codes

• Fourteenth Amendment

• impeach

• Fifteenth Amendment

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

Describe how Reconstruction might have been different if Abraham Lincoln had lived.

4. INTERPRETING CHARTS

Look again at the chart on page 380. What was the primary focus of the major Reconstruction legislation?

5. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Do you think the Radical Republicans were justified in impeaching President Johnson? Why or why not? Think About:

• the controversy over Reconstruction policies

• the meaning of the Tenure of Office Act

• Johnson’s vetoes

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Section 2: Reconstructing Society

One American’s Story

Robert G. Fitzgerald, an African American, was born free in Delaware in 1840. During the Civil War, he served in both the U.S. Army and the U.S. Navy. In 1866, the Freedmen’s Bureau sent Fitzgerald to teach in a small Virginia town. His students were former slaves of all ages who were hungry to learn reading, writing, spelling, arithmetic, and geography.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ROBERT G. FITZGERALD

“I came to Virginia one year ago on the 22nd of this month. Erected a school, organized and named the Freedman’s Chapel School. Now (June 29th) have about 60 who have been for several months engaged in the study of arithmetic, writing, etc. etc. This morning sent in my report accompanied with compositions from about 12 of my advanced writers instructed from the Alphabet up to their [present] condition, their progress has been surprisingly rapid.”
—quoted in Proud Shoes

VIDEO TEACHER OF A FREED PEOPLE Robert Fitzgerald and Reconstruction

Fitzgerald was one of many who labored diligently against the illiteracy and poverty that slavery had forced upon most African Americans. The need to help former slaves, however, was just one of many issues the nation confronted during Reconstruction.

Conditions in the Postwar South

Under the congressional Reconstruction program, state constitutional conventions met and Southern voters elected new, Republican-dominated governments. In 1868, the former Confederate states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina reentered the Union (joining Tennessee, which had reentered earlier). The remaining four former Confederate states completed the process by 1870. However, even after all the states were back in the Union, the Republicans did not end the process of Reconstruction because they wanted to make economic changes in the South.

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In a photo, African-American men load human skulls and body parts onto a cart.

Clearing battlefields of human remains was just one of many tasks facing Reconstruction governments.

Physical and Economic Conditions

Because the Civil War was fought mostly on Southern soil, many of the new Southern state governments faced the challenge of physically rebuilding a battle-scarred region. The Union general William T. Sherman estimated that his troops alone had destroyed about $100 million worth of Confederate property in Georgia and South Carolina. Charred buildings, twisted railroad tracks, demolished bridges, neglected roads, and abandoned farms had to be restored or replaced.

The economic effects of the war were devastating for the South. Property values had plummeted. Those who had invested in Confederate bonds had little hope of recovering their money. Many small farms were ruined or in disrepair. As a result of these and other factors, Southerners of every economic class were poorer than they had been at the start of the war. In one county of Alabama, for example, the wealth per capita among whites dropped from $18,000 in 1860 to about $3,000 in 1870.

Not only were many of the South’s economic resources destroyed, but the region’s population was devastated. More than one-fifth of the adult white men of the Confederacy died in the war. Many of those who did return from battle were maimed for life. Tens of thousands of Southern African-American men also died, either fighting for the Union or working in Confederate labor camps.

Public Works Programs

The Republican governments built roads, bridges, and railroads and established orphanages and institutions for the care of the mentally ill and disabled. They also created the first public school systems that most Southern states had ever had.

These ambitious projects—and the larger state governments that were required to administer them—were expensive. Few financial resources were available, and Northern capitalists were reluctant to invest in the region. To raise money, most Southern state governments increased taxes of all kinds, draining existing resources and slowing the region’s recovery.

A white family sits in an open wagon loaded with furniture and possessions.

Southern families like this one lost their homes and most of their possessions because of economic problems after the Civil War. 385

Politics in the Postwar South

Another difficulty facing the new Republican governments was that different groups within the Republican Party in the South often had conflicting goals.

Scalawags and Carpetbaggers

Although the terms scalawag and carpetbagger were negative labels imposed by political enemies, historians still use the terms when referring to the two groups. Democrats, opposed to the Republicans’ plan for Reconstruction, called white Southerners who joined the Republican Party scalawags. Some scalawags hoped to gain political offices with the help of the African-American vote and then use those offices to enrich themselves. Southern Democrats unfairly pointed to these unscrupulous individuals as representative of all white Southern Republicans. Some so-called scalawags honestly thought that a Republican government offered the best chances for the South to rebuild and industrialize. The majority were small farmers who wanted to improve their economic and political position and to prevent the former wealthy planters from regaining power.

The Democrats used an equally unflattering name for the Northerners who moved to the South after the war—carpetbaggers. The name referred to the belief that Northerners arrived with so few belongings that everything could fit in a carpetbag, a small piece of luggage made of carpeting. Most white Southerners believed that the carpetbaggers wanted to exploit the South’s postwar turmoil for their own profit. However, like the scalawags, carpetbaggers had mixed motives. Some were Freedmen’s Bureau agents, teachers, and ministers who felt a moral duty to help former slaves. Others wanted to buy land or hoped to start new industries legitimately. Still others truly were the dishonest businesspeople whom the Southerners scorned.

Northerners were thought to carry their belongings in carpetbags such as this one. Analyzing Political Cartoons: Unwelcome Guest In a cartoon, a man in a top hat carries a carpet bag marked South. On his back is a bag labled C. Schurz, carpet-bag from Wisconsin to Missouri.

In a cartoon, a man in a top hat carries a carpet bag marked South. On his back is a bag labled C. Schurz, carpet-bag from Wisconsin to Missouri.

Of all the political cartoonists of the 19th century, Thomas Nast (1840–1902) had the greatest and most long-lasting influence. Nast created symbols that have become part of America’s visual heritage, symbols that include the Democratic donkey, the Republican elephant, and Santa Claus.

This cartoon from a Southern Democratic newspaper depicts Carl Schurz, a liberal Republican who advocated legal equality for African Americans. Schurz is shown as a carpetbagger trudging down a dusty Southern road as a crowd of people watch his arrival.

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African Americans as Voters

African Americans—who made up the largest group of Southern Republicans—gained voting rights as a result of the Fifteenth Amendment. During Reconstruction, African-American men registered to vote for the first time; nine out of ten of them supported the Republican Party. Although most former slaves had little experience with politics, and relatively few could read and write, they were eager to exercise their voting rights.

In a woodcut illustration, African-American men drop ballots into a voting box.

This woodcut from a newspaper shows freedmen voting in Washington, D.C., June 1867.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WILLIAM BEVERLY NASH

“We are not prepared for this suffrage. But we can learn. Give a man tools and let him commence to use them and in time he will earn a trade. So it is with voting. We may not understand it at the start, but in time we shall learn to do our duty.”
—quoted in The Trouble They Seen: Black People Tell the Story of Reconstruction

In many areas of the South, almost 90 percent of the qualified African-American voters voted. Early in 1868, a Northerner in Alabama observed that “in defiance of fatigue, hardship, hunger, and threats of employers,” African Americans still flocked to the polls.

Political Differences

Conflicting goals among Republican Party members led to disunity in the party’s ranks. In particular, few scalawags shared the Republican commitment to civil rights and suffrage for African Americans. Over time, many of them returned to the Democratic Party.

In addition, some Republican governors began to appoint white Democrats to office in an attempt to persuade more white voters to vote Republican. This policy backfired—it convinced very few white Democrats to change parties, and it made blacks feel betrayed.

The new status of African Americans required fundamental changes in the attitudes of most Southern whites. Some whites supported the Republicans during Reconstruction and thought that the end of slavery would ultimately benefit the South. In addition, some Southern farmers and merchants thought that investment by Northerners would help the South recover from the war. Many white Southerners, though, refused to accept blacks’ new status and resisted the idea of equal rights. A Freedmen’s Bureau agent noted that some “Southern whites are quite indignant if they are not treated with the same deference as they were accustomed to” under the system of slavery.

Moreover, white Southerners had to accept defeat and the day-to-day involvement of Northerners in their lives. Eva B. Jones, the wife of a former Confederate officer, understood how difficult that adjustment was for many. In a letter to her mother-in-law, she expressed emotions that were typical of those felt by many ex-Confederates.

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A PERSONAL VOICE

EVA B. JONES

“A joyless future of probable ignominy, poverty, and want is all that spreads before us.… You see, it is with no resigned spirit that I yield to the iron yoke our conqueror forges for his fallen and powerless foe. The degradation of a whole country and a proud people is indeed a mighty, an all-enveloping sorrow.”
—quoted in The Children of Pride: A True Story of Georgia and the Civil War

Not all white Southerners were willing to remain in the South. Several thousand planters emigrated to Europe, Mexico, and Brazil after the war.

Former Slaves Face Many Challenges

Amid the turmoil of the South during Reconstruction, African Americans looked forward to new opportunities. Slaves had been forbidden to travel without permission, to marry legally, to attend school, and to live and work as they chose. After the war, the 4 million former slaves gained the chance to take control of their lives.

New-Won Freedoms

At first, many former slaves were cautious about testing the limits of their freedom. One freedman explained, “We was afraid to move. Just like … turtles after emancipation. Just stick our heads out to see how the land lay.” As the reality of freedom sank in, freed African Americans faced many decisions. Without land, jobs, tools, money, and with few skills besides those of farming, what were they to do? How would they feed and clothe themselves? How and where would they live?

During slavery, slaves were forbidden to travel without a pass. White planters had enforced that rule by patrolling the roads. During Reconstruction, African Americans took advantage of their new freedom to go where they wanted. One former slave from Texas explained the passion for traveling: “They seemed to want to get closer to freedom, so they’d know what it was—like it was a place or a city.”

A chart is labled Family Record, Before the War and Since the War.

Many former slaves bought charts like this one to keep track of their family histories.

The majority of freed African Americans who moved, however, were not just testing their freedom. Thousands were eager to leave plantations that they associated with oppression and move to Southern towns and cities where they could find jobs. From 1865 to 1870, the African-American population of the ten largest Southern cities doubled.

Reunification of Families

Slavery had split many African-American families apart; spouses sometimes lived on different plantations, and children were often separated from their parents. During Reconstruction, many freed African Americans took advantage of their new mobility to search for loved ones. In 1865, for example, one man walked more than 600 miles from Georgia to North Carolina, looking for his wife and children.

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The Freedmen’s Bureau worked to reunite families, and African-American newspapers printed poignant “Information Wanted” notices about missing relatives. Tragically, in many cases the lost family members were never found. However, freed persons, who had been denied legal unions under slavery, could now marry legally, and raise children without the fear that someone would sell them. For African Americans, reconstructing their families was an important part of establishing an identity as a free people.

A photo: a woman reads while her daughter points to a page in the book.

Among former slaves, younger generations sometimes helped educate their elders. A young woman in Mt. Meigs, Alabama, teaches her mother to read. A graph compares the percentage of white children enrolled in school to that of blacks and other races, from 1850-1880.

A graph compares the percentage of white children enrolled in school to that of blacks and other races, from 1850-1880.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the percentage of children aged 5 to 19 who were enrolled in school, every ten years from 1850 to 1880.

1850: White 56%, Black and other races 2%
1860: White 60%, Black and other races 2%
1870: White 54%, Black and other races 10%
1880: White 62%, Black and other races, 35%

School Enrollment of 5- to 19-Year-Olds, 1850–1880 Source: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

Education

Because slaves had been punished if they tried to learn how to read and write, nearly 80 percent of freed African Americans over the age of 20 were illiterate in 1870. During Reconstruction, however, freed people of all ages—grandparents, parents, and children alike—sought education.

African Americans established educational institutions with assistance from a number of public and private organizations, including the Freedmen’s Bureau and African-American churches. One college founded during Reconstruction was Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia. By 1870, African Americans had spent more than $1 million on education. Initially, most teachers in black schools were Northern whites, about half of whom were women. However, educated African Americans like Robert G. Fitzgerald also became teachers, and by 1869, black teachers outnumbered whites in these schools.

Some white Southerners, outraged by the idea of educated African Americans, responded violently. In one instance, the former slave Washington Eager was murdered because, as his brother explained, he had become “too big a man … he [could] write and read and put it down himself.” Despite the threat of violence, freed people were determined to learn. By 1877, more than 600,000 African Americans were enrolled in elementary schools.

Churches and Volunteer Groups

During slavery many plantation slaves had attended white churches and camp meetings with their owners. Resenting the preachers who urged them to obey their masters, the slaves had also held their own religious gatherings called “praise meetings.”

After the war many African Americans founded their own churches, which were usually Baptist or Methodist, and held services similar to the earlier praise meetings. Because churches were the principal institutions that African Americans fully controlled, African-American ministers emerged as influential community leaders. They often played an important role in the broader political life of the country as well.

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Besides organizing their own schools and churches, freed African Americans formed thousands of volunteer organizations. They established their own fire companies, trade associations, political organizations, and drama groups, to name just a few. These groups not only fostered independence but also provided financial and emotional support for their members, while offering African Americans opportunities to gain the leadership skills that slavery had often denied them.

Key Player: Hiram Revels 1822–1901 A painting: Seven African-American Congressmen.

Hiram Revels of Mississippi (pictured above on the far left, with—left to right—the African-American representatives Benjamin S. Turner of Alabama, Robert C. De Large of South Carolina, Josiah T. Walls of Florida, Jefferson M. Long of Georgia, Joseph H. Rainey of South Carolina, and Robert Brown Elliott of South Carolina) was born of free parents in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Because he could not obtain an education in the South, he attended Knox College in Illinois. As an African Methodist Episcopal minister, he recruited African Americans to fight for the Union during the Civil War and also served as an army chaplain.

In 1865, Revels settled in Mississippi. He served on the Natchez city council and then was elected to Mississippi’s state senate in 1869. In 1870, Revels became the first African American elected to the U.S. Senate. Ironically, he held the seat that had once belonged to Jefferson Davis.

Politics and African Americans

The period from 1865 to 1877 saw growing African-American involvement in politics at all levels. For the first time, African Americans held office in local, state, and federal government. At first, most African Americans in politics were freeborn. Many of these black officeholders were ministers or teachers who had been educated in the North. By 1867, however, former slaves were playing an increasing role in political organizations and were winning a greater number of offices.

Nevertheless, even though there were almost as many black citizens as white citizens in the South, African-American officeholders remained in the minority. Only South Carolina had a black majority in the state legislature. No Southern state elected an African-American governor. Moreover, out of 125 Southerners elected to the U.S. Congress during congressional Reconstruction, only 16 were African Americans. Among these was Hiram Revels, the first African-American senator.

Laws Against Segregation

By the end of 1866, most of the Republican Southern state governments had repealed the black codes. African-American legislators took social equality a step further by proposing bills to desegregate public transportation. In 1871, Texas passed a law prohibiting railroads from making distinctions between groups of passengers, and several other states followed suit. However, many antisegregation laws were not enforced. State orphanages, for example, usually had separate facilities for white and black children.

African Americans themselves focused more on building up the black community than on total integration. By establishing separate African-American institutions—such as schools, churches, and political and social organizations—they were able to focus on African-American leadership and escape the interference of the whites who had so long dominated their lives.

Changes in the Southern Economy

When asked to explain the idea of freedom, Garrison Frazier, a former slave turned Baptist minister, said that freedom consisted in “placing us where we could reap the fruit of our own labor.” To accomplish this, Frazier said, freed African Americans needed “to have land, and turn it and till it.” Few former slaves, however, had enough money to buy land, and those who did have cash were frequently frustrated by whites’ refusal to sell property to them.

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40 Acres and a Mule

In January 1865, during the Civil War, General Sherman had promised the freed slaves who followed his army 40 acres per family and the use of army mules. Soon afterward, about 40,000 freed persons settled on 400,000 abandoned or forfeited acres in coastal Georgia and South Carolina. The freed African Americans farmed their plots until August 1865, when President Johnson ordered that the original landowners be allowed to reclaim their land and evict the former slaves.

Now & Then: Reparations for Slavery A photo shows Congressman John Conyers.

In the year 1867, Representative Thaddeus Stevens introduced a bill that, had it been successful, would have granted each freed adult male slave 40 acres of land and $100. Since then, a number of other attempts have been made to legislate reparations—amends, usually financial—for the evils of slavery.

In 1989, Representative John Conyers of Michigan (shown above) proposed the first in a series of bills that would create a commission to study the impact of slavery. If the committee found that reparations were called for, it would recommend appropriate measures for Congress to take. In 1999, Conyers introduced a bill that would require the government to issue a formal apology for slavery. So far, these proposals and others like them have not been passed into law.

However, a group of prominent class-action lawyers met in 2000 to begin studying the issue, intending to bring suit against the government and against businesses that profited from slavery,

Some victims of postslavery racism have actually been granted reparations. Early in 2001, a state commission in Oklahoma awarded $12 million to black survivors and victims’ descendants of a deadly 1921 Tulsa race riot.

Many freed African Americans asserted that they deserved part of the planters’ land. An Alabama black convention declared, “The property which they hold was nearly all earned by the sweat of our brows.” Some Radical Republicans agreed. Thaddeus Stevens called for the government to confiscate plantations and to redistribute part of the land to former slaves. However, many Republicans considered it wrong to seize citizens’ private property. As a result, Congress either rejected land-reform proposals or passed weak legislation. An example was the 1866 Southern Homestead Act. Although it set aside 44 million acres in the South for freed blacks and loyal whites, the land was swampy and unsuitable for farming. Furthermore, few homesteaders had the resources—seed, tools, plows, and horses—to farm successfully.

Restoration of Plantations

Although African Americans and poor whites wanted to own small farms, the planter class wanted to restore the plantation system, in which many acres were devoted to a single profitable cash crop, such as cotton. Some wealthy Northern merchants and owners of textile mills encouraged the planters in their efforts to reestablish plantations and resume widespread cotton production.

Planters claimed that to make the plantation system work, they needed to have almost complete control over their laborers.

Before the abolition of slavery, planters had forced young and old and men and women to work in the fields for extremely long hours. Now the planters feared that they might not be able to make a profit, since they had to pay their laborers and could no longer force field hands to put in such brutally long workdays. In addition, many former slaveholders deeply resented having to negotiate for the ser-vices of former slaves.

Planters also faced a labor shortage, caused by a number of factors. The high death toll of the war had reduced the number of able-bodied workers. Many African-American women and children refused to work in the fields after they were freed. Finally, many freed persons felt that raising cotton under the direction of white overseers was too much like slavery.

As an alternative, some former slaves worked in mills or on railroad-construction crews. Others tried subsistence farming—growing just enough food for their own families. To stop this trend, white planters were determined to keep the former slaves from getting land that they could use to support themselves.

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Sharecropping and Tenant Farming

Without their own land, freed African Americans could not grow crops to sell or to feed their families. Economic necessity thus forced many former slaves to sign labor contracts with planters. In exchange for wages, housing, and food, freedmen worked in the fields. Although the Freedmen’s Bureau promoted this wage-labor system, the arrangement did not satisfy either freedmen or planters. On the one hand, freedmen thought that the wages were too low and that white employers had too much control over them. On the other hand, planters often lacked sufficient cash to pay workers. These conditions led planters and laborers to experiment with two alternative arrangements: sharecropping and tenant farming.

In the system of sharecropping, landowners divided their land and gave each worker—either freed African American or poor white—a few acres, along with seed and tools. At harvest time, each worker gave a share of his crop, usually half, to the landowner. This share paid the owner back and ended the arrangement until it was renewed the following year.

In theory, “croppers” who saved a little and bought their own tools could drive a better bargain with landowners. They might even rent land for cash from the planters, and keep all their harvest, in a system known as tenant farming. Eventually they might move up the economic ladder to become outright owners of their farms.

A circular chart showing how sharecropping works accompanies a photo of a woman working in a field.

Sharecropping
INTERACTIVE A Cycle of Poverty Sharecroppers were supposed to have a chance to climb the economic ladder, but by the time they had shared their crops and paid their debts, they rarely had any money left. A sharecropper often became tied to one plantation, having no choice but to work until his or her debts were paid. A sharecropper works a Georgia cotton field in 1870.

1 Sharecroppers are given small plots of land and seed by the landowners.

2 Sharecroppers buy food, clothing, and supplies on credit.

3 They plant a crop. (Yields are low, and the same crop year after year depletes the soil.)

4 Sharecroppers must give the landlords a large share of the harvested crops.

5 Sharecroppers sell what crops remain but are at the mercy of low market prices.

6 Sharecroppers pay off accounts. Some landlords and merchants charge unjust fines for late payments.

7 A few sharecroppers with leftover cash might become tenant farmers.

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 392

The arrangement seldom worked that way in practice, however. Most tenant farmers bought their supplies on credit, often from merchants who charged them inflated prices. Farmers rarely harvested enough crops to pay for both past debts and future supplies. The end result was that very few farmers saved enough cash to buy land.

A tobacco-product lael reads Reconstruction.

One successful Southern industry was the manufacture of tobacco products.

Cotton No Longer King

Another economic change turned Southern agriculture upside down: cotton was no longer king. During the war, demand for Southern cotton had begun to drop as other countries increased their cotton production. As a result, prices plummeted after the war. In 1869, the price of cotton was 16.5 cents per pound. By the late 1870s, the price had fallen to about 8 cents per pound. Instead of diversifying—or varying—their crops, Southern planters tried to make up for the lower prices by growing more cotton—an oversupply that only drove down prices even further.

The South’s agricultural problems did lead to attempts to diversify the region’s economy. Textile mills sprang up, and a new industry—tobacco-product manufacturing—took hold. Diversification helped raise the average wage in the South, though it was still much lower than that of Northern workers.

At the end of the Civil War, most of the state banks in the South were saddled with Confederate debts—loans made to the Confederate government. The banks awaited repayment that, in most cases, would never come. In the following years, falling cotton prices and mounting planters’ debts caused many banks to fail. The only credit that Southerners in rural areas could get was that offered by local merchants. Despite efforts to improve the Southern economy, the devastating economic impact of the Civil War rippled through Southern life into the 20th century.

Many whites, frustrated by their loss of political power and by the South’s economic stagnation, took out their anger on African Americans. In the late 1860s and early 1870s, certain white groups embarked on a campaign to terrorize African Americans into giving up their political rights and their efforts at economic improvement.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• scalawag

• carpetbagger

• Hiram Revels

• sharecropping

• tenant farming

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one shown, list five problems facing the South after the Civil War and at least one attempted solution for each one.

A blank chart has space for a list on the left side titled Problem, and another on the right labled Solution.

Critical Thinking

3. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

How did the Civil War weaken the Southern economy? Give examples to support your answer.

4. ANALYZING ISSUES

Thaddeus Stevens believed that giving land to former slaves was more important than giving them the vote. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

5. EVALUATING

Which accomplishment of African Americans during Reconstruction do you consider most significant? Explain your choice. Think About:

• the development of a free African-American community

• the lingering effects of slavery

• opportunities for leadership

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Section 3: The Collapse of Reconstruction

One American’s Story

In 1868, white Georgia legislators, who were in the majority in both houses, expelled 27 black members of the state senate and House of Representatives. The new state constitution gave African Americans the right to vote, they argued, but not to hold office. Outraged by this expulsion, Henry M. Turner, an African-American legislator, addressed the Georgia House of Representatives.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HENRY M. TURNER

“Whose Legislature is this? Is it a white man’s Legislature or is it a black man’s …? … It is said that Congress never gave us the right to hold office. I want to know … if the Reconstruction measures did not base their action on the ground that no distinction should be made on account of race, color or previous condition! … We have built up your country. We have worked in your fields, and garnered your harvests, for two hundred and fifty years! Do we ask you for compensation? … We are willing to let the dead past bury its dead; but we ask you, now, for our RIGHTS.”
—quoted in The Trouble They Seen: Black People Tell the Story of Reconstruction

Henry M. Turner became a leading proponent of African-American emigration to Africa.

The expelled legislators petitioned the U.S. Congress and were eventually reinstated in office. But by the time Congress acted, more than a year later, the terms of Turner and his colleagues were almost at an end.

Opposition to Reconstruction

White Southerners who took direct action against African-American participation in government were in the minority. Most white Southerners swallowed whatever resentment they felt over African Americans’ change in status. However, some bitter Southern whites relied on violence to keep African Americans from participating in politics.

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Ku Klux Klan

Founded as a social club for Confederate veterans, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) started in Tennessee in 1866. As membership in the group spread rapidly through the South, many of the new chapters turned into violent terrorist organizations. By 1868, the Klan existed in nearly every Southern state. Its overarching goal was to restore white supremacy. Its method was to prevent African Americans from exercising their political rights. Between 1868 and 1871, the Klan and other secret groups killed thousands of men, women, and children, and burned schools, churches, and property.

Abram Colby, who organized a branch of Georgia’s Equal Rights Association and later served as a Republican member of the Georgia legislature, testified before Congress about Klan atrocities.

An illustration: men holding guns wear robes with white hoods.

Klan members wore costumes to conceal their identities and to appear more menacing. These Klan members were captured in an Alabama riot in 1868.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ABRAM COLBY

“[The Klan] broke my door open, took me out of bed, took me to the woods and whipped me three hours or more and left me for dead. They said to me, ‘Do you think you will ever vote another damned radical ticket?’ … I supposed they would kill me anyhow. I said, ‘If there was an election tomorrow, I would vote the radical ticket.’ They set in and whipped me a thousand licks more, with sticks and straps that had buckles on the ends of them.”
—quoted in Testimony Taken by the Joint Select Committee to Inquire into the Condition of Affairs in the Late Insurrectionary States

While the vast majority of the Klan’s victims were African-American, whites who tried to help African Americans—whether by educating them, renting land to them, or buying their crops—were also in danger.

Another Klan objective was to turn the Republicans, who had established the Reconstruction governments, out of power. The North Carolina state senator John Stephens, a white Republican, answered warnings that his life was in danger by saying that some 3,000 African-American voters had supported him “at the risk of persecution and starvation” and that he would not abandon them. Stephens was assassinated in 1870.

While Klan members tried to conceal their identities when they struck, Southern Democrats openly used violence to intimidate Republicans before the 1875 state election in Mississippi. Democrats rioted and attacked Republican leaders and prominent African Americans. Their terrorist campaign frightened the African-American majority away from the polls, and white Democratic candidates swept the election. The Democrats used similar tactics to win the 1876 elections in Florida, South Carolina, and Louisiana.

Economic Pressure

The Klan and other secret groups tried to prevent African Americans from making economic, as well as political, progress. African Americans who owned their own land or who worked in occupations other than agriculture were subject to attacks and destruction of property.

In fact, economic necessity forced most former slaves—who had little money or training in other occupations—to work for whites as wage laborers or sharecroppers. Some white Southerners refused to hire or do business with African Americans who were revealed by election officials to have voted Republican. The fear of economic reprisals kept many former slaves from voting at all.

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Legislative Response

To curtail Klan violence and Democratic intimidation, Congress passed a series of Enforcement Acts in 1870 and 1871. One act provided for the federal supervision of elections in Southern states. Another act gave the president the power to use federal troops in areas where the Klan was active. However, President Grant was not aggressive in his use of the power given to him by the Enforcement Acts, and in 1882, the Supreme Court ruled that the 1871 Enforcement Act was unconstitutional.

Although federal enforcement of anti-Klan legislation was limited, it did con-tribute to a decrease in the Klan’s activities in the late 1870s. However, the reason for the reduction in Klan violence was the Klan’s own success—by 1880, terrorist groups had managed to restore white supremacy throughout the South. The Klan no longer needed such organized activity to limit the political and civil rights of most African Americans.

Shifts in Political Power

By passing the Enforcement Acts, Congress seemed to shore up Republican power. But shortly after these acts went into effect, Congress passed legislation that severely weakened the Republican Party in the South.

With the Amnesty Act, passed in May 1872, Congress returned the right to vote and the right to hold federal and state offices—revoked by the Fourteenth Amendment—to about 150,000 former Confederates, who would almost certainly vote Democratic. In the same year Congress allowed the Freedmen’s Bureau to expire, believing that it had fulfilled its purpose. As a result of these actions, Southern Democrats had an opportunity to shift the balance of political power in their favor.

World Stage: The Dominican Republic A map of the Caribbean region shows one island divided into two countries, the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Although the United States focused largely on domestic problems during Reconstruction, the nation did have one significant dealing with a foreign power. In 1870, President Grant attempted to annex the Dominican Republic, one of two nations sharing the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (the other being Haiti).

This action aroused a storm of controversy. The plan’s supporters believed that annexation would increase Caribbean trade and spread “the blessings of our free institutions.” Opponents pointed out that the Dominican Republic was caught up in a civil war and felt that the United States should avoid involvement in the conflict. The Senate rejected the annexation treaty.

Scandals and Money Crises Hurt Republicans

As Southern Republicans struggled to maintain their hold on Reconstruction governments, widespread political corruption in the federal government weakened their party. During the early 1870s, scandals plagued the Grant administration. These scandals diverted public attention away from conditions in the South.

Fraud and Bribery

President Grant was considered an honest man. However, he had had no political experience before becoming president and found it difficult to believe that others might use him for their own political advantage. When making political appointments, he often selected friends and acquaintances rather than people of proven ability. Too frequently, Grant’s appointees turned out to be dishonest.

Beginning in 1872, a series of long-simmering scandals associated with Grant’s administration boiled over. First, a newspaper exposed how the Crédit Mobilier, a construction company working for the Union Pacific Railroad, had skimmed off large profits from the railroad’s government contract. Implicated were several top Republicans, including Vice-President Schuyler Colfax.

Republican Unity Shattered

A group of Republicans, angered by the corruption, called for honest, efficient government. They formed the Liberal Republican Party in 1872, hoping to oust Grant in that year’s presidential election.

396 Analyzing Political Cartoons: Scandal in the Grant Administration

Political cartoonists had a field day with Grant’s troubles and often criticized the president’s refusal to believe that his associates were dishonest. In this cartoon, President Grant pulls packets labeled with the names of various scandals out of a barrel. The caption—“I hope I get to the bottom soon”—suggests that the corruption in Grant’s administration runs deep and that there may be more scandals to come.

A cartoon shows Grant falling headfirst into a barrel. Each ring of the barrel is labled with issues such as Tammany, Canal, Whiskey, Press, and Indian. Grant drops packets representing scandals on the ground. The packets are labled Belknap, Fraud Claims, Bribery, Whiskey Frauds, Back Pay Grab, and Emma Mine.

U. S. Grant: “ I hope I get to the bottom soon.” book icon

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R24.

As the 1872 presidential election approached, the Liberal Republicans held a separate convention. They chose Horace Greeley, the editor of the New York Tribune and a vocal pre-Civil War abolitionist, as their candidate. He had supported some Radical Republican causes—abolition and the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. However, he had broken with Radicals by calling for universal amnesty for Confederates and for an end to military rule in the South. Claiming that Reconstruction governments had achieved their purpose, he wanted former slaves to fend for themselves.

Believing that it would take a united effort to oust Grant, the Democrats also nominated Greeley. Nevertheless, Greeley lost the 1872 presidential election to Grant by a wide margin. “I was the worst beaten man that ever ran for that high office,” Greeley said, “and I have been assailed so bitterly that I hardly know whether I was running for President or the penitentiary.” Physically exhausted by his rigorous campaign, Greeley died a few weeks after the election—before the electoral college made his defeat official.

Although the Liberal Republicans did not win the White House, they did weaken the Radicals’ hold over the Republican Party. The breakdown of Republican unity made it even harder for the Radicals to continue to impose their Reconstruction plan on the South.

Continued Scandal

Despite the rift in the Republican party that resulted from the scandals, corruption in Grant’s administration continued. In 1875, the so-called Whiskey Ring was exposed. Internal-revenue collectors and other officials accepted bribes from whiskey distillers who wanted to avoid paying taxes on their product—a conspiracy that defrauded the federal government of millions of dollars. One of the 238 persons indicted in this scandal was Grant’s private secretary, General Orville E. Babcock. Grant refused to believe that such a close associate was guilty and helped him escape conviction.

Finally, in 1876, an investigation revealed that Secretary of War William W. Belknap had accepted bribes from merchants who wanted to keep their profitable trading concessions in Indian territory. The House of Representatives impeached Belknap, who promptly resigned. The public also learned that the secretary of the navy had taken bribes from shipbuilders and the secretary of the interior had had shady dealings with land speculators. As the evidence mounted, there was increasing disgust with the blatant corruption in the Grant administration, and Grant did not seek reelection in 1876.

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Economic Turmoil

As if political scandals were not enough for the country to deal with, a wave of economic troubles hit the nation in 1873.

The Panic of 1873

The economy had been expanding since the end of the Civil War, and investors became convinced that business profits would continue to increase indefinitely. Eager to take advantage of new business opportunities in the South, Northern and Southern investors borrowed increasing amounts of money and built new facilities as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, many of those who invested in these new businesses took on more debt than they could afford. A Philadelphia banker named Jay Cooke invested heavily in railroads. Not enough investors bought shares in Cooke’s railroad lines to cover his ballooning construction costs, and he could not pay his debts. In September 1873, Cooke’s banking firm, the nation’s largest dealer in government securities, went bankrupt, setting off a series of financial failures known as the panic of 1873. Smaller banks closed, and the stock market temporarily collapsed. Within a year, 89 railroads went broke. By 1875, more than 18,000 companies had folded. The panic triggered a five-year economic depression—a period of reduced business activity and high unemployment—in which 3 million workers lost their jobs.

A cartoon shows a wild-eyed figure in ragged clothes sweeping trash off a street lined with tall buildings.

This 1873 cartoon portrays the panic as a health officer, sweeping garbage out of Wall Street. The trash is labeled “rotten railways,” and “shaky banks,” among other things.

Currency Dispute

The economic depression following the panic of 1873 also fueled a dispute over currency. This dispute had its roots in the Civil War. During the war, the federal government had begun to issue greenbacks, paper money that was not backed by equal value in gold. When the war ended, many financial experts advocated withdrawing the greenbacks and returning the nation completely to a currency backed by gold. This action would have reduced the number of dollars in circulation.

In contrast, Southern and Western farmers and manufacturers wanted the government to issue even more greenbacks. They believed that “easy money”—a large money supply—would help them pay off their debts.

In 1875, Congress passed the Specie Resumption Act, which promised to put the country back on the gold standard. This act sparked further debate over monetary policies. As the economy improved, beginning in 1878, the controversy died down. However, the passionate debate over the money question in the 1870s was one of many factors that drew the attention of voters and politicians away from Reconstruction.

Judicial and Popular Support Fades

In 1874, a Southern Democratic senator wrote, “Radicalism is dissolving—going to pieces.” Indeed, political scandals, economic problems, and the restoration of political rights to former Confederate Democrats seriously weakened the Radical Republicans. In addition, the Supreme Court began to undo some of the social and political changes that the Radicals had made.

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Supreme Court Decisions

Although Congress had passed important laws to protect the political and civil rights of African Americans, the Supreme Court began to take away those same protections. During the 1870s, the Court issued a series of decisions that undermined both the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments.

In the Slaughterhouse cases of 1873, for example, the Court decided that the Fourteenth Amendment protected only the rights people had by virtue of their citizenship in the United States, such as the right of interstate travel and the right to federal protection when traveling on the high seas and abroad. The Court contended that most of Americans’ basic civil rights were obtained through their citizenship in a state and that the amendment did not protect those rights.

Another setback for Reconstruction was U.S. v. Cruikshank in 1876, in which the Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment did not give the federal government the right to punish individual whites who oppressed blacks. The same year, in U.S. v. Reese, the Court ruled in favor of officials who had barred African Americans from voting, stating that the Fifteenth Amendment did not “confer the right of suffrage on anyone” but merely listed grounds on which states could not deny suffrage. By the late 1870s, the Supreme Court’s restrictive rulings had narrowed the scope of these amendments so much that the federal government no longer had much power to protect the rights of African Americans. Although the Supreme Court would later overturn them, these decisions impeded African Americans’ efforts to gain equality for years to come.

Northern Support Fades

As the Supreme Court rejected Reconstruction policies in the 1870s, Northern voters grew indifferent to events in the South. Weary of the “Negro question” and sick of “carpetbag government,” many Northern voters shifted their attention to such national concerns as the panic of 1873 and the corruption in Grant’s administration. In addition, a desire for reconciliation between the regions spread through the North. Although political violence continued in the South and African Americans were denied civil and political rights, the tide of public opinion in the North began to turn against Reconstruction policies.

As both judicial and public support decreased, Republicans began to back away from their commitment to Reconstruction. The impassioned Radicals who had led the fight for congressional Reconstruction, Charles Sumner and Thaddeus Stevens, were dead. Business interests diverted the attention of both moderates and Radicals, and scalawags and carpetbaggers deserted the Republican Party. Moreover, Republicans gradually came to believe that government could not impose the moral and social changes needed for former slaves to make progress in the South. As a result, Republicans slowly retreated from the policies of Reconstruction.

Civil Rights Setbacks in the Supreme Court
Date	Decision(s)	Ruling
1873	Slaughterhouse cases	Most civil rights were ruled to be state, rather than federal, rights and therefore unprotected by the Fourteenth Amendment.
1876	U.S. v. Cruikshank	The Fourteenth Amendment was ruled not to grant the federal government power to punish whites who oppressed blacks.
1876	U.S. v. Reese	The Fifteenth Amendment was determined not to grant voting rights to anyone, but rather to restrict types of voter discrimination.

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Democrats “Redeem” the South

Between 1869 and 1875, Democrats recaptured the state governments of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. As a result of redemption—as the Democrats called their return to power in the South—and the national election of 1876, congressional Reconstruction came to an end.

Election of 1876

In 1876, Grant decided not to run for a third term. The Republicans then chose the stodgy governor of Ohio, Rutherford B. Hayes, as their candi-date. Smelling victory, the Democrats put up one of their ablest leaders, Governor Samuel J. Tilden of New York. Tilden had helped clean up the graft that had flourished in New York City under the corrupt Tweed Ring.

Historical Spotlight: The Electoral College and the 1876 Election

The nation was in such turmoil over the disputed 1876 election that people talked of another civil war. Of the 20 contested electoral votes, 19 came from Florida, South Carolina, and Louisiana. Republican officials in those states threw out election returns from counties where violence kept Republican voters from the polls. The Democrats refused to accept the altered returns, and each party sent its own set of results to Washington, D.C.

Fortunately for the country, the warlike slogans proved to be just political rhetoric. After a joint session of Congress met to witness the counting of electoral votes, which did not settle the dispute, the parties struck a deal—the Compromise of 1877.

An ad shows sketches of Tilden and Hayes, above the words Of the two evils, choose the least.

An advertisement expresses ambivalence about the two candidates in the 1876 election.

As most people had expected, Tilden won the popular vote. However, he fell one short of the number of electoral votes needed to win, and 20 electoral votes were disputed. Congress appointed a commission to deal with the problem. The commission, which had a Republican majority, gave the election to the Republican, Hayes, even though he had received a minority of the popular vote.

For the first time in U.S. history, a candidate who had lost the popular election became president. How did it happen? In the oldest tradition of politics, party leaders made a deal. Although Republicans controlled the electoral com-mission, Democrats controlled the House of Representatives, which had to approve the election results. Southern Democrats were willing to accept Hayes if they could get something in return.

The price they demanded was, first of all, the withdrawal of federal troops from Louisiana and South Carolina—two of the three Southern states that Republicans still governed. Second, the Democrats wanted federal money to build a railroad from Texas to the West Coast and to improve Southern rivers, harbors, and bridges. Third, they wanted Hayes to appoint a conservative Southerner to the cabinet. In the Compromise of 1877, Republican leaders agreed to these demands, and Hayes was peacefully inaugurated. The acceptance of this compromise meant the end of Reconstruction in the South.

Home Rule in the South

After the 1876 election, Republicans and Democrats disputed the results in Louisiana’s and South Carolina’s elections, and both states ended up with two rival state governments! When Hayes later removed the federal troops in those states, the Democrats took over. Florida also had questionable election returns, but the state supreme court ruled in favor of the Democrats. As a result, Republicans no longer controlled the government of any Southern state.

The Democrats had achieved their long-desired goal of home rule—the ability to run state governments without federal intervention. These so-called Redeemers set out to rescue the South from what they viewed as a decade of mis-management by Northerners, Republicans, and African Americans. They passed laws that restricted the rights of African Americans, wiped out social programs, slashed taxes, and dismantled public schools.

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Legacy of Reconstruction

Despite the efforts of African Americans and many Radical Republicans, Reconstruction ended without much real progress in the battle against discrimination. Charles Harris, an African-American Union Army veteran and former Alabama legislator, expressed his frustration in an 1877 letter.

A PERSONAL VOICE

CHARLES HARRIS

“We obey laws; others make them. We support state educational institutions, whose doors are virtually closed against us. We support asylums and hospitals, and our sick, deaf, dumb, or blind are met at the doors by … unjust discriminations.… From these and many other oppressions … our people long to be free.”
—quoted in American Colonization Society Papers in the Congressional Record

Although Radical Republicans wanted to help the former slaves, they made several serious mistakes. First, they assumed that extending certain civil rights to freed persons would enable them to protect themselves through participation in government, especially in lawmaking. However, Congress did not adequately protect those rights, and the Supreme Court undermined them. Second, the Radicals balked at distributing land to former slaves, which prevented them from becoming

Point

“Reconstruction was a failure.”

Federal and state governments failed to secure the rights guaranteed to former slaves by constitutional amendments.

• State Republican parties could not preserve black-white voter coalitions that would have enabled them to stay in power and continue political reform.

• Radical Republican governments were unable or unwilling to enact land reform or to provide former slaves with the economic resources needed to break the cycle of poverty.

• Racial bias was a national, not a regional, problem. After the Panic of 1873, Northerners were more concerned with economic problems than with the problems of former slaves.

• The Supreme Court undermined the power of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments.

At the end of Reconstruction, former slaves found themselves once again in a subordinate position in society. The historian Eric Foner concludes, “Whether measured by the dreams inspired by emancipation or the more limited goals of securing blacks’ rights as citizens. … Reconstruction can only be judged a failure.”

Thinking Critically

1. CONNECT TO HISTORY Evaluating What are the two major arguments each side makes as to whether Reconstruction was a success or failure? Which perspective do you agree with, and why?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R16.

2. CONNECT TO TODAY Analyzing Issues One historian has referred to Reconstruction as “America’s Unfinished Revolution.” Is the U.S. still dealing with issues left over from that period? Research Reconstruction’s legacy using newspapers, magazines, or other sources. Make a short persuasive presentation in class.

Counterpoint

“Reconstruction was a success.”

Reconstruction was an attempt to create a social and political revolution despite economic collapse and the opposition of much of the white South. Under these conditions its accomplishments were extraordinary.

• African Americans only a few years removed from slavery participated at all levels of government.

• State governments had some success in solving social problems; for example, they funded public school systems open to all citizens.

• African Americans established institutions that had been denied them during slavery: schools, churches, and families.

• The breakup of the plantation system led to some redistribution of land.

• Congress passed the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, which helped African Americans to attain full civil rights in the 20th century.

W. E. B. Du Bois summarized the achievements of the period this way: “[I]t was Negro loyalty and the Negro vote alone that restored the South to the Union; established the new democracy, both for white and black.”

Despite the loss of ground that followed Reconstruction, African Americans succeeded in carving out a measure of independence within Southern society.

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economically independent of the landowning planter class. Finally, the Radicals did not fully realize the extent to which deep-seated racism in society would weaken the changes that Congress had tried to make.

But congressional Reconstruction was not a complete failure. The Thirteenth Amendment permanently abolished slavery in all of the states. Furthermore, Radical Republicans did succeed in passing the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, and although the Supreme Court narrowed the interpretation of the amendments during the 1870s, they remained part of the Constitution. In the 20th century, the amendments provided the necessary constitutional foundation for important civil rights legislation.

During Reconstruction, African Americans had founded many black colleges and volunteer organizations, and the percentage of literate African Americans had gradually increased. The memory of this time of expanding opportunities lived on in the African-American community and inspired the fight to regain civil rights.

A black-and-white photo: White and African-American students work together in a lab, peering into microscopes.

Medical students at Howard University, an African-American institution founded in 1867

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Ku Klux Klan (KKK)

• panic of 1873

• redemption

• Rutherford B. Hayes

• Samuel J. Tilden

• Compromise of 1877

• home rule

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the time line below. Fill in the major events that ended Reconstruction.

A blank timeline has spaces to list four events.

Which event do you think was most significant and why?

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING EFFECTS

What were the positive and negative effects of Reconstruction?

4. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

During Reconstruction, was the presidency weak or strong? Support your answer with details from the text.

5. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Do you think the political deal to settle the election of 1876 was an appropriate solution? Explain why or why not. Think About:

• the causes of the conflict over the election

• other possible solutions to the controversy

• the impact of the settlement

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Chapter 12: Assessment

Visual Summary: Reconstruction and Its Effects A chart lists the Foundations, the Progress and the Collapse of Reconstruction.

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to Reconstruction.

1. Andrew Johnson

2. Radical Republicans7. Hiram Revels

3. Freedmen’s Bureau

4. Fourteenth Amendment

5. Fifteenth Amendment

6. carpetbagger

8. sharecropping

9. Ku Klux Klan (KKK)

10. Rutherford B. Hayes

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

The Politics of Reconstruction (pages 376–382)

1. How did Andrew Johnson’s plan to reconstruct the Confederate states differ from Lincoln’s?

2. How did the Civil Rights Act of 1866 become law?

3. Why did the Radicals want to impeach Andrew Johnson?

Reconstructing Society (pages 383–392)

4. What three groups made up the Republican Party in the South during Reconstruction?

5. In what ways did emancipated slaves exercise their freedom?

6. How did white landowners in the South reassert their economic power in the decade following the Civil War?

The Collapse of Reconstruction (pages 393–401)

7. How did Southern whites regain political power during Reconstruction?

8. What economic and political developments weakened the Republican Party during Grant’s second term?

9. What significance did the victory by Rutherford B. Hayes in the 1876 presidential race have for Reconstruction?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a chart like the one below, list the results of the national elections of 1866, 1868, 1870, 1872, and 1876. Then note how each result affected Reconstruction.

Year	Results	Significance

2. ANALYZING ISSUES How do you think Reconstruction could have been made more effective in rebuilding the South and ensuring the rights of the freed slaves?

3. EVALUATING Do you think the changes in the South during Reconstruction benefited Southerners? Support your opinion.

4. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE What might Americans today learn from the civil rights experiences of African Americans during Reconstruction?

403 Standardized Test Practice

Use the quotation below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

“On the coast of South Carolina, after a year of experimenting on the willingness of the freedmen to work and their ability to support themselves, a plan was begun of cutting up the large estates into twenty and forty acre plots, to be sold to the freedmen at government prices. … This plan was eminently fair and just; it was also a radical abolishment of slavery. It made the freedman owner of his own labor, and also an owner of a fair share of the land. … At the first sale of these lands, the freedmen came up promptly and bought largely, showing the thrift and shrewdness of men worthy of citizenship.”
—James McCune Smith, quoted in Witness for Freedom: African American Voices on Race, Slavery, and Emancipation

1. According to the point of view expressed in the quotation, the best way to help former slaves was to—

A encourage plantation owners to hire former slaves.

B allow plantation owners to buy back their land.

C assist former slaves in gaining ownership of land.

D divide large plantations into smaller plots.

2. In the Reconstruction Act of 1867, Congress set requirements for the readmission of former Confederate states into the Union. Which of the following problems did the act address?

F Southern states did not allow African Americans to vote.

G Southern states had little money to pay for public works projects.

H Former slaves needed education.

J Confederate bonds and money were worthless.

3. Which of the following items was responsible for finally ending Reconstruction in the South?

A ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment

B the Compromise of 1877

C President Grant’s failure to win reelection

D the decisions of the Supreme Court in the 1870s

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your response to the question on page 375:

What goals should the government set to reconstruct the South?

Now that you have read more about efforts to reconstruct the South, what is your opinion of how the government handled Reconstruction? Write an opinion statement. Consider the following questions:

• What goals did the government actually set for Reconstruction?

• How could the government have pursued its goals more effectively?

• What additional goals should the government have set? Why?

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “Teacher of a Freed People: Robert Fitzgerald and Reconstruction.” Discuss the following questions with a small group. Then do the activity.

• Which experiences in Robert Fitzgerald’s life helped foster his passion for learning and teaching?

• What measures did some whites use to thwart blacks’ progress toward citizenship?

Cooperative Learning Activity As a group, create a presentation that Robert Fitzgerald might have used to convince Northerners to support the Freedmen’s Bureau and schools for former slaves. What if Fitzgerald had had access to 21st-century technology? Use audio, video, or computer software to make the presentation more effective. Present the final product to your class.

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Unit 4: Migration and industrialization 1877—1917

Chapter 13 Changes on the Western Frontier 1877–1900

Chapter 14 A New Industrial Age 1877–1900

Chapter 15 Immigrants and Urbanization 1877–1914

Chapter 16 Life at the Turn of the 20th Century 1877–1917

A painting: three paddle-wheel steamboats cruise on a calm river.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 404 and page 405 in the print version. 405 A painting: three paddle-wheel steamboats cruise on a calm river

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 404 and page 405 in the print version. 406

Chapter 13: Changes on the Western Frontier

A photo shows members of a Native American tribe. Men ride horses, while women and children gather near a tepee. A title: Changes on the Western Frontier.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 406 and page 407 in the print version. A timeline of historical events in both the U.S. and the world from 1869 to 1900.

A timeline of historical events in both the U.S. and the world from 1869 to 1900.

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events, 1869-1900.

1869, the World: Suez Canal is opened.
1870, USA: Red Cloud, chief of the Oglala Sioux, states his people's case in Washington, D.C.
1872, the World: the Secret Ballot is adopted in Britain.
1880, USA: James Garfield is elected president.
1881, USA: Garfield is assassinated. Chester Arthur becomes president.
1881, the World: French occupy Tunisia.
1884, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected president.
1889, USA: Oklahoma opened for settlement; the land rush begins.
1890, USA: Sioux are massacred at Wounded Knee.
1893, USA: Diminished U.S. gold reserve triggers the panic of 1893.
1893, the World: France takes over for Indochina.
1896, USA: William McKinley is elected president.
1896, USA: William Jennings Bryan runs for president.
1899, the World: Berlin Conference divides Africa among European nations.
1900, the World: Boxer Rebellion takes place in China.

Until the 1860s, the migratory Indians of Montana—including the Blackfeet shown here—followed the buffalo herds and traded peacefully with whites in the region.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 406 and page 407 in the print version. 407 A photo shows members of a Native American tribe. Men ride horses, while women and children gather near a tepee. A title: Changes on the Western Frontier.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 406 and page 407 in the print version. A timeline of historical events in both the U.S. and the world from 1869 to 1900.

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events, 1869-1900.

1869, the World: Suez Canal is opened.
1870, USA: Red Cloud, chief of the Oglala Sioux, states his people's case in Washington, D.C.
1872, the World: the Secret Ballot is adopted in Britain.
1880, USA: James Garfield is elected president.
1881, USA: Garfield is assassinated. Chester Arthur becomes president.
1881, the World: French occupy Tunisia.
1884, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected president.
1889, USA: Oklahoma opened for settlement; the land rush begins.
1890, USA: Sioux are massacred at Wounded Knee.
1893, USA: Diminished U.S. gold reserve triggers the panic of 1893.
1893, the World: France takes over for Indochina.
1896, USA: William McKinley is elected president.
1896, USA: William Jennings Bryan runs for president.
1899, the World: Berlin Conference divides Africa among European nations.
1900, the World: Boxer Rebellion takes place in China.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 406 and page 407 in the print version. Interact with History

It is the late 1890s. The American West is the last frontier. Ranchers, cowboys, and miners have changed forever the lives of the Native Americans who hunted on the Western plains. Now westward fever intensifies as “boomers” rush to grab “free” farm land with the government’s blessing.

What do you expect to find on settling in the West?

Examine the Issues

• What might be some ways to make a living on the Western frontier?

• If native peoples already live in your intended home, how will you co-exist?

• How might settlers and Native Americans differ regarding use of the land?

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Section 1: Cultures Clash on the Prairie

One American’s Story

Zitkala-Ša was born a Sioux in 1876. As she grew up on the Great Plains, she learned the ways of her people. When Zitkala-Ša was eight years old she was sent to a Quaker school in Indiana. Though her mother warned her of the “white men’s lies,” Zitkala-Ša was not prepared for the loss of dignity and identity she experienced, which was symbolized by the cutting of her hair.

A PERSONAL VOICE

Zitkala-ŠA

“ I cried aloud … and heard them gnaw off one of my thick braids. Then I lost my spirit. Since the day I was taken from my mother I had suffered extreme indignities. … And now my long hair was shingled like a coward’s! In my anguish I moaned for my mother, but no one came. … Now I was only one of many little animals driven by a herder.”
—The School Days of an Indian Girl

Zitkala-Ša experienced firsthand the clash of two very different cultures that occurred as ever-growing numbers of white settlers moved onto the Great Plains. In the resulting struggle, the Native American way of life was changed forever.

The Culture of the Plains Indians

Zitkala-Ša knew very little about the world east of the Mississippi River. Most Easterners knew equally little about the West, picturing a vast desert occupied by savage tribes. That view could not have been more inaccurate. In fact, distinctive and highly developed Native American ways of life existed on the Great Plains, the grassland extending through the west-central portion of the United States. (See map on page 411.)

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To the east, near the lower Missouri River, tribes such as the Osage and Iowa had, for more than a century, hunted and planted crops and settled in small villages. Farther west, nomadic tribes such as the Sioux and Cheyenne gathered wild foods and hunted buffalo. Peoples of the Plains, abiding by tribal law, traded and produced beautifully crafted tools and clothing.

The Horse and the Buffalo

After the Spanish brought horses to New Mexico in 1598, the Native American way of life began to change. As the native peoples acquired horses—and then guns—they were able to travel farther and hunt more efficiently. By the mid-1700s, almost all the tribes on the Great Plains had left their farms to roam the plains and hunt buffalo.

A portrait of a Sioux man and woman in the late 19th century.

Their increased mobility often led to war when hunters in one tribe trespassed on other tribes’ hunting grounds. For the young men of a tribe, taking part in war parties and raids was a way to win prestige. A Plains warrior gained honor by killing his enemies, as well as by “counting coup.” This practice involved touching a live enemy with a coup stick and escaping unharmed. And sometimes warring tribes would call a truce so that they could trade goods, share news, or enjoy harvest festivals. Native Americans made tepees from buffalo hides and also used the skins for clothing, shoes, and blankets. Buffalo meat was dried into jerky or mixed with berries and fat to make a staple food called pemmican. While the horse gave Native Americans speed and mobility, the buffalo provided many of their basic needs and was central to life on the Plains. (See chart on page 413.)

Family Life

Native Americans on the plains usually lived in small extended family groups with ties to other bands that spoke the same language. Young men trained to become hunters and warriors. The women helped butcher the game and prepared the hides that the men brought back to the camp; young women sometimes chose their own husbands.

The Plains Indian tribes believed that powerful spirits controlled events in the natural world. Men or women who showed particular sensitivity to the spirits became medicine men or women, or shamans. Children learned proper behavior and culture through stories and myths, games, and good examples. Despite their communal way of life, however, no individual was allowed to dominate the group. The leaders of a tribe ruled by counsel rather than by force, and land was held in common for the use of the whole tribe.

A wooden club with a face carved into it.

This Yankton Sioux coup stick was used by warriors.

Settlers Push Westward

The culture of the white settlers differed in many ways from that of the Native Americans on the plains. Unlike Native Americans, who believed that land could not be owned, the settlers believed that owning land, making a mining claim, or starting a business would give them a stake in the country. They argued that the Native Americans had forfeited their rights to the land because they hadn’t settled down to “improve” it. Concluding that the plains were “unsettled,” migrants streamed westward along railroad and wagon trails to claim the land.

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The Lure of Silver and Gold

The prospect of striking it rich was one powerful attraction of the West. The discovery of gold in Colorado in 1858 drew tens of thousands of miners to the region.

Most mining camps and tiny frontier towns had filthy, ramshackle living quarters. Rows of tents and shacks with dirt “streets” and wooden sidewalks had replaced unspoiled picturesque landscapes. Fortune seekers of every description—including Irish, German, Polish, Chinese, and African-American men—crowded the camps and boomtowns. A few hardy, business-minded women tried their luck too, working as laundresses, freight haulers, or miners. Cities such as Virginia City, Nevada, and Helena, Montana, originated as mining camps on Native American land.

The Government Restricts Native Americans

While allowing more settlers to move westward, the arrival of the railroads also influenced the government’s policy toward the Native Americans who lived on the plains. In 1834, the federal government had passed an act that designated the entire Great Plains as one enormous reservation, or land set aside for Native American tribes. In the 1850s, however, the government changed its policy and created treaties that defined specific boundaries for each tribe. Most Native Americans spurned the government treaties and continued to hunt on their traditional lands, clashing with settlers and miners—with tragic results.

Massacre at Sand Creek

One of the most tragic events occurred in 1864. Most of the Cheyenne, assuming they were under the protection of the U.S. government, had peacefully returned to Colorado’s Sand Creek Reserve for the winter. Yet General S. R. Curtis, U.S. Army commander in the West, sent a telegram to militia colonel John Chivington that read, “I want no peace till the Indians suffer more.” In response, Chivington and his troops descended on the Cheyenne and Arapaho—about 200 warriors and 500 women and children—camped at Sand Creek. The attack at dawn on November 29, 1864 killed over 150 inhabitants, mostly women and children.

Death on the Bozeman Trail

The Bozeman Trail ran directly through Sioux hunting grounds in the Bighorn Mountains. The Sioux chief, Red Cloud (Mahpiua Luta), had unsuccessfully appealed to the government to end white settlement on the trail. In December 1866, the warrior Crazy Horse ambushed Captain William J. Fetterman and his company at Lodge Trail Ridge. Over 80 soldiers were killed. Native Americans called this fight the Battle of the Hundred Slain. Whites called it the Fetterman Massacre.

Skirmishes continued until the government agreed to close the Bozeman Trail. In return, the Treaty of Fort Laramie, in which the Sioux agreed to live on a reservation along the Missouri River, was forced on the leaders of the Sioux in 1868. Sitting Bull (Tatanka Iyotanka), leader of the Hunkpapa Sioux, had never signed it. Although the Ogala and Brule Sioux did sign the treaty, they expected to continue using their traditional hunting grounds.

Key Player: Sitting Bull 1831–1890 A portrait of Sitting Bull.

As a child, Sitting Bull was known as Hunkesni, or Slow; he earned the name Tatanka Iyotanka (Sitting Bull) after a fight with the Crow, a traditional enemy of the Sioux.

Sitting Bull led his people by the strength of his character and purpose. He was a warrior, spiritual leader, and medicine man, and he was determined that whites should leave Sioux territory. His most famous fight was at the Little Bighorn River. About his opponent, George Armstrong Custer, he said, “They tell me I murdered Custer. It is a lie.… He was a fool and rode to his death.”

After Sitting Bull’s surrender to the federal government in 1881, his dislike of whites did not change. He was killed by Native American police at Standing Rock Reservation in December 1890.

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A map titled Shrinking Native American Lands, and Battle Sites.

DESCRIPTION:

The map shows four battle sites on the Great Plains: the Sand Creek Massacre in Colorado in 1864; the Fetterman Massacre in Wyoming in 1866; Little Bighorn in Montana in 1876; and Wounded Knee in South Dakota in 1890.

Three inset maps shows Shrinking Native American Lands: in 1819 Native Americans lived in the entire western half of the country and Florida; in 1894 Native Americans lived in about 10% of the country on scattered reservations; in 2000 Native Americans lived in far fewer and much smaller reservations.

Shrinking Native American Lands, and Battle Sites A Sioux encampment near the South Dakota-Nebraska border. A photo shows a settlement of Native American tepees.

A photo shows a settlement of Native American tepees.

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Bloody Battles Continue

The Treaty of Fort Laramie provided only a temporary halt to warfare. The conflict between the two cultures continued as settlers moved westward and Native American nations resisted the restrictions imposed upon them. A Sioux warrior explained why.

A PERSONAL VOICE GALL, A HUNKPAPA SIOUX

“ [We] have been taught to hunt and live on the game. You tell us that we must learn to farm, live in one house, and take on your ways. Suppose the people living beyond the great sea should come and tell you that you must stop farming, and kill your cattle, and take your houses and lands, what would you do? Would you not fight them? ”
—quoted in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

Red River War

In late 1868, war broke out yet again as the Kiowa and Comanche engaged in six years of raiding that finally led to the Red River War of 1874–1875. The U.S. Army responded by herding the people of friendly tribes onto reservations while opening fire on all others. General Philip Sheridan, a Union Army veteran, gave orders “to destroy their villages and ponies, to kill and hang all warriors, and to bring back all women and children.” With such tactics, the army crushed resistance on the southern plains.

Gold Rush

Within four years of the Treaty of Fort Laramie, miners began searching the Black Hills for gold. The Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho protested to no avail. In 1874, when Colonel George A. Custer reported that the Black Hills had gold “from the grass roots down,” a gold rush was on. Red Cloud and Spotted Tail, another Sioux chief, vainly appealed again to government officials in Washington.

Custer’s Last Stand

In early June 1876, the Sioux and Cheyenne held a sun dance, during which Sitting Bull had a vision of soldiers and some Native Americans falling from their horses. When Colonel Custer and his troops reached the Little Bighorn River, the Native Americans were ready for them.

The Winchester ’76 rifle used by government troops, and a Sioux war bow. A photo of a Winchester rifle and a Native American bow with a quiver of arrows.

A photo of a Winchester rifle and a Native American bow with a quiver of arrows.

Colonel George Armstrong Custer, 1865

Led by Crazy Horse, Gall, and Sitting Bull, the warriors—with raised spears and rifles—outflanked and crushed Custer’s troops. Within an hour, Custer and all of the men of the Seventh Cavalry were dead. By late 1876, however, the Sioux were beaten. Sitting Bull and a few followers took refuge in Canada, where they remained until 1881. Eventually, to prevent his people’s starvation, Sitting Bull was forced to surrender. Later, in 1885, he appeared in William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody’s Wild West Show.

The Government Supports Assimilation

The Native Americans still had supporters in the United States, and debate over the treatment of Native Americans continued. The well-known writer Helen Hunt Jackson, for example, exposed the government’s many broken promises in her 1881 book A Century of Dishonor. At the same time many sympathizers supported assimilation, a plan under which Native Americans would give up their beliefs and way of life and become part of the white culture.

The Dawes Act

In 1887, Congress passed the Dawes Act aiming to “Americanize” the Native Americans. The act broke up the reservations and gave some of the reservation land to individual Native Americans—160 acres to each

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head of household and 80 acres to each unmarried adult. The government would sell the remainder of the reservations to settlers, and the resulting income would be used by Native Americans to buy farm implements. By 1932, whites had taken about two-thirds of the territory that had been set aside for Native Americans. In the end, the Native Americans received no money from the sale of these lands.

The Destruction of the Buffalo

Perhaps the most significant blow to tribal life on the plains was the destruction of the buffalo. Tourists and fur traders shot buffalo for sport. U.S. General Sheridan noted with approval that buffalo hunters were destroying the Plains Indians’ main source of food, clothing, shelter, and fuel. In 1800, approximately 65 million buffalo roamed the plains; by 1890, fewer than 1000 remained. In 1900, the United States sheltered, in Yellowstone National Park, a single wild herd of buffalo.

The Battle of Wounded Knee

The Sioux continued to suffer poverty and disease. In desperation, they turned to a Paiute prophet who promised that if the Sioux performed a ritual called the Ghost Dance, Native American lands and way of life would be restored.

The Ghost Dance movement spread rapidly among the 25,000 Sioux on the Dakota reservation. Alarmed military leaders ordered the arrest of Sitting Bull. In December 1890, about 40 Native American police were sent to arrest him. Sitting Bull’s friend and bodyguard, Catch-the-Bear, shot one of them. The police then killed Sitting Bull. In the aftermath, Chief Big Foot led the fearful Sioux away.

Wounded Knee

On December 28, 1890, the Seventh Cavalry—Custer’s old regiment—rounded up about 350 starving and freezing Sioux and took them to a camp at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota. The next day, the soldiers demanded that the Native Americans give up all their weapons. A shot was fired; from which side, it was not clear. The soldiers opened fire with deadly cannon.

A photo of a buffalo. Three maps show the buffalo population shrinking from 65 million in 1800 and living in most of the country; to 1,000 in 1870 and living in three western states; to 260,000 in 2000 and living in areas dotting the country.

Importance of the Buffalo The buffalo provided the Plains Indians with more than just a high-protein food source. THE SKULL of the buffalo was considered sacred and was used in many Native American rituals. THE HORNS were carved into bowls and spoons. THE BONES of the buffalo were made into hide scrapers, tool handles, sled runners, and hoe blades. The hoofs were ground up and used as glue. THE HIDE was by far the most precious part of the buffalo. Native American clothing, tepees, and even arrow shields were made from buffalo hide. 1800 65,000,000 1870 1,000 2000 260,000 414

Within minutes, the Seventh Cavalry slaughtered as many as 300 mostly unarmed Native Americans, including several children. The soldiers left the corpses to freeze on the ground. This event, the Battle of Wounded Knee, brought the Indian wars—and an entire era—to a bitter end.

A PERSONAL VOICE BLACK ELK

“ I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back … I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch. … And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people’s dream died there. It was a beautiful dream.”

—Black Elk Speaks

Now & Then: Nez Perce In Oregon A photo: two men stand on a hillside, overlooking a green valley.

Forced off their tribal lands in Wallowa County, Oregon, in 1877, the Nez Perce are returning almost 120 years later. 1999 figures put the number of Nez Perce in the Oregon area at around 3,000.

In 1997, Wallowa community leaders obtained a grant to develop the Wallowa Band Nez Perce Trail Interpretive Center—a cultural center that hosts powwows and other activities to draw tourists.

“I never thought I’d see the day,” said Earl (Taz) Conner, a direct descendant of Chief Joseph, the best known of the Nez Perce. And, in the words of Soy Redthunder, another tribe member, “[We] look at it as homecoming.”

Cattle Becomes Big Business

As the great herds of buffalo disappeared, and Native Americans were forced onto smaller and less desirable reserverations, horses and cattle flourished on the plains. As cattle ranchers opened up the Great Plains to big business, ranching from Texas to Kansas became a profitable investment.

Vaqueros and Cowboys

American settlers had never managed large herds on the open range, and they learned from their Mexican neighbors how to round up, rope, brand, and care for the animals. The animals themselves, the Texas longhorns, were sturdy, short-tempered breeds accustomed to the dry grasslands of southern Spain. Spanish settlers raised longhorns for food and brought horses to use as work animals and for transportation.

As American as the cowboy seems today, his way of life stemmed directly from that of those first Spanish ranchers in Mexico. The cowboy’s clothes, food, and vocabulary were heavily influenced by the Mexican vaquero, who was the first to wear spurs, which he attached with straps to his bare feet and used to control his horse. His chaparreras, or leather overalls, became known as chaps. He ate charqui, or “jerky”—dried strips of meat. The Spanish bronco caballo, or “rough horse” that ran wild, became known as a bronco or bronc. The strays, or mesteños, were the same mustangs that the American cowboy tamed and prized. The Mexican rancho became the American ranch. Finally, the English words corral and

A painting: men wearing wide-brimmed hats, chaps and spurs round up horses in a corral.

This 1877 painting by James Walker shows Mexican vaqueros in a horse corral. 415

rodeo were borrowed from Spanish. In his skills, dress, and speech, the Mexican vaquero was the true forerunner of the American “buckaroo” or cowboy.

Despite the plentiful herds of Western cattle, cowboys were not in great demand until the railroads reached the Great Plains. Before the Civil War, ranchers for the most part didn’t stray far from their homesteads with their cattle. There were, of course, some exceptions. During the California gold rush in 1849, some hardy cattlemen on horseback braved a long trek, or drive, through Apache terri-tory and across the desert to collect $25 to $125 a head for their cattle. In 1854, two ranchers drove their cattle 700 miles to Muncie, Indiana, where they put them on stock cars bound for New York City. When the cattle were unloaded in New York, the stampede that followed caused a panic on Third Avenue. Parts of the country were not ready for the mass transportation of animals.

Growing Demand for Beef

After the Civil War, the demand for beef sky-rocketed, partly due to the rapidly growing cities. The Chicago Union Stock Yards opened in 1865, and by spring 1866, the railroads were running regularly through Sedalia, Missouri. From Sedalia, Texas ranchers could ship their cattle to Chicago and markets throughout the East. They found, however, that the route to Sedalia presented several obstacles: including thunderstorms and rain-swollen rivers. Also, in 1866, farmers angry about trampled crops blockaded cattle in Baxter Springs, Kansas, preventing them from reaching Sedalia. Some herds then had to be sold at cut-rate prices, others died of starvation.

The Cow Town

The next year, cattlemen found a more convenient route. Illinois cattle dealer Joseph McCoy approached several Western towns with plans to create a shipping yard where the trails and rail lines came together. The tiny Kansas town of Abilene enthusiastically agreed to the plan. McCoy built cattle pens, a three-story hotel, and helped survey the Chisholm Trail—the major cattle route from San Antonio, Texas, through Oklahoma to Kansas. Thirty-five thousand head of cattle were shipped out of the yard in Abilene during its first

A map titled Cattle Trails and the Railroads, 1870s-1890s.

DESCRIPTION:

A map shows cattle trails running north from Texas to midwestern cities on railroad lines running east and west. Towns where the trails met railroads include Cheyenne, Ogllala, Ellsworth, Abilene, Kansas City and Sedalia. Chicago and Omaha were served by three railroad lines each.

Cattle Trails and the Railroads, 1870s–1890s INTERACTIVE 416

year in operation. The following year, business more than doubled, to 75,000 head. Soon ranchers were hiring cowboys to drive their cattle to Abilene. Within a few years, the Chisholm Trail had worn wide and deep.

A painting: a cowboy rides a charging horse through a rainstorm, driving a herd of cattle. A lightning bolt strikes nearby.

A Day in the Life of a Cowboy

The meeting of the Chisholm Trail and the railroad in Abilene ushered in the heyday of the cowboy. As many as 55,000 worked the plains between 1866 and 1885. Although folklore and postcards depicted the cowboy as Anglo-American, about 25 percent of them were African American, and at least 12 percent were Mexican. The romanticized American cowboy of myth rode the open range, herding cattle and fighting villains. Meanwhile, the real-life cowboy was doing nonstop work.

A Day’s Work

A cowboy worked 10 to 14 hours a day on a ranch and 14 or more on the trail, alert at all times for dangers that might harm or upset the herds. Some cowboys were as young as 15; most were broken-down by the time they were 40. A cowboy might own his saddle, but his trail horse usually belonged to his boss. He was an expert rider and roper. His gun might be used to protect the herd from wild or diseased animals rather than to hurt or chase outlaws.

Roundup

The cowboy’s season began with a spring roundup, in which he and other hands from the ranch herded all the longhorns they could find on the open range into a large corral. They kept the herd penned there for several days, until the cattle were so hungry that they preferred grazing to running away. Then the cowboys sorted through the herd, claiming the cattle that were marked with the brand of their ranch and calves that still needed to be branded. After the herd was gathered and branded, the trail boss chose a crew for the long drive.

The Long Drive

This overland transport, or long drive, of the animals often lasted about three months. A typical drive included one cowboy for every 250 to 300 head of cattle; a cook who also drove the chuck wagon and set up camp; and a wrangler who cared for the extra horses. A trail boss earned $100 or more a month for supervising the drive and negotiating with settlers and Native Americans.

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During the long drive, the cowboy was in the saddle from dawn to dusk. He slept on the ground and bathed in rivers. He risked death and loss every day of the drive, especially at river crossings, where cattle often hesitated and were swept away. Because lightning was a constant danger, cowboys piled their spurs, buckles, and other metal objects at the edge of their camp to avoid attracting lightning bolts. Thunder, or even a sneeze, could cause a stampede.

Legends of the West

Legendary figures like James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok and Martha Jane Burke (Calamity Jane) actually never dealt with cows. Hickok served as a scout and a spy during the Civil War and, later, as a marshal in Abilene, Kansas. He was a violent man who was shot and killed while holding a pair of aces and a pair of eights in a poker game, a hand still known as the “dead man’s hand.” Calamity Jane was an expert sharpshooter who dressed as a man. She may have been a scout for Colonel George Custer.

The End of the Open Range

Almost as quickly as cattle herds multiplied and ranching became big business, the cattle frontier met its end. Overgrazing of the land, extended bad weather, and the invention of barbed wire were largely responsible.

Between 1883 and 1887 alternating patterns of dry summers and harsh winters wiped out whole herds. Most ranchers then turned to smaller herds of high-grade stock that would yield more meat per animal. Ranchers fenced the land with barbed wire, invented by Illinois farmer Joseph F. Glidden. It was cheap and easy to use and helped to turn the open plains into a series of fenced-in ranches. The era of the wide-open West was over.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Great Plains

• Treaty of Fort Laramie

• Sitting Bull

• George A. Custer

• assimilation

• Dawes Act

• Battle of Wounded Knee

• longhorn

• Chisholm Trail

• long drive

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Fill in supporting details about the culture of the Plains Indians.

An chart shows the words Culture of the Plains Indians leading to three blank lists titled Buffalo and Horse; Family Life; and Beliefs.

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

Why do you think the assimilation policy of the Dawes Act failed? Support your opinion with information from the text. Think About:

• the experience of Native Americans such as Zitkala-Ša

• the attitudes of many white leaders toward Native Americans

• the merits of owning property

• the importance of cultural heritage

4. ANALYZING CAUSES

What economic opportunities drew large numbers of people to the Great Plains beginning in the mid-1800s?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Identify the reasons for the rise and the decline of the cattle industry.

Buffalo and

Horse Family Life Beliefs

Changes on the Western Frontier 417

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Daily Life 1849-1900: Gold Mining

GOLD! Some struck it rich—some struck out. Between the Civil War and the turn of the century, deposits of the precious yellow metal were discovered in scattered sites from the Black Hills of South Dakota and Cripple Creek, Colorado, to Nome, Alaska. The dream of riches lured hundreds of thousands of prospectors into territories that were previously inhabited only by native peoples. The fortune seekers came from all walks: grizzled veterans from the California gold rush of 1849, youths seeking adventure, middle-class professionals, and even some families.

PANNING FOR GOLD At the start of a gold rush, prospectors usually looked for easily available gold—particles eroded from rocks and washed downstream. Panning for it was easy—even children could do it. They scooped up mud and water from the streambed in a flat pan and swirled it. The circular motion of the water caused the sand to wash over the side and the remaining minerals to form layers according to weight. Gold, which is heavier than most other minerals, sank to the bottom. A photo: a woman shovels dirt into a sluice, while her teenage son pours more dirt into a wood box.

A photo: a woman shovels dirt into a sluice, while her teenage son pours more dirt into a wood box.

SLUICES AND ROCKERS In 1898, prospectors like this mother and son in Fairbanks, Alaska, found sluicing to be more efficient than panning, since it could extract gold from soil. They would shovel soil into a sluice—a trough through which water flowed—and the water would carry off lightweight materials. The gold sank to the bottom, where it was caught in wooden ridges called cleats. A rocker was a portable sluice that combined the mobility of panning with the efficiency of sluicing. 419 A photo: men work with picks in a gold mine.

A photo: men work with picks in a gold mine.

IN THE BOWELS OF THE EARTH Although surface gold could be extracted by panning and sluicing, most gold was located in veins in underground rock. Mining these deposits involved digging tunnels along the veins of gold and breaking up tons of ore—hard and dangerous work. Tunnels often collapsed, and miners who weren’t killed were trapped in utter darkness for days. Heat was a problem, too. As miners descended into the earth, the temperature inside the mine soared. At a depth of about 2,000 feet, the temperature of the water that invariably flooded the bottom of a mine could be 160°F. Cave-ins and hot water weren’t the only dangers that miners faced. The pressure in the under-ground rock sometimes became so intense that it caused deadly explosions. A photo: prospectors stand by sluices at a mine.

A photo: prospectors stand by sluices at a mine.

A FAMILY AFFAIR This early placer, or surface, mine at Cripple Creek attracted many women and children. It grew out of the vision of a young rancher, Bob Womack. He had found gold particles washed down from higher land and was convinced that the Cripple Creek area was literally a gold mine. Because Womack was generally disliked, the community ignored him. When a German count struck gold there, however, business boomed. Womack died penniless—but the mines produced a $400 million bonanza. Data File 420

Section 2: Settling on the Great Plains

One American’s Story

When Esther Clark Hill was a girl on the Kansas prairie in the 1800s, her father often left the family to go on hunting or trading expeditions. His trips left Esther’s mother, Allena Clark, alone on the farm.

Esther remembered her mother holding on to the reins of a runaway mule team, “her black hair tumbling out of its pins and over her shoulders, her face set and white, while one small girl clung with chattering teeth to the sides of the rocking wagon.” The men in the settlement spoke admiringly about “Leny’s nerve,” and Esther thought that daily life presented a challenge even greater than driving a runaway team.

A PERSONAL VOICE ESTHER CLARK HILL

“ I think, as much courage as it took to hang onto the reins that day, it took more to live twenty-four hours at a time, month in and out, on the lonely and lovely prairie, without giving up to the loneliness.”
—quoted in Pioneer Women

As the railroads penetrated the frontier and the days of the free-ranging cowboy ended, hundreds of thousands of families migrated west, lured by vast tracts of cheap, fertile land. In their effort to establish a new life, they endured extreme hardships and loneliness.

Plains settlers, like this woman depicted in Harvey Dunn’s painting Pioneer Woman, had to be strong and self-reliant.

Settlers Move Westward to Farm

It took over 250 years—from the first settlement at Jamestown until 1870—to turn 400 million acres of forests and prairies into flourishing farms. Settling the second 400 million acres took only 30 years, from 1870 to 1900. Federal land policy and the completion of transcontinental railroad lines made this rapid settlement possible.

Railroads open the West

From 1850 to 1871, the federal government made huge land grants to the railroads—170 million acres, worth half a billion

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dollars—for laying track in the West. In one grant, both the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific received 10 square miles of public land for every mile of track laid in a state and 20 square miles of land for every mile of track laid in a territory.

In the 1860s, the two companies began a race to lay track. The Central Pacific moved eastward from Sacramento, and the Union Pacific moved westward from Omaha. Civil War veterans, Irish and Chinese immigrants, African Americans, and Mexican Americans did most of the grueling labor. In late 1868, workers for the Union Pacific cut their way through the solid rock of the mountains, laying up to eight miles of track a day. Both companies had reached Utah by the spring of 1869. Fifteen years later, the country boasted five transcontinental railroads. The rails to the East and West Coasts were forever linked.

The railroad companies sold some of their land to farmers for two to ten dollars an acre. Some companies successfully sent agents to Europe to recruit buyers. By 1880, 44 percent of the settlers in Nebraska and more than 70 percent of those in Minnesota and Wisconsin were immigrants.

Government Support for Settlement

Another powerful attraction of the West was the land itself. In 1862, Congress passed the Homestead Act, offering 160 acres of land free to any citizen or intended citizen who was head of the household. From 1862 to 1900, up to 600,000 families took advantage of the government’s offer. Several thousand settlers were exodusters—African Americans who moved from the post-Reconstruction South to Kansas.

Despite the massive response by homesteaders, or settlers on this free land, private speculators and railroad and state government agents sometimes used the law for their own gain. Cattlemen fenced open lands, while miners and wood-cutters claimed national resources. Only about 10 percent of the land was actually settled by the families for whom it was intended. In addition, not all plots of land were of equal value. Although 160 acres could provide a decent living in the fertile soil of Iowa or Minnesota, settlers on drier Western land required larger plots to make farming worthwhile.

Eventually, the government strengthened the Homestead Act and passed more legislation to encourage settlers. In 1889, a major land giveaway in what is now Oklahoma attracted thousands of people. In less than a day, land-hungry settlers claimed 2 million acres in a massive land rush. Some took possession of the land before the government officially declared it open. Because these settlers claimed land sooner than they were supposed to, Oklahoma came to be known as the Sooner State.

DESCRIPTION:

The poster reads Ho for Kansas! Brethren, Friends and Fellow Citizens, I feel thankful to to inform you that the Real Estate and Homsestead Association will leave here the 5th of April 1878, in pursuit of homes in the Southwestern lands of America at transportation rates, cheaper than ever was known before. For full information, inquire of Benj. Singleton, better known as Old Pap, no. 5 North Front street. Beware of Speculators and Adventurers, as it is a dangerous thing to fall in their hands. Nashville, Tenn., March 18, 1878.

Posters like the one shown here drew hundreds of thousands of settlers to the West. Among the settlers were thousands of exodusters—freed slaves who had left the South.

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The Closing of the Frontier

As settlers gobbled up Western land, Henry D. Washburn and fellow explorer Nathaniel P. Langford asked Congress to help protect the wilderness from settlement. In 1870, Washburn, who was surveying land in northwestern Wyoming, described the area’s geysers and bubbling springs as: “objects new in experience … possessing unlimited grandeur and beauty.”

In 1872, the government created Yellowstone National Park. Seven years later, the Department of the Interior forced railroads to give up their claim to Western landholdings that were equal in area to New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia combined. Even so, by 1880, individuals had bought more than 19 million acres of government-owned land. Ten years later, the Census Bureau declared that the country no longer had a continuous frontier line—the frontier no longer existed. To many, the frontier was what had made America unique. In an 1893 essay entitled “The Significance of the Frontier in American History,” the historian Frederick Jackson Turner agreed.

A PERSONAL VOICE FREDERICK JACKSON TURNER

“ American social development has been continually beginning over again on the frontier. This perennial rebirth, this fluidity of American life, this expansion westward with its new opportunities, its continuous touch with the simplicity of primitive society, furnish the forces dominating American character.”
—“The Significance of the Frontier in American History”

Today many historians question Turner’s view. They think he gave too much importance to the frontier in the nation’s development and in shaping a special American character.

Settlers Meet the Challenges of the Plains

The frontier settlers faced extreme hardships—droughts, floods, fires, blizzards, locust plagues, and occasional raids by outlaws and Native Americans. Yet the number of people living west of the Mississippi River grew from 1 percent of the nation’s population in 1850 to almost 30 percent by the turn of the century.

Dugouts and Soddies

Since trees were scarce, most settlers built their homes from the land itself. Many pioneers dug their homes into the sides of ravines or small hills. A stovepipe jutting from the ground was often the only clear sign of such a dugout home.

Those who moved to the broad, flat plains often made freestanding houses by stacking blocks of prairie turf. Like a dugout, a sod home, or soddy, was warm in

A photo: a family stands in front of a house made from sod bricks.

A pioneer family stands in front of their soddy near Coburg, Nebraska, in 1887. 423

winter and cool in summer. Soddies were small, however, and offered little light or air. They were havens for snakes, insects, and other pests. Although they were fireproof, they leaked continuously when it rained.

Women’s Work

Virtually alone on the flat, endless prairie, homesteaders had to be almost superhumanly self-sufficient. Women often worked beside the men in the fields, plowing the land and planting and harvesting the predominant crop, wheat. They sheared the sheep and carded wool to make clothes for their families. They hauled water from wells that they had helped to dig, and made soap and candles from tallow. At harvest time, they canned fruits and vegetables. They were skilled in doctoring—from snakebites to crushed limbs. Women also sponsored schools and churches in an effort to build strong communities.

Technical Support for Farmers

Establishing a homestead was challenging. Once accomplished, it was farming the prairie, year in and year out, that became an overwhelming task. In 1837, John Deere had invented a steel plow that could slice through heavy soil. In 1847, Cyrus McCormick began to mass-produce a reaping machine. But a mass market for these devices didn’t fully develop until the late 1800s with the migration of farmers onto the plains.

Other new and improved devices made farm work speedier—the spring-tooth harrow to prepare the soil (1869), the grain drill to plant the seed (1841), barbed wire to fence the land (1874), and the corn binder (1878). Then came a reaper that could cut and thresh wheat in one pass. By 1890, there were more than 900 manufacturers of farm equipment. In 1830, producing a bushel of grain took about 183 minutes. By 1900, with the use of these machines, it took only 10 minutes. These inventions made more grain available for a wider market.

Agricultural Education

The federal government supported farmers by financing agricultural education. The Morrill Act of 1862 and 1890 gave federal land to the states to help finance agricultural colleges, and the Hatch Act of 1887 established agricultural experiment stations to inform farmers of new developments. Agricultural researchers developed grains for arid soil and techniques for dry farming, which helped the land to retain moisture. These innovations enabled the dry eastern plains to flourish and become “the breadbasket of the nation.”

Science &Technology: Inventions that Tamed the Prairies A wire fence cuts through a prairie field.

On the Great Plains, treeless expanses, root-filled soil, and unpredictable weather presented challenges to farming. A photo: barbed wire attached to a fencepost.

A photo: barbed wire attached to a fencepost.

BARBED WIRE Barbed wire prevented animals from trampling crops and wandering off. A painting: a man uses a horse-drawn reaping machine.

REAPER By speeding up harvesting, the reaper saved crops from inclement weather. An illustration: a plowing machine with a seat and control levers. A caption: Deere's riding plow.

An illustration: a plowing machine with a seat and control levers. A caption: Deere's riding plow.

STEEL PLOW The steel plow made planting more efficient in root-filled soil. An illustration: A windmill labled Aermotor is connected to an underground well.

An illustration: A windmill labled Aermotor is connected to an underground well.

STEEL WINDMILL In regions of unpredictable rainfall, the steel windmill prevented crop dehydration by bringing up underground water for irrigation. 424 A photo: dozens of horse-teams in harnesses form a line in a field.

A photo: dozens of horse-teams in harnesses form a line in a field.

Bonanza farms like this one required the labor of hundreds of farm hands and horses.

Farmers in Debt

Elaborate machinery was expensive, and farmers often had to borrow money to buy it. When prices for wheat were higher, farmers could usually repay their loans. When wheat prices fell, however, farmers needed to raise more crops to make ends meet. This situation gave rise to a new type of farming in the late 1870s. Railroad companies and investors created bonanza farms, enormous single-crop spreads of 15,000–50,000 acres. The Cass-Cheney-Dalrymple farm near Cassleton, North Dakota, for example, covered 24 square miles. By 1900, the average farmer had nearly 150 acres under cultivation. Some farmers mortgaged their land to buy more property, and as farms grew bigger, so did farmers’ debts. Between 1885 and 1890, much of the plains experienced drought, and the large single-crop operations couldn’t compete with smaller farms, which could be more flexible in the crops they grew. The bonanza farms slowly folded into bankruptcy.

Farmers also felt pressure from the rising cost of shipping grain. Railroads charged Western farmers a higher fee than they did farmers in the East. Also, the railroads sometimes charged more for short hauls, for which there was no competing transportation, than for long hauls. The railroads claimed that they were merely doing business, but farmers resented being taken advantage of. “No other system of taxation has borne as heavily on the people as those extortions and inequalities of railroad charges” wrote Henry Demarest Lloyd in an article in the March 1881 edition of Atlantic Monthly.

Many farmers found themselves growing as much grain as they could grow, on as much land as they could acquire, which resulted in going further into debt. But they were not defeated by these conditions. Instead, these challenging conditions drew farmers together in a common cause.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Homestead Act

• exoduster

• soddy

• Morrill Act

• bonanza farm

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of four events that shaped the settling of the Great Plains.

A blank timeline has space for four Events.

How might history be different if one of these events hadn’t happened?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

How successful were government efforts to promote settlement of the Great Plains? Give examples to support your answer. Think About:

• the growth in population on the Great Plains

• the role of railroads in the economy

• the Homestead Act

4. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Review the changes in technology that influenced the life of settlers on the Great Plains in the late 1800s. Explain how you think settlement of the plains would have been different without these inventions.

5. IDENTIFYING PROBLEMS

How did the railroads take advantage of farmers?

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Section 3: Farmers and the Populist Movement

One American’s Story

As a young adult in the early 1870s, Mary Elizabeth Lease left home to teach school on the Kansas plains. After marrying farmer Charles Lease, she joined the growing Farmers’ Alliance movement and began speaking on issues of concern to farmers. Lease joked that her tongue was “loose at both ends and hung on a swivel,” but her golden voice and deep blue eyes hypnotized her listeners.

A PERSONAL VOICE MARY ELIZABETH LEASE

“ What you farmers need to do is to raise less corn and more Hell! We want the accursed foreclosure system wiped out. … We will stand by our homes and stay by our fire-sides by force if necessary, and we will not pay our debts to the loan-shark companies until the Government pays its debts to us.”
—quoted in “The Populist Uprising”

Mary Elizabeth Lease, the daughter of Irish immigrants, was a leader of the Populist Party.

Farmers had endured great hardships in helping to transform the plains from the “Great American Desert” into the “breadbasket of the nation,” yet every year they reaped less and less of the bounty they had sowed with their sweat.

Farmers Unite to Address Common Problems

In the late 1800s, many farmers were trapped in a vicious economic cycle. Prices for crops were falling, and farmers often mortgaged their farms so that they could buy more land and produce more crops. Good farming land was becoming scarce, though, and banks were foreclosing on the mortgages of increasing numbers of farmers who couldn’t make payments on their loans. Moreover, the railroads were taking advantage of farmers by charging excessive prices for shipping and storage.

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Analyzing Political Cartoons: The Plight Of The Farmers

Farmers were particularly hard hit in the decades leading to the financial panic of 1893. They regarded big business interests as insurmountable enemies who were bringing them to their knees and leaving them with debts at every turn. This cartoon is a warning of the dangers confronting not only the farmers but the entire nation.

DESCRIPTION:

In the cartoon, a train labled Consolidation pulls cars named Extortion, Bribery, and Usurpation. The train runs over tracks with people lying beneath them. A farmer with a pitchfork points to the approaching train, but the people under the tracks ignore him.

Economic Distress

The troubles of the farmers were part of a larger economic problem affecting the entire nation. During the Civil War, the United States had issued almost $500 million in paper money, called greenbacks. Greenbacks could not be exchanged for silver or gold money. They were worth less than hard money of the same face value. Hard money included both coins and paper money printed in yellow ink that could be exchanged for gold. After the war, the government began to take the greenbacks out of circulation.

Retiring the greenbacks caused some discontent. It increased the value of the money that stayed in circulation. It meant that farmers who had borrowed money had to pay back their loans in dollars that were worth more than the dollars they had borrowed. At the same time they were receiving less money for their crops. Between 1867 and 1887, for example, the price of a bushel of wheat fell from $2.00 to 68 cents. In effect, farmers lost money at every turn.

Throughout the 1870s, the farmers and other debtors pushed the government to issue more money into circulation. Those tactics failed—although the Bland-Allison Act of 1878 required the government to buy and coin at least $2 million to $4 million worth of silver each month. It wasn’t enough to support the increase in the money supply that the farmers wanted.

Problems With the Railroads

Meanwhile, farmers paid outrageously high prices to transport grain. Lack of competition among the railroads meant that it might cost more to ship grain from the Dakotas to Minneapolis by rail than from Chicago to England by boat. Also, railroads made secret agreements with middlemen—grain brokers and merchants—that allowed the railroads to control grain storage prices and to influence the market price of crops.

Many farmers mortgaged their farms for credit with which to buy seed and supplies. Suppliers charged high rates of interest, sometimes charging more for items bought on credit than they did for cash purchases. Farmers got caught in a cycle of credit that meant longer hours and more debt every year. It was time for reform.

The Farmers’ Alliances

To push effectively for reforms, however, farmers needed to organize. In 1867, Oliver Hudson Kelley started the Patrons of

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Husbandry, an organization for farmers that became popularly known as the Grange. Its original purpose was to provide a social outlet and an educational forum for isolated farm families. By the 1870s, however, Grange members spent most of their time and energy fighting the railroads. The Grange’s battle plan included teaching its members how to organize, how to set up farmers’ cooperatives, and how to sponsor state legislation to regulate railroads.

The Grange gave rise to other organizations, such as Farmers’ Alliances. These groups included many others who sympathized with farmers. Alliances sent lecturers from town to town to educate people about topics such as lower interest rates on loans and government control over railroads and banks. Spellbinding speakers such as Mary Elizabeth Lease helped get the message across.

Membership grew to more than 4 million—mostly in the South and the West. The Southern Alliance, including white Southern farmers, was the largest. About 250,000 African Americans belonged to the Colored Farmers’ National Alliance. Some alliance members promoted cooperation between black and white alliances, but most members accepted the separation of the organizations.

The Rise and Fall of Populism

Leaders of the alliance movement realized that to make far-reaching changes, they would need to build a base of political power. Populism—the movement of the people—was born with the founding of the Populist, or People’s, Party, in 1892. On July 2, 1892, a Populist Party convention in Omaha, Nebraska, demanded reforms to lift the burden of debt from farmers and other workers and to give the people a greater voice in their government.

The Populist Party Platform

The economic reforms proposed by the Populists included an increase in the money supply, which would produce a rise in prices received for goods and services; a graduated income tax; and a federal loan program. The proposed governmental reforms included the election of U.S. senators by popular vote, single terms for the president and the vice-president, and a secret ballot to end vote fraud. Finally, the Populists called for an eight-hour workday and restrictions on immigration.

The proposed changes were so attractive to struggling farmers and desperate laborers that in 1892 the Populist presidential candidate won almost 10 percent of the total vote. In the West, the People’s Party elected five senators, three governors, and about 1,500 state legislators. The Populists’ programs eventually became the platform of the Democratic Party and kept alive the concept that the government is responsible for reforming social injustices.

The Panic of 1893

During the 1880s, farmers were overextended with debts and loans. Railroad construction had expanded faster than markets. In February 1893, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad went bankrupt, followed by the Erie, the Northern Pacific, the Union Pacific, and the Santa Fe. The government’s gold supply had worn thin, partly due to its obligation to purchase silver. People panicked and traded paper money for gold. The panic also spread to Wall Street, where the prices of stocks fell rapidly. The price of silver then plunged, causing silver mines to close. By the end of the year, over 15,000 businesses and 500 banks had collapsed.

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Investments declined, and consumer purchases, wages, and prices also fell. Panic deepened into depression as 3 million people lost their jobs. By December 1894, a fifth of the work force was unemployed. Many farm families suffered both hunger and unemployment.

Silver or Gold

Populists watched as the two major political parties became deeply divided in a struggle between different regions and economic interests. Business owners and bankers of the industrialized Northeast were Republicans; the farmers and laborers of the agrarian South and West were Democrats.

The central issue of the campaign was which metal would be the basis of the nation’s monetary system. On one side were the “silverites,” who favored bimetallism, a monetary system in which the government would give citizens either gold or silver in exchange for paper currency or checks. On the other side were President Cleveland and the “gold bugs,” who favored the gold standard—backing dollars solely with gold.

The backing of currency was an important campaign issue because people regarded paper money as worthless if it could not be turned in for gold or silver. Because silver was more plentiful than gold, backing currency with both metals, as the silverites advocated, would make more currency (with less value per dollar) available. Supporters of bimetallism hoped that this measure would stimulate the stagnant economy. Retaining the gold standard would provide a more stable, but expensive, currency.

Bryan And The “Cross Of Gold”

Stepping into the debate, the Populist Party called for bimetallism and free coinage of silver. Yet their strategy was undecided: should they join forces with sympathetic candidates in the major parties and risk losing their political identity, or should they nominate their own candidates and risk losing the election?

As the 1896 campaign progressed, the Republican Party stated its firm commitment to the gold standard and nominated Ohioan William McKinley for president. After much debate, the Democratic Party came out in favor of a combined gold and silver standard, including unlimited coinage of silver. At the Democratic convention, former Nebraska congressman William Jennings Bryan, editor of the Omaha World-Herald, delivered an impassioned address to the assembled

Gold Bugs and Silverites
	Gold Bugs	Silverites
Who They Were	bankers and businessmen	farmers and laborers
What They Wanted	gold standard less money in circulation	bimetallism more money in circulation
Why	Loans would be repaid in stable money.	Products would be sold at higher prices.
Effects	DEFLATION • Prices fall. • Value of money increases. • Fewer people have money.	INFLATION • Prices rise. • Value of money decreases. • More people have money.

Key Player: William Jennings Bryan 1860–1925 A photo: William Jennings Bryan.

William Jennings Bryan might be considered a patron saint of lost causes, largely because he let beliefs, not politics, guide his actions. He resigned his position as secretary of state (1913– 1915) under Woodrow Wilson, for example, to protest the president’s movement away from neutrality regarding the war in Europe.

Near the end of his life, he went to Tennessee to assist the prosecution in the Scopes “monkey trial,” contesting the teaching of evolution in public schools. He is perhaps best characterized by a quote from his own “Cross of Gold” speech: “The humblest citizen in all the land, when clad in the armor of a righteous cause, is stronger than all the hosts of error.”

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delegates. An excerpt of what has become known as the “Cross of Gold” speech follows.

A PERSONAL VOICE WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN

“Having behind us the producing masses of this nation and the world, supported by the commercial interests, the laboring interests, and the toilers everywhere, we will answer their demand for a gold standard by saying to them: You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.”
—Democratic convention speech, Chicago, July 8, 1896

A cartoon shows Bryan standing on the bible, holding a cross made of gold and a crown of thorns.

William Jennings Bryan’s “Cross of Gold” speech inspired many cartoonists.

Bryan won the Democratic nomination. When the Populist convention met two weeks later, the delegates were both pleased and frustrated. They liked Bryan and the Democratic platform, but they detested the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, Maine banker Arthur Sewall. Nor did they like giving up their identity as a party. They compromised by endorsing Bryan, nominating their own candidate, Thomas Watson of Georgia, for vice-president, and keeping their party organization intact.

The End of Populism

Bryan faced a difficult campaign. His free-silver stand had led gold bug Democrats to nominate their own candidate. It also weakened his support in cities, where consumers feared inflation because it would make goods more expensive. In addition, Bryan’s meager funds could not match the millions backing McKinley. Bryan tried to make up for lack of funds by campaigning in 27 states and sometimes making 20 speeches a day. McKinley, on the other hand, campaigned from his front porch, while thousands of well-known people toured the country speaking on his behalf.

McKinley got approximately 7 million votes and Bryan about 6.5 million. As expected, McKinley carried the East, while Bryan carried the South and the farm vote of the Middle West. The voters of the industrial Middle West, with their fear of inflation, brought McKinley into office.

With McKinley’s election, Populism collapsed, burying the hopes of the farmers. The movement left two powerful legacies, however: a message that the downtrodden could organize and have political impact, and an agenda of reforms, many of which would be enacted in the 20th century.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Oliver Hudson Kelley

• Grange

• Farmers’ Alliances

• Populism

• bimetallism

• gold standard

• William McKinley

• William Jennings Bryan

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Identify the causes of the rise of the Populist Party and the effects the party had.

A chart shows arrows labled Causes on the left side pointing to the Populist Party, with more arrows labled Effects on the right.

Which effect has the most impact today? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

What do you think were the most significant factors in bringing an end to the Populist Party? Think about:

• monetary policy

• third-party status

• source of popular support

• popular participation policy

4. MAKING INFERENCES

How did the Grange and the Farmers’ Alliances pave the way for the Populist Party?

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American Literature: Literature of the West

1850–1900 After gold was discovered in California, Americans came to view the West as a region of unlimited possibility. Those who could not venture there in person enjoyed reading about the West in colorful tales by writers such as Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) and Bret Harte. Dime novels, cheaply bound adventure stories that sold for a dime, were also enormously popular in the second half of the 19th century.

Since much of the West was Spanish-dominated for centuries, Western literature includes legends and songs of Hispanic heroes and villains. It also includes the haunting words of Native Americans whose lands were taken and cultures threatened as white pioneers moved west.

Mark Twain

The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County

The American humorist Samuel Clemens—better known as Mark Twain—was a would-be gold and silver miner who penned tales of frontier life. “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” is set in a California mining camp. Most of the tale is told by Simon Wheeler, an old-timer given to exaggeration.

“Well, Smiley kep’ the beast in a little lattice box, and he used to fetch him downtown sometimes and lay for a bet. One day a feller—a stranger in the camp, he was—come acrost him with his box, and says:

“‘What might it be that you’ve got in the box?’

“And Smiley says, sorter indifferent-like, ‘It might be a parrot, or it might be a canary, maybe, but it ain’t—it’s only just a frog.’

“And the feller took it, and looked at it careful, and turned it round this way and that, and says, ‘H’m—so ’tis. Well, what’s he good for?’

“‘Well,’ Smiley says, easy and careless, ‘he’s good enough for one thing, I should judge—he can outjump any frog in Calaveras County.’

“The feller took the box again, and took another long, particular look, and give it back to Smiley, and says, very deliberate, ‘Well,’ he says, ‘I don’t see no p’ints about that frog that’s any better’n any other frog.’

“‘Maybe you don’t,’ Smiley says. ‘Maybe you understand frogs and maybe you don’t understand ’em; maybe you’ve had experience, and maybe you ain’t only a amature, as it were. Anyways, I’ve got my opinion, and I’ll resk forty dollars that he can outjump any frog in Calaveras County.’”

—Mark Twain, “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” (1865) 431

The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez

In the border ballads, or corridos, of the American Southwest, few figures are as famous as the Mexican vaquero, Gregorio Cortez. This excerpt from a ballad about Cortez deals with a confrontation between Cortez and a group of Texas lawmen. Although he is hotly pursued, Cortez has an amazingly long run before being captured.

… And in the county of Kiansis They cornered him after all; Though they were more than three hundred He leaped out of their corral. Then the Major Sheriff said, As if he was going to cry, “Cortez, hand over your weapons; We want to take you alive.” Then said Gregorio Cortez, And his voice was like a bell, “You will never get my weapons Till you put me in a cell.” Then said Gregorio Cortez, With his pistol in his hand, “Ah, so many mounted Rangers Just to take one Mexican!” —Anonymous, “The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez,” translated by Américo Paredes A statue depicts a vaquero riding a bucking horse.

A statue depicts a vaquero riding a bucking horse.

Vaquero (modeled 1980/cast 1990), Luis Jiménez. National Museum of American Art/Art Resource, New York.

Chief Satanta’s Speech at the Medicine Lodge Creek Council

Known as the Orator of the Plains, Chief Satanta represented the Kiowa people in the 1867 Medicine Lodge Creek negotiations with the U.S. government. The speech from which this excerpt is taken was delivered by Satanta in Spanish but was translated into English and widely published in leading newspapers of the day.

Chief Satanta

All the land south of the Arkansas belongs to the Kiowas and Comanches, and I don’t want to give away any of it. I love the land and the buffalo and will not part with it. I want you to understand well what I say. Write it on paper. Let the Great Father [U.S. president] see it, and let me hear what he has to say. I want you to understand also, that the Kiowas and Comanches don’t want to fight, and have not been fighting since we made the treaty. I hear a great deal of good talk from the gentlemen whom the Great Father sends us, but they never do what they say. I don’t want any of the medicine lodges [schools and churches] within the country. I want the children raised as I was. When I make peace, it is a long and lasting one—there is no end to it. … A long time ago this land belonged to our fathers; but when I go up to the river I see camps of soldiers on its banks. These soldiers cut down my timber; they kill my buffalo; and when I see that, my heart feels like bursting; I feel sorry. I have spoken.

—Chief Satanta, speech at the Medicine Lodge Creek

Council (1867)

Thinking Critically

1. Comparing and Contrasting Compare and contrast the views these selections give of the American frontier in the second half of the 19th century. Use details from the selections to help explain your answer.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R8.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.com

From the gauchos of the Argentine pampas to the workers on Australian sheep stations, many nations have had their own versions of the cowboys of the American West. Use the links for American Literature to research one such nation. Prepare a bulletin-board display that shows the similarities and differences between Western cowboys and their counterparts in that country.

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Chapter 13: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to changes on the Great Plains.

1. Homestead Act

2. Sitting Bull

3. assimilation

4. Morrill Act

5. exoduster

6. George A. Custer

7. William Jennings Bryan

8. William McKinley

9. Populism

10. Grange

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Cultures Clash on the Prairie (pages 408–417)

1. Identify three differences between the culture of the Native Americans and the culture of the white settlers on the Great Plains.

2. How effective was the Dawes Act in promoting the assimilation of Native Americans into white culture?

3. Why did the cattle industry become a big business in the late 1800s?

4. How did cowboy culture reflect the ethnic diversity of the United States?

Settling on the Great Plains (pages 420–424)

5. What measures did the government take to support settlement of the frontier?

6. How did settlers overcome the challenges of living on the Great Plains?

Farmers and the Populist Movement (pages 425–429)

7. What economic problems confronted American farmers in the 1890s?

8. According to farmers and other supporters of free silver, how would bimetallism help the economy?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a cause/effect diagram identifying the reasons that agricultural output from the Great Plains increased during the late 1800s.

In a blank chart, three ovals labled Causes point to the words (Effect) Increased Agricultural Output.

2. ANALYZING MOTIVES In 1877, Nez Perce Chief Joseph said, “My people have always been the friends of white men. Why are you in such a hurry?” Why do you think white people hurried to settle the West, with so little regard for Native Americans? Give evidence from the chapter to support your position.

3. INTERPRETING CHARTS Look at the chart of Gold Bugs and Silverites on page 428. What would be the result of the policies favored by the gold bugs? by the silverites?

Visual Summary: Changes on the Western Frontier A chart is titled Clash of the Cultures on the Frontier.

Clash of Cultures on the Frontier NATIVE AMERICANS
Native Americans of the plains hunted, farmed, and traded in traditional ways. Plains peoples relied on the buffalo for a variety of survival needs. RANCHERS AND COWHANDS
Ranchers and cowboys ushered in the era of the long drive and the roundup. Texas longhorn cattle took the place of the buffalo as the dominant animal on the Great Plains. HOMESTEADERS
Hundreds of thousands of homesteaders settled on the plains, claiming land grants from the U.S. government. MINERS
Discoveries of gold and other precious metals led to the growth of mining camps and boomtowns in the Rocky Mountains and to the west. FARMERS AND THE POPULIST MOVEMENT
New settlement, barbed wire, and bad weather ended the cattle boom. Farmers across the South, Midwest, and West organized to address their common economic problems. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. 433 Standardized Test Practice

Use the flowchart and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

A flowchart has three facts in boxes, linked by arrows./> <prodnote render=

DESCRIPTION:

Box one: New mechanized farm tools lead to increased production. An arrow leads to the next box: Crop output rises steadily from 1870-1900. Another arrow leads to the third box: Prices for agricultural products fall. Another arrow leads to a question mark.

Rise and Fall of the Farm Economy, Late 1800s

1. Which effect accurately completes the flowchart?

A Farmers have less money to repay loans, and many lose their farms.

B Small farmers live off the land, so are not affected by the economy.

C Wealthy farmers hoard gold, rather than depend on paper money.

D The government subsidizes farmers to help them pay their bills.

Use the quotation and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 2.

“[We] have been taught to hunt and live on the game. You tell us that we must learn to farm, live in one house, and take on your ways. Suppose the people living beyond the great sea should come and tell you that you must stop farming, and kill your cattle, and take your houses and lands, what would you do? Would you not fight them?”
—Gall, a Hunkpapa Sioux, quoted in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

2. What was Gall’s view of future relations between the Plains Indians and the settlers?

F peaceful coexistence

G further conflict

H mutual respect

J equality before the law

3. How did the invention of barbed wire change the look of the Western frontier?

A It endangered wildlife.

B It ended the cattle frontier.

C It increased cattle stocks.

D It enriched the cow towns.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 407:

What do you expect to find on settling in the West?

Suppose you are a frontier settler. Write a letter to the family members you left behind describing your journey west and how you are living now. Perhaps, for example, you and your companions have built a soddy. Use information from Chapter 13 to provide some vivid impressions of life on the frontier.

2. VIDEOLEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “A Walk in Two Worlds.” Discuss the following questions in small groups.

• How did Zitkala-Ša react to life in the boarding school?

• What lessons about clashes of cultures did you learn from Zitkala-Ša’s experience?

• How might people make interactions with other cultures a positive, rather than a negative, experience?

Stage a panel discussion for the class.

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Chapter 14: A New Industrial Age

A photo: an elevated railroad bridge crosses a valley, above people riding in horse-drawn wagons. A title: A New Industrial Age.

Laborers blasted tunnels and constructed bridges to send the railroad through the rugged Sierra Nevada mountains. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 434 and page 435 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1869 to 1900 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1869 to 1900 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1869-1900.

1869, USA: Central Pacific and Union Pacific complete the transcontinental railroad.
1870, the World: Franco-Prussian War breaks out.
1875, the World: British Labor Unions win right to strike.
1876, USA: Alexander Graham Bell invents the telephone.
1877, USA: Munn v. Illinois establishes government regulation of railroads.
1877, USA: Mother Jones supports the Great Strike of 1877.
1879, USA: Thomas A. Edison invents a workable lightbulb.
1882, the World: United States restricts Chinese immigration.
1883, the World: Germanny becomes the first nation to provide national health insurance.
1884, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected president.
1886, USA: Haymarket riot turns public sentiment against unions.
1890, the World: Colonization of sub-Saharan Africa peaks.
1890, USA: Congress passes the Sherman Antitrust Act.
1893, the World: Women in New Zealand gain voting rights.
1894, USA: President Cleveland sends federal troops to Illinois to end the Pullman strike.
1896, the World: First modern Olympic Games are held in Athens, Greece.
1896, William McKinley is elected president.
1900, William McKinley is reelected.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 434 and page 435 in the print version. 435 A photo: an elevated railroad bridge crosses a valley, above people riding in horse-drawn wagons. A title: A New Industrial Age.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 434 and page 435 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1869 to 1900 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1869-1900.

1869, USA: Central Pacific and Union Pacific complete the transcontinental railroad.
1870, the World: Franco-Prussian War breaks out.
1875, the World: British Labor Unions win right to strike.
1876, USA: Alexander Graham Bell invents the telephone.
1877, USA: Munn v. Illinois establishes government regulation of railroads.
1877, USA: Mother Jones supports the Great Strike of 1877.
1879, USA: Thomas A. Edison invents a workable lightbulb.
1882, the World: United States restricts Chinese immigration.
1883, the World: Germanny becomes the first nation to provide national health insurance.
1884, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected president.
1886, USA: Haymarket riot turns public sentiment against unions.
1890, the World: Colonization of sub-Saharan Africa peaks.
1890, USA: Congress passes the Sherman Antitrust Act.
1893, the World: Women in New Zealand gain voting rights.
1894, USA: President Cleveland sends federal troops to Illinois to end the Pullman strike.
1896, the World: First modern Olympic Games are held in Athens, Greece.
1896, William McKinley is elected president.
1900, William McKinley is reelected.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 434 and page 435 in the print version. Interact with History

The year is 1863 and railroad construction is booming. In six years, the U.S. will be linked by rail from coast to coast. Central Pacific Railroad employs mainly Chinese immigrants to blast tunnels, lay track, and drive spikes, all for low wages. You are a journalist assigned to describe this monumental construction project for your readers.

What are the pros and cons of railroad expansion?

Examine the Issues

• What dangers do the railroad workers encounter?

• How will businesses and the general public benefit from the transcontinental railroad?

• How might railroad construction affect the environment?

436

Section 1: The Expansion of Industry

One American’s Story

One day, Pattillo Higgins noticed bubbles in the springs around Spindletop, a hill near Beaumont in southeastern Texas. This and other signs convinced him that oil was underground. If Higgins found oil, it could serve as a fuel source around which a vibrant industrial city would develop.

Higgins, who had been a mechanic and a lumber merchant, couldn’t convince geologists or investors that oil was present, but he didn’t give up. A magazine ad seeking investors got one response—from Captain Anthony F. Lucas, an experienced prospector who also believed that there was oil at Spindletop. When other investors were slow to send money, Higgins kept his faith, not only in Spindletop, but in Lucas.

A PERSONAL VOICE

PATTILLO HIGGINS

“ Captain Lucas, … these experts come and tell you this or that can’t happen because it has never happened before. You believe there is oil here, … and I think you are right. I know there is oil here in greater quantities than man has ever found before.”
—quoted in Spindletop

In 1900, the two men found investors, and they began to drill that autumn. After months of difficult, frustrating work, on the morning of January 10, 1901, oil gushed from their well. The Texas oil boom had begun.

Natural Resources Fuel Industrialization

After the Civil War, the United States was still largely an agricultural nation. By the 1920s—a mere 60 years later—it had become the leading industrial power in the world. This immense industrial boom was due to several factors, including: a wealth of natural resources, government support for business, and a growing urban population that provided both cheap labor and markets for new products.

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Black Gold

Though eastern Native American tribes had made fuel and medicine from crude oil long before Europeans arrived on the continent, early American settlers had little use for oil. In the 1840s, Americans began using kerosene to light lamps after the Canadian geologist Abraham Gesner discovered how to distill the fuel from oil or coal.

It wasn’t until 1859, however, when Edwin L. Drake successfully used a steam engine to drill for oil near Titusville, Pennsylvania, that removing oil from beneath the earth’s surface became practical. This breakthrough started an oil boom that spread to Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, and, later, Texas. Petroleum-refining industries arose in Cleveland and Pittsburgh as entrepreneurs rushed to transform the oil into kerosene. Gasoline, a byproduct of the refining process, originally was thrown away. But after the automobile became popular, gasoline became the most important form of oil.

Bessemer Steel Process

Oil was not the only natural resource that was plentiful in the United States. There were also abundant deposits of coal and iron. In 1887, prospectors discovered iron ore deposits more than 100 miles long and up to 3 miles wide in the Mesabi Range of Minnesota. At the same time, coal production skyrocketed—from 33 million tons in 1870 to more than 250 million tons in 1900.

Iron is a dense metal, but it is soft and tends to break and rust. It also usually contains other elements, such as carbon. Removing the carbon from iron produces a lighter, more flexible, and rust-resistant metal—steel. The raw materials needed to make steel were readily available; all that was needed was a cheap and efficient manufacturing process. The Bessemer process, developed independently by the British manufacturer Henry Bessemer and American ironmaker William Kelly around 1850, soon became widely used. This technique involved injecting air into molten iron to remove the carbon and other impurities. By 1880, American manufacturers were using the new method to produce more than 90 percent of the nation’s steel. In this age of rapid change and innovation, even

A map shows the industrial centers of the northeast and midwest.

DESCRIPTION:

A map shows the industrial centers of the U.S. Pennsylvania was the state with the most steel production areas. An inset map of Pittsburgh shows 12 steel mills located by the rivers in 1886, and 36 mills locted there in 1906. Iron ore and coal mines were mostly located along the Appalachian Mountains.

Natural Resources and the Birth of a Steel Town, 1886–1906 438 A timeline shows major inventions from 1826-1903.

DESCRIPTION:

The timeline shows major inventions from 1826 to 1903.

1826, photography.
1831, reaper.
1837, telegraph
1846, sewing machine.
1860, internal-combustion engine.
1867, dynamite.
1867, typewriter.
1873, electric motor.
1876, telephone.
1877, phonograph.
1879, lightbulb.
1895, radio.
1895, motion pictures.
1895, X-Ray.
1903, airplane.

The Technological Explosion, 1826–1903

the successful Bessemer process was bettered by the 1860s. It was eventually replaced by the open-hearth process, enabling manufacturers to produce quality steel from scrap metal as well as from raw materials.

New Uses For Steel

The railroads, with thousands of miles of track, became the biggest customers for steel, but inventors soon found additional uses for it. Joseph Glidden’s barbed wire and McCormick’s and Deere’s farm machines helped transform the plains into the food producer of the nation.

Steel changed the face of the nation as well, as it made innovative construction possible. One of the most remarkable structures was the Brooklyn Bridge. Completed in 1883, it spanned 1,595 feet of the East River in New York City. Its steel cables were supported by towers higher than any man-made and weight-bearing structure except the pyramids of Egypt. Like those ancient marvels, the completed bridge was called a wonder of the world.

Around this time, setting the stage for a new era of expansion upward as well as outward, William Le Baron Jenney designed the first skyscraper with a steel frame—the Home Insurance Building in Chicago. Before Jenney had his pioneering idea, the weight of large buildings was supported entirely by their walls or by iron frames, which limited the buildings’ height. With a steel frame to support the weight, however, architects could build as high as they wanted. As structures soared into the air, not even the sky seemed to limit what Americans could achieve.

Historical Spotlight: Illuminating the Light Bulb Edison holds a lightbulb.

Shortly after moving into a long wooden shed at Menlo Park, Thomas Alva Edison and his associates set to work to develop the perfect incandescent bulb. Arc lamps already lit some city streets and shops, using an electric current passing between two sticks of carbon, but they were glaring and inefficient.

Edison hoped to create a long-lasting lamp with a soft glow, and began searching for a filament that would burn slowly and stay lit. Edison tried wires, sticks, blades of grass, and even hairs from his assistants’ beards. Finally, a piece of carbonized bamboo from Japan did the trick. Edison’s company used bamboo filaments until 1911, when it began using tungsten filaments, which are still used today.

Inventions Promote Change

By capitalizing on natural resources and their own ingenuity, inventors changed more than the landscape. Their inventions affected the very way people lived and worked.

The Power of Electricity

In 1876, Thomas Alva Edison became a pioneer on the new industrial frontier when he established the world’s first research laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. There Edison perfected the incandescent light bulb—patented in 1880—and later invented an entire system for producing and distributing electrical power. Another inventor, George Westinghouse, along with Edison, added innovations that made electricity safer and less expensive.

The harnessing of electricity completely changed the nature of business in America. By 1890, electric power ran numerous machines, from fans to printing presses. This inexpensive, convenient source of energy soon became available in homes and spurred the invention of time-saving appliances. Electric streetcars made urban travel cheap and efficient and also promoted the outward spread of cities.

More important, electricity allowed manufacturers to locate their plants

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wherever they wanted—not just near sources of power, such as rivers. This enabled industry to grow as never before. Huge operations, such as the Armour and Swift meatpacking plants, and the efficient processes that they used became the models for new consumer industries.

Inventions Change Lifestyles

Edison’s light bulb was only one of several revolutionary inventions. Christopher Sholes invented the typewriter in 1867 and changed the world of work. Next to the light bulb, however, perhaps the most dramatic invention was the telephone, unveiled by Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Watson in 1876. It opened the way for a worldwide communications network.

The typewriter and the telephone particularly affected office work and created new jobs for women. Although women made up less than 5 percent of all office workers in 1870, by 1910 they accounted for nearly 40 percent of the clerical work force. New inventions also had a tremendous impact on factory work, as well as on jobs that traditionally had been done at home. For example, women had previously sewn clothing by hand for their families. With industrialization, clothing could be mass-produced in factories, creating a need for garment workers, many of whom were women.

Industrialization freed some factory workers from backbreaking labor and helped improve workers’ standard of living. By 1890, the average workweek had been reduced by about ten hours. However, many laborers felt that the mechanization of so many tasks reduced human workers’ worth. As consumers, though, workers regained some of their lost power in the marketplace. The country’s expanding urban population provided a vast potential market for the new inventions and products of the late 1800s.

A photo: a woman uses an early typewriter.

The typewriter shown here dates from around 1890.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Edwin L. Drake

• Bessemer process

• Thomas Alva Edison

• Christopher Sholes

• Alexander Graham Bell

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one below, list resources, ideas, and markets that affected the industrial boom of the 19th century. In the second column, note how each item contributed to industrialization.

A chart has two blank columns: Resources, Ideas, Markets on the left side and Impact on the right.

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

Do you think that consumers gained power as industry expanded in the late 19th century? Why or why not?

4. HYPOTHESIZING

If the U.S. had been poor in natural resources, how would industrialization have been affected?

5. ANALYZING EFFECTS

Which invention or development described in this section had the greatest impact on society? Justify your choice. Think About:

• the applications of inventions

• the impact of inventions on people’s daily lives

• the effect of inventions on the workplace

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Geography Spotlight: Industry Changes the Environment

By the mid-1870s, new ideas and technology were well on the way to changing almost every aspect of American life. The location of Cleveland, Ohio, on the shores of Lake Erie, gave the city access to raw materials and made it ripe for industrialization. What no one foresaw were the undesirable side effects of rapid development and technological progress.

1 FROM HAYSTACKS TO SMOKESTACKS

In 1874, parts of Cleveland were still rural, with farms like the one pictured dotting the landscape. The smokestacks of the Standard Oil refinery in the distance, however, indicate that industrialization had begun.

An illustration: farmers plow their fields. In the distance, smoke pours from factories.

2 REFINING THE LANDSCAPE

Industries like the Standard Oil refinery shown in this 1889 photo soon became a source of prosperity for both Cleveland and the entire country. The pollution they belched into the atmosphere, however, was the beginning of an ongoing problem: how to balance industrial production and environmental concerns.

A photo: at an oil refinery, smokestacks spew dark clouds of smoke into the sky.

A map is titled West Part of the 44th Ward of Cleveland.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 440 and page 441 in the print version. 441 A map is titled West Part of the 44th Ward of Cleveland.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 440 and page 441 in the print version. A photo: a tugboat sails toward flames burning on a river. Fireman spray water on the fire, under a sky filled with black clouds.

A photo: a tugboat sails toward flames burning on a river. Fireman spray water on the fire, under a sky filled with black clouds.

3 A RIVER OF FIRE

Industrial pollution would affect not only the air but also the water. Refineries and steel mills discharged so much oil into the Cuyahoga River that major fires broke out on the water in 1936, 1952, and 1969. The 1952 blaze, pictured above, destroyed three tugboats, three buildings, and the ship-repair yards. In the decade following the 1969 fire, changes in the way industrial plants operated, along with the construction of wastewater treatment plants, helped restore the quality of the water.

Thinking Critically

1. Analyzing Patterns Locate the Standard Oil Company on the map of Cleveland. What can you conclude about where industry was located as compared with the location of residential neighborhoods?

2. Creating a Thematic Map Pose a historical question about the relationship between industry and areas of the Midwest. For example, what types of industry developed near Chicago and why? Then research and create a map that answers your question.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R32. 442

Section 2: The Age of the Railroads

One American’s Story

In October 1884, the economist Richard Ely visited the town of Pullman, Illinois, to write about it for Harper’s magazine. At first, Ely was impressed with the atmosphere of order, planning, and well-being in the town George M. Pullman had designed for the employees of his railroad-car factory. But after talking at length with a dissatisfied company officer, Ely concluded the town had a fatal flaw: it too greatly restricted its residents. Pullman employees were compelled to obey rules in which they had no say. Ely concluded that “the idea of Pullman is un-American.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

RICHARD T. ELY

“ It is benevolent, well-wishing feudalism [a medieval social system], which desires the happiness of the people, but in such way as shall please the authorities. … If free American institutions are to be preserved, we want no race of men reared as underlings.”
—“Pullman: A Social Study”

Densely packed townhouses line a street.

The town of Pullman was carefully laid out and strictly controlled.

As the railroads grew, they came to influence many facets of American life, including, as in the town of Pullman, the personal lives of the country’s citizens. They caused the standard time and time zones to be set and influenced the growth of towns and communities. However, the unchecked power of railroad companies led to widespread abuses that spurred citizens to demand federal regulation of the industry.

Railroads Span Time and Space

Rails made local transit reliable and westward expansion possible for business as well as for people. Realizing how important railroads were for settling the West and developing the country, the government made huge land grants and loans to the railroad companies.

443 Historical Spotlight: Chinese Immigrants and the Railroads

Although the railroads paid all their employees poorly, Asians usually earned less than whites. The average pay for whites working a ten-hour day was $40 to $60 a month plus free meals. Chinese immigrants hired by the Central Pacific performed similar tasks from dawn to dusk for about $35 a month—and they had to supply their own food.

The immigrants’ working conditions were miserable. In 1866, for example, the railroad hired them to dig a tunnel through a granite mountain. For five months of that year, the Chinese lived and worked in camps surrounded by banks of snow. The total snowfall reached over 40 feet. Hundreds of the men were buried in avalanches or later found frozen, still clutching their shovels or picks.

A National Network

By 1856, the railroads extended west to the Mississippi River, and three years later, they crossed the Missouri. Just over a decade later, crowds across the United States cheered as the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads met at Promontory, Utah, on May 10, 1869. A golden spike marked the spanning of the nation by the first transcontinental railroad. Other transcontinental lines followed, and regional lines multiplied as well. At the start of the Civil War, the nation had had about 30,000 miles of track. By 1890, that figure was nearly six times greater.

Romance and Reality

The railroads brought the dreams of available land, adventure, and a fresh start within the grasp of many Americans. This romance was made possible, however, only by the harsh lives of railroad workers.

The Central Pacific Railroad employed thousands of Chinese immigrants. The Union Pacific hired Irish immigrants and desperate, out-of-work Civil War veterans to lay track across treacherous terrain while enduring attacks by Native Americans. Accidents and diseases disabled and killed thousands of men each year. In 1888, when the first railroad statistics were published, the casualties totaled more than 2,000 employees killed and 20,000 injured.

Railroad Time

In spite of these difficult working conditions, the railroad laborers helped to transform the diverse regions of the country into a united nation. Though linked in space, each community still operated on its own time, with noon when the sun was directly overhead. Noon in Boston, for example, was almost 12 minutes later than noon in New York. Travelers riding from Maine to California might reset their watches 20 times.

In 1869, to remedy this problem, Professor C. F. Dowd proposed that the earth’s surface be divided into 24 time zones, one for each hour of the day. Under his plan, the United States would contain four zones: the Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific time zones. The railroad companies endorsed Dowd’s plan enthusiastically, and many towns followed suit.

Finally, on November 18, 1883, railroad crews and towns across the country synchronized their watches. In 1884, an international conference set worldwide time zones that incorporated railroad time. The U.S. Congress, however, didn’t officially adopt railroad time as the standard for the nation until 1918. As strong a unifying force as the railroads were, however, they also opened the way for abuses that led to social and economic unrest.

A painting: ponytailed workers wearing Chinese-style straw hats cheer as a train drives out from a tunnel through a snowy mountain.

Opportunities and Opportunists

The growth of the railroads influenced the industries and businesses in which Americans worked. Iron, coal, steel, lumber, and glass industries grew rapidly as they tried to keep pace with the railroads’ demand for materials and parts. The rapid spread of railroad lines also fostered the growth of towns, helped establish new markets, and offered rich opportunities for both visionaries and profiteers.

444 Another Perspective: On the Wrong Track

While the railroads captured the imagination of most 19th-century Americans, there were those who didn’t get on the bandwagon. The writer Herman Melville raged against the smoke-belching iron horse and the waves of change it set in motion as vehemently as his character Captain Ahab raged against the white whale and the sea in Moby-Dick. “Hark! here comes that old dragon again—that gigantic gadfly … snort! puff! scream! Great improvements of the age,” Melville fumed. “Who wants to travel so fast? My grandfather did not, and he was no fool.”

New Towns and Markets

By linking previously isolated cities, towns, and settlements, the railroads promoted trade and interdependence. As part of a nationwide network of suppliers and markets, individual towns began to specialize in particular products. Chicago soon became known for its stockyards and Minneapolis for its grain industries. These cities prospered by selling large quantities of their products to the entire country. New towns and communities also grew up along the railroad lines. Cities as diverse as Abilene, Kansas; Flagstaff, Arizona; Denver, Colorado; and Seattle, Washington, owed their prosperity, if not their very existence, to the railroads.

Pullman

The railroads helped cities not only grow up but branch out. In 1880, for example, George M. Pullman built a factory for manufacturing sleepers and other railroad cars on the Illinois prairie. The nearby town that Pullman built for his employees followed in part the models of earlier industrial experiments in Europe. Whereas New England textile manufacturers had traditionally provided housing for their workers, the town of Pullman provided for almost all of workers’ basic needs. Pullman residents lived in clean, well-constructed brick houses and apartment buildings with at least one window in every room—a luxury for city dwellers. In addition, the town offered services and facilities such as doctors’ offices, shops, and an athletic field.

As Richard Ely observed, however, the town of Pullman remained firmly under company control. Residents were not allowed to loiter on their front steps or to drink alcohol. Pullman hoped that his tightly controlled environment would ensure a stable work force. However, Pullman’s refusal to lower rents after cutting his employees’ pay led to a violent strike in 1894.

Crédit Mobilier

Pullman created his company town out of the desire for control and profit. In some other railroad magnates, or powerful and influential industrialists, these desires turned into self-serving corruption. In one of the most infamous schemes, stockholders in the Union Pacific Railroad formed, in 1864, a construction company called Crédit Mobilier (krĕd′ĭt mō-bēl′yər). The stockholders gave this company a contract to lay track at two to three times the actual cost—and pocketed the profits. They donated shares of stock to about 20 representatives in Congress in 1867.

A congressional investigation of the company, spurred by reports in the New York Sun, eventually found that the officers of the Union Pacific had taken up to $23 million in stocks, bonds, and cash. Testimony implicated such well-known and respected federal officials as Vice-President Schuyler Colfax and Congressman James Garfield, who later became president. Although these public figures kept their profits and received little more than a slap on the wrist, the reputation of the Republican Party was tarnished.

An advertisement titled Chicago and Alton RR: a woman on a train fans herself while sitting in a reclining chair.

Pullman cars brought luxury to the rails, as shown in this advertisement from around 1890.

The Grange and the Railroads

Farmers were especially disturbed by what they viewed as railroad corruption. The Grangers—members of the Grange, a farmers’ organization founded in 1867—began demanding governmental control over the railroad industry.

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DESCRIPTION:

A map of the U.S. shows more rail lines connecting all the major cities in the east by 1870, with only a single line in the west. By 1890, new train lines stretched across the country to the Pacific coast. New railroad lines created new rail connections in cities like Chicago, Minneaplois and Denver.

Major Railroad Lines, 1870–1890
INTERACTIVE

Railroad Abuses

Farmers were angry with railroad companies for a host of reasons. They were upset by misuse of government land grants, which the rail-roads sold to other businesses rather than to settlers, as the government intended. The railroads also entered into formal agreements to fix prices, which helped keep farmers in their debt. In addition, they charged different customers different rates, often demanding more for short hauls—for which there was no alternative carrier—than they did for long hauls.

Granger Laws

In response to these abuses by the railroads, the Grangers took political action. They sponsored state and local political candidates, elected legislators, and successfully pressed for laws to protect their interests. In 1871 Illinois authorized a commission “to establish maximum freight and passenger rates and prohibit discrimination.” Grangers throughout the West, Midwest, and Southeast convinced state legislators to pass similar laws, called Granger laws.

The railroads fought back, challenging the constitutionality of the regulatory laws. In 1877, however, in the case of Munn v. Illinois, the Supreme Court upheld the Granger laws by a vote of seven to two. The states thus won the right to regulate the railroads for the benefit of farmers and consumers. The Grangers also helped establish an important principle—the federal government’s right to regulate private industry to serve the public interest.

Interstate Commerce Act

The Grangers’ triumph was short-lived, how-ever. In 1886, the Supreme Court ruled that a state could not set rates on inter-state commerce—railroad traffic that either came from or was going to another state. In response to public outrage, Congress passed the Interstate Commerce Act in 1887. This act reestablished the right of the federal government to supervise railroad activities and established a five-member Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) for that purpose. The ICC had difficulty regulating railroad rates because of a long legal process and resistance from the railroads. The final

446 Analyzing Political Cartoons: “The Modern Colossus of (Rail) Roads” A cartoon: A giant Vanderbilt stands high above railroad lines. Gould and Fields stand knee-high to him. All three pull strings attached to trains.

A cartoon: A giant Vanderbilt stands high above railroad lines. Gould and Fields stand knee-high to him. All three pull strings attached to trains.

Joseph Keppler drew this cartoon in 1879, featuring the railroad “giants” William Vanderbilt (top), Jay Gould (bottom right), and Cyrus W. Fields (bottom left). The three magnates formed a railroad trust out of their Union Pacific, New York Central, and Lake Shore & Dependence lines.

SKILLBUILDER Analyzing Political Cartoons

1. The title of this cartoon is a pun on the Colossus of Rhodes, a statue erected in 282 B.C. on an island near Greece. According to legend, the 100-foot-tall statue straddled Rhodes’s harbor entrance. Do you think the artist means the comparison as a compliment or a criticism? Why?

2. The reins held by the railroad magnates attach not only to the trains but also to the tracks and the railroad station. What does this convey about the magnates’ control of the railroads?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R24.

blow to the commission came in 1897, when the Supreme Court ruled that it could not set maximum railroad rates. Not until 1906, under President Theodore Roosevelt, did the ICC gain the power it needed to be effective.

Panic and Consolidation

Although the ICC presented few problems for the railroads, corporate abuses, mismanagement, overbuilding, and competition pushed many railroads to the brink of bankruptcy. Their financial problems played a major role in a nationwide economic collapse. The panic of 1893 was the worst depression up to that time: by the end of 1893, around 600 banks and 15,000 businesses had failed, and by 1895, 4 million people had lost their jobs. By the middle of 1894, a quarter of the nation’s railroads had been taken over by financial companies. Large investment firms such as J. P. Morgan & Company reorganized the railroads. As the 20th century dawned, seven powerful companies held sway over two-thirds of the nation’s railroad tracks.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• transcontinental railroad

• George M. Pullman

• Crédit Mobilier

• Munn v. Illinois

• Interstate Commerce Act

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one below, fill in effects of the rapid growth of railroads.

A chart: five blank ovals surround the words Rapid Growth of Railroads.

How did the growth of railroads affect people’s everyday lives? How did it affect farmers?

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

Do you think the government and private citizens could have done more to curb the corruption and power of the railroads? Give examples to support your opinion. Think About:

• why the railroads had power

• the rights of railroad customers and workers

• the scope of government regulations

4. SYNTHESIZING

The federal government gave land and made loans to the railroad companies. Why was the government so eager to promote the growth of railroads?

5. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Reread “Another Perspective” on railroads (page 444). Why do you think that some Americans disliked this new means of transportation?

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Section 3: Big Business and Labor

One American’s Story

Born in Scotland to penniless parents, Andrew Carnegie came to this country in 1848, at age 12. Six years later, he worked his way up to become private secretary to the local superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad. One morning, Carnegie single-handedly relayed messages that unsnarled a tangle of freight and passenger trains. His boss, Thomas A. Scott, rewarded Carnegie by giving him a chance to buy stock. Carnegie’s mother mortgaged the family home to make the purchase possible. Soon Carnegie received his first dividend.

Nineteenth-century industrialist Andrew Carnegie gave money to build public libraries, hoping to help others write their own rags-to-riches stories.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ANDREW CARNEGIE

“ One morning a white envelope was lying upon my desk, addressed in a big John Hancock hand, to ‘Andrew Carnegie, Esquire.’ … All it contained was a check for ten dollars upon the Gold Exchange Bank of New York. I shall remember that check as long as I live. … It gave me the first penny of revenue from capital—something that I had not worked for with the sweat of my brow. ‘Eureka!’ I cried. ‘Here’s the goose that lays the golden eggs.’”
—Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie was one of the first industrial moguls to make his own fortune. His rise from rags to riches, along with his passion for supporting charities, made him a model of the American success story.

Carnegie’s Innovations

By 1865, Carnegie was so busy managing the money he had earned in dividends that he happily left his job at the Pennsylvania Railroad. He entered the steel business in 1873 after touring a British steel mill and witnessing the awesome spectacle of the Bessemer process in action. By 1899, the Carnegie Steel Company

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manufactured more steel than all the factories in Great Britain.

A chart: natural resources, factories and railroads form a vertical line.

Vertical and Horizontal Integration RESOURCES Raw materials, fields, forests, and farms MANUFACTURING Production and processing DISTRIBUTION Shipping and transportation, delivery to customers

New Business Strategies

Carnegie’s success was due in part to management practices that he initiated and that soon became widespread. First, he continually searched for ways to make better products more cheaply. He incorporated new machinery and techniques, such as accounting systems that enabled him to track precise costs. Second, he attracted talented people by offering them stock in the company, and he encouraged competition among his assistants.

In addition to improving his own manufacturing operation, Carnegie attempted to control as much of the steel industry as he could. He did this mainly by vertical integration, a process in which he bought out his suppliers—coal fields and iron mines, ore freighters, and railroad lines—in order to control the raw materials and transportation systems. Carnegie also attempted to buy out competing steel producers. In this process, known as horizontal integration, companies producing similar products merge. Having gained control over his suppliers and having limited his competition, Carnegie controlled almost the entire steel industry. By the time he sold his business in 1901, Carnegie’s companies produced by far the largest portion of the nation’s steel.

A book cover: Risen From the Ranks, by Horatio Alger, Jr.

Popular literature promoted the possibility of rags-to-riches success for anyone who was virtuous and hard-working.

Social Darwinism and Business

Andrew Carnegie explained his extraordinary success by pointing to his hard work, shrewd investments, and innovative business practices. Late-19th-century social philosophers offered a different explanation for Carnegie’s success. They said it could be explained scientifically by a new theory—Social Darwinism.

Principles of Social Darwinism

The philosophy called Social Darwinism grew out of the English naturalist Charles Darwin’s theory of biological evolution. In his book On the Origin of Species, published in 1859, Darwin described his observations that some individuals of a species flourish and pass their traits along to the next generation, while others do not. He explained that a process of “natural selection” weeded out less-suited individuals and enabled the best-adapted to survive.

The English philosopher Herbert Spencer used Darwin’s biological theories to explain the evolution of human society. Soon, economists found in Social Darwinism a way to justify the doctrine of laissez faire (a French term meaning “allow to do”). According to this doctrine, the marketplace should not be regulated. William G. Sumner, a politcal science professor at Yale University, promoted the theory that success and failure in business were governed by natural law and that no one had the right to intervene.

A New Definition of Success

The premise of the survival and success of the most capable naturally made sense to the 4,000 millionaires who had emerged since the Civil War. Because the theory supported the notion of individual responsibility and blame, it also appealed to the Protestant work ethic of

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many Americans. According to Social Darwinism, riches were a sign of God’s favor, and therefore the poor must be lazy or inferior people who deserved their lot in life.

Key Player: John D. Rockefeller 1839–1937 A photo of John D. Rockefeller.

At the height of John Davison Rockefeller’s power, an associate noted that he “always sees a little farther than the rest of us—and then he sees around the corner.”

Rockefeller’s father was a flashy peddler of phony cancer cures with a unique approach to raising children. “I cheat my boys every chance I get. … I want to make ’em sharp,” he boasted.

It seems that this approach succeeded with the oldest son, John D., who was sharp enough to land a job as an assistant bookkeeper at the age of 16. Rockefeller was very proud of his own son, who succeeded him in the family business. At the end of his life, Rockefeller referred not to his millions but to John D., Jr., as “my greatest fortune.”

Fewer Control More

Although some business owners endorsed the “natural law” in theory, in practice most entrepreneurs did everything they could to control the competition that threatened the growth of their business empires.

Growth and Consolidation

Many industrialists took the approach “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.” They often pursued horizontal integration in the form of mergers. A merger usually occurred when one corporation bought out the stock of another. A firm that bought out all its competitors could achieve a monopoly, or complete control over its industry’s production, wages, and prices.

One way to create a monopoly was to set up a holding company, a corporation that did nothing but buy out the stock of other companies. Headed by banker J. P. Morgan, United States Steel was one of the most successful holding companies. In 1901, when it bought the largest manufacturer, Carnegie Steel, it became the world’s largest business.

Corporations such as the Standard Oil Company, established by John D. Rockefeller, took a different approach to mergers: they joined with competing companies in trust agreements. Participants in a trust turned their stock over to a group of trustees—people who ran the separate companies as one large corporation. In return, the companies were entitled to dividends on profits earned by the trust. Trusts were not legal mergers, however. Rockefeller used a trust to gain total control of the oil industry in America.

Rockefeller and the “Robber Barons”

In 1870, Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company of Ohio processed two or three percent of the country’s crude oil. Within a decade, it controlled 90 percent of the refining business. Rockefeller reaped huge profits by paying his employees extremely low wages and driving his competitors out of business by selling his oil at a lower price than it cost to produce it. Then, when he controlled the market, he hiked prices far above original levels.

Alarmed at the tactics of industrialists, critics began to call them robber barons. But industrialists were also phil-anthropists. Although Rockefeller kept most of his assets, he still gave away over $500 million, establishing the Rockefeller Foundation, providing funds to found the University of Chicago, and creating a medical institute that helped find a cure for yellow fever.

A cartoon: Rockefeller holds the White House in his hand, and examines the people and money inside through a jeweler's loupe.

This 1900 cartoon, captioned “What a funny little government!” is a commentary on the power of the Standard Oil empire. John D. Rockefeller holds the White House in his hand. 450

Andrew Carnegie donated about 90 percent of the wealth he accumulated during his lifetime; his fortune still supports the arts and learning today. “It will be a great mistake for the community to shoot the millionaires,” he said, “for they are the bees that make the most honey, and contribute most to the hive even after they have gorged themselves full.”

Sherman Antitrust Act

Despite Carnegie’s defense of millionaires, the government was concerned that expanding corporations would stifle free competition. In 1890, the Sherman Antitrust Act made it illegal to form a trust that interfered with free trade between states or with other countries.

Prosecuting companies under the Sherman act was not easy, however, because the act didn’t clearly define terms such as trust. In addition, if firms such as Standard Oil felt pressure from the government, they simply reorganized into single corporations. The Supreme Court threw out seven of the eight cases the federal government brought against trusts. Eventually, the government stopped trying to enforce the Sherman act, and the consolidation of businesses continued.

Business Boom Bypasses the South

Industrial growth concentrated in the North, where natural and urban resources were plentiful. The South was still trying to recover from the Civil War, hindered by a lack of capital—money for investment. After the war, people were unwilling to invest in risky ventures. Northern businesses already owned 90 percent of the stock in the most profitable Southern enterprise, the railroads, thereby keeping the South in a stranglehold. The South remained mostly agricultural, with farmers at the mercy of railroad rates. Entrepreneurs suffered not only from excessive transportation costs, but also from high tariffs on raw materials and imported goods, and from a lack of skilled workers. The post-Reconstruction South seemed to have no way out of economic stagnation. However, growth in forestry and mining, and in the tobacco, furniture, and textile industries, offered hope.

A photo: a young boy holds a big roll of canvas over his shoulder.

In this photograph, taken by Lewis Hine in 1912, a young sweatshop laborer in New York City carries piecework home.

Labor Unions Emerge

As business leaders merged and consolidated their forces, it seemed necessary for workers to do the same. Although Northern wages were generally higher than Southern wages, exploitation and unsafe working conditions drew workers together across regions in a nationwide labor movement. Laborers—skilled and unskilled, female and male, black and white—joined together in unions to try to improve their lot.

Long Hours and Danger

One of the largest employers, the steel mills, often demanded a seven-day workweek. Seamstresses, like factory workers in most industries, worked 12 or more hours a day, six days a week. Employees were not entitled to vacation, sick leave, unemployment compensation, or reimbursement for injuries suffered on the job.

Yet injuries were common. In dirty, poorly ventilated factories, workers had to perform repetitive, mind-dulling tasks, sometimes with dangerous or faulty equipment. In 1882, an average of 675 laborers were killed in work-related accidents each week. In addition, wages were so low that most families could not survive unless everyone held a job. Between 1890 and 1910, for example, the number of women working for wages

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doubled, from 4 million to more than 8 million. Twenty percent of the boys and 10 percent of the girls under age 15—some as young as five years old—also held full-time jobs. With little time or energy left for school, child laborers forfeited their futures to help their families make ends meet.

In sweatshops, or workshops in tenements rather than in factories, workers had little choice but to put up with the conditions. Sweatshop employment, which was tedious and required few skills, was often the only avenue open to women and children. Jacob Riis described the conditions faced by “sweaters.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

JACOB RIIS

“ The bulk of the sweater’s work is done in the tenements, which the law that regulates factory labor does not reach. … In [them] the child works unchallenged from the day he is old enough to pull a thread. There is no such thing as a dinner hour; men and women eat while they work, and the ‘day’ is lengthened at both ends far into the night.”
—How the Other Half Lives

Not surprisingly, sweatshop jobs paid the lowest wages—often as little as 27 cents for a child’s 14-hour day. In 1899, women earned an average of $267 a year, nearly half of men’s average pay of $498. The very next year Andrew Carnegie made $23 million—with no income tax.

Early Labor Organizing

Skilled workers had formed small, local unions since the late 1700s. The first large-scale national organization of laborers, the National Labor Union (NLU), was formed in 1866 by ironworker William H. Sylvis. The refusal of some NLU local chapters to admit African Americans led to the creation of the Colored National Labor Union (CNLU). Nevertheless, NLU membership grew to 640,000. In 1868, the NLU persuaded Congress to legalize an eight-hour day for government workers.

NLU organizers concentrated on linking existing local unions. In 1869, Uriah Stephens focused his attention on individual workers and organized the Noble Order of the Knights of Labor. Its motto was “An injury to one is the concern of all.” Membership in the Knights of Labor was officially open to all workers, regardless of race, gender, or degree of skill. Like the NLU, the Knights supported an eight-hour workday and advocated “equal pay for equal work” by men and women. They saw strikes, or refusals to work, as a last resort and instead advocated arbitration. At its height in 1886, the Knights of Labor had about 700,000 members. Although the Knights declined after the failure of a series of strikes, other unions continued to organize.

Historical Spotlight: African Americans and the Labor Movement

Angered by their exclusion from the NLU, African American laborers formed the Colored National Labor Union (CNLU) in 1869. Led by Isaac Meyers, a caulker from Baltimore, the CNLU emphasized cooperation between management and labor and the importance of political reform.

The CNLU disbanded in the early 1870s, but many African-American laborers found a home in the Knights of Labor, the first union to welcome blacks and whites alike. The Great Strike of 1877 brought whites and African Americans together, but the labor movement remained largely divided along racial lines.

Management often hired African Americans as strikebreakers, which intensified white unions’ resistance to accepting blacks. African Americans continued to organize on their own, but discrimination and their small numbers relative to white unions hurt black unions’ effectiveness.

Union Movements Diverge

As labor activism spread, it diversified. Two major types of unions made great gains under forceful leaders.

Craft Unionism

One approach to the organization of labor was craft unionism, which included skilled workers from one or more trades. Samuel Gompers led the Cigar Makers’ International Union to join with other craft unions in 1886. The American Federation of Labor (AFL),

452

with Gompers as its president, focused on collective bargaining, or negotiation between representatives of labor and management, to reach written agreements on wages, hours, and working conditions. Unlike the Knights of Labor, the AFL used strikes as a major tactic. Successful strikes helped the AFL win higher wages and shorter workweeks. Between 1890 and 1915, the average weekly wages in unionized industries rose from $17.50 to $24, and the average workweek fell from almost 54.5 hours to just under 49 hours.

DESCRIPTION:

One man holds a sign that reads The workers now divide up with the shirkers. Socialism will abolish the dividing up system. Another protestor's sign reads War in Mexico, in Colorado for the Rockefeller interests.

In New York City’s Union Square in 1914, IWW members protest violence against striking coal miners in Colorado.

Industrial Unionism

Some labor leaders felt that unions should include all laborers—skilled and unskilled—in a specific industry. This concept captured the imagination of Eugene V. Debs, who attempted to form such an industrial union—the American Railway Union (ARU). Most of the new union’s members were unskilled and semiskilled laborers, but skilled engineers and firemen joined too. In 1894, the new union won a strike for higher wages. Within two months, its membership climbed to 150,000, dwarfing the 90,000 enrolled in the four skilled railroad brotherhoods. Though the ARU, like the Knights of Labor, never recovered after the failure of a major strike, it added to the momentum of union organizing.

“ The strike is the weapon of the oppressed. ”
EUGENE V. DEBS

Socialism and the Iww

In an attempt to solve the problems faced by workers, Eugene Debs and some other labor activists eventually turned to socialism, an economic and political system based on government control of business and property and equal distribution of wealth. Socialism, carried to its extreme form—communism, as advocated by the German philosopher Karl Marx—would result in the overthrow of the capitalist system. Most socialists in late-19th-century America drew back from this goal, however, and worked within the labor movement to achieve better conditions for workers. In 1905, a group of radical union-ists and socialists in Chicago organized the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), or the Wobblies. Headed by William “Big Bill” Haywood, the Wobblies included miners, lumberers, and cannery and dock workers. Unlike the ARU, the IWW welcomed African Americans, but membership never topped 100,000. Its only major strike victory occurred in 1912. Yet the Wobblies, like other industrial unions, gave dignity and a sense of solidarity to unskilled workers.

Other Labor Activism in the West

In April 1903, about 1,000 Japanese and Mexican workers organized a successful strike in the sugar-beet fields of Ventura County, California. They formed the Sugar Beet and Farm Laborers’ Union of Oxnard. In Wyoming, the State Federation of Labor supported a union of Chinese and Japanese miners who sought the same wages and treatment as other union miners. These small, independent unions increased both the overall strength of the labor movement and the tension between labor and management.

453

Strikes Turn Violent

Industry and government responded forcefully to union activity, which they saw as a threat to the entire capitalist system.

The Great Strike of 1877

In July 1877, workers for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) struck to protest their second wage cut in two months. The work stoppage spread to other lines. Most freight and even some passenger traffic, covering over 50,000 miles, was stopped for more than a week. After several state governors asked President Rutherford B. Hayes to intervene, saying that the strikers were impeding interstate commerce, federal troops ended the strike.

The Haymarket Affair

Encouraged by the impact of the 1877 strike, labor leaders continued to press for change. On the evening of May 4, 1886, 3,000 people gathered at Chicago’s Haymarket Square to protest police brutality—a striker had been killed and several had been wounded at the McCormick Harvester plant the day before. Rain began to fall at about 10 o’clock, and the crowd was dispersing when police arrived. Then someone tossed a bomb into the police line. Police fired on the workers; seven police officers and several workers died in the chaos that followed. No one ever learned who threw the bomb, but the three speakers at the demonstration and five other radicals were charged with inciting a riot. All eight were convicted; four were hanged and one committed suicide in prison. After Haymarket, the public began to turn against the labor movement.

The Homestead Strike

Despite the violence and rising public anger, workers continued to strike. The writer Hamlin Garland described conditions at the Carnegie Steel Company’s Homestead plant in Pennsylvania.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HAMLIN GARLAND

“ Everywhere … groups of pale, lean men slouched in faded garments, grimy with the soot and grease of the mills. … A roar as of a hundred lions, a thunder as of cannons, … jarring clang of falling iron…!”
—quoted in McClure’s Magazine

The steelworkers finally called a strike on June 29, 1892, after the company president, Henry Clay Frick, announced his plan to cut wages. Frick hired armed

A graph compares union membership from 1878 to 1904.

DESCRIPTION:

A line graph compares union membership from 1878 to 1904. The graph has been converted into the following table. All data are approximate.

	Nationwide Union Membership	Knights of Labor	American Federation of Labor	American Railway Union
1878	50,000	0	0	0
1879	100,000	10,000	0	0
1880	110,000	30,000	0	0
1881	150,000	30,000	0	0
1882	200,000	20,000	0	0
1883	220,000	50,000	0	0
1884 Wabash Railroad Strike	290,000	50,000	0	0
1885	300,000	100,000	0	0
1886 Haymarket Riot	800,000	700,000	150,000	0
1887	750,000	500,000	175,000	0
1888	600,000	290,000	190,000	0
1889	500,000	210,000	200,000	0
1890	400,000	100,000	210,000	0
1891	400,000	0	250,000	0
1892	410,000	0	250,000	0
1893	410,000	0	300,000	20,000
1894 Pullman Strike	420,000	0	320,000	190,000
1895	430,000	0	390,000	100,000
1896	440,000	0	400,000	50,000
1897	450,000	0	450,000	20,000
1898	510,000	0	490,000	0
1899	600,000	0	500,000	0
1900	900,000	0	550,000	0
1901	1,100,000	0	900,000	0
1902	1,300,000	0	1,100,000	0
1903	over 1,500,000 and rising	0	1,400,000	0
1904	over 1,500,000 and rising	0	over 1,500,000 and rising	0

The Growth of Union Membership, 1878–1904 454

guards from the Pinkerton Detective Agency to protect the plant so that he could hire scabs, or strikebreakers, to keep it operating. In a pitched battle that left at least three detectives and nine workers dead, the steelworkers forced out the Pinkertons and kept the plant closed until the Pennsylvania National Guard arrived on July 12. The strike continued until November, but by then the union had lost much of its support and gave in to the company. It would take 45 years for steelworkers to mobilize once again.

The Pullman Company Strike

Strikes continued in other industries, however. During the panic of 1893 and the economic depression that followed, the Pullman company laid off more than 3,000 of its 5,800 employees and cut the wages of the rest by 25 to 50 percent, without cutting the cost of its employee housing. After paying their rent, many workers took home less than $6 a week. A strike was called in the spring of 1894, when the Pullman company failed to restore wages or decrease rents. Eugene Debs asked for arbitration, but Pullman refused to negotiate with the strikers. So the ARU began boycotting Pullman trains.

After Pullman hired strikebreakers, the strike turned violent, and President Grover Cleveland sent in federal troops. In the bitter aftermath, Debs was jailed. Pullman fired most of the strikers, and the railroads blacklisted many others, so they could never again get railroad jobs.

Key Players Eugene V. Debs 1855–1926 A photo: Eugene Debs yells while making a speech.

Born in Indiana, Eugene V. Debs left home at the age of 14 to work for the railroads. In 1875 he helped organize a local lodge of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen, and after attempts to unite the local railroad brotherhoods failed, Debs organized the American Railway Union.

While in prison following the Pullman strike in 1894, Debs read the works of Karl Marx and became increasingly disillusioned with capitalism. He became a spokesperson for the Socialist Party of America and was its candidate for president five times. In 1912, he won about 900,000 votes—an amazing 6 percent of the total.

Mother Jones 1830–1930 A photo of Mother Jones.

Mary Harris “Mother” Jones was a native of Ireland who immigrated to North America as a child. She became involved in the American labor movement after receiving assistance from the Knights of Labor. According to a reporter who followed “the mother of the laboring class” on her children’s march in 1903, “She fights their battles with a Mother’s Love.” Jones continued fighting until her death at age 100.

Jones was definitely not the kind of woman admired by industrialists. “God almighty made women,” she declared, “and the Rockefeller gang of thieves made ladies.”

Women Organize

Although women were barred from many unions, they united behind powerful leaders to demand better working conditions, equal pay for equal work, and an end to child labor. Perhaps the most prominent organizer in the women’s labor movement was Mary Harris Jones. Jones supported the Great Strike of 1877 and later organized for the United Mine Workers of America (UMW). She endured death threats and jail with the coal miners, who gave her the nickname Mother Jones. In 1903, to expose the cruelties of child labor, she led 80 mill children—many with hideous injuries—on a march to the home of President Theodore Roosevelt. Their crusade influenced the passage of child labor laws.

Other organizers also achieved significant gains for women. In 1909, Pauline Newman, just 16 years old, became the first female organizer of the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU). A garment worker from the age of eight, Newman also supported

455

the “Uprising of the 20,000,” a 1909 seamstresses’ strike that won labor agreements and improved working conditions for some strikers.

The public could no longer ignore conditions in garment factories after a fire broke out at the Triangle Shirtwaist factory in New York City on March 25, 1911. The fire spread swiftly through the oil-soaked machines and piles of cloth, engulfing the eighth, ninth, and tenth floors. As workers attempted to flee, they discovered that the company had locked all but one of the exit doors to prevent theft. The unlocked door was blocked by fire. The factory had no sprinkler system, and the single fire escape collapsed almost immediately. In all, 146 women died; some were found huddled with their faces raised to a small window. Public outrage flared after a jury acquitted the factory owners of manslaughter. In response, the state of New York set up a task force to study factory working conditions.

Management and Government Pressure Unions

The more powerful the unions became, the more employers came to fear them. Management refused to recognize unions as representatives of the workers. Many employers forbade union meetings, fired union members, and forced new employees to sign “yellow-dog contracts,” swearing that they would not join a union.

Finally, industrial leaders, with the help of the courts, turned the Sherman Antitrust Act against labor. All a company had to do was say that a strike, picket line, or boycott would hurt interstate trade, and the state or federal government would issue an injunction against the labor action. Legal limitations made it more and more difficult for unions to be effective. Despite these pressures, workers—especially those in skilled jobs—continued to view unions as a powerful tool. By 1904, the AFL had about 1,700,000 members in its affiliated unions; by the eve of World War I, AFL membership would climb to over 2 million.

A photo: firemen spray water at a burning ten-story building.

The fire department’s ladders reached only to the sixth floor, two floors below the burning Triangle Shirtwaist Company.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Andrew Carnegie

• vertical and horizontal integration

• Social Darwinism

• John D. Rockefeller

• Sherman Antitrust Act

• Samuel Gompers

• American Federation of Labor (AFL)

• Eugene V. Debs

• Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)

• Mary Harris Jones

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Make a time line of the notable achievements and setbacks of the labor movement between 1876 and 1911.

A blank timeline has space for four Events.

In what ways did strikes threaten industry?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

Do you think that the tycoons of the late 19th century are best described as ruthless robber barons or as effective captains of industry? Think About:

• their management tactics and business strategies

• their contributions to the economy

• their attitude toward competition

4. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Does the life of Andrew Carnegie support or counter the philosophy of Social Darwinism? Explain.

5. HYPOTHESIZING

If the government had supported unions instead of management in the late 19th century, how might the lives of workers have been different?

456

Chapter 14: Assessment

Visual Summary: A New Industrial Age Long-Term Causes

• abundant natural resources

• harnessing of early power sources such as water and coal

• invention of the steam engine

• construction of roads, canals, and railroads in early 1800s

Immediate Causes

• expansion of railroads in late 1800s

• cheap labor supply provided by increasing immigration

• burst of technological innovation

• new management techniques and business strategies

• investment capital

A photo: at an oil refinery, smokestacks spew clouds of black smoke into the sky.

BIG BUSINESS BOOMS 1880–1914 Immediate Effects

• growth of large corporations

• new and plentiful manufactured goods

• poor working conditions in factories and sweatshops

• increased labor activism

Long-Term Effects

• regional economies are linked

• labor movement wins shorter workweek

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the industrialization of the late 19th century.

1. Thomas Alva Edison

2. Alexander Graham Bell

3. George M. Pullman

4. transcontinental

5. Interstate Commerce Act

6. Andrew Carnegie

7. Sherman Antitrust Act

8. Samuel Gompers

9. American Federation of railroad Labor (AFL)

10. Mary Harris Jones

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

The Expansion of Industry (pages 436–439)

1. How did the growth of the steel industry influence the development of other industries?

2. How did inventions and developments in the late 19th century change the way people worked?

The Age of the Railroads (pages 442–446)

3. Why did people, particularly farmers, demand regulation of the railroads in the late 19th century?

4. Why were attempts at railroad regulation often unsuccessful?

Big Business and Labor (pages 447–455)

5. Why were business leaders such as John D. Rockefeller called robber barons?

6. Why did the South industrialize more slowly than the North did?

7. Why did workers form unions in the late 19th century?

8. What factors limited the success of unions?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a chart like the one shown, list what you see as the overall costs and benefits of industrialization.

A blank chart: below the word Industrialization, a column on the left is for Costs, and a column on the right is for Benefits.

2. RECOGNIZING BIAS In 1902 George Baehr, head of the Philadelphia and Reading Railway Company, said, “The rights and interests of the labor man will be protected and cared for not by the labor agitators but by the Christian men to whom God in his infinite wisdom has given the control of the property interests of the country.” What bias does this statement reveal? How does Baehr’s view reflect Social Darwinism?

3. IDENTIFYING PROBLEMS Consider the problems that late-19th-century workers faced and the problems that workers face today. How important do you think unions are for present-day workers? Support your answer.

457 Standardized Test Practice

Use the quotation below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

“ No man, however benevolent, liberal, and wise, can use a large fortune so that it will do half as much good in the world as it would if it were divided into moderate sums and in the hands of workmen who had earned it by industry and frugality.”
—Rutherford B. Hayes, from The Diary and Letters of Rutherford Birchard Hayes

1. Which of the following people could best be described by Rutherford B. Hayes’s words benevolent, liberal, and a large fortune?

A Thomas Edison

B Eugene V. Debs

C Charles Darwin

D Andrew Carnegie

2. The American Federation of Labor (AFL) differed from the Knights of Labor in that the Knights of Labor focused on—

F collective bargaining and aggressive use of strikes.

G organizing only unskilled workers.

H arbitration and use of strikes as a last resort.

J winning a shorter workweek.

3. How did the railroads both benefit from and contribute to the industrialization of the United States?

A The railroads needed government protection, and their development helped government grow.

B The railroads used new inventions and brought people to see the inventions.

C The railroads used steel and coal and delivered both to new markets.

D The railroads needed passengers, and passengers needed to get to new industries.

4. In the 19th century, government attempts to regulate industry in the United States included the Interstate Commerce Act (1887) and the Sherman Antitrust Act (1890). What posed the biggest obstacle to enforcement of these laws?

F the business tactics of industrialists

G the use of vertical integration

H the rulings of the Supreme Court

J the theory of Social Darwinism

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your answer to the question on page 435:

What are the pros and cons of railroad expansion?

Consider how your answer might be different based on what you now know about the effects of railroad expansion and business consolidation. Then write a newspaper editorial about the Great Strike of 1877 (see page 453), supporting the position of either the railroad owners or the striking workers.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “Gusher! Pattillo Higgins and the Great Texas Oil Boom.” Discuss the following questions with a small group; then do the activity.

• What were the effects of the discovery of oil at Spindletop?

• What lessons can people learn from Pattillo Higgins?

Cooperative Learning Activity Make a poster describing Pattillo Higgins’s personal qualities and how they helped him to achieve his dream. What present-day figures share Higgins’s traits? Add images of these people, with captions, to the poster and display it in your classroom.

458

Chapter 15: Immigration and Urbanization

A photo: pedestrians crowd around vendor's carts on a busy city street. A title: Immigrants and Urbanization.

The intersection of Orchard and Hester Streets on New York City’s Lower East Side, 1905. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 458 and page 459 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1876 to 1914 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1876 to 1914 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1876-1914.

1876, the World: Porfiro Diaz seizes power in Mexico.
1877, USA: Rutherford B. Hayes is elected president.
1880, USA: James A. Garfield is elected president.
1881, USA: Chester A. Arthur succeeds Garfield after Garfield's assassination.
1884, the World: Berlin Conference meets to divide Africa among European nations.
1884, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected president.
1885, the World: Indian National Congress forms.
1888, USA: Benjamin Harrison is elected president.
1892, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected to a second term.
1893, the World: France establishes Indochina.
1896, USA: William McKinley is elected president.
1898, USA: Hawaii is annexed by the United States.
1900, USA: McKinley is reelected.
1901, the World: The Commonwealth of Australia is formed.
1903, USA: The Wright Brothers achieve the first successful airplane flight.
1905, the World: Workers revolt in St. Petersburg, Russia.
1908, the World: Oil is discovered in Persia.
1910, USA: The appearance of Halley's Comet causes widespread panic.
1912, the World: Qing Dynasty in China is overthrown.
1912, USA: Woodrow Wilson is elected president.
1914, the World: Panama Canal opens.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 458 and page 459 in the print version. 459 A photo: pedestrians crowd around vendor's carts on a busy city street. A title: Immigrants and Urbanization.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 458 and page 459 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1876 to 1914 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1876-1914.

1876, the World: Porfiro Diaz seizes power in Mexico.
1877, USA: Rutherford B. Hayes is elected president.
1880, USA: James A. Garfield is elected president.
1881, USA: Chester A. Arthur succeeds Garfield after Garfield's assassination.
1884, the World: Berlin Conference meets to divide Africa among European nations.
1884, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected president.
1885, the World: Indian National Congress forms.
1888, USA: Benjamin Harrison is elected president.
1892, USA: Grover Cleveland is elected to a second term.
1893, the World: France establishes Indochina.
1896, USA: William McKinley is elected president.
1898, USA: Hawaii is annexed by the United States.
1900, USA: McKinley is reelected.
1901, the World: The Commonwealth of Australia is formed.
1903, USA: The Wright Brothers achieve the first successful airplane flight.
1905, the World: Workers revolt in St. Petersburg, Russia.
1908, the World: Oil is discovered in Persia.
1910, USA: The appearance of Halley's Comet causes widespread panic.
1912, the World: Qing Dynasty in China is overthrown.
1912, USA: Woodrow Wilson is elected president.
1914, the World: Panama Canal opens.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 458 and page 459 in the print version. Interact with History

The year is 1880. New York City’s swelling population has created a housing crisis. Immigrant families crowd into apartments that lack light, ventilation, and sanitary facilities. Children have nowhere to play except in the streets and are often kept out of school to work and help support their families. You are a reformer who wishes to help immigrants improve their lives.

What would you do to improve conditions?

460

Section 1: The New Immigrants

One American’s Story

In 1871, 14-year-old Fong See came from China to “Gold Mountain”—the United States. Fong See stayed, worked at menial jobs, and saved enough money to buy a business. Despite widespread restrictions against the Chinese, he became a very successful importer and was able to sponsor many other Chinese who wanted to enter the United States. Fong See had achieved the American dream. However, as his great-granddaughter Lisa See recalls, he was not satisfied.

A photo of Fong See and his wife and two children.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LISA SEE

“ He had been trying to achieve success ever since he had first set foot on the Gold Mountain. His dream was very ‘American.’ He wanted to make money, have influence, be respected, have a wife and children who loved him. In 1919, when he traveled to China, he could look at his life and say he had achieved his dream. But once in China, he suddenly saw his life in a different context. In America, was he really rich? Could he live where he wanted? … Did Americans care what he thought? … The answers played in his head—no, no, no.”
—On Gold Mountain

Despite Fong See’s success, he could not, upon his death in 1957, be buried next to his Caucasian wife because California cemeteries were still segregated.

Through the “Golden Door”

Millions of immigrants like Fong See entered the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, lured by the promise of a better life. Some of these immigrants sought to escape difficult conditions—such as famine, land shortages, or religious or political persecution. Others, known as “birds of passage,” intended to immigrate temporarily to earn money, and then return to their homelands.

461

Europeans

Between 1870 and 1920, approximately 20 million Europeans arrived in the United States. Before 1890, most immigrants came from countries in western and northern Europe. Beginning in the 1890s, however, increasing numbers came from southern and eastern Europe. In 1907 alone, about a million people arrived from Italy, Austria-Hungary, and Russia.

Why did so many leave their homelands? Many of these new immigrants left to escape religious persecution. Whole villages of Jews were driven out of Russia by pogroms, organized attacks often encouraged by local authorities. Other Europeans left because of rising population. Between 1800 and 1900, the population in Europe doubled to nearly 400 million, resulting in a scarcity of land for farming. Farmers competed with laborers for too few industrial jobs. In the United States, jobs were supposedly plentiful. In addition, a spirit of reform and revolt had spread across Europe in the 19th century. Influenced by political movements at home, many young European men and women sought independent lives in America.

Chinese And Japanese

While waves of Europeans arrived on the shores of the East Coast, Chinese immigrants came to the West Coast in smaller numbers. Between 1851 and 1883, about 300,000 Chinese arrived. Many came to seek their fortunes after the discovery of gold in 1848 sparked the California gold rush. Chinese immigrants helped build the nation’s railroads, including the first transcontinental line. When the railroads were completed, they turned to farming, mining, and domestic service. Some, like Fong See, started businesses. However, Chinese immigration was sharply limited by a congressional act in 1882.

In 1884, the Japanese government allowed Hawaiian planters to recruit Japanese workers, and a Japanese emigration boom began. The United States’ annexation of Hawaii in 1898 resulted in increased Japanese immigration to the West Coast. Immigration continued to increase as word of comparatively high American wages spread. The wave peaked in 1907, when 30,000 left Japan for the United States. By 1920, more than 200,000 Japanese lived on the West Coast.

A map shows immigrant settlements in U.S. states.

DESCRIPTION:

The map shows the leading immigrants groups to different states.

Germans and Irish to New York
Germans to Wisconsin, Ohio and Illinois
Irish and English to Massachusetts
72% of Texas immigrants from Mexico
Most Italian immigrants settled in New York
Most Scandanavians in Illinois

A pie chart shows the countries of origin for immigrants.

26% from Germany
6% from Ireland
11% from Scandanavia
8% from England
5% from Italy
smaller percentages from Russia, Poland, Mexico, China and Japan (listed in descending order)
remaining 25% are from other countries

U.S. Immigration Patterns, as of 1900
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The West Indies And Mexico

Between 1880 and 1920, about 260,000 immigrants arrived in the eastern and southeastern United States from the West Indies. They came from Jamaica, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and other islands. Many West Indians left their homelands because jobs were scarce and the industrial boom in the United States seemed to promise work for everyone.

Mexicans, too, immigrated to the United States to find work, as well as to flee political turmoil. The 1902 National Reclamation Act, which encouraged the irrigation of arid land, created new farmland in Western states and drew Mexican farm workers northward. After 1910, political and social upheavals in Mexico prompted even more immigration. About 700,000 people—7 percent of the population of Mexico at the time—came to the U.S. over the next 20 years.

Life in the New Land

No matter what part of the globe immigrants came from, they faced many adjustments to an alien—and often unfriendly—culture.

A Difficult Journey

By the 1870s, almost all immigrants traveled by steamship. The trip across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe took approximately one week, while the Pacific crossing from Asia took nearly three weeks.

Many immigrants traveled in steerage, the cheapest accommodations in a ship’s cargo holds. Rarely allowed on deck, immigrants were crowded together in the gloom, unable to exercise or catch a breath of fresh air. They often had to sleep in louse-infested bunks and share toilets with many other passengers. Under these conditions, disease spread quickly, and some immigrants died before they reached their destination. For those who survived, the first glimpse of America could be breathtaking.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ROSA CAVALLERI

“ America! … We were so near it seemed too much to believe. Everyone stood silent—like in prayer …. Then we were entering the harbor. The land came so near we could almost reach out and touch it …. Everyone was holding their breath. Me too …. Some boats had bands playing on their decks and all of them were tooting their horns to us and leaving white trails in the water behind them.”
—quoted in Rosa: The Life of an Italian Immigrant

Ellis Island

After initial moments of excitement, the immigrants faced the anxiety of not knowing whether they would be admitted to the United States. They had to pass inspection at immigration stations, such as the one at Castle Garden in New York, which was later moved to Ellis Island in New York Harbor.

About 20 percent of the immigrants at Ellis Island were detained for a day or more before being inspected. However, only about 2 percent of those were denied entry.

The processing of immigrants on Ellis Island was an ordeal that might take five hours or more. First, they had to pass a physical examination by a doctor. Anyone with a serious health problem or a contagious disease, such as tuberculosis, was promptly sent home. Those who passed the medical exam then reported to a government inspector. The inspector checked documents and questioned immigrants

An Italian passport shows a woman's photo.

European governments used passports to control the number of professionals and young men of military age who left the country. 463

to determine whether they met the legal requirements for entering the United States. The requirements included proving they had never been convicted of a felony, demonstrating that they were able to work, and showing that they had some money (at least $25 after 1909). One inspector, Edward Ferro, an Italian immigrant himself, gave this glimpse of the process.

A photo: immigrants carrying suitcases step off a boat onto a dock.

A photo: a test card shows sketches of 14 faces with eyes looking in different directions. Two at the top and two near the bottom look to the left.

Many immigrants, like these arriving at Ellis Island, were subjected to tests such as the one below. To prove their mental competence, they had to identify the four faces looking left in 14 seconds. Can you do it?

A PERSONAL VOICE

EDWARD FERRO

“ The language was a problem of course, but it was overcome by the use of interpreters …. It would happen sometimes that these interpreters—some of them—were really softhearted people and hated to see people being deported, and they would, at times, help the aliens by interpreting in such a manner as to benefit the alien and not the government.”
—quoted in I Was Dreaming to Come to America

From 1892 to 1924, Ellis Island was the chief immigration station in the United States. An estimated 17 million immigrants passed through its noisy, bustling facilities.

Angel Island

While European immigrants arriving on the East Coast passed through Ellis Island, Asians—primarily Chinese—arriving on the West Coast gained admission at Angel Island in San Francisco Bay. Between 1910 and 1940, about 50,000 Chinese immigrants entered the United States through Angel Island. Processing at Angel Island stood in contrast to the procedure at Ellis Island. Immigrants endured harsh questioning and a long detention in filthy, ramshackle buildings while they waited to find out whether they would be admitted or rejected.

Cooperation for Survival

Once admitted to the country, immigrants faced the challenges of finding a place to live, getting a job, and getting along in daily life while trying to understand an unfamiliar language and culture. Many immigrants sought out people who shared their cultural values, practiced their religion,

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and spoke their native language. The ethnic communities were life rafts for immigrants. People pooled their money to build churches or synagogues. They formed social clubs and aid societies. They founded orphanages and old people’s homes, and established cemeteries. They even published newspapers in their own languages.

Committed to their own cultures but also trying hard to grow into their new identities, many immigrants came to think of themselves as “hyphenated” Americans. As hard as they tried to fit in, these new Polish- and Italian- and Chinese-Americans felt increasing friction as they rubbed shoulders with people born and raised in the United States. Native-born people often disliked the immigrants’ unfamiliar customs and languages, and viewed them as a threat to the American way of life.

Immigration Restrictions

Many native-born Americans thought of their country as a melting pot, a mixture of people of different cultures and races who blended together by abandoning their native languages and customs. Many new immigrants, however, did not wish to give up their cultural identities. As immigration increased, strong anti-immigrant feelings emerged.

The Rise of Nativism

One response to the growth in immigration was nativism, or overt favoritism toward native-born Americans. Nativism gave rise to anti-immigrant groups and led to a demand for immigration restrictions.

Many nativists believed that Anglo-Saxons—the Germanic ancestors of the English—were superior to other ethnic groups. These nativists did not object to immigrants from the “right” countries. Prescott F. Hall, a founder in 1894 of the Immigration Restriction League, identified desirable immigrants as “British, German, and Scandinavian stock, historically free, energetic, progressive.” Nativists thought that problems were caused by immigrants from the “wrong” countries—“Slav, Latin, and Asiatic races, historically down-trodden … and stagnant.”

Nativists sometimes objected more to immigrants’ religious beliefs than to their ethnic backgrounds. Many native-born Americans were Protestants and thought that Roman Catholic and Jewish immigrants would undermine the democratic institutions established by the country’s Protestant founders. The American Protective Association, a nativist group founded in 1887, launched vicious anti-Catholic attacks, and many colleges, businesses, and social clubs refused to admit Jews.

A photo: immigrants wait in a line outside a building.

Chinese immigrants wait outside the hospital on Angel Island in San Francisco Bay, 1910.

In 1897, Congress—influenced by the Immigration Restriction League—passed a bill requiring a literacy test for immigrants. Those who could not read 40 words in English or their native language would be refused entry. Although President Cleveland vetoed the bill, it was a powerful statement of public sentiment. In 1917, a similar bill would be passed into law in spite of President Woodrow Wilson’s veto.

Anti-Asian Sentiment

Nativism also found a foothold in the labor movement, particularly in the West, where native-born workers feared that jobs would go to Chinese

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immigrants, who would accept lower wages. The depression of 1873 intensified anti-Chinese sentiment in California. Work was scarce, and labor groups exerted political pressure on the government to restrict Asian immigration. The founder of the Workingmen’s Party, Denis Kearney, headed the anti-Chinese movement in California. He made hundreds of speeches throughout the state, each ending with the message, “The Chinese must go!”

In 1882, Congress slammed the door on Chinese immigration for ten years by passing the Chinese Exclusion Act. This act banned entry to all Chinese except students, teachers, merchants, tourists, and government officials. In 1892, Congress extended the law for another ten years. In 1902, Chinese immigration was restricted indefinitely; the law was not repealed until 1943.

The Gentlemen’s Agreement

The fears that had led to anti-Chinese agitation were extended to Japanese and other Asian people in the early 1900s. In 1906, the local board of education in San Francisco segregated Japanese children by putting them in separate schools. When Japan raised an angry protest at this treatment of its emigrants, President Theodore Roosevelt worked out a deal. Under the Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1907–1908, Japan’s government agreed to limit emigration of unskilled workers to the United States in exchange for the repeal of the San Francisco segregation order.

Although doorways for immigrants had been all but closed to Asians on the West Coast, cities in the East and the Midwest teemed with European immigrants—and with urban opportunities and challenges.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Ellis Island

• Angel Island

• melting pot

• nativism

• Chinese Exclusion Act

• Gentlemen’s Agreement

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a diagram such as the one below. List two or more causes of each effect.

An illustration: a mob of white people attacks Chinese immigrants in the street, and smashes open doors.

Critical Thinking

3. Identifying Problems

Which group of immigrants do you think faced the greatest challenges in the United States? Why?

4. Analyzing Effects

What were the effects of the massive influx of immigrants to the U.S. in the late 1800s?

5. Evaluating

What arguments can you make against nativism and anti-immigrant feeling? Think About:

• the personal qualities of immigrants

• the reasons for anti-immigrant feeling

• the contributions of immigrants to the United States

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Tracing Themes: Diversity and the National Identity

Before the first Europeans arrived, a variety of cultural groups—coastal fishing societies, desert farmers, plains and woodland hunters—inhabited North America. With the arrival of Europeans and Africans, the cultural mix grew more complex. Although this diversity has often produced tension, it has also been beneficial. As different groups learned from one another about agriculture, technology, and social customs, American culture became a rich blend of cultures from around the world.

A painting: native people gather around a fire in the middle of a village of adobe buildings.

1610s–1870s SPANISH NORTH AMERICA Spanish missionaries in the Southwest tried to impose their culture upon Native Americans. However, many Native Americans retained aspects of their original cultures even as they took on Spanish ways. For example, today many Pueblo Indians of New Mexico perform ancient ceremonies, such as the Corn Dance, in addition to celebrating the feast days of Catholic saints. Later, the first cowboys—descendants of the Spanish—would introduce to white Americans cattle-ranching techniques developed in Mexico. An eagle holds arrows in its talons in the logo of the U.S. presidential seal. The motto reads E Pluribus Unum.

1776 THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE The signers of the Declaration of Independence were descendants of immigrants. The founders’ ancestors had come to North America in search of economic opportunity and freedom of religious expression. When the Second Continental Congress declared a “United States” in 1776, they acknowledged that the country would contain diverse regions and interests. Thus the founders placed on the presidential seal the motto “E Pluribus Unum”—“out of many, one.” A painting depicts founding fathers above the Emancipation Proclamation document.

A painting depicts founding fathers above the Emancipation Proclamation document.

1862–1863 THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION At the midpoint of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all slaves in areas of the Union that were in rebellion. Although the Proclamation could not be enforced immediately, it was a strong statement of opposition to slavery, and it paved the way for African Americans’ citizenship. 467 A photo: a family stares at the Statue of Liberty.

A photo: a family stares at the Statue of Liberty.

1886 THE STATUE OF LIBERTY Poet Emma Lazarus wrote the famous lines inscribed at the foot of the Statue of Liberty, “Give me your tired, your poor,/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, …” The statue’s dedication took place during the most extensive wave of immigration the United States has ever known. Many native-born Americans felt that the newcomers should fully immerse themselves in their new culture. However, most immigrants combined American language and customs with their traditional ways. As immigrants celebrated Independence Day and Thanksgiving, they introduced into American culture new celebrations, such as Chinese New Year and Cinco de Mayo. A photo: African-American, white and Asian women athletes wear gold medals.

A photo: African-American, white and Asian women athletes wear gold medals.

2000 21ST-CENTURY DIVERSITY In 1998, three countries (Mexico, China, and India) contributed a third of the total number of immigrants to the United States. The rest of 1998’s immigrants came from countries as diverse as Vietnam, Sudan, and Bosnia. American athletes at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, reflected the increasing diversity of the U.S., pointing toward a future in which there may no longer be a majority racial or ethnic group. Thinking Critically Connect To History

1. Analyzing Motives Why do you think some groups have tried to suppress the culture of others over the course of history? Why have many groups persisted in retaining their cultural heritage?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R6. Connect To Today

2. Predicting Effects Research current U.S. policy on immigration. How might this policy affect cultural diversity? Write a short editorial from one of the following viewpoints:

• U.S. immigration policy needs to change.

• U.S. immigration policy should be maintained.

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Section 2: The Challenges of Urbanization

One American’s Story

In 1870, at age 21, Jacob Riis left his native Denmark for the United States. Riis found work as a police reporter, a job that took him into some of New York City’s worst slums, where he was shocked at the conditions in the overcrowded, airless, filthy tenements. Riis used his talents to expose the hardships of New York City’s poor.

A photo: a half-dozen men sleep on the floor and in a bed in a tiny room.

As many as 12 people slept in rooms such as this one in New York City, photographed by Jacob Riis around 1889.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JACOB RIIS

“ Be a little careful, please! The hall is dark and you might stumble over the children pitching pennies back there. Not that it would hurt them; kicks and cuffs are their daily diet. They have little else …. Close [stuffy]? Yes! What would you have? All the fresh air that ever enters these stairs comes from the hall-door that is forever slamming …. Here is a door. Listen! That short hacking cough, that tiny, helpless wail—what do they mean? … The child is dying with measles. With half a chance it might have lived; but it had none. That dark bedroom killed it.”
—How the Other Half Lives

Making a living in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was not easy. Natural and economic disasters had hit farmers hard in Europe and in the United States, and the promise of industrial jobs drew millions of people to American cities. The urban population exploded from 10 million to 54 million between 1870 and 1920. This growth revitalized the cities but also created serious problems that, as Riis observed, had a powerful impact on the new urban poor.

Urban Opportunities

The technological boom in the 19th century contributed to the growing industrial strength of the United States. The result was rapid urbanization, or growth of cities, mostly in the regions of the Northeast and Midwest.

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Immigrants Settle in Cities

Most of the immigrants who streamed into the United States in the late 19th century became city dwellers because cities were the cheapest and most convenient places to live. Cities also offered unskilled laborers steady jobs in mills and factories. By 1890, there were twice as many Irish residents in New York City as in Dublin, Ireland. By 1910, immigrant families made up more than half the total population of 18 major American cities.

DESCRIPTION:

A map shows the locations of ethnic enclaves in New York city in 1910. The largest areas are German, mostly in Queens and the Bronx. Irish areas dot lower Manhattan. Russian areas include a large section of Queens, another in Brooklyn, and two in Manhattan.

New York City, 1910

The Americanization movement was designed to assimilate people of wide-ranging cultures into the dominant culture. This social campaign was sponsored by the government and by concerned citizens. Schools and voluntary associations provided programs to teach immigrants skills needed for citizenship, such as English literacy and American history and government. Subjects such as cooking and social etiquette were included in the curriculum to help the newcomers learn the ways of native-born Americans.

Despite these efforts, many immigrants did not wish to abandon their traditions. Ethnic communities provided the social support of other immigrants from the same country. This enabled them to speak their own language and practice their customs and religion. However, these neighborhoods soon became overcrowded, a problem that was intensified by the arrival of new transplants from America’s rural areas.

Migration from Country to City

Rapid improvements in farming technology during the second half of the 19th century were good news for some farmers but bad news for others. Inventions such as the McCormick reaper and the steel plow made farming more efficient but meant that fewer laborers were needed to work the land. As more and more farms merged, many rural people moved to cities to find whatever work they could.

Many of the Southern farmers who lost their livelihoods were African Americans. Between 1890 and 1910, about 200,000 African Americans moved north and west, to cities such as Chicago and Detroit, in an effort to escape racial violence, economic hardship, and political oppression. Many found conditions only somewhat better than those they had left behind. Segregation and discrimination were often the reality in Northern cities. Job competition between blacks and white immigrants caused further racial tension.

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Urban Problems

As the urban population skyrocketed, city governments faced the problems of how to provide residents with needed services and safe living conditions.

Housing

When the industrial age began, working-class families in cities had two housing options. They could either buy a house on the outskirts of town, where they would face transportation problems, or rent cramped rooms in a boardinghouse in the central city. As the urban population increased, however, new types of housing were designed. For example, row houses—single-family dwellings that shared side walls with other similar houses—packed many single-family residences onto a single block.

After working-class families left the central city, immigrants often took over their old housing, sometimes with two or three families occupying a one-family residence. As Jacob Riis pointed out, these multifamily urban dwellings, called tenements, were overcrowded and unsanitary.

In 1879, to improve such slum conditions, New York City passed a law that set minimum standards for plumbing and ventilation in apartments. Landlords began building tenements with air shafts that provided an outside window for each room. Since garbage was picked up infrequently, people sometimes dumped it into the air shafts, where it attracted vermin. To keep out the stench, residents nailed windows shut. Though established with good intent, these new tenements soon became even worse places to live than the converted single-family residences.

Transportation

Innovations in mass transit, transportation systems designed to move large numbers of people along fixed routes, enabled workers to go to and from jobs more easily. Street cars were introduced in San Francisco in 1873 and electric subways in Boston in 1897. By the early 20th century, mass-transit networks in many urban areas linked city neighborhoods to one another and to outlying communities. Cities struggled to repair old transit systems and to build new ones to meet the demand of expanding populations.

Water

Cities also faced the problem of supplying safe drinking water. As the urban population grew in the 1840s and 1850s, cities such as New York and Cleveland built public waterworks to handle the increasing demand. As late as the 1860s, however, the residents of many cities had grossly inadequate piped water—or none at all. Even in large cities like New York, homes seldom had indoor plumbing, and residents had to collect water in pails from faucets on the street and heat it for bathing. The necessity of improving water quality to control diseases such as cholera and typhoid fever was obvious. To make city water safer, filtration was introduced in the 1870s and chlorination in 1908. However, in the early 20th century, many city dwellers still had no access to safe water.

A photo: children play in a gutter, while a horse lies dead in the street next to them.

Sanitation problems in big cities were overwhelming. It was not unusual to see a dead horse in the street.

Sanitation

As the cities grew, so did the challenge of keeping them clean. Horse manure piled up on the streets, sewage flowed through open gutters, and factories spewed foul smoke into the air. Without dependable trash collection, people dumped their garbage on the streets. Although private contractors called scavengers were hired to sweep the streets, collect garbage, and clean outhouses, they

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often did not do the jobs properly. By 1900, many cities had developed sewer lines and created sanitation departments. However, the task of providing hygienic living conditions was an ongoing challenge for urban leaders.

Crime

As the populations of cities increased, pickpockets and thieves flourished. Although New York City organized the first full-time, salaried police force in 1844, it and most other city law enforcement units were too small to have much impact on crime.

Fire

The limited water supply in many cities contributed to another menace: the spread of fires. Major fires occurred in almost every large American city during the 1870s and 1880s. In addition to lacking water with which to combat blazes, most cities were packed with wooden dwellings, which were like kindling waiting to be ignited. The use of candles and kerosene heaters also posed a fire hazard. In San Francisco, deadly fires often broke out during earthquakes. Jack London described the fires that raged after the San Francisco earthquake of 1906.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JACK LONDON

“ On Wednesday morning at a quarter past five came the earthquake. A minute later the flames were leaping upward. In a dozen different quarters south of Market Street, in the working-class ghetto, and in the factories, fires started. There was no opposing the flames …. And the great water-mains had burst. All the shrewd contrivances and safeguards of man had been thrown out of gear by thirty seconds’ twitching of the earth-crust.”
—“The Story of an Eye-witness”

At first, most city firefighters were volunteers and not always available when they were needed. Cincinnati, Ohio, tackled this problem when it established the nation’s first paid fire department in 1853. By 1900, most cities had full-time professional fire departments. The introduction of a practical automatic fire sprinkler in 1874 and the replacement of wood as a building material with brick, stone, or concrete also made cities safer.

FIRE: Enemy of the City

• **The fire burned for over 24 hours.**

• **An estimated 300 people died.**

• **100,000 were left homeless.**

• **More than 3 square miles of the city center was destroyed.**

• **Property loss was estimated at $200 million.**

• **17,500 buildings were destroyed.**
The Great Chicago Fire October 8–10, 1871	The San Francisco Earthquake April 18, 1906

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Reformers Mobilize

Key Player: Jane Addams 1860–1935 A photo of Jane Addams.

During a trip to England, Jane Addams visited Toynbee Hall, the first settlement house. Addams believed that settlement houses could be effective because there, workers would “learn from life itself” how to address urban problems. She cofounded Chicago’s Hull House in 1889.

Addams was also an antiwar activist, a spokesperson for racial justice, and an advocate for quality-of-life issues, from infant mortality to better care for the aged. In 1931, she was a co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Until the end of her life, Addams insisted that she was just a “very simple person.” But many familiar with her accomplishments consider her a source of inspiration.

As problems in cities mounted, concerned Americans worked to find solutions. Social welfare reformers targeted their efforts at relieving urban poverty.

The Settlement House Movement

An early reform program, the Social Gospel movement, preached salvation through service to the poor. Inspired by the message of the Social Gospel movement, many 19th-century reformers responded to the call to help the urban poor. In the late 1800s, a few reformers established settlement houses, community centers in slum neighborhoods that provided assistance to people in the area, especially immigrants. Many settlement workers lived at the houses so that they could learn firsthand about the problems caused by urbanization and help create solutions.

Run largely by middle-class, college-educated women, settlement houses provided educational, cultural, and social services. They provided classes in such subjects as English, health, and painting, and offered college extension courses. Settlement houses also sent visiting nurses into the homes of the sick and provided whatever aid was needed to secure “support for deserted women, insurance for bewildered widows, damages for injured operators, furniture from the clutches of the installment store.”

Settlement houses in the United States were founded by Charles Stover and Stanton Coit in New York City in 1886. Jane Addams—one of the most influential members of the movement—and Ellen Gates Starr founded Chicago’s Hull House in 1889. In 1890, Janie Porter Barrett founded Locust Street Social Settlement in Hampton, Virginia—the first settlement house for African Americans. By 1910, about 400 settlement houses were operating in cities across the country. The settlement houses helped cultivate social responsibility toward the urban poor.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• urbanization

• Americanization movement

• tenement

• mass transit

• Social Gospel movement

• settlement house

• Jane Addams

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the spider map below on your paper. List urban problems on the vertical lines. Fill in details about attempts that were made to solve each problem.

A spider map shows six blank vertical lines beneath the words Solutions to Urban Problems.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Why did immigrants tend to group together in cities?

4. EVALUATING

Which solution (or attempted solution) to an urban problem discussed in this section do you think had the most impact? Why?

5. ANALYZING EFFECTS

What effects did the migration from rural areas to the cities in the late 19th century have on urban society? Think About:

• why people moved to cities

• the problems caused by rapid urban growth

• the differences in the experiences of whites and blacks

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Section 3: Politics in the Gilded Age

One American’s Story

Mark Twain described the excesses of the late 19th century in a satirical novel, The Gilded Age, a collaboration with the writer Charles Dudley Warner. The title of the book has since come to represent the period from the 1870s to the 1890s. Twain mocks the greed and self-indulgence of his characters, including Philip Sterling.

An illustration: A large building towers over small shacks with livestock grazing nearby.

A luxurious apartment building rises behind a New York City shanty-town in 1889.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARK TWAIN AND CHARLES DUDLEY WARNER

“ There are many young men like him [Philip Sterling] in American society, of his age, opportunities, education and abilities, who have really been educated for nothing and have let themselves drift, in the hope that they will find somehow, and by some sudden turn of good luck, the golden road to fortune …. He saw people, all around him, poor yesterday, rich to-day, who had come into sudden opulence by some means which they could not have classified among any of the regular occupations of life.”
—The Gilded Age

Twain’s characters find that getting rich quick is more difficult than they had thought it would be. Investments turn out to be worthless; politicians’ bribes eat up their savings. The glittering exterior of the age turns out to hide a corrupt political core and a growing gap between the few rich and the many poor.

The Emergence of Political Machines

In the late 19th century, cities experienced rapid growth under inefficient government. In a climate influenced by dog-eat-dog Social Darwinism, cities were receptive to a new power structure, the political machine, and a new politician, the city boss.

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The Political Machine

An organized group that controlled the activities of a political party in a city, the political machine also offered services to voters and businesses in exchange for political or financial support. In the decades after the Civil War, political machines gained control of local government in Baltimore, New York, San Francisco, and other major cities.

The machine was organized like a pyramid. At the pyramid’s base were local precinct workers and captains, who tried to gain voters’ support on a city block or in a neighborhood and who reported to a ward boss. At election time, the ward boss worked to secure the vote in all the precincts in the ward, or electoral district. Ward bosses helped the poor and gained their votes by doing favors or providing services. As Martin Lomasney, elected ward boss of Boston’s West End in 1885, explained, “There’s got to be in every ward somebody that any bloke can come to … and get help. Help, you understand; none of your law and your justice, but help.” At the top of the pyramid was the city boss, who controlled the activities of the political party throughout the city. Precinct captains, ward bosses, and the city boss worked together to elect their candidates and guarantee the success of the machine.

The Role of the Political Boss

Whether or not the boss officially served as mayor, he controlled access to municipal jobs and business licenses, and influenced the courts and other municipal agencies. Bosses like Roscoe Conkling in New York used their power to build parks, sewer systems, and waterworks, and gave money to schools, hospitals, and orphanages. Bosses could also provide government support for new businesses, a service for which they were often paid extremely well.

It was not only money that motivated city bosses. By solving urban problems, bosses could reinforce voters’ loyalty, win additional political support, and extend their influence.

Immigrants and the Machine

Many precint captains and political bosses were first-generation or second-generation immigrants. Few were educated beyond grammar school. They entered politics early and worked their way up from the bottom. They could speak to immigrants in their own language and understood the challenges that newcomers faced. More important, the bosses were able to provide solutions. The machines helped immigrants with naturalization (attaining full citizenship), housing, and jobs—the newcomers’ most pressing needs. In return, the immigrants provided what the political bosses needed—votes.

“Big Jim” Pendergast, an Irish-American saloonkeeper, worked his way up from precinct captain to Democratic city boss in Kansas City by aiding Italian, African-American, and Irish voters in his ward. By 1900, he controlled Missouri state politics as well.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JAMES PENDERGAST

“ I’ve been called a boss. All there is to it is having friends, doing things for people, and then later on they’ll do things for you …. You can’t coerce people into doing things for you—you can’t make them vote for you. I never coerced anybody in my life. Wherever you see a man bulldozing anybody he don’t last long.”
—quoted in The Pendergast Machine

A cartoon: A man in a top hat loots a safe, while wearing a book labled Falsified Accounts like a jacket.

A corrupt 19th-century boss robs the city treasury by easily cutting government red tape, or bureaucracy. 475

Municipal Graft and Scandal

While the well-oiled political machines provided city dwellers with services, many political bosses fell victim to corruption as their influence grew.

Election Fraud and Graft

When the loyalty of voters was not enough to carry an election, some political machines turned to fraud. Using fake names, party faithfuls cast as many votes as were needed to win.

Once a political machine got its candidates into office, it could take advantage of numerous opportunities for graft, the illegal use of political influence for personal gain. For example, by helping a person find work on a construction project for the city, a political machine could ask the worker to bill the city for more than the actual cost of materials and labor. The worker then “kicked back” a portion of the earnings to the machine. Taking these kickbacks, or illegal payments for their services, enriched the political machines—and individual politicians.

Political machines also granted favors to businesses in return for cash and accepted bribes to allow illegal activities, such as gambling, to flourish. Politicians were able to get away with shady dealings because the police rarely interfered. Until about 1890, police forces were hired and fired by political bosses.

The Tweed Ring Scandal

William M. Tweed, known as Boss Tweed, became head of Tammany Hall, New York City’s powerful Democratic political machine, in 1868. Between 1869 and 1871, Boss Tweed led the Tweed Ring, a group of corrupt politicians, in defrauding the city.

One scheme, the construction of the New York County Courthouse, involved extravagant graft. The project cost taxpayers $13 million, while the actual construction cost was $3 million. The difference went into the pockets of Tweed and his followers.

Boss Tweed, head of Tammany Hall.

Thomas Nast, a political cartoonist, helped arouse public outrage against Tammany Hall’s graft, and the Tweed Ring was finally broken in 1871. Tweed was indicted on 120 counts of fraud and extortion and was sentenced to 12 years in jail. His sentence was reduced to one year, but after leaving jail, Tweed was quickly arrested on another charge. While serving a second sentence, Tweed escaped. He was captured in Spain when officials identified him from a Thomas Nast cartoon. By that time, political corruption had become a national issue.

Analyzing Political Cartoons: “The Tammany Tiger Loose”

Political cartoonist Thomas Nast ridiculed Boss Tweed and his machine in the pages of Harper’s Weekly. Nast’s work threatened Tweed, who reportedly said, “I don’t care so much what the papers write about me—my constituents can’t read; but … they can see pictures!”

A cartoon: in a roman coliseum, a tiger attacks a woman. A sword and scales lie on the ground nearby. In the crowd, Boss Tweed watches from the emperor's box.

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Civil Service Replaces Patronage

The desire for power and money that made local politics corrupt in the industrial age also infected national politics.

Patronage Spurs Reform

Since the beginning of the 19th century, presidents had complained about the problem of patronage, or the giving of government jobs to people who had helped a candidate get elected. In Andrew Jackson’s administration, this policy was known as the spoils system. People from cabinet members to workers who scrubbed the steps of the Capitol owed their jobs to political connections. As might be expected, some government employees were not qualified for the positions they filled. Moreover, political appointees, whether qualified or not, sometimes used their positions for personal gain.

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES (1877–1881)
“Nobody ever left the presidency with less regret … than I do.”

Reformers began to press for the elimination of patronage and the adoption of a merit system of hiring. Jobs in civil service—government administration—should go to the most qualified persons, reformers believed. It should not matter what political views they held or who recommended them.

Reform Under Hayes, Garfield, and Arthur

Civil service reform made gradual progress under Presidents Hayes, Garfield, and Arthur. Republican president Rutherford B. Hayes, elected in 1876, could not convince Congress to support reform, so he used other means. Hayes named independents to his cabinet. He also set up a commission to investigate the nation’s customhouses, which were notorious centers of patronage. On the basis of the commission’s report, Hayes fired two of the top officials of New York City’s customhouse, where jobs were controlled by the Republican Party. These firings enraged the Republican New York senator and political boss Roscoe Conkling and his supporters, the Stalwarts.

JAMES A. GARFIELD (1881)
“ Assassination can be no more guarded against than death by lightning.”

When Hayes decided not to run for reelection in 1880, a freefor-all broke out at the Republican convention, between the Stalwarts—who opposed changes in the spoils system—and reformers. Since neither Stalwarts nor reformers could win a majority of delegates, the convention settled on an independent presidential candidate, Ohio congressman James A. Garfield. To balance out Garfield’s ties to reformers, the Republicans nominated for vice-president Chester A. Arthur, one of Conkling’s supporters. Despite Arthur’s inclusion on the ticket, Garfield angered the Stalwarts by giving reformers most of his patronage jobs once he was elected.

CHESTER A. ARTHUR (1881–1885)

“There doesn’t seem to be anything else for an ex-president to do but … raise big pumpkins.”

On July 2, 1881, as President Garfield walked through the Washington, D.C., train station, he was shot two times by a mentally unbalanced lawyer named Charles Guiteau, whom Garfield had turned down for a job. The would-be assassin announced, “I did it and I will go to jail for it. I am a Stalwart and Arthur is now president.” Garfield finally died from his wounds on September 19. Despite his ties to the Stalwarts, Chester Arthur turned reformer when he became president. His first message to Congress urged legislators to pass a civil service law.

The resulting Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883 authorized a bipartisan civil service commission to make

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appointments to federal jobs through a merit system based on candidates’ performance on an examination. By 1901, more than 40 percent of all federal jobs had been classified as civil service positions, but the Pendleton Act had mixed consequences. On the one hand, public administration became more honest and efficient. On the other hand, because officials could no longer pressure employees for campaign contributions, politicians turned to other sources for donations.

Business Buys Influence

With employees no longer a source of campaign contributions, politicians turned to wealthy business owners. Therefore, the alliance between government and big business became stronger than ever.

Harrison, Cleveland, and High Tariffs

Big business hoped the government would preserve, or even raise, the tariffs that protected domestic industries from foreign competition. The Democratic Party, however, opposed high tariffs because they increased prices. In 1884, the Democratic Party won a presidential election for the first time in 28 years with candidate Grover Cleveland. As president, Cleveland tried to lower tariff rates, but Congress refused to support him.

In 1888, Cleveland ran for reelection on a low-tariff platform against the former Indiana senator Benjamin Harrison, the grandson of President William Henry Harrison. Harrison’s campaign was financed by large contributions from companies that wanted tariffs even higher than they were. Although Cleveland won about 100,000 more popular votes than Harrison, Harrison took a majority of the electoral votes and the presidency. He signed the McKinley Tariff Act of 1890, which raised tariffs on manufactured goods to their highest level yet.

In 1892, Cleveland was elected again—the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms. He supported a bill for lowering the McKinley Tariff but refused to sign it because it also provided for a federal income tax. The WilsonGorman Tariff became law in 1894 without the president’s signature. In 1897, William McKinley was inaugurated president and raised tariffs once again.

The attempt to reduce the tariff had failed, but the spirit of reform was not dead. New developments in areas ranging from technology to mass culture would help redefine American society as the United States moved into the 20th century.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• political machine

• graft

• Boss Tweed

• patronage

• civil service

• Rutherford B. Hayes

• James A. Garfield

• Chester A. Arthur

• Pendleton Civil Service Act

• Grover Cleveland

• Benjamin Harrison

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one shown, list examples of corruption in 19thcentury politics.

A chart shows four blank ovals surrounding the word Corruption.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

Reread the quotation from James Pendergast on page 474. Explain whether you agree or disagree that machine politicians did not coerce people.

4. ANALYZING CAUSES

Why do you think tariff reform failed? Support your response with evidence from the chapter.

5. HYPOTHESIZING

How do you think politics in the United States would have been different if the Pendleton Civil Service Act had not been passed? Think About:

• the act’s impact on federal workers

• the act’s impact on political fundraising

• Republican Party conflicts

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Chapter 15: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to immigration and urbanization.

1. Ellis Island

2. Gentlemen’s Agreement

3. Americanization movement

4. Jane Addams

5. political machine

6. graft

7. Boss Tweed

8. patronage

9. Rutherford B. Hayes

10. Pendleton Civil Service Act

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

The New Immigrants (pages 460–465)

1. What trends or events in other countries prompted people to move to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries?

2. What difficulties did many of these new immigrants face?

The Challenges of Urbanization (pages 468–472)

3. Why did cities in the United States grow rapidly in the decades following the Civil War?

4. What problems did this rapid growth pose for cities?

5. What solutions to urban problems did the settlement-house movement propose?

Politics in the Gilded Age (pages 473–477)

6. Why did machine politics become common in big cities in the late 19th century?

7. What government problems arose as a result of patronage?

8. Summarize the views of Grover Cleveland and Benjamin Harrison on tariffs.

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a diagram like the one below, show one result of and one reaction against (a) the increase in immigration and (b) the increase in machine politics.

A diagram: the words Increased Immigration lead to blank spaces labled Result and Reaction. Below the words Increased Machine Politics lead to blank spaces labled Result and Reaction.

2. EVALUATING In the 1860s, Horace Greeley—editor of the New York Tribune—remarked, “We cannot all live in the cities, yet nearly all seem determined to do so.” Why do you think this was true at the end of the 19th century? Do you think it is still true? Why or why not?

3. COMPARING How were politicians like Boss Tweed similar to industrial magnates like Carnegie and Rockefeller?

Visual Summary: Immigrants and Urbanization A chart shows three columns: Urbanization; Immigration and Migration; and Politics. Arrows connect the columns.

Urbanization

• The influx of immigrants and migrants causes a population boom in cities.

• City services, such as housing, transportation, water, and sanitation, are stretched to the limit.

• Reformers try to fix urban problems through education, training, charity, and political action.

Immigration And Migration

• Poverty and persecution cause millions of people to leave Europe, China, Japan, the Caribbean, and Mexico for the United States.

• Immigrants are forced to adapt to a new language and culture.

• Changes in agriculture cause people to migrate from the rural U.S. to the cities in search of work.

• Many immigrants and migrants face discrimination in their efforts to find jobs and housing.

Politics

• Political machines develop to take advantage of the needs of immigrants and the urban poor.

• City politicians use fraud and graft to maintain political power.

• Corruption in national politics results in the call for civil service jobs to be awarded on the basis of merit.

• Big business’s growing influence on politics defeats tariff reform that would aid wage-earners.

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 479 Standardized Test Practice

Use the quotation and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

“The Chinese … ask for fair treatment.… Since the first restriction law was passed the United States has received as immigrants more than two million Austro-Hungarians, two million Italians and a million and a half Russians and Finns. Each of these totals is from five to seven times the whole amount of Chinese immigration of all classes during thirty years of free immigration …. The question is not now of the admission of laborers, but whether other Chinese who are entitled to come under both law and treaty shall receive the same courtesies as people of other nations, and shall be relieved from many harassing regulations. They must no longer be detained, photographed and examined as if they were suspected of crime.”
—Ng Poon Chew, from The Treatment of the Exempt Classes of Chinese in the United States

1. The information in the passage supports which one of the following points of view?

A European immigration should be restricted.

B Chinese laborers should be allowed to immigrate.

C All immigrants are treated like criminals.

D Chinese immigrants and European immigrants should be treated the same.

Use the cartoon and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 2.

A cartoon: Boss Tweed and others stand in a circle labled Tammany Ring, each pointing a finger at the man to his left. A caption: Who stole the people's money? Do tell.

2. The cartoon suggests that Boss Tweed (the large figure at left)—

F was solely responsible for stealing the people’s money.

G did not steal the people’s money.

H had help from his associates in stealing the people’s money.

J was loyal to his associates.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 459:

What would you do to improve conditions?

With what you have learned about the challenges faced by immigrants in the 19th century, consider how you would revise your answer. Discuss the following issue:

• What were the best solutions attempted by government and reformers in the 1800s?

Create a pamphlet promoting the reform, improvement, or government solution you chose.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “From China to Chinatown: Fong See’s American Dream.” Discuss the following questions with a small group; then do the activity.

• How did Fong See overcome the difficulties facing Asian immigrants in America during his lifetime?

• What did Lisa See learn about living in a diverse society from her great-grandfather’s experience?

Cooperative Learning Activity Share stories of immigration or the experiences of recent immigrants to the U.S. that you have heard or read about. With the group, create a multimedia presentation of these stories. Use pictures, text, and sound to represent the stories.

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Chapter 16: Life at the Turn of the 20th Century

A painting: a crowd gathers around exhibits at the Chicago World's Columbian Exhibition. A title: Life at the Turn of the 20th Century.

The World’s Columbian Exposition, commemorating the 400th anniversary of Columbus sailing to the Americas. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 480 and page 481 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1878 to 1916 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1878 to 1916 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1878-1916.

1878, the World: Bicycle touring club is founded in Europe.
1883, USA: Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge is completed.
1884, the World: Fifteen-nation conference on the division of Africa convenes in Berlin.
1889, the World: Barnum & Bailey Circus opens in London.
1892, USA: Ida B. Wells crusades against lynching.
1896, USA: Supreme Court establishes Seperate-But-Equal doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson.
1899, the World: Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud publishes The Interpretation of Dreams.
1900, USA: William McKinley is reelected.
1901, USA: McKiinley is assassinated.
1901, USA: Theodore Roosevelt becomes president.
1904, USA: Theodore Roosevelt is elected president.
1908, USA: Henry Ford introduces the Model T.
1908, USA: William H. Taft is elected president.
1910, the World: Mexican Revolution begins.
1912, USA: Woodrow Wilson elected president.
1914, the World: Woorld War II begins in Europe.
1916, USA: Woodrow Wilson is reelected.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 480 and page 481 in the print version. 481 A painting: a crowd gathers around exhibits at the Chicago World's Columbian Exhibition. A title: Life at the Turn of the 20th Century.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 480 and page 481 in the print version. Interact with History

It is the summer of 1893. In Chicago, the World’s Columbian Exposition is in full swing. Besides Thomas Edison’s kinetograph—a camera that records motion, attractions include a towering “Ferris wheel” that lifts trolley cars into the sky and the first hamburgers in America. More than 21 million people will attend the exposition. You will be one of them.

How will the latest technology change your life?

Examine the Issues

• How can technology contribute to new forms of recreation?

• What types of inventions transform communications?

• Why would mass media emerge at this time?

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1878-1916.

1878, the World: Bicycle touring club is founded in Europe.
1883, USA: Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge is completed.
1884, the World: Fifteen-nation conference on the division of Africa convenes in Berlin.
1889, the World: Barnum & Bailey Circus opens in London.
1892, USA: Ida B. Wells crusades against lynching.
1896, USA: Supreme Court establishes Seperate-But-Equal doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson.
1899, the World: Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud publishes The Interpretation of Dreams.
1900, USA: William McKinley is reelected.
1901, USA: McKiinley is assassinated.
1901, USA: Theodore Roosevelt becomes president.
1904, USA: Theodore Roosevelt is elected president.
1908, USA: Henry Ford introduces the Model T.
1908, USA: William H. Taft is elected president.
1910, the World: Mexican Revolution begins.
1912, USA: Woodrow Wilson elected president.
1914, the World: Woorld War II begins in Europe.
1916, USA: Woodrow Wilson is reelected.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 480 and page 481 in the print version. 482

Section 1: Science and Urban Life

One American’s Story

The Brooklyn Bridge, connecting Brooklyn to the island of Manhattan in New York City, opened in 1883. It took 14 years to build. Each day, laborers descended to work in a caisson, or water tight chamber, that took them deep beneath the East River. E. F. Farrington, a mechanic who worked on the bridge, described the working conditions.

In 1883, New Yorkers celebrated the opening of the world’s longest suspension bridge, the 1,595-foot-long Brooklyn Bridge.

A PERSONAL VOICE

E. F. FARRINGTON

“Inside the caisson everything wore an unreal, weird appearance. There was a confused sensation in the head … What with the flaming lights, the deep shadows, the confusing noise of hammers, drills, and chains, the half-naked forms flitting about … one might, if of a poetic temperament, get a realizing sense of Dante’s Inferno.”
—quoted in The Great Bridge

Four years later, trains ran across the bridge 24 hours a day and carried more than 30 million travelers each year.

Technology and City Life

Engineering innovations, such as the Brooklyn Bridge, laid the groundwork for modern American life. Cities in every industrial area of the country expanded both outward and upward. In 1870, only 25 American cities had populations of 50,000 or more; by 1890, 58 cities could make that claim. By the turn of the 20th century, due to the increasing number of industrial jobs, four out of ten Americans made their homes in cities.

In response to these changes, technological advances began to meet the nation’s needs for communication, transportation, and space. One remedy for more urban space was to build toward the sky.

483

Skyscrapers

Architects were able to design taller buildings because of two factors: the invention of elevators and the development of internal steel skeletons to bear the weight of buildings. In 1890–1891, architect Louis Sullivan designed the ten-story Wainwright Building in St. Louis. He called the new breed of skyscraper a “proud and soaring thing.” The tall building’s appearance was graceful because its steel framework supported both floors and walls.

The skyscraper became America’s greatest contribution to architecture, “a new thing under the sun,” according to the architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who studied under Sullivan. Skyscrapers solved the practical problem of how to make the best use of limited and expensive space. The unusual form of another skyscraper, the Flatiron Building, seemed perfect for its location at one of New York’s busiest intersections. Daniel Burnham designed this slender 285-foot tower in 1902. The Flatiron Building and other new buildings served as symbols of a rich and optimistic society.

Electric Transit

As skyscrapers expanded upward, changes in transportation allowed cities to spread outward. Before the Civil War, horses had drawn the earliest streetcars over iron rails embedded in city streets. In some cities during the 1870s and 1880s, underground moving cables powered streetcar lines. Electricity, however, transformed urban transportation.

In 1888 Richmond, Virginia, became the first American city to electrify its urban transit. Other cities followed. By the turn of the twentieth century, intricate networks of electric streetcars—also called trolley cars—ran from outlying neighborhoods to downtown offices and department stores.

New railroad lines also fed the growth of suburbs, allowing residents to commute to downtown jobs. New York’s northern suburbs alone supplied 100,000 commuters each day to the central business district.

A few large cities moved their streetcars far above street level, creating elevated or “el” trains. Other cities, like New York, built subways by moving their rail lines underground. These streetcars, elevated trains, and subways enabled cities to annex suburban developments that mushroomed along the advancing transportation routes.

A photo: a skyscraper with a triangular base.

The Flatiron Building, shown here under construction, stands at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street in New York City.

Engineering and Urban Planning

Steel-cable suspension bridges, like the Brooklyn Bridge, also brought cities’ sections closer together. Sometimes these bridges provided recreational opportunities. In his design for the Brooklyn Bridge, for example, John Augustus Roebling provided an elevated promenade whose “principal use will be to allow people of leisure, and old and young invalids, to promenade over the bridge on fine days.” This need for open spaces in the midst of crowded commercial cities inspired the emerging science of urban planning.

City planners sought to restore a measure of serenity to the environment by designing recreational areas. Landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted spear-headed the movement for planned urban parks.

In 1857 Olmsted, along with English-born architect Calvert Vaux, helped draw up a plan for “Greensward,” which was selected to become Central Park, in New York City. Olmsted envisioned the park as a rustic haven in the center of the busy city. The finished park featured boating and

484

tennis facilities, a zoo, and bicycle paths. Olmsted hoped that the park’s beauty would soothe the city’s inhabitants and let them enjoy a “natural” setting.

A PERSONAL VOICE

FREDERICK LAW OLMSTED

“The main object and justification [of the park] is simply to produce a certain influence in the minds of people and through this to make life in the city healthier and happier. The character of this influence … is to be produced by means of scenes, through observation of which the mind may be more or less lifted out of moods and habits.”
—quoted in Frederick Law Olmsted’s New York

In the 1870s, Olmsted planned landscaping for Washington, D.C., and St. Louis. He also drew the initial designs for “the Emerald Necklace,” Boston’s parks system. Boston’s Back Bay area, originally a 450-acre swamp, was drained and developed by urban planners into an area of elegant streets and cultural attractions, including Olmstead’s parks.

City Planning

By contrast, Chicago, with its explosive growth from 30,000 people in 1850 to 300,000 in 1870, represented a nightmare of unregulated expansion. Fortunately for the city, a local architect, Daniel Burnham, was intrigued

History Through Architecture: The Chicago Plan

This map from Daniel Burnham’s original plan of Chicago looks deceptively like an ordinary map today. But at the time, it was almost revolutionary in its vision, and it inspired city planners all over the country.

A map shows city streets forming a grid.

Unity was the goal of the architect of Chicago’s city center.

1 Chicago’s Lakefront First, Burnham designed the “White City” to host the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. His greatest legacy to Chicago may have been his idea for a lakefront park system, complete with beaches, playing fields, and playgrounds.

2 Neighborhood Parks Though not all cities could claim a lakefront vista for recreation, most cities sprinkled neighborhood parks where their residents needed them. Urban planners provided for local parks—such as Lincoln Park in Chicago—so that “the sweet breath of plant life” would be available to everyone.

3 Harbors For Cities On the Great Lakes, the shipping business depended on accessible harbors. Burnham saw the advantage of harbors for recreation and commercial purposes, but he advocated moving the harbors away from the central business districts to free space for public use.

4 The Civic Center Burnham redesigned the street pattern to create a group of long streets that would converge on a grand plaza, a practice reflected in other American cities. The convergence of major thoroughfares at a city’s center helped create a unified city from a host of neighborhoods.

485

by the prospect of remaking the city. His motto was “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood.” He oversaw the transformation of a swampy area near Lake Michigan into a glistening White City for Chicago’s 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Majestic exhibition halls, statues, the first Ferris wheel, and a lagoon greeted more than 21 million visitors who came to the city.

World Stage: The Garden City

Urban planning in the United States had European counter-parts. In Tomorrow: A Peaceful Path to Social Reform (1898), for example, the British city planner Ebenezer Howard wrote of a planned residential community called a garden city.

Howard wanted to combine the benefits of urban life with easy access to nature. His city plan was based on concentric circles—with a town at the center and a wide circle of rural land on the perimeter. The town center included a garden, concert hall, museum, theater, library, and hospital.

The circle around the town center included a park, a shopping center, a conservatory, a residential area, and industry. Six wide avenues radiated out from the town center. In 1903, Letchworth, England served as the model for Howard’s garden city.

Many urban planners saw in Burnham’s White City glorious visions of future cities. Burnham, however, left Chicago an even more important legacy: an overall plan for the city, crowned by elegant parks strung along Lake Michigan. As a result, Chicago’s lakefront today features curving banks of grass and sandy beaches instead of a jumbled mass of piers and warehouses.

New Technologies

New developments in communication brought the nation closer together. In addition to a railroad network that now spanned the nation, advances in printing, aviation, and photography helped to speed the transfer of information.

A Revolution in Printing

By 1890, the literacy rate in the United States had risen to nearly 90 percent. Publishers turned out ever-increasing numbers of books, magazines, and newspapers to meet the growing demand of the reading public. A series of technological advances in printing aided their efforts.

American mills began to produce huge quantities of cheap paper from wood pulp. The new paper proved durable enough to withstand high-speed presses. The electrically powered web-perfecting press, for example, printed on both sides of a continuous paper roll, rather than on just one side. It then cut, folded, and counted the pages as they came down the line. Faster production and lower costs made newspapers and magazines more affordable. People could now buy newspapers for a penny a copy.

Airplanes

In the early 20th century, brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright, bicycle manufacturers from Dayton, Ohio, experimented with new engines powerful enough to keep “heavier-than-air” craft aloft. First the Wright brothers built a glider. Then they commissioned a four-cylinder internal combustion engine, chose a propeller, and designed a biplane with a 40’4” wingspan. Their first successful flight—on December 17, 1903, at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina—covered 120 feet and lasted 12 seconds. Orville later described the take-off.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ORVILLE WRIGHT

“After running the motor a few minutes to heat it up, I released the wire that held the machine to the track, and the machine started forward into the wind. Wilbur ran at the side of the machine … to balance it…. Unlike the start on the 14th, made in a calm, the machine, facing a 27-mile wind, started very slowly…. One of the life-saving men snapped the camera for us, taking a picture just as the machine had reached the end of the track and had risen to a height of about two feet.”
—quoted in Smithsonian Frontiers of Flight

Orville (right) and Wilbur Wright at home in Dayton, Ohio, in 1909. 486

Science & Technology: Aviation Pioneers

In 1892, Orville and Wilbur Wright opened a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio. They used the profits to fund experiments in aeronautics, the construction of aircraft. In 1903, the Wright brothers took a gasoline-powered airplane that they had designed to a sandy hill outside Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

The airplane was powered by a 4-cylinder 12-horse-power piston engine, designed and constructed by the bicycle shop’s mechanic, Charles Taylor. The piston—a solid cylinder fit snugly into a hollow cylinder that moves back and forth under pressure—was standard until jet-propelled aircraft came into service in the 1940s. A chart compares the names and weights of different engines.

A chart compares the names and weights of different engines.

DESCRIPTION:

The chart shows the date, the name and the approximate weight per unit of horsepower for five different engines.

1880's: Otto, 440 lbs (200 kg)
1903: Wright, 13 lbs (6 kg)
1910: Gnome, 3.3 lbs (1.5 kg)
1918: V-12 Liberty, 2 lbs (1 kg)
1944: Wright Cyclone, 1.1 lbs (0.5 kg)

The engine is the heaviest component in airplane construction. The design of lighter engines was the most important development in early aviation history. A photo: the Wright brothers' plane flies over a beach.

A photo: the Wright brothers' plane flies over a beach.

On December 17, Orville Wright made the first successful flight of a powered aircraft in history. The public paid little attention. But within two years, the brothers were making 30-minute flights. By 1908, the pioneer aviators had signed a contract for production of the Wright airplane with the U.S. Army. A sketch: a cross section of a biplane.

By 1918, the Postal Service began airmail service, as shown in this preliminary sketch of a DH4-Mail. Convinced of the great potential of flight, the government established the first transcontinental airmail service in 1920. 487

Within two years, the Wright brothers had increased their flights to 24 miles. By 1920, convinced of the great potential of flight, the U.S. government had established the first transcontinental airmail service.

Key Player: George Eastman 1854–1932 A photo: George Eastman.

In 1877, when George Eastman took up photography as a hobby, he had to lug more than 100 pounds of equipment for one day‘s outing. To lighten his load, he replaced heavy glass plates with film that could be rolled onto a spool.

In 1888, Eastman sold his first roll-film camera. Eastman called his new camera (shown at left) the Kodak, because the made-up name was short and memorable. It was popularized by the slogan “You Press the Button, We Do the Rest.”

Photography Explosion

Before the 1880s, photography was a professional activity. Because of the time required to take a picture and the weight of the equipment, a photographer could not shoot a moving object. In addition, photographers had to develop their shots immediately.

New techniques eliminated the need to develop pictures right away. George Eastman developed a series of more convenient alternatives to the heavy glass plates previously used. Now, instead of carrying their darkrooms around with them, photographers could use flexible film, coated with gelatin emulsions, and could send their film to a studio for processing. When professional photographers were slow to begin using the new film, Eastman decided to aim his product at the masses.

In 1888, Eastman introduced his Kodak camera. The purchase price of $25 included a 100-picture roll of film. After taking the pictures, the photographer would send the camera back to Eastman’s Rochester, New York, factory. For $10, the pictures were developed and returned with the camera reloaded. Easily held and operated, the Kodak prompted millions of Americans to become amateur photographers. The camera also helped to create the field of photojournalism. Reporters could now photograph events as they occurred. When the Wright brothers first flew their simple airplane at Kitty Hawk, an amateur photographer captured the first successful flight on film.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Louis Sullivan

• Daniel Burnham

• Frederick Law Olmsted

• Orville and Wilbur Wright

• George Eastman

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Using a three-column chart, such as the one below, list three important changes in city design, communication, and transportation.

City Design	Communication	Transportation
1.	1.	1.
2.	2.	2.
3.	3.	3.

Which change had the greatest impact on urban life? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

If you had been an urban planner at the turn of the century, what new ideas would you have included in your plan for the ideal city?Think About:

• Olmsted’s plans for Central Park

• Burnham’s ideas for Chicago

• the concept of the garden city

4. EVALUATING

Which scientific or technological development described in this section had the greatest impact on American culture? Use details from the text to justify your choice.

5. SUMMARIZING

How did bridge building contribute to the growth of cities?

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Section 2: Expanding Public Education

One American’s Story

William Torrey Harris was an educational reformer who saw the public schools as a great instrument “to lift all classes of people into … civilized life.” As U.S. commissioner of education from 1889 to 1906, Harris promoted the ideas of great educators like Horace Mann and John Dewey—particularly the belief that schools exist for the children and not the teachers. Schools, according to Harris, should properly prepare students for full participation in community life.

A photo: children sit at desks and write on a blackboard in a school.

Compulsory attendance laws, though slow to be enforced, helped fill classrooms at the turn of the 20th century.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WILLIAM TORREY HARRIS

“Every [educational] method must … be looked at from two points of view: first, its capacity to secure the development of rationality or of the true adjustment of the individual to the social whole; and, second, its capacity to strengthen the individuality of the pupil and avoid the danger of obliterating the personality of the child by securing blind obedience in place of intelligent cooperation, and by mechanical memorizing in place of rational insight.”
—quoted in Public Schools and Moral Education

Many other middle-class reformers agreed with Harris and viewed the public schools as training grounds for employment and citizenship. People believed that economic development depended on scientific and technological knowledge. As a result, they viewed education as a key to greater security and social status. Others saw the public schools as the best opportunity to assimilate the millions of immigrants entering American society. Most people also believed that public education was necessary for a stable and prosperous democratic nation.

Expanding Public Education

Although most states had established public schools by the Civil War, many school-age children still received no formal schooling. The majority of students who went to school left within four years, and few went to high school.

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Schools For Children

Between 1865 and 1895, states passed laws requiring 12 to 16 weeks annually of school attendance by students between the ages of 8 and 14. The curriculum emphasized reading, writing, and arithmetic. However, the emphasis on rote memorization and the uneven quality of teachers drew criticism. Strict rules and physical punishment made many students miserable.

One 13-year-old boy explained to a Chicago school inspector why he hid in a warehouse basement instead of going to school.

A PERSONAL VOICE

“They hits ye if yer don’t learn, and they hits ye if ye whisper, and they hits ye if ye have string in yer pocket, and they hits ye if yer seat squeaks, and they hits ye if ye don’t stan’ up in time, and they hits ye if yer late, and they hits ye if ye ferget the page.”
—anonymous schoolboy quoted in The One Best System

In spite of such problems, children began attending school at a younger age. Kindergartens, which had been created outside the public school system to offer childcare for employed mothers, became increasingly popular. The number of kindergartens surged from 200 in 1880 to 3,000 in 1900, and, under the guidance of William Torrey Harris, public school systems began to add kindergartens to their programs.

Although the pattern in public education in this era was one of growth, opportunities differed sharply for white and black students. In 1880, about 62 percent of white children attended elementary school, compared to about 34 percent of African-American children. Not until the 1940s would public school education become available to the majority of black children living in the South.

The Growth of High Schools

In the new industrial age, the economy demanded advanced technical and managerial skills. Moreover, business leaders like Andrew Carnegie pointed out that keeping workers loyal to capitalism required society to “provide ladders upon which the aspiring can rise.”

By early 1900, more than half a million students attended high school. The curriculum expanded to include courses in science, civics, and social studies. And new vocational courses prepared male graduates for industrial jobs in drafting, carpentry, and mechanics, and female graduates for office work.

A chart compares the number of students enrolled and literacy in English from 1871-1920.

DESCRIPTION:

The chart shows literacy in English as a percentage of the population age 10 and over, and the number of students enrolled in schools at six different points from 1871 to 1920.

1871, 7.6 million students enrolled, 80% literacy.
1880, 9.9 million students enrolled, 83% literacy.
1890, 12.7 million students enrolled, 87% literacy.
1900, 15.5 million students enrolled, 89% literacy.
1910, 17.8 million students enrolled, 92% literacy.
1920, 21.6 million students enrolled, 94% literacy.

Expanding Education/Increasing Literacy Sources: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1921; Historical Statistics of the United States. 490

Racial Discrimination

African Americans were mostly excluded from public secondary education. In 1890, fewer than 1 percent of black teenagers attended high school. More than two-thirds of these students went to private schools, which received no government financial support. By 1910, about 3 percent of African Americans between the ages of 15 and 19 attended high school, but a majority of these students still attended private schools.

Education For Immigrants

Unlike African Americans, immigrants were encouraged to go to school. Of the nearly 10 million European immigrants settled in the United States between 1860 and 1890, many were Jewish people fleeing poverty and systematic oppression in eastern Europe. Most immigrants sent their children to America’s free public schools, where they quickly became “Americanized.” Years after she became a citizen, the Russian Jewish immigrant Mary Antin recalled the large numbers of non-English-speaking immigrant children. By the end of the school year, they could recite “patriotic verses in honor of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln … with plenty of enthusiasm.”

Some people resented the suppression of their native languages in favor of English. Catholics were especially concerned because many public school systems had mandatory readings from the (Protestant) King James Version of the Bible. Catholic communities often set up parochial schools to give their children a Catholic education.

Thousands of adult immigrants attended night school to learn English and to qualify for American citizenship. Employers often offered daytime programs to Americanize their workers. At his Model T plant in Highland Park, Michigan, Henry Ford established a “Sociology Department,” because “men of many nations must be taught American ways, the English language, and the right way to live.” Ford’s ideas were not universally accepted. Labor activists often protested that Ford’s educational goals were aimed at weakening the trade union movement by teaching workers not to confront management.

Now & Then: Technology and Schools A photo:students use computers.

In 1922, Thomas Edison predicted that motion pictures would eventually replace textbooks. More recently, it has been predicted that computers will replace traditional classrooms and texts. Computers are used for video course sharing, in which students in many locations participate in the same class. Teachers are using electronic interactive white-boards to help them lead and record presentations and discussions. Students are also using computers to access and share scientific data and to communicate with peers around the world.

Expanding Higher Education

Although the number of students attending high school had increased by the turn of the century, only a minority of Americans had high school diplomas. At the same time, an even smaller minority—only 2.3 percent—of America’s young people attended colleges and universities.

Changes in Universities

Between 1880 and 1920, college enrollments more than quadrupled. And colleges instituted major changes in curricula and admission policies. Industrial development changed the nation’s educational needs. The research university emerged—offering courses in modern languages, the physical sciences, and the new disciplines of psychology and sociology. Professional schools in law and medicine were established. Private colleges and universities required entrance exams, but some state universities began to admit stu-dents by using the high school diploma as the entrance requirement.

Higher Education for African Americans

After the Civil War, thou-sands of freed African Americans pursued higher education, despite their exclusion from white institutions. With the help of the Freedmen’s Bureau and other groups, blacks founded Howard, Atlanta, and Fisk Universities, all of which opened

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between 1865 and 1868. Private donors could not, however, financially support or educate a sufficient number of black college graduates to meet the needs of the segregated communities. By 1900, out of about 9 million African Americans, only 3,880 were in attendance at colleges or professional schools.

The prominent African American educator, Booker T. Washington, believed that racism would end once blacks acquired useful labor skills and proved their economic value to society. Washington, who was born enslaved, graduated from Virginia’s Hampton Institute. By 1881, he headed the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute, now called Tuskegee University, in Alabama. Tuskegee aimed to equip African Americans with teaching diplomas and useful skills in agricultural, domestic, or mechanical work.“No race,” Washington said, “can prosper till it learns that there is as much dignity in tilling a field as in writing a poem.”

By contrast, W. E. B. Du Bois, the first African American to receive a doctorate from Harvard (in 1895), strongly disagreed with Washington’s gradual approach. In 1905, Dubois founded the Niagara Movement, which insisted that blacks should seek a liberal arts education so that the African-American community would have well-educated leaders.

Du Bois proposed that a group of educated blacks, the most “talented tenth” of the community, attempt to achieve immediate inclusion into mainstream American life. “We are Americans, not only by birth and by citizenship,” Du Bois argued, “but by our political ideals…. And the greatest of those ideals is that ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL.”

By the turn of the 20th century, millions of people received the education they needed to cope with a rapidly changing world. At the same time, however, racial discrimination remained a thorn in the flesh of American society.

A black-and-white photo: African-American medical students and professors work in an operating theatre.

Medical students and their professors work in the operating theater of the MoorlandSpingarn Research Center at Howard University.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Booker T. Washington

• Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute

• W. E. B. Du Bois

• Niagara Movement

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one below, list at least three developments in education at the turn of the 20th century and their major results.

Development	Result
1.
2.
3.

Which educational development do you think was most important? Explain your choice.

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

How might the economy and culture of the United States have been different without the expansion of public schools? Think About:

• the goals of public schools and whether those goals have been met

• why people supported expanding public education

• the impact of public schools on the development of private schools

4. COMPARING

Compare and contrast the views of Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois on the subject of the education of African Americans.

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Section 3: Segregation and Discrimination

One American’s Story

Born into slavery shortly before emancipation, Ida B. Wells moved to Memphis in the early 1880s to work as a teacher. She later became an editor of a local paper. Racial justice was a persistent theme in Wells’s reporting. The events of March 9,1892 turned that theme into a crusade. Three African-American businessmen, friends of Wells, were lynched—illegally executed without trial. Wells saw lynching for what it was.

Ida B. Wells moved north to continue her fight against lynching by writing, lecturing, and organizing for civil rights.

A PERSONAL VOICE

IDA B. WELLS

“Thomas Moss, Calvin McDowell, and Lee Stewart had been lynched in Memphis … [where] no lynching had taken place before…. This is what opened my eyes to what lynching really was. An excuse to get rid of Negroes who were acquiring wealth and property and thus keep the race terrorized.”
—quoted in Crusade for Justice

African Americans were not the only group to experience violence and racial discrimination. Native Americans, Mexican residents, and Chinese immigrants also encountered bitter forms of oppression, particularly in the American West.

African Americans Fight Legal Discrimination

As African Americans exercised their newly won political and social rights during Reconstruction, they faced hostile and often violent opposition from whites. African Americans eventually fell victim to laws restricting their civil rights but never stopped fighting for equality. For at least ten years after the end of Reconstruction in 1877, African Americans in the South continued to vote and occasionally to hold political office. By the turn of the 20th century, however, Southern states had adopted a broad system of legal policies of racial discrimination and devised methods to weaken African-American political power.

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Voting Restrictions

All Southern states imposed new voting restrictions and denied legal equality to African Americans. Some states, for example, limited the vote to people who could read, and required registration officials to administer a literacy test to test reading. Blacks trying to vote were often asked more difficult questions than whites, or given a test in a foreign language. Officials could pass or fail applicants as they wished.

Another requirement was the poll tax, an annual tax that had to be paid before qualifying to vote. Black as well as white sharecroppers were often too poor to pay the poll tax. To reinstate white voters who may have failed the literacy test or could not pay the poll tax, several Southern states added the grandfather clause to their constitutions. The clause stated that even if a man failed the literacy test or could not afford the poll tax, he was still entitled to vote if he, his father, or his grandfather had been eligible to vote before January 1, 1867. The date is important because before that time, freed slaves did not have the right to vote. The grandfather clause therefore did not allow them to vote.

A photo: a movie theatre sign reads Rex Theatre for Colored People.

This theater in Leland, Mississippi, was segregated under the Jim Crow laws.

Jim Crow Laws

During the 1870s and 1880s, the Supreme Court failed to overturn the poll tax or the grandfather clause, even though the laws undermined all federal protections for African Americans’ civil rights. At the same time that blacks lost voting rights, Southern states passed racial segregation laws to separate white and black people in public and private facilities. These laws came to be known as Jim Crow laws after a popular old minstrel song that ended in the words “Jump, Jim Crow.” Racial segregation was put into effect in schools, hospitals, parks, and transportation systems throughout the South.

Plessy v. Ferguson

Eventually a legal case reached the U.S. Supreme Court to test the constitutionality of segregation. In 1896, in Plessy v. Ferguson, the Supreme Court ruled that the separation of races in public accommodations was legal and did not violate the Fourteenth Amendment. The decision established the doctrine of “separate but equal,” which allowed states to maintain segregated facilities for blacks and whites as long as they provided equal service. The decision permitted legalized racial segregation for almost 60 years. (See Plessy v. Ferguson, page 496.)

Turn-of-the-Century Race Relations

African Americans faced not only formal discrimination but also informal rules and customs, called racial etiquette, that regulated relationships between whites and blacks. Usually, these customs belittled and humiliated African Americans, enforcing their second-class status. For example, blacks and whites never shook hands, since shaking hands would have implied equality. Blacks also had to yield the sidewalk to white pedestrians, and black men always had to remove their hats for whites.

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Some moderate reformers, like Booker T. Washington, earned support from whites. Washington suggested that whites and blacks work together for social progress.

Historical Spotlight: Washington VS. DU Bois

Booker T. Washington argued for a gradual approach to racial equality—suggesting that “it is at the bottom of life we must begin, and not at the top.”

Ten years later, W. E. B. Du Bois denounced this view of gradual equality. Du Bois demanded full social and economic equality for African Americans, declaring that “persistent manly agitation is the way to liberty.”

In 1909 the Niagara Movement, founded by Du Bois in 1905, became the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), with Du Bois as the editor of its journal, The Crisis. He wrote, “We refuse to surrender … leadership … to cowards and trucklers. We are men; we will be treated as men.” The NAACP continues the fight for racial equality today.

A PERSONAL VOICE

BOOKER T. WASHINGTON

“To those of the white race … I would repeat what I say to my own race…. Cast down your bucket among these people who have, without strikes and labour wars, tilled your fields, cleared your forests, builded your railroads and cities, and brought forth treasures from the bowels of the earth…. In all things that are purely social we can be as separate as the fingers, yet one as the hand in all things essential to mutual progress.”
—Atlanta Exposition address, 1895

Washington hoped that improving the economic skills of African Americans would pave the way for long-term gains. People like Ida B. Wells and W. E. B. Du Bois, however, thought that the problems of inequality were too urgent to postpone.

Violence

African Americans and others who did not follow the racial etiquette could face severe punishment or death. All too often, blacks who were accused of violating the etiquette were lynched. Between 1882 and 1892, more than 1,400 African-American men and women were shot, burned, or hanged without trial in the South. Lynching peaked in the 1880s and 1890s but continued well into the 20th century.

Discrimination in the North

Most African Americans lived in the segregated South, but by 1900, a number of blacks had moved to Northern cities. Many blacks migrated to Northern cities in search of better-paying jobs and social equality. But after their arrival, African Americans found that there was racial discrimination in the North as well. African Americans found themselves forced into segregated neighborhoods. They also faced discrimination in the workplace. Labor unions often discouraged black membership, and employers hired African-American labor only as a last resort and fired blacks before white employees.

Sometimes the competition between African Americans and working-class whites became violent, as in the New York City race riot of 1900. Violence erupted after a young black man, believing that his wife was being mistreated by a white policeman, killed the policeman. Word of the killing spread, and whites retaliated by attacking blacks. Northern blacks, however, were not alone in facing discrimination. Non-whites in the West also faced oppression.

Discrimination in the West

Western communities were home to people of many backgrounds working and living side by side. Native Americans still lived in the Western territories claimed by the United States. Asian immigrants went to America’s Pacific Coast in search of wealth and work. Mexicans continued to inhabit the American Southwest. African Americans were also present, especially in former slave-holding areas, such as Texas. Still, racial tensions often made life difficult.

Mexican Workers

In the late 1800s, the railroads hired more Mexicans than members of any other ethnic group to construct rail lines in the Southwest.

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A photo: men and boys stand on railroad tracks.

Mexican track workers for the Southern Pacific railroad posed for this group photo taken sometime between 1910 and 1915.

Mexicans were accustomed to the region’s hot, dry climate. But the work was grueling, and the railroads made them work for less money than other ethnic groups.

Mexicans were also vital to the development of mining and agriculture in the Southwest. When the 1902 National Reclamation Act gave government assistance for irrigation projects, many southwest desert areas bloomed. Mexican workers became the major labor force in the agricultural industries of the region.

Some Mexicans, however, as well as African Americans in the Southwest, were forced into debt peonage, a system that bound laborers into slavery in order to work off a debt to the employer. Not until 1911 did the Supreme Court declare involuntary peonage a violation of the Thirteenth Amendment.

Excluding the Chinese

By 1880, more than 100,000 Chinese immigrants lived in the United States. White people’s fear of job competition with the Chinese immigrants often pushed the Chinese into segregated schools and neighborhoods. Strong opposition to Chinese immigration developed, and not only in the West. (See Chinese Exclusion Act, page 465.)

Racial discrimination posed terrible legal and economic problems for non-whites throughout the United States at the turn of the century. More people, however, whites in particular, had leisure time for new recreational activities, as well as money to spend on a growing arrray of consumer products.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Ida B. Wells

• poll tax

• grandfather clause

• segregation

• Jim Crow laws

• Plessy v. Ferguson

• debt peonage

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Review the section, and find five key events to place on a time line as shown.

A blank timeline from 1890 to 1900 has space for five Events.

Which of these events do you think was most important? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. IDENTIFYING PROBLEMS

How did segregation and discrimination affect the lives of African Americans at the turn of the 20th century?

4. COMPARING

What did some African-American leaders do to fight discrimination?

5. CONTRASTING

How did the challenges and opportunities for Mexicans in the United States differ from those for African Americans? Think About:

• the types of work available to each group

• the effects of government policies on each group

• the effect of the legal system on each group

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Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

ORIGINS OF THE CASE In 1892, Homer Plessy took a seat in the “Whites Only” car of a train and refused to move. He was arrested, tried, and convicted in the District Court of New Orleans for breaking Louisiana’s segregation law. Plessy appealed, claiming that he had been denied equal protection under the law. The Supreme Court handed down its decision on May 18, 1896.

THE RULING The Court ruled that separate-but-equal facilities for blacks and whites did not violate the Constitution.

Legal Reasoning

Plessy claimed that segregation violated his right to equal protection under the law. Moreover he claimed that, being “of mixed descent,” he was entitled to “every recognition, right, privilege and immunity secured to the citizens of the United States of the white race.”

Justice Henry B. Brown, writing for the majority, ruled:

“The object of the [Fourteenth] amendment was … undoubtedly to enforce the absolute equality of the two races before the law, but … it could not have been intended to abolish distinctions based upon color, or to enforce social, as distinguished from political equality, or a commingling of the two races upon terms unsatisfactory to either. Laws permitting, and even requiring, their separation in places where they are liable to be brought into contact do not necessarily imply the inferiority of either race to the other.”

In truth, segregation laws did perpetrate an unequal and inferior status for African Americans. Justice John Marshall Harlan understood this fact and dissented from the majority opinion. He wrote, “In respect of civil rights, all citizens are equal before the law.” He condemned the majority for letting “the seeds of race hate … be planted under the sanction of law.” He also warned that “The thin disguise of ‘equal’ accommodations … will not mislead any one, nor atone for the wrong this day done.”

Justice John Marshall Harlan Legal Sources Related Cases

CIVIL RIGHTS CASES (1883)

The Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment could not be used to prevent private citizens from discriminating against others on the basis of race.

WILLIAMS v. MISSISSIPPI (1898)

The Court upheld a state literacy requirement for voting that, in effect, kept African Americans from the polls.

CUMMING v. BOARD OF EDUCATION OF RICHMOND COUNTY (1899)

The Court ruled that the federal government cannot prevent segregation in local school facilities because education is a local, not federal, issue.

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A photo: Drinking fountains labled White and Colored.

One result of Jim Crow laws was separate drinking fountains for whites and African Americans.

Why it Mattered

In the decades following the Civil War [1861–1865], Southern state legislatures passed laws that aimed to limit civil rights for African Americans. The Black Codes of the 1860s, and later Jim Crow laws, were intended to deprive African Americans of their newly won political and social rights granted during Reconstruction.

Plessy was one of several Supreme Court cases brought by African Americans to protect their rights against segregation. In these cases, the Court regularly ignored the Fourteenth Amendment and upheld state laws that denied blacks their rights. Plessy was the most important of these cases because the Court used it to establish the separate-but-equal doctrine.

As a result, city and state governments across the South—and in some other states—maintained their segregation laws for more than half of the 20th century. These laws limited African Americans’ access to most public facilities, including restaurants, schools, and hospitals. Without exception, the facilities reserved for whites were superior to those reserved for nonwhites. Signs reading “Colored Only” and “Whites Only” served as constant reminders that facilities in segregated societies were separate but not equal.

Historical Impact

It took many decades to abolish legal segregation. During the first half of the 20th century, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) led the legal fight to overturn Plessy. Although they won a few cases over the years, it was not until 1954 in Brown v. Board of Education that the Court overturned any part of Plessy. In that case, the Supreme Court said that separate-but-equal was unconstitutional in public education, but it did not completely overturn the separate-but-equal doctrine.

In later years, the Court did overturn the separate-but-equal doctrine, and it used the Brown decision to do so. For example, in 1955, Rosa Parks was convicted for violating a Montgomery, Alabama, law for segregated seating on buses. A federal court overturned the conviction, finding such segregation unconstitutional. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court, which upheld without comment the lower court’s decision. In doing so in this and similar cases, the Court signaled that the reasoning behind Plessy no longer applied.

As secretary of the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP, Rosa Parks had protested segregation through everyday acts long before Sepember 1955. Thinking Critically Connect to Today

1. Analyzing Primary Sources Read the part of the Fourteenth Amendment reprinted in this feature. Write a paragraph explaining what you think “equal protection of the laws” means. Use evidence to support your ideas.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R22. Connect to History

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court to research and read Justice Harlan’s entire dissent in Plessy v. Ferguson. Based on his position, what view might Harlan have taken toward laws that denied African Americans the right to vote? Write a paragraph or two expressing what Harlan would say about those laws.

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Section 4: The Dawn of Mass Culture

One American’s Story

Along the Brooklyn seashore, on a narrow sandbar just nine miles from busy Manhattan, rose the most famous urban amusement center, Coney Island. In 1886, its main developer, George Tilyou, bragged, “If Paris is France, then Coney Island … is the world.” Indeed, tens of thousands of visitors mobbed Coney Island after work each evening and on Sundays and holidays. When Luna Park, a spectacular amusement park on Coney Island, opened in May 1903, a reporter described the scene.

A PERSONAL VOICE

BRUCE BLEN

“[Inside the park was] an enchanted, storybook land of trellises, columns, domes, minarets, lagoons, and lofty aerial flights. And everywhere was life—a pageant of happy people; and everywhere was color—a wide harmony of orange and white and gold…. It was a world removed—shut away from the sordid clatter and turmoil of the streets.”
—quoted in Amusing the Million

The sprawling amusement center at Coney Island became a model for urban amusement parks.

Coney Island offered Americans a few hours of escape from the hard work week. A schoolteacher who walked fully dressed into the ocean explained her unusual behavior by saying, “It has been a hard year at school, and when I saw the big crowd here, everyone with the brakes off, the spirit of the place got the better of me.” The end of the 19th century saw the rise of a “mass culture” in the United States.

American Leisure

Middle-class Americans from all over the country shared experiences as new leisure activities, nationwide advertising campaigns, and the rise of a consumer culture began to level regional differences. As the 19th century drew to a close, many Americans fought off city congestion and dull industrial work by enjoying amusement parks, bicycling, new forms of theater, and spectator sports.

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Amusement Parks

To meet the recreational needs of city dwellers, Chicago, New York City, and other cities began setting aside precious green space for outdoor enjoyment. Many cities built small playgrounds and playing fields throughout their neighborhoods for their citizens’ enjoyment.

“ Eight hours for work, eight hours for rest, eight hours for what we will”
THE CARPENTERS’ UNION, WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS

Some amusement parks were constructed on the outskirts of cities. Often built by trolley-car companies that sought more passengers, these parks boasted picnic grounds and a variety of rides. The roller coaster drew daredevil customers to Coney Island in 1884, and the first Ferris wheel drew enthusiastic crowds to the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. Clearly, many Americans were ready for new and innovative forms of entertainment—and a whole panorama of recreational activities soon became available.

Bicycling and Tennis

With their huge front wheels and solid rubber tires, the first American bicycles challenged their riders. Because a bump might toss the cyclist over the handlebars, bicycling began as a male-only sport. However, the 1885 manufacture of the first commercially successful “safety bicycle,” with its smaller wheels and air-filled tires, made the activity more popular. And the Victor safety bicycle, with a dropped frame and no crossbar, held special appeal to women.

Abandoning their tight corsets, women bicyclists donned shirtwaists (tailored blouses) and “split” skirts in order to cycle more comfortably. This attire soon became popular for daily wear. The bicycle also freed women from the scrutiny of the ever-present chaperone. The suffragist Susan B. Anthony declared, “I think [bicycling] has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. … It gives women a feeling of freedom and self-reliance.” Fifty thousand men and women had taken to cycles by 1888. Two years later 312 American firms turned out 10 million bikes in one year.

Americans took up the sport of tennis as enthusiastically as they had taken up cycling. The modern version of this sport originated in North Wales in 1873. A year later, the United States saw its first tennis match. The socialite Florence Harriman recalled that in the 1880s her father returned from England with one of New York’s first tennis sets. At first, neighbors thought the elder Harriman had installed the nets to catch birds.

Hungry or thirsty after tennis or cycling? Turn-of-the-century enthusiasts turned to new snacks with recognizable brand names. They could munch on a Hershey chocolate bar, first sold in 1900, and wash down the chocolate with a Coca-Cola®. An Atlanta pharmacist originally formulated the drink as a cure for headaches in 1886. The ingredients included extracts from Peruvian coca leaves as well as African cola nuts.

Bicycling and other new sports became fads in the late 1800s. 500 An African_American baseball team.

The Negro Leagues were first formed in 1920.

Spectator Sports

Americans not only participated in new sports, but became avid fans of spectator sports, especially boxing and baseball. Though these two sports had begun as popular informal activities, by the turn of the 20th century they had become profitable businesses. Fans who couldn’t attend an important boxing match jammed barbershops and hotel lobbies to listen to telegraphed transmissions of the contest’s highlights.

Baseball

New rules transformed baseball into a professional sport. In 1845, Alexander J. Cartwright, an amateur player, organized a club in New York City and set down regulations that used aspects of an English sport called rounders. Five years later, 50 baseball clubs had sprung up in the United States, and New York alone boasted 12 clubs in the mid-1860s.

In 1869, a professional team named the Cincinnati Red Stockings toured the country. Other clubs soon took to the road, which led to the formation of the National League in 1876 and the American League in 1900. In the first World Series, held in 1903, the Boston Pilgrims beat the Pittsburgh Pirates. African-American baseball players, who were excluded from both leagues because of racial discrimination, formed their own clubs and two leagues—the Negro National League and the Negro American League.

The novelist Mark Twain called baseball “the very symbol … and visible expression of the drive and push and rush and struggle of the raging, tearing, booming nineteenth century.” By the 1890s, baseball had a published game schedule, official rules, and a standard-sized diamond.

The Spread of Mass Culture

As increasing numbers of Americans attended school and learned to read, the cultural vistas of ordinary Americans expanded. Art galleries, libraries, books, and museums brought new cultural opportunities to more people. Other advances fostered mass entertainment. New media technology led to the release of hundreds of motion pictures. Mass-production printing techniques gave birth to thousands of books, magazines, and newspapers.

Mass Circulation Newspapers

Looking for ways to captivate readers’ attention, American newspapers began using sensational headlines. For example, to introduce its story about the horrors of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania flood of 1889, in which more than 2,000 people died, one newspaper used the headline “THE VALLEY OF DEATH.”

Joseph Pulitzer, a Hungarian immigrant who had bought the New York World in 1883, pioneered popular innovations, such as a large Sunday edition,

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comics, sports coverage, and women’s news. Pulitzer’s paper emphasized “sin, sex, and sensation” in an attempt to surpass his main competitor, the wealthy William Randolph Hearst, who had purchased the New York Morning Journal in 1895. Hearst, who already owned the San Francisco Examiner, sought to outdo Pulitzer by filling the Journal with exaggerated tales of personal scandals, cruelty, hypnotism, and even an imaginary conquest of Mars.

The escalation of their circulation war drove both papers to even more sensational news coverage. By 1898, the circulation of each paper had reached more than one million copies a day.

Promoting Fine Arts

By 1900, at least one art gallery graced every large city. Some American artists, including Philadelphian Thomas Eakins, began to embrace realism, an artistic school that attempted to portray life as it is really lived. Eakins had studied anatomy with medical students and used painstaking geometric perspective in his work. By the 1880s, Eakins was also using photography to make realistic studies of people and animals.

In the early 20th century, the Ashcan school of American art, led by Eakins’s student Robert Henri, painted urban life and working people with gritty realism and no frills. Both Eakins and the Ashcan school, however, soon were challenged by the European development known as abstract art, a direction that most people found difficult to understand.

In many cities, inhabitants could walk from a new art gallery to a new public library, sometimes called “the poor man’s university.” By 1900, free circulating libraries in America numbered in the thousands.

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Popular Fiction

As literacy rates rose, scholars debated the role of literature in society. Some felt that literature should uplift America’s literary tastes, which tended toward crime tales and Western adventures.

Most people preferred to read light fiction. Such books sold for a mere ten cents, hence their name, “dime novels.” Dime novels typically told glorified adventure tales of the West and featured heroes like Edward Wheeler’s Deadwood Dick. Wheeler published his first Deadwood Dick novel in 1877 and in less than a decade produced over 30 more.

Some readers wanted a more realistic portrayal of American life. Successful writers of the era included Sarah Orne Jewett, Theodore Dreiser, Stephen Crane, Jack London, and Willa Cather. Most portrayed characters less polished than the upper-class men and women of Henry James’s and Edith Wharton’s novels. Samuel Langhorne Clemens, the novelist and humorist better known as Mark Twain, inspired a host of other young authors when he declared his independence of “literature and all that bosh.” Yet, some of his books have become classics of American literature. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, for example, remains famed for its rendering of life along the Mississippi River.

Highly popular dime novels often featured adventure stories.

Although art galleries and libraries attempted to raise cultural standards, many Americans had scant interest in high culture—and others did not have access to it. African Americans, for example, were excluded from visiting many museums and other white-controlled cultural institutions.

New Ways to Sell Goods

Along with enjoying new leisure activities, Americans also changed the way they shopped. Americans at the turn of the 20th century witnessed the beginnings of the shopping center, the development of department and chain stores, and the birth of modern advertising.

Urban Shopping

Growing city populations made promising targets for enterprising merchants. The nation’s earliest form of a shopping center opened in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1890. The glass-topped arcade contained four levels of jewelry, leather goods, and stationery shops. The arcade also provided band music on Sundays so that Cleveland residents could spend their Sunday afternoons strolling through the elegant environment and gazing at the window displays.

Retail shopping districts formed where public transportation could easily bring shoppers from outlying areas. To anchor these retail shopping districts, ambitious merchants started something quite new, the modern department store.

The Department Store

Marshall Field of Chicago first brought the department store concept to America. While working as a store clerk, Field found that paying close attention to women customers could increase sales considerably. In 1865, Field opened his own store, featuring several floors of specialized departments. Field’s motto was “Give the lady what she wants.” Field also pioneered the bargain basement, selling bargain goods that were “less expensive but reliable.”

The Chain Store

Department stores prided themselves on offering a variety of personal services. New chain stores—retail stores offering the same merchandise under the same ownership—sold goods for less by buying in quantity and limiting personal service. In the 1870s, F. W. Woolworth found that if he offered an item at a very low price, “the consumer would purchase it on the spur of the

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moment” because “it was only a nickel.” By 1911, the Woolworth chain boasted 596 stores and sold more than a million dollars in goods a week.

Advertising

An explosion in advertising also heralded modern consumerism. Expenditures for advertising were under $10 million a year in 1865 but increased tenfold, to $95 million, by 1900. Patent medicines grabbed the largest number of advertising lines, followed by soaps and baking powders. In addition to newspapers and magazines, advertisers used ingenious methods to push products. Passengers riding the train between New York and Philadelphia in the 1870s might see signs for Dr. Drake’s Plantation Bitters on barns, houses, billboards, and even rocks.

Catalogs and Rfd

Montgomery Ward and Sears Roebuck brought retail merchandise to small towns. Ward’s catalog, launched in 1872, grew from a single sheet the first year to a booklet with ordering instructions in ten languages. Richard Sears started his company in 1886. Early Sears catalogs stated that the company received “hundreds of orders every day from young and old who never [before] sent away for goods.” By 1910, about 10 million Americans shopped by mail. The United States Post Office boosted mail-order businesses. In 1896 the Post Office introduced a rural free delivery (RFD) system that brought packages directly to every home.

The turn of the 20th century saw prosperity that caused big changes in Americans’ daily lives. At the same time, the nation’s growing industrial sector faced problems that called for reform.

Now & Then: Catalog Shopping Two Sears and Roebuck catalogs.

Catalogs were a novelty when Sears and Montgomery Ward arrived on the scene. However, by the mid-1990s, more than 13 billion catalogs filled the mailboxes of Americans.

Today, the world of mail-order business is changing. After over 100 years of operation, Montgomery Ward filed for bankruptcy on December 28, 2000.

Online shopping is challenging mail-order commerce today. Online retail sales grew from $500 million in 1998 to over $80 billion in 2005. Still, mail-order sales are about twice this amount. What do online shoppers order? Computer equipment and software make up 20 percent of online spending.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Joseph Pulitzer

• William Randolph Hearst

• Ashcan school

• Mark Twain

• rural free delivery (RFD)

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the spider diagram below. Add examples to each category.

A diagram: Three blank lines labled Leisure connected to the words Modern Mass Culture Emerges. Three other blank lines are labled Culture.

Why is mass culture often described as a democratic phenomenon?

Critical Thinking

3. SUMMARIZING

How did American methods of selling goods change at the turn of the 20th century? Think About:

• how city people did their shopping

• how rural residents bought goods

• how merchants advertised their products

4. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

This cartoon shows the masters of the “new journalism.” According to the cartoonist, where were Pulitzer and Hearst leading American journalism?

A cartoon: Pulitzer and Hearst ride a barrel labled The New Journalism over a waterfall.

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Daily Life 1877–1917: Going to the Show

As Americans moved from rural areas to cities, they looked for new ways to spend their weekend and evening leisure time. Live theatrical performances brought pleasure to cities and small towns alike. Stars, popular performers who could attract large audiences, compensated for the less-talented supporting actors. Audiences could choose from a wide range of music, drama, circus, and the latest in entertainment—moving pictures.

A photo: An African-American tap dancer wears a tuxedo.

VAUDEVILLE THEATER Performances that included song, dance, juggling, slapstick comedy, and sometimes chorus lines of female performers were characteristic of vaudeville. Promoters sought large audiences with varied backgrounds. Writing in Scribner’s Magazine in October 1899, actor Edwin Milton Royle hailed vaudeville theater as “an American invention” that offered something to attract nearly everyone. Until the 1890s, African-American performers filled roles mainly in minstrel shows that featured exaggerated imitations of African-American music and dance and reinforced racist stereotypes of blacks. By the turn of the century, however, minstrel shows had largely been replaced by more sophisticated musicals, and many black performers entertained in vaudeville. Bill “Bojangles” Robinson was a popular tap dancer. A poster: circus performers swing from a trapeze. The Barnum and Bailey Greatest Show on Earth.

A poster: circus performers swing from a trapeze. The Barnum and Bailey Greatest Show on Earth.

THE CIRCUS The biggest spectacle of all was often the annual visit of the Barnum & Bailey Circus, which its founders, P. T. Barnum and Anthony Bailey, touted as “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Established in 1871, the circus arrived by railroad and staged a parade through town to advertise the show. 505 A photo: a movie theatre sign reads Five cents, stay as long as you like.

A photo: a movie theatre sign reads Five cents, stay as long as you like.

THE SILVER SCREEN The first films, one-reel, ten minute sequences, consisted mostly of vaudeville skits or faked newsreels. In 1903, the first modern film—an eight minute silent feature called The Great Train Robbery—debuted in five-cent theaters called nickelodeons. By showing a film as often as 16 times a day, entrepreneurs could generate greater profits than by a costly stage production. By 1907, an estimated 3,000 nickelodeons dotted the country. Sheet music titled The Entertainer, by Scott Joplin.

Sheet music titled The Entertainer, by Scott Joplin.

RAGTIME MUSIC A blend of African-American spirituals and European musical forms, ragtime originated in the 1880s in the saloons of the South. African-American pianist and composer Scott Joplin’s ragtime compositions made him famous in the first decade of the 1900s. Ragtime led later to jazz, rhythm and blues, and rock ‘n’ roll. These forms of popular American culture spread worldwide, creating new dances and fashions that emulated the image of “loud, loose, American rebel.” Data File: A Look at the Facts

A shorter workweek allowed many Americans more time for leisure activities, and they certainly took advantage of it.

• In 1890, an average of 60,000 fans attended professional baseball games daily.

• In 1893, a crowd of 50,000 attended the Princeton-Yale football game.

• A Trip to Chinatown, one of the popular new musical comedies, ran for an amazing 650 performances in the 1890s.

• In 1900, 3 million phonograph records of Broadway-produced musical comedies were sold.

• The love of the popular musicals contributed to the sale of $42 million worth of musical instruments in 1900.

• By 1900, almost 500 men’s social clubs existed. Nine hundred college fraternity and sorority chapters had over 150,000 members.

Changes in the U.S. Workweek
Year	Hours per week
1860	66
1890	60
1920	51 Source: Historical Statistics of the United States

Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Interpreting Data Study the statistics in the Data File. What summary statements about the culture and attitudes of this time period can you make? Is this a time in history when you would like to have lived? Why or why not?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R27. Connect to Today

2. Chronological Order Trace the development and impact on the rest of the world of one area—music, theater, or film—of popular American culture. Use a time line from the turn of the 20th to the 21st century with “United States developments” on one side and “world impacts” on the other.

internet icon Research Links: Classzone.com

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Chapter 16: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its connection to late 19th-century American life.

1. Louis Sullivan

2. Orville and Wilbur Wright

3. Booker T. Washington

4. W. E. B. Du Bois

5. Niagara Movement

6. Ida B. Wells

7. Jim Crow laws

8. Plessy v. Ferguson

9. debt peonage

10. rural free delivery

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Science and Urban Life (pages 482–487)

1. How did new technology promote urban growth around the turn of the century?

2. In what ways did methods of communication improve in the late 19th and early 20th centuries?

Expanding Public Education (pages 488–491)

3. How did late 19th century public schools change?

4. Why did some immigrants oppose sending their children to public schools?

Segregation and Discrimination (pages 492–495)

5. In what ways was racial discrimination reinforced by the federal government’s actions and policies?

6. How did Mexicans help make the Southwest prosperous in the late 19th century?

Dawn of Mass Culture (pages 498–503)

7. What leisure activities flourished at the turn of the 20th century?

8. What innovations in retail methods changed the way Americans shopped during this time period?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a table similar to the one shown, listing at least six important trends at the turn of the century, along with a major impact of each.

Trend	Impact
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

2. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS How had changes in technology affected urban life by the turn of the 20th century?

3. INTERPRETING GRAPHS Look at the graph of Expanding Education/Increasing Literacy on page 489. Which year reported the greatest gain in the literacy rate? What do you think were the implications on society of a more literate population?

Visual Summary: Life at the Turn of the 20th Century

DESCRIPTION:

A chart: American Life Around 1900.

Science and Urban Life: improvements in transportation and communications transform growing cities.
Expanding Public Education: Millions of immigrants are assimilated into the growing public school system.
Segregation and Discrimination: African Americans and other minorities continue to confront legal and social discrimination.
Dawn of Mass Culture: Rapid growth and technological improvements make daily life and work easier- providing leisure time and extra income for consumer goods.

507 Standardized Test Practice

Use the quotation below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

“We boast of the freedom enjoyed by our people above all other peoples. But it is difficult to reconcile that boast with a state of the law which, practically, puts the brand of servitude and degradation upon a large class of our fellow-citizens, our equals before the law.”
—Justice John Marshall Harlan in the dissenting opinion in Plessy v. Ferguson

1. Justice Harlan used this reasoning for what purpose?

A to celebrate American democracy

B to justify segregation

C to denounce the “separate-but-equal” argument

D to demonstrate that equality before the law is not practical

2. Which of the following was not an outcome of expanding public education in the early 20th century?

F the establishment of public high schools and colleges

G the growth of equal education for all

H a rise in the literacy rate

J the founding of kindergartens

3. The turn of the 20th century brought shorter work hours and more leisure time to many urban Americans. Which of the following bar graphs correctly reflects these factors?

A A bar graph shows the number of parks over time: 1902, 200 parks; 1908, 425 parks; 1919, 1500 parks. Public Parks

B A bar graph shows the number of parks over time: 1902, 1500 parks; 1908, 425 park; 1919, 200 parks. Public Parks

C A bar graph shows the number of parks over time: 1902, 200 parks; 1908, 1500 parks; 1919: 425 parks. Public Parks

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 481:

How will the latest technology change your life?

Now that you know more about the role of technology in people’s lives, would you change any of your responses? Discuss your ideas with a small group. Then make a cause-and-effect chart about one technological innovation of the era and its lasting impacts on society.

2 internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Chapter Assessment to find out more about the World’s Columbian Exposition held in Chicago in 1893.

In a small group, make a list of the “famous firsts,” such as the first elevated railway, introduced at the exposition. Illustrate your list, adding pictures and informative captions, on a colorful poster for display in the classroom.

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Unit 5: Modern America Emerges 1890–1920

Chapter 17 The Progressive Era 1890–1920

Chapter 18 America Claims an Empire 1890–1920

Chapter 19 The First World War 1914–1920

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 508 and page 509 in the print version. The Statue of Liberty by Francis Hopkinson Smith 509 Painting: The Statue of Liberty

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 508 and page 509 in the print version. 510

Chapter 17: The Progressive Era

A 1916 suffrage parade. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 510 and page 511 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1889 - 1904 USA and World

1889 World: Eiffel Tower opens for visitors.
1896 USA: William McKinley is elected president.
1898 World: Marie Curie discovers radium.
1899 World: Boer War in South Africa begins.
1900 USA: William McKinley is reelected.
1901 USA: McKinley is assassinated; Theodore Roosevelt becomes president.
1901 World: Commonwealth of Australia is created.
1904 USA: Theodore Roosevelt is elected president.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 510 and page 511 in the print version. 511 Photo: A suffrage parade

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 510 and page 511 in the print version. Interact with History

It is the dawn of the 20th century, and the reform movement is growing. Moral reformers are trying to ban alcoholic beverages. Political reformers work toward fair government and business practices. Women fight for equal wages and the right to vote. Throughout society, social and economic issues take center stage.

What kinds of actions can bring about social change?

Examine the Issues

• What types of actions might pressure big business to change?

• How can individuals bring about change in their government?

• How might reformers recruit others?

Description:

Timeline: 1908 - 1920 USA and World

USA: 1908 William H. Taft is elected president.
USA: 1909 W.E.B. DuBois helps found the National Association for the Advancement of colored People (NAACP).
World: 1912 China's Qin dynasty topples.
USA: 1912 Woodrow Wilson is elected president.
World: 1914 World War I begins in Europe.
USA: 1916 Woodrow Wilson is reelected.
USA: 1919 Eighteenth Amendment outlaws alcoholic beverages.
World: 1919 Mohandas Gandhi becomes leader of the Independence movement in India.
USA: 1920 Nineteenth Amendment grants women the right to vote.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 510 and page 511 in the print version. 512

Section 1: The Origins of Progressivism

One American’s Story

Camella Teoli was just 12 years old when she began working in a Lawrence, Massachusetts, textile mill to help support her family. Soon after she started, a machine used for twisting cotton into thread tore off part of her scalp. The young Italian immigrant spent seven months in the hospital and was scarred for life.

Three years later, when 20,000 Lawrence mill workers went on strike for higher wages, Camella was selected to testify before a congressional committee investigating labor conditions such as workplace safety and underage workers. When asked why she had gone on strike, Camella answered simply, “Because I didn’t get enough to eat at home.” She explained how she had gone to work before reaching the legal age of 14.

Mill workers on strike in 1912 in Lawrence, Massachusetts

A PERSONAL VOICE

CAMELLA TEOLI

“I used to go to school, and then a man came up to my house and asked my father why I didn’t go to work, so my father says I don’t know whether she is 13 or 14 years old. So, the man say You give me $4 and I will make the papers come from the old country [Italy] saying [that] you are 14. So, my father gave him the $4, and in one month came the papers that I was 14. I went to work, and about two weeks [later] got hurt in my head. ”
—at congressional hearings, March 1912

After nine weeks of striking, the mill workers won the sympathy of the nation as well as five to ten percent pay raises. Stories like Camella’s set off a national investigation of labor conditions, and reformers across the country organized to address the problems of industrialization.

Four Goals of Progressivism

At the dawn of the new century, middle-class reformers addressed many of the problems that had contributed to the social upheavals of the 1890s. Journalists and writers exposed the unsafe conditions often faced by factory workers, including

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women and children. Intellectuals questioned the dominant role of large corporations in American society. Political reformers struggled to make government more responsive to the people. Together, these reform efforts formed the progressive movement, which aimed to restore economic opportunities and correct injustices in American life.

Even though reformers never completely agreed on the problems or the solutions, each of their progressive efforts shared at least one of the following goals:

• protecting social welfare

• promoting moral improvement

• creating economic reform

• fostering efficiency

Key Player: Florence Kelley 1859–1932 Photo: a woman wears a brimmed hat

The daughter of an antislavery Republican congressman from Pennsylvania, Florence Kelley became a social reformer whose sympathies lay with the powerless, especially working women and children. During a long career, Kelley pushed the government to solve America’s social problems.

In 1899, Kelley became general secretary of the National Consumers’ League, where she lobbied to improve factory conditions. “Why,” Kelley pointedly asked while campaigning for a federal child-labor law, “are seals, bears, reindeer, fish, wild game in the national parks, buffalo, [and] migratory birds all found suitable for federal protection, but not children?”

Protecting Social Welfare

Many social welfare reformers worked to soften some of the harsh conditions of industrialization. The Social Gospel and settlement house movements of the late 1800s, which aimed to help the poor through community centers, churches, and social services, continued during the Progressive Era and inspired even more reform activities.

The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), for example, opened libraries, sponsored classes, and built swimming pools and handball courts. The Salvation Army fed poor people in soup kitchens, cared for children in nurseries, and sent “slum brigades” to instruct poor immigrants in middle-class values of hard work and temperance.

In addition, many women were inspired by the settlement houses to take action. Florence Kelley became an advocate for improving the lives of women and children. She was appointed chief inspector of factories for Illinois after she had helped to win passage of the Illinois Factory Act in 1893. The act, which prohibited child labor and limited women’s working hours, soon became a model for other states.

Promoting Moral Improvement

Other reformers felt that morality, not the workplace, held the key to improving the lives of poor people. These reformers wanted immigrants and poor city dwellers to uplift themselves by improving their personal behavior. Prohibition, the banning of alcoholic beverages, was one such program.

Prohibitionist groups feared that alcohol was undermining American morals. Founded in Cleveland in 1874, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) spearheaded the crusade for prohibition. Members advanced their cause by entering saloons, singing, pray ing, and urging saloonkeepers to stop selling alcohol. As momentum grew, the Union was transformed by Frances Willard from a small midwestern religious group in 1879 to a national organization. Boasting 245,000 members by 1911, the WCTU became the largest women’s group in the nation’s history.

Photo: A woman holds a book and a hatchet

In the 1890s, Carry Nation worked for prohibition by walking into saloons, scolding the customers, and using her hatchet to destroy bottles of liquor.

WCTU members followed Willard’s “do everything” slogan and began opening kindergartens for immigrants, visiting

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inmates in prisons and asylums, and working for suffrage. The WCTU reform activities, like those of the settlement-house movement, provided women with expanded public roles, which they used to justify giving women voting rights.

Historical Spotlight: Anti–Saloon League

Quietly founded by progressive women in 1895, the Anti-Saloon League called itself “the Church in action against the saloon.” Whereas early temperance efforts had asked individuals to change their ways, the Anti-Saloon League worked to pass laws to force people to change and to punish those who drank.

The Anti-Saloon League endorsed politicians who opposed “Demon Rum,” no matter which party they belonged to or where they stood on other issues. It also organized statewide referendums to ban alcohol. Between 1900 and 1917, voters in nearly half of the states—mostly in the South and the West—prohibited the sale, production, and use of alcohol. Individual towns, city wards, and rural areas also voted themselves “dry.”

Sometimes efforts at prohibition led to trouble with immigrant groups. Such was the case with the Anti-Saloon League, founded in 1895. As members sought to close saloons to cure society’s problems, tension arose between them and many immigrants, whose customs often included the consumption of alcohol. Additionally, saloons filled a number of roles within the immigrant community such as cashing paychecks and serving meals.

Creating Economic Reform

As moral reformers sought to change individual behavior, a severe economic panic in 1893 prompted some Americans to question the capitalist economic system. As a result, some Americans, especially workers, embraced socialism. Labor leader Eugene V. Debs, who helped organize the American Socialist Party in 1901, commented on the uneven balance among big business, government, and ordinary people under the free-market system of capitalism.

A PERSONAL VOICE

EUGENE V. DEBS

“Competition was natural enough at one time, but do you think you are competing today? Many of you think you are competing. Against whom? Against [oil magnate John D.] Rockefeller? About as I would if I had a wheelbarrow and competed with the Santa Fe [railroad] from here to Kansas City.”
—Debs: His Life, Writings and Speeches

Though most progressives distanced themselves from socialism, they saw the truth of many of Debs’s criticisms. Big business often received favorable treatment from government officials and politicians and could use its economic power to limit competition.

Journalists who wrote about the corrupt side of business and public life in mass circulation magazines during the early 20th century became known as muckrakers (mŭk′räk′r). (The term refers to John Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress,” in which a character is so busy using a rake to clean up the muck of this world that he does not raise his eyes to heaven.) In her “History of the Standard Oil Company,” a monthly serial in McClure’s Magazine, the writer Ida M. Tarbell described the company’s cutthroat methods of eliminating competition. “Mr. Rockefeller has systematically played with loaded dice,” Tarbell charged, “and it is doubtful if there has been a time since 1872 when he has run a race with a competitor and started fair.”

Fostering Efficiency

Many progressive leaders put their faith in experts and scientific principles to make society and the workplace more efficient. In defending an Oregon law that limited women factory and laundry workers to a ten-hour day, lawyer Louis D. Brandeis paid little attention to legal argument. Instead, he focused on data produced by social scientists documenting the high costs of long working hours for both the individual and society. This type of argument—the “Brandeis brief”—would become a model for later reform litigation.

Within industry, Frederick Winslow Taylor began using time and motion studies to improve efficiency by breaking manufacturing tasks into simpler parts. “Taylorism” became a management fad, as industry reformers applied these scientific management studies to see just how quickly each task could be performed.

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Workers at the Ford flywheel factory cope with the demanding pace of the assembly line to earn five dollars a day—a good wage in 1914.

However, not all workers could work at the same rate, and although the introduction of the assembly lines did speed up production, the system required people to work like machines. This caused a high worker turnover, often due to injuries suffered by fatigued workers. To keep automobile workers happy and to prevent strikes, Henry Ford reduced the workday to eight hours and paid workers five dollars a day. This incentive attracted thousands of workers, but they exhausted themselves. As one homemaker complained in a letter to Henry Ford in 1914, “That $5 is a blessing—a bigger one than you know but oh they earn it.”

Such efforts at improving efficiency, an important part of progressivism, targeted not only industry, but government as well.

“ Everybody will be able to afford [a car], and about everyone will have one.”
HENRY FORD, 1909

Cleaning Up Local Government

Cities faced some of the most obvious social problems of the new industrial age. In many large cities, political bosses rewarded their supporters with jobs and kick-backs and openly bought votes with favors and bribes. Efforts to reform city politics stemmed in part from the desire to make government more efficient and more responsive to its constituents. But those efforts also grew from distrust of immigrants’ participation in politics.

Reforming Local Government

Natural disasters sometimes played an important role in prompting reform of city governments. In 1900, a hurricane and tidal wave almost demolished Galveston, Texas. The politicians on the city council botched the huge relief and rebuilding job so badly that the Texas legislature appointed a five-member commission of experts to take over. Each expert took charge of a different city department, and soon Galveston was rebuilt. This success prompted the city to adopt the commission idea as a form of government, and by 1917, 500 cities had followed Galveston’s example.

Another natural disaster—a flood in Dayton, Ohio, in 1913—led to the widespread adoption of the council-manager form of government. Staunton, Virginia, had already pioneered this system, in which people elected a city council to make laws. The council in turn appointed a manager, typically a person with training and experience in public administration, to run the city’s departments. By 1925, managers were administering nearly 250 cities.

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Reform Mayors

In some cities, mayors such as Hazen Pingree of Detroit, Michigan (1890–1897), and Tom Johnson of Cleveland, Ohio (1901–1909), introduced progressive reforms without changing how government was organized.

Concentrating on economics, Pingree instituted a fairer tax structure, lowered fares for public transportation, rooted out corruption, and set up a system of work relief for the unemployed. Detroit city workers built schools, parks, and a municipal lighting plant.

Johnson was only one of 19 socialist mayors who worked to institute progressive reforms in America’s cities. In general, these mayors focused on dismissing corrupt and greedy private owners of utilities—such as gasworks, waterworks, and transit lines—and converting the utilities to publicly owned enterprises. Johnson believed that citizens should play a more active role in city government. He held meetings in a large circus tent and invited them to question officials about how the city was managed.

Reform at the State Level

Local reforms coincided with progressive efforts at the state level. Spurred by progressive governors, many states passed laws to regulate railroads, mines, mills, telephone companies, and other large businesses.

Reform Governors

Under the progressive Republican leadership of Robert M. La Follette, Wisconsin led the way in regulating big business. “Fighting Bob” La Follette served three terms as governor before he entered the U.S. Senate in 1906. He explained that, as governor, he did not mean to “smash corporations, but merely to drive them out of politics, and then to treat them exactly the same as other people are treated.”

La Follette’s major target was the railroad industry. He taxed railroad property at the same rate as other business property, set up a commission to regulate rates, and forbade railroads to issue free passes to state officials. Other reform governors who attacked big business interests included Charles B. Aycock of North Carolina and James S. Hogg of Texas.

Historical Spotlight: James S. Hogg, Texas Governor (1891–1895) Photo: a portly man wearing a suit sits on a tree stump

Among the most colorful of the reform governors was James S. Hogg of Texas. Hogg helped to drive illegal insurance companies from the state and championed antitrust legislation. His chief interest, however, was in regulating the railroads. He pointed out abuses in rates—noting, for example, that it cost more to ship lumber from East Texas to Dallas than to ship it all the way to Nebraska. A railroad commission, established largely as a result of his efforts, helped increase milling and manufacturing in Texas by lowering freight rates.

Protecting Working Children

As the number of child workers rose dramatically, reformers worked to protect workers and to end child labor. Businesses hired children because they performed unskilled jobs for lower wages and because children’s small hands made them more adept at handling small parts and tools. Immigrants and rural migrants often sent their children to work because they viewed their children as part of the family economy. Often wages were so low for adults that every family member needed to work to pull the family out of poverty.

In industrial settings, however, children were more prone to accidents caused by fatigue. Many developed serious health problems and suffered from stunted growth.

Formed in 1904, the National Child Labor Committee sent investigators to gather evidence of children working in harsh conditions. They then organized exhibitions with photographs and statistics to dramatize the children’s plight. They were joined by labor union members who argued that child labor lowered wages for all workers. These groups pressured

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national politicians to pass the Keating-Owen Act in 1916. The act prohibited the transportation across state lines of goods produced with child labor.

History Through Photojournlism: Images of Child Labor

In 1908, Lewis Hine quit his teaching job to document child labor practices. Hine’s photographs and descriptions of young laborers—some only three years old—were widely distributed and displayed in exhibits. His compelling images of exploitation helped to convince the public of the need for child labor regulations.

Hine devised a host of clever tactics to gain access to his subjects, such as learning shop managers’ schedules and arriving during their lunch breaks. While talking casually with the children, he secretly scribbled notes on paper hidden in his pocket.

Because of their small size, spindle boys and girls (top) were forced to climb atop moving machinery to replace parts. For four-year-old Mary (left), shucking two pots of oysters was a typical day’s work.

Two years later the Supreme Court declared the act unconstitutional due to interference with states’ rights to regulate labor. Reformers did, however, succeed in nearly every state by effecting legislation that banned child labor and set maximum hours.

Efforts to Limit Working Hours

The Supreme Court sometimes took a more sympathetic view of the plight of workers. In the 1908 case of Muller v. Oregon, Louis D. Brandeis—assisted by Florence Kelley and Josephine Goldmark—persuasively argued that poor working women were much more economically insecure than large corporations. Asserting that women required the state’s protection against powerful employers, Brandeis convinced the Court to uphold an Oregon law limiting women to a ten-hour workday. Other states responded by enacting or strengthening laws to reduce women’s hours of work. A similar Brandeis brief in Bunting v. Oregon in 1917 persuaded the Court to uphold a ten-hour workday for men.

Progressives also succeeded in winning workers’ compensation to aid the families of workers who were hurt or killed on the job. Beginning with Maryland in 1902, one state after another passed legislation requiring employers to pay benefits in death cases.

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Reforming Elections

In some cases, ordinary citizens won state reforms. William S. U’Ren prompted his state of Oregon to adopt the secret ballot (also called the Australian ballot), the initiative, the referendum, and the recall. The initiative and referendum gave citizens the power to create laws. Citizens could petition to place an initiative—a bill originated by the people rather than lawmakers—on the ballot. Then voters, instead of the legislature, accepted or rejected the initiative by referendum, a vote on the initiative. The recall enabled voters to remove public officials from elected positions by forcing them to face another election before the end of their term if enough voters asked for it. By 1920, 20 states had adopted at least one of these procedures.

In 1899, Minnesota passed the first mandatory statewide primary system. This enabled voters, instead of political machines, to choose candidates for public office through a special popular election. About two-thirds of the states had adopted some form of direct primary by 1915.

Direct Election of Senators

It was the success of the direct primary that paved the way for the Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution. Before 1913, each state’s legislature had chosen its own United States senators, which put even more power in the hands of party bosses and wealthy corporation heads. To force senators to be more responsive to the public, progressives pushed for the popular election of senators. At first, the Senate refused to go along with the idea, but gradually more and more states began allowing voters to nominate senatorial candidates in direct primaries. As a result, Congress approved the Seventeenth Amendment in 1912. Its ratification in 1913 made direct election of senators the law of the land.

Government reform—including efforts to give Americans more of a voice in electing their legislators and creating laws—drew increased numbers of women into public life. It also focused renewed attention on the issue of woman suffrage.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• progressive movement

• Florence Kelley

• prohibition

• muckraker

• scientific management

• Robert M. La Follette

• initiative

• referendum

• recall

• Seventeenth Amendment

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Copy the web below on your paper. Fill it in with examples of organizations that worked for reform in the areas named.

Diagram: Progressive Reforms

Description:

In a diagram, four areas connect to progressive reforms.

Economic
Moral
Social Welfare
Political

Which group was most successful and why?

Critical Thinking

3. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

In what ways might Illinois, Wisconsin, and Oregon all be considered trailblazers in progressive reform? Support your answers. Think About:

• legislative and electoral reforms at the state level

• the leadership of William U’Ren and Robert La Follette

• Florence Kelley’s appointment as chief inspector of factories for Illinois

4. INTERPRETING VISUAL SOURCES

This cartoon shows Carry Nation inside a saloon that she has attacked. Do you think the cartoonist had a favorable or unfavorable opinion of this prohibitionist? Explain.

Cartoon: Carry Nation with a hatchet in a trashed saloon

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Section 2: Women in Public Life

One American’s Story

In 1879, Susette La Flesche, a young Omaha woman, traveled east to translate into English the sad words of Chief Standing Bear, whose Ponca people had been forcibly removed from their home-land in Nebraska. Later, she was invited with Chief Standing Bear to go on a lecture tour to draw attention to the Ponca’s situation.

Susette La Flesche

A PERSONAL VOICE

SUSETTE LA FLESCHE

“We are thinking men and women…. We have a right to be heard in whatever concerns us. Your government has driven us hither and thither like cattle…. Your government has no right to say to us, Go here, or Go there, and if we show any reluctance, to force us to do its will at the point of the bayonet…. Do you wonder that the Indian feels outraged by such treatment and retaliates, although it will end in death to himself?”
—quoted in Bright Eyes

La Flesche testified before congressional committees and helped win passage of the Dawes Act of 1887, which allowed individual Native Americans to claim reservation land and citizenship rights. Her activism was an example of a new role for American women, who were expanding their participation in public life.

Women in the Work Force

Before the Civil War, married middle-class women were generally expected to devote their time to the care of their homes and families. By the late 19th century, however, only middle-class and upper-class women could afford to do so. Poorer women usually had no choice but to work for wages outside the home.

Farm Women

On farms in the South and the Midwest, women’s roles had not changed substantially since the previous century. In addition to household tasks such as cooking, making clothes, and laundering, farm women handled a host of other chores such as raising livestock. Often the women had to help plow and plant the fields and harvest the crops.

Women in Industry

As better-paying opportunities became available in towns, and especially cities, women had new options for finding jobs, even though men’s labor unions excluded them from membership. At the turn of the century,

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one out of five American women held jobs; 25 percent of them worked in manufacturing.

Telephone operators manually connect phone calls in 1915. Now & Then: Telephone Operators

Today, when Americans use the telephone, an automated voice often greets them with instructions about which buttons to press. In the 19th century, every telephone call had to be handled by a telephone operator, a person who connected wires through a switchboard.

Young men, the first telephone operators, proved unsatisfactory. Patrons complained that the male operators used profane language and talked back to callers. Women soon largely replaced men as telephone operators, and were willing to accept the ten-dollar weekly wage.

Department stores advertised shopping by telephone as a convenience. One ad in the Chicago telephone book of 1904 declared, “Every [telephone] order, inquiry, or request will be quickly and intelligently cared for.” The ad pictured a line of female telephone operators.

The garment trade claimed about half of all women industrial workers. They typically held the least skilled positions, however, and received only about half as much money as their male counterparts or less. Many of these women were single and were assumed to be supporting only themselves, while men were assumed to be supporting families.

Women also began to fill new jobs in offices, stores, and classrooms. These jobs required a high school education, and by 1890, women high school graduates outnumbered men. Moreover, new business schools were preparing bookkeepers and stenographers, as well as training female typists to operate the new machines.

Domestic Workers

Many women without formal education or industrial skills contributed to the economic survival of their families by doing domestic work, such as cleaning for other families. After almost 2 million African-American women were freed from slavery, poverty quickly drove nearly half of them into the work force. They worked on farms and as domestic workers, and migrated by the thousands to big cities for jobs as cooks, laundresses, scrub-women, and maids. Altogether, roughly 70 percent of women employed in 1870 were servants.

Unmarried immigrant women also did domestic labor, especially when they first arrived in the United States. Many married immigrant women contributed to the family income by taking in piecework or caring for boarders at home.

Women Lead Reform

Dangerous conditions, low wages, and long hours led many female industrial workers to push for reforms. Their ranks grew after 146 workers, mostly young women, died in a 1911 fire in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City. Middle- and upper-class women also entered the public sphere. By 1910, women’s clubs, at which these women discussed art or literature, were nearly half a million strong. These clubs sometimes grew into reform groups that addressed issues such as temperance or child labor.

Women in Higher Education

Many of the women who became active in public life in the late 19th century had attended the new women’s colleges. Vassar

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College—with a faculty of 8 men and 22 women—accepted its first students in 1865. Smith and Wellesley Colleges followed in 1875. Though Columbia, Brown, and Harvard Colleges refused to admit women, each university established a separate college for women.

Although women were still expected to fulfill traditional domestic roles, women’s colleges sought to grant women an excellent education. In her will, Smith College’s founder, Sophia Smith, made her goals clear.

A PERSONAL VOICE

SOPHIA SMITH

“[It is my desire] to furnish for my own sex means and facilities for education equal to those which are afforded now in our College to young men…. It is not my design to render my sex any the less feminine, but to develop as fully as may be the powers of womanhood & furnish women with means of usefulness, happiness, & honor now withheld from them.”
—quoted in Alma Mater

By the late 19th century, marriage was no longer a woman’s only alternative. Many women entered the work force or sought higher education. In fact, almost half of college-educated women in the late 19th century never married, retaining their own independence. Many of these educated women began to apply their skills to needed social reforms.

Women and Reform

Uneducated laborers started efforts to reform workplace health and safety. The participation of educated women often strengthened existing reform groups and provided leadership for new ones. Because women were not allowed to vote or run for office, women reformers strove to improve conditions at work and home. Their “social housekeeping” targeted workplace reform, housing reform, educational improvement, and food and drug laws.

In 1896, African-American women founded the National Association of Colored Women, or NACW, by merging two earlier organizations. Josephine Ruffin identified the mission of the African-American women’s club movement as “the moral education of the race with which we are identified.” The NACW managed nurseries, reading rooms, and kindergartens.

After the Seneca Falls convention of 1848, women split over the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, which granted equal rights including the right to vote to African American men, but excluded women. Susan B. Anthony, a leading proponent of woman suffrage, the right to vote, said “[I] would sooner cut off my right hand than ask the ballot for the black man and not for women.” In 1869 Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton had founded the National Women Suffrage Association (NWSA), which united with another group in 1890 to

Words on suffragists' umbrellas spell out: Enlist Now. Votes for Women. Come March with us May 4 at Washington Square, 5:00 p.m. Rain or shine.

Suffragists recruit supporters for a march. 522

become the National American Woman Suffrage Association, or NAWSA. Other prominent leaders included Lucy Stone and Julia Ward Howe, the author of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.”

Woman suffrage faced constant opposition. The liquor industry feared that women would vote in support of prohibition, while the textile industry worried that women would vote for restrictions on child labor. Many men simply feared the changing role of women in society.

Key Player: Susan B. Anthony 1820–1906 Portrait: Susan B. Anthony

Born to a strict Quaker family, Susan B. Anthony was not allowed to enjoy typical childhood entertainment such as music, games, and toys. Her father insisted on self-discipline, education, and a strong belief system for all of his eight children. At an early age, Anthony developed a positive view of womanhood from a teacher named Mary Perkins who educated the children in their home.

After voting illegally in the presidential election of 1872, Anthony was fined $100 at her trial. ”Not a penny shall go to this unjust claim,” she defiantly declared. She never paid the fine.

A Three–Part Strategy for Suffrage

Suffragist leaders tried three approaches to achieve their objective. First, they tried to convince state legislatures to grant women the right to vote. They achieved a victory in the territory of Wyoming in 1869, and by the 1890s Utah, Colorado, and Idaho had also granted voting rights to women. After 1896, efforts in other states failed.

Second, women pursued court cases to test the Fourteenth Amendment, which declared that states denying their male citizens the right to vote would lose congressional representation. Weren’t women citizens, too? In 1871 and 1872, Susan B. Anthony and other women tested that question by attempting to vote at least 150 times in ten states and the District of Columbia. The Supreme Court ruled in 1875 that women were indeed citizens—but then denied that citizenship automatically conferred the right to vote.

Third, women pushed for a national constitutional amendment to grant women the vote. Stanton succeeded in having the amendment introduced in California, but it was killed later. For the next 41 years, women lobbied to have it reintroduced, only to see it continually voted down.

Before the turn of the century, the campaign for suffrage achieved only modest success. Later, however, women’s reform efforts paid off in improvements in the treatment of workers and in safer food and drug products—all of which President Theodore Roosevelt supported, along with his own plans for reforming business, labor, and the environment.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• NACW

• suffrage

• Susan B. Anthony

• NAWSA

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one below, fill in details about working women in the late 1800s.

Diagram: Women Workers. Late 1800s. Four categories comprise women workers in the late 1800s: Farm women, Domestic workers, Factory workers, and White-collar workers

What generalizations can you make about women workers at this time?

Critical Thinking

3. SYNTHESIZING

What women and movements during the Progressive Era helped dispel the stereotype that women were submissive and nonpolitical?

4. MAKING INFERENCES

Why do you think some colleges refused to accept women in the late 19th century?

5. ANALYZING ISSUES

Imagine you are a woman during the Progressive Era. Explain how you might recruit other women to support the following causes: improving education, housing reform, food and drug laws, the right to vote. Think About:

• the problems that each movement was trying to remedy

• how women benefited from each cause

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Section 3: Teddy Roosevelt’s Square Deal

One American’s Story

When muckraking journalist Upton Sinclair began research for a novel in 1904, his focus was the human condition in the stock-yards of Chicago. Sinclair intended his novel to reveal “the breaking of human hearts by a system [that] exploits the labor of men and women for profits.” What most shocked readers in Sinclair’s book The Jungle (1906), however, was the sickening conditions of the meatpacking industry.

Upton Sinclair poses with his son at the time of the writing of The Jungle.

A PERSONAL VOICE

UPTON SINCLAIR

“There would be meat that had tumbled out on the floor, in the dirt and sawdust, where the workers had tramped and spit uncounted billions of consumption [tuberculosis] germs. There would be meat stored in great piles in rooms; … and thousands of rats would race about on it…. A man could run his hand over these piles of meat and sweep off handfuls of the dried dung of rats. These rats were nuisances, and the packers would put poisoned bread out for them; they would die, and then rats, bread, and meat would go into the hoppers together.”
—The Jungle

President Theodore Roosevelt, like many other readers, was nauseated by Sinclair’s account. The president invited the author to visit him at the White House, where Roosevelt promised that “the specific evils you point out shall, if their existence be proved, and if I have the power, be eradicated.”

A Rough-Riding President

Theodore Roosevelt was not supposed to be president. In 1900, the young governor from New York was urged to run as McKinley’s vice-president by the state’s political bosses, who found Roosevelt impossible to control. The plot to nominate Roosevelt worked, taking him out of state office. However, as vice-president,

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Roosevelt stood a heartbeat away from becoming president. Indeed, President McKinley had served barely six months of his second term before he was assassinated, making Roosevelt the most powerful person in the government.

When the president spared a bear cub on a hunting expedition, a toymaker marketed a popular new product, the teddy bear.

Roosevelt’s Rise

Theodore Roosevelt was born into a wealthy New York family in 1858. An asthma sufferer during his childhood, young Teddy drove himself to accomplish demanding physical feats. As a teenager, he mastered marksmanship and horseback riding. At Harvard College, Roosevelt boxed and wrestled.

At an early age, the ambitious Roosevelt became a leader in New York politics. After serving three terms in the New York State Assembly, he became New York City’s police commissioner and then assistant secretary of the U.S. Navy. The aspiring politician grabbed national attention, advocating war against Spain in 1898. His volunteer cavalry brigade, the Rough Riders, won public acclaim for its role in the battle at San Juan Hill in Cuba. Roosevelt returned a hero and was soon elected governor of New York and then later won the vice-presidency.

The Modern Presidency

When Roosevelt was thrust into the presidency in 1901, he became the youngest president ever at 42 years old. Unlike previous presidents, Roosevelt soon dominated the news with his many exploits. While in office, Roosevelt enjoyed boxing, although one of his opponents blinded him in the left eye. On another day, he galloped 100 miles on horseback, merely to prove the feat possible.

In politics, as in sports, Roosevelt acted boldly, using his personality and popularity to advance his programs. His leadership and publicity campaigns helped create the modern presidency, making him a model by which all future presidents would be measured. Citing federal responsibility for the national welfare, Roosevelt thought the government should assume control whenever states proved incapable of dealing with problems. He explained, “It is the duty of the president to act upon the theory that he is the steward of the people, and … to assume that he has the legal right to do whatever the needs of the people demand, unless the Constitution or the laws explicitly forbid him to do it.”

Photo: Teddy Roosevelt jumps his horse over a fence

Teddy Roosevelt enjoyed an active lifestyle, as this 1902 photo reveals. 525

Roosevelt saw the presidency as a “bully pulpit,” from which he could influence the news media and shape legislation. If big business victimized workers, then President Roosevelt would see to it that the common people received what he called a Square Deal. This term was used to describe the various progressive reforms sponsored by the Roosevelt administration.

Using Federal Power

Roosevelt’s study of history—he published the first of his 44 books at the age of 24—convinced him that modern America required a powerful federal government. “A simple and poor society can exist as a democracy on the basis of sheer individualism,” Roosevelt declared, “but a rich and complex industrial society cannot so exist.” The young president soon met several challenges to his assertion of federal power.

Trustbusting

By 1900, trusts—legal bodies created to hold stock in many companies—controlled about four-fifths of the industries in the United States. Some trusts, like Standard Oil, had earned poor reputations with the public by the use of unfair business practices. Many trusts lowered their prices to drive competitors out of the market and then took advantage of the lack of competition to jack prices up even higher. Although Congress had passed the Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890, the act’s vague language made enforcement difficult. As a result, nearly all the suits filed against the trusts under the Sherman Act were ineffective.

President Roosevelt did not believe that all trusts were harmful, but he sought to curb the actions of those that hurt the public interest. The president concentrated his efforts on filing suits under the Sherman Antitrust Act. In 1902, Roosevelt made newspaper headlines as a trustbuster when he ordered the Justice Department to sue the Northern Securities Company, which had established a monopoly over northwestern railroads. In 1904, the Supreme Court dissolved the company. Although the Roosevelt administration filed 44 antitrust suits, winning a number of them and breaking up some of the trusts, it was unable to slow the merger movement in business.

Analyzing Political Cartoons: “The Lion-Tamer”

As part of his Square Deal, President Roosevelt aggressively used the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 to attack big businesses engaging in unfair practices. His victory over his first target, the Northern Securities Company, earned him a reputation as a hard-hitting trustbuster committed to protecting the public interest. This cartoon shows Roosevelt trying to tame the wild lions that symbolize the great and powerful companies of 1904.

Cartoon: Teddy Roosevelt snapping a whip over lions

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1902 Coal Strike

When 140,000 coal miners in Pennsylvania went on strike and demanded a 20 percent raise, a nine-hour workday, and the right to organize a union, the mine operators refused to bargain. Five months into the strike, coal reserves ran low. Roosevelt, seeing the need to intervene, called both sides to the White House to talk, and eventually settled the strike. Irked by the “extraordinary stupidity and bad temper” of the mine operators, he later confessed that only the dignity of the presidency had kept him from taking one owner “by the seat of the breeches” and tossing him out of the window.

Faced with Roosevelt’s threat to take over the mines, the opposing sides finally agreed to submit their differences to an arbitration commission—a third party that would work with both sides to mediate the dispute. In 1903, the commission issued its compromise settlement. The miners won a 10 percent pay hike and a shorter, nine-hour workday. With this, however, they had to give up their demand for a closed shop—in which all workers must belong to the union—and their right to strike during the next three years.

President Roosevelt’s actions had demonstrated a new principle. From then on, when a strike threatened the public welfare, the federal government was expected to intervene. In addition, Roosevelt’s actions reflected the progressive belief that disputes could be settled in an orderly way with the help of experts, such as those on the arbitration commission.

“ In life, as in a football game, the principle … is: Hit the line hard.”
THEODORE ROOSEVELT

Railroad Regulation

Roosevelt’s real goal was federal regulation. In 1887, Congress had passed the Interstate Commerce Act, which prohibited wealthy railroad owners from colluding to fix high prices by dividing the business in a given area. The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was set up to enforce the new law but had little power. With Roosevelt’s urging, Congress passed the Elkins Act in 1903, which made it illegal for railroad officials to give, and shippers to receive, rebates for using particular railroads. The act also specified that railroads could not change set rates without notifying the public.

The Hepburn Act of 1906 strictly limited the distribution of free railroad passes, a common form of bribery. It also gave the ICC power to set maximum railroad rates. Although Roosevelt had to compromise with conservative senators who opposed the act, its passage boosted the government’s power to regulate the railroads.

Now & Then: Meat Inspection

During the Progressive Era, people worried about the kinds of things that might fall—or walk—into a batch of meat being processed. Today, Americans worry more about contamination by unseen dangers, such as E. coli bacteria, mad cow disease, and antibiotics or other chemicals that may pose long-range health risks to people.

In July 1996, Congress passed the most extensive changes in standards for meat inspection since the Meat Inspection Act of 1906. The costs of the new, more scientific inspections amount to about a tenth of a penny per pound of meat. The FDA has also adopted restrictions on importation of feed and livestock from other countries to prevent the spread of disease.

Health and the Environment

President Roosevelt’s enthusiasm and his considerable skill at compromise led to laws and policies that benefited both public health and the environment. He wrote, “We recognize and are bound to war against the evils of today. The remedies are partly economic and partly spiritual, partly to be obtained by laws, and in greater part to be obtained by individual and associated effort.”

Regulating Foods and Drugs

After reading The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, Roosevelt responded to the public’s clamor for action. He appointed a commission of experts to investigate the meatpacking industry. The commission issued a scathing report backing up Sinclair’s account of the disgusting conditions in the industry. True to his word, in 1906 Roosevelt pushed for passage of the Meat Inspection Act,

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Description:

Mine shaft illustration with labels:

Label 1: Most underground mines had two shafts - an elevator shaft (shown here) for transporting workers and coal, and an air shaft for ventilation.
Label 2: The miners' main tool was the pick. Many also used drilling machines.
Label 3: Donkeys or mules pulled the coal cars to the elevators, which transported the coal to the surface.

Coal Mining in the Early 1900s
INTERACTIVE Coal played a key role in America’s industrial boom around the turn of the century, providing the United States with about 90 percent of its energy. Miners often had to dig for coal hundreds of feet below the earth’s surface. The work in these mines was among the hardest and most dangerous in the world. Progressive Era reforms helped improve conditions for miners, as many won wage increases and shorter work hours. Most underground mines had two shafts—an elevator shaft (shown here) for transporting workers and coal, and an air shaft for ventilation. The miners’ main tool was the pick. Many also used drilling machines. Donkeys or mules pulled the coal cars to the elevators, which transported the coal to the surface. Photo: A grimy boy with a face blackened by coal dust

Photo: A grimy boy with a face blackened by coal dust

The coal mines employed thousands of children, like this boy pictured in 1909. In 1916, progressives helped secure passage of a child labor law that forbade interstate commerce of goods produced by children under the age of 14. Photo: In a mine, a man strikes a rock with a pick

Photo: In a mine, a man strikes a rock with a pick

Like these men working in 1908, miners typically spent their days in dark, cramped spaces underground. Illustration: layout of a mine showing tall shafts, neat tunnels, squared-off pillars, and a railway track with coal-cars

Illustration: layout of a mine showing tall shafts, neat tunnels, squared-off pillars, and a railway track with coal-cars

Most mines used a room-and-pillar method for extracting coal. This entailed digging out “rooms” of coal off a series of tunnels, leaving enough coal behind to form a pillar that prevented the room from collapsing. pillars air shaft room elevator shaft room Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 528

which dictated strict cleanliness requirements for meatpackers and created the program of federal meat inspection that was in use until it was replaced by more sophisticated techniques in the 1990s.

Photo: men inspect a row of meat carcasses

Government workers inspect meat as it moves through the packinghouse.

The compromise that won the act’s passage, however, left the government paying for the inspections and did not require companies to label their canned goods with date-of-processing information. The compromise also granted meat-packers the right to appeal negative decisions in court.

Pure Food and Drug Act

Before any federal regulations were established for advertising food and drugs, manufacturers had claimed that their products accomplished everything from curing cancer to growing hair. In addition, popular children’s medicines often contained opium, cocaine, or alcohol. In a series of lectures across the country, Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley, chief chemist at the Department of Agriculture, criticized manufacturers for adding harmful preservatives to food and brought needed attention to this issue.

In 1906, Congress passed the Pure Food and Drug Act, which halted the sale of contaminated foods and medicines and called for truth in labeling. Although this act did not ban harmful products outright, its requirement of truthful labels reflected the progressive belief that given accurate information, people would act wisely.

A typical late-19th-century product advertisement.

Conservation and Natural Resources

Before Roosevelt’s presidency, the federal government had paid very little attention to the nation’s natural resources. Despite the establishment of the U.S. Forest Bureau in 1887 and the subsequent withdrawal from public sale of 45 million acres of timberlands for a national forest reserve, the government stood by while private interests gobbled up the shrinking wilderness.

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In the late 19th century Americans had shortsightedly exploited their natural environment. Pioneer farmers leveled the forests and plowed up the prairies. Ranchers allowed their cattle to overgraze the Great Plains. Coal companies cluttered the land with refuse from mines. Lumber companies ignored the effect of their logging operations on flood control and neglected to plant trees to replace those they had cut down. Cities dumped untreated sewage and industrial wastes into rivers, poisoning the streams and creating health hazards.

Conservation Measures

Roosevelt condemned the view that America’s resources were endless and made conservation a primary concern. John Muir, a naturalist and writer with whom Roosevelt camped in California’s Yosemite National Park in 1903, persuaded the president to set aside 148 million acres of forest reserves. Roosevelt also set aside 1.5 million acres of water-power sites and another 80 million acres of land that experts from the U.S. Geological Survey would explore for mineral and water resources. Roosevelt also established more than 50 wildlife sanctuaries and several national parks.

True to the Progressive belief in using experts, in 1905 the president named Gifford Pinchot as head of the U.S. Forest Service. A professional conservationist, Pinchot had administrative skill as well as the latest scientific and technical information. He advised Roosevelt to conserve forest and grazing lands by keeping large tracts of federal land exempt from private sale.

Conservationists like Roosevelt and Pinchot, however, did not share the views of Muir, who advocated complete preservation of the wilderness. Instead, conservation to them meant that some wilderness areas would be preserved while others would be developed for the common good. Indeed, Roosevelt’s federal water projects transformed some dry wilderness areas to make agriculture possible. Under the National Reclamation Act of 1902, known as the Newlands

Description:

A map of the United States, plus Alaska, shows Federal Conservation Lands created between 1872 and 1996.

Created 1872 - 1900: These are clustered in the Western third of the contiguous United States.
Created 1901 - 1908: These are clustered in the Western third of the contiguous United States, with a few in the midwest, and a scattered few in the Eastern third of the USA.
Created 1909 - 1996: These are primarily clustered in the southeastern area of the USA, plus a few in Alaska, the Great Lakes region, the Northeast, and the Western third of the USA.

Federal Conservation Lands, 1872–1996 530

Act, money from the sale of public lands in the West funded large-scale irrigation projects, such as the Roosevelt Dam in Arizona and the Shoshone Dam in Wyoming. The Newlands Act established the precedent that the federal government would manage the precious water resources of the West.

Roosevelt and Civil Rights

Roosevelt’s concern for the land and its inhabitants was not matched in the area of civil rights. Though Roosevelt’s father had supported the North, his mother, Martha, may well have been the model for the Southern belle Scarlet O’Hara in Margaret Mitchell’s famous novel, Gone with the Wind. In almost two terms as president, Roosevelt—like most other progressives—failed to support civil rights for African Americans. He did, however, support a few individual African Americans.

Despite opposition from whites, Roosevelt appointed an African American as head of the Charleston, South Carolina, customhouse. In another instance, when some whites in Mississippi refused to accept the black postmistress he had appointed, he chose to close the station rather than give in. In 1906, however, Roosevelt angered many African Americans when he dismissed without question an entire regiment of African-American soldiers accused of conspiracy in protecting others charged with murder in Brownsville, Texas.

As a symbolic gesture, Roosevelt invited Booker T. Washington to dinner at the White House. Washington—head of the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute, an all-black training school—was then the African-American leader most respected by powerful whites. Washington faced opposition, however, from other African

Group Photo: a dozen Civil Rights leaders

Civil rights leaders gather at the 1905 Niagara Falls conference. 531

Americans, such as W. E. B. Du Bois, for his accommodation of segregationists and for blaming black poverty on blacks and urging them to accept discrimination.

Persistent in his criticism of Washington’s ideas, Du Bois renewed his demands for immediate social and economic equality for African Americans. In his 1903 book The Souls of Black Folk, Du Bois wrote of his opposition to Washington’s position.

Key Player: W. E. B. DU BOIS 1868–1963 Portrait: W.E.B. Du Bois

In 1909, W. E. B. Du Bois helped to establish the NAACP and entered into the forefront of the early U.S. civil rights movement. However, in the 1920s, he faced a power struggle with the NAACP’s executive secretary, Walter White.

Ironically, Du Bois had retreated to a position others saw as dangerously close to that of Booker T. Washington. Arguing for a separate economy for African Americans, Du Bois made a distinction, which White rejected, between enforced and voluntary segregation. By mid-century, Du Bois was outside the mainstream of the civil rights movement. His work remained largely ignored until after his death in 1963.

A PERSONAL VOICE

W. E. B. DU BOIS

“So far as Mr. Washington preaches Thrift, Patience, and Industrial Training for the masses, we must hold up his hands and strive with him…. But so far as Mr. Washington apologizes for injustice, North or South, does not rightly value the privilege and duty of voting, belittles the emasculating effects of caste distinctions, and opposes the higher training and ambition of our brighter minds,—so far as he, the South, or the Nation, does this,—we must unceasingly and firmly oppose them.”
—The Souls of Black Folk

Du Bois and other advocates of equality for African Americans were deeply upset by the apparent progressive indifference to racial injustice. In 1905 they held a civil rights conference in Niagara Falls, and in 1909 a number of African Americans joined with prominent white reformers in New York to found the NAACP—the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The NAACP, which had over 6,000 members by 1914, aimed for nothing less than full equality among the races. That goal, however, found little support in the Progressive Movement, which focused on the needs of middle-class whites. The two presidents who followed Roosevelt also did little to advance the goal of racial equality.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Upton Sinclair

• The Jungle

• Theodore Roosevelt

• Square Deal

• Meat Inspection Act

• Pure Food and Drug Act

• conservation

• NAACP

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create five problem-solution diagrams like the one below to show how the following problems were addressed during Roosevelt’s presidency: (a) 1902 coal strike, (b) Northern Securities Company monopoly, (c) unsafe meat processing, (d) exploitation of the environment, and (e) racial injustice.

Diagram: An arrow points from Problems to Solutions.

Write headlines announcing the solutions.

Critical Thinking

3. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

In what ways do you think the progressive belief in using experts played a role in shaping Roosevelt’s reforms? Refer to details from the text. Think About:

• Roosevelt’s use of experts to help him tackle political, economic, and environmental problems

• how experts’ findings affected legislative actions

4. EVALUATING

Research the coal strike of 1902. Do you think Roosevelt’s intervention was in favor of the strikers or of the mine operators? Why?

5. ANALYZING ISSUES

Why did W. E. B. Du Bois oppose Booker T. Washington’s views on racial discrimination?

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American Literature: The Muckrakers

1902–1917 The tradition of the investigative reporter uncovering corruption was established early in the 20th century by the writers known as muckrakers. Coined by President Theodore Roosevelt, the term muck-raker alludes to the English author John Bunyan’s famous 17th-century religious allegory The Pilgrim’s Progress, which features a character too busy raking up the muck to see a heavenly crown held over him. The originally negative term soon was applied to many writers whose reform efforts Roosevelt himself supported. The muckraking movement spilled over from journalism as writers such as Upton Sinclair made use of the greater dramatic effects of fiction.

IDA M. TARBELL Ida M. Tarbell’s “The History of the Standard Oil Company” exposed the ruthlessness with which John D. Rockefeller had turned his oil business into an all-powerful monopoly. Her writing added force to the trustbusting reforms of the early 20th century. Here Tarbell describes how Standard Oil used lower transportation rates to drive out smaller refineries, such as Hanna, Baslington and Company.

Mr. Hanna had been refining since July, 1869…. Some time in February, 1872, the Standard Oil Company asked [for] an interview with him and his associates. They wanted to buy his works, they said. “But we don’t want to sell,” objected Mr. Hanna. “You can never make any more money, in my judgment,” said Mr. Rockefeller. “You can’t compete with the Standard. We have all the large refineries now. If you refuse to sell, it will end in your being crushed.” Hanna and Baslington were not satisfied. They went to see … General Devereux, manager of the Lake Shore road. They were told that the Standard had special rates; that it was useless to try to compete with them. General Devereux explained to the gentlemen that the privileges granted the Standard were the legitimate and necessary advantage of the larger shipper over the smaller…. General Devereux says they “recognised the propriety” of his excuse. They certainly recognised its authority. They say that they were satisfied they could no longer get rates to and from Cleveland which would enable them to live, and “reluctantly” sold out. It must have been reluctantly, for they had paid $75,000 for their works, and had made thirty per cent. a year on an average on their investment, and the Standard appraiser allowed them $45,000.

—Ida M. Tarbell, “The History of the Standard Oil Company” (1904) 533 Cartoon: A man holds a pen and paper

LINCOLN STEFFENS Lincoln Steffens is usually named as a leading figure of the muckraking movement. He published exposés of business and government corruption in McClure’s Magazine and other magazines. These articles were then collected in two books: The Shame of the Cities and The Struggle for Self-Government. Below is a section from an article Steffens wrote to expose voter fraud in Philadelphia.

The police are forbidden by law to stand within thirty feet of the polls, but they are at the box and they are there to see that the [Republican political] machine’s orders are obeyed and that repeaters whom they help to furnish are permitted to vote without “intimidation” on the names they, the police, have supplied. The editor of an anti-machine paper who was looking about for himself once told me that a ward leader who knew him well asked him into a polling place. “I’ll show you how it’s done,” he said, and he had the repeaters go round and round voting again and again on the names handed them on slips…. The business proceeds with very few hitches; there is more jesting than fighting. Violence in the past has had its effect; and is not often necessary nowadays, but if it is needed the police are there to apply it.

—Lincoln Steffens, The Shame of the Cities (1904) Illustration: workers chop up meat carcasses

UPTON SINCLAIR Upton Sinclair’s chief aim in writing The Jungle was to expose the shocking conditions that immigrant workers endured. The public, however, reacted even more strongly to the novel’s revelations of unsanitary conditions in the meatpacking industry. Serialized in 1905 and published in book form one year later, The Jungle prompted a federal investigation that resulted in passage of the Meat Inspection Act in 1906.

Jonas had told them how the meat that was taken out of pickle would often be found sour, and how they would rub it up with [baking] soda to take away the smell, and sell it to be eaten on free-lunch counters; also of all the miracles of chemistry which they performed, giving to any sort of meat, fresh or salted, whole or chopped, any color and any flavor and any odor they chose….

It was only when the whole ham was spoiled that it came into the department of Elzbieta. Cut up by the two-thousand-revolutions-a-minute flyers, and mixed with half a ton of other meat, no odor that ever was in a ham could make any difference. There was never the least attention paid to what was cut up for sausage; there would come all the way back from Europe old sausage that had been rejected, and that was moldy and white—it would be dosed with borax and glycerine, and dumped into the hoppers, and made over again for home consumption.

—Upton Sinclair, The Jungle (1906) Thinking Critically

1. Comparing and Contrasting State the main idea of each of these selections. What role do details play in making the passages convincing?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R8.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links for American Literature: The Muckrakers to learn more about the muckrakers. What topics did they investigate? How did they affect public opinion? What legal changes did they help to bring about? Write a summary of the muckrakers’ impact on society.

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Section 4: Progressivism Under Taft

One American’s Story

Early in the 20th century, Americans’ interest in the preservation of the country’s wilderness areas intensified. Writers proclaimed the beauty of the landscape, and new groups like the Girl Scouts gave city children the chance to experience a different environment. The desire for preservation clashed with business interests that favored unrestricted development. Gifford Pinchot (pGnPshIQ), head of the U.S. Forest Service under President Roosevelt, took a middle ground. He believed that wilderness areas could be scientifically managed to yield public enjoyment while allowing private development.

Gifford Pinchot

A PERSONAL VOICE

GIFFORD PINCHOT

“The American people have evidently made up their minds that our natural resources must be conserved. That is good. But it settles only half the question. For whose benefit shall they be conserved—for the benefit of the many, or for the use and profit of the few? … There is no other question before us that begins to be so important, or that will be so difficult to straddle, as the great question between special interest and equal opportunity, between the privileges of the few and the rights of the many, between government by men for human welfare and government by money for profit.”
—The Fight for Conservation

President Roosevelt, a fellow conservationist, favored Pinchot’s multi-use land program. However, when he left office in 1909, this approach came under increasing pressure from business people who favored unrestricted commercial development.

Taft Becomes President

After winning the election in 1904, Roosevelt pledged not to run for reelection in 1908. He handpicked his secretary of war, William Howard Taft, to run against William Jennings Bryan, who had been nominated by the Democrats for the third time. Under the slogan “Vote for Taft this time, You can vote for Bryan any time,” Taft and the Republicans won an easy victory.

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Taft Stumbles

As president, Taft pursued a cautiously progressive agenda, seeking to consolidate rather than to expand Roosevelt’s reforms. He received little credit for his accomplishments, however. His legal victories, such as busting 90 trusts in a four-year term, did not bolster his popularity. Indeed, the new president confessed in a letter to Roosevelt that he never felt like the president. “When I am addressed as ‘Mr. President,’” Taft wrote, “I turn to see whether you are not at my elbow.”

The cautious Taft hesitated to use the presidential bully pulpit to arouse public opinion. Nor could he subdue troublesome members of his own party. Tariffs and conservation posed his first problems.

Difficult Decisions: Controlling Resources

Historically, conservationists such as Gifford Pinchot have stood for the balanced use of natural resources, preserving some and using others for private industry. Free-market advocates like Richard Ballinger pressed for the private development of wilderness areas. Preservationists such as John Muir advocated preserving all remaining wilderness.

1. Examine the pros and cons of each position. With which do you agree? What factors do you think should influence decisions about America’s wilderness areas?

2. If you’d been asked in 1902 to decide whether to develop or preserve America’s wilderness areas, what would you have decided? Why?

The Payne–Aldrich Tariff

Taft had campaigned on a platform of lowering tariffs, a staple of the progressive agenda. When the House passed the Payne Bill, which lowered rates on imported manufactured goods, the Senate proposed an alternative bill, the Aldrich Bill, which made fewer cuts and increased many rates. Amid cries of betrayal from the progressive wing of his party, Taft signed the Payne-Aldrich Tariff, a compromise that only moderated the high rates of the Aldrich Bill. This angered progressives who believed Taft had abandoned progressivism. The president made his difficulties worse by clumsily attempting to defend the tariff, calling it “the best [tariff] bill the Republican party ever passed.”

Disputing Public Lands

Next, Taft angered conservationists by appointing as his secretary of the interior Richard A. Ballinger, a wealthy lawyer from Seattle. Ballinger, who disapproved of conservationist controls on western lands, removed 1 million acres of forest and mining lands from the reserved list and returned it to the public domain.

When a Department of the Interior official was fired for protesting Ballinger’s actions, the fired worker published a muckraking article against Ballinger in Collier’s Weekly magazine. Pinchot added his voice. In congressional testimony he accused Ballinger of letting commercial interests exploit the natural resources that rightfully belonged to the public. President Taft sided with Ballinger and fired Pinchot from the U.S. Forest Service.

The Republican Party Splits

Taft’s cautious nature made it impossible for him to hold together the two wings of the Republican Party: progressives who sought change and conservatives who did not. The Republican Party began to fragment.

Problems within the Party

Republican conservatives and progressives split over Taft’s support of the political boss Joseph Cannon, House Speaker from Illinois. A rough-talking, tobacco-chewing politician, “Uncle Joe” often disregarded seniority in filling committee slots. As chairman of the House Rules Committee, which decides what bills Congress considers, Cannon often weakened or ignored progressive bills.

Reform-minded Republicans decided that their only alternative was to strip Cannon of his power. With the help of Democrats, they succeeded in March 1910 with a resolution that called for the entire House to elect the Committee on Rules and excluded the Speaker from membership in the committee.

William Howard Taft 536 Key Player: William Howard Taft 1857–1930 Illustration: William Howard Taft and the Presidential Seal

William Howard Taft never wanted to be president. After serving one term, Taft left the White House, which he called “the lonesomest place in the world,” and taught constitutional law at Yale for eight years.

In 1921, President Harding named Taft chief justice of the Supreme Court. The man whose family had nicknamed him “Big Lub” called this appointment the highest honor he had ever received. As chief justice, Taft wrote that “in my present life I don’t remember that I ever was President.”

However, Americans remember Taft for, among many other things, initiating in 1910 the popular presidential custom of throwing out the first ball of the major league baseball season.

By the midterm elections of 1910, however, the Republican Party was in shambles, with the progressives on one side and the “old guard” on the other. Voters voiced concern over the rising cost of living, which they blamed on the Payne-Aldrich Tariff. They also believed Taft to be against conservation. When the Republicans lost the election, the Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives for the first time in 18 years.

The Bull Moose Party

After leaving office, Roosevelt headed to Africa to shoot big game. He returned in 1910 to a hero’s welcome, and responded with a rousing speech proposing a “New Nationalism,” under which the federal government would exert its power for “the welfare of the people.”

By 1912, Roosevelt had decided to run for a third term as president. The primary elections showed that Republicans wanted Roosevelt, but Taft had the advantage of being the incumbent—that is, the holder of the office. At the Republican convention in June 1912, Taft supporters maneuvered to replace Roosevelt delegates with Taft delegates in a number of delegations. Republican progressives refused to vote and formed a new third party, the Progressive Party. They nominated Roosevelt for president.

The Progressive Party became known as the Bull Moose Party, after Roosevelt’s boast that he was “as strong as a bull moose.” The party’s platform called for the direct election of senators and the adoption in all states of the initiative, referendum, and recall. It also advocated woman suffrage, workmen’s compensation, an eight-hour workday, a minimum wage for women, a federal law against child labor, and a federal trade commission to regulate business.

The split in the Republican ranks handed the Democrats their first real chance at the White House since the election of Grover Cleveland in 1892. In the 1912 presidential election, they put forward as their candidate a reform governor of New Jersey named Woodrow Wilson.

Democrats Win in 1912

Under Governor Woodrow Wilson’s leadership, the previously conservative New Jersey legislature had passed a host of reform measures. Now, as the Democratic presidential nominee, Wilson endorsed a progressive platform called the New Freedom. It demanded even stronger antitrust legislation, banking reform, and reduced tariffs.

The split between Taft and Roosevelt, former Republican allies, turned nasty during the fall campaign. Taft labeled Roosevelt a “dangerous egotist,” while Roosevelt branded Taft a “fathead” with the brain of a “guinea pig.” Wilson distanced himself, quietly gloating, “Don’t interfere when your enemy is destroying himself.”

The election offered voters several choices: Wilson’s New Freedom, Taft’s conservatism, Roosevelt’s progressivism, or the Socialist Party policies of Eugene V. Debs. Both Roosevelt and Wilson supported a stronger government role in economic affairs but differed over strategies. Roosevelt supported government action to supervise big business but did not oppose all business monopolies, while Debs

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called for an end to capitalism. Wilson supported small business and free-market competition and characterized all business monopolies as evil. In a speech, Wilson explained why he felt that all business monopolies were a threat.

Presidential Election of 1912

prodnote render= "optional">Description:

Map of USA: shows 1912 election electoral votes.

Democrat Woodrow Wilson carries all states except 8.
Progressive Theodore Roosevelt carries 5 states.
Wilson and Roosevelt split California, 11 electoral votes to 2.
Republican William H. Taft carries 2 states.
Socialist Eugene V. Debs carries no states.

Party	Candidate	Electoral votes	Popular vote
Democratic	Woodrow Wilson	435	6,296,547
Progressive	Theodore Roosevelt	88	4,118,571
Republican	William H. Taft	8	3,486,720
Socialist	Eugene V. Debs	0	900,672

Roosevelt, 11 Wilson, 2 Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WOODROW WILSON

“If the government is to tell big business men how to run their business, then don’t you see that big business men have to get closer to the government even than they are now? Don’t you see that they must capture the government, in order not to be restrained too much by it? … I don’t care how benevolent the master is going to be, I will not live under a master. That is not what America was created for. America was created in order that every man should have the same chance as every other man to exercise mastery over his own fortunes.”
—quoted in The New Freedom

Although Wilson captured only 42 percent of the popular vote, he won an overwhelming electoral victory and a Democratic majority in Congress. As a third-party candidate, Roosevelt defeated Taft in both popular and electoral votes. But reform claimed the real victory, with more than 75 percent of the vote going to the reform candidates—Wilson, Roosevelt, and Debs. In victory, Wilson could claim a mandate to break up trusts and to expand the government’s role in social reform.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Gifford Pinchot

• William Howard Taft

• Payne-Aldrich Tariff

• Bull Moose Party

• Woodrow Wilson

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the chart below on your paper. Then fill in the causes Taft supported that made people question his leadership.

Diagram: Four Causes connect to a Result - Taft's Difficulties in Office. Which causes do you think would upset most people today? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

What if Roosevelt had won another term in office in 1912? Speculate on how this might have affected the future of progressive reforms. Support your answer. Think About:

• Roosevelt’s policies that Taft did not support

• the power struggles within the Republican Party

• Roosevelt’s perception of what is required of a president

4. EVALUATING

Both Roosevelt and Taft resorted to mudslinging during the 1912 presidential campaign. Do you approve or disapprove of negative campaign tactics? Support your opinion.

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Section 5: Wilson’s New Freedom

One American’s Story

On March 3, 1913, the day of Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration, 5,000 woman suffragists marched through hostile crowds in Washington, D.C. Alice Paul and Lucy Burns, the parade’s organizers, were members of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). As police failed to restrain the rowdy gathering and congressmen demanded an investigation, Paul and Burns could see the momentum building for suffrage.

By the time Wilson began his campaign for a second term in 1916, the NAWSA’s president, Carrie Chapman Catt, saw victory on the horizon. Catt expressed her optimism in a letter to her friend Maud Wood Park.

Carrie Chapman Catt

A PERSONAL VOICE

CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT

“I do feel keenly that the turn of the road has come…. I really believe that we might pull off a campaign which would mean the vote within the next six years if we could secure a Board of officers who would have sufficient momentum, confidence and working power in them…. Come! My dear Mrs. Park, gird on your armor once more.”
—letter to Maud Wood Park

Catt called an emergency suffrage convention in September 1916, and invited President Wilson, who cautiously supported suffrage. He told the convention, “There has been a force behind you that will … be triumphant and for which you can afford…. to wait.” They did have to wait, but within four years, the passage of the suffrage amendment became the capstone of the progressive movement.

Wilson Wins Financial Reforms

Like Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson claimed progressive ideals, but he had a different idea for the federal government. He believed in attacking large concentrations of power to give greater freedom to average citizens. The prejudices of his Southern background, however, prevented him from using federal power to fight off attacks directed at the civil rights of African Americans.

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Wilson’s Background

Wilson spent his youth in the South during the Civil War and Reconstruction. The son, grandson, and nephew of Presbyterian ministers, he received a strict upbringing. Before entering politics, Wilson worked as a lawyer, a history professor, and later as president of Princeton University. In 1910, Wilson became the governor of New Jersey. As governor, he supported progressive legislation programs such as a direct primary, worker’s compensation, and the regulation of public utilities and railroads.

As America’s newly elected president, Wilson moved to enact his program, the “New Freedom,” and planned his attack on what he called the triple wall of privilege: the trusts, tariffs, and high finance.

Two Key Antitrust Measures

“Without the watchful … resolute interference of the government,” Wilson said, “there can be no fair play between individuals and such powerful institutions as the trusts. Freedom today is something more than being let alone.” During Wilson’s administration, Congress enacted two key antitrust measures. The first, the Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914, sought to strengthen the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890. The Clayton Act prohibited corporations from acquiring the stock of another if doing so would create a monopoly; if a company violated the law, its officers could be prosecuted.

The Clayton Act also specified that labor unions and farm organizations not only had a right to exist but also would no longer be subject to antitrust laws. Therefore, strikes, peaceful picketing, boycotts, and the collection of strike benefits became legal. In addition, injunctions against strikers were prohibited unless the strikers threatened damage that could not be remedied. Samuel Gompers, president of the American Federation of Labor (AFL), saw great value to workers in the Clayton Act. He called it a Magna Carta for labor, referring to the English document, signed in 1215, in which the English king recognized that he was bound by the law and that the law granted rights to his subjects.

The second major antitrust measure, the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914, set up the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This “watchdog” agency was given the power to investigate possible violations of regulatory statutes, to require periodic reports from corporations, and to put an end to a number of unfair business practices. Under Wilson, the FTC administered almost 400 cease-and-desist orders to companies engaged in illegal activity.

A New Tax System

In an effort to curb the power of big business, Wilson worked to lower tariff rates, knowing that supporters of big business hadn’t allowed such a reduction under Taft.

Wilson lobbied hard in 1913 for the Underwood Act, which would substantially reduce tariff rates for the first time since the Civil War. He summoned Congress to a special session to plead his case, and established a precedent of delivering the State of the Union message in person. Businesses lobbied too, looking to block tariff reductions. When manufacturing lobbyists—people hired by manufacturers to present their case to government officials—descended on the capital to urge senators to vote no, passage seemed unlikely. Wilson denounced the lobbyists and urged voters to monitor their senators’ votes. Because of the new president’s use of the bully pulpit, the Senate voted to cut tariff rates even more deeply than the House had done.

Now & Then: Deregulation

In recent years the railroad, airline, and telecommunications industries have all been deregulated, or permitted to compete without government control. It is hoped that this will improve their efficiency and lower prices.

During the Progressive Era, reformers viewed regulation as a necessary role of government to ensure safety and fairness for consumers as well as industrial competitors. Opponents of regulation, however, believed that government regulation caused inefficiency and high prices.

Modern critics of deregulation argue that deregulated businesses may skimp on safety. They may also neglect hard-to-serve populations, such as elderly, poor, or disabled people, while competing for more profitable customers.

540 Revenue from Individual Federal Income Tax, 1915–1995 Graph: income tax in billions of dollars, from 1915 to 1995

Description:

Graph: total federal income tax in billions of dollars from 1915 to 1995. Taxes show a moderate upward trend, increase significantly between 1955 and 1975, then spike dramatically between 1975 and 1995. Numbers are approximate.

1915 zero
1935 1 billion
1955 20 billion
1975 170 billion
1995 600 billion

Sources: Historical Statistics of the United States; Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1987, 1995, 1999

Federal Income Tax

With lower tariff rates, the federal government had to replace the revenue that tariffs had previously supplied. Ratified in 1913, the Sixteenth Amendment legalized a federal income tax, which provided revenue by taxing individual earnings and corporate profits.

Under this graduated tax, larger incomes were taxed at higher rates than smaller incomes. The tax began with a modest tax on family incomes over $4,000, and ranged from 1 percent to a maximum of 6 percent on incomes over $500,000. Initially, few congressmen realized the potential of the income tax, but by 1917, the government was receiving more money on the income tax than it had ever gained from tariffs. Today, income taxes on corporations and individuals represent the federal govern-ment’s main source of revenue.

Federal Reserve System

Next, Wilson turned his attention to financial reform. The nation needed a way to strengthen the ways in which banks were run, as well as a way to quickly adjust the amount of money in circulation. Both credit availability and money supply had to keep pace with the economy.

Wilson’s solution was to establish a decentralized private banking system under federal control. The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 divided the nation into 12 districts and established a regional central bank in each district. These “banker’s banks” then served the other banks within the district.

The federal reserve banks could issue new paper currency in emergency situations, and member banks could use the new currency to make loans to their customers. Federal reserve banks could transfer funds to member banks in trouble, saving the banks from closing and protecting customers’ savings. By 1923, roughly 70 percent of the nation’s banking resources were part of the Federal Reserve System. One of Wilson’s most enduring achievements, this system still serves as the basis of the nation’s banking system.

Women Win Suffrage

While Wilson pushed hard for reform of trusts, tariffs, and banking, determined women intensified their push for the vote. The educated, native-born, middle-class women who had been active in progressive movements had grown increasingly impatient about not being allowed to vote. As of 1910, women had federal voting rights only in Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Washington, and Idaho.

Determined suffragists pushed on, however. They finally saw success come within reach as a result of three developments: the increased activism of local groups, the use of bold new strategies to build enthusiasm for the movement, and the rebirth of the national movement under Carrie Chapman Catt.

Local Suffrage Battles

The suffrage movement was given new strength by growing numbers of college-educated women. Two Massachusetts organizations, the Boston Equal Suffrage Association for Good Government and the College Equal Suffrage League, used door-to-door campaigns to reach potential

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supporters. Founded by Radcliffe graduate Maud Wood Park, the Boston group spread the message of suffrage to poor and working-class women. Members also took trolley tours where, at each stop, crowds would gather to watch the unusual sight of a woman speaking in public.

Many wealthy young women who visited Europe as part of their education became involved in the suffrage movement in Britain. Led by Emmeline Pankhurst, British suffragists used increasingly bold tactics, such as heckling government officials, to advance their cause. Inspired by their activism, American women returned to the United States armed with similar approaches in their own campaigns for suffrage.

World Stage: Emmeline Pankhurst Photo: Emmeline Pankhurst

American women struggling for suffrage received valuable tutoring from their English counter-parts, whose bold maneuvers had captured media coverage.

The noted British suffragist Emmeline Pankhurst, who helped found the National Women’s Social and Political Union, often engaged in radical tactics. Pankhurst and other suffragists staged parades, organized protest meetings, endured hunger strikes, heckled candidates for Parliament, and spat on policemen who tried to quiet them. They were often imprisoned for their activities, before Parliament granted them the right to vote in 1928.

Catt and the National Movement

Susan B. Anthony’s successor as president of NAWSA was Carrie Chapman Catt, who served from 1900 to 1904 and resumed the presidency in 1915. When Catt returned to NAWSA after organizing New York’s Women Suffrage Party, she concentrated on five tactics: (1) painstaking organization; (2) close ties between local, state, and national workers; (3) establishing a wide base of support; (4) cautious lobbying; and (5) gracious, ladylike behavior.

Although suffragists saw victories, the greater number of failures led some suffragists to try more radical tactics. Lucy Burns and Alice Paul formed their own more radical organization, the Congressional Union, and its successor, the National Woman’s Party. They pressured the federal government to pass a suffrage amendment, and by 1917 Paul had organized her followers to mount a round-the-clock picket line around the White House. Some of the picketers were arrested, jailed, and even force-fed when they attempted a hunger strike.

These efforts, and America’s involvement in World War I, finally made suffrage inevitable. Patriotic American women who headed committees, knitted socks for soldiers, and sold liberty bonds now claimed their overdue reward for supporting the war effort. In 1919, Congress passed the Nineteenth Amendment, granting women the right to vote. The amendment won final ratification in August 1920—72 years after women had first convened and demanded the vote at the Seneca Falls convention in 1848.

The Limits of Progressivism

Despite Wilson’s economic and political reforms, he disappointed Progressives who favored social reform. In particular, on racial matters Wilson appeased conservative Southern Democratic voters but disappointed his Northern white and black supporters. He placed segregationists in charge of federal agencies, thereby expanding racial segregation in the federal government, the military, and Washington, D.C.

Wilson and Civil Rights

Like Roosevelt and Taft, Wilson retreated on civil rights once in office. During the presidential campaign of 1912, he won the support of the NAACP’s black intellectuals and white liberals by promising to treat blacks equally and to speak out against lynching.

542 History Through Architecture: From Splendor to Simplicity

The progressive movement, which influenced numerous aspects of society, also impacted the world of American architecture. One of the most prominent architects of the time was Frank Lloyd Wright, who studied under the renowned designer Louis Sullivan. In the spirit of progressivism, Wright sought to design buildings that were orderly, efficient, and in harmony with the world around them.

Photo: a decorative Victorian-style house

Architecture of the Gilded Age featured ornate decoration and detail, as seen here in this Victorian-style house built between 1884 and 1886. Wright rejected these showy and decorative styles in favor of more simplistic designs.

Wright’s ”prairie style” design features a low, horizontal, and well-defined structure made predominantly of wood, concrete, brick, and other simple materials. Shown here is the Robie House (1909), one of Wright’s most famous prairie-style structures, which incorporates these architectural qualities.

As president, however, Wilson opposed federal antilynching legislation, arguing that these crimes fell under state jurisdiction. In addition, the Capitol and the federal offices in Washington, D.C., which had been desegregated during Reconstruction, resumed the practice of segregation shortly after Wilson’s election.

Wilson appointed to his cabinet fellow white Southerners who extended segregation. Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels, for example, proposed at a cabinet meeting to do away with common drinking fountains and towels in his department. According to an entry in Daniel’s diary, President Wilson agreed because he had “made no promises in particular to negroes, except to do them justice.” Segregated facilities, in the president’s mind, were just.

African Americans and their liberal white supporters in the NAACP felt betrayed. Oswald Garrison Villard, a grandson of the abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, wrote to Wilson in dismay, “The colored men who voted and worked for you in the belief that their status as American citizens was safe in your hands are deeply cast down.” Wilson’s response—that he had acted “in the interest of the negroes” and “with the approval of some of the most influential negroes I know”—only widened the rift between the president and some of his former supporters.

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On November 12, 1914, the president’s reception of an African-American delegation brought the confrontation to a bitter climax. William Monroe Trotter, editor-in-chief of the Guardian, an African-American Boston newspaper, led the delegation. Trotter complained that African Americans from 38 states had asked the president to reverse the segregation of government employees, but that segregation had since increased. Trotter then commented on Wilson’s inaction.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WILLIAM MONROE TROTTER

“Only two years ago you were heralded as perhaps the second Lincoln, and now the Afro-American leaders who supported you are hounded as false leaders and traitors to their race…. As equal citizens and by virtue of your public promises we are entitled at your hands to freedom from discrimination, restriction, imputation, and insult in government employ. Have you a ‘new freedom’ for white Americans and a new slavery for your ‘Afro-American fellow citizens’? God forbid!”
—address to President Wilson, November 12, 1914

Wilson found Trotter’s tone infuriating. After an angry Trotter shook his finger at the president to emphasize a point, the furious Wilson demanded that the delegation leave. Wilson’s refusal to extend civil rights to African Americans pointed to the limits of progressivism under his administration. America’s involvement in the war raging in Europe would soon reveal other weaknesses.

The Twilight of Progressivism

After taking office in 1913, Wilson had said, “There’s no chance of progress and reform in an administration in which war plays the principal part.” Yet he found that the outbreak of World War I in Europe in 1914 demanded America’s involvement. Meanwhile, distracted Americans and their legislators allowed reform efforts to stall. As the pacifist and reformer Jane Addams mournfully reflected, “The spirit of fighting burns away all those impulses … which foster the will to justice.”

International conflict was destined to be part of Wilson’s presidency. During the early years of his administration, Wilson had dealt with issues of imperialism that had roots in the late 19th century. However, World War I dominated most of his second term as president. The Progressive Era had come to an end.

Section 5: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Carrie Chapman Catt

• Clayton Antitrust Act

• Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

• Federal Reserve System

• Nineteenth Amendment

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of key events relating to Progressivism during Wilson’s first term. Use the dates already plotted on the time line below as a guide.

Timeline showing 1913, 1914, 1915, and 1916

Write a paragraph explaining which event you think best demonstrates progressive reform.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES

Wilson said, “Without the watchful … resolute interference of the government, there can be no fair play between individuals and … the trusts.” How does this statement reflect Wilson’s approach to reform? Support your answer. Think About:

• the government’s responsibility to the public

• the passage of two key antitrust measures

4. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Why do you think Wilson failed to push for equality for African Americans, despite his progressive reforms? Think About:

• progressive presidents before Wilson

• Wilson’s background

• the primary group of people progressive reforms targeted

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Chapter 17: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the Progressive Era.

1. progressive movement

2. muckraker

3. suffrage

4. Susan B. Anthony

5. Theodore Roosevelt

6. NAACP

7. Gifford Pinchot

8. Woodrow Wilson

9. Clayton Antitrust Act

10. Federal Reserve System

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

The Origins of Progressivism (pages 512–518)

1. What were the four goals that various progressive reform movements struggled to achieve?

2. What kind of state labor laws resulted from progressives’ lobbying to protect workers?

3. How did government change during the Progressive Era? How were these changes important?

Women in Public Life (pages 519–522)

4. In the late 1890s, what job opportunities were available to uneducated women without industrial skills?

5. Give two examples of national women’s organizations committed to social activism. Briefly describe their progressive missions.

Teddy Roosevelt’s Square Deal (pages 523–531)

6. What scandalous practices did Upton Sinclair expose in his novel The Jungle? How did the American public, Roosevelt, and Congress respond?

7. How did Roosevelt earn his reputation as a trust-buster?

Progressivism Under Taft (pages 534–537)

8. As a progressive, how did Taft compare with Roosevelt?

9. Why did the Republican Party split during Taft’s administration?

Wilson’s New Freedom (pages 538–543)

10. How did the Clayton Antitrust Act benefit labor?

11. Cite two examples of social welfare legislation that Wilson opposed during his presidency and the arguments he used to defend his position.

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a Venn diagram to show some of the similarities and differences between Roosevelt’s Square Deal and Wilson’s New Freedom.

Venn diagram: shows two intersecting ovals, one labeled Square Deal, the other New Freedom. The small area of intersection is labeled Both.

2. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE What social, political, and economic trends in American life do you think caused the reform impulse during the Progressive Era? Support your answer with details from the text.

Visual Summary: The Progressive Era Diagram: five areas related to Progressivism

PROGRESSIVISM Economic

• Roosevelt establishes a Square Deal

• new tax system is instituted

• Roosevelt breaks up trusts

Social & Moral

• women fight for the right to vote

• Eighteenth Amendment bans alcoholic beverages

• Social services for women, children, and the poor

Political

• elections are reformed

• citizens given greater voice in government: recall, initiative, referendum

Industry

• National Child Labor Committee organizes to end child labor

• reformers improve workplace conditions and set maximum working hours

Health & Environment

• conservationists establish wilderness conservation areas and preserve natural resources

• Pure Food and Drug Act protects consumers

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 545 Standardized Test Practice

Use the quotation and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

“Labor began to organize itself in Trade Unions and to confront the industrialists with a stiff bargaining power. These developments were to lead to a period of protest and reform in the early twentieth century. The gains conferred by large-scale industry were great and lasting, but the wrongs that had accompanied their making were only gradually righted.”
—Winston Churchill, The Great Republic: A History of America

1. In the passage, Winston Churchill attempts to explain what prompted Progressive Era reformers. The passage explains the actions of which of the following labor reform leaders?

A Maria Mitchell

B Carry Nation

C Susan B. Anthony

D Florence Kelley

2. The muckrakers served Progressivism by—

F informing people about abuses so that they could protest.

G enacting legislation to prevent political corruption.

H cleaning up unhealthy meat processing plants.

J filing and prosecuting antitrust lawsuits.

3. In the presidential election of 1912, three candidates attempted to win the liberal, progressive vote. Which candidate for president in 1912 ran on a conservative platform?

A Woodrow Wilson

B William Taft

C Theodore Roosevelt

D Eugene V. Debs

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 511:

What kinds of actions can bring about social change?

Now that you have read Chapter 17, use your knowledge of the Progressive Era to answer these questions:

• How did Progressive Era reformers recruit others?

• How did progressive reformers bring about changes in government?

• What did progressives do to bring about changes in business?

• What else might Progressive Era reformers have done to be more effective?

Explain your answers with examples.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “A Child on Strike.” Discuss the following questions in a group; then do the activity.

• What was your reaction to Camella Teoli’s accident?

• What labor practices are taken for granted today that were not afforded to people living in 1910?

Cooperative Learning Activity In your group, imagine you are reporters covering the congressional hearing. Write two articles—one that objectively reports on the findings of the hearings, and one that shows bias in favor of the mill. Share the articles with the class and analyze how language can affect the reporting of information.

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Chapter 18: America Claims An Empire

Lithograph: On horseback, Roosevelt wields a sword

This lithograph of Roosevelt leading the Rough Riders at San Juan Hill shows the men on horseback, although they actually fought on foot. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 546 and page 547 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1890 - 1903 USA and World

1893 USA: Business groups, aided by U.S. marines, overthrow Hawaii's Queen Liliuokalani.
1895 World: Guglielmo Marconi develops the technology that led to the modern radio.
1898 World: Marie Curie discovers radium.
1898 USA: U.S.S. Maine explodes and sinks. The Spanish-American War begins.
1900 World: In China, the Boxers rebel.
1901 USA: Theodore Roosevelt becomes president after McKinley is assassinated.
1903 World: Panama declares its independence from Colombia.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 546 and page 547 in the print version. 547 Lithograph: Roosevelt leads his Rough Riders on horseback

Lithograph: Roosevelt leads his Rough Riders on horseback

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 546 and page 547 in the print version. Interact with History

In the late 1890s, American newspapers are running sensational stories about Spain’s harsh rule of Cuba. Such articles anger Americans. Among those willing to fight for Cuba’s freedom are a group of volunteers, the Rough Riders. Led by future president Theodore Roosevelt, the Rough Riders become a model for others to follow.

Does the U.S. have a duty to fight for freedom in neighboring countries?

Examine the Issues

• When should the U.S. intervene in the affairs of another country?

• In what ways do dramatic headlines influence American opinion?

Description:

Timeline: 1908 - 1917 USA and World

1908 USA: William Howard Taft is elected president.
1910 World: The Mexican Revolution begins.
1912 USA: Woodrow Wilson is elected president.
1914 World: World War I begins in Europe.
1914 USA: The Panama Canal opens.
1917 USA: Puerto Ricans become U.S. citizens.
1917 USA: The United States enters World War I.
1917 World: Mexico revises and adopts its constitution.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 546 and page 547 in the print version. 548

Section 1: Imperialism and America

One American’s Story

In 1893 Queen Liliuokalani (lE-lCQE-I-kE-läPnC) realized that her reign in Hawaii had come to an end. More than 160 U.S. sailors and marines stood ready to aid the haoles (white foreigners) who planned to overthrow the Hawaiian monarchy. In an eloquent statement of protest, the proud monarch surrendered to the superior force of the United States.

Photo: Queen Liliuokalani sits on a throne

Hawaii’s “Queen Lil” announced that if restored to power, she would behead those who had conspired to depose her.

A PERSONAL VOICE

QUEEN LILIUOKALANI

“ I, Liliuokalani, … do hereby solemnly protest against any and all acts done against myself and the constitutional government of the Hawaiian Kingdom. … Now, to avoid any collision of armed forces and perhaps the loss of life, I do under this protest … yield my authority until such time as the Government of the United States shall … undo the action of its representatives and reinstate me in the authority which I claim as the constitutional sovereign of the Hawaiian Islands. ”
—quoted in Those Kings and Queens of Old Hawaii

U.S. ambassador to Hawaii John L. Stevens informed the State Department, “The Hawaiian pear is now fully ripe, and this is the golden hour for the United States to pluck it.” The annexation of Hawaii was only one of the goals of America’s empire builders in the late 19th century.

American Expansionism

Americans had always sought to expand the size of their nation, and throughout the 19th century they extended their control toward the Pacific Ocean. However, by the 1880s, many American leaders had become convinced that the United States should join the imperialist powers of Europe and establish colonies overseas. Imperialism—the policy in which stronger nations extend their economic, political, or military control over weaker territories—was already a trend around the world.

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Global Competition

European nations had been establishing colonies for centuries. In the late 19th century Africa had emerged as a prime target of European expansionism. By the early 20th century, only two countries in all of Africa—Ethiopia and Liberia—remained independent.

Imperialists also competed for territory in Asia, especially in China. In its late-19th-century reform era, Japan replaced its old feudal order with a strong central government. Hoping that military strength would bolster industrialization, Japan joined European nations in competition for China in the 1890s.

Most Americans gradually warmed to the idea of expansion overseas. With a belief in manifest destiny, they already had pushed the U.S. border to the Pacific Ocean. Three factors fueled the new American imperialism:

• desire for military strength

• thirst for new markets

• belief in cultural superiority

Desire For Military Strength

Seeing that other nations were establishing a global military presence, American leaders advised that the United States build up its own military strength. One such leader was Admiral Alfred T. Mahan of the U.S. Navy. Mahan urged government officials to build up American naval power in order to compete with other powerful nations. As a result of the urging of Mahan and others, the United States built nine steel-hulled cruisers between 1883 and 1890. The construction of modern battleships such as the Maine and the Oregon transformed the country into the world’s third largest naval power.

Key Player: Admiral Alfred T. Mahan 1840–1914 Portrait: Alfred T. Mahan

Alfred T. Mahan joined the U.S. Navy in the late 1850s and served for nearly forty years. In 1886, he became president of the newly established Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.

Throughout his lifetime, Mahan was one of the most outspoken advocates of American military expansion. In his book The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660–1783 (published in 1890), Mahan called for the United States to develop a modern fleet capable of protecting American business and shipping interests around the world. He also urged the United States to establish naval bases in the Caribbean, to construct a canal across the Isthmus of Panama, and to acquire Hawaii and other Pacific islands.

Thirst For New Markets

In the late 19th century, advances in technology enabled American farms and factories to produce far more than American citizens could consume. Now the United States needed raw materials for its factories and new markets for its agricultural and manufactured goods. Imperialists viewed foreign trade as the solution to American overproduction and the related problems of unemployment and economic depression.

In the early 1900s, the Navy’s Great White Fleet, so named because its ships were painted white, was a sign of America’s growing military power. 550

Belief in Cultural Superiority

Cultural factors also were used to justify imperialism. Some Americans combined the philosophy of Social Darwinism—a belief that free-market competition would lead to the survival of the fittest—with a belief in the racial superiority of Anglo-Saxons. They argued that the United States had a responsibility to spread Christianity and “civilization” to the world’s “inferior peoples.” This viewpoint narrowly defined “civilization” according to the standards of only one culture.

The United States Acquires Alaska

An early supporter of American expansion was William Seward, Secretary of State under presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. In 1867, Seward arranged for the U.S. to buy Alaska from the Russians for $7.2 million. Seward had some trouble persuading the House of Representatives to approve funding for the purchase. Some people thought it was silly to buy what they called “Seward’s Icebox” or “Seward’s folly.” Time showed how wrong they were. In 1959, Alaska became a state. For about two cents an acre, the United States had acquired a land rich in timber, minerals, and, as it turned out, oil.

The United States Takes Hawaii

In 1867, the same year in which Alaska was purchased, the United States took over the Midway Islands, which lie in the Pacific Ocean about 1300 miles north of Hawaii. No one lived on the islands, so the event did not attract much attention.

Hawaii was another question. The Hawaiian Islands had been economically important to the United States for nearly a century. Since the 1790s, American merchants had stopped there on their way to China and East India. In the 1820s, Yankee missionaries founded Christian schools and churches on the islands. Their children and grandchildren became sugar planters who sold most of their crop to the United States.

Graph: Hawaii's Changing Population 1853 - 1920

Description:

A graph shows Hawaii's Changing Population 1853 - 1920. Percentages are approximate.

1853: Native Hawaiian 98, Caucasian 1, Other (mostly Asian) 1.
1878: Native Hawaiian 81, Caucasian 7, Other (mostly Asian) 12.
1900: Native Hawaiian 23, Caucasian 20, Other (mostly Asian) 57.
1920: Native Hawaiian 17, Caucasian 22, Other (mostly Asian) 61.

Native Hawaiian

Caucasian

Other (mostly Asian)

Source: Robert C. Schmitt, Demographic Statistics of Hawaii, 1778–1965

Production note: captions associated with this image are legends that correspond to text within the image.

The Cry For Annexation

In the mid-19th century, American-owned sugar plantations accounted for about three-quarters of the islands’ wealth. Plantation owners imported thousands of laborers from Japan, Portugal, and China. By 1900, foreigners and immigrant laborers outnumbered native Hawaiians about three to one.

White planters profited from close ties with the United States. In 1875, the United States agreed to import Hawaiian sugar duty-free. Over the next 15 years, Hawaiian sugar production increased nine times. Then the McKinley Tariff of 1890 provoked a crisis by eliminating the duty-free status of Hawaiian sugar. As a result, Hawaiian sugar growers faced competition in the American market. American planters in Hawaii called for the United States to annex the islands so they wouldn’t have to pay the duty.

U.S. military and economic leaders already understood the value of the islands. In 1887, they pressured Hawaii to allow the United States to build a naval base at Pearl Harbor, the kingdom’s best port. The base became a refueling station for American ships.

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The End of a Monarchy

Also in that year, Hawaii’s King Kalakaua had been strong-armed by white business leaders. They forced him to amend Hawaii’s constitution, effectively limiting voting rights to only wealthy landowners. But when Kalakaua died in 1891, his sister Queen Liliuokalani came to power with a “Hawaii for Hawaiians” agenda. She proposed removing the property-owning qualifications for voting. To prevent this from happening, business groups—encouraged by Ambassador John L. Stevens—organized a revolution. With the help of marines, they overthrew the queen and set up a government headed by Sanford B. Dole.

Map: United States and its possessions, including Alaska and Hawaii

Alaska, 1867, and Hawaii, 1898

President Cleveland directed that the queen be restored to her throne. When Dole refused to surrender power, Cleveland formally recognized the Republic of Hawaii. But he refused to consider annexation unless a majority of Hawaiians favored it.

In 1897, William McKinley, who favored annexation, succeeded Cleveland as president. On August 12, 1898, Congress proclaimed Hawaii an American territory, although Hawaiians had never had the chance to vote. In 1959, Hawaii became the 50th state of the United States.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Queen Liliuokalani

• imperialism

• Alfred T. Mahan

• William Seward

• Pearl Harbor

• Sanford B. Dole

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Copy this web on your paper and fill it in with events and concepts that illustrate the roots of imperialism.

Diagram: Roots of U.S. Imperialism: Economic, Political, and Cultural

Choose one event to explain further in a paragraph.

Critical Thinking

3. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Manifest destiny greatly influenced American policy during the first half of the 19th century. How do you think manifest destiny set the stage for American imperialism at the end of the century?

4. EVALUATING

In your opinion, did Sanford B. Dole and other American planters have the right to stage a revolt in Hawaii in 1893? Think About:

• American business interests in Hawaii

• the rights of native Hawaiians

5. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES

In the following passage, how does Indiana Senator Albert J. Beveridge explain the need for the U.S. to acquire new territories?

“ Fate has written our policy for us; the trade of the world must and shall be ours. … We will establish trading posts throughout the world as distributing points for American products… Great colonies governing themselves, flying our flag and trading with us, will grow about our posts of trade.”

—quoted in Beveridge and the Progressive Era

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Section 2: The Spanish-American War

One American’s Story

Early in 1896, James Creelman traveled to Cuba as a New York World reporter, covering the second Cuban war for independence from Spain. While in Havana, he wrote columns about his observations of the war. His descriptions of Spanish atrocities aroused American sympathy for Cubans.

Cuban rebels burn the town of Jaruco in March 1896.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JAMES CREELMAN

“ No man’s life, no man’s property is safe [in Cuba]. American citizens are imprisoned or slain without cause. American property is destroyed on all sides.… Wounded soldiers can be found begging in the streets of Havana. … The horrors of a barbarous struggle for the extermination of the native population are witnessed in all parts of the country. Blood on the roadsides, blood in the fields, blood on the doorsteps, blood, blood, blood! … Is there no nation wise enough, brave enough to aid this blood-smitten land? ”
—New York World, May 17, 1896

Newspapers during that period often exaggerated stories like Creelman’s to boost their sales as well as to provoke American intervention in Cuba.

Cubans Rebel Against Spain

By the end of the 19th century, Spain—once the most powerful colonial nation on earth—had lost most of its colonies. It retained only the Philippines and the island of Guam in the Pacific, a few outposts in Africa, and the Caribbean islands of Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Americas.

American Interest in Cuba

The United States had long held an interest in Cuba, which lies only 90 miles south of Florida. In 1854, diplomats recommended to President Franklin Pierce that the United States buy Cuba from Spain. The Spanish responded by saying that they would rather see Cuba sunk in the ocean.

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But American interest in Cuba continued. When the Cubans rebelled against Spain between 1868 and 1878, American sympathies went out to the Cuban people.

The Cuban revolt against Spain was not successful, but in 1886 the Cuban people did force Spain to abolish slavery. After the emancipation of Cuba’s slaves, American capitalists began investing millions of dollars in large sugar cane plantations on the island.

The Second War For Independence

Anti-Spanish sentiment in Cuba soon erupted into a second war for independence. José Martí, a Cuban poet and journalist in exile in New York, launched a revolution in 1895. Martí organized Cuban resistance against Spain, using an active guerrilla campaign and deliberately destroying property, especially American-owned sugar mills and plantations. Martí counted on provoking U.S. intervention to help the rebels achieve Cuba Libre!—a free Cuba.

Public opinion in the United States was split. Many business people wanted the government to support Spain in order to protect their investments. Other Americans, however, were enthusiastic about the rebel cause. The cry “Cuba Libre!” was, after all, similar in sentiment to Patrick Henry’s “Give me liberty or give me death!”

Key Player: José Martí 1853–1895

The Cuban political activist José Martí dedicated his life to achieving independence for Cuba. Expelled from Cuba at the age of 16 because of his revolutionary activities, Martí earned a master’s degree and a law degree. He eventually settled in the United States.

Wary of the U.S. role in the Cuban struggle against the Spanish, Martí warned, “I know the Monster, because I have lived in its lair.” His fears of U.S. imperialism turned out to have been well-founded. U.S. troops occupied Cuba on and off from 1906 until 1922.

Martí died fighting for Cuban independence in 1895. He is revered today in Cuba as a hero and martyr.

War Fever Escalates

In 1896, Spain responded to the Cuban revolt by sending General Valeriano Weyler to Cuba to restore order. Weyler tried to crush the rebellion by herding the entire rural population of central and western Cuba into barbed-wire concentration camps. Here civilians could not give aid to rebels. An estimated 300,000 Cubans filled these camps, where thousands died from hunger and disease.

Headline Wars

Weyler’s actions fueled a war over newspaper circulation that had developed between the American newspaper tycoons William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer. To lure readers, Hearst’s New York Journal and Pulitzer’s New York World printed exaggerated accounts—by reporters such as James Creelman—of “Butcher” Weyler’s brutality. Stories of poisoned wells and of children being thrown to the sharks deepened American sympathy for the rebels. This sensational style of writing, which exaggerates the news to lure and enrage readers, became known as yellow journalism.

Hearst and Pulitzer fanned war fever. When Hearst sent the gifted artist Frederic Remington to Cuba to draw sketches of reporters’ stories, Remington informed the publisher that a war between the United States and Spain seemed very unlikely. Hearst reportedly replied, “You furnish the pictures and I’ll furnish the war.”

The De Lôme Letter

American sympathy for “Cuba Libre!” grew with each day’s headlines. When President William McKinley took office in 1897, demands for American intervention in Cuba were on the rise. Preferring to avoid war with Spain, McKinley tried diplomatic means to resolve the crisis. At first, his efforts appeared to succeed. Spain recalled General Weyler, modified the policy regarding concentration camps, and offered Cuba limited self-government.

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In February 1898, however, the New York Journal published a private letter written by Enrique Dupuy de Lôme, the Spanish minister to the United States. A Cuban rebel had stolen the letter from a Havana post office and leaked it to the newspaper, which was thirsty for scandal. The de Lôme letter criticized President McKinley, calling him “weak” and “a bidder for the admiration of the crowd.” The embarrassed Spanish government apologized, and the minister resigned. Still, Americans were angry over the insult to their president.

The U.S.S. Maine Explodes

Only a few days after the publication of the de Lôme letter, American resentment toward Spain turned to outrage. Early in 1898, President McKinley had ordered the U.S.S. Maine to Cuba to bring home American citizens in danger from the fighting and to protect American property. On February 15, 1898, the ship blew up in the harbor of Havana. More than 260 men were killed.

At the time, no one really knew why the ship exploded; however, American newspapers claimed that the Spanish had blown up the ship. The Journal’s head-line read “The warship Maine was split in two by an enemy’s secret infernal machine.” Hearst’s paper offered a reward of $50,000 for the capture of the Spaniards who supposedly had committed the outrage.

War with Spain Erupts

Now there was no holding back the forces that wanted war. “Remember the Maine!” became the rallying cry for U.S. intervention in Cuba. It made no difference that the Spanish government agreed, on April 9, to almost everything the United States demanded, including a six-month cease-fire.

When the U.S.S. Maine exploded in the harbor of Havana, newspapers like the New York Journal were quick to place the blame on Spain. 555

Description:

Map: The Spanish-American War, 1898, shows two areas of the world: War in the Caribbean and War in the Philippines

War in the Caribbean:
U.S. Forces: Shafter June 22 - July 1, 1898, from Tampa, Florida, and along the northern coast of Cuba. Miles July 25 - August 13, 1898 along the southern coasts of Haiti and the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico.
U.S. Naval Blockade: Sampson along the northern coasts of Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Schley along the southern coast of Cuba.
Spanish Forces: north toward Santiago, located on the eastern coast of Cuba. Cervera May, 1898.
Battles: 4 in or near Santiago.

War in the Philippines:
U.S. Forces: Dewey April 25 - May 1, 1898, from Hong Kong to Manila.
Battles: 2 near Manila.

The Spanish-American War, 1898 War in the Caribbean War in the Philippines

Despite the Spanish concessions, public opinion favored war. On April 11, McKinley asked Congress for authority to use force against Spain. After a week of debate, Congress agreed, and on April 20 the United States declared war.

The War in The Philippines

The Spanish thought the Americans would invade Cuba. But the first battle of the war took place in a Spanish colony on the other side of the world—the Philippine Islands.

On April 30, the American fleet in the Pacific steamed to the Philippines. The next morning, Commodore George Dewey gave the command to open fire on the Spanish fleet at Manila, the Philippine capital. Within hours, Dewey’s men had destroyed every Spanish ship there. Dewey’s victory allowed U.S. troops to land in the Philippines.

Dewey had the support of the Filipinos who, like the Cubans, also wanted freedom from Spain. Over the next two months, 11,000 Americans joined forces with Filipino rebels led by Emilio Aguinaldo. In August, Spanish troops in Manila surrendered to the United States.

The War in The Caribbean

In the Caribbean, hostilities began with a naval blockade of Cuba. Admiral William T. Sampson effectively sealed up the Spanish fleet in the harbor of Santiago de Cuba.

Dewey’s victory at Manila had demonstrated the superiority of United States naval forces. In contrast, the army maintained only a small professional force, supplemented by a larger inexperienced and ill-prepared volunteer force. About

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125,000 Americans had volunteered to fight. The new soldiers were sent to training camps that lacked adequate supplies and effective leaders. Moreover, there were not enough modern guns to go around, and the troops were outfitted with heavy woolen uniforms unsuitable for Cuba’s tropical climate. In addition, the officers—most of whom were Civil War veterans—had a tendency to spend their time recalling their war experiences rather than training the volunteers.

Rough Riders

Despite these handicaps, American forces landed in Cuba in June 1898 and began to converge on the port city of Santiago. The army of 17,000 included four African-American regiments of the regular army and the Rough Riders, a volunteer cavalry under the command of Leonard Wood and Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt, a New Yorker, had given up his job as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to lead the group of volunteers. He would later become president of the United States.

The most famous land battle in Cuba took place near Santiago on July 1. The first part of the battle, on nearby Kettle Hill, featured a dramatic uphill charge by the Rough Riders and two African-American regiments, the Ninth and Tenth Cavalries. Their victory cleared the way for an infantry attack on the strategically important San Juan Hill. Although Roosevelt and his units played only a minor role in the second victory, U.S. newspapers declared him the hero of San Juan Hill.

Two days later, the Spanish fleet tried to escape the American blockade of the harbor at Santiago. The naval battle that followed, along the Cuban coast, ended in the destruction of the Spanish fleet. On the heels of this victory, American troops invaded Puerto Rico on July 25.

Treaty of Paris

The United States and Spain signed an armistice, a cease-fire agreement, on August 12, ending what Secretary of State John Hay called “a splendid little war.” The actual fighting in the war had lasted only 15 weeks.

Photo: African-American troops on horseback

These African-American troops prepare for battle during the Spanish-American War.

On December 10, 1898, the United States and Spain met in Paris to agree on a treaty. At the peace talks, Spain freed Cuba and turned over the islands of Guam in the Pacific and Puerto Rico in the West Indies to the United States. Spain also sold the Philippines to the United States for $20 million.

Debate Over the Treaty

The Treaty of Paris touched off a great debate in the United States. Arguments centered on whether or not the United States had the right to annex the Philippines, but imperialism was the real issue. President McKinley told a group of Methodist ministers that he had prayed for guidance on Philippine annexation and had concluded “that there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all [the Philippine Islands], and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and Christianize them.” McKinley’s need to justify imperialism may

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have clouded his memory—most Filipinos had been Christian for centuries.

Other prominent Americans presented a variety of arguments—political, moral, and economic—against annexation. Some felt that the treaty violated the Declaration of Independence by denying self-government to the newly acquired territories. The African-American educator Booker T. Washington argued that the United States should settle race-related issues at home before taking on social problems elsewhere. The labor leader Samuel Gompers feared that Filipino immigrants would compete for American jobs.

On February 6, 1899, the annexation question was settled with the Senate’s approval of the Treaty of Paris. The United States now had an empire that included Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. The next question Americans faced was how and when the United States would add to its dominion.

Cartoon: Uncle Sam rides a bicycle with globes for wheels. Caption: Coasting.

This lithograph criticizes American foreign policy in 1898. In the cartoon, Uncle Sam is riding a bicycle with wheels labeled “western hemisphere” and “eastern hemisphere.” He has abandoned his horse, on whose saddle appears “Monroe Doctrine,” because the horse is too slow.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• José Martí

• Valeriano Weyler

• yellow journalism

• U.S.S. Maine

• George Dewey

• Rough Riders

• San Juan Hill

• Treaty of Paris

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In 1898, a debate raged in the United States over whether the U.S. had the right to annex the Philippines. Use a graphic organizer like the one below to summarize the pros and cons of this debate.

Diagram: shows 2 sides regarding The Annexation of the Philippines - Reasons in Favor and Reasons Against

Which side do you support? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

What do you think were the unstated editorial policies of yellow journalism? Support your answer with evidence from the text. Think About:

• James Creelman’s account of Spanish atrocities against Cubans (page 552)

• Hearst’s remark to Remington

• the Journal headline about the explosion of the battleship Maine

4. ANALYZING EFFECTS

Many anti-imperialists worried that imperialism might threaten the American democratic system. How might this happen?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

In 1898 Theodore Roosevelt resigned his post as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to organize the Rough Riders. Why do you think Roosevelt was willing to take this risk? How do you think this decision affected his political career?

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Section 3: Acquiring New Lands

One American’s Story

When Puerto Rico became part of the United States after the Spanish-American War, many Puerto Ricans feared that the United States would not give them the measure of self-rule that they had gained under the Spanish. Puerto Rican statesman and publisher Luis Muñoz Rivera was one of the most vocal advocates of Puerto Rican self-rule. Between 1900 and 1916, he lived primarily in the United States and continually worked for the independence of his homeland. Finally, in 1916, the U.S. Congress, facing possible war in Europe and wishing to settle the issue of Puerto Rico, invited Muñoz Rivera to speak. On May 5, 1916, Muñoz Rivera stood before the U.S. House of Representatives to discuss the future of Puerto Rico.

Luis Muñoz Rivera

A PERSONAL VOICE

LUIS MUÑOZ RIVERA

“ You, citizens of a free fatherland, with its own laws, its own institutions, and its own flag, can appreciate the unhappiness of the small and solitary people that must await its laws from your authority. … when you acquire the certainty that you can found in Puerto Rico a republic like that founded in Cuba and Panama … give us our independence and you will stand before humanity as … a great creator of new nationalities and a great liberator of oppressed peoples. ”
—quoted in The Puerto Ricans

Muñoz Rivera returned to Puerto Rico where he died in November 1916. Three months later, the United States made Puerto Ricans U.S. citizens.

Ruling Puerto Rico

Not all Puerto Ricans wanted independence, as Muñoz Rivera did. Some wanted statehood, while still others hoped for some measure of local self-government as an American territory. As a result, the United States gave Puerto Ricans no promises regarding independence after the Spanish-American War.

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Military Rule

During the Spanish-American War, United States forces, under General Nelson A. Miles, occupied the island. As his soldiers took control, General Miles issued a statement assuring Puerto Ricans that the Americans were there to “bring you protection, not only to yourselves but to your property, to promote your prosperity, and to bestow upon you the immunities and blessings of the liberal institutions of our government.” For the time being, Puerto Rico would be controlled by the military until Congress decided otherwise.

Return to Civil Government

Although many Puerto Ricans had dreams of independence or statehood, the United States had different plans for the island’s future. Puerto Rico was strategically important to the United States, both for maintaining a U.S. presence in the Caribbean and for protecting a future canal that American leaders wanted to build across the Isthmus of Panama. In 1900, Congress passed the Foraker Act, which ended military rule and set up a civil government. The act gave the president of the United States the power to appoint Puerto Rico’s governor and members of the upper house of its legislature. Puerto Ricans could elect only the members of the legislature’s lower house.

In 1901, in the Insular Cases, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution did not automatically apply to people in acquired territories. Congress, however, retained the right to extend U.S. citizenship, and it granted that right to Puerto Ricans in 1917. It also gave them the right to elect both houses of their legislature.

Now & Then: Puerto Rico Photo: A demonstrator holds up a sign reading

Ever since their transfer under the Treaty of Paris from Spain to the United States, Puerto Ricans have debated their status, as shown above. In 1967, 1993, and 1998, Puerto Ricans rejected both statehood and independence in favor of commonwealth, a status given the island in 1952.

As members of a commonwealth, Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens. They can move freely between the island and the mainland and are subjected to the military draft but cannot vote in U.S. presidential elections. A majority of Puerto Ricans have rejected statehood because they fear it would mean giving up their Latino culture.

Cuba and the United States

When the United States declared war against Spain in 1898, it recognized Cuba’s independence from Spain. It also passed the Teller Amendment, which stated that the United States had no intention of taking over any part of Cuba. The Treaty of Paris, which ended the war, further guaranteed Cuba the independence that its nationalist leaders had been demanding for years.

American Soldiers

Though officially independent, Cuba was occupied by American troops when the war ended. José Martí, the Cuban patriot who had led the movement for independence from Spain, had feared that the United States would merely replace Spain and dominate Cuban politics. In some ways, Martí’s prediction came true. Under American occupation, the same officials who had served Spain remained in office. Cubans who protested this policy were imprisoned or exiled.

On the other hand, the American military government provided food and clothing for thousands of families, helped farmers put land back into cultivation, and organized elementary schools. Through improvement of sanitation and medical research, the military government helped eliminate yellow fever, a disease that had killed hundreds of Cubans each year.

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Platt Amendment

In 1900 the newly formed Cuban government wrote a constitution for an independent Cuba. The constitution, however, did not specify the relationship between Cuba and the United States. Consequently, in 1901, the United States insisted that Cuba add to its constitution several provisions, known as the Platt Amendment, stating that

• Cuba could not make treaties that might limit its independence or permit a foreign power to control any part of its territory

• the United States reserved the right to intervene in Cuba

• Cuba was not to go into debt that its government could not repay

• the United States could buy or lease land on the island for naval stations and refueling stations

The United States made it clear that its army would not withdraw until Cuba adopted the Platt Amendment. In response, a torchlight procession marched on the residence of Governor-General Leonard Wood in protest. Some protestors even called for a return to arms to defend their national honor against this American insult. The U.S. government stood firm, though, and Cubans reluctantly ratified the new constitution. In 1903, the Platt Amendment became part of a treaty between the two nations, and it remained in effect for 31 years. Under the terms of the treaty, Cuba became a U.S. protectorate, a country whose affairs are partially controlled by a stronger power.

Protecting American Business Interests

The most important reason for the United States to maintain a strong political presence in Cuba was to protect American businesses that had invested in the island’s sugar, tobacco, and mining industries, as well as in its railroads and public utilities.

Analyzing: Political Cartoons

“WELL, I HARDLY KNOW WHICH TO TAKE FIRST!”

Throughout the early 1900s, the United States intervened in the affairs of its Latin American neighbors several times. American troops withdrew from Cuba in 1902 but later returned three times to quell popular uprisings against conservative leaders. The U.S. also intervened in Nicaragua and Haiti. Not surprisingly, few Latin Americans welcomed United States intervention. As the cartoon shows, the United States had a different point of view.

Cartoon: Uncle Sam sits at a table reading a bill of fare that includes Cuba steak, Porto Rico pig, Philippine floating islands, and Sandwich islands. He says Well I hardly know which to take first. The waiter's towel reads McKinley.

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Although many businesspeople were convinced that annexing and imposing colonial rule on new territories was necessary to protect American business interests, some were concerned about colonial entanglements. The industrialist Andrew Carnegie argued against the taking of nations as colonies.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ANDREW CARNEGIE

“ The exports of the United States this year [1898] are greater than those of any other nation in the world. Even Britain’s exports are less, yet Britain ‘possesses’ … a hundred ‘colonies’ … scattered all over the world. The fact that the United States has none does not prevent her products and manufactures from invading … all parts of the world in competition with those of Britain. ”
—quoted in Distant Possessions

Despite such concerns, the U.S. state department continued to push for control of its Latin American neighbors. In the years to come, the United States would intervene time and again in the affairs of other nations in the Western Hemisphere.

Filipinos Rebel

In the Philippines, Filipinos reacted with outrage to the Treaty of Paris, which called for American annexation of the Philippines. The rebel leader Emilio Aguinaldo (ĕ-mēl′yō ä′gē-näl′dō) believed that the United States had promised independence. When he and his followers learned the terms of the treaty, they vowed to fight for freedom.

Philippine–American War

In February 1899, the Filipinos, led by Aguinaldo, rose in revolt. The United States assumed almost the same role that Spain had played, imposing its authority on a colony that was fighting for freedom. When Aguinaldo turned to guerrilla tactics, the United States forced Filipinos to live in designated zones, where poor sanitation, starvation, and disease killed thousands. This was the very same practice that Americans had condemned Spain for using in Cuba.

Photo: A few men in uniform surround two women and a baby

U.S. military action in the Philippines resulted in suffering for Filipino civilians. About 200,000 people died as a result of malnutrition, disease, and such guerrilla tactics as the burning of villages.

During the occupation, white American soldiers looked on the Filipinos as inferiors. However, many of the 70,000 U.S. troops sent to the Philippines were African Americans. When African-American newspapers questioned why blacks were helping to spread racial prejudice to the Philippines, some African-American soldiers deserted to the Filipino side and developed bonds of friendship with the Filipinos.

It took the Americans nearly three years to put down the rebellion. About 20,000 Filipino rebels died fighting for independence. The war claimed 4,000 American lives and cost $400 million—20 times the price the United States had paid to purchase the islands.

Aftermath of the War

After suppressing the rebellion, the United States set up a government similar to the one it had established for Puerto Rico. The U.S. president would appoint a governor, who would then appoint the upper house of the legislature. Filipinos would elect the lower house. Under American rule, the Philippines moved gradually toward independence and finally became an independent republic on July 4, 1946.

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A world map shows 8 areas of U.S. Imperialism, 1867 - 1906

U.S. Imperialism, 1867–1906 Bering Sea, 1893 International tribunal denies U.S. claims to exclusive rights to waters of Bering Sea. Alaskan Boundary Crisis, 1902–1903 After gold is discovered in Klondike, Canadians want to redraw boundary to Alaskan Panhandle. A tribunal settles in favor of U.S. Algeciras Conference, 1906 Roosevelt offers U.S. “good offices” to settle Franco-German differences over Morocco. Open Door Policy, 1899 U.S. aims to prevent foreign powers in China from shutting out the United States from Chinese markets. Pearl Harbor, 1887 Hawaii gives U.S. exclusive rights to build a naval base. Big Stick Diplomacy, 1904 Roosevelt sends warships to Morocco when local authorities detain a Greek citizen with disputed U.S. citizenship. Samoa, 1889–1899 Hurricane destroys U.S., British, and German ships, preventing armed clash over control of Samoa. Ten years later, the U.S. splits islands with Germany. Congo Conference, 1885 U.S. persuades European powers to agree to freedom of trade and abolition of slave trade in central Africa. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Foreign Influence in China

U.S. imperialists saw the Philippines as a gateway to the rest of Asia, particularly to China. China was seen as a vast potential market for American products. It also presented American investors with new opportunities for large-scale railroad construction.

Weakened by war and foreign intervention, China had become known as the “sick man of Asia.” France, Germany, Britain, Japan, and Russia had established prosperous settlements along the coast of China. They also had carved out spheres of influence, areas where each nation claimed special rights and economic privileges.

John Hay’s Open Door Notes

The United States began to fear that China would be carved into colonies and American traders would be shut out. To protect American interests, U.S. Secretary of State John Hay issued, in 1899, a series of policy statements called the Open Door notes. The notes were letters addressed to the leaders of imperialist nations proposing that the nations share their trading rights with the United States, thus creating an open door. This meant that no single nation would have a monopoly on trade with any part of China. The other imperialist powers reluctantly accepted this policy.

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During the Boxer Rebellion, shown here in this Chinese print, Chinese patriots demanded that all foreigners be expelled from the country. The Boxers surrounded the European section of Beijing and kept it under siege for several months.

The Boxer Rebellion in China

Although China kept its freedom, Europeans dominated most of China’s large cities. Resentment simmered beneath the surface as some Chinese formed secret societies pledged to rid the country of “foreign devils.” The most famous of these secret groups were the Boxers, so named by Westerners because members practiced martial arts.

The Boxers killed hundreds of missionaries and other foreigners, as well as Chinese converts to Christianity. In August 1900, troops from Britain, France, Germany, and Japan joined about 2,500 American soldiers and marched on the Chinese capital. Within two months, the international forces put down the Boxer Rebellion. Thousands of Chinese people died during the fighting.

Protecting American Rights

After the Boxer Rebellion, the United States feared that European nations would use their victory to take even greater control of China. To prevent this, John Hay issued a second series of Open Door notes, announcing that the United States would “safeguard for the world the principle of equal and impartial trade with all parts of the Chinese Empire.” This policy paved the way for greater American influence in Asia.

The Open Door policy reflected three deeply held American beliefs about the United States industrial capitalist economy. First, Americans believed that the growth of the U.S. economy depended on exports. Second, they felt the United States had a right to intervene abroad to keep foreign markets open. Third, they feared that the closing of an area to American products, citizens, or ideas threatened U.S. survival. These beliefs became the bedrock of American foreign policy.

World Stage: The Boxer Protocol

On September 7, 1901, China and 11 other nations signed the Boxer Protocol—a final settlement of the Boxer Rebellion.

The Qing government agreed to execute some Chinese officials, to punish others, and to pay about $332 million in damages. The United States was awarded a settlement of $24.5 million. It used about $4 million to pay American citizens for actual losses incurred during the rebellion. In 1908, the U.S. government returned the rest of the money to China to be used for the purpose of educating Chinese students in their own country and in the United States.

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The Impact of U.S. Territorial Gains

In 1900, Republican William McKinley, a reluctant but confirmed imperialist, was elected to a second term against Democrat William Jennings Bryan, who staunchly opposed imperialism. McKinley’s reelection confirmed that a majority of Americans favored his policies. Under McKinley, the United States had gained an empire.

Yet even before McKinley was reelected, an Anti-Imperialist League had sprung into being. The league included some of the most prominent people in America, such as former president Grover Cleveland, industrial leader Andrew Carnegie, the social worker Jane Addams, and many leading writers. Anti-imperialists had different and sometimes conflicting reasons for their opposition, but all agreed that it was wrong for the United States to rule other people without their consent. The novelist Mark Twain questioned the motives for imperialism in a satirical piece written in 1901.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARK TWAIN

“ Shall we go on conferring our Civilization upon the peoples that sit in darkness, or shall we give those poor things a rest? … Extending the Blessings of Civilization to our Brother who Sits in Darkness has been a good trade and has paid well, on the whole; and there is money in it yet … but not enough, in my judgment, to make any considerable risk advisable.”
—quoted in To the Person Sitting in Darkness

Mark Twain

As a novelist, Twain had great influence on American culture but little influence on foreign policy. In the early 20th century, the United States under President Theodore Roosevelt and President Woodrow Wilson would continue to exert its power around the globe.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Foraker Act

• Platt Amendment

• protectorate

• Emilio Aguinaldo

• John Hay

• Open Door notes

• Boxer Rebellion

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of key events relating to U.S. relations with Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. Use the dates already plotted on the time line below as a guide.

Timeline: 1899, 1900, 1901, 1917

Which event do you think was most significant? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

How did American rule of Puerto Rico harm Puerto Ricans? How did it help Puerto Ricans? Do you think the benefits outweighed the harmful effects? Why or why not?

4. COMPARING

How was U.S. policy toward China different from U.S. policy toward the Philippines? To what can you attribute the difference?

5. ANALYZING ISSUES

How did U.S. foreign policy at the turn of the century affect actions taken by the United States toward China? Think About:

• why the United States wanted access to China’s markets

• the purpose of the Open Door notes

• the U.S. response to the Boxer Rebellion

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Section 4: America as a World Power

One American’s Story

Joseph Bucklin Bishop, a policy adviser to the canal’s chief engineer, played an important role in the building of the Panama Canal. As editor of the Canal Record, a weekly newspaper that provided Americans with updates on the project, Bishop described a frustrating problem that the workers encountered.

Workers digging the Panama Canal faced hazardous landslides and death from disease.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOSEPH BUCKLIN BISHOP

“ The Canal Zone was a land of the fantastic and the unexpected. No one could say when the sun went down what the condition of the Cut would be when [the sun] rose. For the work of months or even years might be blotted out by an avalanche of earth or the toppling over of a mountain of rock. It was a task to try men’s souls; but it was also one to kindle in them a joy of combat … and a faith in ultimate victory which no disaster could shake.”
—quoted in The Impossible Dream: The Building of the Panama Canal

The building of the Panama Canal reflected America’s new role as a world power. As a technological accomplishment, the canal represented a confident nation’s refusal to let any physical obstacle stand in its way.

Teddy Roosevelt and the World

The assassination of William McKinley in 1901 thrust Vice-President Theodore Roosevelt into the role of a world leader. Roosevelt was unwilling to allow the imperial powers of Europe to control the world’s political and economic destiny. In 1905, building on the Open Door notes to increase American influence in East Asia, Roosevelt mediated a settlement in a war between Russia and Japan.

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Roosevelt The Peacemaker

In 1904, Russia and Japan, Russia’s neighbor in East Asia, were both imperialist powers, and they were competing for control of Korea. The Japanese took the first action in what would become the Russo-Japanese War with a sudden attack on the Russian Pacific fleet. To everyone’s surprise, Japan destroyed it. Japan then proceeded to destroy a second fleet sent as reinforcement. Japan also won a series of land battles, securing Korea and Manchuria.

As a result of these battles, Japan began to run out of men and money, a fact that it did not want to reveal to Russia. Instead, Japanese officials approached President Roosevelt in secret and asked him to mediate peace negotiations. Roosevelt agreed, and in 1905, Russian and Japanese delegates convened in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Key Player: Theodore Roosevelt 1858–1919 Portrait: Roosevelt and the Presidential seal

Rimless glasses, a bushy mustache, and prominent teeth made Roosevelt easy for cartoonists to caricature. His great enthusiasm for physical activity—boxing, tennis, swimming, horseback riding, and hunting—provided cartoonists with additional material. Some cartoons portrayed Roosevelt with the toy teddy bear that he inspired.

Roosevelt had six children, who became notorious for their rowdy antics. Their father once sent a message through the War Department, ordering them to call off their “attack” on the White House. Roosevelt thrived on the challenges of the presidency. He wrote, “I do not believe that anyone else has ever enjoyed the White House as much as I have.”

The first meeting took place on the presidential yacht. Roosevelt had a charming way of greeting people with a grasp of the hand, a broad grin, and a hearty “Dee-lighted.” Soon the opposing delegates began to relax and cordially shook hands.

The Japanese wanted Sakhalin Island, off the coast of Siberia, and a large sum of money from Russia. Russia refused. Roosevelt persuaded Japan to accept half the island and forgo the cash payment. In exchange, Russia agreed to let Japan take over Russian interests in Manchuria and Korea. The successful efforts in negotiating the Treaty of Portsmouth won Roosevelt the 1906 Nobel Peace Prize.

As U.S. and Japanese interests expanded in East Asia, the two nations continued diplomatic talks. In later agreements, they pledged to respect each other’s possessions and interests in East Asia and the Pacific.

Panama Canal

By the time Roosevelt became president, many Americans, including Roosevelt, felt that the United States needed a canal cutting across Central America. Such a canal would greatly reduce travel time for commercial and military ships by providing a shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. (See Geography Spotlight, page 572.) As early as 1850, the United States and Britain had agreed to share the rights to such a canal. In the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty of 1901, however, Britain gave the United States exclusive rights to build and control a canal through Central America.

Engineers identified two possible routes for the pro-posed canal. One, through Nicaragua, posed fewer obstacles because much of it crossed a large lake. The other route crossed through Panama (then a province of Colombia) and was shorter and filled with mountains and swamps. In the late 1800s, a French company had tried to build a canal in Panama. After ten years, the company gave up. It sent an agent, Philippe Bunau-Varilla, to Washington to convince the United States to buy its claim. In 1903, the president and Congress decided to use the Panama route and agreed to buy the French company’s route for $40 million.

Before beginning work on the Panama Canal, the United States had to get permission from Colombia, which then ruled Panama. When these negotiations broke down, Bunau-Varilla helped organize a Panamanian rebellion against Colombia. On November 3, 1903, nearly a dozen U.S. warships were present as Panama declared its independence. Fifteen days later, Panama and the United

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INTERACTIVE

Locks are used to raise and lower ships a total of 170 feet during the 51-mile trip through the Panama Canal. For example, ships from the Atlantic Ocean are lifted by the Gatún Locks to the level of Gatún Lake. The ships cross the human-made lake, then move through another waterway, the Gaillard Cut. The Pedro Miguel and Miraflores locks then lower the ships to the level of the Pacific Ocean.

Diagram: Panama Canal's locks and gates system

A ship enters a lock when the lower gates are open. When all gates are shut, water is let into the lock through a sluice (small gate). When the water has risen, the upper gates are opened, and the ship passes through the lock to the next level. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. Photo: ship in Panama Canal

This photo shows a ship that has entered the canal from the Pacific Ocean side and is heading north through the Miraflores Locks. Ships and boats can also enter the canal through the Atlantic Ocean side and head south through the Gatún Locks.

States signed a treaty in which the United States agreed to pay Panama $10 mil-lion plus an annual rent of $250,000 for an area of land across Panama, called the Canal Zone. The payments were to begin in 1913.

Constructing The Canal

Construction of the Panama Canal ranks as one of the world’s greatest engineering feats. Builders fought diseases, such as yellow fever and malaria, and soft volcanic soil that proved difficult to remove from where it lay. Work began in 1904 with the clearing of brush and draining of swamps. By 1913, the height of the construction, more than 43,400 workers were employed. Some had come from Italy and Spain; three-quarters were blacks from the British West Indies. More than 5,600 workers on the canal died from accidents or disease. The total cost to the United States was about $380 million.

On August 15, 1914, the canal opened for business, and more than 1,000 merchant ships passed through during its first year. U.S.-Latin American relations, however, had been damaged by American support of the rebellion in Panama. The resulting ill will lasted for decades, despite Congress’s paying Colombia $25 million in 1921 to compensate the country for its lost territory.

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Cartoon: Roosevelt as a constable wields a billy club labeled, The New Diplomacy, while he holds a rolled-up document labeled, arbitration, under one arm. People from various nations protest.

The Roosevelt Corollary

Financial factors drew the United States further into Latin American affairs. In the late 19th century, many Latin American nations had borrowed huge sums from European banks to build railroads and develop industries. Roosevelt feared that if these nations defaulted on their loans,

Europeans might intervene. He was determined to make the United States the predominant power in the Caribbean and Central America.

Roosevelt reminded European powers of the Monroe Doctrine, which had been issued in 1823 by President James Monroe. The Monroe Doctrine demanded that European countries stay out of the affairs of Latin American nations. Roosevelt based his Latin America policy on a West African proverb that said, “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” In his December 1904 message to Congress, Roosevelt added the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine. He warned that disorder in Latin America might “force the United States … to the exercise of an international police power.” In effect, the corollary said that the United States would now use force to protect its economic interests in Latin America.

Cartoon: Roosevelt swings a big stick. Bodies lie at his feet.

“ Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.”
THEODORE ROOSEVELT

Dollar Diplomacy

During the next decade, the United States exercised its police power on several occasions. For example, when a 1911 rebellion in Nicaragua left the nation near bankruptcy, President William H. Taft, Roosevelt’s successor, arranged for American bankers to loan Nicaragua enough money to pay its debts. In return, the bankers were given the right to recover their money by collecting Nicaragua’s customs duties. The U.S. bankers also gained control of Nicaragua’s state-owned railroad system and its national bank. When Nicaraguan citizens heard about this deal, they revolted against President Adolfo Díaz. To prop up

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Díaz’s government, some 2,000 marines were sent to Nicaragua. The revolt was put down, but some marine detachments remained in the country until 1933.

The Taft administration followed the policy of using the U.S. government to guarantee loans made to foreign countries by American businesspeople. This policy was called dollar diplomacy by its critics and was often used to justify keeping European powers out of the Caribbean.

Woodrow Wilson’s Missionary Diplomacy

The Monroe Doctrine, issued by President James Monroe in 1823, had warned other nations against expanding their influence in Latin America. The Roosevelt Corollary asserted, in 1904, that the United States had a right to exercise international police power in the Western Hemisphere. In 1913, President Woodrow Wilson gave the Monroe Doctrine a moral tone.

According to Wilson’s “missionary diplomacy,” the United States had a moral responsibility to deny recognition to any Latin American government it viewed as oppressive, undemocratic, or hostile to U.S. interests. Prior to this policy, the United States recognized any government that controlled a nation, regardless of that nation’s policies or how it had come to power. Wilson’s policy pressured nations in the Western Hemisphere to establish democratic governments. Almost immediately, the Mexican Revolution put Wilson’s policy to the test.

The Mexican Revolution

Mexico had been ruled for more than three decades by a military dictator, Porfirio Díaz. A friend of the United States, Díaz had long encouraged foreign investments in his country. As a result, foreigners, mostly Americans, owned a large share of Mexican oil wells, mines, railroads, and ranches. While foreign investors and some Mexican landowners and politicians had grown rich, the common people of the country were desperately poor.

In 1911, Mexican peasants and workers led by Francisco Madero overthrew Díaz. Madero promised democratic reforms, but he proved unable to satisfy the conflicting demands of landowners, peasants, factory workers, and the urban middle class. After two years, General Victoriano Huerta took over the government. Within days Madero was murdered. Wilson refused to recognize the government that Huerta formed. He called it “a government of butchers.”

Intervention in Mexico

Wilson adopted a plan of “watchful waiting,” looking for an opportunity to act against Huerta. The opportunity came in April 1914, when one of Huerta’s officers arrested a small group of American sailors in Tampico, on Mexico’s eastern shore. The Mexicans quickly released them and apologized, but Wilson used the incident as an excuse to intervene in Mexico and ordered U.S. Marines to occupy Veracruz, an important Mexican port. Eighteen Americans and at least 200 Mexicans died during the invasion.

The incident brought the United States and Mexico close to war. Argentina, Brazil, and Chile stepped in to mediate the conflict. They proposed that Huerta step down and that U.S. troops withdraw without paying Mexico for damages. Mexico rejected the plan, and Wilson refused to recognize a government that had come to power as a result of violence. The Huerta regime soon collapsed, however, and Venustiano Carranza, a nationalist leader, became president in 1915. Wilson withdrew the troops and formally recognized the Carranza government.

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Rebellion in Mexico

Carranza was in charge, but like others before him, he did not have the support of all Mexicans. Rebels under the leadership of Francisco “Pancho” Villa (vCPE) and Emiliano Zapata (D-mCl-yäPnI zE-päPtE) opposed Carranza’s provisional government. Zapata—son of a mestizo peasant—was dedicated to land reform. “It is better to die on your feet than live on your knees,” Zapata told the peasants who joined him. Villa, a fierce nationalist, had frequently courted the support and aid of the United States.

A PERSONAL VOICE

PANCHO VILLA

“ [A]s long as I have anything to do with the affairs in Mexico there will be no further friction between my country and my friends of the North … To President Wilson, the greatest American, I stand pledged to do what I can to keep the faith he has in my people, and if there is anything he may wish I will gladly do it, for I know it will be for the good of my country.”
—New York Times, January 11, 1915

Despite Villa’s talk of friendship, when President Wilson recognized Carranza’s government, Villa threatened reprisals against the United States. In January 1916, Carranza invited American engineers to operate mines in northern Mexico. Before they reached the mines, however, Villa’s men took the Americans off a train and shot them. Two months later, some of Villa’s followers raided Columbus, New Mexico, and killed 17 Americans. Americans held Villa responsible.

Chasing Villa

With the American public demanding revenge, President Wilson ordered Brigadier General John J. Pershing and an expeditionary force of about 15,000 soldiers into Mexico to capture Villa dead or alive. For almost a year, Villa eluded Pershing’s forces. Wilson then called out 150,000 National Guardsmen and stationed them along the Mexican border. In the meantime,

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Mexicans grew angrier over the U.S. invasion of their land. In June 1916, U.S. troops clashed with Carranza’s army, resulting in deaths on both sides.

Carranza demanded the withdrawal of U.S. troops, but Wilson refused. War seemed imminent. However, in the end, both sides backed down. The United States, facing war in Europe, needed peace on its southern border. In February 1917, Wilson ordered Pershing to return home. Later that year, Mexico adopted a constitution that gave the government control of the nation’s oil and mineral resources and placed strict regulations on foreign investors.

Photo: Pancho Villa leads a column of troops

Pancho Villa directs a column of his troops through northern Mexico in 1914.

Although Carranza had called for the constitution of 1917, he failed to carry out its measures. Instead, he ruled oppressively until 1920 when a moderate named Alvaro Obregón came to power. Obregón’s presidency marked the end of civil war and the beginning of reform.

U.S. intervention in Mexican affairs provided a clear model of American imperialist attitudes in the early years of the 20th century. Americans believed in the superiority of free-enterprise democracy, and the American government attempted to extend the reach of this economic and political system, even through armed intervention.

The United States pursued and achieved several foreign policy goals in the early 20th century. First, it expanded its access to foreign markets in order to ensure the continued growth of the domestic economy. Second, the United States built a modern navy to protect its interests abroad. Third, the United States exercised its international police power to ensure dominance in Latin America.

Section 4: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Panama Canal

• Roosevelt Corollary

• dollar diplomacy

• Francisco “Pancho” Villa

• Emiliano Zapata

• John J. Pershing

Summarizing

2. TAKING NOTES

In a two-column chart, list ways Teddy Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson used American power around the world during their presidencies.

Chart entitled Using American Power has 2 columns, one for Roosevelt and one for Wilson

Choose one example and discuss its impact with your classmates.

Critical Thinking

3. COMPARING AND CONTRASTING

What do you think were the similarities and differences between Roosevelt’s Big Stick policy and Wilson’s missionary diplomacy? Use evidence from the text to support your response. Think About:

• the goal of each of these foreign policies

• how the policies defined the role of U.S. intervention in international affairs

• how the policies were applied

4. EVALUATING DECISIONS

In your opinion, should the United States have become involved in the affairs of Colombia, Nicaragua, and Mexico during the early 1900s? Support your answer with details. Think About:

• the effect of the Roosevelt Corollary

• the results of dollar diplomacy

• the implication of Wilson’s missionary diplomacy

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Geography Spotlight: The Panama Canal: Funnel for Trade

By the late 19th century, the U.S. position in global trade was firmly established. A glance at a world map during that time revealed the trade advantages of cutting through the world’s great landmasses at two strategic points. The first cut, through the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt, was completed in 1869 and was a spectacular success. A second cut, this one through Panama, in Central America, would be especially advantageous to the United States. Such a cut, or canal, would substantially reduce the sailing time between the nation’s Atlantic and Pacific ports.

It took the United States ten years, from 1904 to 1914, to build the Panama Canal. By 1999, more than 700,000 vessels, flying the flags of about 70 nations, had passed through its locks. In the year 2000, Panama assumed full control of the canal.

Photo: boat traveling through the Panama Canal

INTERCOASTAL TRADE The first boat through the canal heralded the arrival of increased trade between the Atlantic and Pacific por the United States. Illustration of North and South America showing one long and one short travel route

Illustration of North and South America showing one long and one short travel route

NUMBERS TELL THE STORY A ship sailing from New York to San Francisco by going around South America travels 13,000 miles; the canal shortens the journey to 5,200 miles. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 572 and page 573 in the print version. Photo: a massive container-ship

OCEANGOING VESSELS Ships, like this one, must be of a certain dimension in order to fit through the canal’s locks. These container ships must be no more than 106 feet across and 965 feet in length, with a draft (the depth of the vessel below the water line when fully loaded) of no more than 39.5 feet. Each ship pays a toll based on its size, its cargo, and the number of passengers it carries. 573 Photo: New York City's port

NEW YORK CITY New York City and other U.S. Atlantic ports accounted for about 60 percent of the traffic using the Panama Canal in the early decades of its existence. Photo: New Orleans' port

NEW ORLEANS Since its founding in 1718, New Orleans has served as a major port for the products of the areas along the Mississippi River. In 1914, the Panama Canal brought Pacific markets into its orbit. Illustration of North and South America shows routes from New Orleans and New York through the Panama Canal.

Illustration of North and South America shows routes from New Orleans and New York through the Panama Canal.

Panama is a narrow stretch of land—or isthmus—that connects North and South America. In building the canal, engineers took advantage of natural waterways. Moving ships through the mountains of the Continental Divide required the use of massive locks. Locks allow a section of the canal to be closed off so that the water level can be raised or lowered. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 572 and page 573 in the print version. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. Thinking Critically

1. Analyzing Patterns On a world map, identify the route that ships took to get from New York City to San Francisco before the Panama Canal opened. How did this route change after the opening of the canal?

2. Creating a Model Use clay to shape a model of a cross-section of the Panama Canal as shown in the Science and Technology feature on page 567. For the locks, use styrofoam blocks or pieces of wood which you have glued together. Paint the model, and then label each part of the canal.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R31.

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Chapter 18: Assessment

Visual Summary: America Claims An Empire Photo: soldiers on horseback carry an American flag.

American Imperialism Causes

• Economic competition among industrial nations

• Political and military competition, including the creation of a strong naval force

• A belief in Anglo-Saxon superiority

Effects

• The U.S. purchased Alaska in 1867.

• The U.S. annexed Hawaii in 1898.

• In 1898, the U.S. helped Cuba win independence from Spain.

• In the Treaty of Paris, the U.S. gained Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippine Islands.

• Following the Spanish-American War, the U.S.

—reorganized the government of Puerto Rico

—established a protectorate over Cuba

—crushed a revolt in Philippines

• In 1899, the Open Door policy established U.S. trading rights in China.

• In the early 1900s, President Roosevelt initiated plans for the Panama Canal and asserted the right of the U.S. to exercise police power in the Western Hemisphere.

• President Wilson pressured Mexico and other countries in the Western Hemisphere to establish democratic governments.

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance to U.S. foreign policy between 1890 and 1920.

1. Queen Liliuokalani

2. imperialism

3. José Martí

4. yellow journalism

5. U.S.S. Maine

6. protectorate

7. Open Door notes

8. Boxer Rebellion

9. Panama Canal

10. Roosevelt Corollary

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Imperialism and America (pages 548–551)

1. What three factors spurred American imperialism?

2. How did Queen Liliuokalani’s main goal conflict with American imperialists’ goals?

The Spanish-American War (pages 552–557)

3. Why was American opinion about Cuban independence divided?

4. Briefly describe the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898.

Acquiring New Lands (pages 558–564)

5. Why was the U.S. interested in events in Puerto Rico?

6. What sparked the Boxer Rebellion in 1900, and how was it crushed?

7. What three key beliefs about America’s industrial capitalist economy were reflected in the Open Door policy?

America as a World Power (pages 565–571)

8. What conflict triggered the war between Russia and Japan?

9. Why is the construction of the Panama Canal considered one of the world’s greatest engineering feats?

10. Explain the key difference between Woodrow Wilson’s moral diplomacy and Teddy Roosevelt’s “big stick” diplomacy.

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a Venn diagram like the one below to show the similarities and differences between José Martí of Cuba and Emilio Aguinaldo of the Philippines.

Venn diagram: shows two intersecting ovals, one labeled Jose Marti, the other Amelio Aguinaldo. The small area of intersection is labeled Both.

2. HYPOTHESIZING Would Cuba have won its independence in the late 19th century if the United States had not intervened there? Support your opinion with details from the text.

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look carefully at the Caribbean map on page 555 and the world map on page 562. Why do you think American naval bases in the Caribbean and the Pacific were beneficial to the United States?

575 Standardized Test Practice

Use the cartoon and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

Cartoon map labeled Map of United States: The United States appears as Uncle Sam about to swallow a fish-like Cuba.

1. What is the cartoonist’s point of view concerning the relationship between the United States and Cuba?

A The United States wishes to be friends with Cuba.

B The United States will devour Cuba.

C The United States is wasting its time fighting over such a small area.

D The United States has no interest in Cuba.

Use the map and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 2.

2. How did the building of the Panama Canal support United States efforts to become a world power?

F It gave the United States a colony in Central

America.

G It prevented Japan and China from attacking

Hawaii.

H It opened up a new avenue for trade with China.

J By providing a shortcut between the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean, it opened up new trading opportunities.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 547:

Does the U.S. have a duty to fight for freedom in neighboring countries?

Suppose you are a journalist at the end of the Spanish-American War. You work for William Randolph Hearst’s the New York Journal. Write a newspaper editorial that presents your point of view about whether or not the Senate should ratify the Treaty of Paris, thus annexing the Philippines.

2. cd rom icon LEARNING FROM MEDIA Use the CD-ROM Electronic Library of Primary Sources and other resources to research opinions on imperialism between 1895 and 1920.

• Choose a document, incident, or piece of writing about imperialism. Decide if you support it or disagree with it.

• Write a speech that presents your point of view. Decide how you will make your arguments clear and convincing while also addressing opposing concerns.

• Practice your speech aloud and then present it to the class.

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Chapter 19: The First World War

Battle scene on the western front during World War I. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 576 and page 577 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1914 - 1916 USA and World

1914 World: Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife are assassinated.
1914 World: Germany declares war on Russia and France. Great Britain declares war on Germany and Austria-Hungary.
1914 USA: Hollywood, California, becomes the center of movie production in the U.S.
1915 USA: German U-boats sink the Lusitania, and 1,198 people die.
1915 USA: Alexander Graham Bell makes first transcontinental telephone call.
1915 World: Albert Einstein proposs his general theory of relativity.
1916 USA: Woodrow Wilson is reelected president.
1916 World: The battles of Verdun and the Somme claim millions of lives.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 576 and page 577 in the print version. 577 Photo: A tank explodes

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 576 and page 577 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1917 - 1919 USA and World

1917 USA: The Selective Service Act sets up the draft.
1917 USA: The United States declares war on Germany.
1917 World: Russia withdraws from the war.
1918 World: The Bolsheviks establish a Communist regime in Russia.
1918 World: The First World War ends.
1918 USA: Congress passes the Sedition Act.
1918 USA: President Wilson proposes the League of Nations.
1919 World: A worldwide influenza epidemic kills over 30 million.
1919 USA: Congress approves the Nineteenth Amendment, granting women the vote.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 576 and page 577 in the print version. Interact with History

The year is 1917. A bitter war is raging in Europe—a war that has been called a threat to civilization. At home many people are urging America to wake up and get involved, while others are calling for the country to isolate itself and avoid the fight.

Do you think America should enter the war?

Examine the Issues

• Is it right for America to intervene in foreign conflicts?

• When American lives are threatened, how should the government respond?

• Should America go to war to make the world “safe for democracy”?

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Section 1: World War I Begins

One American’s Story

It was about 1:00 A.M. on April 6, 1917, and the members of the U.S. House of Representatives were tired. For the past 15 hours they had been debating President Wilson’s request for a declaration of war against Germany. There was a breathless hush as Jeannette Rankin of Montana, the first woman elected to Congress, stood up. Rankin declared, “I want to stand by my country but I cannot vote for war. I vote no.” Later she reflected on her action.

Jeannette Rankin was the only member of the House to vote against the U.S. entering both World War I and World War II.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JEANNETTE RANKIN

“ I believe that the first vote I cast was the most significant vote and a most significant act on the part of women, because women are going to have to stop war. I felt at the time that the first woman [in Congress] should take the first stand, that the first time the first woman had a chance to say no to war she should say it.”
—quoted in Jeannette Rankin: First Lady in Congress

After much debate as to whether the United States should join the fight, Congress voted in favor of U.S. entry into World War I. With this decision, the government abandoned the neutrality that America had maintained for three years. What made the United States change its policy in 1917?

Causes of World War I

Although many Americans wanted to stay out of the war, several factors made American neutrality difficult to maintain. As an industrial and imperial power, the United States felt many of the same pressures that had led the nations of Europe into devastating warfare. Historians generally cite four long-term causes of the First World War: nationalism, imperialism, militarism, and the formation of a system of alliances.

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Nationalism

Throughout the 19th century, politics in the Western world were deeply influenced by the concept of nationalism—a devotion to the interests and culture of one’s nation. Often, nationalism led to competitive and antagonistic rivalries among nations. In this atmosphere of competition, many feared Germany’s growing power in Europe.

In addition, various ethnic groups resented domination by others and longed for their nations to become independent. Many ethnic groups looked to larger nations for protection. Russia regarded itself as the protector of Europe’s Slavic peoples, no matter which government they lived under. Among these Slavic peoples were the Serbs. Serbia, located in the Balkans, was an independent nation, but millions of ethnic Serbs lived under the rule of Austria-Hungary. As a result, Russia and Austria-Hungary were rivals for influence over Serbia.

Imperialism

For many centuries, European nations had been building empires, slowly extending their economic and political control over various peoples of the world. Colonies supplied the European imperial powers with raw materials and provided markets for manufactured goods. As Germany industrialized, it competed with France and Britain in the contest for colonies.

Militarism

Empires were expensive to build and to defend. The growth of nationalism and imperialism led to increased military spending. Because each nation wanted stronger armed forces than those of any potential enemy, the imperial powers followed a policy of militarism—the development of armed forces and their use as a tool of diplomacy.

By 1890 the strongest nation on the European continent was Germany, which had set up an army reserve system that drafted and trained young men. Britain was not initially alarmed by Germany’s military expansion. As an island nation, Britain had always relied on its navy for defense and protection of its shipping routes—and the British navy was the strongest in the world. However, in 1897, Wilhelm II, Germany’s kaiser, or emperor, decided that his nation should also become a major sea power in order to compete more successfully against the British. Soon British and German shipyards competed to build the largest battleships and destroyers. France, Italy, Japan, and the United States quickly joined the naval arms race.

Alliance System

By 1907 there were two major defense alliances in Europe. The Triple Entente, later known as the Allies, consisted of France, Britain, and Russia. The Triple Alliance consisted of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy.

Photo: Emperor Wilhelm II, two generals, and entourage in uniform

German Emperor Wilhelm II (center) marches with two of his generals, Hindenburg (left) and Ludendorff, during World War I. 580

Germany and Austria-Hungary, together with the Ottoman Empire—an empire of mostly Middle Eastern lands controlled by the Turks—were later known as the Central Powers. The alliances provided a measure of international security because nations were reluctant to disturb the balance of power. As it turned out, a spark set off a major conflict.

An Assassination Leads to War

That spark flared in the Balkan Peninsula, which was known as “the powder keg of Europe.” In addition to the ethnic rivalries among the Balkan peoples, Europe’s leading powers had interests there. Russia wanted access to the Mediterranean Sea. Germany wanted a rail link to the Ottoman Empire. Austria-Hungary, which had taken control of Bosnia in 1878, accused Serbia of subverting its rule over Bosnia. The “powder keg” was ready to explode.

In June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne, visited the Bosnian capital Sarajevo. As the royal entourage drove through the city, Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip stepped from the crowd and shot the Archduke and his wife Sophie. Princip was a member of the Black Hand, an organization promoting Serbian nationalism. The assassinations touched off a diplomatic crisis. On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared what was expected to be a short war against Serbia.

The alliance system pulled one nation after another into the conflict. On August 1, Germany, obligated by treaty to support Austria-Hungary, declared war on Russia. On August 3, Germany declared war on Russia’s ally France. After Germany invaded Belgium, Britain declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. The Great War had begun.

Now & Then: Crisis in the Balkans Photo: Soldiers and refugees carry children past a UN tank

After World War I, Bosnia became part of a country that eventually became known as Yugoslavia. Although Yugoslavia included various religious and ethnic groups, the government was dominated by Serbs.

In 1991, Yugoslavia broke apart, and Bosnia declared independence in 1992. However, Serbs wanted Bosnia to remain part of Serbian-controlled Yugoslavia.

A bloody civil war broke out. This war became notorious for the mass murder and deportation of Bosnian Muslims, a process known as “ethnic cleansing.” In 1995, the United States helped negotiate a cease-fire.

But peace in the Balkans did not last. In the late 1990s, Albanians in the province of Kosovo also tried to break away from Serbia. Serbia’s violent response, which included the “ethnic cleansing” of Albanians, prompted NATO to intervene. Today, peacekeepers in the Balkans struggle to control the continuing ethnic violence.

The Fighting Starts

On August 3, 1914, Germany invaded Belgium, following a strategy known as the Schlieffen Plan. This plan called for a holding action against Russia, combined with a quick drive through Belgium to Paris; after France had fallen, the two German armies would defeat Russia. As German troops swept across Belgium, thousands of civilians fled in terror. In Brussels, the Belgian capital, an American war correspondent described the first major refugee crisis of the 20th century.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RICHARD HARDING DAVIS

“ [We] found the side streets blocked with their carts. Into these they had thrown mattresses, or bundles of grain, and heaped upon them were families of three generations. Old men in blue smocks, white-haired and bent, old women in caps, the daughters dressed in their one best frock and hat, and clasping in their hands all that was left to them, all that they could stuff into a pillow-case or flour-sack. … Heart-broken, weary, hungry, they passed in an unending caravan.”
—from Hooray for Peace, Hurrah for War

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Map of Europe at the Start of World War I shows locations of 4 events, plus notes on the Western Front

Europe at the Start of World War I
INTERACTIVE Tannenberg, Aug. 1914 Germans stop Russian advance. May 1915 Lusitania sunk. Sarajevo, June 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand is assassinated. Gallipoli, April 1915–Jan. 1916 Allied forces defeated in bid to establish a supply route to Russia. Description:

Map of The Western Front 1914 - 1916 shows 4 battles plus German and Allied troop movements in France and surrounding areas

Marne, first battle, September 1914: Allies stop German advance on Paris.
Ypres, second battle, May 1915: Germans use chemical weapons for the first time.
Verdun, February - July 1916: French hold the line in longest battle of the war.
Somme, first battle, July - November 1916: Disastrous British offensive.
Troop movements:
German troops - moving west into France nearly to Paris from the English Channel down to Switzerland. Farthest German advance September 5, 1914.
Allied troops - moving east beyond Paris from the English Channel down to Switzerland. Front on July 1, 1916, between Ypres, Verdun, and Somme.

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 582

Unable to save Belgium, the Allies retreated to the Marne River in France, where they halted the German advance in September 1914. After struggling to outflank each other’s armies, both sides dug in for a long siege. By the spring of 1915, two parallel systems of deep, rat-infested trenches crossed France from the Belgian coast to the Swiss Alps. German soldiers occupied one set of trenches, Allied soldiers the other. There were three main kinds of trenches—front line, sup-port, and reserve. Soldiers spent a period of time in each kind of trench. Dugouts, or underground rooms, were used as officers’ quarters and command posts. Between the trench complexes lay “no man’s land”—a barren expanse of mud pockmarked with shell craters and filled with barbed wire. Periodically, the soldiers charged enemy lines, only to be mowed down by machine gun fire.

The scale of slaughter was horrific. During the First Battle of the Somme—which began on July 1, 1916, and lasted until mid-November—the British suffered 60,000 casualties the first day alone. Final casualties totaled about 1.2 mil-lion, yet only about seven miles of ground changed hands. This bloody trench warfare, in which armies fought for mere yards of ground, continued for over three years. Elsewhere, the fighting was just as devastating and inconclusive.

Diagram of Trench Warfare shows a complex of three connected trenches separated from an enemy trench by a no man's land (from 25 yards to a mile wide) full of barbed wire entanglements.

Trench Warfare
INTERACTIVE

A Front line trench

B Support trench

C Reserve trench

D Enemy trench

Artillery fire “softened up” resistance before an infantry attack. Communication trenches connected the three kinds of trenches. Barbed wire entanglements “No Man’s Land” (from 25 yards to a mile wide) Dugout Saps were shallower trenches in “no man’s land,” allowing access to machine-gun nests, grenade-throwing positions, and observation posts. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 583

Americans Question Neutrality

In 1914, most Americans saw no reason to join a struggle 3,000 miles away. The war did not threaten American lives or property. This does not mean, however, that individual Americans were indifferent to who would win the war. Public opinion was strong—but divided.

Divided Loyalties

Socialists criticized the war as a capitalist and imperialist struggle between Germany and England to control markets and colonies in China, Africa, and the Middle East. Pacifists, such as lawyer and politician William Jennings Bryan, believed that war was evil and that the United States should set an example of peace to the world.

Many Americans simply did not want their sons to experience the horrors of warfare, as a hit song of 1915 conveyed.

“ I didn’t raise my boy to be a soldier, I brought him up to be my pride and joy. Who dares to place a musket on his shoulder, To shoot some other mother’s darling boy?”

Economic Background: Trade Alliances

Maintaining neutrality proved diffi-cult for American businesses. Trade with Germany became increasingly risky. Shipments were often stopped by the British blockade. In addition, President Wilson and others spoke out against German atrocities and warned of the threat that the German Empire posed to democracy.

From 1912 to 1917, U.S. trade relationships with European countries shifted dramatically. From 1914 on, trade with the Allies quadrupled, while trade with Germany fell to near zero.

Also, by 1917, American banks had loaned $2.3 billion to the Allies, but only $27 million to the Central Powers. Many U.S. leaders, including Treasury Secretary William McAdoo, felt that American prosperity depended upon an Allied victory. (See trade on page R47 in the Economics Handbook.)

Millions of naturalized U.S. citizens followed the war closely because they still had ties to the nations from which they had emigrated. For example, many Americans of German descent sympathized with Germany. Americans of Irish descent remembered the centuries of British oppression in Ireland and saw the war as a chance for Ireland to gain its independence.

On the other hand, many Americans felt close to Britain because of a common ancestry and language as well as similar democratic institutions and legal systems. Germany’s aggressive sweep through Belgium increased American sympathy for the Allies. The Germans attacked civilians, destroying villages, cathedrals, libraries, and even hospitals. Some atrocity stories—spread by British propaganda—later proved to be false, but enough proved true that one American magazine referred to Germany as “the bully of Europe.”

Graph: shows U.S. exports in millions of dollars to Europe 1912 - 1917.

Description:

Graph shows U.S. exports 1912 - 1917 to Great Britain, France, Germany, and all other European countries. Starting in 1914, amounts surge upward for Great Britain, France, and other European countries except for Germany, which drops down to zero. Amounts are approximate, shown in millions of dollars.

1912: Great Britain 550, France 150, Germany 300, All others 360.
1913: Great Britain 600, France 200, Germany 350, All others 410.
1914: Great Britain 600, France 250, Germany 380, All others 400.
1915: Great Britain 900, France 390, Germany 10, All others 650.
1916: Great Britain 1800, France 850, Germany 5, All others 1100.
1917: Great Britain 2000, France 950, Germany 0, All others 1150.

U.S. Exports to Europe, 1912–1917

Great Britain

France

Germany

All Other European Countries

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

More important, America’s economic ties with the Allies were far stronger than its ties with the Central Powers. Before the war, American trade with Britain and France was more than double its trade with Germany. During the first two years of the war, America’s transatlantic trade became even more lopsided, as the Allies flooded American manufacturers with orders for all sorts of war supplies, including dynamite, cannon powder, submarines, copper wire and tubing, and armored cars. The United States shipped millions of dollars of war supplies to the Allies, but requests kept coming. By 1915, the United States was experiencing a labor shortage.

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The War Hits Home

Painting: As the Lusitania sinks, survivors crowd into lifeboats.

This image of a U-boat crew machine-gunning helpless survivors of the Lusitania was clearly meant as propaganda.

Although the majority of Americans favored victory for the Allies rather than the Central Powers, they did not want to join the Allies’ fight. By 1917, however, America had mobilized for war against the Central Powers for two reasons: to ensure Allied repayment of debts to the United States and to prevent the Germans from threatening U.S. shipping.

The British Blockade

As fighting on land continued, Britain began to make more use of its naval strength. It blockaded the German coast to prevent weapons and other military supplies from getting through. However, the British expanded the definition of contraband to include food. They also extended the blockade to neutral ports and mined the entire North Sea.

The results were two fold. First, American ships carrying goods for Germany refused to challenge the blockade and seldom reached their destination. Second, Germany found it increasingly difficult to import foodstuffs and fertilizers for crops. By 1917, famine stalked the country. An estimated 750,000 Germans starved to death as a result of the British blockade.

Americans had been angry at Britain’s blockade, which threatened freedom of the seas and prevented American goods from reaching German ports. However, Germany’s response to the blockade soon outraged American public opinion.

Warning in newspaper ad for Lusitania voyages: Travellers intending to embark on the Atlantic voyage are reminded that a state of war exists between Germany and her allies and Great Britain and her allies: that the zone of war includes the waters adjacent to the British Isles: that in accordance with formal notice given by the Imperial German Government, vessels flying the flag of Great Britain, or of any of her allies, are liable to destruction in those waters and that travellers sailing in the war zone on ships of Great Britain or her allies do so at their own risk.

A newspaper ad for the Lusitania included a warning from the German Embassy.

German U–boat Response

Germany responded to the British blockade with a counterblockade by U-boats (from Unterseeboot, the German word for a submarine). Any British or Allied ship found in the waters around Britain would be sunk—and it would not always be possible to warn crews and passengers of an attack.

One of the worst disasters occurred on May 7, 1915, when a U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania (l′ s ĭ-tā′ nē-ə) off the southern coast of Ireland. Of the 1,198 persons lost, 128 were Americans. The Germans defended their action on the grounds that the liner carried ammunition. Despite Germany’s explanation, Americans became outraged with Germany because of the loss of life. American public opinion turned against Germany and the Central Powers.

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Despite this provocation, President Wilson ruled out a military response in favor of a sharp protest to Germany. Three months later, in August 1915, a U-boat sank another British liner, the Arabic, drowning two Americans. Again the United States protested, and this time Germany agreed not to sink any more passenger ships. But in March 1916 Germany broke its promise and torpedoed an unarmed French passenger steamer, the Sussex. The Sussex sank, and about 80 passengers, including Americans, were killed or injured. Once again the United States warned that it would break off diplomatic relations unless Germany changed its tactics. Again Germany agreed, but there was a condition: if the United States could not persuade Britain to lift its blockade against food and fertilizers, Germany would consider renewing unrestricted submarine warfare.

The 1916 Election

In November 1916 came the U.S. presidential election. The Democrats renominated Wilson, and the Republicans nominated Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes. Wilson campaigned on the slogan “He Kept Us Out of War.” Hughes pledged to uphold America’s right to freedom of the seas but also promised not to be too severe on Germany.

The election returns shifted from hour to hour. In fact, Hughes went to bed believing he had been elected. When a reporter tried to reach him with the news of Wilson’s victory, an aide said, “The president can’t be disturbed.” “Well,” replied the reporter, “when he wakes up, tell him he’s no longer president.”

Campaign button: The Man of the Hour - Woodrow Wilson

Wilson campaign button

The United States Declares War

After the election, Wilson tried to mediate between the warring alliances. The attempt failed. In a speech before the Senate in January 1917, the president called for “a peace without victory. … a peace between equals,” in which neither side would impose harsh terms on the other. Wilson hoped that all nations would join in a “league for peace” that would work to extend democracy, maintain freedom of the seas, and reduce armaments.

German Provocation

The Germans ignored Wilson’s calls for peace. Germany’s leaders hoped to defeat Britain by resuming unrestricted submarine warfare. On January 31 the kaiser announced that U-boats would sink all ships in British waters—hostile or neutral—on sight. Wilson was stunned. The German decision meant that the United States would have to go to war. However, the president held back, saying that he would wait for “actual overt acts” before declaring war.

The overt acts came. First was the Zimmermann note, a telegram from the German foreign minister to the German ambassador in Mexico that was intercepted by British agents. The telegram proposed an alliance between Mexico and Germany and promised that if war with the United States broke out, Germany would support Mexico in recovering “lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.” Next came the sinking of four unarmed American merchant ships, with a loss of 36 lives.

Finally, events in Russia removed the last significant obstacle to direct U.S. involvement in the war. In March, the oppressive Russian monarchy was

Alliances During WWI

Allies
Australia	India
Belgium	Italy
British Colonies	Japan
Canada &	Montenegro
Newfoundland	New Zealand
France	Portugal
French North	Romania
Africa & French	Russia
Colonies	Serbia
Great Britain	South Africa
Greece	United States

Although not all of the countries listed above sent troops into the war, they all joined the war on the Allied side at various times.

Central Powers

Austria-Hungary

Bulgaria

Germany

Ottoman Empire

586 World Stage: Revolution in Russia

At first, the Russians surprised the Germans by mobilizing rapidly. Russian troops advanced quickly into German territory but were turned back at the Battle of Tannenberg in August 1914.

Throughout 1915, the Russians endured defeats and continued to retreat. By the end of 1915 they had suffered about 2.5 million casualties. The war also caused massive bread shortages in Russia.

Revolutionaries ousted the czar in March 1917 and established a provisional government. In November, the Bolsheviks, led by Lenin and Trotsky, overthrew the provisional government. They set up a Communist state and sought peace with the Central Powers.

replaced with a representative government. Now supporters of American entry into the war could claim that this was a war of democracies against brutal monarchies.

America Acts

A light drizzle fell on Washington on April 2, 1917, as senators, representatives, ambassadors, members of the Supreme Court, and other guests crowded into the Capitol building to hear President Wilson deliver his war resolution.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WOODROW WILSON

“ Property can be paid for; the lives of peaceful and innocent people cannot be. The present German submarine warfare against commerce is a warfare against mankind. … We are glad … to fight … for the ultimate peace of the world and for the liberation of its peoples. … The world must be made safe for democracy. … We have no selfish ends to serve. We desire no conquest, no dominion. We seek no indemnities. … It is a fearful thing to lead this great peaceful people into war. … But the right is more precious than peace.”
—quoted in American Voices

Congress passed the resolution a few days later. With the hope of neutrality finally shattered, U.S. troops would follow the stream of American money and munitions that had been heading to the Allies throughout the war. But Wilson’s plea to make the world “safe for democracy” wasn’t just political posturing. Indeed, Wilson and many Americans truly believed that the United States had to join the war to pave the way for a future order of peace and freedom. A resolved but anxious nation held its breath as the United States prepared for war.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• nationalism

• militarism

• Allies

• Central Powers

• Archduke Franz Ferdinand

• no man’s land

• trench warfare

• Lusitania

• Zimmermann note

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one shown, list the causes for the outbreak of World War I.

Chart: 4 blank ovals are provided to list causes of World War I

Which was the most significant cause? Explain your answer.

Critical Thinking

3. SYNTHESIZING

Describe some ways in which World War I threatened the lives of civilians on both sides of the Atlantic.

4. SUMMARIZING

Why were America’s ties with the Allies stronger than its ties with the Central Powers?

5. ANALYZING ISSUES

Why do you think Germany escalated its U-boat attacks in 1917? Think About:

• Germany’s military buildup

• the effects of the British blockade

• Germany’s reason for

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Section 2: American Power Tips the Balance

One American’s Story

Eddie Rickenbacker, famous fighter pilot of World War I, was well known as a racecar driver before the war. He went to France as a driver but transferred to the aviation division. He learned to fly on his own time and eventually joined the U.S. Army Air Service. Rickenbacker repeatedly fought the dreaded Flying Circus—a German air squadron led by the “Red Baron,” Manfred von Richthofen.

A PERSONAL VOICE

EDDIE RICKENBACKER

“ I put in six or seven hours of flying time each day. … My narrowest escape came at a time when I was fretting over the lack of action. … Guns began barking behind me, and sizzling tracers zipped by my head. … At least two planes were on my tail. …

They would expect me to dive. Instead I twisted upward in a corkscrew path called a ‘chandelle.’ I guessed right. As I went up, my two attackers came down, near enough for me to see their faces. I also saw the red noses on those Fokkers [German planes]. I was up against the Flying Circus again.”
—Rickenbacker: An Autobiography

After engaging in 134 air battles and downing 26 enemy aircraft, Rickenbacker won fame as the Allied pilot with the most victories—“American ace of aces.”

America Mobilizes

The United States was not prepared for war. Only 200,000 men were in service when war was declared, and few officers had combat experience. Drastic measures were needed to build an army large and modern enough to make an impact in Europe.

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Photo: men wearing civilian clothing enter a building; men in uniform exit

Drafted men line up for service at Camp Travis in San Antonio, Texas, around 1917.

Raising an Army

To meet the government’s need for more fighting power, Congress passed the Selective Service Act in May 1917. The act required men to register with the government in order to be randomly selected for military service. By the end of 1918, 24 million men had registered under the act. Of this number, almost 3 million were called up. About 2 million troops reached Europe before the truce was signed, and three-fourths of them saw actual combat. Most of the inductees had not attended high school, and about one in five was foreign-born.

About 400,000 African Americans served in the armed forces. More than half of them served in France. African American soldiers served in segregated units and were excluded from the navy and marines. Most African Americans were assigned to noncombat duties, although there were exceptions. The all-black 369th Infantry Regiment saw more continuous duty on the front lines than any other American regiment. Two soldiers of the 369th, Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts, were the first Americans to receive France’s highest military honor, the Croix de Guerre—the “cross of war.”

Poster: Uncle Sam points his finger, saying 'I want you for U.S. Army.'

James Montgomery Flagg’s portrayal of Uncle Sam became the most famous recruiting poster in American history.

The eight-month training period took place partly in the United States and partly in Europe. During this time the men put in 17-hour days on target practice, bayonet drill, kitchen duty, and cleaning up the grounds. Since real weapons were in short supply, soldiers often drilled with fake weapons—rocks instead of hand grenades, or wooden poles instead of rifles.

Although women were not allowed to enlist, the army reluctantly accepted women in the Army Corps of Nurses, but denied them army rank, pay, and benefits. Meanwhile, some 13,000 women accepted noncombat positions in the navy and marines, where they served as nurses, secretaries, and telephone operators, with full military rank.

Mass Production

In addition to the vast army that had to be created and trained, the United States had to find a way to transport men, food, and equipment over thousands of miles of ocean. It was an immense task, made more difficult by German submarine activity, which by early 1917 had sunk twice as much ship tonnage as the Allies had built. In order to expand its fleet, the U.S. government took four crucial steps.

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First, the government exempted many shipyard workers from the draft and gave others a “deferred” classification, delaying their participation in the draft. Second, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce joined in a public relations campaign to emphasize the importance of shipyard work. They distributed service flags to families of shipyard workers, just like the flags given to families of soldiers and sailors. They also urged automobile owners to give shipyard employees rides to and from work, since streetcars were so crowded. Third, shipyards used fabrication techniques. Instead of building an entire ship in the yard, standardized parts were built elsewhere and then assembled at the yard. This method reduced construction time substantially. As a result, on just one day—July 4, 1918—the United States launched 95 ships. Fourth, the government took over commercial and private ships and converted them for transatlantic war use.

America Turns the Tide

German U-boat attacks on merchant ships in the Atlantic were a serious threat to the Allied war effort. American Vice Admiral William S. Sims convinced the British to try the convoy system, in which a heavy guard of destroyers escorted merchant ships back and forth across the Atlantic in groups. By fall of 1917, shipping losses had been cut in half.

Illustration: Destroyers and cruisers form a defensive boundary. Behind the boundary, merchant ships travel in a safe zone, protected from an enemy submarine.

World War I Convoy System

The U.S. Navy also helped lay a 230-mile barrier of mines across the North Sea from Scotland to Norway. The barrier was designed to bottle up the U-boats that sailed from German ports and keep them out of the Atlantic Ocean.

By early 1918 the Germans found it increasingly difficult to replace their losses and to staff their fleet with trained submariners. Of the almost 2 million Americans who sailed to Europe during the war, only 637 were lost to U-boat attacks.

Fighting in Europe

After two and a half years of fighting, the Allied forces were exhausted and demoralized. One of the main contributions that American troops made to the Allied war effort, apart from their numbers, was their freshness and enthusiasm. They were determined to hit the Germans hard. Twenty-two-year-old Joseph Douglas Lawrence, a U.S. Army lieutenant, remarked on the importance of American enthusiasm when he described his first impression of the trenches.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOSEPH DOUGLAS LAWRENCE

“ I have never seen or heard of such an elaborate, complete line of defense as the British had built at this point. There was a trench with dugouts every three hundred yards from the front line in Ypres back four miles to and including Dirty Bucket. Everything was fronted with barbed wire and other entanglements. Artillery was concealed everywhere. Railroad tracks, narrow and standard gauge, reached from the trenches back into the zone of supply. Nothing had been neglected to hold this line, save only one important thing, enthusiasm among the troops, and that was the purpose of our presence.”
—Fighting Soldier: The AEF in 1918

Lieutenant Joseph D. Lawrence 590

Fighting “Over There”

Key Player: General John J. Pershing 1860–1948 Photo: General John J. Pershing

When General Pershing, the commander of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), arrived in France, he found that the Allies intended to use American troops simply as reinforcements. Pershing, however, urged that the AEF operate as an independent fighting force, under American command.

Pershing believed in aggressive combat and felt that three years of trench warfare had made the Allies too defensive. Under Pershing, American forces helped to stop the German advance, cap-turing important enemy positions. After the war, Pershing was made General of the Armies of the United States—the highest rank given to an officer.

The American Expeditionary Force (AEF), led by General John J. Pershing, included men from widely separated parts of the country. American infantrymen were nicknamed doughboys, possibly because of the white belts they wore, which they cleaned with pipe clay, or “dough.” Most doughboys had never ventured far from the farms or small towns where they lived, and the sophisticated sights and sounds of Paris made a vivid impression. However, doughboys were also shocked by the unexpected horrors of the battlefield and astonished by the new weapons and tactics of modern warfare.

New Weapons

The battlefields of World War I saw the first large-scale use of weapons that would become standard in modern war. Although some of these weapons were new, others, like the machine gun, had been so refined that they changed the nature of warfare. The two most innovative weapons were the tank and the airplane. Together, they heralded mechanized warfare, or warfare that relies on machines powered by gasoline and diesel engines.

Tanks ran on caterpillar treads and were built of steel so that bullets bounced off. The British first used tanks during the 1916 Battle of the Somme, but not very effectively. By 1917, the British had learned how to drive large numbers of tanks through barbed wire defenses, clearing a path for the infantry.

The early airplanes were so flimsy that at first both sides limited their use to scouting. After a while, the two sides used tanks to fire at enemy planes that were gathering information. Early dogfights, or individual air combats, like the one described by Eddie Rickenbacker, resembled duels. Pilots sat in their open cockpits and shot at each other with pistols. Because it was hard to fly a plane and shoot a pistol at the same time, planes began carrying mounted machine guns. But the planes’ propeller blades kept getting in the way of the bullets. Then the Germans introduced an interrupter gear that permitted the stream of bullets to avoid the whirring blades.

Science & Technology: Technology at War

Both sides in World War I used new technology to attack more soldiers from greater distances than ever before. Aircraft and long-range guns were even used to fire on civilian targets—libraries, cathedrals, and city districts.

The biggest guns could shell a city from 75 miles.

Illustration: A machine gun fires from two barrels

Machine Guns Firepower increased to 600 rounds per minute. Photo: a Sopwith Camel biplane

Airships and Airplanes One of the most famous WWI planes, the British Sopwith Camel, had a front-mounted machine gun for “dogfights.” Planes were also loaded with bombs, as were the floating gas-filled “airships” called zeppelins. Photo: soldiers wear gas masks

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Meanwhile, airplanes were built to travel faster and carry heavy bomb loads. By 1918 the British had built up a strategic bomber force of 22,000 planes with which to attack German weapons factories and army bases.

Observation balloons were used extensively by both sides in the war in Europe. Balloons were so important strategically that they were often protected by aircraft flying close by, and they became prime targets for Rickenbacker and other ace pilots.

The War Introduces New Hazards

The new weapons and tactics of World War I led to horrific injuries and hazards. The fighting men were surrounded by filth, lice, rats, and polluted water that caused dysentery. They inhaled poison gas and smelled the stench of decaying bodies. They suffered from lack of sleep. Constant bombardments and other experiences often led to battle fatigue and “shell shock,” a term coined during World War I to describe a complete emotional collapse from which many never recovered.

Physical problems included a disease called trench foot, caused by standing in cold wet trenches for long periods of time without changing into dry socks or boots. First the toes would turn red or blue, then they would become numb, and finally they would start to rot. The only solution was to amputate the toes, and in some cases the entire foot. A painful infection of the gums and throat, called trench mouth, was also common among the soldiers.

Red Cross ambulances, often staffed by American volunteers, carried the wounded from the battlefield to the hospital. An American nurse named Florence Bullard recounted her experience in a hospital near the front in 1918.

A PERSONAL VOICE

FLORENCE BULLARD

“ The Army is only twelve miles away from us and only the wounded that are too severely injured to live to be carried a little farther are brought here. … Side by side I have Americans, English, Scotch, Irish, and French, and apart in the corners are Boche [Germans]. They have to watch each other die side by side. I am sent for everywhere—in the … operating-room, the dressing-room, and back again to the rows of men. … The cannon goes day and night and the shells are breaking over and around us. … I have had to write many sad letters to American mothers. I wonder if it will ever end. ”
—quoted in Over There: The Story of America’s First Great Overseas Crusade

In fact, the end was near, as German forces mounted a final offensive.

Photo: Soldiers operate an antiaircraft gun

Antiaircraft Gun Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 590 and page 591 in the print version. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. Photo: gas mask, hose, and canister

Poison Gas A yellow-green chlorine fog sickened, suffocated, burned, and blinded its victims. Gas masks became standard issue. Photo: tank

Tanks The new warfare caused physical ailments such as trench foot and psychological ailments such as shell shock. 592 Map of Europe: shows Allied Victories 1917 - 1918: 6 battles in northeastern France along the German offensive line and the Armistice line

Map of Europe: shows Allied Victories 1917 - 1918: 6 battles in northeastern France along the German offensive line and the Armistice line

Allied Victories, 1917–1918
INTERACTIVE Ypres, 3rd battle, July–Nov. 1917 Allied victory costs over half a million casualties. Cantigny, May 1918 U.S. troops fill gaps between French and British lines during German offensive. Château-Thierry, June 1918 U.S. troops help stop the German advance on Paris. Meuse-Argonne, Sept.–Nov. 1918 American advance helps end the war. St. Mihiel, Sept. 1918 Pershing leads American army to victory. Marne, 2nd battle, July–Aug. 1918 The turning point of the war. Allies advance steadily after defeating the Germans. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

American Troops Go on the Offensive

When Russia pulled out of the war in 1917, the Germans shifted their armies from the eastern front to the western front in France. By May they were within 50 miles of Paris. The Americans arrived just in time to help stop the German advance at Cantigny in France. Several weeks later, U.S. troops played a major role in throwing back German attacks at Château-Thierry and Belleau Wood. In July and August, they helped win the Second Battle of the Marne. The tide had turned against the Central Powers. In September, U.S. soldiers began to mount offensives against the Germans at Saint-Mihiel and in the Meuse-Argonne area.

American War Hero

During the fighting in the Meuse-Argonne area, one of America’s greatest war heroes, Alvin York, became famous. A redheaded mountaineer and blacksmith from Tennessee, York sought exemption as a conscientious objector, a person who opposes warfare on moral grounds, pointing out that the Bible says, “Thou shalt not kill.”

York eventually decided that it was morally acceptable to fight if the cause was just. On October 8, 1918, armed only with a rifle and a revolver, York killed 25 Germans and—with six other doughboys—captured 132 prisoners. General Pershing called him the outstanding soldier of the AEF, while Marshal Foch, the commander of Allied forces in Europe, described his feat as “the greatest thing accomplished by any private soldier of all the armies of Europe.” For his heroic acts, York was promoted to sergeant and became a celebrity when he returned to the United States.

The Collapse of Germany

On November 3, 1918, Austria-Hungary surrendered to the Allies. That same day, German sailors mutinied against government authority. The mutiny spread quickly. Everywhere in Germany, groups of soldiers and workers organized revolutionary councils. On November 9, socialist leaders in the capital, Berlin, established a German republic. The kaiser gave up the throne.

“ Bullets were cracking just over my head.”

SERGEANT YORK

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Although there were no Allied soldiers on German territory and no truly decisive battle had been fought, the Germans were too exhausted to continue fighting. So at the eleventh hour, on the eleventh day, in the eleventh month of 1918, Germany agreed to a cease-fire and signed the armistice, or truce, that ended the war.

The Final Toll

World War I was the bloodiest war in history up to that time. Deaths numbered about 22 million, more than half of them civilians. In addition, 20 million people were wounded, and 10 million more became refugees. The direct economic costs of the war may have been about $338 billion. The United States lost 48,000 men in battle, with another 62,000 dying of disease. More than 200,000 Americans were wounded.

For the Allies, news of the armistice brought great relief. Private John Barkley described the reaction to the news.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOHN L. BARKLEY

“ About 9 o’clock in the evening we heard wild commotion in the little town. The French people, old and young, were running through the streets. Old men and women we’d seen sitting around their houses too feeble to move, were out in the streets yelling, ‘Vive la France! Vive la France! Vive l’America!’. …

Down the street came a soldier. He was telling everybody the armistice had been signed. I said, ‘What’s an armistice?’ It sounded like some kind of machine to me. The other boys around there didn’t know what it meant either.

When the official word came through that it meant peace, we couldn’t believe it. Finally Jesse said, ‘Well kid, I guess it really does mean the war is over.’

I said, ‘I just can’t believe it’s true.’

But it was.”
—No Hard Feelings

Across the Atlantic, Americans also rejoiced at the news. Many now expected life to return to normal. However, people found their lives at home changed almost as much as the lives of those who had fought in Europe.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Eddie Rickenbacker

• Selective Service Act

• convoy system

• American Expeditionary Force

• General John J. Pershing

• Alvin York

• conscientious objector

• armistice

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Fill in a web like the one below to show how Americans responded to the war.

Diagram: 4 empty ovals provide spaces to list American Responses to World War I

Why was the entire population affected by America’s entry into World War I?

Critical Thinking

3. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

In what ways did WWI represent a frightening new kind of warfare? Think About:

• the casualty figures

• new military technology

• shell shock

4. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

This World War I poster shows the role of non-combatants overseas. What is the message in this propaganda poster?

Poster: A woman wearing headphones works at a switchboard. Slogan: Back our girls over there.

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Section 3: The War at Home

One American’s Story

The suffragist Harriot Stanton Blatch visited a munitions plant in New Jersey during World War I and proudly described women at work.

Harriot Stanton Blatch followed in the footsteps of her famous mother, Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HARRIOT STANTON BLATCH

“ The day I visited the place, in one of the largest shops women had only just been put on the work, but it was expected that in less than a month they would be found handling all of the twelve hundred machines under that one roof alone. The skill of the women staggers one. After a week or two they master the operations on the ‘turret,’ gauging and routing machines. The best worker on the ‘facing’ machine is a woman. She is a piece worker, as many of the women are. … This woman earned, the day I saw her, five dollars and forty cents. She tossed about the fuse parts, and played with that machine, as I would with a baby.”
—quoted in We, the American Women

Before World War I, women had been excluded from many jobs. However, the wartime need for labor brought over a million more women into the work force. For women, as for the rest of society, World War I brought about far-reaching changes.

Congress Gives Power to Wilson

Winning the war was not a job for American soldiers alone. As Secretary of War Newton Baker said, “War is no longer Samson with his shield and spear and sword, and David with his sling. It is the conflict of smokestacks now, the combat of the driving wheel and the engine.” Because World War I was such an immense conflict, the entire economy had to be refocused on the war effort. The shift from producing consumer goods to producing war supplies was too complicated and important a job for private industry to handle on its own, so business and government collaborated in the effort. In the process, the power of government was greatly expanded. Congress gave President Wilson direct control over much of the economy, including the power to fix prices and to regulate—even to nationalize—certain war-related industries.

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War Industries Board

The main regulatory body was the War Industries Board (WIB). It was established in 1917 and reorganized in 1918 under the leadership of Bernard M. Baruch (bə-rk′), a prosperous businessman. The board encouraged companies to use mass-production techniques to increase efficiency. It also urged them to eliminate waste by standardizing prod-ucts—for instance, by making only 5 colors of typewriter ribbons instead of 150. The WIB set production quotas and allocated raw materials.

Under the WIB, industrial production in the United States increased by about 20 percent. However, the WIB applied price controls only at the wholesale level. As a result, retail prices soared, and in 1918 they were almost double what they had been before the war. Corporate profits soared as well, especially in such industries as chemicals, meatpacking, oil, and steel.

The WIB was not the only federal agency to regulate the economy during the war. The Railroad Administration controlled the railroads, and the Fuel Administration monitored coal supplies and rationed gasoline and heating oil. In addition, many people adopted “gasless Sundays” and “lightless nights” to conserve fuel. In March 1918, the Fuel Administration introduced another conservation measure: daylight-saving time, which had first been proposed by Benjamin Franklin in the 1770s as a way to take advantage of the longer days of summer.

War Economy

Wages in most industries rose during the war years. Hourly wages for blue-collar workers—those in the metal trades, shipbuilding, and meatpacking, for example—rose by about 20 percent. A household’s income, however, was largely undercut by rising food prices and housing costs.

By contrast, stockholders in large corporations saw enormous profits. One industrial manufacturer, the DuPont Company, saw its stock multiply in value 1,600 percent between 1914 and 1918. By that time the company was earning a $68-million yearly profit. As a result of the uneven pay between labor and management, increasing work hours, child labor, and dangerously “sped-up” conditions, unions boomed. Union membership climbed from about 2.5 million in 1916 to more than 4 million in 1919. More than 6,000 strikes broke out during the war months.

To deal with disputes between management and labor, President Wilson established the National War Labor Board in 1918. Workers who refused to obey board decisions could lose their draft exemptions. “Work or fight,” the board told them. However, the board also worked to improve factory conditions. It pushed for an eight-hour workday, promoted safety inspections, and enforced the child labor ban.

Food Administration

To help produce and conserve food, Wilson set up the Food Administration under Herbert Hoover. Instead of rationing food, he called on people to follow the “gospel of the clean plate.” He declared one day a week “meatless,” another “sweetless,” two days “wheatless,” and two other days “porkless.” Restaurants removed sugar bowls from the table and served bread only after the first course.

Description:

Average annual income 1914 - 1920

1914: $627
1915: $633
1916: $708
1917: $830
1918: $1,047
1919: $1,201
1920: $1,407

Description:

Consumer Price Index 1914 - 1920. Numbers are approximate.

1914: 30
1915: 31
1916: 33
1917: 38
1918: 45
1919: 52
1920: 60

The War Economy, 1914–1920 *A measure of changes in the prices of goods and services commonly bought by consumers; see Economics Handbook, page R39. Source: Historical Statistics of the United States 596 Photo: a victory garden

A Japanese-American family tends a victory garden in New York City in 1917. Poster: basket of vegetables with slogan 'Food is Ammunition - Don't waste it.'

Poster: basket of vegetables with slogan 'Food is Ammunition - Don't waste it.'

A wartime poster encourages Americans to conserve resources.

Homeowners planted “victory gardens” in their yards. Schoolchildren spent their after-school hours growing tomatoes and cucumbers in public parks. As a result of these and similar efforts, American food shipments to the Allies tripled. Hoover also set a high government price on wheat and other staples. Farmers responded by putting an additional 40 million acres into production. In the process, they increased their income by almost 30 percent.

Selling the War

Once the government had extended its control over the economy, it was faced with two major tasks: raising money and convincing the public to support the war.

War Financing

The United States spent about $35.5 billion on the war effort. The government raised about one-third of this amount through taxes, including a progressive income tax (which taxed high incomes at a higher rate than low incomes), a war-profits tax, and higher excise taxes on tobacco, liquor, and luxury goods. It raised the rest through public borrowing by selling “Liberty Loan” and “Victory Loan” bonds.

The government sold bonds through tens of thousands of volunteers. Movie stars spoke at rallies in factories, in schools, and on street corners. As Treasury Secretary William G. McAdoo put it, only “a friend of Germany” would refuse to buy war bonds.

Committee on Public Information

To popularize the war, the government set up the nation’s first propaganda agency, the Committee on Public Information (CPI). Propaganda is a kind of biased communication designed to influence people’s thoughts and actions. The head of the CPI was a former muck-raking journalist named George Creel.

Creel persuaded the nation’s artists and advertising agencies to create thousands of paintings, posters, cartoons, and sculptures promoting the war. He recruited some 75,000 men to serve as “Four-Minute Men,” who spoke about everything relating to the war: the draft, rationing, bond drives, victory gardens, and topics such as “Why We Are Fighting” and “The Meaning of America.”

Nor did Creel neglect the written word. He ordered a printing of almost 25 million copies of “How the War Came to America”—which included Wilson’s war message—in English and other languages. He distributed some 75 million pamphlets, booklets, and leaflets, many with the enthusiastic help of the Boy

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Scouts. Creel’s propaganda campaign was highly effective. However, while the campaign promoted patriotism, it also inflamed hatred and violations of the civil liberties of certain ethnic groups and opponents of the war.

Attacks on Civil Liberties Increase

Early in 1917, President Wilson expressed his fears about the consequences of war hysteria.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WOODROW WILSON

“ Once lead this people into war and they’ll forget there ever was such a thing as tolerance. To fight you must be brutal and ruthless, and the spirit of ruthless brutality will enter into the very fiber of our national life, infecting Congress, the courts, the policeman on the beat, the man in the street. Conformity would be the only virtue, and every man who refused to conform would have to pay the penalty.”
—quoted in Cobb of “The World”

The president’s prediction came true. As soon as war was declared, conformity indeed became the order of the day. Attacks on civil liberties, both unofficial and official, erupted.

Anti-Immigrant Hysteria

The main targets of these attacks were Americans who had emigrated from other nations, especially those from Germany and Austria-Hungary. The most bitter attacks were directed against the nearly 2 million Americans who had been born in Germany, but other foreign-born persons and Americans of German descent suffered as well.

Many Americans with German names lost their jobs. Orchestras refused to play the music of Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. Some towns with German names changed them. Schools stopped teaching the German language, and librarians removed books by German authors from the shelves. People even resorted to violence against German Americans, flogging them or smearing them

Analyzing Political Cartoons: The Enemy Within

After the United States entered the war, government propaganda helped inflame prejudice against recent immigrants. In the suspicious atmosphere of the time, conspiracy theories flourished, and foreign spies were believed to be everywhere. This cartoon reveals the hysteria that gripped the country in 1917.

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with tar and feathers. A mob in Collinsville, Illinois, wrapped a German flag around a German-born miner named Robert Prager and lynched him. A jury cleared the mob’s leader.

Finally, in a burst of anti-German fervor, Americans changed the name of German measles to “liberty measles.” Hamburger—named after the German city of Hamburg—became “Salisbury steak” or “liberty sandwich,” depending on whether you were buying it in a store or eating it in a restaurant. Sauerkraut was renamed “liberty cabbage,” and dachshunds turned into “liberty pups.”

Espionage and Sedition Acts

In June 1917 Congress passed the Espionage Act, and in May 1918 it passed the Sedition Act. Under the Espionage and Sedition Acts a person could be fined up to $10,000 and sentenced to 20 years in jail for interfering with the war effort or for saying anything disloyal, profane, or abusive about the government or the war effort.

Like the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, these laws clearly violated the spirit of the First Amendment. Their passage led to over 2,000 prosecutions for loosely defined antiwar activities; of these, over half resulted in convictions. Newspapers and magazines that opposed the war or criticized any of the Allies lost their mailing privileges. The House of Representatives refused to seat Victor Berger, a socialist congressman from Wisconsin, because of his antiwar views. Columbia University fired a distinguished psychologist because he opposed the war. A colleague who supported the war thereupon resigned in protest, saying, “If we have to suppress everything we don’t like to hear, this country is resting on a pretty wobbly basis.”

The Espionage and Sedition Acts targeted socialists and labor leaders. Eugene V. Debs was handed a ten-year prison sentence for speaking out against the war and the draft. The anarchist Emma Goldman received a two-year prison sentence and a $10,000 fine for organizing the No Conscription League. When she left jail, the authorities deported her to Russia. “Big Bill” Haywood and other leaders of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) were accused of sabotaging the war effort because they urged workers to strike for better conditions and higher pay. Haywood was sentenced to a long prison term. (He later skipped bail and fled to Russia.) Under such federal pressure, the IWW faded away.

Sticker: A man reaches out from a factory. Slogan: The I.W.W. is coming! Join the one big union.

This Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) sticker encourages workers to join the union.

The War Encourages Social Change

Wars often unleash powerful social forces. The period of World War I was no exception; important changes transformed the lives of African Americans and women.

African Americans and the War

Black public opinion about the war was divided. On one side were people like W. E. B. Du Bois, who believed that blacks should support the war effort.

A PERSONAL VOICE

W. E. B. DU BOIS

“ That which the German power represents today spells death to the aspirations of Negroes and all darker races for equality, freedom and democracy. … Let us, while this war lasts, forget our special grievances and close our ranks shoulder to shoulder with our own white fellow citizens and the allied nations that are fighting for democracy.”
—“Close Ranks”

W. E. B. Du Bois 599

Du Bois believed that African-American support for the war would strengthen calls for racial justice. In contrast, William Monroe Trotter, founder of the Boston Guardian, believed that victims of racism should not support a racist government. Trotter condemned Du Bois’s accommodationist approach and favored protest instead. Nevertheless, despite grievances over continued racial inequality in the United States, most African Americans backed the war.

The Great Migration

In concrete terms, the greatest effect of the First World War on African Americans’ lives was that it accelerated the Great Migration, the large-scale movement of hundreds of thousands of Southern blacks to cities in the North. This great population shift had already begun before the war in the late 19th century, when African Americans trickled northward to escape the Jim Crow South—but after the turn of the century, the trickle became a tidal wave.

Several factors contributed to the tremendous increase in black migration. First, many African Americans sought to escape racial discrimination in the South, which made it hard to make a living and often threatened their lives. Also, a boll weevil infestation, aided by floods and droughts, had ruined much of the South’s cotton fields. In the North, there were more job opportunities. For example, Henry Ford opened his automobile assembly line to black workers in 1914. The outbreak of World War I and the drop in European immigration increased job opportunities for African Americans in steel mills, munitions plants, and stockyards. Northern manufacturers sent recruiting agents to distribute free railroad passes through the South. In addition, the publisher of the black-owned newspaper Chicago Defender bombarded Southern blacks with articles contrasting Dixieland lynchings with the prosperity of African Americans in the North.

Painting: figures file through gates labeled Chicago, New York, and St. Louis

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However, racial prejudice against African Americans also existed in the North. The press of new migrants to Northern cities caused overcrowding and intensified racial tensions.

Nevertheless, between 1910 and 1930, hundreds of thousands of African Americans migrated to such cities as Chicago, New York, and Philadelphia. Author Richard Wright described the great exodus.

Historical Spotlight: Race Riots

Racial prejudice against African Americans in the North sometimes took violent forms. In July 1917, a race riot exploded in East St. Louis, Illinois. White workers, furious over the hiring of African Americans as strikebreakers at a munitions plant, rampaged through the streets. Forty blacks and nine whites died.

Another riot erupted in July 1919 in Chicago when a 17-year-old African American swam from the water off a “black beach” to the water off a “white beach.” There, white bathers threw rocks at him until he drowned.

African Americans retaliated, and several riots broke out in the city. Order was restored after several days of violence that involved about 10,000 people.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RICHARD WRIGHT

“ We are bitter no more; we are leaving! We are leaving our homes, pulling up stakes to move on. We look up at the high southern sky and remember all the sunshine and all the rain and we feel a sense of loss, but we are leaving. We look out at the wide green fields which our eyes saw when we first came into the world and we feel full of regret, but we are leaving. We scan the kind black faces we have looked upon since we first saw the light of day, and, though pain is in our hearts, we are leaving. We take one last furtive look over our shoulders to the Big House—high upon a hill beyond the railroad tracks—where the Lord of the Land lives, and we feel glad, for we are leaving.”
—quoted in 12 Million Black Voices

Women in the War

While African Americans began new lives, women moved into jobs that had been held exclusively by men. They became railroad workers, cooks, dockworkers, and bricklayers. They mined coal and took part in shipbuilding. At the same time, women continued to fill more traditional jobs as nurses, clerks, and teachers. Many women worked as volunteers, serving at Red Cross facilities and encouraging the sale of bonds and the planting of victory gardens. Other women, such as Jane Addams, were active in the peace movement. Addams helped found the Women’s Peace Party in 1915 and remained a pacifist even after the United States entered the war.

President Wilson acknowledged, “The services of women during the supreme crisis have been of the most signal usefulness and distinction; it is high time that part of our debt should be acknowledged.” While acknowledgment of that debt did not include equal pay for equal work, it did help bolster public support for woman suffrage. In 1919, Congress finally passed the Nineteenth Amendment, granting women the right to vote. In 1920 the amendment was ratified by the states.

Women worked in a variety of jobs during the war. Here, women assemble an aircraft wing. 601

The Flu Epidemic

In the fall of 1918, the United States suffered a home-front crisis when an international flu epidemic affected about one-quarter of the U.S. population. The effect of the epidemic on the economy was devastating. Mines shut down, telephone service was cut in half, and factories and offices staggered working hours to avoid contagion. Cities ran short of coffins, and the corpses of poor people lay unburied for as long as a week. The mysterious illness seemed to strike people who were otherwise in the best of health, and death could come in a matter of days. Doctors did not know what to do, other than to recommend cleanliness and quarantine. One epidemic survivor recalled that “so many people died from the flu they just rang the bells; they didn’t dare take [corpses] into the church.”

In the army, where living conditions allowed contagious illnesses to spread rapidly, more than a quarter of the soldiers caught the disease. In some AEF units, one-third of the troops died. Germans fell victim in even larger numbers than the Allies. Possibly spread around the world by soldiers, the epidemic killed about 500,000 Americans before it disappeared in 1919. Historians believe that the influenza virus killed as many as 30 million people worldwide.

World War I brought death and disease to millions but, like the flu epidemic, the war also came to a sudden end. After four years of slaughter and destruction, the time had come to forge a peace settlement. Americans hoped that this “war to end all wars” would do just that. Leaders of the victorious nations gathered at Versailles outside Paris to work out the terms of peace, and President Wilson traveled to Europe to ensure it.

Photo: a street cleaner wearing a mask pushes a broom

New York City street cleaners wore masks to avoid catching influenza.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• War Industries Board

• Bernard M. Baruch

• propaganda

• George Creel

• Espionage and Sedition Acts

• Great Migration

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one shown, list some of the changes that the war brought about for each group.

Chart entitled Changes Brought About by the War provides spaces to list changes next to 3 groups - African Americans, Women, and Immigrants

Explain how each group benefited from or was disadvantaged by these changes.

Critical Thinking

3. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

How did the war affect government power? Think About:

• how private business worked with government

• how much control the president gained over the economy

• the Espionage and Sedition Acts

4. MAKING INFERENCES

Why do you think the flu spread so quickly among the troops?

5. EVALUATING

Do you think that the war had a positive or a negative effect on American society? Think About:

• how the propaganda campaign influenced people’s behavior

• the new job opportunities for African Americans and women

• how the government controlled industry

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Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court Schenck v. United States (1919)

Emblem: A title surrounds a photo of the Supreme Court building - Historic Decisions of The Supreme Court.

Origins of the Case

Charles Schenck, an official of the U.S. Socialist Party, distributed leaflets that called the draft a “deed against humanity” and compared conscription to slavery, urging conscripts to “assert your rights.” Schenck was convicted of sedition and sentenced to prison, but he argued that the conviction, punishment, and even the law itself violated his right to free speech. The Supreme Court agreed to hear his appeal.

The Ruling

A unanimous court upheld Schenck’s conviction, stating that under wartime conditions, the words in the leaflets were not protected by the right to free speech.

Legal Reasoning

The Supreme Court’s opinion in the Schenck case, written by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., has become famous as a guide for how the First Amendment defines the right of free speech. Holmes wrote:

“ The question in every case is whether the words used are used in such circumstances and are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent.”

Justice Holmes noted that “in ordinary times” the First Amendment might have protected Schenck, but “[w]hen a nation is at war many things that might be said in time of peace … will not be endured.”

The analogy that Holmes used to explain why Schenck could be punished for his words has become probably the best-known observation ever made about free speech:

“ Protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely shouting ‘Fire!’ in a theatre and causing a panic.”

Writing for the Court, Holmes implied that during wartime, Schenck’s leaflet was just that dangerous.

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Supreme Court Justice 1902–1932 Legal Sources

THE SEDITION ACT (1918)

”(W)hoever … shall willfully utter, print, write or publish any disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language about the form of government, … Constitution, … military or naval forces, … flag, … or the uniform of the Army or Navy of the United States … shall be punished by a fine of not more than $10,000 or imprisonment for not more than twenty years, or both.”

Related Cases

DEBS v. UNITED STATES (MARCH, 1919)

The conviction against Eugene Debs for speaking against the war and the draft is upheld.

FROHWERK v. UNITED STATES (MARCH, 1919)

The publisher of a newspaper that had criticized the war is sentenced with a fine and ten years in prison.

ABRAMS v. UNITED STATES (NOV., 1919)

Leaflets criticizing the U.S. expeditionary force in Russia are found to be unprotected by the First Amendment. Holmes writes a dissenting opinion calling for the “free trade of ideas.”

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Why it Mattered

During the course of World War I, the federal government brought approximately 2,000 prosecutions for violations of the Espionage Act of 1917 or the Sedition Act of 1918, the same laws under which it convicted Schenck, Debs, and Frohwerk.

By the fall of 1919, however, Holmes had changed his mind. The case of Abrams v. United States concerned leaflets that criticized President Wilson’s “capitalistic” government for sending troops to put down the Russian Revolution. Justice Holmes, joined by Justice Louis Brandeis, dissented from the majority of the Court, which upheld the conviction. In his dissent, Holmes emphasized the importance of a free exchange of ideas so that truth will win out in the intellectual marketplace. His reasoning won him acclaim as a protector of free speech.

The belief that truth will eventually win out in the marketplace of ideas has become important legal justification for promoting freedom of speech.

Eugene Debs was arrested for antiwar speeches like the one he gave at this 1916 presidential campaign stop.

Historical Impact

Disagreements about what kinds of speech are “free” under the First Amendment continue. During the 1950s, when people were jailed for supporting Communism, and during the Vietnam War, when war protestors supported draft resistance, these issues again reached the Supreme Court.

The Court has also been asked to decide if young people in schools have the same First Amendment rights as adults. In Tinker v. Des Moines School District (1969), the Court ordered a school to readmit students who had been suspended for wearing black arm bands in protest of the war in Vietnam.

This so-called symbolic speech, such as wearing an armband or burning a draft card or a flag to express an opinion, has sparked heated debate. In Texas v. Johnson (1989), the Court, by a narrow five to four vote, invalidated a law under which a man who burned an American flag to protest Reagan administration policies had been convicted. The decision so outraged some people that members of Congress considered amending the Constitution to prohibit any “physical desecration” of the flag. The amendment did not pass. Our freedoms of expression continue to depend upon the words in the first article of the Bill of Rights, written more than 200 years ago.

Photo: Mary Beth and John Tinker's armbands display a peace-symbol

In 1965 Mary Beth Tinker and her brother, John, were suspended from school for wearing armbands that symbolically criticized the Vietnam War. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Analyzing Primary Sources Read Justice Holmes’s dissent in Abrams v. United States. Compare it with the opinion he wrote in Schenck v. United States. Explain the major difference or similarity in the two opinions.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R22. Connect to Today

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court to research articles about free speech issues. Select several of these issues—such as whether hate groups have a right to march—to discuss with other students in your class. Choose one issue and, as a group, write down as many arguments as you can on both sides of the issue. Then present a debate to the class.

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Section 4: Wilson Fights for Peace

One American’s Story

In January 1918, at the magnificent Palace of Versailles outside Paris, President Wilson tried to persuade the Allies to construct a just and lasting peace and to establish a League of Nations. Colonel E. M. House, a native of Texas and a member of the American delegation to Versailles, later wrote about the conference.

A PERSONAL VOICE

COLONEL E. M. HOUSE

“ How splendid it would have been had we blazed a new and better trail! … It may be that Wilson might have had the power and influence if he had remained in Washington and kept clear of the Conference. When he stepped from his lofty pedestal and wrangled with representatives of other states, upon equal terms, he became as common clay. …

To those who are saying that the Treaty is bad and should never have been made and that it will involve Europe in infinite difficul-ties in its enforcement, I feel like admitting it. But I would also say in reply that empires cannot be shattered and new states raised upon their ruins without disturbance.”
—quoted in Hooray for Peace, Hurrah for War

House saw what happened when Wilson’s idealism ran up against practical politics. The Allied victors, vengeful toward Germany after four years of warfare, rejected most of Wilson’s peace program.

Colonel Edward M. House was a friend and advisor to President Woodrow Wilson.

Wilson Presents His Plan

Rejection was probably the last thing Wilson expected when he arrived in Europe. Everywhere he went, people gave him a hero’s welcome. Italians displayed his picture in their windows; Parisians strewed the street with flowers. Representatives of one group after another, including Armenians, Jews, Ukrainians, and Poles, appealed to him for help in setting up independent nations for themselves.

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Fourteen Points

Even before the war was over, Wilson presented his plan for world peace. On January 18, 1918, he delivered his now famous Fourteen Points speech before Congress. The points were divided into three groups. The first five points were issues that Wilson believed had to be addressed to prevent another war:

1. There should be no secret treaties among nations.

2. Freedom of the seas should be maintained for all.

3. Tariffs and other economic barriers among nations should be lowered or abolished in order to foster free trade.

4. Arms should be reduced “to the lowest point consistent with domestic safety, thus lessening the possibility of military responses” during diplomatic crises.

5. Colonial policies should consider the interests of the colonial peoples as well as the interests of the imperialist powers.

The next eight points dealt with boundary changes. Wilson based these provisions on the principle of self-determination “along historically established lines of nationality.” In other words, groups that claimed distinct ethnic identities were to form their own nation-states or decide for themselves to what nations they would belong.

The fourteenth point called for the creation of an international organization to address diplomatic crises like those that had sparked the war. This League of Nations would provide a forum for nations to discuss and settle their grievances without having to resort to war.

The Allies Reject Wilson’s Plan

Wilson’s naiveté about the political aspects of securing a peace treaty showed itself in his failure to grasp the anger felt by the Allied leaders. The French premier, Georges Clemenceau (klĕm′ ən-sō′), had lived through two German invasions of France and was determined to prevent future invasions. David Lloyd George, the British prime minister, had just won reelection on the slogan “Make Germany Pay.” The Italian prime minister, Vittorio Orlando, wanted control of Austrian-held territory.

Contrary to custom, the peace conference did not include the defeated Central Powers. Nor did it include Russia, which was now under the control of a Communist government, or the smaller Allied nations. Instead, the “Big Four”—Wilson, Clemenceau, Lloyd George, and Orlando—worked out the treaty’s details among themselves. Wilson conceded on most of his Fourteen Points in return for the establishment of the League of Nations.

Photo: David Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau, and Woodrow Wilson

(left to right) David Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau, and Woodrow Wilson in Paris in 1919. 606 2 maps: Europe and the Middle East in 1915 and 1920

Description:

Europe and the Middle East, 1915

Allied Powers - Ireland, Great Britain, Belgium, France, Portugal, Italy, Montenegro, Serbia, Greece, Romania, Russia
Central Powers - Germany, Luxembourg, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire
Neutral countries - Spain, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Iceland, Albania, Arabia

Europe and the Middle East, 1920

New nations - Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Trans-Jordan
Allied-occupied zones - western section of Germany, northwestern section of Turkey

Europe and the Middle East, 1915 Europe and the Middle East, 1920

Debating the Treaty of Versailles

On June 28, 1919, the Big Four and the leaders of the defeated nations gathered in the Hall of Mirrors of the Palace of Versailles to sign the peace treaty. After four years of devastating warfare, everyone hoped that the treaty would create stability for a rebuilt Europe. Instead, anger held sway.

Provisions of the Treaty

The Treaty of Versailles (vər-sī′) established nine new nations—including Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia—and shifted the boundaries of other nations. It carved five areas out of the Ottoman Empire and gave them to France and Great Britain as mandates, or temporary colonies. Those two Allies were to administer their respective mandates until the areas were ready for self-rule and then independence.

The treaty barred Germany from maintaining an army. It also required Germany to return the region of Alsace-Lorraine to France and to pay reparations, or war damages, amounting to $33 billion to the Allies.

The Treaty’s Weaknesses

This treatment of Germany weakened the ability of the Treaty of Versailles to provide a lasting peace in Europe. Several basic flaws in the treaty sowed the seeds of postwar international problems that eventually would lead to the Second World War.

First, the treaty humiliated Germany. It contained a war-guilt clause forcing Germany to admit sole responsibility for starting World War I. Although German militarism had played a major role in igniting the war, other European nations had been guilty of provoking diplomatic crises before the war. Furthermore, there was no way Germany could pay the huge financial reparations. Germany was stripped of its colonial possessions in the Pacific, which might have helped it pay its reparations bill.

607

In addition, for three years the Russians had fought on the side of the Allies, suffering higher casualties than any other nation. However, because Russia was excluded from the peace conference, it lost more territory than Germany did. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (or Soviet Union), as Russia was officially called after 1922, became determined to regain its former territory.

Finally, the treaty ignored claims of colonized people for self-determination, as in the case of Southeast Asia, where the Vietnamese people were beginning to demand the same political rights enjoyed by people in Western nations.

Opposition to the Treaty

When Wilson returned to the United States, he faced strong opposition to the treaty. Some people, including Herbert Hoover, believed it was too harsh. Hoover noted, “The economic consequences alone will pull down all Europe and thus injure the United States.” Others considered the treaty a sell-out to imperialism because it simply exchanged one set of colonial rulers for another. Some ethnic groups objected to the treaty because the new national boundaries it established did not satisfy their particular demands for self-determination. For example, before the war many Poles had been under German rule. Now many Germans were under Polish rule.

Debate Over the League of Nations

The main domestic opposition, however, centered on the issue of the League of Nations. A few opponents believed that the League threatened the U.S. foreign policy of isolationism. Conservative senators, headed by Henry Cabot Lodge, were suspicious of the provision for joint economic and military action against aggression, even though it was voluntary. They wanted the constitutional right of Congress to declare war included in the treaty.

Point

“The League of Nations was the world’s best hope for lasting peace.”

President Wilson campaigned for the League of Nations as “necessary to meet the differing and unexpected contingencies” that could threaten world peace. Wilson believed that the League would create a forum where nations could talk through their disagreements. He also hoped it would provide collective security, in which nations would “respect and preserve as against external aggression the territorial integrity and existing political independence of all members of the League,” and thereby prevent devastating warfare.

Critics complained that membership in the League would limit American independence in international affairs. However, Wilson argued that League member-ship included “a moral, not a legal, obligation” that would leave Congress free to decide its own course of action. Wilson tried to assure Congress as well as the general public that the League was “not a straitjacket, but a vehicle of life.” It was also a definite guaranty … against the things that have just come near bringing the whole structure of civilization into ruin.”

Counterpoint

“The League of Nations posed a threat to U.S. self-determination.”

Senator William Borah was one of the foremost critics of the Treaty of Versailles because he objected to U.S. membership in the League of Nations. Borah feared that membership in the League “would draw America away from her isolation and into the internal affairs and concerns of Europe” and involve the United States in foreign wars. “Once having surrendered and become a part of the European concerns,” Borah wondered, “where, my friends, are you going to stop?”

Many opponents also feared that the League would nullify the Monroe Doctrine by limiting “the right of our people to govern themselves free from all restraint, legal or moral, of foreign powers.”

Although Wilson argued that the League of Nations would have no such power of restraint, Borah was unconvinced. He responded to Wilson’s argument by asking, “What will your League amount to if it does not contain powers that no one dreams of giving it?”

608 History Through Film: Echoes of the Great War

In the 1920s and 1930s, a number of Hollywood horror films were influenced by memories of the Great War. The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Phantom of the Opera featured men who, like many veterans, were forced to live with shameful disfigurements.

Other films recalled the war’s bleak landscapes. For example, parts of the movie Frankenstein were filmed on the same sets as All Quiet on the Western Front, the famous war film. James Whale, who directed Frankenstein, was a veteran of the war. Like many of his generation, he remained profoundly disturbed by the horrors the war had unleashed.

Lon Chaney in The Phantom of the Opera (1925) Photo: Lon Chaney as the Hunchback of Notre Dame

Chaney in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) 2 photos: first, two soldiers in a trench. second, a villager with a torch and the Frankenstein monster

(top) All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) (bottom) Frankenstein (1931)

Wilson Refuses to Compromise

Wilson unwisely ignored the Republican majority in the Senate when he chose the members of the American delegation. If he had been more willing to accept a compromise on the League, it would have been more likely that the Senate would have approved the treaty. Wilson, however, was exhausted from his efforts at Versailles.

Despite ill health, Wilson set out in September 1919 on an 8,000-mile tour. He delivered 34 speeches in about 3 weeks, explaining why the United States should join the League of Nations. On October 2, Wilson suffered a stroke (a ruptured blood vessel to the brain) and lay partially paralyzed for more than two months, unable to even meet with his cabinet. His once-powerful voice was no more than a thick whisper.

When the treaty came up for a vote in the Senate in November 1919, Senator Lodge introduced a number of amendments, the most important of which qualified the terms under which the United States would enter the League of Nations. It was feared that U.S. membership in the League would force the United States to form its foreign policy in accord with the League. Although the Senate rejected the amendments, it also failed to ratify the treaty.

Wilson refused to compromise. “I will not play for position,” he proclaimed. “This is not a time for tactics. It is a time to stand square. I can stand defeat; I cannot stand retreat from conscientious duty.” The treaty again came up for a vote in March 1920. The Senate again rejected the Lodge amendments—and again failed to muster enough votes for ratification.

The United States finally signed a separate treaty with Germany in 1921, after Wilson was no longer president. The United States never joined the League of Nations, but it maintained an unofficial observer at League meetings.

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The Legacy of the War

When World War I ended, many Americans looked forward to a return of what Warren G. Harding called “normalcy.” However, both the United States and the rest of the world had been utterly transformed by the war. At home, World War I had strengthened both the U.S. military and the power of government. It had also accelerated social change, especially for African Americans and women. In addition, the propaganda campaign had provoked powerful fears and antagonisms that were left unchanneled when the war finally came to an end.

In Europe the destruction and massive loss of life severely damaged social and political systems. In many countries the war created political instability and violence that persisted for decades. During the war years, the first Communist state was established in Russia, while after the war, militant fascist organizations seized control in Italy, Spain, and Germany.

Appalled by the scale of destruction, Americans began to call World War I “the war to end all wars,” in the hope that humanity would never again be willing to fight such a war. However, unresolved issues in Europe would eventually drag America into an even wider war. The Treaty of Versailles had settled nothing. In fact, some Europeans longed to resume the fight. The ominous shape of things to come emerged in the writings of an Austrian named Adolf Hitler, an angry veteran of World War I: “It cannot be that two million [Germans] should have fallen in vain. … No, we do not pardon, we demand—vengeance!” Two decades after the end of the Great War, Adolf Hitler’s desire for vengeance would plunge the world into an even greater war, in which the United States would play a leading role.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Fourteen Points

• League of Nations

• Georges Clemenceau

• David Lloyd George

• Treaty of Versailles

• reparations

• war-guilt clause

• Henry Cabot Lodge

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES Re-create the spider diagram shown below. Fill in the web with information about the provisions and weaknesses of the Treaty of Versailles and opposition to it.

Diagram entitled The Treaty of Versailles provides spaces for listing Weaknesses, Provisions, and Opposition

Do you think Congress should have rejected the treaty?

Critical Thinking

3. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Why didn’t the Treaty of Versailles lay the foundations for a lasting peace?

4. SUMMARIZING

Why did so many Americans oppose the Treaty of Versailles?

5. HYPOTHESIZING

Predict Germany’s reaction to the Treaty of Versailles. Give reasons for your predictions. Think About:

• what Germans thought of the war-guilt clause

• German reaction to reparations

• how Germans felt about the loss of territory

610

Tracing Themes: America in World Affairs

The United States has not always been as involved in world affairs as it is today. Throughout its history, the nation’s foreign policy has swung back and forth between a commitment to involvement with the world and the desire for isolation. “Steer clear of permanent alliances,” George Washington cautioned Americans in his Farewell Address of 1796. Washington’s warning to the young nation became a theme of government policy for the next hundred years, as domestic issues dominated Americans’ attention.

In the late 1800s, however, Americans began to look outward to the larger world. The country had reached the limits of its continental expansion and stretched from ocean to ocean. As its economic power grew stronger, the United States became more involved in the affairs of its neighbors in the Western Hemisphere.

Painting entitled Destruction of the U.S. Battleship Maine depicts bodies flying out of an exploding ship. Insets show Havana harbor and recovery of dead bodies.

1823–1898 THE UNITED STATES AND LATIN AMERICA Throughout the 19th century, the United States expanded its influence in the Western Hemisphere. The Monroe Doctrine was intended to diminish European interference. After the Civil War, American trade with Latin America, including the Spanish colony of Cuba, grew. In fact, the United States traded more heavily with Cuba than Spain did. When the Cubans rebelled against Spain, Americans sympathized with the rebels. After the battleship U.S.S. Maine sank in the Cuban harbor of Havana, Americans blamed the Spanish, and Congress declared war. After defeating the Spanish, the United States extended its influence in territories such as Puerto Rico, Panama, and Mexico. A new expansionist era had begun. Cartoon: Uncle Sam stands on America, The Last Refuge of Democracy, and gazes at War Mad Europe. A figure labeled Democracy kneels, begging, Stay out! Stay out for my sake, as well as your own!, Titles: The Only Way We can Save Her.

Cartoon: Uncle Sam stands on America, The Last Refuge of Democracy, and gazes at War Mad Europe. A figure labeled Democracy kneels, begging, Stay out! Stay out for my sake, as well as your own!, Titles: The Only Way We can Save Her.

1917–1939 INVOLVEMENT AND ISOLATIONISM Before World War I, the United States had generally limited its military involvement to the Western Hemisphere. As the war in Europe progressed, this position became impossible to maintain, as German U-boats increasingly threatened American lives. In spite of fierce opposition from isolation-ists, the United States joined World War I in 1917. U.S. involvement in the conflict greatly strengthened its armed forces and revealed the nation’s military potential. After the war, the United States returned to a policy of isolationism. A decade later, as European dictators began menacing other European countries, American public opinion was sharply divided. Many argued that the best way to preserve American democracy was to stay out of war in Europe. It took Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in 1941 to force the United States into World War II. 611 Photo: toppled Lenin statue

This statue of Lenin, the leader of the 1917 Russian Revolution, was toppled by Latvian citizens in 1991. Photo: soldiers and helicopter in dusty field

Photo: soldiers and helicopter in dusty field

U.S. forces in Vietnam in 1968 1945–1991 THE COLD WAR After World War II, tensions between the United States and Communist countries like the Soviet Union and China developed into a nonmilitary conflict known as the Cold War. During the Cold War, which lasted for nearly 50 years, the United States and the Soviet Union competed to extend their political and economic influence. In some parts of the world, such as Korea and Vietnam, the Cold War led to prolonged military warfare. The great costs of these conflicts—both in money and in lives—led to renewed calls for isolationism. Nevertheless, the U.S. remained actively involved in the Cold War throughout the 1980s. Life Magazine cover, March 27, 1944: infantry climbing off landing craft and wading through water

Life Magazine cover, March 27, 1944: infantry climbing off landing craft and wading through water

1939–1945 INVOLVEMENT IN EUROPE When the fascist threat to democracy became too great to ignore, the United States joined the Allies in fighting the Axis Powers during World War II. The United States and the Soviet Union emerged from the war as the two strongest military powers in the world. It was now impossible for the nation to return to isolationism. The United States took an active role in rebuilding Europe through programs like the Marshall Plan and was instrumental in establishing the United Nations. The United States also stayed involved with Europe militarily during the Cold War as a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Thinking Critically Connect to Today

1. Analyzing Motives What were America’s motives for getting involved in each of the wars described on these two pages? Do you think these motives would be valid today?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R6. Connect to History

2. Writing About Wartime Experience Imagine that you are a reporter writing at the time about one of the wars in the 20th century. Interview someone you know—or look for information in the library or on the Internet—to find out how a soldier, nurse, cook, sailor, or pilot spent each day as part of the war effort. Write a feature article for a local newspaper, quoting that person.

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Chapter 19: Assessment

Visual Summary: The First World War Chart: lists long-term and immediate causes, and immediate and long-term effects

World War I Long-Term Causes

• Nationalist tensions in Europe

• Competition for colonies

• Arms races and militarism

• Formation of defense alliances

Immediate Causes

• Assassination of Franz Ferdinand

• Austria-Hungary’s retaliation against Serbia

• Declarations of war between rival alliances

• Germany’s invasion of Belgium

Immediate Effects

• Destruction and immense loss of life

• Revolution in Russia

• Social change in United States

• Allied victory over Central Powers

• Treaty of Versailles

• Formation of mandates (temporary colonies)

• League of Nations

Long-Term Effects

• Breakup of empires

• U.S. policy of isolationism

• United States’ emergence as global economic giant

• Rise of militant extremist parties in Europe

• Eruption of World War II

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to World War I.

1. nationalism

2. trench warfare

3. Zimmermann note

4. Selective Service Act

5. General John J. Pershing

6. armistice

7. Espionage and Sedition Acts

8. Great Migration

9. Fourteen Points

10. Treaty of Versailles

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

World War I Begins (pages 578–586)

1. What were the main reasons for U.S. involvement in the war?

2. Where did Germany begin its war offensive, and what happened there?

American Power Tips the Balance (pages 587–593)

3. How did the United States mobilize a strong military during World War I?

4. What new weapons made fighting in World War I deadlier than fighting in previous wars?

The War at Home (pages 594–601)

5. What methods did the U.S. government use to sell the war to the nation?

6. What events during the war undermined civil liberties?

Wilson Fights for Peace (pages 604–609)

7. What were the major effects of the Treaty of Versailles?

8. How did Wilson’s support for the League of Nations stand in the way of Senate support for the Treaty of Versailles?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a chart like the one shown, provide causes for the listed effects of World War I.

Chart provides spaces to list causes for effects: U.S. enters World War, Germany collapses, and U.S. economy becomes more productive

2. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Between 1914 and 1920, Americans debated the role their country should have in world affairs. From the events of World War I, what might Americans have learned about intervention in the affairs of other nations?

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look at the maps of Europe before and after World War I (page 606). Describe the changes in national boundaries after the Versailles peace settlement.

613 Standardized Test Practice

Use the map and your knowledge of United States history to answer question 1.

Map: shows 4 countries labeled A, B, C, D. A Netherlands. B Germany. C Russia. D Austria-Hungary.

1. Which country was an ally of the United States during World War I?

A country A

B country B

C country C

D country D

Use the graph and your knowledge of United States history to answer question 2.

Description:

Graph: military casualties (percent of soldiers) from 8 countries, presented highest to lowest. Percentages are approximate.

Austria-Hungary: 90
Russia: 75
France: 73
Germany: 65
Italy: 39
Great Britain: 38
Bulgaria: 21
United States: 8

Military Casualties

2. The countries with the greatest percentage of military casualties were—

F members of the Allied Powers.

G members of the Central Powers.

H located far from the battlefront.

J neighboring states.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 577:

Do you think America should enter the war?

Write a speech, arguing for or against American involvement in World War I. Use information from the chapter to support your argument. Give your speech to the class.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video “Ace of Aces: Eddie Rickenbacker and the First World War.” Discuss the following questions in a group; then do the activity.

• What is your impression of Eddie Rickenbacker?

• How did Rickenbacker adapt his skills and talents to wartime?

Cooperative Learning Activity Rickenbacker’s bravery and aviation skills made him a hero. What qualities make people heroes? Using stories and images from magazines and newspapers, make a list of current heroes on a chart for display in your classroom.

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Unit 6: The 1920s and the Great Depression 1920–1940

Chapter 20 Politics of the Roaring Twenties 1919–1929

Chapter 21 The Roaring Life of the 1920s 1920–1929

Chapter 22 The Great Depression Begins 1929–1933

Chapter 23 The New Deal 1933–1940

Painting: city buildings with crumbled walls

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 614 and page 615 in the print version. 615 Painting: city buildings with crumbled walls

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 614 and page 615 in the print version. 616

Chapter 20: Politics of the Roaring Twenties

Angry mill workers riot after walking off the job during a strike of Tennessee textile plants. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 616 and page 617 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1919 - 1923 USA and World

1919-1920 USA: Palmer Raids
1920 USA: Warren G. Harding is elected president.
1921 World: Chinese Communist Party is founded in Shanghai.
1921 USA: Sacco and Vanzette are convicted.
1921 USA: Federal-Aid Road Act funds a national highway system.
1922 World: Benito Mussolini is appointed prime minister of Italy.
1923 USA: President Harding dies and Calvin Coolidge becomes president.
1923 World: German economic crisis.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 616 and page 617 in the print version. 617 Photo: police attack demonstrators and their families

Photo: police attack demonstrators and their families

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 616 and page 617 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1924 - 1929 USA and World

1924 USA: Calvin Coolidge is elected president.
1924 World: Vladimir Ilich Lenin, founder of the Soviet Union, dies.
1925 USA: A. Philip Randolph organizes the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters.
1926 World: British laborers declare a general strike.
1926 World: Hirohito becomes emperor of Japan.
1927 USA: Henry Ford introduces the Model A.
1928 World: Joseph Stalin launches the first of his Five-Year-Plans in the USSR.
1928 USA: Herbert Hoover is elected president.
1929 World: National Revolutionary Party is organized in Mexico.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 616 and page 617 in the print version. Interact with History

World War I has ended. As Americans struggle to rebuild broken lives, the voices of angry workers can be silenced no longer. Despite public criticism, many risk losing their jobs to strike and join unions. The streets become a battleground for fair pay and better working conditions.

Would you strike and risk your family’s welfare?

Examine the Issues

• Do city workers have a responsibility not to go on strike?

• Should the government intervene in disputes between labor and business?

• Does the success of a strike depend on you?

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Section 1: Americans Struggle with Postwar Issues

One American’s Story

During the 1920s and 1930s, Irving Fajans, a department store sales clerk in New York City, tried to persuade fellow workers to join the Department Store Employees Union. He described some of the techniques union organizers used.

Irving Fajans organized department store workers in their efforts to gain better pay and working conditions during the 1920s.

A PERSONAL VOICE

IRVING FAJANS

“ If you were caught distributing … union literature around the job you were instantly fired. We thought up ways of passing leaflets without the boss being able to pin anybody down. … We … swiped the key to the toilet paper dispensers in the washroom, took out the paper and substituted printed slips of just the right size! We got a lot of new members that way—It appealed to their sense of humor.”
—quoted in The Jewish Americans

During the war, workers’ rights had been suppressed. In 1919, workers began to cry out for fair pay and better working conditions. Tensions arose between labor and management, and a rash of labor strikes broke out across the country. The public, however, was not supportive of striking workers. Many citizens longed to get back to normal, peaceful living—they felt resentful of anyone who caused unrest.

Postwar Trends

World War I had left much of the American public exhausted. The debate over the League of Nations had deeply divided America. Further, the Progressive Era had caused numerous wrenching changes in American life. The economy, too, was in a difficult state of adjustment. Returning soldiers faced unemployment or took their old jobs away from women and minorities. Also, the cost of living had doubled. Farmers and factory workers suffered as wartime orders diminished.

Many Americans responded to the stressful conditions by becoming fearful of outsiders. A wave of nativism, or prejudice against foreign-born people, swept the nation. So, too, did a belief in isolationism, a policy of pulling away from involvement in world affairs.

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Fear of Communism

One perceived threat to American life was the spread of communism, an economic and political system based on a single-party government ruled by a dictatorship. In order to equalize wealth and power, Communists would put an end to private property, substituting government ownership of factories, railroads, and other businesses.

The Red Scare

The panic in the United States began in 1919, after revolutionaries in Russia overthrew the czarist regime. Vladimir I. Lenin and his followers, or Bolsheviks (“the majority”), established a new Communist state. Waving their symbolic red flag, Communists, or “Reds,” cried out for a worldwide revolution that would abolish capitalism everywhere.

A Communist Party formed in the United States. Seventy-thousand radicals joined, including some from the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). When several dozen bombs were mailed to government and business leaders, the public grew fearful that the Communists were taking over. U.S. Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer took action to combat this “Red Scare.”

Economic Background: Roots of Communism

The first Communist government in Russia was based on the teachings of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. In 1848, these two had published The Communist Manifesto, which outlined a theory of class struggle. It said that a class that had economic power also had social and political power.

It also said that two classes, the “haves” and the “have-nots,” have struggled for control throughout history. During the Industrial Revolution, Communists believed, the struggle was between the capitalists, who owned capital—land, money, and machinery—and workers, who owned only their labor. Marx and Engels urged workers to seize political power and the means of production. Ultimately, they believed, laborers would overthrow capitalism in all industrialized nations.

A PERSONAL VOICE

A. MITCHELL PALMER

“ The blaze of revolution was sweeping over every American institution of law and order. … eating its way into the homes of the American workman, its sharp tongues of revolutionary heat … licking the altars of the churches, leaping into the belfry of the school bell, crawling into the sacred corners of American homes, … burning up the foundations of society.”
—“The Case Against the Reds”

The Palmer Raids

In August 1919, Palmer appointed J. Edgar Hoover as his special assistant. Palmer, Hoover, and their agents hunted down suspected Communists, socialists, and anarchists—people who opposed any form of government. They trampled people’s civil rights, invading private homes and offices and jailing suspects without allowing them legal counsel. Hundreds of foreign-born radicals were deported without trials.

But Palmer’s raids failed to turn up evidence of a revolutionary conspiracy—or even explosives. Many thought Palmer was just looking for a campaign issue to gain support for his presidential aspirations. Soon, the public decided that Palmer didn’t know what he was talking about.

Sacco and Vanzetti

Although short-lived, the Red Scare fed people’s suspicions of foreigners and immigrants. This nativist attitude led to ruined reputations and wrecked lives. The two most famous victims of this attitude were Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, a shoemaker and a fish peddler. Both were Italian immigrants and anarchists; both had evaded the draft during World War I.

In May 1920, Sacco and Vanzetti were arrested and charged with the robbery and murder of a factory paymaster and his guard in South Braintree, Massachusetts. Witnesses had said the criminals appeared to be Italians. The accused asserted their innocence and provided alibis; the evidence against them was circumstantial; and the presiding judge made prejudicial remarks. Nevertheless, the jury still found them guilty and sentenced them to death.

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Protests rang out in the United States, Europe, and Latin America. Many people thought Sacco and Vanzetti were mis-treated because of their radical beliefs; others asserted it was because they were immigrants. The poet Edna St. Vincent Millay donated proceeds from her poem “Justice Denied in Massachusetts” to their defense. She personally appealed to Governor Fuller of Massachusetts for their lives. However, after reviewing the case and interviewing Vanzetti, the governor decided to let the executions go forward. The two men died in the electric chair on August 23, 1927. Before he was executed, Vanzetti made a statement.

A PERSONAL VOICE

BARTOLOMEO VANZETTI

“ In all my life I have never stole, never killed, never spilled blood. … We were tried during a time … when there was hysteria of resentment and hate against the people of our principles, against the foreigner. … I am suffering because I am a radical and indeed I am a radical; I have suffered because I was an Italian and indeed I am an Italian. … If you could execute me two times, and if I could be reborn two other times, I would live again to do what I have done already.”
—quoted in The National Experience

In 1961, new ballistics tests showed that the pistol found on Sacco was in fact the one used to murder the guard. However, there was no proof that Sacco had actually pulled the trigger.

Limiting Immigration

During the wave of nativist sentiment, “Keep America for Americans” became the prevailing attitude. Anti-immigrant attitudes had been growing in the United States ever since the 1880s, when new immigrants began arriving from southern and eastern Europe. Many of these immigrants were willing to work for low wages in industries such as coal mining, steel production, and textiles. But after World War I, the need for unskilled labor in the United States decreased. Nativists believed that because the United States now had fewer unskilled jobs available, fewer immigrants should be let into the country. Nativist feelings were fueled by

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the fact that some of the people involved in postwar labor disputes were immigrant anarchists and socialists, who many Americans believed were actually Communists. Racist ideas like those expressed by Madison Grant, an anthropologist at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, fed people’s attitudes.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MADISON GRANT

“ The result of unlimited immigration is showing plainly in the rapid decline in the birth rate of native Americans … [who] will not bring children into the world to compete in the labor market with the Slovak, the Italian, the Syrian and the Jew. The native American is too proud to mix socially with them.”
—quoted in United States History: Ideas in Conflict

The Klan Rises Again

As a result of the Red Scare and anti-immigrant feelings, different groups of bigots used anti-communism as an excuse to harass any group unlike themselves. One such group was the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The KKK was devoted to “100 percent Americanism.” By 1924, KKK membership reached 4.5 million “white male persons, native-born gentile citizens.” The Klan also believed in keeping blacks “in their place,” destroying saloons, opposing unions, and driving Roman Catholics, Jews, and foreign-born people out of the country. KKK members were paid to recruit new members into their world of secret rituals and racial violence. Though the Klan dominated state politics in many states, by the end of the decade its criminal activity led to a decrease in power.

Photo: KKK members wear white robes and conical hats

In 1925, nearly 60,000 Ku Klux Klan members marched along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.

The Quota System

From 1919 to 1921, the number of immigrants had grown almost 600 percent—from 141,000 to 805,000 people. Congress, in response to nativist pressure, decided to limit immigration from certain countries, namely those in southern and eastern Europe.

The Emergency Quota Act of 1921 set up a quota system. This system established the maximum number of people who could enter the United States from each foreign country. The goal of the quota system was to cut sharply European immigration to the United States. As the charts on page 622 show, the system achieved that goal.

As amended in 1924, the law limited immigration from each European nation to 2 percent of the number of its nationals living in the United States in 1890. This provision discriminated against people from eastern and southern Europe—mostly Roman Catholics and Jews—who had not started coming to the United States in large numbers until after 1890. Later, the base year was shifted to 1920. In 1927, the law reduced the total number of persons to be admitted in any one year to 150,000.

In addition, the law prohibited Japanese immigration, causing much ill will between the two nations. Japan—which had faithfully kept the Gentlemen’s Agreement to limit emigration to the United States, negotiated by Theodore Roosevelt in 1907—expressed anger over the insult.

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Photo: immigrants on a pier with sacks of belongings

Ellis Island in Upper New York Harbor was the port of entry for most European immigrants. World map: arrows shows immigration to the USA from Europe, Canada and Mexico

World map: arrows shows immigration to the USA from Europe, Canada and Mexico

U.S. Patterns of Immigration, 1921–1929 The map and graph below show the change in immigration patterns resulting from the Emergency Quota Act, among other factors. Hundreds of thousands of people were affected. For example, while the number of immigrants from Mexico rose from 30,758 in 1921 to 40,154 in 1929, the number of Italian immigrants dropped drastically from 222,260 in 1921 to 18,008 in 1929. Bar graph: Immigration to the USA 1921 and 1929

Bar graph: Immigration to the USA 1921 and 1929

Description:

Graph: Immigration to the USA 1921 and 1929 from North American and European countries. Numbers are approximate.

Canada: 1921 70,000; 1929 65,000
Mexico: 1921 30,000; 1929 40,000
Great Britain: 1921 50,000; 1929 23,000
Ireland: 1921 27,000; 1929 22,000
Scandinavia: 1921 25,000; 1929 20,000
Italy: 1921 224,000; 1929 20,000
Poland: 1921 95,000; 1929 10,000
Germany: 1921 8,000; 1929 47,000
Portugal, Spain, and Greece: 1921 75,000; 1929 10,000
Yugoslavia, Austria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia: 1921 75,000; 1929 15,000

Immigration to the United States, 1921 and 1929 Source: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970 623

The national origins quota system did not apply to immigrants from the Western Hemisphere, however. During the 1920s, about a million Canadians and almost 500,000 Mexicans crossed the nation’s borders.

A Time of Labor Unrest

Another severe postwar conflict formed between labor and management. During the war, the government wouldn’t allow workers to strike because nothing could interfere with the war effort. The American Federation of Labor (AFL) pledged to avoid strikes.

However, 1919 saw more than 3,000 strikes during which some 4 million workers walked off the job. Employers didn’t want to give raises, nor did they want employees to join unions. Some employers, either out of a sincere belief or because they saw a way to keep wages down, attempted to show that union members were planning a revolution. Employers labeled striking workers as Communists. Newspapers screamed, “Plots to Establish Communism.” Three strikes in particular grabbed public attention.

Photo: two women wear picket-sign banners.

Strikers included working women tailors who fought for improved working conditions.

The Boston Police Strike

The Boston police had not been given a raise since the beginning of World War I. Among their many grievances was that they had been denied the right to unionize. When representatives asked for a raise and were fired, the remaining policemen decided to strike. Massachusetts governor Calvin Coolidge called out the National Guard. He said, “There is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time.” The strike ended but members weren’t allowed to return to work; new policemen were hired instead. People praised Coolidge for saving Boston, if not the nation, from communism and anarchy. In the 1920 election he became Warren G. Harding’s vice-presidential running mate.

The Steel Mill Strike

Workers in the steel mills wanted the right to negotiate for shorter working hours and a living wage. They also wanted union recognition and collective bargaining rights. In September 1919, the U.S. Steel Corporation refused to meet with union representatives. In response, over 300,000 workers walked off their jobs. Steel companies hired strikebreakers—employees who agreed to work during the strike—and used force. Striking workers were beaten by police, federal troops, and state militias. Then the companies instituted a propaganda campaign, linking the strikers to Communists. In October 1919, negotiations between labor and management produced a deadlock. President Woodrow Wilson made a written plea to the combative “negotiators.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

WOODROW WILSON

“ At a time when the nations of the world are endeavoring to find a way of avoiding international war, are we to confess that there is no method to be found for carrying on industry except … the very method of war? … Are our industrial leaders and our industrial workers to live together without faith in each other?”
—quoted in Labor in Crisis

The steel strike ended in January 1920. In 1923, a report on the harsh working conditions in steel mills shocked the public. The steel companies agreed to an eight-hour day, but the steelworkers remained without a union.

624 Key Player: John Llewellyn Lewis 1880–1969 Photo: John L. Lewis

John L. Lewis was born in the little mining town of Lucas, Iowa. His family had traditionally been concerned with labor rights and benefits.

Lewis grew up with a fierce determination to fight for what he believed companies owed their employees: decent working conditions and a fair salary. As he said years later,

“I have pleaded your case not in the tones of a feeble mendicant [beggar] asking alms but in the thundering voice of the captain of a mighty host, demanding the rights to which free men are entitled.”

The Coal Miners’ Strike

Unionism was more successful in America’s coalfields. In 1919, the United Mine Workers of America, organized since 1890, got a new leader—John L. Lewis. In protest of low wages and long workdays, Lewis called his union’s members out on strike on November 1, 1919. Attorney General Palmer obtained a court order sending the miners back to work. Lewis then declared it over, but he quietly gave the word for it to continue. In defiance of the court order, the mines stayed closed another month. Then President Wilson appointed an arbitrator, or judge, to put an end to the dispute. The coal miners received a 27 percent wage increase, and John L. Lewis became a national hero. The miners, however, did not achieve a shorter workday and a five-day workweek until the 1930s.

Labor Movement Loses Appeal

In spite of limited gains, the 1920s hurt the labor movement badly. Over the decade, union membership dropped from more than 5 million to around 3.5 million. Membership declined for several reasons:

• much of the work force consisted of immigrants willing to work in poor conditions,

• since immigrants spoke a multitude of languages, unions had difficulty organizing them,

• farmers who had migrated to cities to find factory jobs were used to relying on themselves, and

• most unions excluded African Americans.

By 1929, about 82,000 African Americans—or less than 1 percent of their population—held union memberships. By contrast, just over 3 percent of all whites were union members. However, African Americans joined some unions like the mine workers’, longshoremen’s, and railroad porters’ unions. In 1925, A. Philip Randolph founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters to help African Americans gain a fair wage.

While America’s attitude toward unions was changing, so, too, was its faith in the presidency.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• nativism

• isolationism

• communism

• anarchists

• Sacco and Vanzetti

• quota system

• John L. Lewis

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a cause-and-effect chart like the one shown, list examples of the aftereffects of World War I.

Chart: spaces provided to list events and their results

What event do you think was the most significant? Explain your choice.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

Do you think Americans were justified in their fear of radicals and foreigners in the decade following World War I? Explain your answer.

Think About:

• the goals of the leaders of the Russian Revolution

• the challenges facing the United States

4. ANALYZING ISSUES

In the various fights between management and union members, what did each side believe?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

What do you think the Sacco and Vanzetti case shows about America in the 1920s?

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Section 2: The Harding Presidency

One American’s Story

Warren G. Harding was described as a good-natured man who “looked like a president ought to look.” When the silver-haired Ohio senator assumed the presidency in 1921, the public yearned for what Harding described as “normalcy,” or the simpler days before the Progressive Era and the Great War. His words of peace and calm comforted the healing nation.

Warren G. Harding, shown here in 1923, looked presidential, but he is considered one of the least successful presidents.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WARREN G. HARDING

“ America’s present need is not heroics, but healing; not nostrums, but normalcy; not revolution, but restoration; not agitation, but adjustment; not surgery, but serenity; not the dramatic, but the dispassionate; … not submergence in internationality, but sustainment in triumphant nationality.”
—quoted in The Rise of Warren Gamaliel Harding

Despite Harding’s soothing speeches, his judgment turned out to be poor. The discord among the major world powers and the conduct within his own cabinet would test his politics and his character.

Harding Struggles for Peace

After World War I, problems surfaced relating to arms control, war debts, and the reconstruction of war-torn countries. In 1921, President Harding invited several major powers to the Washington Naval Conference. Russia was left out because of its Communist government. At the conference, Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes urged that no more warships be built for ten years. He suggested that the five major naval powers—the United States, Great Britain, Japan, France, and Italy—scrap many of their battleships, cruisers, and aircraft carriers.

Conference delegates cheered, wept, and threw their hats into the air. For the first time in history, powerful nations agreed to disarm. Later, in 1928, fifteen

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countries signed the Kellogg-Briand Pact, which renounced war as a national policy. However, the pact was futile, as it provided no means of enforcement.

High Tariffs and Reparations

New conflicts arose when it came time for Britain and France to pay back the $10 billion they had borrowed from America. They could do this in two ways: by selling goods to the United States or by collecting reparations from Germany. However, in 1922, America adopted the Fordney-McCumber Tariff, which raised taxes on some U.S. imports to 60 percent—the highest level ever. The tax protected U.S. businesses—especially in the chemical and metals industries—from foreign competition, but made it impossible for Britain and France to sell enough goods in the U.S. to repay debts.

The two countries looked to Germany, which was experiencing terrible inflation. When Germany defaulted on (failed to make) payment, French troops marched in. To avoid another war, American banker Charles G. Dawes was sent to negotiate loans. Through what came to be known as the Dawes Plan, American investors loaned Germany $2.5 billion to pay back Britain and France with annual payments on a fixed scale. Those countries then paid the United States. Thus, the United States arranged to be repaid with its own money.

The solution caused resentment all around. Britain and France considered the United States a miser for not paying a fair share of the costs of World War I. Further, the U.S. had benefited from the defeat of Germany, while Europeans had paid for the victory with millions of lives. At the same time, the United States considered Britain and France financially irresponsible.

In 1923, a German man papers his walls with money made nearly worthless by high inflation following World War I.

Scandal Hits Harding’s Administration

On domestic issues, Harding favored a limited role for government in business affairs and in social reform. Still, he did set up the Bureau of the Budget to help run the government more efficiently, and he urged U.S. Steel to abandon the 12-hour day.

Harding’s Cabinet

Harding appointed Charles Evans Hughes as secretary of state. Hughes later went on to become chief justice of the Supreme Court. The president made Herbert Hoover the secretary of commerce. Hoover had done a masterful job of handling food distribution and refugee problems during World War I. Andrew Mellon, one of the country’s wealthiest men, became secretary of the treasury and set about drastically cutting taxes and reducing the national debt. However, the cabinet also included the so-called Ohio gang, the president’s poker-playing cronies, who would soon cause a great deal of embarrassment.

Scandal Plagues Harding

The president’s main problem was that he didn’t understand many of the issues. He admitted as much to a secretary.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WARREN G. HARDING

“ John, I can’t make a … thing out of this tax problem. I listen to one side and they seem right, and then … I talk to the other side and they seem just as right. … I know somewhere there is an economist who knows the truth, but I don’t know where to find him and haven’t the sense to know him and trust him when I find him. … What a job!”
—quoted in Only Yesterday

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Harding’s administration began to unravel as his corrupt friends used their offices to become wealthy through graft. Charles R. Forbes, the head of the Veterans Bureau, was caught illegally selling government and hospital supplies to private companies. Colonel Thomas W. Miller, the head of the Office of Alien Property, was caught taking a bribe.

The Teapot Dome Scandal

The most spectacular example of corruption was the Teapot Dome scandal. The government had set aside oil-rich public lands at Teapot Dome, Wyoming, and Elk Hills, California, for use by the U.S. Navy. Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall, a close friend of various oil executives, managed to get the oil reserves transferred from the navy to the Interior Department. Then, Fall secretly leased the land to two private oil companies, including Henry Sinclair’s Mammoth Oil Company at Teapot Dome. Although Fall claimed that these contracts were in the government’s interest, he suddenly received more than $400,000 in “loans, bonds, and cash.” He was later found guilty of bribery and became the first American to be convicted of a felony while holding a cabinet post.

Cartoon: elephant-shaped G.O.P. teapot sits atop a mound labeled Teapot Dome Naval Oil Reserves

The elephant, shaped like a teapot here, is the symbol of the Republican Party (Grand Old Party). The cartoonist implies that Republicans were responsible for the Teapot Dome scandal.

In the summer of 1923, Harding declared, “I have no trouble with my enemies. … But my … friends, they’re the ones that keep me walking the floor nights!” Shortly thereafter, on August 2, 1923, he died suddenly, probably from a heart attack or stroke.

Americans sincerely mourned their good-natured president. The crimes of the Harding administration were coming to light just as Vice-President Calvin Coolidge assumed the presidency. Coolidge, a respected man of integrity, helped to restore people’s faith in their government and in the Republican Party. The next year, Coolidge was elected president.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Warren G. Harding

• Charles Evans Hughes

• Fordney-McCumber Tariff

• Ohio gang

• Teapot Dome scandal

• Albert B. Fall

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

List five significant events from this section and their effects, using a table like the one shown.

Chart: provides spaces to list events and their effects

Which event benefited the country the most? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

How do you think the Harding administration viewed the role of America in world affairs? Support your response with examples from the text.

4. EVALUATING

How successful was Harding in fulfilling his campaign pledge of returning the country to “normalcy”? Support your opinion with specific examples.

5. ANALYZING EFFECTS

How do you think the postwar feelings in America influenced the election of 1920? Think About:

• the desire for normalcy

• Harding’s image

• the issues Americans wanted to focus on

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Section 3: The Business of America

One American’s Story

In 1927, the last Model T Ford—number 15,077,033—rolled off the assembly line. On December 2, some 1 million New Yorkers mobbed show rooms to view the new Model A. One striking difference between the two models was that customers could order the Model A in such colors as “Arabian Sand” and “Niagara Blue”; the old Model T had come only in black. A Ford spokesman explained some additional advantages of the new automobile.

The Model A was a more luxurious car than the Model T. It was introduced at $495. Model T’s were selling for $290.

A PERSONAL VOICE

“ Good-looking as that car is, its performance is better than its appearance. We don’t brag about it, but it has done seventy-one miles an hour. It will ride along a railroad track without bouncing. … It’s the smoothest thing you ever rode in.”
—a Ford salesman quoted in Flappers, Bootleggers, “Typhoid Mary,” and the Bomb

The automobile became the backbone of the American economy in the 1920s (and remained such until the 1970s). It profoundly altered the American landscape and American society, but it was only one of several factors in the country’s business boom of the 1920s.

American Industries Flourish

The new president, Calvin Coolidge, fit into the pro-business spirit of the 1920s very well. It was he who said, “the chief business of the American people is business. … The man who builds a factory builds a temple—the man who works there worships there.” Both Coolidge and his Republican successor, Herbert Hoover, favored government policies that would keep taxes down and business profits up, and give businesses more available credit in order to expand. Their goal was to keep government interference in business to a minimum and to allow private enterprise to flourish. For most of the 1920s, this approach seemed to work. Coolidge’s administration continued to place high tariffs on foreign imports,

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which helped American manufacturers. Reducing income taxes meant that people had more money in their pockets. Wages were rising because of new technology and so was productivity.

The Impact of the Automobile

The automobile literally changed the American landscape. Its most visible effect was the construction of paved roads suitable for driving in all weather. One such road was the legendary Route 66, which provided a route for people trekking west from Chicago to California. Many, however, settled in towns along the route. In addition to the changing landscape, architectural styles also changed, as new houses typically came equipped with a garage or carport and a driveway—and a smaller lawn as a result. The automobile also launched the rapid construction of gasoline stations, repair shops, public garages, motels, tourist camps, and shopping centers. The first automatic traffic signals began blinking in Detroit in the early 1920s. The Holland Tunnel, the first underwater tunnel designed specifically for motor vehicles, opened in 1927 to connect New York City and Jersey City, New Jersey. The Woodbridge Cloverleaf, the first cloverleaf intersection, was built in New Jersey in 1929.

The automobile liberated the isolated rural family, who could now travel to the city for shopping and entertainment. It also gave families the opportunity to vacation in new and faraway places. It allowed both women and young people to become more independent through increased mobility. It allowed workers to live

Photo: roadside stand covered with signs

Roadside stands offering food, drink, and other items appeared in increasing numbers. Map: Route 66 .

Description:

Map of USA: route 66 connects cities and towns between Los Angeles and Chicago.

Label: The Auto Camp developed as townspeople roped off spaces alongside the road where travelers could sleep at night.
Label: Routing of highway through 392 miles of Oklahoma gave the state more miles, more jobs, and more income than other states on Route 66.
Label: Route 66 linked hundreds of rural communities in Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas to Chicago, enabling farmers to transport produce.
Note: Roadside stands offering food, drink, and other items appeared in increasing numbers.

Route 66
INTERACTIVE Commissioned on the cusp of the Depression, Route 66 symbolized the road to opportunity. Also known as “the Mother Road,” it became the subject of countless songs, films, books, and legends. 1916 Federal-Aid Road Act sets up highway program with the federal government paying half the cost of states’ highway construction. 1921 Highway construction in 11 western states begins under administration of Bureau of Public Roads. 1926 U.S. Highway 66, which would run 2,448 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles, California, is established. Route 66 linked hundreds of rural communities in Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas to Chicago, enabling farmers to transport produce. The “Auto Camp” developed as towns-people roped off spaces alongside the road where travelers could sleep at night. Routing of highway through 392 miles of Oklahoma gave the state more miles, more jobs, and more income than other states on Route 66. Gas for cars was cheap and plentiful. Gas stations sprung up on Route 66 charging 25¢ per gallon. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 630

miles from their jobs, resulting in urban sprawl as cities spread in all directions. The automobile industry also provided an economic base for such cities as Akron in Ohio, and Detroit, Dearborn, Flint, and Pontiac in Michigan. The industry drew people to such oil-producing states as California and Texas. The automobile even became a status symbol—both for individual families and to the rest of the world. In their work Middletown, the social scientists Robert and Helen Lynd noted one woman’s comment: “I’ll go without food before I’ll see us give up the car.”

The auto industry symbolized the success of the free enterprise system and the Coolidge era. Nowhere else in the world could people with little money own their own automobile. By the late 1920s, around 80 percent of all registered motor vehicles in the world were in the United States—about one automobile for every five people. The humorist Will Rogers remarked to Henry Ford, “It will take a hundred years to tell whether you helped us or hurt us, but you certainly didn’t leave us where you found us.”

The young Airplane Industry

Automobiles weren’t the only form of transportation taking off. The airplane industry began as a mail carrying service for the U.S. Post Office. Although the first flight in 1918 was a disaster, a number of successful flights soon established the airplane as a peacetime means of transportation. With the development of weather forecasting, planes began carrying radios and navigational instruments. Henry Ford made a trimotor airplane in 1926. Transatlantic flights by Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart helped to promote cargo and commercial airlines. In 1927, the Lockheed Company produced a single-engine plane, the Vega. It was one of the most popular transport airplanes of the late 1920s. Founded in 1927, Pan American Airways inaugurated the first transatlantic passenger flights.

Key Player: Calvin Coolidge 1872–1933 Painting: Calvin Coolidge and the presidential seal

Stepping into office in 1923, the tightlipped Vermonter was respected for his solemnity and wisdom. Coolidge supported American business and favored what he called “a constructive economy.”

Known for his strength of character, Coolidge forced the resignation of Attorney General Daugherty and other high officials who had created scandal in office.

Shortly after Coolidge was elected, his son died of blood poisoning. Coolidge later wrote, “The power and the glory of the presidency went with him.” When he decided not to seek reelection in 1928, Coolidge stumped the nation. Keeping in character, he said, “Goodby, I have had a very enjoyable time in Washington.”

Flight attendants train for an early United Airlines flight. When commercial airline flights began, all flight attendants were female and white. 631

America’s Standard of Living Soars

The years from 1920 to 1929 were prosperous ones for the United States. Americans owned around 40 percent of the world’s wealth, and that wealth changed the way most Americans lived. The average annual income rose more than 35 percent during the period—from $522 to $705. People found it easy to spend all that extra income and then some.

Electrical Conveniences

Gasoline powered much of the economic boom of the 1920s, but the use of electricity also transformed the nation. American factories used electricity to run their machines. Also, the development of an alternating electrical current made it possible to distribute electric power efficiently over longer distances. Now electricity was no longer restricted to central cities but could be transmitted to suburbs. The number of electrified households grew, although most farms still lacked power.

By the end of the 1920s, more and more homes had electric irons, while well-to-do families used electric refrigerators, cooking ranges, and toasters. Eunice Fuller Barnard listed prices for electrical appliances in a 1928 magazine article: These electrical appliances made the lives of housewives easier, freed them for other community and leisure activities, and coincided with a growing trend of women working outside the home.

Photo: a salesman shows a customer a refrigerator

American consumers in the 1920s could purchase the latest household electrical appliances, such as a refrigerator, for as little as a dollar down and a dollar a week.

Goods and Prices, 1900 and 1928
1900		1928
wringer and washboard	$ 5	washing machine	$150
brushes and brooms	$ 5	vacuum cleaner	$ 50
sewing machine (mechanical)	$25	sewing machine (electric)	$ 60

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

The Dawn of Modern Advertising

With new goods flooding the market, advertising agencies no longer just informed the public about products and prices. Now they hired psychologists to study how to appeal to people’s desire for youthfulness, beauty, health, and wealth. Results were impressive. The slogan “Say it with flowers” doubled florists’ business between 1912 and 1924. “Reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet” lured weight-conscious Americans to cigarettes and away from candy. Brand names became familiar from coast to coast, and luxury items now seemed like necessities.

One of those “necessities” was mouthwash. A 1923 Listerine advertisement aimed to convince readers that without Listerine a person ran the risk of having halitosis—bad breath—and that the results could be a disaster.

A PERSONAL VOICE

“ She was a beautiful girl and talented too. She had the advantages of education and better clothes than most girls of her set. She possessed that culture and poise that travel brings. Yet in the one pursuit that stands foremost in the mind of every girl and woman—marriage—she was a failure.”
—Listerine Advertisement

Businesspeople applied the power of advertising to other areas of American life. Across the land, they met for lunch with fellow members of such service organizations as Rotary, Kiwanis, and the Lions. As one observer noted, they sang

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songs, raised money for charities, and boosted the image of the businessman “as a builder, a doer of great things, yes, and a dreamer whose imagination was ever seeking out new ways of serving humanity.” Many Americans idolized business during these prosperous times.

Another Perspective: The Needy

While income rose for many Americans in the 1920s, it did not rise for everyone. Industries such as textile and steel manufacturing made very little profit. Mining and farming actually suffered losses. Farmers were deeply in debt because they had borrowed money to buy land and machinery so that they could produce more crops during World War I. When European agriculture bounced back after the war, the demand for U.S. crops fell, as did prices. Before long there were U.S. farm surpluses.

Many American farmers could not make their loan and mortgage payments. They lost their purchasing power, their equipment, and their farms. As one South Dakota state senator remarked, “There’s a saying: ‘Depressions are farm led and farm fed.’”

A Superficial Prosperity

During the 1920s, most Americans believed prosperity would go on forever—the average factory worker was producing 50 percent more at the end of the decade than at its start. Hadn’t national income grown from $64 billion in 1921 to $87 billion in 1929? Weren’t most major corporations making fortunes? Wasn’t the stock market reaching new heights?

Producing Great Quantities of Goods

As productivity increased, businesses expanded. There were numerous mergers of companies that manufactured automobiles, steel, and electrical equipment, as well as mergers of companies that provided public utilities. Chain stores sprouted, selling groceries, drugs, shoes, and clothes. Five-and-dime stores like Woolworth’s also spread rapidly. Congress passed a law that allowed national banks to branch within cities of their main office. But as the number of businesses grew, so did the income gap between workers and managers. There were a number of other clouds in the blue sky of prosperity. The iron and railroad industries, among others, weren’t very prosperous, and farms nationwide suffered losses—with new machinery, they were producing more food than was needed and this drove down food prices.

Buying Goods on Credit

In addition to advertising, industry provided another solution to the problem of luring consumers to purchase the mountain of goods produced each year: easy credit, or “a dollar down and a dollar forever.” The installment plan, as it was then called, enabled people to buy goods over

Analyzing Political Cartoons: “Yes, Sir, He’s My Baby”

This cartoon depicts Calvin Coolidge playing a saxophone labeled “Praise” while a woman representing “Big Business” dances up a storm.

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an extended period, without having to put down much money at the time of purchase. Banks provided the money at low interest rates. Advertisers pushed the “installment plan” idea with such slogans as “You furnish the girl, we’ll furnish the home” and “Enjoy while you pay.”

Some economists and business owners worried that installment buying might be getting out of hand and that it was really a sign of fundamental weaknesses behind a superficial economic prosperity. One business owner even wrote to President Coolidge and related a conversation he had overheard on a train.

A PERSONAL VOICE

“Have you an automobile yet?”

“No, I talked it over with John and he felt we could not afford one.”

“Mr. Budge who lives in your town has one and they are not as well off as you are.”

“Yes, I know. Their second installment came due, and they had no money to pay it.”

“What did they do? Lose the car?”

“No, they got the money and paid the installment.”

“How did they get the money?”

“They sold the cook-stove.”

“How could they get along without a cook-stove?”

“They didn’t. They bought another on the installment plan.”
—a business owner quoted in In The Time of Silent Cal

Still, most Americans focused their attention on the present, with little concern for the future. What could possibly go wrong with the nation’s economy? The decade of the 1920s had brought about many technological and economic changes. And yet the Coolidge era was built on paradox—the president stood for economy and a frugal way of life, but he was favored by a public who had thrown all care to the wind. Life definitely seemed easier and more enjoyable for hundreds of thousands of Americans. From the look of things, there was little warning of what was to come.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Calvin Coolidge

• urban sprawl

• installment plan

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the web below on your paper and fill it in with events that illustrate the central idea.

Chart: four spaces connect to a central core labeled Technology and Business Changes of the 1920s

Choose one event from the web and explain its significance in the 1920s.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

Do you agree with President Coolidge’s statement “The man who builds a factory builds a temple—the man who works there worships there”? Explain your answer. Think About:

• the goals of business and of religion

• the American idolization of business

• the difference between workers and management

Graph: Automobile registration 1910 - 1930

Description:

Graph: Automobile registration in millions 1910 - 1930. Numbers are approximate.

1910: near zero
1915: 2.5 million
1920: 7 million
1925: 17.5 million
1930: 23 million

Automobile Registration 1910–1930 Source: Historical Statistics of the United States.

4. INTERPRETING GRAPHS

What trend does the graph show between 1920 and 1930? What were some of the reasons for this trend?

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Tracing Themes Economic Opportunity

The courage to take risks, the confidence to rely on one’s self, the strength to stand in the face of despair, and the resourcefulness to make the most of opportunity—these are all qualities often considered distinctly American. Freedom requires individuals to discover or create opportunities for themselves. However, the government has also played a key role in distributing and creating economic opportunities.

Illustration: Caravan of Emigrants for California, crossing the Great American Desert in Nebraska

1830s–1860s HOMESTEADING Even before 1763, Americans looked toward the untamed west in search of greater wealth and freedom. In the 1830s, the Mormons went west to escape religious as well as economic persecution. The government helped to expand economic opportunities for whites by first clearing the land of its native inhabitants, relocating them to reservations or killing them. As the nation claimed ownership of the land, it also gave it away. The Homestead Act of 1862 provided free of charge 160 acres of public land to anyone 21 years of age or older or the head of a family who had inhabited the land for five years and had improved it. This provided Americans a chance to be independent and self-sufficient if they would work hard. From 1862 until 1900, between 400,000 and 600,000 families were provided homesteads. Photo: people work in a shop

1900s IMMIGRATION While many people have come to the U.S. seeking political and religious freedom, economic opportunity has also been a key reason for immigration. In 1905, for instance, almost half a million people from southern and eastern Europe migrated to the United States in search of economic freedom and opportunity, as well as to escape religious persecution. Many found work at menial jobs for low pay but still were able to save enough money to eventually open their own businesses. 635 Photo: an African-American woman types on a keyboard

Photo: an African-American woman types on a keyboard

1960s–1970s EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY AND AFFIRMATIVE ACTION In the 1960s and 1970s, groups pressed for changes in the law to remove barriers to economic opportunity. Laws such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 were passed to prevent discrimination against women and racial and ethnic minorities in order to provide equity in educational and business opportunities. As well, affirmative action policies were designed to remedy effects of past discrimination. The term affirmative action—first used by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965—includes efforts to give work and educational opportunities to members of historically disadvantaged groups. Some have labeled affirmative action “reverse discrimi-nation,” while others view it as a means to counterbalance continued discrimination that the law has been unable to prevent. Photo: three students with computers in a cozy room

Photo: three students with computers in a cozy room

2000s COMPUTERS AND INTERNET STARTUPS In recent years, many of the brightest college students have chosen to study computer science in hopes of landing a high-paying job. Alternatively, independent-minded computer experts might become entrepreneurs—people who start and run their own businesses. For an initial period of several months to several years, an entrepreneur may work upwards of 70 or 80 hours each week, yet the business will have no income. Since the late 1990s, both groups have increasingly looked to the Internet for opportunities. Entrepreneurs seek money-making opportunities as they develop ways to expand the capabilities of this new technology. In turn, the growth of Internet-based businesses creates jobs for people who have specialized computer skills. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Identifying Problems What were some obstacles to achieving equal opportunity in each of the cases described on these two pages? Choose one of the time periods discussed and write a paragraph describing how these obstacles were overcome.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R5. Connect to Today

2. Evaluating a Business Opportunity What economic opportunities available to you seem most promising? Discuss with your family and teachers or guidance counselor what jobs and business opportunities they think you might be suited for, then choose one and investigate it. Summarize your research by making a chart listing the pros and cons of the opportunity.

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Chapter 20: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the decade following World War I.

1. communism

2. Sacco and Vanzetti

3. Calvin Coolidge

4. John L. Lewis

5. Warren G. Harding

6. Fordney-McCumber Tariff

7. isolationism

8. quota system

9. Teapot Dome scandal

10. installment plan

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Americans Struggle with Postwar Issues (pages 618–624)

1. Explain how the Red Scare, the Sacco and Vanzetti case, and the rise of the Ku Klux Klan reflected concerns held by many Americans.

2. Describe the primary goal of the immigration quota system established in 1921.

The Harding Presidency (pages 625–627)

3. What did Harding want to do to return America to “normalcy”?

4. Summarize the Teapot Dome scandal.

The Business of America (pages 628–633)

5. How did changes in technology in the 1920s influence American life?

6. What evidence suggests that the prosperity of the 1920s was not on a firm foundation?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a cause-and-effect web, similar to the one shown, in which you give several causes for the declining power of labor unions in the 1920s and give examples of the unions’ decline.

Chart: provides spaces to list causes and examples related to this effect - declining power of labor unions

2. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Calvin Coolidge said, “After all, the chief business of the American people is business.” What events and trends of the 1920s support Coolidge’s statement?

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look at the path of Route 66 in the map on page 629. What factors may have influenced where and why the highway was built? Explain your answer.

Visual Summary: Politics of the Roaring Twenties Diagram: shows four aspects of Life in Postwar America - Economic, Societal/Social, Governmental, and Technology/Industry

LIFE IN POSTWAR AMERICA Economic

• a superficial prosperity ensued

• increased production of consumer goods

• buying on credit

• increased standard of living and consumer spending

Societal Social

• a perceived threat of communism

• fear and distrust of immigrants

• fear of the labor movement and faith in business

• strikes and worker unrest

Governmental

• election of pro-business presidents Harding and Coolidge

• isolationist philosophy

• immigration quotas

• tariffs on imports to discourage foreign business competition

• corruption in Harding’s administration

Technology Industry

• growth of automobile industry

• introduction of airlines as transportation

• widespread use of electricity

• advertising gains popularity

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 637 Standardized Test Practice

Use the cartoon and your knowledge of United States history to answer question 1.

Cartoon: four businessmen comprising the Cash Register Chorus sing What a Friend we Have in Coolidge!

1. The cartoon criticizes President Coolidge by suggesting that—

A Coolidge’s policies benefited wealthy business owners.

B Coolidge was known as “Silent Cal” because he had no economic policy.

C Coolidge provided cash assistance to struggling industries.

D Coolidge had supported the Immigration Act.

2. After World War I ended, workers in many industries went on strike for wage increases and better working conditions. But in the decade that followed, public support of labor unions declined, as did union membership. Which of the following helps to explain this decline in labor union popularity?

F Wages and working conditions in most industries had already improved before the mid-1920s.

G Most labor unions actively opposed isolationist policies.

H Most labor unions had large immigrant memberships.

J Few labor unions would allow unskilled veterans returning from the war to join.

3. Which of the following beliefs did not result from America’s desire for “normalcy” after World War I?

A isolationism

B conservatism

C nativism

D anarchism

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 617:

Would you strike and risk your family’s welfare?

Suppose you are a reporter covering the Boston police strike. Write a column for your newspaper that explains why people acted as they did. Also describe the mood and tension created by the strike. Invent realistic quotations from workers, union members, strikebreakers, and management.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.com

Visit the links for Chapter Assessment to research incomes, prices, employment levels, divorce rates, or other statistics that show how people were affected by the events of the 1920s.

• Decide the main purpose of your graph. What statistics will you show?

• Choose the type of graph that would best show your data. Consider using a pie chart, bar or line graph, or circle graph.

• Clearly label the parts of the graph.

• Share your graph with the class.

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Chapter 21: The Roaring Life of the 1920s

Photo: Gertrude Ma Rainey performs with a band

Blues singer Gertrude “Ma” Rainey performs with her Georgia Jazz Band in Chicago, Illinois, 1923. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 638 and page 639 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1920 to 1924 USA and World

1920 USA: Nineteenth Amendment gives women the right to vote.
1921 World: China's Communist Party is founded.
1922 USA: Louis Armstrong plays for King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band in Chicago.
1922 World: King Tut's tomb is discovered in Egypt.
1923 USA: Time magazine begins publication.
1923 World: Mustafa Kemal becomes first president of new Republic of Turkey.
1924 USA: Calvin Coolidge is elected president.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 638 and page 639 in the print version. 639 Photo: Gertrude Ma Rainey performs with a band

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 638 and page 639 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1925 - 1928 USA and World

1925 USA: The Scopes trial takes place in Tennessee.
1926 World: Hirohito becomes emperor of Japan.
1927 USA: Charles Lindbergh makes the first nonstop solo translantic flight.
1928 World: President Alvaro Obregon of Mexico is assassinated.
1928 USA: Herbert Hoover is elected president.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 638 and page 639 in the print version. Interact with History

The year is 1920. The World War has just ended. Boosted by the growth of the wartime industry, the U.S. economy is flourishing. Americans live life to the fullest as new social and cultural trends sweep the nation.

How might the new prosperity affect your everyday life?

Examine the Issues

• As Americans leave farms and small towns to take jobs in the cities, how might their lives change?

• How will economic prosperity affect married and unmarried women?

• How might rural and urban areas change as more and more families acquire automobiles?

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Section 1: Changing Ways of Life

One American’s Story

As the 1920s dawned, social reformers who hoped to ban alcohol—and the evils associated with it—rejoiced. The Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, banning the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol, took effect in January of 1920. Billy Sunday, an evangelist who preached against the evils of drinking, predicted a new age of virtue and religion.

1920s evangelist Billy Sunday

A PERSONAL VOICE

BILLY SUNDAY

“The reign of tears is over! The slums will soon be only a memory. We will turn our prisons into factories and our jails into storehouses and corncribs. Men will walk upright now, women will smile and the children will laugh. Hell will be forever for rent!”
—quoted in How Dry We Were: Prohibition Revisited

Sunday’s dream was not to be realized in the 1920s, as the law proved unenforceable. The failure of Prohibition was a sign of cultural conflicts most evident in the nation’s cities. Lured by jobs and by the challenge and freedom that the city represented, millions of people rode excitedly out of America’s rural past and into its urban future.

Rural and Urban Differences

America changed dramatically in the years before 1920, as was revealed in the 1920 census. According to figures that year, 51.2 percent of Americans lived in communities with populations of 2,500 to more than 1 million. Between 1922 and 1929, migration to the cities accelerated, with nearly 2 million people leaving farms and towns each year. “Cities were the place to be, not to get away from,” said one historian. The agricultural world that millions of Americans left behind was largely unchanged from the 19th century—that world was one of small towns and farms bound together by conservative moral values and close social relationships. Yet small-town attitudes began to lose their hold on the American mind as the city rose to prominence.

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The New Urban Scene

At the beginning of the 1920s, New York, with a population of 5.6 million people, topped the list of big cities. Next came Chicago, with nearly 3 million, and Philadelphia, with nearly 2 million. Another 65 cities claimed populations of 100,000 or more, and they grew more crowded by the day. Life in these booming cities was far different from the slow-paced, intimate life in America’s small towns. Chicago, for instance, was an industrial powerhouse, home to native-born whites and African Americans, immigrant Poles, Irish, Russians, Italians, Swedes, Arabs, French, and Chinese. Each day, an estimated 300,000 workers, 150,000 cars and buses, and 20,000 trolleys filled the pulsing downtown. At night people crowded into ornate movie theaters and vaudeville houses offering live variety shows.

“How ya gonna keep ’em down on the farm, after they’ve seen Paree?”
POPULAR SONG OF THE 1920s

For small-town migrants, adapting to the urban environment demanded changes in thinking as well as in everyday living. The city was a world of competition and change. City dwellers read and argued about current scientific and social ideas. They judged one another by accomplishment more often than by background. City dwellers also tolerated drinking, gambling, and casual dating—worldly behaviors considered shocking and sinful in small towns.

For all its color and challenge, though, the city could be impersonal and frightening. Streets were filled with strangers, not friends and neighbors. Life was fast-paced, not leisurely. The city demanded endurance, as a foreign visitor to Chicago observed.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WALTER L. GEORGE

It is not for nothing that the predominating color of Chicago is orange. It is as if the city, in its taxicabs, in its shop fronts, in the wrappings of its parcels, chose the color of flame that goes with the smoky black of its factories. It is not for nothing that it has repelled the geometric street arrangement of New York and substituted … great ways with names that a stranger must learn if he can…. He is in a [crowded] city, and if he has business there, he tells himself, ‘If I weaken I shan’t last long.’”
—Hail Columbia!

History Through Art: Song of the Towers

This mural by Aaron Douglas is part of a series he painted inside the 135th Street Branch of the New York Public Library to symbolize different aspects of African-American life during the 1920s. In this panel, Song of the Towers, he depicts figures before a city backdrop. As seen here, much of Douglas’s style was influenced by jazz music and geometric shapes.

Mural: figures in a city; one holds a saxophone, another a briefcase

642 Difficult Decisions: To Prohibit Alcohol or Not?

The question of whether to outlaw alcohol divided Americans. Many believed the government should make alcohol illegal to protect the public, while others believed it was a personal decision, and not morally wrong.

1. Examine the pros and cons of each position. Which do you agree with? What other factors, if any, do you think would influence your position?

2. If you had been a legislator asked to vote for the Eighteenth Amendment, what would you have said? Explain.

3. What happens when the government legislates moral values? Give contemporary examples to support your answer.

In the city, lonely migrants from the country often ached for home. Throughout the 1920s, Americans found themselves caught between rural and urban cultures—a tug that pitted what seemed to be a safe, small-town world of close ties, hard work, and strict morals against a big-city world of anonymous crowds, moneymakers, and pleasure seekers.

The Prohibition Experiment

One vigorous clash between small-town and big-city Americans began in earnest in January 1920, when the Eighteenth Amendment went into effect. This amendment launched the era known as Prohibition, during which the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages were legally prohibited.

Reformers had long considered liquor a prime cause of corruption. They thought that too much drinking led to crime, wife and child abuse, accidents on the job, and other serious social problems. Support for Prohibition came largely from the rural South and West, areas with large populations of native-born Protestants. The church-affiliated Anti-Saloon League had led the drive to pass the Prohibition amendment. The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, which considered drinking a sin, had helped push the measure through.

At first, saloons closed their doors, and arrests for drunkenness declined. But in the aftermath of World War I, many Americans were tired of making sacrifices; they wanted to enjoy life. Most immigrant groups did not consider drinking a sin but a natural part of socializing, and they resented government meddling.

Eventually, Prohibition’s fate was sealed by the government, which failed to budget enough money to enforce the law. The Volstead Act established a Prohibition Bureau in the Treasury Department in 1919, but the agency was underfunded. The job of enforcement involved patrolling 18,700 miles of coastline as well as inland borders, tracking down illegal stills (equipment for distilling liquor), monitoring highways for truckloads of illegal alcohol, and overseeing all the industries that legally used alcohol to be sure none was siphoned off for illegal purposes. The task fell to approximately 1,500 poorly paid federal agents and local police—clearly an impossible job.

Speakeasies and Bootleggers

To obtain liquor illegally, drinkers went underground to hidden saloons and nightclubs known as speakeasies—so called because when inside, one spoke quietly, or “easily,” to avoid detection. Speakeasies could be found everywhere—in penthouses, cellars, office buildings, rooming houses, tenements, hardware stores, and tearooms. To be admitted to a speakeasy, one had to present a card or use a password. Inside, one would find a mix of fashionable middle-class and upper-middle-class men and women.

Photo: a woman with containers strapped to her legs

A young woman demonstrates one of the means used to conceal alcohol—hiding it in containers strapped to one’s legs.

Before long, people grew bolder in getting around the law. They learned to distill alcohol and built their own stills. Since alcohol was allowed for medicinal and religious purposes, prescriptions

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for alcohol and sales of sacramental wine (intended for church services) skyrocketed. People also bought liquor from bootleggers (named for a smuggler’s practice of carrying liquor in the legs of boots), who smuggled it in from Canada, Cuba, and the West Indies. “The business of evading [the law] and making a mock of it has ceased to wear any aspects of crime and has become a sort of national sport,” wrote the journalist H. L. Mencken.

Organized Crime

Prohibition not only generated disrespect for the law, it also contributed to organized crime in nearly every major city. Chicago became notorious as the home of Al Capone, a gangster whose bootlegging empire netted over $60 million a year. Capone took control of the Chicago liquor business by killing off his competition. During the 1920s, headlines reported 522 bloody gang killings and made the image of flashy Al Capone part of the folklore of the period. In 1940, the writer Herbert Asbury recalled the Capone era in Chicago.

Historical Spotlight: Al Capone Photo: Al Capone

By age 26, Al Capone headed a criminal empire in Chicago, which he controlled through the use of bribes and violence. From 1925 to 1931, Capone bootlegged whiskey from Canada, operated illegal breweries in Chicago, and ran a network of 10,000 speakeasies. In 1927, the “Big Fellow,” as he liked to be called, was worth an estimated $100 million.

The end came quickly for Capone, though. In 1931, the gangster chief was arrested for tax evasion and went to jail. That was the only crime of which the authorities were ever able to convict him. Capone was later released from jail, but he died several years later at age 48.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HERBERT ASBURY

“The famous seven-ton armored car, with the pudgy gangster lolling on silken cushions in its darkened recesses, a big cigar in his fat face, and a $50,000 diamond ring blazing from his left hand, was one of the sights of the city; the average tourist felt that his trip to Chicago was a failure unless it included a view of Capone out for a spin. The mere whisper: ‘Here comes Al,’ was sufficient to stop traffic and to set thousands of curious citizens craning their necks along the curbing.”
—Gem of the Prairie

By the mid-1920s, only 19 percent of Americans supported Prohibition. The rest, who wanted the amendment changed or repealed, believed that Prohibition caused worse effects than the initial problem. Rural Protestant Americans, however, defended a law that they felt strengthened moral values. The Eighteenth Amendment remained in force until 1933, when it was repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment.

Prohibition, 1920–1933

Causes	Effects
• Various religious groups thought drinking alcohol was sinful. • Reformers believed that the government should protect the public’s health. • Reformers believed that alcohol led to crime, wife and child abuse, and accidents on the job. • During World War I, native-born Americans developed a hostility to German-American brewers and toward other immigrant groups that used alcohol.	• Consumption of alcohol declined. • Disrespect for the law developed. • An increase in lawlessness, such as smuggling and bootlegging, was evident. • Criminals found a new source of income. • Organized crime grew.

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Science and Religion Clash

Another bitter controversy highlighted the growing rift between traditional and modern ideas during the 1920s. This battle raged between fundamentalist religious groups and secular thinkers over the validity of certain scientific discoveries.

American Fundamentalism

The Protestant movement grounded in a literal, or nonsymbolic, interpretation of the Bible was known as fundamentalism. Fundamentalists were skeptical of some scientific discoveries and theories; they argued that all important knowledge could be found in the Bible. They believed that the Bible was inspired by God, and that therefore its stories in all their details were true.

Their beliefs led fundamentalists to reject the theory of evolution advanced by Charles Darwin in the 19th century—a theory stating that plant and animal species had developed and changed over millions of years. The claim they found most unbelievable was that humans had evolved from apes. They pointed instead to the Bible’s account of creation, in which God made the world and all its life forms, including humans, in six days.

The evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson in 1922

Fundamentalism expressed itself in several ways. In the South and West, preachers led religious revivals based on the authority of the Scriptures. One of the most powerful revivalists was Billy Sunday, a baseball player turned preacher who staged emotional meetings across the South. In Los Angeles, Aimee Semple McPherson used Hollywood showmanship to preach the word to homesick Midwestern migrants and devoted followers of her radio broadcasts. In the 1920s, fundamentalism gained followers who began to call for laws prohibiting the teaching of evolution.

The Scopes Trial

In March 1925, Tennessee passed the nation’s first law that made it a crime to teach evolution. Immediately, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) promised to defend any teacher who would challenge the law. John T. Scopes, a young biology teacher in Dayton, Tennessee, accepted the challenge. In his biology class, Scopes read this passage from Civic Biology: “We have now learned that animal forms may be arranged so as to begin with the simple one-celled forms and culminate with a group which includes man himself.” Scopes was promptly arrested, and his trial was set for July.

The ACLU hired Clarence Darrow, the most famous trial lawyer of the day, to defend Scopes. William Jennings Bryan, three-time Democratic candidate for president and a devout fundamentalist, served as a special prosecutor. There was no real question of guilt or innocence: Scopes was honest about his action. The Scopes trial was a fight over evolution and the role of science and religion in public schools and in American society.

Now & Then: Evolution, Creationism, and Education

There is still great controversy today over the teaching of evolution in the public schools. Some people believe that creation theory should be taught as a theory of the origin of life, along with evolution. As recently as 1999, the Kansas State School Board voted to eliminate the teaching of evolution from the curriculum.

The issue of what should be taught about the origin of life—and who should decide this issue—continues to stir up debate. Some have suggested that science and religion are not necessarily incompatible. They believe that a theory of the origin of life can accommodate both the scientific theory of evolution and religious beliefs.

The trial opened on July 10, 1925, and almost overnight became a national sensation. Darrow called Bryan as an expert on the Bible—the contest that everyone had been waiting for. To handle the throngs of Bryan supporters, Judge Raulston moved the court outside, to a platform built under the maple trees. There, before a crowd of several

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thousand, Darrow relentlessly questioned Bryan about his beliefs. Bryan stood firm, a smile on his face.

A PERSONAL VOICE

CLARENCE DARROW AND WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN

Mr. Darrow—“You claim that everything in the Bible should be literally interpreted?”

Mr. Bryan—“I believe everything in the Bible should be accepted as it is given there. Some of the Bible is given illustratively. For instance: ‘Ye are the salt of the earth.’ I would not insist that man was actually salt, or that he had flesh of salt, but it is used in the sense of salt as saving God’s people.”
—quoted in Bryan and Darrow at Dayton

Darrow asked Bryan if he agreed with Bishop James Ussher’s calculation that, according to the Bible, Creation happened in 4004 B.C. Had every living thing on earth appeared since that time? Did Bryan know that ancient civilizations had thrived before 4004 B.C.? Did he know the age of the earth? Bryan grew edgy but stuck to his guns. Finally, Darrow asked Bryan, “Do you think the earth was made in six days?” Bryan answered, “Not six days of 24 hours.” People sitting on the lawn gasped.

With this answer, Bryan admitted that the Bible might be interpreted in different ways. But in spite of this admission, Scopes was found guilty and fined $100. The Tennessee Supreme Court later changed the verdict on a technicality, but the law outlawing the teaching of evolution remained in effect.

This clash over evolution, the Prohibition experiment, and the emerging urban scene all were evidence of the changes and conflicts occurring during the 1920s. During that period, women also experienced conflict as they redefined their roles and pursued new lifestyles.

Cartoon: Bryan and Darrow shake hands next to a monkey. A title: When shall we three meet again?

A 1925 newspaper cartoon portrays Bryan (left) and Darrow (right) at the close of the Scopes ”monkey” trial on the teaching of evolution, so-called because of a theory of evolution that humans evolved from apes.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Prohibition

• speakeasy

• bootlegger

• fundamentalism

• Clarence Darrow

• Scopes trial

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create two diagrams like the one below. Show how government attempted to deal with (a) problems thought to stem from alcohol use and (b) the teaching of evolution.

Diagram: Arrows point from Issue to Legislation to Outcome

Was the legislation effective? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING ISSUES

How might the overall atmosphere of the 1920s have contributed to the failure of Prohibition?

4. ANALYZING CAUSES

Why do you think organized crime spread so quickly through the cities during the 1920s? Explain your answer.

5. EVALUATING

Do you think the passage of the Volstead Act and the ruling in the Scopes trial represented genuine triumphs for traditional values? Think About:

• changes in urban life in the 1920s

• the effects of Prohibition

• the legacy of the Scopes trial

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Section 2: The Twenties Woman

One American’s Story

When Zelda Sayre broke off her engagement with would-be writer F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1925, she told him that he would have to become successful on his own. Later, she wrote about how a woman can achieve greatness.

Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald

A PERSONAL VOICE

ZELDA SAYRE FITZGERALD

“Rouge means that women want to choose their man—not take what lives in the next house.… Look back over the pages of history and see how the loveliness of women has always stirred men—and nations—on to great achievement! There have been women who were not pretty, who have swayed hearts and empires, but these women … did not disdain that thing for which paint and powder stands. They wanted to choose their destinies—to be successful competitors in the great game of life.”
—“Paint and Powder,” The Smart Set, May 1929

Zelda Sayre and F. Scott Fitzgerald married one week after Scott published his first novel, and Zelda continued to be the model for Scott’s independent, unconventional, ambitious female characters. He even copied from her letters and other writings. Ironically, Zelda’s devotion to her marriage and to motherhood stifled her career ambitions. Nevertheless, she became a model for a generation of young American women who wanted to break away from traditions and forget the hardships of the war years.

Young Women Change the Rules

By the 1920s, the experiences of World War I, the pull of cities, and changing attitudes had opened up a new world for many young Americans. These “wild young people,” wrote John F. Carter, Jr., in a 1920 issue of Atlantic Monthly, were experiencing a world unknown to their parents: “We have seen man at his lowest, woman at her lightest, in the terrible moral chaos of Europe. We have been forced to question, and in many cases to discard, the religion of our fathers.… We have been forced to live in an atmosphere of ‘tomorrow we die,’ and so, naturally, we drank and were merry.” In the rebellious, pleasure-loving atmosphere of the twenties, many women began to assert their independence, reject the values of the 19th century, and demand the same freedoms as men.

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Flappers compete in a Charleston dance competition in 1926.

The Flapper

During the twenties, a new ideal emerged for some women: the flapper, an emancipated young woman who embraced the new fashions and urban attitudes of the day. Close-fitting felt hats, bright waistless dresses an inch above the knees, skin-toned silk stockings, sleek pumps, and strings of beads replaced the dark and prim ankle-length dresses, whalebone corsets, and petticoats of Victorian days. Young women clipped their long hair into boyish bobs and dyed it jet black.

Many young women became more assertive. In their bid for equal status with men, some began smoking cigarettes, drinking in public, and talking openly about sex—actions that would have ruined their reputations not many years before. They danced the fox trot, camel walk, tango, Charleston, and shimmy with abandon.

Attitudes toward marriage changed as well. Many middle-class men and women began to view marriage as more of an equal partnership, although both agreed that housework and child-rearing remained a woman’s job.

The Double Standard

Magazines, newspapers, and advertisements promoted the image of the flapper, and young people openly discussed courtship and relationships in ways that scandalized their elders. Although many young women donned the new outfits and flouted tradition, the flapper was more an image of rebellious youth than a widespread reality; it did not reflect the attitudes and values of many young people. During the 1920s, morals loosened only so far. Traditionalists in churches and schools protested the new casual dances and women’s acceptance of smoking and drinking.

In the years before World War I, when men “courted” women, they pursued only women they intended to marry. In the 1920s, however, casual dating became increasingly accepted. Even so, a double standard—a set of principles granting greater sexual freedom to men than to women—required women to observe stricter standards of behavior than men did. As a result, many women were pulled back and forth between the old standards and the new.

Women Shed Old Roles at Home and at Work

The fast-changing world of the 1920s produced new roles for women in the workplace and new trends in family life. A booming industrial economy opened new work opportunities for women in offices, factories, stores, and professions. The same economy churned out time-saving appliances and products that reshaped the roles of housewives and mothers.

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New Work Opportunities

Although women had worked successfully during the war, afterwards employers who believed that men had the responsibility to support their families financially often replaced female workers with men. Women continued to seek paid employment, but their opportunities changed. Many female college graduates turned to “women’s professions” and became teachers, nurses, and librarians. Big businesses required extensive correspondence and record keeping, creating a huge demand for clerical workers such as typists, filing clerks, secretaries, stenographers, and office-machine operators. Others became clerks in stores or held jobs on assembly lines. A handful of women broke the old stereotypes by doing work once reserved for men, such as flying airplanes, driving taxis, and drilling oil wells.

Photo: A woman works on a typesetting machine

A young woman works as a typesetter in a publishing house in 1920.

By 1930, 10 million women were earning wages; however, few rose to managerial jobs, and wherever they worked, women earned less than men. Fearing competition for jobs, men argued that women were just temporary workers whose real job was at home. Between 1900 and 1930, the patterns of discrimination and inequality for women in the business world were established.

The Changing Family

Widespread social and economic changes reshaped the family. The birthrate had been declining for several decades, and it dropped at a slightly faster rate in the 1920s. This decline was due in part to the wider availability of birth-control information. Margaret Sanger, who had opened the first birth-control clinic in the United States in 1916, founded the American Birth Control League in 1921 and fought for the legal rights of physicians to give birth-control information to their patients.

At the same time, social and technological innovations simplified household labor and family life. Stores overflowed with ready-made clothes, sliced bread, and canned foods. Public agencies provided services for the elderly, public health clinics served the sick, and workers’ compensation assisted those who could no longer work. These innovations and institutions had the effect of freeing homemakers from some of their traditional family responsibilities. Many middle-class housewives, the main shoppers and money managers, focused their attention on their homes, husbands, children, and pastimes. “I consider time for reading clubs and my children more important than … careful housework and I just don’t do it,” said an Indiana woman in the 1920s.

Women’s Changing Employment, 1910–1930 Pie chart: percentages of women's employment in 7 areas 1910

Pie chart: percentages of women's employment in 7 areas 1920

Pie chart: percentages of women's employment in 7 areas 1930

1910 Professional 9.1% Domestic1 31.3% Manufacturing & Mechanical 22.6% Agriculture3 22.4% Clerical 7.3% Trade2 5.9% Transportation & Communication 1.3% 1920 Professional 11.9% Domestic1 25.6% Manufacturing & Mechanical 22.6% Agriculture3 12.7% Clerical 16.6% Trade2 7.9% Transportation & Communication 2.6% 1930 Professional 14.2% Domestic1 29.6% Manufacturing & Mechanical 17.5% Agriculture3 8.5% Clerical 18.5% Trade2 9.0% Transportation & Communication 2.6%

1 Includes restaurant workers and beauticians.

2 Includes sales clerks.

3 Includes forestry and fishing.

Source: Grace Hutchins, Women Who Work 649

As their spheres of activity and influence expanded, women experienced greater equality in marriage. Marriages were based increasingly on romantic love and companionship. Children, no longer thrown together with adults in factory work, farm labor, and apprenticeships, spent most of their days at school and in organized activities with others their own age. At the same time, parents began to rely more heavily on manuals of child care and the advice of experts.

Working-class and college-educated women quickly discovered the pressure of juggling work and family, but the strain on working-class women was more severe. Helen Wright, who worked for the Women’s Bureau in Chicago, recorded the struggle of an Irish mother of two.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“She worked in one of the meat-packing companies, pasting labels from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. She had entered the eldest child at school but sent her to the nursery for lunch and after school. The youngest was in the nursery all day. She kept her house ‘immaculately clean and in perfect order,’ but to do so worked until eleven o’clock every night in the week and on Saturday night she worked until five o’clock in the morning. She described her schedule as follows: on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday she cleaned one room each night; Saturday afternoon she finished the cleaning and put the house in order; Saturday night she washed; Sunday she baked; Monday night she ironed.”
—quoted in Wage-Earning Women

As women adjusted to changing roles, some also struggled with rebellious adolescents, who put an unprecedented strain on families. Teens in the 1920s studied and socialized with other teens and spent less time with their families. As peer pressure intensified, some adolescents resisted parental control, much as the flappers resisted societal control.

This theme of adolescent rebelliousness can be seen in much of the popular culture of the 1920s. Education and entertainment reflected the conflict between traditional attitudes and modern ways of thinking.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• flapper

• double standard

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Copy the concept web shown below and add to it examples that illustrate how women’s lives changed in the 1920s.

Chart: 3 areas relate to Changes, Women in the 1920s - lifestyles, families, and jobs

Write a paragraph explaining how you think women’s lives changed most dramatically in the 1920s.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

During the 1920s, a double standard required women to observe stricter codes of behavior than men. Do you think that some women of this decade made real progress towards equality? Support your answer with examples. Think About:

• the flapper’s style and image

• changing views of marriage

4. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES

In 1920, veteran suffragist Anna Howard Shaw stated that equality in the workplace would be harder for women to achieve than the vote.

“You younger women will have a harder task than ours. You will want equality in business, and it will be even harder to get than the vote.”
—Anna Howard Shaw

Why do you think Shaw held this belief? Support your answer with evidence from the text.

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Daily Life 1920–1929 Youth in the Roaring Twenties

The decade known as the Roaring Twenties was a celebration of youth and its culture. Crazy and frenetic dances, silly songs, and radically new styles of clothing captured the public’s fancy.

During this period of relative prosperity, many people questioned the values of the past and were willing to experiment with new values and behavior as well as with new fashions. This was an especially liberating period for women, who received the right to vote in 1920. Many women also opted for a liberating change of fashion—short skirts and short hair—as well as the freedom to smoke and drink in public.

FLAGPOLE SITTING One of the more bizarre fads of the 1920s began in 1924 as a publicity stunt to attract viewers to movie theaters. The most famous flagpole sitter was “Shipwreck” Kelly (right, waving from high above a movie theater in Union City, New Jersey). In 1929, for a total of 145 days, Kelly took up residence atop various flagpoles throughout the country. Imitators, of course, followed. At one point that year, Baltimore had at least 17 boys and 3 girls sitting atop 18-foot hickory poles, with their friends and families cheering them on. Photo: Bessie Smith

BESSIE SMITH Bessie Smith was “Empress of the Blues.” In 1923, she sold a million recordings of “Down Hearted Blues.” Photo: a couple dances

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 650 and page 651 in the print version. 651 Photo: a couple dances

DANCE FADS The Charleston was the dance craze of the 1920s. An energetic dance that involved wild, flailing movements of the arms and legs, it demanded an appropriate costume for the woman dancer—a short, straight dress without a waistline. Another craze was the dance marathon, a contest in which couples would dance continuously for days—taking a 15-minute break every hour—with each alternately holding up the other as he or she slept. Needless to say, dancers dropped from exhaustion. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 650 and page 651 in the print version. Photo: a barber cuts a woman's hair

BOBBED HAIR In keeping with the liberating influence of their new clothing, women bobbed their hair—that is, they had it cut much shorter—freeing themselves of the long tresses that had been fashionable for years. The woman shown is having her hair cut at a barber shop. Photo: a man wears baggy pants

GENTLEMEN’S FASHIONS Gentlemen enjoyed some outrageous fashions of their own. This young man, with the aid of two flappers, displays the latest fashion in trousers, sometimes called Oxford bags. He also sports “patent-leather hair,” parted on the side or in the middle and slicked down close to the head. Data File School Days, School Days

During the 1920s, children studied reading, writing, and arithmetic in elementary school. In high school, students also studied history and literature and had vocational training. Girls learned cooking and sewing, and boys learned woodworking.

Slang Expressions
crush	an infatuation
gatecrasher	someone who attends an event uninvited or without paying
keen	attractive or appealing
ritzy	elegant
scram	to leave in a hurry
screwy	crazy
bee’s knees	a superb person or thing

Thinking Critically Connect to Today

1. Comparing With a small group, listen to several of the songs listed above or to others from the period. Discuss their lyrics and melodies, and compare them with those of popular songs today. What commonalities can you find? How does the music from each period reflect its times? Report your findings to the class.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R8. Connect To History

2. Researching Clothing Styles Find out more about the clothing styles just before the flapper era. How severe were the changes in fashion in the 1920s? How do you think parents of flappers reacted to these changes? If you had lived at this time, would you have chosen to wear the new styles? Why or why not?

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Section 3: Education and Popular Culture

One American’s Story

On September 22, 1927, approximately 50 million Americans sat listening to their radios as Graham McNamee, radio’s most popular announcer, breathlessly called the boxing match between the former heavyweight champ Jack Dempsey and the current title-holder, Gene Tunney.

Gene Tunney, down for the “long count,” went on to defeat Jack Dempsey in their epic 1927 battle.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“Good evening, Ladies & Gentlemen of the Radio Audience. This is a big night. Three million dollars’ worth of boxing bugs are gathering around a ring at Soldiers’ Field, Chicago.…

Here comes Jack Dempsey, climbing through the ropes … white flannels, long bathrobe.… Here comes Tunney.… The announcer shouting in the ring … trying to quiet 150,000 people.… Robes are off.”
—Time magazine, October 3, 1927

After punches flew for ten rounds, Tunney defeated the legendary Dempsey. So suspenseful was the brutal match that a number of radio listeners died of heart failure. The “fight of the century” was just one of a host of spectacles and events that transformed American popular culture in the 1920s.

Schools and the Mass Media Shape Culture

During the 1920s, developments in education and mass media had a powerful impact on the nation.

School Enrollments

In 1914, approximately 1 million American students attended high school. By 1926, that number had risen to nearly 4 million, an increase sparked by prosperous times and higher educational standards for industry jobs.

Prior to the 1920s, high schools had catered to college-bound students. In contrast, high schools of the 1920s began offering a broad range of courses such as vocational training for those interested in industrial jobs.

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The public schools met another challenge in the 1920s—teaching the children of new immigrant families. The years before World War I had seen the largest stream of immigrants in the nation’s history—close to 1 million a year. Unlike the earlier English and Irish immigrants, many of the new immigrants spoke no English. By the 1920s their children filled city classrooms. Determined teachers met the challenge and created a large pool of literate Americans.

Taxes to finance the schools increased as well. School costs doubled between 1913 and 1920, then doubled again by 1926. The total cost of American education in the mid-1920s amounted to $2.7 billion a year.

Graph: number of students 1910 - 1940. The number of students rise steadily: 1910 1 million, 1920 2.1 million, 1930 4.2 million, 1940 6.8 million.

High School Enrollment, 1910–1940 Source: Historical Statistics of the United States

Expanding News Coverage

Widespread education increased literacy in America, but it was the growing mass media that shaped a mass culture. Newspaper circulation rose as writers and editors learned how to hook readers by imitating the sensational stories in the tabloids. By 1914, about 600 local papers had shut down and 230 had been swallowed up by huge national chains, giving readers more expansive coverage from the big cities. Mass-circulation magazines also flourished during the 1920s. Many of these magazines summarized the week’s news, both foreign and domestic. By the end of the 1920s, ten American magazines—including Reader’s Digest (founded in 1922) and Time (founded in 1923)—boasted a circulation of over 2 million each.

Radio Comes of Age

Although major magazines and newspapers reached big audiences, radio was the most powerful communications medium to emerge in the 1920s. Americans added terms such as “airwaves,” “radio audience,” and “tune in” to their everyday speech. By the end of the

Photo: a dozen actors holding scripts cluster around a microphone

Photo: a radio with a large bell-shaped speaker

Radio Broadcasts of the 1920s Radio dance parties were common in the 1920s. Prior to the 1920s, radio broadcasts were used primarily for transmitting important messages and speeches regarding World War I. After the first commercial radio station—KDKA Pittsburgh—made its debut on the airwaves in 1920, the radio industry changed forever. Listeners tuned in for news, entertainment, and advertisements. By 1930, 40 percent of U.S. households had radios, like this 1927 Cosser three-valve Melody Maker. In the 1920s, radio was a formal affair. Announcers and musicians dressed in their finest attire, even without a live audience. 654

decade, the radio networks had created something new in the United States—the shared national experience of hearing the news as it happened. The wider world had opened up to Americans, who could hear the voice of their president or listen to the World Series live.

America Chases New Heroes and Old Dreams

During the 1920s, many people had money and the leisure time to enjoy it. In 1929, Americans spent $4.5 billion on entertainment, much of it on ever-changing fads. Early in the decade, Americans engaged in new leisure pastimes such as working crossword puzzles and playing mahjong, a Chinese game whose playing pieces resemble dominoes. In 1922, after explorers opened the dazzling tomb of the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamen, consumers mobbed stores for pharaoh-inspired accessories, jewelry, and furniture. In the mid-1920s, people turned to flagpole sitting and dance marathons. They also flooded athletic stadiums to see sports stars, who were glorified as super-heroes by the mass media.

Gertude Ederle In 1926, at the age of 19, Gertrude Ederle became the first woman to swim the English Channel. Here, an assistant applies heavy grease to help ward off the effects of the cold Channel waters. Photo: Babe Ruth swings a bat

Babe Ruth New York Yankees slugger Babe Ruth smashed home run after home run during the 1920s. When this legendary star hit a record 60 home runs in 1927, Americans went wild. Photo: Andrew Rube Foster

Andrew “Rube” Foster A celebrated pitcher and team manager, Andrew “Rube” Foster made his greatest contribution to black baseball in 1920 when he founded the Negro National League. Although previous attempts to establish a league for black players had failed, Foster led the league to success, earning him the title “The Father of Black Baseball.” Photo: Helen Wills

Helen Wills Helen Wills dominated women’s tennis, winning the singles title at the U.S. Open seven times and the Wimbledon title eight times. Her nickname was “Little Miss Poker Face.” Sports Heroes of the 1920s Although the media glorified sports heroes, the Golden Age of Sports reflected common aspirations. Athletes set new records, inspiring ordinary Americans. When poor, unknown athletes rose to national fame and fortune, they restored Americans’ belief in the power of the individual to improve his or her life. 655 A map titled Historic Flights, 1919 - 1932, shows flight routes and photos of Amelia Earhart, a pilot loading a mailbag, and Charles Lindbergh

A map titled Historic Flights, 1919 - 1932, shows flight routes and photos of Amelia Earhart, a pilot loading a mailbag, and Charles Lindbergh

Historic Flights, 1919–1932
INTERACTIVE March 14, 1927 Pan American Airways is founded to handle airmail deliveries. First route is between Key West, Florida, and Havana. May 20–21, 1927 Charles Lindbergh establishes a record of 33 hours 29 minutes in his 3,614–mile nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic. May 20–21, 1932 Amelia Earhart is the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic, in a record time of about 15 hours from Newfoundland to Ireland. 1920 First transcontinental airmail service in the U.S.

Lindbergh’s Flight

America’s most beloved hero of the time wasn’t an athlete but a small-town pilot named Charles A. Lindbergh, who made the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic. A handsome, modest Minnesotan, Lindbergh decided to go after a $25,000 prize offered for the first nonstop solo transatlantic flight. On May 20, 1927, he took off near New York City in the Spirit of St. Louis, flew up the coast to Newfoundland, and headed over the Atlantic. The weather was so bad, Lindbergh recalled, that “the average altitude for the whole … second 1,000 miles of the [Atlantic] flight was less than 100 feet.” After 33 hours and 29 minutes, Lindbergh set down at Le Bourget airfield outside of Paris, France, amid beacons, searchlights, and mobs of enthusiastic people.

Paris threw a huge party. On his return to the U.S., New York showered Lindbergh with ticker tape, the president received him at the White House, and America made him its idol. In an age of sensationalism, excess, and crime, Lindbergh stood for the honesty and bravery the nation seemed to have lost. The novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald, a fellow Minnesotan, caught the essence of Lindbergh’s fame.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“In the spring of 1927, something bright and alien flashed across the sky. A young Minnesotan who seemed to have nothing to do with his generation did a heroic thing, and for a moment people set down their glasses in country clubs and speakeasies and thought of their old best dreams.”
—quoted in The Lawless Decade

Lindbergh’s accomplishment paved the way for others. In the next decade, Amelia Earhart was to undertake many brave aerial exploits, inspired by Lindbergh’s example.

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Entertainment and the Arts

Despite the feats of real-life heroes, America’s thirst for entertainment in the arts and on the screen and stage seemed unquenchable in the 1920s.

Even before the introduction of sound, movies became a national pastime, offering viewers a means of escape through romance and comedy. The first major movie with sound, The Jazz Singer, was released in 1927. Walt Disney’s Steamboat Willie, the first animated film with sound, was released in 1928. By 1930, the new “talkies” had doubled movie attendance, with millions of Americans going to the movies every week.

Painting: view through a window of a woman alone in her apartment

Edward Hopper’s Night Windows (1928).

Both playwrights and composers of music broke away from the European traditions of the 1920s. Eugene O’Neill’s plays, such as The Hairy Ape, forced Americans to reflect upon modern isolation, confusion, and family conflict. Fame was given to concert music composer George Gershwin when he merged traditional elements with American jazz, thus creating a new sound that was identifiably American.

Painters appealed to Americans by recording an America of realities and dreams. Edward Hopper caught the loneliness of American life in his canvases of empty streets and solitary people, while Georgia O’Keeffe produced intensely colored canvases that captured the grandeur of New York.

Writers of the 1920s

The 1920s also brought an outpouring of fresh and insightful writing, making it one of the richest eras in the country’s literary history.

Sinclair Lewis, the first American to win a Nobel Prize in literature, was among the era’s most outspoken critics. In his novel Babbitt, Lewis used the main character of George F. Babbitt to ridicule Americans for their conformity and materialism.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“A sensational event was changing from the brown suit to the gray the contents of his pockets. He was earnest about these objects. They were of eternal importance, like baseball or the Republican Party. They included a fountain pen and a silver pencil … which belonged in the righthand upper vest pocket. Without them he would have felt naked. On his watch-chain were a gold penknife, silver cigar-cutter, seven keys … and incidentally a good watch.… Last, he stuck in his lapel the Boosters’ Club button. With the conciseness of great art the button displayed two words: ‘Boosters—Pep!’”
—Babbitt

It was F. Scott Fitzgerald who coined the term “Jazz Age” to describe the 1920s. In This Side of Paradise and The Great Gatsby, he revealed the negative side of the period’s gaiety and freedom, portraying wealthy and attractive people leading imperiled lives in gilded surroundings. In New York City, a brilliant group of writers routinely lunched together at the Algonquin Hotel’s “Round Table.” Among the best known of them was Dorothy Parker, a short story writer, poet, and essayist. Parker was famous for her wisecracking wit, expressed in such lines as “I was the toast of two continents—Greenland and Australia.”

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Many writers also met important issues head on. In The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton dramatized the clash between traditional and modern values that had undermined high society 50 years earlier. Willa Cather celebrated the simple, dignified lives of people such as the immigrant farmers of Nebraska in My Ántonia, while Edna St. Vincent Millay wrote poems celebrating youth and a life of independence and freedom from traditional constraints.

Some writers such as Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and John Dos Passos were so soured by American culture that they chose to settle in Europe, mainly in Paris. Socializing in the city’s cafes, they formed a group that the writer Gertrude Stein called the Lost Generation. They joined other American writers already in Europe such as the poets Ezra Pound and T. S. Eliot, whose poem The Waste Land presented an agonized view of a society that seemed stripped of humanity.

Several writers saw action in World War I, and their early books denounced war. Dos Passos’s novel Three Soldiers attacked war as a machine designed to crush human freedom. Later, he turned to social and political themes, using modern techniques to capture the mood of city life and the losses that came with success. Ernest Hemingway, wounded in World War I, became the best-known expatriate author. In his novels The Sun Also Rises and A Farewell to Arms, he criticized the glorification of war. He also introduced a tough, simplified style of writing that set a new literary standard, using sentences a Time reporter compared to “round stones polished by rain and wind.”

During this rich literary era, vital developments were also taking place in African-American society. Black Americans of the 1920s began to voice pride in their heritage, and black artists and writers revealed the richness of African-American culture.

Key Player: F. SCOTT FITZGERALD 1896–1940 Photo: F. Scott Fitzgerald

F. Scott Fitzgerald married vivacious Zelda Sayre in 1920 after his novel This Side of Paradise became an instant hit. He said of this time in his life:

“Riding in a taxi one afternoon between very tall buildings under a mauve and rosy sky, I began to bawl because I had everything I wanted and knew I would never be so happy again.”

Flush with money, the couple plunged into a wild social whirl and outspent their incomes. The years following were difficult. Zelda suffered from repeated mental breakdowns, and Scott’s battle with alcoholism took its toll.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each of the following names, write a sentence explaining his or her significance.

• Charles A. Lindbergh

• George Gershwin

• Georgia O’Keeffe

• Sinclair Lewis

• F. Scott Fitzgerald

• Edna St. Vincent Millay

• Ernest Hemingway

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of key events relating to 1920s popular culture. Use the dates below as a guide.

Timeline: spaces are provided to list events for 1920, 1923, 1926, 1927, and 1928

In a sentence or two, explain which of these events interests you the most and why.

Critical Thinking

3. SYNTHESIZING

In what ways do you think the mass media and mass culture helped Americans create a sense of national community in the 1920s? Support your answer with details from the text. Think About:

• the content and readership of newspapers and magazines

• attendance at sports events and movie theaters

• the scope of radio broadcasts

4. EVALUATING

Do you think the popular heroes of the 1920s were heroes in a real sense? Why or why not?

5. SUMMARIZING

In two or three sentences, summarize the effects of education and mass media on society in the 1920s.

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Section 4: The Harlem Renaissance

One American’s Story

When the spirited Zora Neale Hurston was a girl in Eatonville, Florida, in the early 1900s, she loved to read adventure stories and myths. The powerful tales struck a chord with the young, talented Hurston and made her yearn for a wider world.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“My soul was with the gods and my body in the village. People just would not act like gods.… Raking back yards and carrying out chamber-pots, were not the tasks of Thor. I wanted to be away from drabness and to stretch my limbs in some mighty struggle.”
—quoted in The African American Encyclopedia

After spending time with a traveling theater company and attending Howard University, Hurston ended up in New York where she struggled to the top of African-American literary society by hard work, flamboyance, and, above all, grit. “I have seen that the world is to the strong regardless of a little pigmentation more or less,” Hurston wrote later. “I do not weep at [being Negro]—I am too busy sharpening my oyster knife.” Hurston was on the move, like millions of others. And, like them, she went after the pearl in the oyster—the good life in America.

African-American Voices in the 1920s

During the 1920s, African Americans set new goals for themselves as they moved north to the nation’s cities. Their migration was an expression of their changing attitude toward themselves—an attitude perhaps best captured in a phrase first used around this time, “Black is beautiful.”

The Move North

Between 1910 and 1920, in a movement known as the Great Migration, hundreds of thousands of African Americans had uprooted

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themselves from their homes in the South and moved north to the big cities in search of jobs. By the end of the decade, 5.2 million of the nation’s 12 million African Americans—over 40 percent—lived in cities. Zora Neale Hurston documented the departure of some of these African Americans.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“Some said goodbye cheerfully … others fearfully, with terrors of unknown dangers in their mouths … others in their eagerness for distance said nothing. The daybreak found them gone. The wind said North.”
—quoted in Sorrow’s Kitchen: The Life and Folklore of Zora Neale Hurston

However, Northern cities in general had not welcomed the massive influx of African Americans. Tensions had escalated in the years prior to 1920, culminating, in the summer of 1919, in approximately 25 urban race riots.

African-American Goals

Founded in 1909, The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) urged African Americans to protest racial violence. W. E. B. Du Bois, a founding member of the NAACP, led a parade of 10,000 African-American men in New York to protest such violence. Du Bois also used the NAACP’s magazine, The Crisis, as a platform for leading a struggle for civil rights.

Under the leadership of James Weldon Johnson—poet, lawyer, and NAACP executive secretary—the organization fought for legislation to protect African-American rights. It made antilynching laws one of its main priorities. In 1919, three antilynching bills were introduced in Congress, although none was passed. The NAACP continued its campaign through antilynching organizations that had been established in 1892 by Ida B. Wells. Gradually, the number of lynchings dropped. The NAACP represented the new, more militant voice of African Americans.

Key Player: James Weldon Johnson 1871–1938 Photo: James Weldon Johnson

James Weldon Johnson worked as a school principal, newspaper editor, and lawyer in Florida. In 1900, he wrote the lyrics for “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the song that became known as the black national anthem. The first stanza begins as follows:

“Lift every voice and sing Till earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of Liberty; Let our rejoicing rise High as the listening skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.”

In the 1920s, Johnson straddled the worlds of politics and art. He served as executive secretary of the NAACP, spear-heading the fight against lynching. In addition, he wrote well-known works, such as God’s Trombones, a series of sermon-like poems, and Black Manhattan, a look at black cultural life in New York during the Roaring Twenties.

Marcus Garvey and the Unia

Although many African Americans found their voice in the NAACP, they still faced daily threats and discrimination. Marcus Garvey, an immigrant from Jamaica, believed that African Americans should build a separate society. His different, more radical message of black pride aroused the hopes of many.

In 1914, Garvey founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). In 1918, he moved the UNIA to New York City and opened offices in urban ghettos in order to recruit followers. By the mid-1920s, Garvey claimed he had a million followers. He appealed to African Americans with a combination of spellbinding oratory, mass meetings, parades, and a message of pride.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“In view of the fact that the black man of Africa has contributed as much to the world as the white man of Europe, and the brown man and yellow man of Asia, we of the Universal Negro Improvement Association demand that the white, yellow, and brown races give to the black man his place in the civilization of the world. We ask for nothing more than the rights of 400 million Negroes.”
—speech at Liberty Hall, New York City, 1922

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Garvey also lured followers with practical plans, especially his program to promote African-American businesses. Further, Garvey encouraged his followers to return to Africa, help native people there throw off white colonial oppressors, and build a mighty nation. His idea struck a chord in many African Americans, as well as in blacks in the Caribbean and Africa. Despite the appeal of Garvey’s movement, support for it declined in the mid-1920s, when he was convicted of mail fraud and jailed. Although the movement dwindled, Garvey left behind a powerful legacy of newly awakened black pride, economic independence, and reverence for Africa.

Marcus Garvey designed this uniform of purple and gold, complete with feathered hat, for his role as “Provisional President of Africa.”

The Harlem Renaissance Flowers in New York

Many African Americans who migrated north moved to Harlem, a neighborhood on the Upper West Side of New York’s Manhattan Island. In the 1920s, Harlem became the world’s largest black urban community, with residents from the South, the West Indies, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Haiti. James Weldon Johnson described Harlem as the capital of black America.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“Harlem is not merely a Negro colony or community, it is a city within a city, the greatest Negro city in the world. It is not a slum or a fringe, it is located in the heart of Manhattan and occupies one of the most beautiful … sections of the city.… It has its own churches, social and civic centers, shops, theaters, and other places of amusement. And it contains more Negroes to the square mile than any other spot on earth.”
—“Harlem: The Culture Capital”

Like many other urban neighborhoods, Harlem suffered from overcrowding, unemployment, and poverty. But its problems in the 1920s were eclipsed by a flowering of creativity called the Harlem Renaissance, a literary and artistic movement celebrating African-American culture.

African–American Writers

Above all, the Harlem Renaissance was a literary movement led by well-educated, middle-class African Americans who expressed a new pride in the African-American experience. They celebrated their heritage and wrote with defiance and poignancy about the trials of being black in a white world. W. E. B. Du Bois and James Weldon Johnson helped these young talents along, as did the Harvard-educated former Rhodes scholar Alain Locke. In 1925, Locke published The New Negro, a landmark collection of literary works by many promising young African-American writers.

Claude McKay, a novelist, poet, and Jamaican immigrant, was a major figure whose militant verses urged African Americans to resist prejudice and discrimination. His poems also expressed the pain of life in the black ghettos and the strain of being black in a world dominated by whites. Another gifted writer of the time was Jean Toomer. His experimental book Cane—a mix of poems and sketches about blacks in the North and the South—was among the first full-length literary publications of the Harlem Renaissance.

Missouri-born Langston Hughes was the movement’s best-known poet. Many of Hughes’s 1920s poems described the difficult lives of working-class African Americans. Some of his poems moved to the tempo of jazz and the blues. (See Literature in the Jazz Age on page 664.)

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Map: Harlem is noted as a predominantly black neighborhood with landmarks Cotton Club, Savoy Theatre, James Weldon Johnson home, Library, Lafayette Theatre, Marcus Garvey home, and Apollo Theatre.

Harlem in the 1920s At the turn of the century, New York’s Harlem neighborhood was overbuilt with new apartment houses. Enterprising African-American realtors began buying and leasing property to other African Americans who were eager to move into the prosperous neighborhood. As the number of blacks in Harlem increased, many whites began moving out. Harlem quickly grew to become the center of black America and the birthplace of the political, social, and cultural movement known as the Harlem Renaissance. In 1927, Harlem was a bustling neighborhood. Photo: Fletcher Henderson Orchestra

The Fletcher Henderson Orchestra became one of the most influential jazz bands during the Harlem Renaissance. Here, Henderson, the band’s founder, sits at the drums, with Louis Armstrong on trumpet (third from left). Photo: Cotton Club

In the mid 1920s, the Cotton Club was one of a number of fashionable entertainment clubs in Harlem. Although many venues like the Cotton Club were segregated, white audiences packed the clubs to hear the new music styles of black performers such as Duke Ellington and Bessie Smith. 662

In many of her novels, short stories, poems, and books of folklore, Zora Neale Hurston portrayed the lives of poor, unschooled Southern blacks—in her words, “the greatest cultural wealth of the continent.” Much of her work celebrated what she called the common person’s art form—the simple folkways and values of people who had survived slavery through their ingenuity and strength.

African–American Performers

The spirit and talent of the Harlem Renaissance reached far beyond the world of African-American writers and intellectuals. Some observers, including Langston Hughes, thought the movement was launched with Shuffle Along, a black musical comedy popular in 1921. “It gave just the proper push … to that Negro vogue of the ‘20s,” he wrote. Several songs in Shuffle Along, including “Love Will Find a Way,” won popularity among white audiences. The show also spotlighted the talents of several black performers, including the singers Florence Mills, Josephine Baker, and Mabel Mercer.

During the 1920s, African Americans in the performing arts won large followings. The tenor Roland Hayes rose to stardom as a concert singer, and the singer and actress Ethel Waters debuted on Broadway in the musical Africana. Paul Robeson, the son of a one-time slave, became a major dramatic actor. His performance in Shakespeare’s Othello, first in London and later in New York City, was widely acclaimed. Subsequently, Robeson struggled with the racism he experienced in the United States and the indignities inflicted upon him because of his support of the Soviet Union and the Communist Party. He took up residence abroad, living for a time in England and the Soviet Union.

The Hot Five included (from left) Louis Armstrong, Johnny St. Cyr, Johnny Dodds, Kid Ory, and Lil Hardin Armstrong.

African Americans and Jazz

Jazz was born in the early 20th century in New Orleans, where musicians blended instrumental ragtime and vocal blues into an exuberant new sound. In 1918, Joe “King” Oliver and his Creole Jazz Band traveled north to Chicago, carrying jazz with them. In 1922, a young trumpet player named Louis Armstrong joined Oliver’s group, which became known as the Creole Jazz Band. His talent rocketed him to stardom in the jazz world.

Famous for his astounding sense of rhythm and his ability to improvise, Armstrong made personal expression a key part of jazz. After two years in Chicago, in 1924 he joined Fletcher Henderson’s band, then the most important big jazz band in New York City. Armstrong went on to become perhaps the most important and influential musician in the history of jazz. He often talked about his anticipated funeral.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“They’re going to blow over me. Cats will be coming from everywhere to play. I had a beautiful life. When I get to the Pearly Gates I’ll play a duet with Gabriel. We’ll play ‘Sleepy Time Down South.’ He wants to be remembered for his music just like I do.”
—quoted in The Negro Almanac

Jazz quickly spread to such cities as Kansas City, Memphis, and New York City, and it became the most popular music for dancing. During the 1920s, Harlem pulsed to the sounds of jazz, which lured throngs of whites to the showy, exotic nightclubs there, including the famed Cotton Club. In the late 1920s, Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington, a jazz pianist and composer, led his

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ten-piece orchestra at the Cotton Club. In a 1925 essay titled “The Negro Spirituals,” Alain Locke seemed almost to predict the career of the talented Ellington.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN WRIGHT

“Up to the present, the resources of Negro music have been tentatively exploited in only one direction at a time–melodically here, rhythmically there, harmonically in a third direction. A genius that would organize its distinctive elements in a formal way would be the musical giant of his age.”
—quoted in Afro-American Writing: An Anthology of Prose and Poetry

Through the 1920s and 1930s, Ellington won renown as one of America’s greatest composers, with pieces such as “Mood Indigo” and “Sophisticated Lady.”

Cab Calloway, a talented drummer, saxophonist, and singer, formed another important jazz orchestra, which played at Harlem’s Savoy Ballroom and the Cotton Club, alternating with Duke Ellington. Along with Louis Armstrong, Calloway popularized “scat,” or improvised jazz singing using sounds instead of words.

Bessie Smith, a female blues singer, was perhaps the outstanding vocalist of the decade. She recorded on black-oriented labels produced by the major record companies. She achieved enormous popularity and in 1927 became the highest-paid black artist in the world.

The Harlem Renaissance represented a portion of the great social and cultural changes that swept America in the 1920s. The period was characterized by economic prosperity, new ideas, changing values, and personal freedom, as well as important developments in art, literature, and music. Most of the social changes were lasting. The economic boom, however, was short-lived.

Key Player: Duke Ellington 1899–1974 Photo: Duke Ellington

Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington, one of the greatest composers of the 20th century, was largely a self-taught musician. He developed his skills by playing at family socials. He wrote his first song, “Soda Fountain Rag,” at age 15 and started his first band at 22.

During the five years Ellington played at Harlem’s glittering Cotton Club, he set a new standard, playing mainly his own stylish compositions. Through radio and the film short Black and Tan, the Duke Ellington Orchestra was able to reach nationwide audiences. Billy Strayhorn, Ellington’s long-time arranger and collaborator, said, “Ellington plays the piano, but his real instrument is his band.”

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Zora Neale Hurston

• James Weldon Johnson

• Marcus Garvey

• Harlem Renaissance

• Claude McKay

• Langston Hughes

• Paul Robeson

• Louis Armstrong

• Duke Ellington

• Bessie Smith

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a tree diagram, identify three areas of artistic achievement in the Harlem Renaissance. For each, name two outstanding African Americans.

Diagram titled Harlem Renaissance: Areas of Achievement, with three blank lists.

Write a paragraph explaining the impact of these achievements.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING CAUSES

Speculate on why an African-American renaissance flowered during the 1920s. Support your answer. Think About:

• racial discrimination in the South

• campaigns for equality in the North

• Harlem’s diverse cultures

• the changing culture of all Americans

4. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

How did popular culture in America change as a result of the Great Migration?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

What did the Harlem Renaissance contribute to both black and general American history?

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American Literature Literature in the Jazz Age

1920–1929 After World War I, American literature—like American jazz—moved to the vanguard of the international artistic scene. Many American writers remained in Europe after the war, some settling in London but many more joining the expatriate community on the Left Bank of the Seine River in Paris, where they could live cheaply.

Back in the United States, such cities as Chicago and New York were magnets for America’s young artistic talents. New York City gave birth to the Harlem Renaissance, a blossoming of African-American culture named for the New York City neighborhood where many African-American writers and artists settled. Further downtown, the artistic community of Greenwich Village drew literary talents such as the poets Edna St. Vincent Millay and E. E. Cummings and the playwright Eugene O’Neill.

F. SCOTT FITZGERALD The foremost chronicler of the Jazz Age was the Minnesota-born writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, who in Paris, New York, and later Hollywood rubbed elbows with other leading American writers of the day. In the following passage from Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby, the narrator describes a fashionable 1920s party thrown by the title character at his Long Island estate.

By seven o’clock the orchestra has arrived, no thin five-piece affair, but a whole pitful of oboes and trombones and saxophones and viols and cornets and piccolos, and low and high drums. The last swimmers have come in from the beach now and are dressing up-stairs; the cars from New York are parked five deep in the drive, and already the halls and salons and verandas are gaudy with primary colors, and hair shorn in strange new ways, and shawls beyond the dreams of Castile. The bar is in full swing, and floating rounds of cocktails permeate the garden outside, until the air is alive with chatter and laughter, and casual innuendo and introductions forgotten on the spot, and enthusiastic meetings between women who never knew each other’s names.

The lights grow brighter as the earth lurches away from the sun, and now the orchestra is playing yellow cocktail music, and the opera of voices pitches a key higher. Laughter is easier minute by minute, spilled with prodigality, tipped out at a cheerful word. The groups change more swiftly, swell with new arrivals, dissolve and form in the same breath; already there are wanderers, confident girls who weave here and there among the stouter and more stable, become for a sharp, joyous moment the center of a group, and then, excited with triumph, glide on through the sea-change of faces and voices and color under the constantly changing light.

Suddenly one of these gypsies, in trembling opal, seizes a cocktail out of the air, dumps it down for courage and, moving her hands like Frisco, dances out alone on the canvas platform. A momentary hush; the orchestra leader varies his rhythm obligingly for her, and there is a burst of chatter as the erroneous news goes around that she is Gilda Gray’s understudy from the Follies. The party has begun.

—F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (1925) 665 Photo: Edna St. Vincent Millay

EDNA ST. VINCENT MILLAY In the 1920s, Edna St. Vincent Millay was the quint-essential modern young woman, a celebrated poet living a bohemian life in New York’s Greenwich Village. The following quatrain memorably proclaims the exuberant philosophy of the young and fashionable in the Roaring Twenties. My candle burns at both ends; It will not last the night; But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends— It gives a lovely light! —Edna St. Vincent Millay, “First Fig,” from A Few Figs from Thistles (1920) Illustration: Langston Hughes

LANGSTON HUGHES A towering figure of the Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes often imbued his poetry with the rhythms of jazz and blues. In the poem “Dream Variations,” for example, the two stanzas resemble improvised passages played and varied by a jazz musician. The dream of freedom and equality is a recurring symbol in Hughes’s verse and has appeared frequently in African-American literature since the 1920s, when Hughes penned this famous poem. To fling my arms wide In some place of the sun, To whirl and to dance Till the white day is done. Then rest at cool evening Beneath a tall tree While night comes on gently, Dark like me— That is my dream! To fling my arms wide In the face of the sun, Dance! Whirl! Whirl! Till the quick day is done. Rest at pale evening … A tall, slim tree … Night coming tenderly Black like me. —Langston Hughes, “Dream Variations,” from The Weary Blues (1926) 666

Chapter 21: Assessment

Visual Summary: The Roaring Life of the 1920S New Forms of Entertainment

• Movies become a national pastime.

• Radio is a prime source of news and entertainment.

• Americans celebrate sports heroes.

New Movements in the Arts

Photo: musicians Louis Armstrong and Johnny St. Cyr

• Composers create distinctly American music.

• Writers explore new topics.

• Artists depict life in the 1920s.

• Harlem Renaissance flourishes.

Problems of Urbanization

• Industrialization leads to growth of big cities.

• African Americans continue to move North.

• Cities struggle with prohibition and organized crime.

New Attitudes and Fashion

Photo: woman modeling flapper-style clothes

• Changing attitudes toward women allow them greater freedoms.

• Americans adopt radical new fashions and style.

• Traditional and modern ideals collide.

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its historical significance or contribution to the 1920s.

1. bootlegger

2. fundamentalism

3. flapper

4. double standard

5. Charles A. Lindbergh

6. George Gershwin

7. F. Scott Fitzgerald

8. Zora Neale Hurston

9. Harlem Renaissance

10. Paul Robeson

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Changing Ways of Life (pages 640–645)

1. Why was heavy funding needed to enforce the Volstead Act?

2. Explain the circumstances and outcome of the trial of the biology teacher John Scopes.

The Twenties Woman (pages 646–649)

3. In what ways did flappers rebel against the earlier styles and attitudes of the Victorian age?

4. What key social, economic, and technological changes of the 1920s affected women’s marriages and family life?

Education and Popular Culture (pages 652–657)

5. How did high schools change in the 1920s?

6. Cite examples of the flaws of American society that some famous 1920s authors attacked in their writing.

The Harlem Renaissance (pages 658–663)

7. What do the Great Migration and the growth of the NAACP and UNIA reveal about the African-American experience in this period?

8. What were some of the important themes treated by African-American writers in the Harlem Renaissance?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a concept web like the one below, and fill it in with trends in popular culture that emerged in the 1920s and continue to influence American society today.

Diagram: provides six spaces to list trends related to Enduring Cultural Trends of the Roaring Twenties

2. EVALUATING In “Literature in the Jazz Age,” on pages 664–665, you read excerpts from works written in the 1920s by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and Langston Hughes. How might a phrase current at the time—“flaming youth”—be an appropriate and accurate phrase to describe the young people and voices in these excerpts?

667 Standardized Test Practice

Use the visual below and your knowledge of United States history to answer question 1.

Magazine cover illustration: a woman wearing a short dress snaps her fingers as musicians play

1. The woman shown on this magazine cover represents a lifestyle championed by which of the following 1920s figures?

A Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald

B Edna St. Vincent Millay

C Anna Howard Shaw

D Aimee Semple McPherson

2. The great flowering of African-American artistic activity in the 1920s is known as—

F the Jazz Age

G the speakeasy

H the Harlem Renaissance

J American fundamentalism

Use the quotation and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 3.

“No more fear, no more cringing, no more sycophantic begging and pleading; but the Negro must strike straight from the shoulder for manhood rights and for full liberty. Africa calls now more than ever.”

3. The quotation supports the “Back to Africa” movement. One important leader of this movement in the 1920s was—

A Marcus Garvey

B James Weldon Johnson

C Zora Neale Hurston

D Paul Robeson

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 639:

How might the new prosperity affect your everyday life?

Now that you have read about life in the 1920s, what do you think was the most significant cultural development during this time? Write a paragraph describing how this change impacted society and how it evolved. Share your paragraph with your class.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video “Jump at the Sun.” Discuss the following questions in a group; then do the activity.

• What effect did World War I have on the attitudes of African Americans?

• What effect might growing up in Eatonville, Florida, have had on Zora Neale Hurston?

• How did Hurston connect the study of anthropology with the world of her youth?

Cooperative Learning Activity With your group, think of visuals that represent Zora Neale Hurston’s dramatic life. Search through books, magazines, and encyclopedias for pictures that seem to capture her spirit and life experiences. Make copies of the pictures and assemble them in a collage.

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Chapter 22: The Great Depression Begins

Photo: women serve soup and bread to people waiting in line

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 668 and page 669 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1929 - 1931 USA and World

1929 USA: The first Academy Awards are presented.
1929 USA: The stock market crashes.
1930 World: Army officers led by Jose Uriburu seize control of the government of Argentina.
1930 - 1933 USA: More than 40% of the nation's banks fail.
1931 USA: Jane Addams shares the Nobel Peace Prize.
1931 USA: 8.02 million Americans are unemployed.
1931 World: Japan invades Manchuria.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 668 and page 669 in the print version. 669 Photo: women serve soup and bread to people waiting in line

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 668 and page 669 in the print version. Women serve soup and slices of bread to unemployed men in an outdoor breadline in Los Angeles, California during the Great Depression.

Description:

Timeline: 1931 - 1933 USA and World

1932 USA: The Bonus Army arrives in Washington, D.C.
1932 USA: Franklin Delano Roosevelt is elected president.
1932 World: Ibn Sa'ud becomes king of newly-united Saudi Arabia.
1932 World: From prison, Mohandas K. Gandhi leads a protest against British policies in India.
1933 World: Adolf Hitler takes power in Germany.
1933 USA: Century of Progress Exposition begins.
1933 USA: The Twenty-first Amendment ends Prohibition.
1933 USA: More than 13 million Americans are unemployed.
1933 World: Japan withdraws from the League of Nations.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 668 and page 669 in the print version. 670

Section 1: The Nation’s Sick Economy

One American’s Story

Gordon Parks, now a well-known photographer, author, and film-maker, was a 16-year-old high school student in the fall of 1929. He supported himself as a busboy at the exclusive Minnesota Club, where prosperous club members spoke confidently about the economy. Parks, too, looked forward to a bright future. Then came the stock market crash of October 1929. In his autobiography, Parks recalled his feelings at the time.

A PERSONAL VOICE

GORDON PARKS

“ I couldn’t imagine such financial disaster touching my small world; it surely concerned only the rich. But by the first week of November

… I was without a job. All that next week I searched for any kind of work that would prevent my leaving school. Again it was, ‘We’re firing, not hiring.’… I went to school and cleaned out my locker, knowing it was impossible to stay on. A piercing chill was in the air as I walked back to the rooming house.”
—A Choice of Weapons

Gordon Parks, shown here in 1968 discussing the movie version of his autobiographical novel, The Learning Tree.

The crash of 1929, and the depression that followed, dealt a crushing blow to the hopes and dreams of millions of Americans. The high-flying prosperity of the 1920s was over. Hard times had begun.

Economic Troubles on the Horizon

As the 1920s advanced, serious problems threatened economic prosperity. Though some Americans became wealthy, many more could not earn a decent living. Important industries struggled, and farmers grew more crops and raised more livestock than they could sell at a profit. Both consumers and farmers were steadily going deeper into debt. As the decade drew to a close, these slippages in the economy signaled the end of an era.

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Industries in Trouble

The superficial prosperity of the late 1920s shrouded weaknesses that would signal the onset of the Great Depression. Key basic industries, such as railroads, textiles, and steel had barely made a profit. Railroads lost business to new forms of transportation (trucks, buses, and private automobiles, for instance).

Mining and lumbering, which had expanded during wartime, were no longer in high demand. Coal mining was especially hard-hit, in part due to stiff competition from new forms of energy, including hydroelectric power, fuel oil, and natural gas. By the early 1930s, these sources supplied more than half the energy that had once come from coal. Even the boom industries of the 1920s—automobiles, construction, and consumer goods—weakened. One important economic indicator that declined during this time was housing starts—the number of new dwellings being built. When housing starts fall, so do jobs in many related industries, such as furniture manufacturing and lumbering.

Farmers Need a Lift

Perhaps agriculture suffered the most. During World War I, prices rose and international demand for crops such as wheat and corn soared. Farmers had planted more and taken out loans for land and equipment. However, demand fell after the war, and crop prices declined by 40 percent or more.

Farmers boosted production in the hopes of selling more crops, but this only depressed prices further. Between 1919 and 1921 annual farm income declined from $10 billion to just over $4 billion. Farmers who had gone into debt had difficulty in paying off their loans. Many lost their farms when banks foreclosed and seized the property as payment for the debt. As farmers began to default on their loans, many rural banks began to fail. Auctions were held to recoup some of the banks’ losses.

Congress tried to help out farmers with a piece of legislation called the McNary-Haugen bill. This called for federal price-supports for key products such as wheat, corn, cotton, and tobacco. The government would buy surplus crops at guaranteed prices and sell them on the world market.

President Coolidge vetoed the bill twice. He commented, “Farmers have never made money. I don’t believe we can do much about it.”

Consumers have Less Money to Spend

As farmers’ incomes fell, they bought fewer goods and services, but the problem was larger. By the late 1920s,

Farm equipment is auctioned off in Hastings, Nebraska. 672 Economic Background: Uneven Income Distribution, 1929

The 1920s were an era that favored big business. Life was good for the rich. They made up just 0.1 percent of the population and had yearly incomes of more than $100,000. Conversely, much of the population had to scrape to get by. Many earned so little that everyone in the family, including children, had to work. Nearly 80 percent of all families had no savings.

Description:

Pie chart: Income Distribution

65% $1,999 and under
29% $2,000 - $4,999
5% $5,000 - $9,999
1% $10,000 and over

Source: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

Americans were buying less—mainly because of rising prices, stagnant wages, unbalanced distribution of income, and overbuying on credit in the preceding years. Production had also expanded much faster than wages, resulting in an ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor.

Living on Credit

Although many Americans appeared to be prosperous during the 1920s, in fact they were living beyond their means. They often bought goods on credit—an arrangement in which consumers agreed to buy now and pay later for purchases. This was often in the form of an installment plan (usually in monthly payments) that included interest charges.

By making credit easily available, businesses encouraged Americans to pile up a large consumer debt. Many people then had trouble paying off their growing debts. Faced with debt, consumers cut back on spending.

Uneven Distribution of Income

During the 1920s, the rich got richer, and the poor got poorer. Between 1920 and 1929, the income of the wealthiest 1 percent of the population rose by 75 percent, compared with a 9 percent increase for Americans as a whole.

More than 70 percent of the nation’s families earned less than $2,500 per year, then considered the minimum amount needed for a decent standard of living. Even families earning twice that much could not afford many of the household products that manufacturers produced. Economists estimate that the average man or woman bought a new outfit of clothes only once a year. Scarcely half the homes in many cities had electric lights or a furnace for heat. Only one city home in ten had an electric refrigerator.

This unequal distribution of income meant that most Americans could not participate fully in the economic advances of the 1920s. Many people did not have the money to purchase the flood of goods that factories produced. The prosperity of the era rested on a fragile foundation.

Hoover Takes the Nation

Although economic disaster was around the corner, the election of 1928 took place in a mood of apparent national prosperity. This election pitted Republican candidate Herbert Hoover against Democrat Alfred E. Smith.

The Election of 1928

Hoover, the secretary of commerce under Harding and Coolidge, was a mining engineer from Iowa who had never run for public office. Smith was a career politician who had served four terms as governor of New York. He was personable and enjoyed being in the limelight, unlike the quiet and reserved Hoover. Still, Hoover had one major advantage: he could point to years of prosperity under Republican administrations since 1920. Many Americans believed him when he declared, “We in America are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before.”

“ We in America are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before. ”
HERBERT HOOVER

It was an overwhelming victory for Hoover. The message was clear: most Americans were happy with Republican leadership.

Dreams of Riches in the Stock Market

By 1929, some economists had warned of weaknesses in the economy, but most Americans

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maintained the utmost confidence in the nation’s economic health. In increasing numbers, those who could afford to invested in the stock market. The stock market had become the most visible symbol of a prosperous American economy. Then, as now, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was the most widely used barometer of the stock market’s health. The Dow is a measure based on the stock prices of 30 representative large firms trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Through most of the 1920s, stock prices rose steadily. The Dow had reached a high of 381 points, nearly 300 points higher than it had been five years earlier. Eager to take advantage of this “bull market”—a period of rising stock prices—Americans rushed to buy stocks and bonds. One observer wrote, “It seemed as if all economic law had been suspended and a new era opened up in which success and prosperity could be had without knowledge or industry.” By 1929, about 4 million Americans—or 3 percent of the nation’s population—owned stocks. Many of these investors were already wealthy, but others were average Americans who hoped to strike it rich.

However, the seeds of trouble were taking root. People were engaging in speculation—that is, they bought stocks and bonds on the chance of a quick profit, while ignoring the risks. Many began buying on margin—paying a small percentage of a stock’s price as a down payment and borrowing the rest. With easy money available to investors, the unrestrained buying and selling fueled the market’s upward spiral. The government did little to discourage such buying or to regulate the market. In reality, these rising prices did not reflect companies’ worth. Worse, if the value of stocks declined, people who had bought on margin had no way to pay off the loans.

The Stock Market Crashes

In early September 1929, stock prices peaked and then fell. Confidence in the market started to waver, and some investors quickly sold their stocks and pulled out. On October 24, the market took a plunge. Panicked investors unloaded their shares. But the worst was yet to come.

Analyzing Political Cartoons: Day of Wrath

After the apparent prosperity of the 1920s, virtually few were prepared for the devastating effects of the stock market crash. This cartoon by James N. Rosenberg, which shows Wall Street crumbling on October 29, 1929, is titled Dies Irae, Latin for “day of wrath.”

Cartoon: On October 29, people flee the crumbling NY Stock Exchange

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Black Tuesday

On October 29—now known as Black Tuesday—the bottom fell out of the market and the nation’s confidence. Shareholders frantically tried to sell before prices plunged even lower. The number of shares dumped that day was a record 16.4 million. Additional millions of shares could not find buyers. People who had bought stocks on credit were stuck with huge debts as the prices plummeted, while others lost most of their savings.

Now & Then: New York Stock Exchange

In the twenty-first century, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) remains at its core what it has been since it opened its doors in 1792: the nation’s premier marketplace for the buying and selling of stocks. There, stockbrokers known as “members” take orders from their customers to buy and sell shares of stock in any one of more than 3,000 companies.

To execute their customers’ orders, the members offer and receive bids in what resembles a loud and fast-paced auction. In general, customers submit two types of orders. A limit order tells the broker to buy or sell only if the stock reaches a certain price. A market order tells the broker to execute a transaction immediately, no matter what the price.

Despite remaining close to its roots, the NYSE is today undergoing perhaps the most significant changes in its long history, in large part due to the growth of computers and the Internet.

A Pen and Paper Operation

In the 1920s, orders to buy or sell a stock arrived at brokers’ telephone booths located around the edge of the trading floor. They were then carried by hand or sent by pneumatic tube to the trading post where that stock would be traded.

NYSE employees called reporters had to record every transaction. For each new sale, they wrote out a slip of paper containing the stock’s abbreviation, the number of shares, and the price, and then transmitted it to the ticker room. Market information was typed into a keyboard that converted the keystrokes into electrical impulses that drove the clattering print wheels in ticker machines along the network. People would read the current display at the trading posts.

The trading floor in 1914. Technological Changes

While still centered around human interaction, the exchange has incorporated a number of computer technologies to keep up with the times. For example, members now receive stock bids and offers through an electronic delivery system known as SuperDot, which enables them to make a trade in less than 12 seconds. Electronic communications networks now allow individuals to buy and sell stocks themselves over the Internet at a fraction of what it would cost to use a specialist. Such innovation has prompted some to insist that all future trading will be done via computers, thus eliminating the need for physical exchanges such as the NYSE.

Photo: modern stock exchange trading floor

The trading floor in 2000. 675

By mid-November, investors had lost about $30 billion, an amount equal to how much America spent in World War I. The stock market bubble had finally burst. One eyewitness to these events, Frederick Lewis Allen, described the resulting situation.

A PERSONAL VOICE

FREDERICK LEWIS ALLEN

“ The Big Bull Market was dead. Billions of dollars’ worth of profits—and paper profits—had disappeared. The grocer, the window cleaner, and the seamstress had lost their capital [savings]. In every town there were families which had suddenly dropped from showy affluence into debt…. With the Big Bull Market gone and prosperity going, Americans were soon to find themselves living in an altered world which called for new adjustments, new ideas, new habits of thought, and a new order of values.”
—Only Yesterday

Financial Collapse

The stock market crash signaled the beginning of the Great Depression—the period from 1929 to 1940 in which the economy plummeted and unemployment skyrocketed. The crash alone did not cause the Great Depression, but it hastened the collapse of the economy and made the depression more severe.

Bank and Business Failures

After the crash, many people panicked and withdrew their money from banks. But some couldn’t get their money because the banks had invested it in the stock market. In 1929, 600 banks closed. By 1933, 11,000 of the nation’s 25,000 banks had failed. Because the government did not protect or insure bank accounts, millions of people lost their savings accounts.

The Great Depression hit other businesses, too. Between 1929 and 1932, the gross national product—the nation’s total output of goods and services—was cut nearly in half, from $104 billion to $59 billion. Approximately 90,000 businesses went bankrupt. Among these failed enterprises were once-prosperous automobile and railroad companies.

As the economy plunged into a tailspin, millions of workers lost their jobs. Unemployment leaped from 3 percent (1.6 million workers) in 1929 to 25 percent (13 million workers) in 1933. One out of every four workers was out of a job. Those who kept their jobs faced pay cuts and reduced hours.

Poster: slogan reads Smokeless Chimneys and Anxious Mothers, The Remedy - Vote for the National Government

This British election poster shows that the Great Depression was a global event.

Not everyone fared so badly, of course. Before the crash, some speculators had sold off their stocks and made money. Joseph P. Kennedy, the father of future president John F. Kennedy, was one who did. Most, however, were not so lucky or shrewd.

Worldwide Shock Waves

The United States was not the only country gripped by the Great Depression. Much of Europe, for example, had suffered throughout the 1920s. European countries trying to recover from the ravages of World War I faced high war debts. In addition, Germany had to pay war reparations—payments to compensate the Allies for the damages Germany had caused. The Great Depression compounded these problems by limiting America’s ability to import European goods. This made it difficult to sell American farm products and manufactured goods abroad.

676 Depression Indicators

Economic indicators are measures that signal trends in a nation’s economy. During the Great Depression several trends were apparent. Those indicated at the right are linked—the conditions of one can affect another. For instance, when banks fail 1, some businesses may have to close down 2, which can cause unemployment to rise 3. Thus, people have less money and spending declines 4.

Description:

Graph: Bank Failures 1928 - 1933: banks (in thousands). Numbers are approximate.

1928: .5
1929: .75
1930: 1.3
1931: 2.2
1932: 1.5
1933: 4

Bank Failures

Description:

Graph: Business Failures 1928 - 1933: businesses (in thousands). Numbers are approximate.

1928: 24
1929: 23
1930: 26
1931: 28
1932: 32
1933: 20

Business Failures

' Description:

Graph: Unemployment 1928 - 1933: people (in millions). Numbers are approximate.

1928: 2
1929: 1.5
1930: 4.5
1931: 8
1932: 12
1933: 13

Unemployment

Description:

Graph: Average Yearly Income per Person and Average Consumer Spending per person 1929 - 1933. Numbers are approximate

1929: Income $700, Spending $625
1930: Income $610, Spending $590
1931: Income $550, Spending $500
1932: Income $400, Spending $395
1933: Income $395, Spending $390

Income and Spending

SKILLBUILDER Interpreting Graphs

1. In what year did the biggest jump in bank failures occur?

2. What measure on the graphs seems to indicate an improvement in the U.S. economy during the Depression? What might explain this?

Distraught men try to withdraw their savings from a failing bank. 677 World Stage: Global Effects of the Depression

As the American economy collapsed, so too did Europe’s. The world’s nations had become interdependent; international trade was important to most countries. However, when the U.S. economy failed, American investors withdrew their money from European markets.

To keep U.S. dollars in America, the government raised tariffs on goods imported from other countries. World trade dropped. Unemployment rates around the world soared. Germany and Austria were particularly hard hit. In 1931 Austria’s largest bank failed. In Asia, both farmers and urban workers suffered as the value of exports fell by half between 1929 and 1931. The crash was felt in Latin America as well. As U.S. and European demand for Latin American products like sugar, beef, and copper dropped, prices collapsed.

In 1930, Congress passed the Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act, which established the highest protective tariff in United States history. It was designed to protect American farmers and manufacturers from foreign competition. Yet it had the opposite effect. By reducing the flow of goods into the United States, the tariff prevented other countries from earning American currency to buy American goods. The tariff made unemployment worse in industries that could no longer export goods to Europe. Many countries retaliated by raising their own tariffs. Within a few years, world trade had fallen more than 40 percent.

Causes of the Great Depression

Although historians and economists differ on the main causes of the Great Depression, most cite a common set of factors, among them:

• tariffs and war debt policies that cut down the foreign market for American goods

• a crisis in the farm sector

• the availability of easy credit

• an unequal distribution of income

These factors led to falling demand for consumer goods, even as newly mechanized factories produced more products. The federal government contributed to the crisis by keeping interest rates low, thereby allowing companies and individuals to borrow easily and build up large debts. Some of this borrowed money was used to buy the stocks that later led to the crash.

At first people found it hard to believe that economic disaster had struck. In November 1929, President Hoover encouraged Americans to remain confident about the economy. Yet, the most severe depression in American history was well on its way.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS &NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• price support

• credit

• Alfred E. Smith

• Dow Jones Industrial Average

• speculation

• buying on margin

• Black Tuesday

• Great Depression

• Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a diagram like this, record the causes of the 1929 stock market crash.

Diagram: four spaces are provided to list causes of the Stock Market Crash

Which do you see as the biggest cause? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

How did the economic trends of the 1920s help cause the Great Depression? Think About:

• what happened in industry

• what happened in agriculture

• what happened with consumers

4. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Judging from the events of the late 1920s and early 1930s, how important do you think public confidence is to the health of the economy? Explain. Think About:

• what happened when overconfidence in the stock market led people to speculate and buy on margin

• how confidence affects consumer borrowing

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Section 2: Hardship and Suffering During the Depression

One American’s Story

Ann Marie Low lived on her parents’ North Dakota farm when the stock market crashed in 1929 and the Great Depression hit. Hard times were familiar to Ann’s family. But the worst was yet to come. In the early 1930s, a ravenous drought hit the Great Plains, destroying crops and leaving the earth dry and cracked. Then came the deadly dust storms. On April 25, 1934, Ann wrote an account in her diary.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ANN MARIE LOW

“ [T]he air is just full of dirt coming, literally, for hundreds of miles. It sifts into everything. After we wash the dishes and put them away, so much dust sifts into the cupboards we must wash them again before the next meal…. Newspapers say the deaths of many babies and old people are attributed to breathing in so much dirt.”
—Dust Bowl Diary

The drought and winds lasted for more than seven years. The dust storms in Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Nebraska, the Dakotas, Oklahoma, and Texas were a great hardship—but only one of many—that Americans faced during the Great Depression.

The Depression Devastates People’s Lives

Statistics such as the unemployment rate tell only part of the story of the Great Depression. More important was the impact that it had on people’s lives: the Depression brought hardship, homelessness, and hunger to millions.

The Depression In The Cities

In cities across the country, people lost their jobs, were evicted from their homes and ended up in the streets. Some slept in parks or sewer pipes, wrapping themselves in newspapers to fend off the cold.

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Others built makeshift shacks out of scrap materials. Before long, numerous shantytowns—little towns consisting of shacks—sprang up. An observer recalled one such settlement in Oklahoma City: “Here were all these people living in old, rusted-out car bodies…. There were people living in shacks made of orange crates. One family with a whole lot of kids were living in a piano box…. People were living in whatever they could junk together.”

Every day the poor dug through garbage cans or begged. Soup kitchens offering free or low-cost food and bread lines, or lines of people waiting to receive food provided by charitable organizations or public agencies, became a common sight. One man described a bread line in New York City.

Unemployed people built shacks in a shantytown in New York City in 1932.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HERMAN SHUMLIN

“ Two or three blocks along Times Square, you’d see these men, silent, shuffling along in a line. Getting this handout of coffee and doughnuts, dealt out from great trucks…. I’d see that flat, opaque, expressionless look which spelled, for me, human disaster. Men … who had responsible positions. Who had lost their jobs, lost their homes, lost their families … They were destroyed men.”
—quoted in Hard Times

Another Perspective: An African-American View of the Depression

Although the suffering of the 1930s was severe for many people, it was especially grim for African Americans. Hard times were already a fact of life for many blacks, as one African-American man noted:

“The Negro was born in depression. It didn’t mean too much to him, The Great American Depression…. The best he could be is a janitor or a porter or shoeshine boy. It only became official when it hit the white man.”

Nonetheless, the African-American community was very hard hit by the Great Depression. In 1932, the unemployment rate among African Americans stood at over 50 percent, while the overall unemployment rate was approximately 25 percent.

Conditions for African Americans and Latinos were especially difficult. Their unemployment rates were higher, and they were the lowest paid. They also dealt with increasing racial violence from unemployed whites competing for the same jobs. Twenty-four African Americans died by lynching in 1933.

Latinos—mainly Mexicans and Mexican Americans living in the Southwest—were also targets. Whites demanded that Latinos be deported, or expelled from the country, even though many had been born in America. By the late 1930s, hundreds of thousands of people of Mexican descent relocated to Mexico. Some left voluntarily; others were deported by the federal government.

The Depression in Rural Areas

Life in rural areas was hard, but it did have one advantage over city life: most farmers could grow food for their families. With falling prices and rising debt, though, thousands of farmers lost their land. Between 1929 and 1932, about 400,000 farms were lost through foreclosure—the process by which a mortgage holder takes back property if an occupant has not made payments. Many farmers turned to tenant farming and barely scraped out a living.

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Description:

Map: The Dust Bowl 1933 - 1936 with 6 labels. A long swath about 1000 miles long and 500 miles wide shows the area of the dust bowl, which covers about one-quarter of central USA. The area of damage is a circle about 300 miles in diameter covering parts of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico. A wide swath showing the area covered by the May 1934 dust storm reaches all the way to the East Coast from the Dakotas.

Photo: A man and two children run toward a shack on a flat plain

The Dust Bowl, 1933–1936
INTERACTIVE A farmer and his sons brave a dust storm in 1936. Chicago, Nov. 1933 Crowds at Chicago Exposition world’s fair are caught in 50 mph gale of dust. Boston, May 1934 Midwestern dust is found on airplanes landing in Boston; it collected on the planes at altitudes of up to 20,000 ft. Nebraska, 1935–1937 Over two years, federal workers help soil conservation by planting 360,000 trees and completing 62 dams, 517 ponds, and 500 acres of terracing. Beaver, Okla., March 24, 1936 Grain-elevator operators estimate that 20% of wheat crop has been blown away by dust storms. Tucumcari, N. Mex. March 30, 1936 Clouds of dust blown by 50-mph winds cause complete darkness. New York City, May 12, 1934 Dust lowers humidity from normal 57% to 34%. Dust is reported on ships 500 miles out to sea. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

The Dust Bowl

The drought that began in the early 1930s wreaked havoc on the Great Plains. During the previous decade, farmers from Texas to North Dakota had used tractors to break up the grasslands and plant millions of acres of new farmland. Plowing had removed the thick protective layer of prairie grasses. Farmers had then exhausted the land through overproduction of crops, and the grasslands became unsuitable for farming. When the drought and winds began in the early 1930s, little grass and few trees were left to hold the soil down. Wind scattered the topsoil, exposing sand and grit underneath. The dust traveled hundreds of miles. One windstorm in 1934 picked up millions of tons of dust from the plains and carried it to East Coast cities.

The region that was the hardest hit, including parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado, came to be known as the Dust Bowl. Plagued by dust storms and evictions, thousands of farmers and sharecroppers left their land behind. They packed up their families and few belongings and headed west, following Route 66 to California. Some of these migrants—known as Okies (a term that originally referred to Oklahomans but came to be used negatively for all migrants)—found work as farmhands. But others continued to wander in search of work. By the end of the 1930s, hundreds of thousands of farm families had migrated to California and other Pacific Coast states.

Effects on the American Family

In the face of the suffering caused by the Great Depression, the family stood as a source of strength for most Americans. Although some people feared that hard times would undermine moral values, those fears were largely unfounded. In gen-

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eral, Americans believed in traditional values and emphasized the importance of family unity. At a time when money was tight, many families entertained themselves by staying at home and playing board games, such as Monopoly (invented in 1933), and listening to the radio. Nevertheless, the economic difficulties of the Great Depression put severe pressure on family life. Making ends meet was a daily struggle, and, in some cases, families broke apart under the strain.

Men in the Streets

Many men had difficulty coping with unemployment because they were accustomed to working and supporting their families. Every day, they would set out to walk the streets in search of jobs. As Frederick Lewis Allen noted in Since Yesterday, “Men who have been sturdy and self-respecting workers can take unemployment without flinching for a few weeks, a few months, even if they have to see their families suffer; but it is different after a year … two years … three years.” Some men became so discouraged that they simply stopped trying. Some even abandoned their families.

During the Great Depression, as many as 300,000 transients—or “hoboes” as they were called—wandered the country, hitching rides on railroad boxcars and sleeping under bridges. These hoboes of the 1930s, mainly men, would occasionally turn up at homeless shelters in big cities. The novelist Thomas Wolfe described a group of these men in New York City.

A PERSONAL VOICE

THOMAS WOLFE

“ These were the wanderers from town to town, the riders of freight trains, the thumbers of rides on highways, the uprooted, unwanted male population of America. They … gathered in the big cities when winter came, hungry, defeated, empty, hopeless, restless … always on the move, looking everywhere for work, for the bare crumbs to support their miserable lives, and finding neither work nor crumbs.”
—You Can’t Go Home Again

During the early years of the Great Depression, there was no federal system of direct relief—cash payments or food provided by the government to the poor. Some cities and charity services did offer relief to those who needed it, but the benefits were meager. In New York City, for example, the weekly payment was just $2.39 per family. This was the most generous relief offered by any city, but it was still well below the amount needed to feed a family.

Women Struggle to Survive

Women worked hard to help their families survive adversity during the Great Depression. Many women canned food and sewed clothes. They also carefully managed household budgets. Jeane Westin, the author of Making Do: How Women Survived the ’30s, recalled, “Those days you did everything to save a penny…. My next door neighbor and I used to shop together. You could get two pounds of hamburger for a quarter, so we’d buy two pounds and split it—then one week she’d pay the extra penny and the next week I’d pay.”

Many women also worked outside the home, though they usually received less money than men did. As the Depression wore on, however, working women became the targets of enormous resentment. Many people believed that women, especially married women, had no right to work when there were men who were unemployed.

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In the early 1930s, some cities refused to hire married women as schoolteachers.

Many Americans assumed that women were having an easier time than men during the Great Depression because few were seen begging or standing in bread lines. As a matter of fact, many women were starving to death in cold attics and rooming houses. As one writer pointed out, women were often too ashamed to reveal their hardship.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MERIDEL LE SEUER

“ I’ve lived in cities for many months, broke, without help, too timid to get in bread lines. I’ve known many women to live like this until they simply faint in the street…. A woman will shut herself up in a room until it is taken away from her, and eat a cracker a day and be as quiet as a mouse…. [She] will go for weeks verging on starvation, … going through the streets ashamed, sitting in libraries, parks, going for days without speaking to a living soul, shut up in the terror of her own misery.”
—America in the Twenties

Children Suffer Hardships

Children also suffered during the 1930s. Poor diets and a lack of money for health care led to serious health problems. Milk consumption declined across the country, and clinics and hospitals reported a dramatic rise in malnutrition and diet-related diseases, such as rickets. At the same time, child-welfare programs were slashed as cities and states cut their budgets in the face of dwindling resources.

Falling tax revenues also caused school boards to shorten the school year and even close schools. By 1933, some 2,600 schools across the nation had shut down, leaving more than 300,000 students out of school. Thousands of children went to work instead; they often labored in sweatshops under horrendous conditions.

“ If I leave my mother, it will mean one less mouth to feed.”
EUGENE WILLIAMS, AGE 13

Many teenagers looked for a way out of the suffering. Hundreds of thousands of teenage boys and some girls hopped aboard America’s freight trains to zigzag the country in search of work, adventure, and an escape from poverty. These “wild boys” came from every section of the United States, from every corner of society. They were the sons of poor farmers, and out-of-work miners, and wealthy parents who had lost everything. “Hoover tourists,” as they were called, were eager to tour America for free.

From the age of eleven until seventeen, George Phillips rode the rails, first catching local freights out of his home town of Princeton, Missouri.

“There is no feeling in the world like sitting in a side-door Pullman and watching the world go by, listening to the clickety-clack of the wheels, hearing that old steam whistle blowing for crossings and towns.”

While exciting, the road could also be deadly. Many riders were beaten or jailed by “bulls”—armed freight yard patrolmen. Often riders had to sleep standing up in a constant deafening rumble. Some were accidentally locked in ice cars for days on end. Others fell prey to murderous criminals. From 1929 to 1939, 24,647 trespassers were killed and 27,171 injured on railroad property.

Photo: two boys walking along railroad tracks

Two young boys, ages 15 and 16, walk beside freight cars in the San Joaquin Valley. 683

Social and Psychological Effects

The hardships of the Great Depression had a tremendous social and psychological impact. Some people were so demoralized by hard times that they lost their will to survive. Between 1928 and 1932, the suicide rate rose more than 30 percent. Three times as many people were admitted to state mental hospitals as in normal times.

The economic problems forced many Americans to accept compromises and make sacrifices that affected them for the rest of their lives. Adults stopped going to the doctor or dentist because they couldn’t afford it. Young people gave up their dreams of going to college. Others put off getting married, raising large families, or having children at all.

This Ozark sharecropper family was photographed in Arkansas during the 1930s by the artist Ben Shahn.

For many people, the stigma of poverty and of having to scrimp and save never disappeared completely. For some, achieving financial security became the primary focus in life. As one woman recalled, “Ever since I was twelve years old there was one major goal in my life … one thing … and that was to never be poor again.”

During the Great Depression many people showed great kindness to strangers who were down on their luck. People often gave food, clothing, and a place to stay to the needy. Families helped other families and shared resources and strengthened the bonds within their communities. In addition, many people developed habits of saving and thriftiness—habits they would need to see themselves through the dark days ahead as the nation and President Hoover struggled with the Great Depression. These habits shaped a whole generation of Americans.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS &NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• shantytown

• soup kitchen

• bread line

• Dust Bowl

• direct relief

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a Venn diagram, list the effects that the Great Depression had on farmers and city dwellers. Find the differences and the similarities.

Venn diagram: two ovals labeled Farmers and City Dwellers overlap to form an area labeled Both

Which group do you think suffered less?

Critical Thinking

3. CONTRASTING

How was what happened to men during the Great Depression different from what happened to women? children? Think About:

• each group’s role in their families

• the changes each group had to make

• what help was available to them

4. ANALYZING EFFECTS

How did Dust Bowl conditions in the Great Plains affect the entire country?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

In what ways did the Great Depression affect people’s outlook?

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Section 3: Hoover Struggles with the Depression

One American’s Story

Oscar Ameringer was a newspaper editor in Oklahoma City during the Great Depression. In 1932, he traveled around the country collecting information on economic and social conditions. Testifying in unemployment hearings that same year, Ameringer described desperate people who were losing patience with the government. “Unless something is done for them and done soon you will have a revolution on hand.” Ameringer told the following story.

A PERSONAL VOICE

OSCAR AMERINGER

“ The roads of the West and Southwest teem with hungry hitchhikers…. Between Clarksville and Russellville, Ark., I picked up a family. The woman was hugging a dead chicken under a ragged coat. When I asked her where she had procured the fowl, first she told me she had found it dead in the road, and then added in grim humor, ‘They promised me a chicken in the pot, and now I got mine.’”
—quoted in The American Spirit

Photo: a couple pushes belongings in carts along a road next to a field

A Depression-era family from Arkansas walks through Texas, looking for work in the cotton fields along the Rio Grande.

The woman was recalling President Hoover’s empty 1928 campaign pledge: “A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage.” Now many Americans were disillusioned. They demanded that the government help them.

Hoover Tries to Reassure the Nation

After the stock market crash of October 1929, President Herbert Hoover tried to reassure Americans that the nation’s economy was on a sound footing. “Any lack of confidence in the economic future … is foolish,” he declared. In his view, the important thing was for Americans to remain optimistic and to go about their business as usual. Americans believed depressions were a normal part of the business cycle. According to this theory, periods of rapid economic growth were naturally followed by periods of depression. The best course in a slump, many

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experts believed, was to do nothing and let the economy fix itself. Hoover took a slightly different position. He felt that government could play a limited role in helping to solve problems.

Hoover’s Philosophy

Herbert Hoover had been an engineer, and he put great faith in the power of reason. He was also a humanitarian, as he made clear in one of his last speeches as president.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HERBERT HOOVER

“ Our first objective must be to provide security from poverty and want…. We want to see a nation built of home owners and farm owners. We want to see their savings protected. We want to see them in steady jobs. We want to see more and more of them insured against death and accident, unemployment and old age. We want them all secure.”
—“Challenge to Liberty,” October 1936

Like many Americans of the time, Hoover believed that one of government’s chief functions was to foster cooperation between competing groups and interests in society. If business and labor were in a conflict, for example, government should step in and help them find a solution that served their mutual interests. This cooperation must be voluntary rather than forced, he said. Government’s role was to encourage and facilitate cooperation, not to control it.

Key Player: Herbert Hoover 1874–1964 Painting: Herbert Hoover and the presidential seal

Born to a Quaker family in Iowa, Herbert Hoover was orphaned at an early age. His life was a rags-to-riches story. He worked his way through Stanford University and later made a fortune as a mining engineer and consultant in China, Australia, Europe, and Africa. During and after World War I, he coordinated U.S. relief efforts in Europe, earning a reputation for efficiency and humanitarian ideals.

As president, Hoover asserted,

“Every time we find solutions outside of government, we have not only strengthened character, but we have preserved our sense of real government.”

On the other hand, Americans also valued “rugged individualism”—the idea that people should succeed through their own efforts. They should take care of themselves and their families, rather than depend on the government to bail them out. Thus, Hoover opposed any form of federal welfare, or direct relief to the needy. He believed that handouts would weaken people’s self-respect and “moral fiber.” His answer to the needy was that individuals, charities, and local organizations should pitch in to help care for the less fortunate. The federal government should direct relief measures, but not through a vast federal bureaucracy. Such a bureaucracy, he said, would be too expensive and would stifle individual liberties.

However, when the Depression took hold, moral fiber wasn’t what people were worried about. Hoover’s response shocked and frustrated suffering Americans.

Hoover Takes Cautious Steps

Hoover’s political philosophy caused him to take a cautious approach to the depression. Soon after the stock market crash, he called together key leaders in the fields of business, banking, and labor. He urged them to work together to find solutions to the nation’s economic woes and to act in ways that would not make a bad situation worse. For example, he asked employers not to cut wages or lay off workers, and he asked labor leaders not to demand higher wages or go on strike. He also created a special organization to help private charities generate contributions for the poor.

None of these steps made much of a difference. A year after the crash, the economy was still shrinking, and unemployment was still rising. More companies went out of business, soup kitchens became a common sight, and general misery continued to grow. Shantytowns arose in every city, and hoboes continued to roam.

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Boulder Dam

One project that Hoover approved did make a difference. Years earlier, when Hoover served as secretary of commerce, one of his earliest proposed initiatives was the construction of a dam on the Colorado River. Aiming to minimize federal intervention, Hoover proposed to finance the dam’s construction by using profits from sales of the electric power that the dam would generate. He also helped to arrange an agreement on water rights among the seven states of the Colorado River basin—Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.

By the time the massive project won congressional approval in 1928, as part of a $700 million public works program, Hoover had been elected to the White House. In the fall of 1929, nearly one year into his presidency, Hoover was finally able to authorize construction of Boulder Dam (later called Hoover Dam). At 726 ft. high and 1,244 ft. long it would be the world’s tallest dam and the second largest. In addition to providing electricity and flood control, the dam also provided a regular water supply, which enabled the growth of California’s massive agricultural economy. Today, the dam also helps to provide water for cities such as Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Postcard: looking downstream, Colorado River, showing the immense concrete forms of Boulder Dam

This 1930s postcard, displaying a hand-colored photograph, shows the mammoth scale of Boulder Canyon and Boulder Dam.

Democrats Win in 1930 Congressional Elections

As the country’s economic difficulties increased, the political tide turned against Hoover and the Republicans. In the 1930 congressional elections, the Democrats took advantage of anti-Hoover sentiments to win more seats in Congress. As a result of that election, the Republicans lost control of the House of Representatives and saw their majority in the Senate dwindle to one vote.

As Americans grew more and more frustrated by the Depression, they expressed their anger in a number of ways. Farmers stung by low crop prices burned their corn and wheat and dumped their milk on highways rather than sell it at a loss. Some farmers even declared a “farm holiday” and refused to work their fields. A number blocked roads to prevent food from getting to market, hoping that food shortages would raise prices. Some farmers also used force to prevent authorities from foreclosing on farms.

By 1930, people were calling the shantytowns in American cities “Hoovervilles”—a direct slap at the president’s policies. Homeless people called the newspapers they wrapped themselves in “Hoover blankets.” Empty pockets turned inside out were “Hoover flags.” Many Americans who had hailed Hoover as a great humanitarian a few years earlier now saw him as a cold and heartless leader.

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Despite public criticism, Hoover continued to hold firm to his principles. He refused to support direct relief or other forms of federal welfare. Some Americans were going hungry, and many blamed Hoover for their plight. Criticism of the president and his policies continued to grow. An anonymous ditty of the time was widely repeated.

“ Mellon pulled the whistle Hoover rang the bell Wall Street gave the signal And the country went to hell.”

Cartoon: Two men stoop under their burdens. One carries the burdens of the farmer inluding the farm mortgage, taxes and bank failures, 16 hour work day, and farm surplus. The other carries the burden of the President including blame for everything, an 18-hour day, pork barrel Congress, foreign affairs, world depression, and surplus of bad luck. A caption: Now, both together, how about a little ore credit!

This cartoon’s caption plays on the two different meanings of the word credit to suggest that farmers and the president should help each other.

Hoover Takes Action

As time went on and the depression deepened, President Hoover gradually softened his position on government intervention in the economy and took a more activist approach to the nation’s economic troubles.

Hoover Backs Cooperatives

In Hoover’s view, Boulder Dam was a model of how the federal government could encourage cooperation. His attempts to relieve the depression involved negotiating agreements among private entities, again reflecting his belief in small government. For example, he backed the creation of the Federal Farm Board, an organization of farm cooperatives. The Farm Board was intended to raise crop prices by helping members to buy crops and keep them off the market temporarily until prices rose.

In addition, Hoover tried to prop up the banking system by persuading the nation’s largest banks to establish the National Credit Corporation. This organization loaned money to smaller banks, which helped them stave off bankruptcy.

Direct Intervention

By late 1931, however, many people could see that these measures had failed to turn the economy around. With a presidential election looming, Hoover appealed to Congress to pass a series of measures to reform banking, provide mortgage relief, and funnel more federal money into business investment. In 1932, Hoover signed into law the Federal Home Loan Bank Act, which lowered mortgage rates for homeowners and allowed farmers to refinance their farm loans and avoid foreclosure. It was not until Hoover’s time in office was over that Congress passed the Glass-Steagall Banking Act, which separated investment from commercial banking and would, Congress hoped, prevent another crash.

Hoover’s most ambitious economic measure, however, was the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC), approved by Congress in January 1932. It authorized up to $2 billion for emergency financing for banks, life insurance companies, railroads, and other large businesses. Hoover believed that the money would trickle down to the average citizen through job growth and higher wages. Many critics questioned this approach; they argued that the program would benefit only corporations and that the poor still needed direct relief. Hungry people could not wait for the benefits to trickle down to their tables.

In its first five months of operation, the RFC loaned more than $805 million to large corporations, but business failures continued. The RFC was an unprecedented example of federal involvement in a peacetime economy, but in the end it was too little, too late.

688 Difficult Decisions: Hoover and Federal Projects

On the one hand, President Hoover opposed federal welfare and intervention in the economy. On the other, he felt that government had a duty to help solve problems and ease suffering. The question was, What kind of assistance would be proper and effective?

1. Consider the pros and cons of Hoover’s actions during the Depression. Did he do enough to try to end the Depression? Why or why not?

2. If you had been president during the Great Depression, what policies would you have supported? Explain the approach you would have taken.

Gassing the Bonus Army

In 1932, an incident further damaged Hoover’s image and public morale. That spring, between 10,000 and 20,000 World War I veterans and their families arrived in Washington, D.C., from various parts of the country. They called themselves the Bonus Expeditionary Force, or the Bonus Army.

The Patman Bill Denied

Led by Walter Waters, an unemployed cannery worker from Oregon, the Bonus Army came to the nation’s capital to support a bill under debate in Congress. The Patman Bill authorized the government to pay a bonus to World War I veterans who had not been compensated adequately for their wartime service. This bonus, which Congress had approved in 1924, was supposed to be paid out in 1945 in the form of cash and a life insurance policy, but Congressman Wright Patman believed that the money—an average of $500 per soldier—should be paid immediately.

Hoover thought that the Bonus Marchers were “communists and persons with criminal records” rather than veterans. He opposed the legislation, but he respected the marchers’ right to peaceful assembly. He even provided food and supplies so that they could erect a shantytown within sight of the Capitol. On June 17, however, the Senate voted down the Patman Bill. Hoover then called on

Photo: Bonus Army shantytown with banners: We need cash, not a tombstone. Pay the bonus now.

In 1932, these veterans from Muncie, Indiana, decided to remain in the capital until their bonus was paid to them. 689

the Bonus Army marchers to leave. Most did, but approximately 2,000, still hoping to meet with the president, refused to budge.

Hoover Disbands the Bonus Army

Nervous that the angry group could become violent, President Hoover decided that the Bonus Army should be disbanded. On July 28, a force of 1,000 soldiers under the command of General Douglas MacArthur and his aide, Major Dwight D. Eisenhower, came to roust the veterans. A government official watching from a nearby office recalled what happened next.

A PERSONAL VOICE

A. EVERETTE MCINTYRE

“ The 12th infantry was in full battle dress. Each had a gas mask and his belt was full of tear gas bombs…. At orders, they brought their bayonets at thrust and moved in. The bayonets were used to jab people, to make them move. Soon, almost everybody disappeared from view, because tear gas bombs exploded. The entire block was covered by tear gas. Flames were coming up, where the soldiers had set fire to the buildings to drive these people out…. Through the whole afternoon, they took one camp after another.”
—quoted in Hard Times

In the course of the operation, the infantry gassed more than 1,000 people, including an 11-month-old baby, who died, and an 8-year-old boy, who was partially blinded. Two people were shot and many were injured. Most Americans were stunned and outraged at the government’s treatment of the veterans.

Once again, President Hoover’s image suffered, and now an election was nearing. In November, Hoover would face a formidable opponent, the Democratic candidate Franklin Delano Roosevelt. When Roosevelt heard about the attack on the Bonus Army, he said to his friend Felix Frankfurter, “Well, Felix, this will elect me.” The downturn in the economy and Hoover’s inability to deal effectively with the Depression had sealed his political fate.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS &NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Herbert Hoover

• Boulder Dam

• Federal Home Loan Bank Act

• Reconstruction Finance Corporation

• Bonus Army

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a cluster diagram, record what Hoover said and did in response to the Great Depression. Diagram: five spaces are provided to list Hoover's Responses

Which response was most helpful? Explain your choice.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING ISSUES

How did Hoover’s belief in “rugged individualism” shape his policies during the Great Depression? Think About:

• what his belief implies about his view of people

• how that translates into the role of government

• Hoover’s policies

4. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

When Franklin Delano Roosevelt heard about the attack on the Bonus Army, why was he so certain that he would defeat Hoover? Think About:

• the American public’s impression of Hoover

• Hoover’s actions to alleviate the Great Depression

• how people judged Hoover after the attack

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Chapter 22: Assessment

Visual Summary: The Great Depression Begins Illustration: lists causes and effects of The Great Depression

The Great Depression Causes

• stock-based economy; superficial prosperity

• unequal distribution of income

• problems in industry and the farm sector

• increasing consumer debt

• stock market speculation and crash

Effects

• people out of work

• rise of shantytowns

• banks fail and schools close

• world economy suffers

• Hoover employs more active governmental involvement

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Terms & Names

For each term below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the period 1929–1933. For the person below, explain his role in the events of the period.

1. credit

2. speculation

3. buying on margin

4. Black Tuesday

5. Dow Jones Industrial Average

6. Great Depression

7. Dust Bowl

8. direct relief

9. Herbert Hoover

10. Bonus Army

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

The Nation’s Sick Economy (pages 670–677)

1. How did what happened to farmers during the 1920s fore-shadow events of the Great Depression?

2. What were some of the effects of the stock market crash in October 1929?

Hardship and Suffering During the Depression (pages 678–683)

3. How were shantytowns, soup kitchens, and bread lines a response to the Depression?

4. Why did minorities often experience an increase in discrimination during the Great Depression?

5. What pressures did the American family experience during the Depression?

Hoover Struggles with the Depression(pages 684–689)

6. How did Hoover’s treatment of the Bonus Army affect his standing with the public?

7. In what ways did Hoover try to use the government to relieve the Depression?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a chart like the one shown below, show Hoover’s responses to the Great Depression. Indicate how his philosophy changed and the reasons for that change.

Chart: Arrows lead from Initial Response to Change (reasons) to Secondary Response

Herbert Hoover’s Philosophy

2. ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY Do you think it would have been difficult for individuals to recover financially during the Depression without the entire economy recovering? Why or why not?

3. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE How do you think the Great Depression changed Americans’ view of themselves? Consider the roles of men, women, and children in society and in the family.

691 Standardized Test Practice

Use the cartoon and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

Cartoon: a person's feet labeled 1929 stick out of an umbrella stand surrounded by ticker tape. A caption: Life.

1. The cartoon illustrates which event leading to the Great Depression?

A bank failures

B Black Tuesday

C Bonus March

D the election of Herbert Hoover

2. In the 1930s, some areas of the country suffered from especially harsh environmental conditions. Thousands of farmers and sharecroppers were forced to abandon their land and look for other work. In which of the following areas were these conditions worst?

F parts of Idaho, Wyoming, and Oregon

G parts of Missouri, Illinois, and Iowa

H parts of Florida, Alabama, and Georgia

J parts of Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma

3. How did World War I contribute to causing the Great Depression?

A Soldiers returning from the war were unskilled and so had difficulty finding employment.

B Foreign countries had borrowed heavily to pay for the war and so could not afford to buy American goods.

C Americans had spent their money on war bonds and so had little savings.

D American industry was geared for producing weapons and could not retool to produce consumer goods.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 669:

What would you do to feed your family?

Suppose the year is 1930 and you are the head of your household. Write a letter to a relative overseas in which you describe your family’s situation and how you handled the crisis. Discuss the challenges created by the Great Depression and what you’ve learned as a result of enduring such hardships.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video Broke, but Not Broken. Discuss the following questions in a small group:

• What choices did Ann Marie Low’s family make during the Depression? Do you agree with their choices?

• What did you learn about the relationship between the government and the farmers?

• What did the older Ann Marie Low’s comments add to your understanding of the Great Depression?

• Share your conclusions with the rest of the class.

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Chapter 23: The New Deal

The Civilian Conservation Corps put unemployed young men to work during the Great Depression.

Description:

Timeline: 1933 - 1936 USA and World

1933 USA: Franklin Delano Roosevelt is inaugurated.
1933 World: Hitler and the Nazi party come to power in Germany.
1934 USA: Congress creates the SEC to regulate the stock market.
1934 USA: Indian Reorganization Act is passed.
1935 World: Mussolini leads Italian invasion of Ethiopa.
1935 World: British Parliament passes the Government of India Act.
1935 USA: Congress passes the Social Security Act.
1936 USA: President Roosevelt is reelected.
1936 World: Civil war begins in Spain.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 692 and page 693 in the print version. 693 Young men work outside.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 692 and page 693 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1937 - 1940 USA and World

1937 USA: Labor unions beginusing sit-down strikes.
1937 World: Japan invades Northern China.
1937 World: Hindenburg disaster.
1938 USA: Route 66 is completed, linking Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles, California.
1939 USA: The Wizard of Oz is released in movie theaters.
1939 World: Germany invades Poland.
1940 USA: President Roosevelt is elected a third time.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 692 and page 693 in the print version. Interact with History

It is 1933, the height of the Great Depression. Thousands of banks and businesses have fail, and a quarter of the adult population is out of work. Now a new president takes office, promising to bring relief to the ailing economy.

How would you begin to revive the economy?

Examine the Issues

• How can the government help failing industries?

• What can be done to ease unemployment?

• What would you do to restore public confidence and economic security?

• How would you get money to pay for your proposed recovery programs?

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Section 1: A New Deal Fights the Depression

One American’s Story

Hank Oettinger was working as a printing press operator in a small town in Wisconsin when the Great Depression began. He lost his job in 1931 and was unemployed for the next two years. In 1933, however, President Roosevelt began creating work programs. Through one of these programs, the Civil Works Administration (CWA), Oettinger went back to work in 1933. As he later recalled, the CWA was cause for great celebration in his town.

Photo: Men at workbenches with typewriters

The Civil Works Administration enabled these men to get jobs repairing typewriters and sewing machines.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HANK OETTINGER

“ I can remember the first week of the CWA checks. It was on a Friday. That night everybody had gotten his check. The first check a lot of them had in three years. …

I never saw such a change of attitude. Instead of walking around feeling dreary and looking sorrowful, everybody was joyous. Like a feast day. They were toasting each other. They had money in their pockets for the first time.”
—quoted in Hard Times

Programs like the CWA raised the hopes of the American people and sparked great enthusiasm for the new president. To many Americans, it appeared as if the country had turned a corner and was beginning to emerge from the nightmare of the Great Depression.

Americans Get a New Deal

The 1932 presidential election showed that Americans were clearly ready for a change. Because of the depression, people were suffering from a lack of work, food, and hope.

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Electing Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Although the Republicans renominated President Hoover as their candidate, they recognized he had little chance of winning. Too many Americans blamed Hoover for doing too little about the depression and wanted a new president. The Democrats pinned their hopes on Franklin Delano Roosevelt, known popularly as FDR, the two-term governor of New York and a distant cousin of former president Theodore Roosevelt.

As governor, FDR had proved to be an effective, reform-minded leader, working to combat the problems of unemployment and poverty. Unlike Hoover, Roosevelt possessed a “can-do” attitude and projected an air of friendliness and confidence that attracted voters.

Indeed, Roosevelt won an overwhelming victory, capturing nearly 23 million votes to Hoover’s nearly 16 million. In the Senate, Democrats claimed a nearly two-thirds majority. In the House, they won almost three-fourths of the seats, their greatest victory since before the Civil War.

Waiting for Roosevelt to Take Over

Four months would elapse between Roosevelt’s victory in the November election and his inauguration as president in March 1933. The 20th Amendment, which moved presidential inaugurations to January, was not ratified until February 1933 and did not apply to the 1932 election.

FDR was not idle during this waiting period, however. He worked with his team of carefully picked advisers—a select group of professors, lawyers, and journalists that came to be known as the “Brain Trust.” Roosevelt began to formulate a set of policies for his new administration. This program, designed to alleviate the problems of the Great Depression, became known as the New Deal, a phrase taken from a campaign speech in which Roosevelt had promised “a new deal for the American people.” New Deal policies focused on three general goals: relief for the needy, economic recovery, and financial reform.

The Hundred Days

On taking office, the Roosevelt administration launched a period of intense activity known as the Hundred Days, lasting from March 9 to June 16, 1933. During this period, Congress passed more than 15 major pieces of New Deal legislation. These laws, and others that followed, significantly expanded the federal government’s role in the nation’s economy.

Key Players Franklin D. Roosevelt 1882–1945 Portrait: Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the presidential seal

Born into an old, wealthy New York family, Franklin Delano Roosevelt entered politics as a state senator in 1910 and later became assistant secretary of the navy. In 1921, he was stricken with polio and became partially paralyzed from the waist down. He struggled to regain the use of his legs, and he eventually learned to stand with the help of leg braces.

Roosevelt became governor of New York in 1928, and because he “would not allow bodily disability to defeat his will,” he went on to the White House in 1933. Always interested in people, Roosevelt gained greater compassion for others as a result of his own physical disability.

Eleanor Roosevelt 1884–1962 Portrait: Eleanor Roosevelt

A niece of Theodore Roosevelt and a distant cousin of her husband, Franklin, Eleanor Roosevelt lost her parents at an early age. She was raised by a strict grandmother.

As first lady, she often urged the president to take stands on controversial issues. A popular public speaker, Eleanor was particularly interested in child welfare, housing reform, and equal rights for women and minorities. In presenting a booklet on human rights to the United Nations in 1958, she said, “Where, after all, do human rights begin? … [In] the world of the individual person: the neighborhood … the school … the factory, farm or office where he works.”

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Roosevelt’s first step as president was to carry out reforms in banking and finance. By 1933, widespread bank failures had caused most Americans to lose faith in the banking system. On March 5, one day after taking office, Roosevelt declared a bank holiday and closed all banks to prevent further withdrawals. He persuaded Congress to pass the Emergency Banking Relief Act, which authorized the Treasury Department to inspect the country’s banks. Those that were sound could reopen at once; those that were insolvent—unable to pay their debts—would remain closed. Those that needed help could receive loans. This measure revived public confidence in banks, since customers now had greater faith that the open banks were in good financial shape.

An Important Fireside Chat

On March 12, the day before the first banks were to reopen, President Roosevelt gave the first of his many fireside chats—radio talks about issues of public concern, explaining in clear, simple language his New Deal measures. These informal talks made Americans feel as if the president were talking directly to them. In his first chat, President Roosevelt explained why the nation’s welfare depended on public support of the government and the banking system. “We have provided the machinery to restore our financial system,” he said, “and it is up to you to support and make it work.” He explained the banking system to listeners.

“ The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. ”
FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT

A PERSONAL VOICE

FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT

“ When you deposit money in a bank the bank does not put the money into a safe deposit vault. It invests your money. … A comparatively small part of the money that you put into the bank is kept in currency—an amount which in normal times is wholly sufficient to cover the cash needs of the average citizen.”

The president then explained that when too many people demanded their savings in cash, banks would fail. This was not because banks were weak but because even strong banks could not meet such heavy demands. Over the next few weeks, many Americans returned their savings to banks.

Regulating Banking and Finance

Congress took another step to reorganize the banking system by passing the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The FDIC provided federal insurance for individual bank accounts of up to $5,000, reassuring millions of bank customers that their money was safe. It also required banks to act cautiously with their customers’ money.

Congress and the president also worked to regulate the stock market, in which people had lost faith because of the crash of 1929. The Federal Securities Act, passed in May 1933, required corporations to provide complete information on all stock offerings and made them liable for any misrepresentations. In June of 1934, Congress created the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to regulate the stock market. One goal of this commission was to prevent people with inside information about companies from “rigging” the stock market for their own profit.

In addition, Roosevelt persuaded Congress to approve a bill allowing the manufacture and sale of some alcoholic beverages. The bill’s main purpose was to raise government revenues by taxing alcohol. By the end of 1933, the passage of the 21st Amendment had repealed prohibition altogether.

Photo: Franklin D. Roosevelt sits in a wheelchair.

Franklin D. Roosevelt holds his dog Fala and talks to a young family friend. 697

Helping the American People

While working on banking and financial matters, the Roosevelt administration also implemented programs to provide relief to farmers, perhaps the hardest hit by the depression. It also aided other workers and attempted to stimulate economic recovery.

Rural Assistance

The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) sought to raise crop prices by lowering production, which the government achieved by paying farmers to leave a certain amount of every acre of land unseeded. The theory was that reduced supply would boost prices. In some cases, crops were too far advanced for the acreage reduction to take effect. As a result, the government paid cotton growers $200 million to plow under 10 million acres of their crop. It also paid hog farmers to slaughter 6 million pigs. This policy upset many Americans, who protested the destruction of food when many people were going hungry. It did, however, help raise farm prices and put more money in farmers’ pockets.

An especially ambitious program of regional development was the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), established on May 18, 1933. (See Geography Spotlight on page 726.) Focusing on the badly depressed Tennessee River Valley, the TVA renovated five existing dams and constructed 20 new ones, created thousands of jobs, and provided flood control, hydroelectric power, and other benefits to an impoverished region.

Providing Work Projects

The administration also established programs to provide relief through work projects and cash payments. One important program, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), put young men aged 18 to 25 to work building roads, developing parks, planting trees, and helping in soil-erosion and flood-control projects. By the time the program ended in 1942, almost 3 million young men had passed through the CCC. The CCC paid a small wage, $30 a month, of which $25 was automatically sent home to the worker’s family. It also supplied free food and uniforms and lodging in work camps. Many of the camps were located on the Great Plains, where, within a period of eight years, the men of the CCC planted more than 200 million trees. This tremendous reforestation program was aimed at preventing another Dust Bowl.

The Public Works Administration (PWA), created in June 1933 as part of the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA), provided money to states to create jobs chiefly in the construction of schools and other community buildings. When these programs failed to make a sufficient dent in unemployment, President Roosevelt established the Civil Works Administration in November 1933. It provided 4 million immediate jobs during the winter of 1933–1934. Although some critics of the CWA claimed that the programs were “make-work” projects and a waste of money, the CWA built 40,000 schools and paid the salaries of more than 50,000 schoolteachers in America’s rural areas. It also built more than half a million miles of roads.

Civilian Conservation Corps

• The CCC provided almost 3 million men aged 18–25 with work and wages between 1933 and 1942.

• The men lived in work camps under a strict regime. The majority of the camps were racially segregated.

• By 1938, the CCC had an 11 percent African-American enrollment.

• Accomplishments of the CCC include planting over 3 billion trees, developing over 800 state parks, and building more than 46,000 bridges.

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Promoting Fair Practices

The NIRA also sought to promote industrial growth by establishing codes of fair practice for individual industries. It created the National Recovery Administration (NRA), which set prices of many products and established standards. The aim of the NRA was to promote recovery by interrupting the trend of wage cuts, falling prices, and layoffs. The economist Gardiner C. Means attempted to justify the NRA by stating the goal of industrial planning.

A PERSONAL VOICE

GARDINER C. MEANS

“ The National Recovery Administration [was] created in response to an overwhelming demand from many quarters that certain elements in the making of industrial policy … should no longer be left to the market place and the price mechanism but should be placed in the hands of administrative bodies.”
—The Making of Industrial Policy

The codes of fair practice had been drafted in joint meetings of businesses and representatives of workers and consumers. These codes both limited production and established prices. Because businesses were given new concessions, workers made demands. Congress met their demands by passing a section of the NIRA guaranteeing workers’ right to unionize and to bargain collectively.

Many businesses and politicians were critical of the NRA. Charges arose that the codes served large business interests. There were also charges of increasing code violations.

Food, Clothing, and Shelter

A number of New Deal programs concerned housing and home mortgage problems. The Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC) provided government loans to homeowners who faced foreclosure because they couldn’t meet their loan payments. In addition, the 1934 National Housing Act created the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). This agency continues to furnish loans for home mortgages and repairs today.

Another program, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), was funded with $500 million to provide direct relief for the needy. Half of the money was given to the states as direct grants-in-aid to help furnish food and clothing to the unemployed, the aged, and the ill. The rest was distributed to states to support work relief programs—for every $3 within the state program, FERA donated $1. Harry Hopkins, who headed this program, believed that, whereas money helped people buy food, it was meaningful work that enabled them to gain confidence and self-respect.

Economic Background: Deficit Spending Photo: John Maynard Keynes

John Maynard Keynes, an influential British economist, promoted the idea of deficit spending to stimulate economic recovery. In his view, a country should spend its way out of a depression by putting money into the hands of consumers. This would make it possible for them to buy goods and services and thus fuel economic growth. Therefore, even if a government has to go deeply into debt, it should spend great amounts of money to help get the economy growing again. (See deficit spending on page R39 and Keynesian economics on page R42 in the Economics Handbook.)

The New Deal Comes Under Attack

By the end of the Hundred Days, millions of Americans had benefited from the New Deal programs. As well, the public’s confidence in the nation’s future had rebounded. Although President Roosevelt agreed to a policy of deficit spending—spending more money than the government receives in revenue—he did so with great reluctance. He regarded deficit spending as a necessary evil to be used only at a time of great economic crisis. Nevertheless, the New Deal did not end the depression, and opposition grew among some parts of the population.

699 Analyzing Political Cartoons: Changing Course

With hopes of lessening opposition to his programs, Roosevelt proposed a court reform bill that would essentially have allowed him to “pack” the Court with judges supportive of the New Deal. This cartoon shows Roosevelt as a sea captain ordering a shocked Congress to change course.

Liberal critics argued that the New Deal did not go far enough to help the poor and to reform the nation’s economic system. Conservative critics argued that Roosevelt spent too much on direct relief and used New Deal policies to control business and socialize the economy. Conservatives were particularly angered by laws such as the Agricultural Adjustment Act and the National Industrial Recovery Act, which they believed gave the federal government too much control over agriculture and industry. Many critics believed the New Deal interfered with the workings of a free-market economy.

The Supreme Court Reacts

By the mid-1930s, conservative opposition to the New Deal had received a boost from two Supreme Court decisions. In 1935, the Court struck down the NIRA as unconstitutional. It declared that the law gave legislative powers to the executive branch and that the enforcement of industry codes within states went beyond the federal government’s constitutional powers to regulate interstate commerce. The next year, the Supreme Court struck down the AAA on the grounds that agriculture is a local matter and should be regulated by the states rather than by the federal government.

Fearing that further Court decisions might dismantle the New Deal, President Roosevelt proposed in February 1937 that Congress enact a court-reform bill to reorganize the federal judiciary and allow him to appoint six new Supreme Court justices. This “Court-packing bill” aroused a storm of protest in Congress and the press. Many people believed that the president was violating principles of judicial independence and the separation of powers. As it turned out, the president got his way without reorganizing the judiciary. In 1937, an elderly justice retired, and Roosevelt appointed the liberal Hugo S. Black, shifting the balance of the Court. Rulings of the Court began to favor the New Deal. (See NLRB v. Jones and Laughlin Steel Corp. on page 502.) Over the next four years, because of further resignations, Roosevelt was able to appoint seven new justices.

Father Charles Coughlin speaks to a radio audience in 1935.

Three Fiery Critics

In 1934, some of the strongest conservative opponents of the New Deal banded together to form an organization called the American Liberty League. The American Liberty League opposed New Deal measures that it believed violated respect for the rights of individuals and property. Three of the toughest critics the president faced, however, were three men who expressed views that appealed to poor Americans: Charles Coughlin, Dr. Francis Townsend, and Huey Long.

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Every Sunday, Father Charles Coughlin, a Roman Catholic priest from a suburb of Detroit, broadcast radio sermons that combined economic, political, and religious ideas. Initially a supporter of the New Deal, Coughlin soon turned against Roosevelt. He favored a guaranteed annual income and the nationalization of banks. At the height of his popularity, Father Coughlin claimed a radio audience of as many as 40–45 million people, but his increasingly anti-Semitic (anti-Jewish) views eventually cost him support.

Another critic of New Deal policies was Dr. Francis Townsend, a physician and health officer in Long Beach, California. He believed that Roosevelt wasn’t doing enough to help the poor and elderly, so he devised a pension plan that would provide monthly benefits to the aged. The plan found strong backing among the elderly, thus undermining their support for Roosevelt.

Perhaps the most serious challenge to the New Deal came from Senator Huey Long of Louisiana. Like Coughlin, Long was an early supporter of the New Deal, but he, too, turned against Roosevelt. Eager to win the presidency for himself, Long proposed a nationwide social program called Share-Our-Wealth. Under the banner “Every Man a King,” he promised something for everyone.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HUEY LONG

“ We owe debts in America today, public and private, amounting to $252 billion. That means that every child is born with a $2,000 debt tied around his neck. … We propose that children shall be born in a land of opportunity, guaranteed a home, food, clothes, and the other things that make for living, including the right to education.”
—Record, 74 Congress, Session 1

Huey Long

Long’s program was so popular that by 1935 he boasted of having perhaps as many as 27,000 Share-Our-Wealth clubs and 7.5 million members. That same year, however, at the height of his popularity, Long was assassinated by a lone gunman.

As the initial impetus of the New Deal began to wane, President Roosevelt started to look ahead. He knew that much more needed to be done to help the people and to solve the nation’s economic problems.

Section 1: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each of the terms and names below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Franklin Delano Roosevelt

• New Deal

• Glass-Steagall Act

• Federal Securities Act

• Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)

• Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

• National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)

• deficit spending

• Huey Long

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a two-column chart, list problems that President Roosevelt confronted and how he tried to solve them.

Chart: provides spaces to list problems and solutions

Write a paragraph telling which solution had the greatest impact, and why.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

Of the New Deal programs discussed in this section, which do you consider the most important? Explain your choice. Think About:

• the type of assistance offered by each program

• the scope of each program

• the impact of each program

4. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

Do you think Roosevelt was wrong to try to “pack” the Supreme Court with those in favor of the New Deal? Explain your answer.

5. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

The New Deal has often been referred to as a turning point in American history. Cite examples to explain why.

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Section 2: The Second New Deal Takes Hold

One American’s Story

Dorothea Lange was a photographer who documented American life during the Great Depression and the era of the New Deal. Lange spent considerable time getting to know her subjects—destitute migrant workers—before she and her assistant set up their cameras.

A PERSONAL VOICE

DOROTHEA LANGE

“ So often it’s just sticking around and remaining there, not swooping in and swooping out in a cloud of dust. … We found our way in … not too far away from the people we were working with. … The people who are garrulous and wear their heart on their sleeve and tell you everything, that’s one kind of person. But the fellow who’s hiding behind a tree and hoping you don’t see him, is the fellow that you’d better find out why.”
—quoted in Restless Spirit: The Life and Work of Dorothea Lange

Dorothea Lange taking photographs on the Texas plains in 1934.

Lange also believed that her distinct limp, the result of a childhood case of polio, worked to her advantage. Seeing that Lange, too, had suffered, people were kind to her and more at ease.

Much of Lange’s work was funded by federal agencies, such as the Farm Security Administration, which was established to alleviate rural poverty. Her photographs of migrant workers helped draw attention to the desperate conditions in rural America and helped to underscore the need for direct relief.

The Second Hundred Days

By 1935, the Roosevelt administration was seeking ways to build on the programs established during the Hundred Days. Although the economy had improved during FDR’s first two years in office, the gains were not as great as he had expected. Unemployment remained high despite government work programs, and production still lagged behind the levels of the 1920s.

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Nevertheless, the New Deal enjoyed widespread popularity, and President Roosevelt launched a second burst of activity, often called the Second New Deal or the Second Hundred Days. During this phase, the president called on Congress to provide more extensive relief for both farmers and workers.

The president was prodded in this direction by his wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, a social reformer who combined her deep humanitarian impulses with great political skills. Eleanor Roosevelt traveled the country, observing social conditions and reminding the president about the suffering of the nation’s people. She also urged him to appoint women to government positions.

Reelecting Fdr

The Second New Deal was under way by the time of the 1936 presidential election. The Republicans nominated Alfred Landon, the governor of Kansas, while the Democrats, of course, nominated President Roosevelt for a second term. The election resulted in an overwhelming victory for the Democrats, who won the presidency and large majorities in both houses. The election marked the first time that most African Americans had voted Democratic rather than Republican, and the first time that labor unions gave united support to a presidential candidate. The 1936 election was a vote of confidence in FDR and the New Deal.

Photo: Eleanor Roosevelt with children with crutches and leg-braces

Eleanor Roosevelt visits a children’s hospital in 1937.

Helping Farmers

In the mid-1930s, two of every five farms in the United States were mortgaged, and thousands of small farmers lost their farms. The novelist John Steinbeck described the experience of one tenant farmer and his family.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOHN STEINBECK

“ Across the dooryard the tractor cut, and the hard, foot-beaten ground was seeded field, and the tractor cut through again; the uncut space was ten feet wide. And back he came. The iron guard bit into the house-corner, crumbled the wall, and wrenched the little house from its foundation so that it fell sideways, crushed like a bug. … The tractor cut a straight line on, and the air and the ground vibrated with its thunder. The tenant man stared after it, his rifle in his hand. His wife was beside him, and the quiet children behind. And all of them stared after the tractor.”
—The Grapes of Wrath

Poster: The Grapes of Wrath, a movie starring Henry Fonda

A poster promotes the movie adaption of John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath.

Focusing on Farms

When the Supreme Court struck down the AAA early in 1936, Congress passed another law to replace it: the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act. This act paid farmers for cutting production of soil-depleting crops and rewarded farmers for practicing good soil conservation methods. Two years later, in 1938, Congress approved a second Agricultural Adjustment Act that brought back many features of the first AAA. The second AAA did not include a processing tax to pay for farm subsidies, a provision of the first AAA that the Supreme Court had declared unconstitutional.

703 History Through Photojournalism: “Migrant Mother” (1936), Dorothea Lange

In February 1936, Dorothea Lange visited a camp in Nipomo, California, where some 2,500 destitute pea pickers lived in tents or, like this mother of seven children, in lean-tos. Lange talked briefly to the woman and then took five pictures, successively moving closer to her subjects and directing more emphasis on the mother. The last photo, “Migrant Mother” (at right), was published in the San Francisco News March 10, 1936.

Photo: Two children bury their faces in the shoulders of their mother, a thin woman with a furrowed brow and narrowed eyes

“Migrant Mother” became one of the most recognizable symbols of the Depression and perhaps the strongest argument in support of New Deal relief programs. Roy Stryker, who hired Lange to document the harsh living conditions of the time, described the mother: “She has all the suffering of mankind in her, but all the perseverance too. A restraint and a strange courage.” Photo: a thin woman and her children huddle under a tattered lean-to.

Photo: a thin woman and her children huddle under a tattered lean-to.

Lange reflected upon her assignment. “I saw and approached the hungry and desperate mother, as if drawn by a magnet. … She said that they had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields, and birds that the children killed. She had just sold the tires from her car to buy food.” 704

The Second New Deal also attempted to help sharecroppers, migrant workers, and many other poor farmers. The Resettlement Administration, created by executive order in 1935, provided monetary loans to small farmers to buy land. In 1937, the agency was replaced by the Farm Security Administration (FSA), which loaned more than $1 billion to help tenant farmers become landholders and established camps for migrant farm workers, who had traditionally lived in squalid housing.

The FSA hired photographers such as Dorothea Lange, Ben Shahn, Walker Evans, Arthur Rothstein, and Carl Mydans to take many pictures of rural towns and farms and their inhabitants. The agency used their photographs to create a pictorial record of the difficult situation in rural America.

Roosevelt Extends Relief

As part of the Second New Deal, the Roosevelt administration and Congress set up a series of programs to help youths, professionals, and other workers. One of the largest was the Works Progress Administration (WPA), headed by Harry Hopkins, the former chief of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration.

The WPA set out to create as many jobs as possible as quickly as possible. Between 1935 and 1943, it spent $11 billion to give jobs to more than 8 million workers, most of them unskilled. These workers built 850 airports throughout the country, constructed or repaired 651,000 miles of roads and streets, and put up more than 125,000 public buildings. Women workers in sewing groups made 300 million garments for the needy. Although criticized by some as a make-work project, the WPA produced public works of lasting value to the nation and gave working people a sense of hope and purpose. As one man recalled, “It was really great. You worked, you got a paycheck and you had some dignity. Even when a man raked leaves, he got paid, he had some dignity.”

In addition, the WPA employed many professionals who wrote guides to cities, collected historical slave narratives, painted murals on the walls of schools

Photo: people wait in a bread line in front of a billboard showing a happy family inside a car with the slogan there's no way like the American Way.

This photograph by Margaret Bourke-White shows people waiting for food in a Kentucky bread line in 1937. 705

and other public buildings, and performed in theater troupes around the country. At the urging of Eleanor Roosevelt, the WPA made special efforts to help women, minorities, and young people.

Another program, the National Youth Administration (NYA), was created specifically to provide education, jobs, counseling, and recreation for young people. The NYA provided student aid to high school, college, and graduate students. In exchange, students worked in part-time positions at their schools. One participant later described her experience.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HELEN FARMER

“ I lugged … drafts and reams of paper home, night after night. … Sometimes I typed almost all night and had to deliver it to school the next morning. … This was a good program. It got necessary work done. It gave teenagers a chance to work for pay. Mine bought me clothes and shoes, school supplies, some movies and mad money. Candy bars, and big pickles out of a barrel. It gave my mother relief from my necessary demands for money.”
—quoted in The Great Depression

Photo: A dental assistant cleans a young girl's teeth.

The NYA helped young people, such as this dental assistant (third from left), receive training and job opportunities.

For graduates unable to find jobs, or youth who had dropped out of school, the NYA provided part-time jobs, such as working on highways, parks, and the grounds of public buildings.

Improving Labor and Other Reforms

In a speech to Congress in January 1935, the president declared, “When a man is convalescing from an illness, wisdom dictates not only cure of the symptoms but also removal of their cause.” During the Second New Deal, Roosevelt, with the help of Congress, brought about important reforms in the areas of labor relations and economic security for retired workers. (See the chart on page 706.)

Improving Labor Conditions

In 1935, the Supreme Court declared the NIRA unconstitutional, citing that the federal government had violated legislative authority reserved for individual states. One of the first reforms of the Second New Deal was passage of the National Labor Relations Act. More commonly called the Wagner Act, after its sponsor, Senator Robert F. Wagner of New York, the act reestablished the NIRA provision of collective bargaining. The federal government again protected the right of workers to join unions and engage in collective bargaining with employers.

The Wagner Act also prohibited unfair labor practices such as threatening workers, firing union members, and interfering with union organizing. The act set up the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to hear testimony about unfair practices and to hold elections to find out if workers wanted union representation.

In 1938, Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act, which set maximum hours at 44 hours per week, decreasing to 40 hours after two years. It also set minimum wages at 25 cents an hour, increasing to 40 cents an hour by 1945. In addition, the act set rules for the employment of workers under 16 and banned hazardous work for those under 18.

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New Deal Programs
EMPLOYMENT PROJECTS	PURPOSE
1933 Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)	Provided jobs for single males on conservation projects.
1933 Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA)	Helped states to provide aid for the unemployed.
1933 Public Works Administration (PWA)	Created jobs on government projects.
1933 Civil Works Administration (CWA)	Provided work in federal jobs.
1935 Works Progress Administration (WPA)	Quickly created as many jobs as possible—from construction jobs to positions in symphony orchestras.
1935 National Youth Administration (NYA)	Provided job training for unemployed young people and part-time jobs for needy students.
BUSINESS ASSISTANCE AND REFORM
1933 Emergency Banking Relief Act (EBRA)	Banks were inspected by Treasury Department and those stable could reopen.
1933 Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)	Protected bank deposits up to $5,000. (Today, accounts are protected up to $100,000.)
1933 National Recovery Administration (NRA)	Established codes of fair competition.
1934 Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)	Supervised the stock market and eliminated dishonest practices.
1935 Banking Act of 1935	Created seven-member board to regulate the nation’s money supply and the interest rates on loans.
1938 Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDC)	Required manufacturers to list ingredients in foods, drugs, and cosmetic products.
FARM RELIEF AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT
1933 Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA)	Aided farmers and regulated crop production.
1933 Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)	Developed the resources of the Tennessee Valley.
1935 Rural Electrification Administration (REA)	Provided affordable electricity for isolated rural areas.
HOUSING
1933 Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC)	Loaned money at low interest to homeowners who could not meet mortgage payments.
1934 Federal Housing Administration (FHA)	Insured loans for building and repairing homes.
1937 United States Housing Authority (USHA)	Provided federal loans for low-cost public housing.
LABOR RELATIONS
1935 National Labor Relations Board (Wagner Act)	Defined unfair labor practices and established the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to settle disputes between employers and employees.
1938 Fair Labor Standards Act	Established a minimum hourly wage and a maximum number of hours in the workweek for the entire country. Set rules for the employment of workers under 16 and banned hazardous factory work for those under 18.
RETIREMENT
1935 Social Security Administration	Provided a pension for retired workers and their spouses and aided people with disabilities.

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The Social Security Act

One of the most important achievements of the New Deal was creating the Social Security system. The Social Security Act, passed in 1935, was created by a committee chaired by Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins. The act had three major parts:

• Old-age insurance for retirees 65 or older and their spouses. The insurance was a supplemental retirement plan. Half of the funds came from the worker and half from the employer. Although some groups were excluded from the system, it helped to make retirement comfortable for millions of people.

• Unemployment compensation system. The unemployment system was funded by a federal tax on employers. It was administered at the state level. The initial payments ranged from $15 to $18 per week.

• Aid to families with dependent children and the disabled. The aid was paid for by federal funds made available to the states.

Although the Social Security Act was not a total pension system or a complete welfare system, it did provide substantial benefits to millions of Americans.

Expanding and Regulating Utilities

The Second New Deal also included laws to promote rural electrification and to regulate public utilities. In 1935, only 12.6 percent of American farms had electricity. Roosevelt established under executive order the Rural Electrification Administration (REA), which financed and worked with electrical cooperatives to bring electricity to isolated areas. By 1945, 48 percent of America’s farms and rural homes had electricity. That figure rose to 90 percent by 1949.

The Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 took aim at financial corruption in the public utility industry. It outlawed the ownership of utilities by multiple holding companies—a practice known as the pyramiding of holding companies. Lobbyists for the holding companies fought the law fiercely, and it proved extremely difficult to enforce.

As the New Deal struggled to help farmers and other workers overcome the Great Depression, it assisted many different groups in the nation, including women, African Americans, and Native Americans.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Eleanor Roosevelt

• Works Progress Administration (WPA)

• National Youth Administration

• Wagner Act

• Social Security Act

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a chart similar to the one below to show how groups such as farmers, the unemployed, youth, and retirees were helped by Second New Deal programs.

Chart entitled Second New Deal: provides spaces to list groups and how helped

Which group do you think benefited the most from the Second New Deal? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Why might the Social Security Act be considered the most important achievement of the New Deal? Think About:

• the types of relief needed in the 1930s

• alternatives to government assistance to the elderly, the unemployed, and the disabled

• the scope of the act

Poster: shows a light bulb labeled light, with the words Rural Electrification Administration

4. INTERPRETING VISUAL SOURCES

Many WPA posters were created to promote New Deal programs—in this case the Rural Electrification Administration. How does this poster’s simplistic design convey the program’s goal?

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Graphic: Words surrounding a photo of the Supreme Court building read Historic Decisions of The Supreme Court

Historic Decisions of The Supreme Court: NLRB v. Jones and Laughlin Steel Corp. (1937)

ORIGINS OF THE CASE In 1936, the Jones and Laughlin Steel Corporation was charged with intimidating union organizers and firing several union members. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) found the company guilty of “unfair labor practices” and ordered it to rehire the workers with back pay.

THE RULING The Supreme Court ruled that Congress had the power to regulate labor relations and confirmed the authority of the NLRB.

Legal Reasoning

In the 1935 National Labor Relations Act, or Wagner Act, Congress claimed that its authority to regulate labor relations came from the commerce clause of the Constitution. Jones and Laughlin Steel argued that its manufacturing business did not involve interstate commerce—it operated a plant and hired people locally.

The Court disagreed. Although production itself may occur within one state, it said, production is a part of the interstate “flow of commerce.” If labor unrest at a steel mill would create “burdens and obstructions” to interstate commerce, then Congress has the power to prevent labor unrest at the steel mill.

The Court also explained that the act went “no further than to safeguard the right of employees to self-organization and to select representatives … for collective bargaining.” Departing from earlier decisions, the Court affirmed that these are “fundamental” rights.

“ Long ago we … said … that a single employee was helpless in dealing with an employer; that he was dependent … on his daily wage for the maintenance of himself and family; that, if the employer refused to pay him the wages that he thought fair, he was … unable to leave the employ and resist arbitrary and unfair treatment; that union was essential to give laborers opportunity to deal on an equality with their employer.’’

As a result, the Wagner Act was allowed to stand.

Photo: Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes

Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes Legal Sources Legislation

U.S. CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE 1, SECTION 8 (COMMERCE CLAUSE)

“The Congress shall have Power … To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations and among the several States.”

NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS ACT (1935)

“The term ‘affecting commerce’ means … tending to lead to a labor dispute burdening or obstructing commerce or the free flow of commerce.”

“It shall be an unfair labor practice for an employer … to interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees in the exercise of the rights [to organize unions].”

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Photo: strikers prevent a man from crossing their picket line

Choosing to work despite the strike, a storekeeper at the Jones and Laughlin Steel Corporation tries to pass through picket lines.

Why it Mattered

The 1935 Wagner Act was one of the most important pieces of New Deal legislation. Conservative justices on the Supreme Court, however, thought New Deal legislation increased the power of the federal government beyond what the Constitution allowed. By the time the Jones and Laughlin case reached the Court in 1937, the Court had already struck down numerous New Deal laws. It appeared to many as if the Wagner Act was doomed.

In February 1937, Roosevelt announced a plan to appoint enough justices to build a Court majority in favor of the New Deal. Critics immediately accused Roosevelt of trying to pack the Supreme Court, thus crippling the Constitution’s system of checks and balances.

Two months later, the Court delivered its opinion in Jones and Laughlin and at about the same time upheld other New Deal legislation as well. Most historians agree that the Court’s switch was not a response to Roosevelt’s “Court-packing” plan, which already seemed destined for failure. Nevertheless, the decision resolved a potential crisis.

Historical Impact

The protection that labor unions gained by the Wagner Act helped them to grow quickly. Union membership among non-farm workers grew from around 12 percent in 1930 to around 31 percent by 1950. This increase helped improve the economic standing of many working-class Americans in the years following World War II.

Most significantly, Jones and Laughlin greatly broadened Congress’s power. Previously, neither the federal nor the state governments were thought to have sufficient power to control the large corporations and holding companies doing business in many states. Now, far beyond the power to regulate interstate commerce, Congress had the power to regulate anything “essential or appropriate” to that function. For example, federal laws barring discrimination in hotels and restaurants rest on the Court’s allowing Congress to decide what is an “essential or appropriate” subject of regulation.

More recently, the Court has placed tighter limits on Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce. In United States v. Lopez (1995), the Court struck down a law that banned people from having handguns near a school. The Court said Congress was not justified in basing this law on its power to regulate interstate commerce.

Thinking Critically 710

Section 3: The New Deal Affects Many Groups

One American’s Story

Pedro J. González came to this country from Mexico in the early 1920s and later became a United States citizen. As the first Spanish-language disc jockey in Los Angeles, González used his radio program to condemn discrimination against Mexicans and Mexican Americans, who were often made scapegoats for social and economic problems during the Depression. For his efforts, González was arrested, jailed, and deported on trumped-up charges. Later in life, he reflected on his experiences.

A PERSONAL VOICE

PEDRO J. GONZÁLEZ

“ Seeing how badly they treated Mexicans back in the days of my youth I could have started a rebellion. But now there could be a cultural understanding so that without firing one bullet, we might understand each other. We [Mexicans] were here before they [Anglos] were, and we are not, as they still say, ‘undesirables’ or ‘wetbacks.’ They say we come to this land and it’s not our home. Actually, it’s the other way around.”
—quoted in the Los Angeles Times, December 9, 1984

Pedro J. González became a hero to many Mexican Americans and a symbol of Mexican cultural pride. His life reflected some of the difficulties faced by Mexicans and other minority groups in the United States during the New Deal era.

The New Deal Brings New Opportunities

In some ways, the New Deal represented an important opportunity for minorities and women, but what these groups gained was limited. Long-standing patterns of prejudice and discrimination continued to plague them and to prevent their full and equal participation in national life.

Women Make Their Mark

One of the most notable changes during the New Deal was the naming of several women to important government positions. Frances Perkins became America’s first female cabinet member. As secretary of labor, she played a major role in creating the Social Security system and super-

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vised labor legislation. President Roosevelt, encouraged by his wife Eleanor and seeking the support of women voters, also appointed two female diplomats and a female federal judge.

However, women continued to face discrimination in the workplace from male workers who believed that working women took jobs away from men. A Gallup poll taken in 1936 reported that 82 percent of Americans said that a wife should not work if her husband had a job.

Additionally, New Deal laws yielded mixed results. The National Recovery Administration, for example, set wage codes, some of which set lower minimum wages for women. The Federal Emergency Relief Administration and the Civil Works Administration hired far fewer women than men, and the Civilian Conservation Corps hired only men.

In spite of these barriers, women continued their movement into the workplace. Although the overall percentage of women working for wages increased only slightly during the 1930s, the percentage of married women in the workplace grew from 11.7 percent in 1930 to 15.6 percent in 1940. In short, widespread criticism of working women did not halt the long-term trend of women working outside the home.

Key Player: Frances Perkins 1882–1965 Photo: Frances Perkins

As a student at Mount Holyoke College, Frances Perkins attended lectures that introduced her to social reform efforts. Her initial work in the settlement house movement sparked her interest in pursuing the emerging social service organizations. After witnessing the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911 (see Chapter 14, page 455), Perkins pledged to fight for labor reforms, especially those for women. A pioneer for labor and women’s issues, she changed her name from Fannie to Frances, believing she would be taken more seriously in her work.

African-American Activism

The 1930s witnessed a growth of activism by African Americans. One notable figure was A. Philip Randolph, who organized the country’s first all-black trade union, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. His work and that of others laid the groundwork for what would become the civil rights movement.

African Americans Take Leadership Roles

During the New Deal, Roosevelt appointed more than 100 African Americans to key positions in the government. Mary McLeod Bethune—an educator who dedicated herself to promoting opportunities for young African Americans—was one such appointee. Hired by the president to head the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration, Bethune worked to ensure that the NYA hired African-American administrators and provided job training and other benefits to minority students.

Bethune also helped organize a “Black Cabinet” of influential African Americans to advise the Roosevelt administration on racial issues. Among these figures were William H. Hastie and Robert C. Weaver, both appointees to Roosevelt’s Department of Interior. Never before had so many African Americans had a voice in the White House.

Eleanor Roosevelt played a key role in opening doors for African Americans in government. She was also instrumental in bringing about one of the most dramatic cultural events of the

Mary McLeod Bethune, a close friend of Eleanor Roosevelt, was a strong supporter of the New Deal. 712

period: a performance by the African-American singer Marian Anderson in 1939. When the Daughters of the American Revolution chose not to allow Anderson to perform in their concert hall in Washington, D.C., because of her race, Eleanor Roosevelt resigned from the organization. She then arranged for Anderson to perform at the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday. At the concert, Walter White, an official of the NAACP, noticed one girl in the crowd.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WALTER WHITE

“ Her hands were particularly noticeable as she thrust them forward and upward, trying desperately … to touch the singer. They were hands which despite their youth had known only the dreary work of manual labor. Tears streamed down the girl’s dark face. Her hat was askew, but in her eyes flamed hope bordering on ecstasy. … If Marian Anderson could do it, the girl’s eyes seemed to say, then I can, too.”
—A Man Called White

Marian Anderson sang from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on April 9, 1939.

The President Fails to Support Civil Rights

Despite efforts to promote racial equality, Roosevelt was never committed to full civil rights for African Americans. He was afraid of upsetting white Democratic voters in the South, an important segment of his supporters. He refused to approve a federal antilynching law and an end to the poll tax, two key goals of the civil rights movement. Further, a number of New Deal agencies clearly discriminated against African Americans, including the NRA, the CCC, and the TVA. These programs gave lower wages to African Americans and favored whites.

African Americans recognized the need to fight for their rights and to improve conditions in areas that the New Deal ignored. In 1934, they helped organize the Southern Tenant Farmers Union, which sought to protect the rights of tenant farmers and sharecroppers, both white and black. In the North, the union created tenants’ groups and launched campaigns to increase job opportunities.

In general, however, African Americans supported the Roosevelt administration and the New Deal, generally seeing them as their best hope for the future. As one man recalled, “Roosevelt touched the temper of the black community. You did not look upon him as being white, black, blue or green. He was President Roosevelt.”

Historical Spotlight: Deportation of Mexican Americans

Many Mexican Americans were long-time residents or citizens of the United States. Others came during the 1920s to work on farms in Texas, California, and Arizona. Valued for their low-cost labor during the good times, these migrant workers became the target of hostility during the Great Depression. Many returned to Mexico willingly, while others were deported by the United States government. During the 1930s, as many as 400,000 persons of Mexican descent, many of them U.S. citizens, were deported to Mexico.

Mexican-American Fortunes

Mexican Americans also tended to support the New Deal, even though they received even fewer benefits than African Americans did. Large numbers of Mexican Americans had come to the United States during the 1920s, settling mainly in the Southwest. Most found work laboring on farms, an occupation that was essentially unprotected by state and federal laws. During the Depression, farm wages fell to as little as nine cents an hour. Farm workers who tried to unionize

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often met with violence from employers and government authorities. Although the CCC and WPA helped some Mexican Americans, these agencies also discriminated against them by disqualifying from their programs migrant workers who had no permanent address.

Native Americans Gain Support

Native Americans received strong government support from the New Deal. In 1924, Native Americans had received full citizenship by law. In 1933, President Roosevelt appointed John Collier as commissioner of Indian affairs. Collier helped create the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. This act was an extreme change in government policy. It moved away from assimilation and toward Native American autonomy. It also helped to restore some reservation lands to tribal ownership.

The act mandated changes in three areas:

• economic—Native American lands would belong to an entire tribe. This provision strengthened Native American land claims by prohibiting the government from taking over unclaimed reservation lands and selling them to people other than Native Americans.

• cultural—The number of boarding schools for Native American children was reduced, and children could attend school on the reservations.

• political—Tribes were given permission to elect tribal councils to govern their reservations.

Some Native Americans who valued their tribal traditions hailed the act as an important step forward. Others who had become more “Americanized” as individual landowners under the previous Dawes Act objected, because they were tired of white people telling them what was good for them.

John Collier talks with Chief Richard, one of several Native American chiefs attending the Four Nation Celebration held at Niagara Falls, New York, in September 1934.

FDR Creates the New Deal Coalition

Although New Deal policies had mixed results for minorities, these groups generally backed President Roosevelt. In fact, one of FDR’s great achievements was to create the New Deal coalition—an alignment of diverse groups dedicated to supporting the Democratic Party. The coalition included Southern whites, various urban groups, African Americans, and unionized industrial workers. As a result, Democrats dominated national politics throughout the 1930s and 1940s.

Labor Unions Flourish

As a result of the Wagner Act and other prolabor legislation passed during the New Deal, union members enjoyed better working conditions and increased bargaining power. In their eyes, President Roosevelt was a “friend of labor.” Labor unions donated money to Roosevelt’s reelection campaigns, and union workers pledged their votes to him.

Between 1933 and 1941, union membership grew from less than 3 million to more than 10 million. Unionization especially affected coal miners and workers in mass-production industries, such as the automobile, rubber, and electrical industries. It was in these industries, too, that a struggle for dominance within the labor movement began to develop.

714 The Growing Labor Movement, 1933–1940 Photo: Robert F. Wagner

Robert F. Wagner A Democratic senator from New York (1927–1949), Robert F. Wagner was especially interested in workers’ welfare. Wagner introduced the National Labor Relations Act in Congress in 1935. Graph: Union Membership 1930 - 1940

Description:

Graph: Union Members (in millions) 1930 - 1940, source Historical Statistics of the United States. Numbers are approximate.

1930: 3.5
1931: 3.4
1932: 3.0
1933: 2.8
1934: 3.8
1935: 3.7
1936: 4.0
1937: 5.5
1938: 8.1
1939: 8.9
1940: 8.8

The Growth of Union Membership, 1930–1940 Source: Historical Statistics of the United States Sit-down strikes Union workers—such as these CIO strikers at the Fisher automobile plant in Flint, Michigan, in 1937—found the sit-down strike an extremely effective method for getting their demands met. Poster: words read Organize? With 1,250,000 workers backing us, of course we will organize.

Poster: words read Organize? With 1,250,000 workers backing us, of course we will organize.

Photo: men reading newspapers sit on car seats

Union membership soars A Ben Shahn poster from the late 1930s boasted of the rise in union membership.

The American Federation of Labor (AFL) had traditionally been restricted to the craft unions, such as carpenters and electricians. Most of the AFL leaders opposed industrywide unions that represented all the workers in a given industry, such as automobile manufacturing.

Frustrated by this position, several key labor leaders, including John L. Lewis of the United Mine Workers of America and David Dubinsky of the International Ladies Garment Workers, formed the Committee for Industrial Organization to organize industrial unions. The committee rapidly signed up unskilled and semi-skilled workers, and within two years it succeeded in gaining union recognition in the steel and automobile industries. In 1938, the Committee for Industrial Organization was expelled from the AFL and changed its name to the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). This split lasted until 1955.

Labor Disputes

One of the main bargaining tactics of the labor movement in the 1930s was the sit-down strike. Instead of walking off their jobs, workers remained inside their plants, but they did not work. This prevented the factory owners from carrying on production with strikebreakers, or scabs. Some Americans disapproved of the sit-down strike, calling it a violation of private property. Nonetheless, it proved to be an effective bargaining tool.

Not all labor disputes in the 1930s were peaceful. Perhaps the most dramatic incident was the clash at the Republic Steel plant in Chicago on Memorial Day, 1937. Police attacked striking steelworkers outside the plant. One striker, an African-American man, recalled the experience.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JESSE REESE

“ I began to see people drop. There was a Mexican on my side, and he fell; and there was a black man on my side and he fell. Down I went. I crawled around in the grass and saw that people were getting beat. I’d never seen police beat women, not white women. I’d seen them beat black women, but this was the first time in my life I’d seen them beat white women—with sticks.”
—quoted in The Great Depression

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Ten people were killed and 84 wounded in this incident, which became known as the Memorial Day Massacre. Shortly afterward, the National Labor Relations Board stepped in and required the head of Republic Steel, Tom Girdler, to negotiate with the union. This and other actions helped labor gain strength during the 1930s.

FDR Wins in 1936

Urban voters were another important component of the New Deal coalition. Support for the Democratic Party surged, especially in large Northern cities, such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago. These and other cities had powerful city political organizations that provided services, such as jobs, in exchange for votes. In the 1936 election, President Roosevelt carried the nation’s 12 largest cities.

Support for President Roosevelt came from various religious and ethnic groups—Roman Catholics, Jews, Italians, Irish, and Polish and other Slavic peoples—as well as from African Americans. His appeal to these groups was based on New Deal labor laws and work-relief programs, which aided the urban poor. The president also made direct and persuasive appeals to urban voters at election time. To reinforce his support, he also appointed many officials of urban-immigrant backgrounds, particularly Roman Catholics and Jews, to important government positions.

Women, African Americans, Mexican Americans, Native Americans, and workers from all walks of life were greatly affected by the New Deal. It also had a tremendous influence on American society and culture.

Photo: police beat a crowd of men with their billy clubs

Chicago police attack strikers at what would become known as the Memorial Day Massacre (1937).

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each of the following terms and names, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Frances Perkins

• Mary McLeod Bethune

• John Collier

• New Deal coalition

• Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Using a web diagram like the partial one shown here, note the effects of New Deal policies on American women, African Americans, Mexican Americans, Native Americans, unionized workers, and urban Americans.

Diagram labeled Effects of New Deal: provides spaces to list groups Write a paragraph explaining the effects of the New Deal on one of the groups.

Critical Thinking

3. SUMMARIZING

What steps did women take toward equality during the 1930s? Think About:

• the role of women in government

• hiring practices in federal programs

• women’s opportunities in business and industry

4. EVALUATING

In your opinion, did organized labor become too powerful in the 1930s? Explain your answer. Think About:

• why workers joined unions

• how unions organized workers

• the role of unions in politics

5. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Why did urban voters support President Roosevelt?

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Section 4: Culture in the 1930s

One American’s Story

Don Congdon, editor of the book The Thirties: A Time to Remember, was a high school student when the New Deal began. While many writers and artists in the 1930s produced works that reflected the important issues of the day, it was the movies and radio that most clearly captured the public imagination. Congdon remembers the role movies played at the time.

A PERSONAL VOICE

DON CONGDON

“ Lots of us enjoyed our leisure at the movies. The experience of going was like an insidious [tempting] candy we could never get quite enough of; the visit to the dark theater was an escape from the drab realities of Depression living, and we were entranced by the never-ending variety of stories. Hollywood, like Scheherazade [the storyteller] in The Thousand and One Nights, supplied more the next night, and the next night after that.”
—The Thirties: A Time to Remember

People line up to get into a movie theater during the Great Depression.

During the Great Depression, movies provided a window on a different, more exciting world. Despite economic hardship, many people gladly paid the 25 cents it cost to go to the movies. Along with radio, motion pictures became an increasingly dominant feature of American life.

The Lure of Motion Pictures and Radio

Although the 1930s were a difficult time for many Americans, it was a profitable and golden age for the motion-picture and radio industries. By late in the decade, approximately 65 percent of the population was attending the movies once a week. The nation boasted over 15,000 movie theaters, more than the number of banks and double the number of hotels. Sales of radios also greatly increased during the 1930s, from just over 13 million in 1930 to 28 million by 1940. Nearly 90 percent of American households owned a radio. Clearly, movies and radio had taken the country by storm.

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Movies are a Hit

Wacky comedies, lavish musicals, love stories, and gangster films all vied for the attention of the moviegoing public during the New Deal years. Following the end of silent films and the rise of “talking” pictures, new stars such as Clark Gable, Marlene Dietrich, and James Cagney rose from Hollywood, the center of the film industry. These stars helped launch a new era of glamour and sophistication in Hollywood.

Some films made during the 1930s offered pure escape from the hard realities of the Depression by presenting visions of wealth, romance, and good times. Perhaps the most famous film of the era, and one of the most popular of all time, was Gone With the Wind (1939). Another film, Flying Down to Rio (1933), was a light romantic comedy featuring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, who went on to make many movies together, becoming America’s favorite dance partners. Other notable movies made during the 1930s include The Wizard of Oz (1939) and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), which showcased the dazzling animation of Walt Disney.

Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh starred in Gone With the Wind, a sweeping drama about life among Southern plantation owners during the Civil War.

Comedies—such as Monkey Business (1931) and Duck Soup (1931), starring the zany Marx Brothers—became especially popular. So did films that combined escapist appeal with more realistic plots and settings. Americans flocked to see gangster films that presented images of the dark, gritty streets and looming skyscrapers of urban America. These movies featured hard-bitten characters struggling to succeed in a harsh environment where they faced difficulties that Depression-era audiences could easily understand. Notable films in this genre include Little Caesar (1930) and The Public Enemy (1931).

Some commentators believed that several films, such as Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) by director Frank Capra, presented the social and political accomplishments of the New Deal in a positive light. These films portrayed honest, kindhearted people winning out over those with greedy special interests. In much the same way, the New Deal seemed to rep-resent the interests of average Americans.

Radio Entertains

Even more than movies, radio embodied the democratic spirit of the times. Families typically spent several hours a day gathered together, listening to their favorite programs. It was no accident that President Roosevelt chose radio as the medium for his “fireside chats.” It was the most direct means of access to the American people.

Historical Spotlight: War of the Worlds

On October 30, 1938, radio listeners were stunned by a special announcement: Martians had invaded Earth! Panic set in as many Americans became convinced that the world was coming to an end. Of course, the story wasn’t true: it was a radio drama based on H. G. Wells’s novel The War of the Worlds.

In his book, Wells describes the canisters of gas fired by the Martians as releasing “an enormous volume of heavy, inky vapour. … And the touch of that vapour, the inhaling of its pungent wisps, was death to all that breathes.” The broadcast, narrated by Orson Welles (at left), revealed the power of radio at a time when Americans received fast-breaking news over the airwaves.

Like movies, radio programs offered a range of entertainment. In the evening, radio networks offered excellent dramas and variety programs. Orson Welles, an actor, director, producer, and writer, created one of the most renowned radio broad-casts of all time, “The War of the Worlds.” Later he directed movie classics such as Citizen Kane (1941) and Touch of Evil (1958). After making their reputation in

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radio, comedians Bob Hope, Jack Benny, and the duo Burns and Allen moved on to work in television and movies. Soap operas—so named because they were usually sponsored by soap companies—tended to play late morning to early afternoon for homemakers, while children’s programs, such The Lone Ranger, generally aired later in the afternoon, when children were home from school.

One of the first worldwide radio broadcasts described for listeners the horrific crash of the Hindenburg, a German zeppelin (rigid airship), in New Jersey on May 6, 1937. Such immediate news coverage became a staple in society.

The comedy couple George Burns and Gracie Allen delighted radio audiences for years, and their popularity continued on television.

The Arts in Depression America

In contrast to many radio and movie productions of the 1930s, much of the art, music, and literature of the time was sober and serious. Despite grim artistic tones, however, much of this artistic work conveyed a more uplifting message about the strength of character and the democratic values of the American people. A number of artists and writers embraced the spirit of social and political change fostered by the New Deal. In fact, many received direct support through New Deal work programs from government officials who believed that art played an important role in national life. Also, as Harry Hopkins, the head of the WPA, put it, “They’ve got to eat just like other people.”

This detail is from the mural Industries of California, painted in 1934 by Ralph Stackpole. It decorates San Francisco’s Coit Tower, one of the best preserved sites of WPA mural projects.

Artists Decorate America

The Federal Art Project, a branch of the WPA, paid artists a living wage to produce public art. It also aimed to increase public appreciation of art and to promote positive images of American society. Project artists created posters, taught art in the schools, and painted murals on the walls of public buildings. These murals, inspired in part by the revolutionary work of

719 History Through Art: American Gothic (1930)

Grant Wood’s 1930 painting, American Gothic, became one of the most famous portrayals of life in the Midwest during the Great Depression. Painted in the style known as Regionalism, Wood painted familiar subjects in realistic ways. The house in the background was discovered by Wood in Eldon, Iowa, while he was looking for subjects to paint. He returned home with a sketch and a photograph, and used his sister and his dentist as models for the farmer and daughter in the painting’s foreground.

Painting: American Gothic by Grant Wood shows a couple on a farm. The gaunt man holds a pitchfork.

American Gothic (1930), Grant Wood. Oil on beaver board, 30 11/16” x 25 11/16” (78 cm x 65.3 cm) unframed. The Art Institute of Chicago, Friends of American Art Collection [1930.934]. Photography © The Art Institute of Chicago/All rights reserved by the Estate of Nan Wood Graham/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

Mexican muralists such as Diego Rivera, typically portrayed the dignity of ordinary Americans at work. One artist, Robert Gwathmey, recalled these efforts.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ROBERT GWATHMEY

“ The director of the Federal Arts Project was Edward Bruce. He was a friend of the Roosevelts—from a polite family—who was a painter. He was a man of real broad vision. He insisted there be no restrictions. You were a painter: Do your work. You were a sculptor: Do your work. … That was a very free and happy period. ”
—quoted in Hard Times

During the New Deal era, outstanding works of art were produced by a number of American painters, such as Edward Hopper, Thomas Hart Benton, and Iowa’s Grant Wood, whose work includes the famous painting American Gothic.

The WPA’s Federal Theater Project hired actors to perform plays and artists to provide stage sets and props for theater productions that played around the country. It subsidized the work of important American playwrights, including Clifford Odets, whose play Waiting for Lefty (1935) dramatized the labor struggles of the 1930s.

Woody Guthrie Sings of America

Experiencing firsthand the tragedies of the Depression, singer and songwriter Woody Guthrie used music to capture the hardships of America. Along with thousands of people who were forced by the Dust Bowl to seek a better life, Guthrie traveled the country in search of brighter opportunities, and told of his troubles in his songs.

Woody Guthrie

A PERSONAL VOICE

WOODY GUTHRIE
“ Yes we ramble and we roam And the highway, that’s our home. It’s a never-ending highway For a dust bowl refugee Yes, we wander and we work In your crops and in your fruit, Like the whirlwinds on the desert, That’s the dust bowl refugees.” —“Dust Bowl Refugees”
Copyright © Ludlow Music, Inc., New York, New York.

Guthrie wrote many songs about the plight of Americans during the Depression. His honest lyrics appealed to those who suffered similar hardships.

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Diverse Writers Depict American Life

Many writers received support through yet another WPA program, the Federal Writers’ Project. This project gave the future Pulitzer and Nobel Prize winner Saul Bellow his first writing job. It also helped Richard Wright, an African-American author, complete his acclaimed novel Native Son (1940), about a young man trying to survive in a racist world. Zora Neale Hurston wrote a stirring novel with FWP assistance—Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937), about a young woman growing up in rural Florida.

John Steinbeck, one of this country’s most famous authors, received assistance from the Federal Writers’ Project. He was able to publish his epic novel The Grapes of Wrath (1939), which reveals the lives of Oklahomans who left the Dust Bowl and ended up in California, where their hardships continued. Before his success, however, Steinbeck had endured the difficulties of the Depression like most other writers.

Other books and authors examined the difficulties of life during the 1930s. James T. Farrell’s Studs Lonigan trilogy (1932–1935) provides a bleak picture of working-class life in an Irish neighborhood of Chicago, while Jack Conroy’s novel The Disinherited (1933) portrays the violence and poverty of the Missouri coalfields, where Conroy’s own father and brother died in a mine disaster.

Nevertheless, other writers found hope in the positive values of American culture. The writer James Agee and the photographer Walker Evans collaborated on a book about Alabama sharecroppers, Let Us Now Praise Famous Men (1941). Though it deals with the difficult lives of poor farmers, it portrays the dignity and strength of character in the people it presents. Thornton Wilder’s play Our Town (1938) captures the beauty of small-town life in New England. Although artists and writers recognized America’s flaws, they contributed positively to the New Deal legacy. These intellectuals praised the virtues of American life and took pride in the country’s traditions and accomplishments.

Photo: a sharecropper wears bib overalls and a work shirt

Walker Evans took this photograph of a sharecropper for the influential book Let Us Now Praise Famous Men.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Gone With the Wind

• Orson Welles

• Grant Wood

• Richard Wright

• The Grapes of Wrath

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a web like the one below, filling in the names of those who contributed to each aspect of American culture in the 1930s.

Diagram: provides spaces to list Writers, Movie Stars, Painters, and Radio Stars

Cultural Figures of the 1930s

What contribution did each group make?

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

What type of movies do you think might have been produced if the government had supported moviemaking as part of the New Deal? Use evidence from the chapter to support your response.

4. ANALYZING EFFECTS

How did the entertainment industry affect the economy?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

In your opinion, what were the main benefits of government support for art and literature in the 1930s? Support your response with details from the text. Think About:

• the experiences of Americans in the Great Depression

• the writers who got their start through the FWP

• the subject matter of WPA murals and other New Deal-sponsored art

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Section 5: The Impact of the New Deal

One American’s Story

George Dobbin, a 67-year-old cotton-mill worker, staunchly supported Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his New Deal policies. In an interview for a book entitled These Are Our Lives, compiled by the Federal Writers’ Project, Dobbin explained his feelings about the president.

Photo: Franklin D. Roosevelt shakes hands with a coal miner

A coal miner, Zeno Santinello, shakes hands with Franklin D. Roosevelt as he campaigns in Elm Grove, West Virginia, in 1932.

A PERSONAL VOICE

GEORGE DOBBIN

“ I do think that Roosevelt is the biggest-hearted man we ever had in the White House. … It’s the first time in my recollection that a President ever got up and said, ‘I’m interested in and aim to do somethin’ for the workin’ man.’ Just knowin’ that for once … [there] was a man to stand up and speak for him, a man that could make what he felt so plain nobody could doubt he meant it, has made a lot of us feel a sight [lot] better even when [there] wasn’t much to eat in our homes.”
—quoted in These Are Our Lives

FDR was extremely popular among working-class Americans. Far more important than his personal popularity, however, was the impact of the policies he initiated. Even today, reforms begun under the New Deal continue to influence American politics and society.

New Deal Reforms Endure

During his second term in office, President Roosevelt hinted at plans to launch a Third New Deal. In his inaugural address, the president exclaimed, “I see millions of families trying to live on incomes so meager that the pall of family disaster hangs over them day by day. … I see one third of a nation ill-housed, ill-clad, ill-nourished.”

However, FDR did not favor deficit spending. More importantly, by 1937 the economy had improved enough to convince many Americans that the Depression was finally ending. Although economic troubles still plagued the nation, President

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Roosevelt faced rising pressure from Congress to scale back New Deal programs, which he did. As a result, industrial production dropped again, and the number of unemployed increased from 7.7 million in 1937 to 10.4 million in 1938. By 1939, the New Deal was effectively over, and Roosevelt was increasingly concerned with events in Europe, particularly Hitler’s rise to power in Germany.

Supporters and Critics of the New Deal

Over time, opinions about the New Deal have ranged from harsh criticism to high praise. Most conservatives think President Roosevelt’s policies made the federal government too large and too powerful. They believe that the government stifled free enterprise and individual initiative. Liberal critics, in contrast, argue that President Roosevelt didn’t do enough to socialize the economy and to eliminate social and economic inequalities. Supporters of the New Deal contend, however, that the president struck a reasonable balance between two extremes—unregulated capitalism and overregulated socialism—and helped the country recover from its economic difficulties. One of Roosevelt’s top advisers made this assessment of the president’s goals.

A PERSONAL VOICE

REXFORD TUGWELL

“ He had in mind a comprehensive welfare concept, infused with a stiff tincture of morality. … He wanted all Americans to grow up healthy and vigorous and to be practically educated. He wanted business men to work within a set of understood rules. Beyond this he wanted people free to vote, to worship, to behave as they wished so long as a moral code was respected; and he wanted officials to behave as though office were a public trust.”
—quoted in Redeeming the Time

Point

“The New Deal transformed the way American government works.”

Supporters of the New Deal believe that it was successful. Many historians and journalists make this judgment by using the economic criterion of creating jobs. The New Republic, for example, argued that the short-comings of the WPA “are insignificant beside the gigantic fact that it has given jobs and sustenance to a minimum of 1,400,000 and a maximum of 3,300,000 persons for five years.”

Some historians stress that the New Deal was more than a temporary solution to a crisis. Professor A. A. Berle stated that, “human beings cannot indefinitely be sacrificed by millions to the operation of economic forces.”

According to the historian William E. Luechtenburg, “It is hard to think of another period in the whole history of the republic that was so fruitful or of a crisis that was met with as much imagination.”

To Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Allan Nevins, the New Deal was a turning point in which the U.S. government assumed a greater responsibility for the economic welfare of its citizens.

Counterpoint

“Many more problems have been created than solved by the New Deal.”

Critics of the New Deal believe that it failed to reach its goals. The historian Barton J. Bernstein accepted the goals of the New Deal but declared that they were never met. To him, the New Deal “failed to raise the impoverished, it failed to redistribute income, [and] it failed to extend equality.”

In Senator Robert A. Taft’s opinion, “many more problems have been created than solved” by the New Deal. He maintained, “Whatever else has resulted from the great increase in government activity … it has certainly had the effect of checking private enterprise completely. This country was built up by the constant establishment of new business and the expansion of old businesses. … In the last six years this process has come to an end because of government regulation and the development of a tax system which penalizes hard work and success.” Senator Taft claimed that “The government should gradually withdraw from the business of lending money and leave that function to private capital under proper regulation.”

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Expanding Government’s Role in the Economy

The Roosevelt administration expanded the power of the federal government, giving it—and particularly the president—a more active role in shaping the economy. It did this by infusing the nation’s economy with millions of dollars, by creating federal jobs, by attempting to regulate supply and demand, and by increasing the government’s active participation in settling labor and management disputes. The federal government also established agencies, such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), to regulate banking and investment activities. Although the New Deal did not end the Great Depression, it did help reduce the suffering of thousands of men, women, and children by providing them with jobs, food, and money. It also gave people hope and helped them to regain a sense of dignity.

The federal government had to go deeply into debt to provide jobs and aid to the American people. The federal deficit increased to $2.9 billion in fiscal year 1934. As a result of the cutbacks in federal spending made in 1937–1938, the deficit dropped to $100 million. But the next year it rose again, to $2.9 billion. What really ended the Depression, however, was the massive amount of spending by the federal government for guns, tanks, ships, airplanes, and all the other equipment and supplies the country needed for the World War II effort. During the war, the deficit reached a high of about $54.5 billion in 1943.

Photo: several men squat on a sidewalk in front of a store

Unemployed workers sit on a street in a 1936 photograph by Dorothea Lange. Graph: Federal Deficit 1933 - 1945

Description:

Graph: Federal Deficit in billions of dollars for fiscal year ending June 30, 1933 - 1945. Numbers are approximate.

1933: 2.5
1934: 4.0
1935: 2.5
1936: 4.9
1937: 2.0
1938: 1.0
1939: 3.5
1940: 4.0
1941: 4.9
1942: 20.5
1943: 54.9
1944: 47.5
1945: 47.5

Description:

Graph: Unemployment in millions of people 1933 - 1945. Numbers are approximate.

1933: 13.0
1934: 11.2
1935: 10.7
1936: 9.0
1937: 7.9
1938: 10.4
1939: 9.5
1940: 8.1
1941: 5.8
1942: 2.8
1943: 1.0
1944: 0.8
1945: 1.0

Federal Deficit and Unemployment, 1933–1945 724

Protecting Workers’ Rights

One of the areas in which New Deal policies have had a lasting effect is the protection of workers’ rights. New Deal legislation, such as the Wagner Act and the Fair Labor Standards Act, set standards for wages and hours, banned child labor, and ensured the right of workers to organize and to bargain collectively with employers. Today, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), created under the Wagner Act, continues to act as a mediator in labor disputes between unions and employers.

Banking and Finance

New Deal programs established new policies in the area of banking and finance. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), created in 1934, continues to monitor the stock market and enforce laws regarding the sale of stocks and bonds. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), created by the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, has shored up the banking system by reassuring individual depositors that their savings are protected against loss in the event of a bank failure. Today, individual accounts in United States federal banks are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for up to $100,000.

Now & Then: Social Security

Today the Social Security system continues to rely on mandatory contributions paid by workers—through payroll deductions—and by employers. The money is invested in a trust fund, from which retirement benefits are later paid. However, several problems have surfaced. For example, benefits have expanded, and Americans live longer than they did in 1935. Also, the ratio of workers to retirees is shrinking: fewer people are contributing to the system relative to the number who are eligible to receive benefits.

The long-range payment of benefits may be in jeopardy because of the large number of recipients. Continuing disagreement about how to address the costs has prevented legislative action.

Poster for Social Security: A monthly check to you for the rest of your life, beginning when you are 65.

A Social Security poster proclaims the benefits of the system for those who are 65 or older.

Social and Environmental Effects

New Deal economic and financial reforms, including the creation of the FDIC, the SEC, and Social Security, have helped to stabilize the nation’s finances and economy. Although the nation still experiences economic downturns, known as recessions, people’s savings are insured, and they can receive unemployment compensation if they lose their jobs.

Social Security

One of the most important legacies of the New Deal has been that the federal government has assumed some responsibility for the social welfare of its citizens. Under President Roosevelt, the government undertook the creation of a Social Security system that would help a large number of needy Americans receive some assistance.

The Social Security Act provides an old-age insurance program, an unemployment compensation system, and aid to the disabled and families with dependent children. It has had a major impact on the lives of millions of Americans since its founding in 1935.

The Rural Scene

New Deal policies also had a signifi-cant impact on the nation’s agriculture. New Deal farm legislation set quotas on the production of crops such as wheat to control surpluses. Under the second Agricultural Adjustment Act, passed in 1938, loans were made to farmers by the Commodity Credit Corporation. The value of a loan was determined by the amount of a farmer’s surplus crops and the parity price, a price intended to keep farmers’ income steady. Establishing agricultural price supports set a precedent of federal aid to farmers that continued into the 2000s. Other government programs, such as rural electrification, helped to improve conditions in rural America.

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The Environment

Americans also continue to benefit from New Deal efforts to protect the environment. President Roosevelt was highly committed to conservation and promoted policies designed to protect the nation’s natural resources. The Civilian Conservation Corps planted trees, created hiking trails, and built fire lookout towers. The Soil Conservation Service taught farmers how to conserve the soil through contour plowing, terracing, and crop rotation. Congress also passed the Taylor Grazing Act in 1934 to help reduce grazing on public lands. Such grazing had contributed to the erosion that brought about the dust storms of the 1930s.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) harnessed water power to generate electricity and to help prevent disastrous floods in the Tennessee Valley. The government also added to the national park system in the 1930s, established new wildlife refuges and set aside large wilderness areas. On the other hand, government-sponsored stripmining and coal burning caused air, land, and water pollution.

The New Deal legacy has many dimensions. It brought hope and gratitude from some people for the benefits and protections they received. It also brought anger and criticism from those who believed that it took more of their money in taxes and curtailed their freedom through increased government regulations. The deficit spending necessary to fund New Deal programs grew immensely as the nation entered World War II.

Cartoon: FDR carries a New Deal Program in his pocket as he whips a snail labeled Congeressional Action.

This 1933 cartoon depicts Roosevelt spurring on a slow-moving Congress with his many reform policies.

Section 5: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

• Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

• National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)

• parity

• Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a cluster diagram like the one below, show long-term effects of the New Deal.

Diagram: provides spaces to list five of the New Deal's Long-Term Effects Which long-term benefit do you think has had the most impact? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING GENERALIZATIONS

Some critics have charged that the New Deal was antibusiness and anti–free enterprise. Explain why you agree or disagree with this charge. Think About:

• the expanded power of the federal government

• the New Deal’s effect on the economy

• the New Deal’s effect on the American people

4. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

How successful do you think Franklin Roosevelt was as a president? Support your answer with details from the text.

5. INTERPRETING VISUAL SOURCES

Look at the political cartoon above. What does it suggest about Roosevelt’s leadership and the role of Congress? Explain.

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INTERACTIVE

Geography Spotlight: The Tennessee Valley Authority

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federal agency that was established in 1933 to construct dams and power plants along the Tennessee River and its tributaries. The Tennessee River basin is one of the largest river basins in the United States, and people who live in this area have a number of common concerns. The TVA has helped the region in various ways: through flood and navigation control, the conservation of natural resources, and the generation of electric power, as well as through agricultural and industrial development.

The Tennessee Valley covers parts of seven states. Thus, the TVA became an enormous undertaking, eventually comprising dozens of major dams, each with associated power plants, recreational facilities, and navigation aids.

Illustration: hydroelectric dam with five text labels shows water flow with arrows

HYDROELECTRIC DAM A hydroelectric dam uses water power to create electricity. The deeper the reservoir, the greater is the force pushing water through the dam.

A The water is forced through the intake and into the penstock.

B The water force spins the blades of the turbine.

C The turbine drives the generator.

D The generator produces electricity and transmits it through the power lines.

E Once it passes through the turbine, the water reenters the river.

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 727 Map: shows the Tennessee River watershed, a wide area emcompassing primarily parts of Tennessee and North Carolina, the region served by TVA power, an area extending beyond the watershed into bordering states, and the location of three dams.

Map: shows the Tennessee River watershed, a wide area emcompassing primarily parts of Tennessee and North Carolina, the region served by TVA power, an area extending beyond the watershed into bordering states, and the location of three dams.

1 KENTUCKY DAM

Over a mile and a half long and 206 feet high, the Kentucky Dam created the 184-mile-long Kentucky Lake, a paradise for fishing.

2 THE CUMBERLAND RIVER

A similar series of dams, operated by the Corps of Engineers, is found on the Cumberland River. This system cooperates with the TVA.

3 NORRIS DAM

Located on the Clinch River, a tributary of the Tennessee River, the Norris Dam is named after Senator George W. Norris of Nebraska. Norris was a progressive leader who called for government involvement in the development of the power potential of the Tennessee River.

Photo: Outside, women wash clothes in washtubs.

Before 1930, most homes in the area had no electricity. Women wash clothes outside this homestead near Andersonville, Tennessee, in 1933. Their estate was submerged when the Norris Dam filled. 728

Chapter 23: Assessment

Visual Summary: The New Deal Problems

• Industries and farms failed.

• U.S. stock market crashed and banks closed.

• Bankrupt businesses

• Unemployment

• Homelessness

Poster: CCC, A Young Man's Opportunity for Work, Play, Study, and Health

Solutions

• Work projects help the unemployed.

• Money given to farmers, sharecroppers, and migrant workers

• New opportunities for women and minorities

• Social Security Act allocates money to the elderly, the unemployed, and the disabled.

• NLRB protects workers’ rights.

• SEC monitors stock market.

• FDIC protects individuals’ deposits in banks.

• Fireside chats increase public confidence.

Continuing Effects

• Banking and finance are reformed.

• Government takes a more active role in the economy.

• Workers benefit from labor standards.

• Social Security system continues to provide for the needy.

• Conservation efforts continue to preserve the environment.

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its historical significance or contribution to the New Deal.

1. Franklin Delano Roosevelt

2. New Deal

3. Eleanor Roosevelt

4. Works Progress

5. Social Security Act

6. Mary McCloud Bethune

7. Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)

8. Orson Welles Administration (WPA)

9. Richard Wright

10. Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

A New Deal Fights the Depression (pages 694–700)

1. How did Franklin Roosevelt change the role of the federal government during his first Hundred Days?

2. Summarize the reasons why some people opposed the New Deal.

The Second New Deal Takes Hold (pages 701–707)

3. In what ways did the New Deal programs extend federal aid?

4. How did the Wagner Act help working people?

The New Deal Affects Many Groups (pages 710–715)

5. Summarize the impact the New Deal had on various ethnic groups.

6. Why did many urban voters support Roosevelt and the Democratic party?

Culture in the 1930s (pages 716–720)

7. What purpose did movies and radio serve during the Great Depression?

8. Explain how the New Deal programs supported artists and writers in the 1930s.

The Impact of the New Deal (pages 721–725)

9. List five New Deal agencies that are still in place today.

10. What benefits did the Tennessee Valley Authority provide? What negative impact did it have?

Thinking Critically

1. USING YOUR NOTES Copy the web below and fill it in with actions that Americans took to end the economic crisis of the 1930s.

Diagram: provides five spaces to list American Actions to End Economic Crisis

2. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE What federal programs instituted in the 1930s and later discontinued might be of use to the nation today? Explain and support your opinion in a paragraph or two.

729 Standardized Test Practice

Use the information on the time line and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

1933 Congress passes AAA, NIRA 1935 Supreme Court strikes down NIRA; Congress passes NLRA 1936 Supreme Court strikes down AAA 1937 FDR proposes court reform bill; Congress rejects court reform bill 1938 Congress passes second AAA

1. The Supreme Court killed several New Deal programs by declaring them unconstitutional. Which of the following resulted from those decisions?

A FDR packed the Court with New Deal supporters.

B Congress created replacement programs.

C The New Deal lost popular support.

D The power of the federal government was expanded.

2. What was the purpose of the Glass-Steagall Act?

F to combat unemployment

G to provide home mortgage loans

H to assist farmers

J to regulate the banking system

Use the quotation and your knowledge of United States history to answer question 3.

“Little by little the American federation is transforming itself into a union, marked by the growth in importance of the role of the federal capital. In the beginning, the United States had only a small federal bureaucracy. Today the central administration is powerful and rich.”
—André Maurois, This Was America

3. Author André Maurois traveled through the United States in the 1930s and observed a growing unity in the American people. How did the New Deal help to bring Americans closer together?

A The New Deal involved the federal government trying to fix a national problem.

B New Deal jobs and public works programs gave people something to agree upon.

C President Roosevelt, who designed the New Deal, was elected four times.

D The New Deal encouraged the spread of popular culture through radio and the movies.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 693:

How would you begin to revive the economy?

Now that you have read the chapter, do you think President Roosevelt adequately addressed the needs of the ailing economy? Do you think his New Deal policies extended far enough to restore public confidence? Support your opinions with examples.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video “A Song for His People.” Discuss the following questions in a group. Then do the activity.

• Why were thousands of Mexican Americans sent back to Mexico in the 1930s?

• Why did Pedro J. González become a hero to many Mexican Americans?

Cooperative Learning Activity Write and present a short broadcast, such as González might have given, in which you comment on the New Deal’s effects on immigrants and minorities.

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Unit 7: World War II and its Aftermath 1931–1960

Chapter 24 World War Looms 1931–1941

Chapter 25 The United States in World War II 1941–1945

Chapter 26 Cold War Conflicts 1945–1960

Chapter 27 The Postwar Boom 1946–1960

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Chapter 24: World War Looms

Photo: Hitler and troops with Nazi flags. A title: World War Looms

Flanked by storm troopers, Adolf Hitler arrives at a Nazi rally in September 1934. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 732 and page 733 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1931 - 1936 USA and World

1931 USA: The Empire State Building opens in New York City.
1931 World: Japan conquers Manchuria, in northern China.
1932 USA: Franklin Delano Roosevelt is elected president.
1933 World: Adolf Hitler is appointed German chancellor and sets up Dachau concentration camp.
1933 USA: Prohibition ends.
1934 World: Stalin begins great purge in USSR.
1934 World: Chinese communists flee in the Long March.
1936 USA: Jessee Owens wins four gold medals at Olympics in Berlin, Germany.
1936 USA: Roosevelt is reelected.
1936 World: Ethiopia's Halie Selassie asks League of Nations for help against Italian invasion.
1936: General Francisco Franco leads a fascist rebellion in Spain.

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In the summer of 1939, President Franklin Roosevelt addresses an anxious nation in response to atrocities in Europe committed by Hitler’s Nazi Germany. Roosevelt declares in his broadcast that the United States “will remain a neutral nation.” He acknowledges, however, that he “cannot ask that every American remain neutral in thought.”

Why might the United States try to remain neutral?

Examine the Issues

• How might involvement in a large scale war influence the United States?

• How can neutral countries participate in the affairs of warring countries?

Photo: Nazi soldiers carry flags bearing a swastika

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Description:

Timeline: 1937 - 1941 USA and World

1937 USA: Amelia Earhart mysteriously disappears attempting solo round-the-world flight.
1938 USA: Orson Welles broadcasts The War of the Worlds, a fictional alien invasion.
1938 World: Kristallnacht - Nazis riot, destroying Jewish neighborhoods.
1939 World: Germany invades Poland. Britain and France declare war.
1940 USA: Roosevelt is elected to a third term.
1941 USA: United States enters World War II.
1941 World: Japan bombs Pearl Harbor.

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Section 1: Dictators Threaten World Peace

One American’s Story

Martha Gellhorn arrived in Madrid in 1937 to cover the brutal civil war that had broken out in Spain the year before. Hired as a special correspondent for Collier’s Weekly, she had come with very little money and no special protection. On assignment there, she met the writer Ernest Hemingway, whom she later married. To Gellhorn, a young American writer, the Spanish Civil War was a deadly struggle between tyranny and democracy. For the people of Madrid, it was also a daily struggle for survival.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARTHA GELLHORN

“ You would be walking down a street, hearing only the city noises of streetcars and automobiles and people calling to one another, and suddenly, crushing it all out, would be the huge stony deep booming of a falling shell, at the corner. There was no place to run, because how did you know that the next shell would not be behind you, or ahead, or to the left or right?”
—The Face of War

Less than two decades after the end of World War I—“the war to end all wars”—fighting erupted again in Europe and in Asia. As Americans read about distant battles, they hoped the conflicts would remain on the other side of the world.

Martha Gellhorn, one of the first women war correspondents, began her career during the Spanish Civil War.

Nationalism Grips Europe and Asia

The seeds of new conflicts had been sown in World War I. For many nations, peace had brought not prosperity but revolution fueled by economic depression and struggle. The postwar years also brought the rise of powerful dictators driven by the belief in nationalism—loyalty to one’s country above all else—and dreams of territorial expansion.

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Photo: children build a tower with bundles of German marks

Photo: a German bill valued at 5,000,000 marks

Germany was expected to pay off huge debts while dealing with widespread poverty. By 1923, an inflating economy made a five-million German mark worth less than a penny. Here children build blocks with stacks of useless German marks.

Failures of the World War i Peace Settlement

Instead of securing a “just and secure peace,” the Treaty of Versailles caused anger and resentment. Germans saw nothing fair in a treaty that blamed them for starting the war. Nor did they find security in a settlement that stripped them of their overseas colonies and border territories. These problems overwhelmed the Weimar Republic, the democratic government set up in Germany after World War I. Similarly, the Soviets resented the carving up of parts of Russia. (See map, Chapter 19, p. 606.)

The peace settlement had not fulfilled President Wilson’s hope of a world “safe for democracy.” New democratic governments that emerged in Europe after the war floundered. Without a democratic tradition, people turned to authoritarian leaders to solve their economic and social problems. The new democracies collapsed, and dictators were able to seize power. Some had great ambitions.

Joseph Stalin Transforms the Soviet Union

In Russia, hopes for democracy gave way to civil war, resulting in the establishment of a communist state, officially called the Soviet Union, in 1922. After V. I. Lenin died in 1924, Joseph Stalin, whose last name means “man of steel,” took control of the country. Stalin focused on creating a model communist state. In so doing, he made both agricultural and industrial growth the prime economic goals of the Soviet Union. Stalin abolished all privately owned farms and replaced them with collectives—large government-owned farms, each worked by hundreds of families.

Stalin moved to transform the Soviet Union from a backward rural nation into a great industrial power. In 1928, the Soviet dictator outlined the first of several “five-year plans,” to direct the industrialization. All economic activity was placed under state management. By 1937, the Soviet Union had become the world’s second-largest industrial power, surpassed in overall production only by the United States. The human costs of this transformation, however, were enormous.

In his drive to purge, or eliminate, anyone who threatened his power, Stalin did not spare even his most faithful supporters. While the final toll will never be known, historians estimate that Stalin was responsible for the deaths of 8 million to 13 million people. Millions more died in famines caused by the restructuring of Soviet society.

By 1939, Stalin had firmly established a totalitarian government that tried to exert complete control over its citizens. In a totalitarian state, individuals have no rights, and the government suppresses all opposition.

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Map: The Rise of Nationalism 1922 - 1941. Colored areas with labels show Communist dictatorship in the Soviet Union, Fascist dictatorships in Germany, Italy, and Spain, and Imperialist military regime in Japan.

The Rise of Nationalism, 1922–1941 Joseph Stalin grabs control of the Soviet Union in 1924 and squelches all opposition after V. I. Lenin, founder of the communist regime, dies. Adolf Hitler offers economic stability to unemployed Germans during the Great Depression and becomes chancellor in 1933. Benito Mussolini rises to power in 1922 and attempts to restore Italy to its former position as a world power. Francisco Franco leads the rebel Nationalist army to victory in Spain and gains complete control of the country in 1939. Hideki Tojo, the force behind Japanese strategy, becomes Japan’s prime minister in 1941. Emperor Hirohito becomes a powerless figurehead.

The Rise of Fascism in Italy

While Stalin was consolidating his power in the Soviet Union, Benito Mussolini was establishing a totalitarian regime in Italy, where unemployment and inflation produced bitter strikes, some communist-led. Alarmed by these threats, the middle and upper classes demanded stronger leadership. Mussolini took advantage of this situation. A powerful speaker, Mussolini knew how to appeal to Italy’s wounded national pride. He played on the fears of economic collapse and communism. In this way, he won the support of many discontented Italians.

“ Italy wants peace, work, and calm. I will give these things with love if possible, with force if necessary.”

BENITO MUSSOLINI

By 1921, Mussolini had established the Fascist Party. Fascism (făsh′ĭz′ əm) stressed nationalism and placed the interests of the state above those of individuals. To strengthen the nation, Fascists argued, power must rest with a single strong leader and a small group of devoted party members. (The Latin fasces—a bundle of rods tied around an ax handle—had been a symbol of unity and authority in ancient Rome.)

In October 1922, Mussolini marched on Rome with thousands of his followers, whose black uniforms gave them the name “Black Shirts.” When important government officials, the army, and the police sided with the Fascists, the Italian king appointed Mussolini head of the government.

Calling himself Il Duce, or “the leader,” Mussolini gradually extended Fascist control to every aspect of Italian life. Tourists marveled that Il Duce had even “made the trains run on time.” Mussolini achieved this efficiency, however, by crushing all opposition and by making Italy a totalitarian state.

737 The Faces of Totalitarianism Left to right: Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin Fascist Italy

Photo: Benito Mussolini

• Extreme nationalism

• Militaristic expansionism

• Charismatic leader

• Private property with strong government controls

• Anticommunist

Nazi Germany

Photo: Adolf Hitler

• Extreme nationalism and racism

• Militaristic expansionism

• Forceful leader

• Private property with strong government controls

• Anticommunist

Communist Soviet Union

Photo: Joseph Stalin

• Create a sound communist state and wait for world revolution

• Revolution by workers

• Eventual rule by working class

• State ownership of property

The Nazis Take Over Germany

In Germany, Adolf Hitler had followed a path to power similar to Mussolini’s. At the end of World War I, Hitler had been a jobless soldier drifting around Germany. In 1919, he joined a struggling group called the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, better known as the Nazi Party. Despite its name, this party had no ties to socialism.

Hitler proved to be such a powerful public speaker and organizer that he quickly became the party’s leader. Calling himself Der Führer—“the Leader”—he promised to bring Germany out of chaos.

In his book Mein Kampf [My Struggle], Hitler set forth the basic beliefs of Nazism that became the plan of action for the Nazi Party. Nazism (nätPsGzQEm), the German brand of fascism, was based on extreme nationalism. Hitler, who had been born in Austria, dreamed of uniting all German-speaking people in a great German empire.

Hitler also wanted to enforce racial “purification” at home. In his view, Germans—especially blue-eyed, blond-haired “Aryans”—formed a “master race” that was destined to rule the world. “Inferior races,” such as Jews, Slavs, and all nonwhites, were deemed fit only to serve the Aryans.

A third element of Nazism was national expansion. Hitler believed that for Germany to thrive, it needed more lebensraum, or living space. One of the Nazis’ aims, as Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf, was “to secure for the German people the land and soil to which they are entitled on this earth,” even if this could be accomplished only by “the might of a victorious sword.”

The Great Depression helped the Nazis come to power. Because of war debts and dependence on American loans and investments, Germany’s economy was hit hard. By 1932, some 6 million Germans were unemployed. Many men who were out of work joined Hitler’s private army, the storm troopers (or Brown Shirts). The German people were desperate and turned to Hitler as their last hope.

By mid 1932, the Nazis had become the strongest political party in Germany. In January 1933, Hitler was appointed chancellor (prime minister). Once in power, Hitler quickly dismantled Germany’s democratic Weimar Republic. In its place he established the Third Reich, or Third German Empire. According to Hitler, the Third Reich would be a “Thousand-Year Reich”—it would last for a thousand years.

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Two maps with labels: Japan Invades Manchuria 1931. Arrows show Japan mounting its invasion through the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea. Italy Invades Ethiopia 1935 - 1936. Arrows show Italy mounting its invasion through the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, and the Indian Ocean.

Japan Invades Manchuria, 1931 Italy Invades Ethiopia, 1935–1936 Japan took control of the southern half of Sakhalin Island in 1905. In 1910, Korea was annexed by Japan.

Militarists Gain Control in Japan

Halfway around the world, nationalistic military leaders were trying to take control of the imperial government of Japan. These leaders shared in common with Hitler a belief in the need for more living space for a growing population. Ignoring the protests of more moderate Japanese officials, the militarists launched a surprise attack and seized control of the Chinese province of Manchuria in 1931. Within several months, Japanese troops controlled the entire province, a large region about twice the size of Texas, that was rich in natural resources.

The watchful League of Nations had been established after World War I to prevent just such aggressive acts. In this greatest test of the League’s power, representatives were sent to Manchuria to investigate the situation. Their report condemned Japan, who in turn simply quit the League. Meanwhile, the success of the Manchurian invasion put the militarists firmly in control of Japan’s government.

Aggression in Europe and Africa

The failure of the League of Nations to take action against Japan did not escape the notice of Europe’s dictators. In 1933, Hitler pulled Germany out of the League. In 1935, he began a military buildup in violation of the Treaty of Versailles. A year later, he sent troops into the Rhineland, a German region bordering France and Belgium that was demilitarized as a result of the Treaty of Versailles. The League did nothing to stop Hitler.

Background

Military government had centuries-old roots in Japan. The shogun lords of the Middle Ages had been military leaders.

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Meanwhile, Mussolini began building his new Roman Empire. His first target was Ethiopia, one of Africa’s few remaining independent countries. By the fall of 1935, tens of thousands of Italian soldiers stood ready to advance on Ethiopia. The League of Nations reacted with brave talk of “collective resistance to all acts of unprovoked aggression.”

When the invasion began, however, the League’s response was an ineffective economic boycott—little more than a slap on Italy’s wrist. By May 1936, Ethiopia had fallen. In desperation, Haile Selassie, the ousted Ethiopian emperor, appealed to the League for assistance. Nothing was done. “It is us today,” he told them. “It will be you tomorrow.”

Civil War Breaks Out in Spain

In 1936, a group of Spanish army officers led by General Francisco Franco, rebelled against the Spanish republic. Revolts broke out all over Spain, and the Spanish Civil War began. The war aroused passions not only in Spain but throughout the world. About 3,000 Americans formed the Abraham Lincoln Battalion and traveled to Spain to fight against Franco. “We knew, we just knew,” recalled Martha Gellhorn, “that Spain was the place to stop fascism.” Among the volunteers were African Americans still bitter about Mussolini’s invasion of Ethiopia the year before.

Such limited aid was not sufficient to stop the spread of fascism, however. The Western democracies remained neutral. Although the Soviet Union sent equipment and advisers, Hitler and Mussolini backed Franco’s forces with troops, weapons, tanks, and fighter planes. The war forged a close relationship between the German and Italian dictators, who signed a formal alliance known as the Rome-Berlin Axis. After a loss of almost 500,000 lives, Franco’s victory in 1939 established him as Spain’s fascist dictator. Once again a totalitarian government ruled in Europe.

Historical Spotlight: African Americans Stand by Ethiopians Photo: Haile Selassie

When Mussolini invaded Ethiopia, many Europeans and Americans—especially African Americans—were outraged. Almost overnight, African Americans organized to raise money for medical supplies, and a few went to fight in Ethiopia. Years later, the Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie (shown above) said of these efforts,

“We can never forget the help Ethiopia received from Negro Americans during the terrible crisis. … It moved me to know that Americans of African descent did not abandon their embattled brothers, but stood by us.”

Photo: a man carrying a child runs away from smoking buildings

A French journalist escapes from Spain to France with a child he rescued from a street battle. Fighting would soon engulf not only France but the rest of Europe and parts of Asia. 740

The United States Responds Cautiously

Most Americans were alarmed by the international conflicts of the mid-1930s but believed that the United States should not get involved. In 1928, the United States had signed the Kellogg-Briand Pact. The treaty was signed by 62 countries and declared that war would not be used “as an instrument of national policy.” Yet it did not include a plan to deal with countries that broke their pledge. The Pact was, therefore, only a small step toward peace.

Americans Cling to Isolationism

In the early 1930s, a flood of books argued that the United States had been dragged into World War I by greedy bankers and arms dealers. Public outrage led to the creation of a congressional committee, chaired by North Dakota Senator Gerald Nye, that held hearings on these charges. The Nye committee fueled the controversy by documenting the large profits that banks and manufacturers made during the war. As the furor grew over these “merchants of death,” Americans became more determined than ever to avoid war. Antiwar feeling was so strong that the Girl Scouts of America changed the color of its uniforms from khaki to green to appear less militaristic.

Americans’ growing isolationism eventually had an impact on President Roosevelt’s foreign policy. When he had first taken office in 1933, Roosevelt felt comfortable reaching out to the world in several ways. He officially recognized the Soviet Union in 1933 and agreed to exchange ambassadors with Moscow. He continued the policy of nonintervention in Latin America—begun by Presidents Coolidge and Hoover—with his Good Neighbor Policy and withdrew armed forces stationed there. In 1934, Roosevelt pushed the Reciprocal Trade Agreement Act through Congress. This act lowered trade barriers by giving the president the power to make trade agreements with other nations and was aimed at reducing

Analyzing Political Cartoons:“The Only Way We Can Save Her”

During the late 1930s, Americans watched events in Europe with growing alarm. Dictators were destroying democratic systems of government throughout Europe and dragging the continent into war. These political events overseas divided American public opinion. Some Americans felt that the United States should help European democracies. However, isolationists—people who believed that the United States should not interfere in other nations’ affairs—strictly opposed getting involved in the disputes of “war-mad Europe.”

Cartoon: A woman labeled democracy kneels at Uncle Sam's feet on land labeled America the Last Refuge. She begs him to stay out! Stay out for my sake, as well as your own! Across the ocean, smoke rises from War Mad Europe.

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tariffs by as much as 50 percent. In an effort to keep the United States out of future wars, beginning in 1935, Congress passed a series of Neutrality Acts. The first two acts outlawed arms sales or loans to nations at war. The third act was passed in response to the fighting in Spain. This act extended the ban on arms sales and loans to nations engaged in civil wars.

Neutrality Breaks Down

Despite congressional efforts to legislate neutrality, Roosevelt found it impossible to remain neutral. When Japan launched a new attack on China in July 1937, Roosevelt found a way around the Neutrality Acts. Because Japan had not formally declared war against China, the president claimed there was no need to enforce the Neutrality Acts. The United States continued sending arms and supplies to China. A few months later, Roosevelt spoke out strongly against isolationism in a speech delivered in Chicago. He called on peace-loving nations to “quarantine,” or isolate, aggressor nations in order to stop the spread of war.

A PERSONAL VOICE

FRANLKIN DELANO ROOSEVELT

“ The peace, the freedom, and the security of 90 percent of the population of the world is being jeopardized by the remaining 10 percent who are threatening a breakdown of all international order and law. Surely the 90 percent who want to live in peace under law and in accordance with moral standards that have received almost universal acceptance through the centuries, can and must find some way … to preserve peace.”
—“Quarantine Speech,” October 5, 1937

At last Roosevelt seemed ready to take a stand against aggression—that is, until isolationist newspapers exploded in protest, accusing the president of leading the nation into war. Roosevelt backed off in the face of criticism, but his speech did begin to shift the debate. For the moment the conflicts remained “over there.”

Section 1: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Joseph Stalin

• totalitarian

• Benito Mussolini

• fascism

• Adolf Hitler

• Nazism

• Francisco Franco

• Neutrality Acts

Main Idea

2. Taking Notes

Using a web diagram like the one below, fill it in with the main ambition of each dictator.

Diagram: provides spaces to list Dictator's Ambitions of Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, and Franco.

What ambitions did the dictators have in common?

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING CAUSES

How did the Treaty of Versailles sow the seeds of instability in Europe? Think About:

• effects of the treaty on Germany and the Soviet Union

• effects of the treaty on national pride

• the economic legacy of the war

4. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Why do you think Hitler found widespread support among the German people? Support your answer with details from the text.

5. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

Would powerful nations or weak nations be more likely to follow an isolationist policy? Explain.

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Section 2: War in Europe

One American’s Story

In 1940, CBS correspondent William Shirer stood in the forest near Compiègne, where 22 years earlier defeated German generals had signed the armistice ending World War I. Shirer was now waiting for Adolf Hitler to deliver his armistice terms to a defeated France. He watched as Hitler walked up to the monument and slowly read the inscription: “Here on the eleventh of November 1918 succumbed the criminal pride of the German empire … vanquished by the free peoples which it tried to enslave.” Later that day, Shirer wrote a diary entry describing the führer’s reaction.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WILLIAM SHIRER

“ I have seen that face many times at the great moments of his life. But today! It is afire with scorn, anger, hate, revenge, triumph. He steps off the monument and contrives to make even this gesture a masterpiece of contempt. … He glances slowly around the clearing, and now, as his eyes meet ours, you grasp the depth of his hatred. But there is triumph there too—revengeful, triumphant hate.”
—Berlin Diary: The Journal of a Foreign Correspondent, 1934–1941

William Shirer, a journalist and historian, became well known for his radio broadcasts from Berlin at the beginning of World War II.

Again and again Shirer had heard Hitler proclaim that “Germany needs peace. … Germany wants peace.” The hatred and vengefulness that drove the dictator’s every action, however, drew Germany ever closer to war.

Austria and Czechoslovakia Fall

On November 5, 1937, Hitler met secretly with his top military advisers. He boldly declared that to grow and prosper Germany needed the land of its neighbors. His plan was to absorb Austria and Czechoslovakia into the Third Reich. When one of his advisors protested that annexing those countries could provoke war, Hitler replied, “ ‘The German Question’ can be solved only by means of force, and this is never without risk.”

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Three photos: Hitler reaches out his hands, shakes one fist, and lifts one fist into the air

Key Player: Adolf Hitler 1889–1945

“All great world-shaking events have been brought about not by written matter, but by the spoken word!” declared Adolf Hitler. A shy and awkward speaker at first, Hitler rehearsed carefully. He even had photographs (shown above) taken of his favorite gestures so he could study them and make changes to produce exactly the desired effect.

Hitler’s extraordinary power as a speaker, wrote Otto Strasser, stemmed from an intuitive ability to sense “the vibration of the human heart … telling it what it most wants to hear.”

Union with Austria

Austria was Hitler’s first target. The Paris Peace Conference following World War I had created the relatively small nation of Austria out of what was left of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The majority of Austria’s 6 million people were Germans who favored unification with Germany. On March 12, 1938, German troops marched into Austria unopposed. A day later, Germany announced that its Anschluss, or “union,” with Austria was complete. The United States and the rest of the world did nothing.

Bargaining for the Sudetenland

Hitler then turned to Czechoslovakia. About 3 million German-speaking people lived in the western border regions of Czechoslovakia called the Sudetenland. The mountainous region formed Czechoslovakia’s main defense against German attack. (See map, p. 744.) Hitler wanted to annex Czechoslovakia in order to provide more living space for Germany as well as to control its important natural resources.

Hitler charged that the Czechs were abusing the Sudeten Germans, and he began massing troops on the Czech border. The U.S. correspondent William Shirer, then stationed in Berlin, wrote in his diary: “The Nazi press [is] full of hysterical headlines. All lies. Some examples: ‘Women and Children Mowed Down by Czech Armored Cars,’ or ‘Bloody Regime—New Czech Murders of Germans.’”

Early in the crisis, both France and Great Britain promised to protect Czechoslovakia. Then, just when war seemed inevitable, Hitler invited French premier Édouard Daladier and British prime minister Neville Chamberlain to meet with him in Munich. When they arrived, the führer declared that the annexation of the Sudetenland would be his “last territorial demand.” In their eagerness to avoid war, Daladier and Chamberlain chose to believe him. On September 30, 1938, they signed the Munich Agreement, which turned the Sudetenland over to Germany without a single shot being fired.

Chamberlain returned home and proclaimed: “My friends, there has come back from Germany peace with honor. I believe it is peace in our time.”

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Description:

Map: German Advances 1938 - 1941 shows Axis powers, Axis controlled by December 1941, Allied territory December 1941, and Neutral countries. Arrows show German troop movements.

Axis powers: Germany, Italy, East Prussia, Albania, Luxembourg
Axis controlled by December 1941: Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, western section of Soviet Union, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Austria, Czechoslovakia, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Algeria, Tunisia
Allied territory December 1941: Great Britain, Soviet Union, Iran, Iraq, Syria
Neutral Countries: Sweden, Switzerland, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Turkey
Arrows: German troops move outward from Germany in all directions
Maginot line: on Eastern edge of France

German Advances, 1938–1941

Chamberlain’s satisfaction was not shared by Winston Churchill, Chamberlain’s political rival in Great Britain. In Churchill’s view, by signing the Munich Agreement, Daladier and Chamberlain had adopted a shameful policy of appeasement—or giving up principles to pacify an aggressor. As Churchill bluntly put it, “Britain and France had to choose between war and dishonor. They chose dishonor. They will have war.” Nonetheless, the House of Commons approved Chamberlain’s policy toward Germany and Churchill responded with a warning.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WINSTON CHURCHILL

“ [W]e have passed an awful milestone in our history. … And do not suppose that this is the end. … This is only the first sip, the first foretaste of a bitter cup which will be proffered to us year by year unless, by a supreme recovery of moral health and martial vigor, we arise again and take our stand for freedom as in the olden time.”
—speech to the House of Commons, quoted in The Gathering Storm

The German Offensive Begins

As Churchill had warned, Hitler was not finished expanding the Third Reich. As dawn broke on March 15, 1939, German troops poured into what remained of Czechoslovakia. At nightfall Hitler gloated, “Czechoslovakia has ceased to exist.” After that, the German dictator turned his land-hungry gaze toward Germany’s eastern neighbor, Poland.

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The Soviet Union Declares Neutrality

Like Czechoslovakia, Poland had a sizable German-speaking population. In the spring of 1939, Hitler began his familiar routine, charging that Germans in Poland were mistreated by the Poles and needed his protection. Some people thought that this time Hitler must be bluffing. After all, an attack on Poland might bring Germany into conflict with the Soviet Union, Poland’s eastern neighbor. At the same time, such an attack would most likely provoke a declaration of war from France and Britain—both of whom had promised military aid to Poland. The result would be a two-front war. Fighting on two fronts had exhausted Germany in World War I. Surely, many thought, Hitler would not be foolish enough to repeat that mistake.

As tensions rose over Poland, Stalin surprised everyone by signing a nonaggression pact with Hitler. Once bitter enemies, on August 23, 1939 fascist Germany and communist Russia now committed never to attack each other. Germany and the Soviet Union also signed a second, secret pact, agreeing to divide Poland between them. With the danger of a two-front war eliminated, the fate of Poland was sealed.

Blitzkrieg in Poland

As day broke on September 1, 1939, the German Luftwaffe, or German air force, roared over Poland, raining bombs on military bases, airfields, railroads, and cities. At the same time, German tanks raced across the Polish countryside, spreading terror and confusion. This invasion was the first test of Germany’s newest military strategy, the blitzkrieg, or lightning war. Blitzkrieg made use of advances in military technology—such as fast tanks and more powerful aircraft—to take the enemy by surprise and then quickly crush all opposition with overwhelming force. On September 3, two days following the terror in Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany.

The blitzkrieg tactics worked perfectly. Major fighting was over in three weeks, long before France, Britain, and their allies could mount a defense. In the last week of fighting, the Soviet Union attacked Poland from the east, grabbing some of its territory. The portion Germany annexed in western Poland contained almost two-thirds of Poland’s population. By the end of the month, Poland had ceased to exist—and World War II had begun.

A German tank unit in Western Poland in 1939. Photo: airplane with a swastika insignia on its tail

German Junkers JU-87 dive-bombers, commonly known as Stukas, were a mainstay of Germany’s blitzkrieg style of attack. 746

The Phony War

For the next several months after the fall of Poland, French and British troops on the Maginot Line, a system of fortifications built along France’s eastern border (see map on p. 744), sat staring into Germany, waiting for something to happen. On the Siegfried Line a few miles away German troops stared back. The blitzkrieg had given way to what the Germans called the sitzkrieg (“sitting war”), and what some newspapers referred to as the phony war.

After occupying eastern Poland, Stalin began annexing the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Late in 1939, Stalin sent his Soviet army into Finland. After three months of fighting, the outnumbered Finns surrendered.

Suddenly, on April 9, 1940, Hitler launched a surprise invasion of Denmark and Norway in order “to protect [those countries’] freedom and independence.” But in truth, Hitler planned to build bases along the coasts to strike at Great Britain. Next, Hitler turned against the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg, which were overrun by the end of May. The phony war had ended.

Photo: a soldier sitting in a chair outside

For months there was nothing much to defend against, as the war turned into a sitzkrieg endured by soldiers such as this French one on the Maginot Line.

France and Britain Fight On

France’s Maginot Line proved to be ineffective; the German army threatened to bypass the line during its invasion of Belgium. Hitler’s generals sent their tanks through the Ardennes, a region of wooded ravines in northeast France, thereby avoiding British and French troops who thought the Ardennes were impassable. The Germans continued to march toward Paris.

The Fall of France

The German offensive trapped almost 400,000 British and French soldiers as they fled to the beaches of Dunkirk on the French side of the English Channel. In less than a week, a makeshift fleet of fishing trawlers, tug-boats, river barges, pleasure craft—more than 800 vessels in all—ferried about 330,000 British, French, and Belgian troops to safety across the Channel.

A few days later, Italy entered the war on the side of Germany and invaded France from the south as the Germans closed in on Paris from the north. On June 22, 1940, at Compiègne, as William Shirer and the rest of the world watched, Hitler handed French officers his terms of surrender. Germans would occupy the northern part of France, and a Nazi-controlled puppet government, headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain, would be set up at Vichy, in southern France.

After France fell, a French general named Charles de Gaulle fled to England, where he set up a government-in-exile. De Gaulle proclaimed defiantly, “France has lost a battle, but France has not lost the war.”

The Battle of Britain

In the summer of 1940, the Germans began to assemble an invasion fleet along the French coast. Because its naval power could not compete with that of Britain, Germany also launched an air war at the same time. The Luftwaffe began making bombing

Photo: A dozen children cower in a trench

Children watch with wonder and fear as the battling British and German air forces set the skies of London aflame. 747

runs over Britain. Its goal was to gain total control of the skies by destroying Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF). Hitler had 2,600 planes at his disposal. On a single day—August 15—approximately 2,000 German planes ranged over Britain. Every night for two solid months, bombers pounded London.

The Battle of Britain raged on through the summer and fall. Night after night, German planes pounded British tar-gets. At first the Luftwaffe concentrated on airfields and air-craft. Next it targeted cities. Londoner Len Jones was just 18 years old when bombs fell on his East End neighborhood.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LEN JONES

“ After an explosion of a nearby bomb, you could actually feel your eyeballs being sucked out. I was holding my eyes to try and stop them going. And the suction was so vast, it ripped my shirt away, and ripped my trousers. Then I couldn’t get my breath, the smoke was like acid and everything round me was black and yellow.”
—quoted in London at War

The RAF fought back brilliantly. With the help of a new technological device called radar, British pilots accurately plotted the flight paths of German planes, even in darkness. On September 15, 1940 the RAF shot down over 185 German planes; at the same time, they lost only 26 aircraft. Six weeks later, Hitler called off the invasion of Britain indefinitely. “Never in the field of human conflict,” said Churchill in praise of the RAF pilots, “was so much owed by so many to so few.”

Still, German bombers continued to pound Britain’s cities trying to disrupt production and break civilian morale. British pilots also bombed German cities. Civilians in both countries unrelentingly carried on.

Section 2: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Neville Chamberlain

• Winston Churchill

• appeasement

• nonaggression pact

• blitzkrieg

• Charles de Gaulle

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Trace the movement of German expansion from 1937 to the end of 1940 by supplying events to follow the dates shown on the time line.

Timeline: provides spaces to list events from 1937 to 1940

What event was the most significant? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING MOTIVES

To what extent do you think lies and deception played a role in Hitler’s tactics? Support your answer with examples. Think About:

• William Shirer’s diary entry about headlines in the Nazi newspapers

• Soviet-German relations

• Hitler’s justifications for military aggression

4. EVALUATING DECISIONS

If you had been a member of the British House of Commons in 1938, would you have voted for or against the Munich Agreement? Support your decision.

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Review Germany’s aggressive actions between 1938 and 1945. At what point do you think Hitler concluded that he could take any territory without being stopped? Why?

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Section 3: The Holocaust

One American’s Story

Gerda Weissmann was a carefree girl of 15 when, in September 1939, invading German troops shattered her world. Because the Weissmanns were Jews, they were forced to give up their home to a German family. In 1942, Gerda, her parents, and most of Poland’s 3,000,000 Jews were sent to labor camps. Gerda recalls when members of Hitler’s elite Schutzstaffel, or “security squadron” (SS), came to round up the Jews.

A PERSONAL VOICE

GERDA WEISSMANN KLEIN

“ We had to form a line and an SS man stood there with a little stick. I was holding hands with my mother and … he looked at me and said, ‘How old?’ And I said, ‘eighteen,’ and he sort of pushed me to one side and my mother to the other side. … And shortly thereafter, some trucks arrived … and we were loaded onto the trucks. I heard my mother’s voice from very far off ask, ‘Where to?’ and I shouted back, ‘I don’t know.’”
—quoted in the film One Survivor Remembers

When the American lieutenant Kurt Klein, who would later become Gerda’s husband, liberated her from the Nazis in 1945—just one day before her 21st birthday—she weighed 68 pounds and her hair had turned white. Even so, of all her family and friends, she alone had survived the Nazis’ campaign to exterminate Europe’s Jews.

The Persecution Begins

On April 7, 1933, shortly after Hitler took power in Germany, he ordered all “non-Aryans” to be removed from government jobs. This order was one of the first moves in a campaign for racial purity that eventually led to the Holocaust—the systematic murder of 11 million people across Europe, more than half of whom were Jews.

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On November 17, 1938, two passersby examine the shattered window of a Jewish-owned store in the aftermath of Kristallnacht. Photo: German soldiers march a column of Jewish men along a street. Men in front hold a two-foot-high Star of David.

Photo: German soldiers march a column of Jewish men along a street. Men in front hold a two-foot-high Star of David.

Jewish men holding a “star of David” are rounded up and marched through the streets on their way to a concentration camp.

Jews Targeted

Although Jews were not the only victims of the Holocaust, they were the center of the Nazis’ targets. Anti-Semitism, or hatred of the Jews, had a long history in many European countries. For decades many Germans looking for a scapegoat had blamed the Jews as the cause of their failures. Hitler found that a majority of Germans were willing to support his belief that Jews were responsible for Germany’s economic problems and defeat in World War I.

As the Nazis tightened their hold on Germany, their persecution of the Jews increased. In 1935, the Nuremberg Laws stripped Jews of their German citizenship, jobs, and property. To make it easier for the Nazis to identify them, Jews had to wear a bright yellow Star of David attached to their clothing. Worse was yet to come.

Kristallnacht

November 9–10, 1938, became known as Kristallnacht (krĭs′täl′nächt′), or “Night of Broken Glass.” Nazi storm troopers attacked Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues across Germany. An American who witnessed the violence wrote, “Jewish shop windows by the hundreds were systematically and wantonly smashed. … The main streets of the city were a positive litter of shattered plate glass.” Around 100 Jews were killed, and hundreds more were injured. Some 30,000 Jews were arrested and hundreds of synagogues were burned. Afterward, the Nazis blamed the Jews for the destruction.

A Flood of Jewish refugees

Kristallnacht marked a step-up in the Nazi policy of Jewish persecution. Nazis tried to speed Jewish emigration but encountered difficulty. Jews fleeing Germany had trouble finding nations that would accept them. France already had 40,000 Jewish refugees and did not want more. The British worried about fueling anti-Semitism and refused to admit more than 80,000 Jewish refugees. They also controlled Palestine (later Israel) and allowed 30,000 refugees to settle there. Late in 1938, Germany’s foreign minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop, observed, “We all want to get rid of our Jews. The difficulty is that no country wishes to receive them.”

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Mural: Albert Einstein and other immigrants

Muralist Ben Shahn depicts the 1933 emigration of Albert Einstein and thousands of other Jews to America to escape Nazi terrorism.

Although the average Jew had little chance of reaching the United States, “persons of exceptional merit,” including physicist Albert Einstein, author Thomas Mann, architect Walter Gropius, and theologian Paul Tillich were among 100,000 refugees the United States accepted. Many Americans wanted the door closed. Americans were concerned that letting in more refugees during the Great Depression would deny U.S. citizens jobs and threaten economic recovery. Among Americans, there was widespread anti-Semitism and fear that “enemy agents” would be allowed to enter the country. President Roosevelt said that while he sympathized with the Jews, he would not “do anything which would conceivably hurt the future of present American citizens.”

The Plight of the ST. Louis

Official indifference to the plight of Germany’s Jews was in evidence in the case of the ship St. Louis. This German ocean liner passed Miami in 1939. Although 740 of the liner’s 943 passengers had U.S. immigration papers, the Coast Guard followed the ship to prevent anyone from disembarking in America. The ship was forced to return to Europe. “The cruise of the St. Louis,” wrote the New York Times, “cries to high heaven of man’s inhumanity to man.” Passenger Liane Reif-Lehrer recalls her childhood experiences.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LIANE REIF-LEHRER

“ My mother and brother and I were among the passengers who survived. … We were sent back to Europe and given haven in France, only to find the Nazis on our doorstep again a few months later.”
—Liane Reif-Lehrer

More than half of the passengers were later killed in the Holocaust.

Hitler’s “Final Solution”

By 1939 only about a quarter million Jews remained in Germany. But other nations that Hitler occupied had millions more. Obsessed with a desire to rid Europe of its Jews, Hitler imposed what he called the “Final Solution”—a policy of genocide, the deliberate and systematic killing of an entire population.

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The Condemned

Hitler’s Final Solution rested on the belief that Aryans were a superior people and that the strength and purity of this “master race” must be preserved. To accomplish this, the Nazis condemned to slavery and death not only the Jews but other groups that they viewed as inferior or unworthy or as “enemies of the state.”

After taking power in 1933, the Nazis had concentrated on silencing their political opponents—communists, socialists, liberals, and anyone else who spoke out against the government. Once the Nazis had eliminated these enemies, they turned against other groups in Germany. In addition to Jews, these groups included the following:

• Gypsies—whom the Nazis believed to be an “inferior race”

• Freemasons—whom the Nazis charged as supporters of the “Jewish conspiracy” to rule the world

• Jehovah’s Witnesses—who refused to join the army or salute Hitler

The Nazis also targeted other Germans whom they found unfit to be part of the “master race.” Such victims included homosexuals, the mentally deficient, the mentally ill, the physically disabled, and the incurably ill.

Hitler began implementing his Final Solution in Poland with special Nazi death squads. Hitler’s elite Nazi “security squadrons” (or SS), rounded up Jews—men, women, children, and babies—and shot them on the spot.

Forced Relocation

Jews also were ordered into dismal, overcrowded ghettos, segregated Jewish areas in certain Polish cities. The Nazis sealed off the ghettos with barbed wire and stone walls.

Life inside the ghetto was miserable. The bodies of victims piled up in the streets faster than they could be removed. Factories were built alongside ghettos where people were forced to work for German industry. In spite of the impossible living conditions, the Jews hung on. While some formed resistance movements inside the ghettos, others resisted by other means. They published and distributed underground newspapers. Secret schools were set up to educate Jewish children. Even theater and music groups continued to operate.

Estimated Jewish Losses
		Number Killed
Pre-Holocaust Population		Low Estimate	High Estimate
Austria	191,000	50,000	65,500
Belgium	60,000	25,000	29,000
Bohemia/Moravia	92,000	77,000	78,300
Denmark	8,000	60	116
Estonia	4,600	1,500	2,000
France	260,000	75,000	77,000
Germany	566,000	135,000	142,000
Greece	73,000	59,000	67,000
Hungary	725,000	502,000	569,000
Italy	48,000	6,500	9,000
Latvia	95,000	70,000	72,000
Lithuania	155,000	130,000	143,000
Luxembourg	3,500	1,000	2,000
Netherlands	112,000	100,000	105,000
Norway	1,700	800	800
Poland	3,250,000	2,700,000	3,000,000
Romania	441,000	121,000	287,000
Slovakia	89,000	60,000	71,000
USSR	2,825,000	700,000	1,100,000
Yugoslavia	68,000	56,000	65,000
TOTALS	9,067,800	4,869,860	5,894,716
Source: Columbia Guide to the Holocaust

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On May 9, 1945, inmates at the Ebensee concentration camp in Austria were liberated by U.S. soldiers. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 752 and page 753 in the print version.

Concentration Camps

Finally, Jews in communities not reached by the killing squads were dragged from their homes and herded onto trains or trucks for shipment to concentration camps, or labor camps. Families were often separated, sometimes—like the Weissmanns—forever.

Nazi concentration camps were originally set up to imprison political opponents and protesters. The camps were later turned over to the SS, who expanded the concentration camp and used it to warehouse other “undesirables.” Life in the camps was a cycle of hunger, humiliation, and work that almost always ended in death.

The prisoners were crammed into crude wooden barracks that held up to a thousand people each. They shared their crowded quarters, as well as their meager meals, with hordes of rats and fleas. Hunger was so intense, recalled one survivor, “that if a bit of soup spilled over, prisoners would converge on the spot, dig their spoons into the mud and stuff the mess into their mouths.”

Inmates in the camps worked from dawn to dusk, seven days a week, until they collapsed. Those too weak to work were killed. Some, like Rudolf Reder, endured. He was one of only two Jews to survive the camp at Belzec, Poland.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RUDOLF REDER

“ The brute Schmidt was our guard; he beat and kicked us if he thought we were not working fast enough. He ordered his victims to lie down and gave them 25 lashes with a whip, ordering them to count out loud. If the victim made a mistake, he was given 50 lashes. … Thirty or 40 of us were shot every day. A doctor usually prepared a daily list of the weakest men. During the lunch break they were taken to a nearby grave and shot. They were replaced the following morning by new arrivals from the transport of the day. … It was a miracle if anyone survived for five or six months in Belzec.”
—quoted in The Holocaust

After stripping their victims of life and dignity, the Nazis hoarded whatever articles of value the victims had possessed, such as wedding rings and gold fillings from teeth. 753 Photo: a group of captives

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 752 and page 753 in the print version.

The Final Stage

The Final Solution reached its final stage in early 1942. At a meeting held in Wannsee, a lakeside suburb near Berlin, Hitler’s top officials agreed to begin a new phase of the mass murder of Jews. To mass slaughter and starvation they would add a third method of killing—murder by poison gas.

Mass Exterminations

As deadly as overwork, starvation, beatings, and bullets were, they did not kill fast enough to satisfy the Nazis. The Germans built six death camps in Poland. The first, Chelmno, began operating in 1941—before the meeting at Wannsee. Each camp had several huge gas chambers in which as many as 12,000 people could be killed a day.

When prisoners arrived at Auschwitz, the largest of the death camps, they had to parade by several SS doctors. With a wave of the hand, the doctors separated those strong enough to work from those who would die that day. Both groups were told to leave all their belongings behind, with a promise that they would be returned later. Those destined to die were then led into a room outside the gas chamber and were told to undress for a shower. To complete the deception, the prisoners were even

Prisoners were required to wear color-coded triangles on their uniforms. The categories of prisoners include communists, socialists, criminals, emigrants, Jehovah’s Witnesses, homosexuals, Germans “shy of work,” and other nationalities “shy of work.” The vertical categories show a variation. One for repeat offenders, one for prisoners assigned to punish other prisoners, and double triangles for Jews. Letters on top of a patch indicate nationality. 754 Photo: children behind a barbed-wire fence

Photo: children behind a barbed-wire fence

Children taken from Eastern Europe and imprisoned in Auschwitz look out from behind the barbed-wire fence in July 1944.

given pieces of soap. Finally, they were led into the chamber and poisoned with cyanide gas that spewed from vents in the walls. This orderly mass extermination was sometimes carried out to the accompaniment of cheerful music played by an orchestra of camp inmates who had temporarily been spared execution.

At first the bodies were buried in huge pits. At Belzec, Rudolf Reder was part of a 500-man death brigade that labored all day, he said, “either at grave digging or emptying the gas chambers.” But the decaying corpses gave off a stench that could be smelled for miles around. Worse yet, mass graves left evidence of the mass murder. Lilli Kopecky recalls her arrival at Auschwitz.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LILLI KOPECKY

“ When we came to Auschwitz, we smelt the sweet smell. They said to us: ’There the people are gassed, three kilometers over there.’ We didn’t believe it.”
—quoted in Never Again

At some camps, to try to cover up the evidence of their slaughter, the Nazis installed huge crematoriums, or ovens, in which to burn the dead. At other camps, the bodies were simply thrown into a pit and set on fire.

Gassing was not the only method of extermination used in the camps. Prisoners were also shot, hanged, or injected with poison.

Still others died as a result of horrible medical experiments carried out by camp doctors. Some of these victims were injected with deadly germs in order to study the effect of disease on different groups of people. Many more were used to test methods of sterilization, a subject of great interest to some Nazi doctors in their search for ways to improve the “master race.”

World Stage: Righteous Persons of World War II

In the midst of the world’s overall indifference to the plight of Jewish refugees, thousands of non-Jews risked—and in many cases lost-—their own lives to save Jews from the Nazis. In recognition of such heroic efforts, the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset, bestowed on these individuals the title of Righteous Gentiles (or Righteous Persons). As of the year 2001 more than 18,269 individuals were recognized for their courage and morality.

Aristides de Sousa Mendes, a Portuguese diplomat stationed in France, defied his government’s orders and issued some 10,000 visas to Jews seeking entry to his country. The Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg issued “protective passports” that allowed thousands of Hungarian Jews to escape the Nazi death camps. Even citizens of Germany lent a hand. And Sempo Sugihara, Japanese consul in Lithuania, helped over 6,000 Jews to escape the Nazis’ clutches, an act that cost him his career.

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The Survivors

An estimated six million Jews died in the death camps and in the Nazi massacres. But some miraculously escaped the worst of the Holocaust. Many had help from ordinary people who were appalled by the Nazis’ treatment of Jews. Some Jews even survived the horrors of the concentration camps.

“ Survival is both an exalted privilege and a painful burden.”

GERDA WEISSMANN KLEIN

In Gerda Weissmann Klein’s view, survival depended as much on one’s spirit as on getting enough to eat. “I do believe that if you were blessed with imagination, you could work through it,” she wrote. “If, unfortunately, you were a person that faced reality, I think you didn’t have much of a chance.” Those who did come out of the camps alive were forever changed by what they had witnessed. For survivor Elie Wiesel, who entered Auschwitz in 1944 at the age of 14, the sun had set forever.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ELIE WIESEL

“ Never shall I forget that night, the first night in the camp, which has turned my life into one long night. … Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever. Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.”
—Night

Elie Wiesel, 1986

Section 3: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Holocaust

•Kristallnacht

• genocide

• ghetto

• concentration camp

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

List at least four events that led to the Holocaust.

Diagram: provides spaces to list causes that led to The Holocaust

Write a paragraph summarizing one of the events that you listed.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Do you think that the United States was justified in not allowing more Jewish refugees to emigrate? Why or why not? Think About:

• the views of isolationists in the United States

• some Americans’ prejudices and fears

• the incident on the German luxury liner St. Louis

4. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Why do you think the Nazi system of systematic genocide was so brutally effective? Support your answer with details from the text.

5. ANALYZING MOTIVES

How might concentration camp doctors and guards have justified to themselves the death and suffering they caused other human beings?

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Section 4: America Moves Toward War

One American’s Story

Two days after Hitler invaded Poland, President Roosevelt spoke reassuringly to Americans about the outbreak of war in Europe.

A PERSONAL VOICE

FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT

“ This nation will remain a neutral nation, but I cannot ask that every American remain neutral in thought as well. … Even a neutral cannot be asked to close his mind or his conscience. … I have said not once, but many times, that I have seen war and I hate war. … As long as it is my power to prevent, there will be no blackout of peace in the U.S.”
—radio speech, September 3, 1939

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Although Roosevelt knew that Americans were still deeply committed to staying out of war, he also believed that there could be no peace in a world controlled by dictators.

The United States Musters Its Forces

As German tanks thundered across Poland, Roosevelt revised the Neutrality Act of 1935. At the same time, he began to prepare the nation for the struggle he feared lay just ahead.

Moving Cautiously Away from Neutrality

In September of 1939, Roosevelt persuaded Congress to pass a “cash-and-carry” provision that allowed warring nations to buy U.S. arms as long as they paid cash and transported them in their own ships. Providing the arms, Roosevelt argued, would help France and Britain defeat Hitler and keep the United States out of the war. Isolationists attacked Roosevelt for his actions. However, after six weeks of heated debate, Congress passed the Neutrality Act of 1939, and a cash-and-carry policy went into effect.

757 Analyzing Political Cartoons: Carving it Up

The three Axis nations—Germany, Italy, and Japan—were a threat to the entire world. They believed they were superior and more powerful than other nations, especially democracies. By signing a mutual defense pact, the Axis powers believed the United States would never risk involvement in a two-ocean war. This cartoon shows the Axis powers’ obsession with global domination.

Cartoon: Hitler slices and serves parts of the world to Mussolini and Tojo

The Axis Threat

The United States cash-and-carry policy began to look like too little too late. By summer 1940, France had fallen and Britain was under siege. Roosevelt scrambled to provide the British with “all aid short of war.” By June he had sent Britain 500,000 rifles and 80,000 machine guns, and in early September the United States traded 50 old destroyers for leases on British military bases in the Caribbean and Newfoundland. British prime minister Winston Churchill would later recall this move with affection as “a decidedly unneutral act.”

On September 27 Americans were jolted by the news that Germany, Italy, and Japan had signed a mutual defense treaty, the Tripartite Pact. The three nations became known as the Axis Powers.

The Tripartite Pact was aimed at keeping the United States out of the war. Under the treaty, each Axis nation agreed to come to the defense of the others in case of attack. This meant that if the United States were to declare war on any one of the Axis powers, it would face its worst military nightmare—a two-ocean war, with fighting in both the Atlantic and the Pacific.

Building U.S Defenses

Meanwhile, Roosevelt asked Congress to increase spending for national defense. In spite of years of isolationism, Nazi victories in 1940 changed U.S. thinking, and Congress boosted defense spending. Congress also passed the nation’s first peacetime military draft—the Selective Training and Service Act. Under this law 16 million men between the ages of 21 and 35 were registered. Of these, 1 million were to be drafted for one year but were only allowed to serve in the Western Hemisphere. Roosevelt himself drew the first draft numbers as he told a national radio audience, “This is a most solemn ceremony.”

Roosevelt Runs for a Third Term

That same year, Roosevelt decided to break the tradition of a two-term presidency, begun by George Washington, and run for reelection. To the great disappointment of isolationists, Roosevelt’s Republican opponent, a public utilities executive named Wendell Willkie, supported Roosevelt’s policy of aiding Britain. At the same time, both Willkie and Roosevelt promised to keep the nation out of war. Because there was so little difference between the candidates, the majority of voters chose the one they knew best. Roosevelt was reelected with nearly 55 percent of the votes cast.

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“The Great Arsenal of Democracy”

Not long after the election, President Roosevelt told his radio audience during a fireside chat that it would be impossible to negotiate a peace with Hitler. “No man can tame a tiger into a kitten by stroking it.” He warned that if Britain fell, the Axis powers would be left unchallenged to conquer the world, at which point, he said, “all of us in all the Americas would be living at the point of a gun.” To prevent such a situation, the United States had to help defeat the Axis threat by turning itself into what Roosevelt called “the great arsenal of democracy.”

The Lend-Lease Plan

By late 1940, however, Britain had no more cash to spend in the arsenal of democracy. Roosevelt tried to help by suggesting a new plan that he called a lend-lease policy. Under this plan, the president would lend or lease arms and other supplies to “any country whose defense was vital to the United States.”

Roosevelt compared his plan to lending a garden hose to a neighbor whose house was on fire. He asserted that this was the only sensible thing to do to prevent the fire from spreading to your own property. Isolationists argued bitterly against the plan, but most Americans favored it, and Congress passed the Lend-Lease Act in March 1941.

Point

“The United States should not become involved in European wars.”

Still recovering from World War I and struggling with the Great Depression, many Americans believed their country should remain strictly neutral in the war in Europe.

Representative James F. O’Connor voiced the country’s reservations when he asked, “Dare we set America up and commit her as the financial and military blood bank of the rest of the world?” O’Connor maintained that the United States could not “right every wrong” or “police [the] world.”

The aviator Charles Lindbergh stated his hope that “the future of America … not be tied to these eternal wars in Europe.” Lindbergh asserted that “Americans [should] fight anybody and everybody who attempts to interfere with our hemisphere.” However, he went on to say, “Our safety does not lie in fighting European wars. It lies in our own internal strength, in the character of the American people and American institutions.” Like many isolationists, Lindbergh believed that democracy would not be saved “by the forceful imposition of our ideals abroad, but by example of their successful operation at home.”

Counterpoint

“The United States must protect democracies throughout the world.”

As the conflict in Europe deepened, interventionists embraced President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s declaration that “when peace has been broken anywhere, peace of all countries everywhere is in danger.” Roosevelt emphasized the global character of 20th-century commerce and communication by noting, “Every word that comes through the air, every ship that sails the sea, every battle that is fought does affect the American future.”

Roosevelt and other political leaders also appealed to the nation’s conscience. Secretary of State Cordell Hull noted that the world was “face to face … with an organized, ruthless, and implacable movement of steadily expanding conquest.” In the same vein, Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles called Hitler “a sinister and pitiless conqueror [who] has reduced more than half of Europe to abject serfdom.”

After the war expanded into the Atlantic, Roosevelt declared, “It is time for all Americans … to stop being deluded by the romantic notion that the Americas can go on living happily and peacefully in a Nazi-dominated world.” He added, “Let us not ask ourselves whether the Americas should begin to defend themselves after the first attack … or the twentieth attack. The time for active defense is now.”

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Supporting Stalin

Britain was not the only nation to receive lend-lease aid. In June 1941, Hitler broke the agreement he had made in 1939 with Stalin not to go to war and invaded the Soviet Union. Acting on the principle that “the enemy of my enemy is my friend,” Roosevelt began sending lend-lease supplies to the Soviet Union. Some Americans opposed providing aid to Stalin; Roosevelt, how-ever, agreed with Winston Churchill, who had said “if Hitler invaded Hell,” the British would be prepared to work with the devil himself.

German Wolf Packs

Providing lend-lease aid was one thing, but to ensure the safe delivery of goods to Britain and to the Soviet Union, supply lines had to be kept open across the Atlantic Ocean. To prevent delivery of lend-lease shipments, Hitler deployed hundreds of German submarines—U-boats—to attack supply ships.

From the spring through the fall of 1941, individual surface attacks by individual U-boats gave way to what became known as the wolf pack attack. At night groups of up to 40 submarines patrolled areas in the North Atlantic where convoys could be expected. Wolf packs were successful in sinking as much as 350,000 tons of shipments in a single month. In June 1941, President Roosevelt granted the navy permission for U.S. warships to attack German U-boats in self-defense. By late 1943, the submarine menace was contained by electronic detection techniques (especially radar), and by airborne antisubmarine patrols operating from small escort aircraft carriers.

Science & Technology: German Wolf Packs

INTERACTIVE

On October 17, 1940, near Rockall, west of Ireland, a British Convoy, SC-7 (shown below), was attacked by a German wolf pack. The convoy was outlined clearly against a moonlit sky, making the merchant ships easy prey.

Photo: Smoke billows from a sinking ship

A tanker burns and sinks in the Atlantic Ocean after being torpedoed by a German U-boat. Illustration: German planes and U-boats attacking a convoy

At the start of the war, the British had too few warships to escort the convoys. German aircraft could patrol 1,000 miles out to sea to scout for convoys. Convoys pinned their hopes on finding U-boats using ASDIC—sonar apparatus that could detect submerged submarines. The Germans used radios to summon U-boats into a fighting wolf pack. U-boats used hydrophonic equipment to pick up the sound of convoy propellers up to 100 miles away. 760

FDR Plans for War

Although Roosevelt was popular, his foreign policy was under constant attack. American forces were seriously underarmed. Roosevelt’s August 1941 proposal to extend the term of draftees passed in the House of Representatives by only one vote. With the army provided for, Roosevelt began planning for the war he was certain would come.

The Atlantic Charter

While Congress voted on the extension of the draft, Roosevelt and Churchill met secretly at a summit aboard the battleship USS Augusta. Although Churchill hoped for a military commitment, he settled for a joint declaration of war aims, called the Atlantic Charter. Both countries pledged the following: collective security, disarmament, self-determination, economic cooperation, and freedom of the seas. Roosevelt disclosed to Churchill that he couldn’t ask Congress for a declaration of war against Germany, but “he would wage war” and do “everything” to “force an incident.”

The Atlantic Charter became the basis of a new document called “A Declaration of the United Nations.” The term United Nations was suggested by Roosevelt to express the common purpose of the Allies, those nations that had fought the Axis powers. The declaration was signed by 26 nations, “four-fifths of the human race” observed Churchill.

Shoot on Sight

After a German submarine fired on the U.S. destroyer Greer in the Atlantic on September 4, 1941, Roosevelt ordered navy commanders to respond. “When you see a rattlesnake poised to strike,” the president explained, “you crush him.” Roosevelt ordered the navy to shoot the German submarines on sight.

Two weeks later, the Pink Star, an American merchant ship, was sunk off Greenland. In mid-October, a U-boat torpedoed the U.S. destroyer Kearny, and 11 lives were lost.

Days later, German U-boats sank the U.S. destroyer Reuben James, killing more than 100 sailors. “America has been attacked,” Roosevelt announced grimly. “The shooting has started. And history has recorded who fired the first shot.” As the death toll mounted, the Senate finally repealed the ban against arming merchant ships. A formal declaration of a full-scale war seemed inevitable.

Key Player: Hideki Tojo 1884–1948 Photo: Hideki Tojo

U.S. newspapers described Hideki Tojo as “smart, hardboiled, resourceful, [and] contemptuous of theories, sentiments, and negotiations.”

The Nazi press in Germany praised Tojo as “a man charged with energy, thinking clearly and with a single purpose.” To a British paper, Tojo was “the son of Satan” whose single purpose was “unleashing all hell on the Far East.” In Japan, however, Tojo was looked up to as a man whose “decisive leadership was a signal for the nation to rise and administer a great shock to the anti-Axis powers.”

Japan Attacks the United States

The United States was now involved in an undeclared naval war with Hitler. However, the attack that brought the United States into the war came from Japan.

Japan’s Ambitions in the Pacific

Germany’s European victories created new opportunities for Japanese expansionists. Japan was already in control of Manchuria. In July 1937, Hideki Tojo (hē′d-kē tō′jō′), chief of staff of Japan’s Kwantung Army, launched the invasion into China. As French, Dutch, and British colonies lay unprotected in Asia, Japanese leaders leaped at the opportunity to unite East Asia under Japanese control by seizing the colonial lands. By 1941, the British were too busy fighting Hitler to block Japanese expansion. Only the U.S. and its Pacific islands remained in Japan’s way.

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The Japanese began their southward push in July 1941 by taking over French military bases in Indochina (now Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos). The United States protested this new act of aggression by cutting off trade with Japan. The embargoed goods included one Japan could not live without—oil to fuel its war machine. Japanese military leaders warned that without oil, Japan could be defeated without its enemies ever striking a blow. The leaders declared that Japan must either persuade the United States to end its oil embargo or seize the oil fields in the Dutch East Indies. This would mean war.

Peace Talks are Questioned

Shortly after becoming the prime minister of Japan, Hideki Tojo met with emperor Hirohito. Tojo promised the emperor that the Japanese government would attempt to preserve peace with the Americans. But on November 5, 1941, Tojo ordered the Japanese navy to prepare for an attack on the United States.

The U.S. military had broken Japan’s secret communication codes and learned that Japan was preparing for a strike. What it didn’t know was where the attack would come. Late in November, Roosevelt sent out a “war warning” to military commanders in Hawaii, Guam, and the Philippines. If war could not be avoided, the warning said, “the United States desires that Japan commit the first overt act.” And the nation waited.

The peace talks went on for a month. Then on December 6, 1941, Roosevelt received a decoded message that instructed Japan’s peace envoy to reject all American peace proposals. “This means war,” Roosevelt declared.

The Attack on Pearl Harbor

Early the next morning, a Japanese dive-bomber swooped low over Pearl Harbor—the largest U.S. naval base in the Pacific. The bomber was followed by more than 180 Japanese warplanes launched from six aircraft carriers. As the first Japanese bombs found their targets, a radio operator flashed this message: “Air raid on Pearl Harbor. This is not a drill.”

Photo: a boy sells newspapers with the headlines Japs Declare War. Attack U.S.

Newspaper headline: War! Oahu Bombed by Japanese Planes

Newspaper headlines announce the surprise Japanese attack.

For an hour and a half, the Japanese planes were barely disturbed by U.S. antiaircraft guns and blasted target after target. By the time the last plane soared off around 9:30 A.M., the devastation was appalling. John Garcia, a pipe fitter’s apprentice, was there.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOHN GARCIA

“ It was a mess. I was working on the U.S.S. Shaw. It was on a floating dry dock. It was in flames. I started to go down into the pipe fitter’s shop to get my toolbox when another wave of Japanese came in. I got under a set of concrete steps at the dry dock where the battleship Pennsylvania was. An officer came by and asked me to go into the Pennsylvania and try to get the fires out. A bomb had penetrated the marine deck, and … three decks below. Under that was the magazines: ammunition, powder, shells. I said “There ain’t no way I’m gonna go down there.” It could blow up any minute. I was young and 16, not stupid.”
—quoted in The Good War E

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Maps: Japanese Aggression 1931 - 1941, Pearl Harbor Invasion, and U.S. Ships at Pearl Harbor

Description:

Maps show Japanese Aggression 1931 - 1941, Pearl Harbor Invasion, and U.S. Ships at Pearl Harbor

Japanese Aggression 1931 - 1941: Japanese Empire in 1931 includes Japan, Korea, and Formosa. Areas under Japanese control 1941 also includes Manchuria, parts of China, French Indochina, and some islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Pearl Harbor Invasion December 7, 1941: shows first attack at 7:55 a.m. with fighters, dive bombers, torpedo bombers, and horizontal bombers attacking Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Wheeler Air Force Base, and Kaneohe Naval Air Station. Second attack at 8:55 a.m. sent dive bombers and horizontal bombers to Pearl Harbor and Kaneohe Naval Air Station.
U.S Ships at Pearl Harbor: shows 24 undamaged ships, 21 damaged ships, and 4 sunk ships

Japanese Aggression, 1931–1941
INTERACTIVE Pearl Harbor Invasion, Dec. 7, 1941 Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. Photo: a motorboat races toward a burning battleship

Photo: a motorboat races toward a burning battleship

At Pearl Harbor, American sailors are rescued by motorboat after their battleships, the USS West Virginia and the USS Tennessee, were bombed. 763

In less than two hours, the Japanese had killed 2,403 Americans and wounded 1,178 more. The surprise raid had sunk or damaged 21 ships, including 8 battleships—nearly the whole U.S. Pacific fleet. More than 300 aircraft were severely damaged or destroyed. These losses constituted greater damage than the U.S. Navy had suffered in all of World War I. By chance, three aircraft carriers at sea escaped the disaster. Their survival would prove crucial to the war’s outcome.

Reaction to Pearl Harbor

In Washington, the mood ranged from outrage to panic. At the White House, Eleanor Roosevelt watched closely as her husband absorbed the news from Hawaii, “each report more terrible than the last.” Beneath the president’s calm, Eleanor could see how worried he was. “I never wanted to have to fight this war on two fronts,” Roosevelt told his wife. “We haven’t the Navy to fight in both the Atlantic and the Pacific … so we will have to build up the Navy and the Air Force and that will mean that we will have to take a good many defeats before we can have a victory.”

The next day, President Roosevelt addressed Congress. “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy,” he said, “[the Japanese launched] an unprovoked and dastardly attack.” Congress quickly approved Roosevelt’s request for a declaration of war against Japan. Three days later, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States.

For all the damage done at Pearl Harbor, perhaps the greatest was to the cause of isolationism. Many who had been former isolationists now supported an all-out American effort. After the surprise attack, isolationist senator Burton Wheeler proclaimed, “The only thing now to do is to lick the hell out of them.”

Economic Background: War and the Depression

The approach of war did what all the programs of the New Deal could not do—end the Great Depression. As defense spending skyrocketed in 1940, long-idle factories came back to life. A merry-go-round company began producing gun mounts; a stove factory made lifeboats; a famous New York toy maker made compasses; a pinball-machine company made armor-piercing shells.

With factories hiring again, the nation’s unemployment rolls began shrinking rapidly—by 400,000 in August 1940 and by another 500,000 in September. By the time the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, America was heading back to work. (See Keynesian Economics on page R42 in the Economics Handbook.)

Section 4: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Axis powers

• Lend-Lease Act

• Atlantic Charter

• Allies

• Hideki Tojo

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of key events leading to America’s entry into World War II. Use the dates below as a guide.

Timeline: provides spaces to list events from September 1940 to December 1941

Which of the events that you listed was most influential in bringing the United States into the war? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Do you think that the United States should have waited to be attacked before declaring war? Think About:

• the reputation of the United States

• the influence of isolationists

• the events at Pearl Harbor

4. PREDICTING EFFECTS

What problem would the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor solve for Roosevelt? What new problems would it create?

5. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES

Although the U.S. Congress was still unwilling to declare war early in 1941, Churchill told his war cabinet,

“We must have patience and trust to the tide which is flowing our way, and to events.”

What do you think Churchill meant by this remark? Support your answer.

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Chapter 24: Assessment

Visual Summary: World War Looms

Description:

Timeline: 1931 - 1941

1931: Japan invades Machuria.
1932: Nazi Party becomes the most powerful in Germany.
March 1933: First concentration camp opens at Oranienburg. Adolf Hitler becomes dictator of Germany.
September 1935: Nuremberg Laws instituted against Jews in Germany.
October 1935: Italian troops invade Ethiopia.
March 1936: Germany occupies Rhineland.
July 1936: Spanish Civil War begins.
October 1936: Germany and Italy form Axis.
1937: Japan invades China.
November 1938: Kristallnacht, Night of Broken Glass, Nazis destroy property and arrest over 20,000 Jews.
March 1939: Germany seizes all of Czechoslovakia.
September 1939: Germany invades Poland. Britain and France declare war on Germany and World War II begins.
June 1940: France surrenders.
September 1940: Japan signs tripartite pact with Germany and Italy.
March 1941: Roosevelt signs the Lend-Lease Act.
June 1941: Nazis begin mass murder of the Jews.
December 1941: Pearl Harbor is bombed. U.S. declares war.

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance in U.S. foreign affairs between 1931 and 1941.

1. fascism

2. Adolf Hitler

3. Nazism

4. Winston Churchill

5. appeasement

6. Charles de Gaulle

7. Holocaust

8. genocide

9. Axis powers

10. Allies

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions about the early years of World War II.

Dictators Threaten World Peace (pages 734–741)

1. What were Stalin’s goals and what steps did he take to achieve them?

2. How did Germany’s and Italy’s involvement affect the out-come of the Spanish Civil War?

War in Europe (pages 742–747)

3. Why was the blitzkrieg effective?

4. What terms of surrender did Hitler demand of the French after the fall of France in 1940? What was General Charles de Gaulle’s reaction?

The Holocaust (pages 748–755)

5. What groups did Nazis deem unfit to belong to the Aryan “master race”?

6. How did some Europeans show their resistance to Nazi persecution of the Jews?

America Moves Toward War (pages 756–763)

7. What congressional measures paved the way for the U.S. entry into World War II?

8. Why did the United States enter World War II?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a chart like the one shown, identify the effects of each of these early events of World War II.

Cause	Effect
First blitzkrieg
Allies stranded at Dunkirk
British radar detects German aircraft
Lend-Lease Act

2. COMPARING Compare the ways in which Hitler, Churchill, and Roosevelt used their powers as gifted speakers to accomplish their political aims during World War II. Use details from the chapter text.

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look at the map of German advances on page 744. How might Poland’s location have influenced the secret pact that Germany and the Soviet Union signed on August 23, 1939?

765 Standardized Test Practice

Use the cartoon and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer questions 1 and 2.

Cartoon: The ghost of Woodrow Wilson leans over FDR as he signs a U.S. Neutrality bill, saying I hope you have better luck than I did.

1. All of the following are true of F.D.R.’s neutrality policy except—

A Roosevelt found it hard to keep the United States neutral.

B Roosevelt did not always enforce the Neutrality Acts.

C Roosevelt promoted the Neutrality Policy of the United States throughout the war.

D Roosevelt spoke out against isolationism.

2. President Wilson’s image rises above President Roosevelt to wish him luck for—

F helping to pass the bill he is signing.

G keeping the United States out of a war.

H winning the next presidential election.

J gaining greater revenues from Europe.

Use the quotation and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 3.

“ In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms. The first is freedom of speech and expression.—everywhere in the world. The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way.—everywhere in the world. The third is freedom from want. … The fourth is freedom from fear.”
—Franklin Roosevelt, Address to Congress, 1941

3. The “four freedoms” speech helped gain widespread support in the United States for—

A increasing aid to the Allies.

B decreasing immigration.

C a military and arms buildup.

D a presidential election.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 733:

Why might the United States try to remain neutral?

As a political cartoonist for a major newspaper, your work is seen by millions of Americans. Draw a political cartoon that supports or opposes the policy of neutrality.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “Escaping the Final Solution: Kurt Klein and Gerda Weissmann Klein Remember the Holocaust.”

• What conditions that Gerda faced would be most difficult for you to endure?

Cooperative Learning Activity It has been said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

As a group, collect quotations and historical data about the Holocaust. Then write a book introduction about the Holocaust that incorporates quotations and the importance of the first-person accounts of survivors, such as the Kleins.

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Chapter 25: The United States In World War II

Photo: Smoke billows from three battleships

The raid on Pearl Harbor disabled the bulk of the U.S. fleet, including (left to right) the West Virginia, Tennessee, and Arizona. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 766 and page 767 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1941 - 1942 USA and World

1941 USA: The Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor.
1941 USA: A. Philip Randolph demands that war industries hire African Americans.
1941 World: Hitler invades the Soviet Union.
1942 USA: Roosevelt creates the War Production Board to create mobilization.
1942 USA: Japanese Americans are sent to relocation centers.
1942 World: In the Pacific, the Battle of Midway turns the tide in favor of the Allies.
1942 World: Nazis develop the final solution for exterminating Jews.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 766 and page 767 in the print version. 767 Photo: Smoke billows from burning battleships

Photo: Smoke billows from burning battleships

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 766 and page 767 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1943 - 1945 USA and World

1943 USA: Zoot-suit riots rock Los Angeles.
1943 World: Rommel's forces surrender in North Africa.
1944 USA: GI Bill of Rights is passed.
1944 USA: President Roosevelt is elected to a fourth term.
1944 World: On June 6, the Allies launch a massive invasion of Europe.
1945 USA: U.S. Marines take Iwo Jima.
1945 USA: Harry S. Truman becomes president when Roosevelt dies.
1945 World: Nazi retreat begins after the Battle of the Bulge.
1945 World: Japan surrenders after atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 766 and page 767 in the print version. Interact with History

It is December of 1941. After Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. has entered the war. As a citizen, you and millions like you must mobilize a depressed peacetime country for war. The United States must produce the workers, soldiers, weapons, and equipment that will help to win the war.

How can the United States use its resources to achieve victory?

Examine the Issues

• How can the government encourage businesses to convert to wartime production?

• What sacrifices will you and your family be willing to make?

• How can the military attract recruits?

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Section 1: Mobilizing for Defense

One American’s Story

Charles Swanson looked all over his army base for a tape recorder on which to play the tape his wife had sent him for Christmas. “In desperation,” he later recalled, “I had it played over the public-address system. It was a little embarrassing to have the whole company hear it, but it made everyone long for home.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

MRS. CHARLES SWANSON

“ Merry Christmas, honey. Surprised? I’m so glad I have a chance to say hello to you this way on our first Christmas apart.… About our little girl.… She is just big enough to fill my heart and strong enough to help Mommy bear this ache of loneliness.… Her dearest treasure is her daddy’s picture. It’s all marked with tiny handprints, and the glass is always cloudy from so much loving and kissing. I’m hoping you’ll be listening to this on Christmas Eve, somewhere over there, your heart full of hope, faith and courage, knowing each day will bring that next Christmas together one day nearer.”
—quoted in We Pulled Together … and Won!

Photo: Mrs. Charles Swanson and her daughter Lynne with a photo of her husband in uniform

Mrs. Charles Swanson and her daughter, Lynne, with a picture of her husband.

As the United States began to mobilize for war, the Swansons, like most Americans, had few illusions as to what lay ahead. It would be a time filled with hard work, hope, sacrifice, and sorrow.

Americans Join the War Effort

The Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor with the expectation that once Americans had experienced Japan’s power, they would shrink from further conflict. The day after the raid, the Japan Times boasted that the United States, now reduced to a third-rate power, was “trembling in her shoes.” But if Americans were trembling, it was with rage, not fear. Uniting under the battle cry “Remember Pearl Harbor!” they set out to prove Japan wrong.

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Selective Service And The GI

After Pearl Harbor, eager young Americans jammed recruiting offices. “I wanted to be a hero, let’s face it,” admitted Roger Tuttrup. “I was havin’ trouble in school.… The war’d been goin’ on for two years. I didn’t wanna miss it.… I was an American. I was seventeen.”

Even the 5 million who volunteered for military service, however, were not enough to face the challenge of an all-out war on two global fronts—Europe and the Pacific. The Selective Service System expanded the draft and eventually provided another 10 million soldiers to meet the armed forces’ needs.

The volunteers and draftees reported to military bases around the country for eight weeks of basic training. In this short period, seasoned sergeants did their best to turn raw recruits into disciplined, battle-ready GIs.

According to Sergeant Debs Myers, however, there was more to basic training than teaching a recruit how to stand at attention, march in step, handle a rifle, and follow orders.

Photo: A half-dozen African American men cluster around a desk

In March 1941, a group of African-American men in New York City enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps. This was the first time the Army Air Corps opened its enlistment to African Americans.

A PERSONAL VOICE

SERGEANT DEBS MYERS

“ The civilian went before the Army doctors, took off his clothes, feeling silly; jigged, stooped, squatted, wet into a bottle; became a soldier. He learned how to sleep in the mud, tie a knot, kill a man. He learned the ache of loneliness, the ache of exhaustion, the kinship of misery. He learned that men make the same queasy noises in the morning, feel the same longings at night; that every man is alike and that each man is different.”

—quoted in The GI War: 1941–1945

Now & Then: Women In The Military Photo: Oveta Culp Hobby and several women in uniform

A few weeks after the bill to establish the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) had become law, Oveta Culp Hobby (shown, far right), a Texas newspaper executive and the first director of the WAAC, put out a call for recruits. More than 13,000 women applied on the first day. In all, some 350,000 women served in this and other auxiliary branches during the war.

The WAC remained a separate unit of the army until 1978 when male and female forces were inte-grated. In 2006, more than 200,000 women served in the United States armed forces.

Expanding The Military

The military’s work force needs were so great that Army Chief of Staff General George Marshall pushed for the formation of a Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC). “There are innumerable duties now being performed by soldiers that can be done better by women,” Marshall said in support of a bill to establish the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps. Under this bill, women volunteers would serve in noncombat positions.

Despite opposition from some members of Congress who scorned the bill as “the silliest piece of legislation” they had ever seen, the bill establishing the WAAC became law on May 15, 1942. The law gave the WAACs an official status and salary but few of the benefits granted to male soldiers. In July 1943, after thousands of women had enlisted, the U.S. Army dropped the “auxiliary” status, and granted WACs full U.S. Army benefits. WACs worked as nurses, ambulance drivers, radio operators, electricians, and pilots—nearly every duty not involving direct combat.

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Recruiting And Discrimination

For many minority groups—especially African Americans, Native Americans, Mexican Americans, and Asian Americans—the war created new dilemmas. Restricted to racially segregated neighborhoods and reservations and denied basic citizenship rights, some members of these groups questioned whether this was their war to fight. “Why die for democracy for some foreign country when we don’t even have it here?” asked an editorial in an African-American newspaper. On receiving his draft notice, an African American responded unhappily, “Just carve on my tombstone, ‘Here lies a black man killed fighting a yellow man for the protection of a white man.’”

Dramatic Contributions

Despite discrimination in the military, more than 300,000 Mexican Americans joined the armed forces. While Mexican Americans in Los Angeles made up only a tenth of the city’s population, they suffered a fifth of the city’s wartime casualties.

About one million African Americans also served in the military. African-American soldiers lived and worked in segregated units and were limited mostly to noncombat roles. After much protest, African Americans did finally see combat beginning in April 1943.

Asian Americans took part in the struggle as well. More than 13,000 Chinese Americans, or about one of every five adult males, joined the armed forces. In addition, 33,000 Japanese Americans put on uniforms. Of these, several thousand volunteered to serve as spies and interpreters in the Pacific war. “During battles,” wrote an admiring officer, “they crawled up close enough to be able to hear [Japanese] officers’ commands and to make verbal translations to our soldiers.”

Some 25,000 Native Americans enlisted in the armed services, too, including 800 women. Their willingness to serve led The Saturday Evening Post to comment, “We would not need the Selective Service if all volunteered like Indians.”

A Production Miracle

Early in February 1942, American newspapers reported the end of automobile production for private use. The last car to roll off an automaker’s assembly line was a gray sedan with “victory trim,”—that is, without chrome-plated parts. This was just one more sign that the war would affect almost every aspect of life.

The Industrial Response

Within weeks of the shutdown in production, the nation’s automobile plants had been retooled to produce tanks, planes, boats, and

Two graphs: Aircraft and Ship Production 1940 - 1945, U.S. Budget Expenditure 1941 - 1945

Description:

Graph: Aircraft and Ship Production, in thousands, 1940 - 1945. Numbers are approximate.

1940 Aircraft: rose from 5 to 15, Ships: 0
1941 Aircraft: rose from 15 to 25, Ships: 0
1942 Aircraft: rose from 25 to 45, Ships: rose from 1 to 15
1943 Aircraft: rose from 45 to 85, Ships: rose from 15 to 25
1944 Aircraft: rose from 85 to 99, Ships: rose from 25 to 40
1945 Aircraft: dropped from 99 to 50, Ships: dropped from 40 to 20

Graph: U.S. Budget Expenditure, in billions, 1941 - 1945. Numbers are approximate.

1941 Defense: rose from 0 to 15, Non-defense: flat at 5
1942 Defense: rose from 15 to 55, Non-defense: dropped slightly below 5
1943 Defense: rose from 55 to 85, Non-defense: flat at 5
1944 Defense: rose from 85 to 95, Non-defense: rose slightly above 5
1945 Defense: dropped from 95 to 80, Non-defense: flat at 5

The Production Miracle Aircraft and Ship Production, 1940–45 U.S. Budget Expenditure, 1941–45 Source: The Times Atlas of the Second World War 771

command cars. They were not alone. Across the nation, factories were quickly converted to war production. A maker of mechanical pencils turned out bomb parts. A bedspread manufacturer made mosquito netting. A soft-drink company converted from filling bottles with liquid to filling shells with explosives.

Meanwhile, shipyards and defense plants expanded with dizzying speed. By the end of 1942, industrialist Henry J. Kaiser had built seven massive new shipyards that turned out Liberty ships (cargo carriers), tankers, troop transports, and “baby” aircraft carriers at an astonishing rate. Late that year, Kaiser invited reporters to Way One in his Richmond, California, shipyard to watch as his workers assembled Hull 440, a Liberty ship, in a record-breaking four days. Writer Alyce Mano Kramer described the first day and night of construction.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ALYCE MANO KRAMER

“ At the stroke of 12, Way One exploded into life. Crews of workers, like a champion football team, swarmed into their places in the line. Within 60 seconds, the keel was swinging into position.… Hull 440 was going up. The speed of [production] was unbelievable. At midnight, Saturday, an empty way—at midnight Sunday, a full-grown hull met the eyes of graveyard workers as they came on shift.”
—quoted in Home Front, U.S.A.

Before the fourth day was up, 25,000 amazed spectators watched as Hull 440 slid into the water. How could such a ship be built so fast? Kaiser used prefabricated, or factory-made, parts that could be quickly assembled at his shipyards. Equally important were his workers, who worked at record speeds.

Labor’s Contribution

When the war began, defense contractors warned the Selective Service System that the nation did not have enough workers to meet both its military and its industrial needs. They were wrong. By 1944, despite the draft, nearly 18 million workers were laboring in war industries, three times as many as in 1941.

More than 6 million of these new workers were women. At first, war industries feared that most women lacked the necessary stamina for factory work and were reluctant to hire them. But once women proved they could operate welding torches or riveting guns as well as men, employers could not hire enough of them—especially since women earned only about 60 percent as much as men doing the same jobs.

Defense plants also hired more than 2 million minority workers during the war years. Like women, minorities faced strong prejudice at first. Before the war, 75 percent of defense contractors simply refused to hire African Americans, while another 15 percent employed them only in menial jobs. “Negroes will be considered only as janitors,” declared the general manager of North American Aviation. “It is the company policy not to employ them as mechanics and aircraft workers.”

During the war, women took many jobs previously held by men. In this 1943 photo, a young woman is seen operating a hand drill in Nashville, Tennessee. 772

To protest such discrimination both in the military and in industry, A. Philip Randolph, president and founder of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and the nation’s most respected African-American labor leader, organized a march on Washington. Randolph called on African Americans everywhere to come to the capital on July 1, 1941, and to march under the banner “We Loyal Colored Americans Demand the Right to Work and Fight for Our Country.”

Fearing that the march might provoke white resentment or violence, President Roosevelt called Randolph to the White House and asked him to back down. “I’m sorry Mr. President,” the labor leader said, “the march cannot be called off.” Roosevelt then asked, “How many people do you plan to bring?” Randolph replied, “One hundred thousand, Mr. President.” Roosevelt was stunned. Even half that number of African-American protesters would be far more than Washington—still a very segregated city—could feed, house, and transport.

In the end it was Roosevelt, not Randolph, who backed down. In return for Randolph’s promise to cancel the march, the president issued an executive order calling on employers and labor unions “to provide for the full and equitable participation of all workers in defense industries, without discrimination because of race, creed, color, or national origin.”

A. Philip Randolph in 1942. History Through Film: Hollywood Helps Mobilization

In the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, Hollywood churned out war-oriented propaganda films. Heroic movies like Mission to Moscow and Song of Russia glorified America’s new wartime ally, the Soviet Union. On the other hand, “hiss-and-boo” films stirred up hatred against the Nazis. In this way, movies energized people to join the war effort.

As the war dragged on, people grew tired of propaganda and war themes. Hollywood responded with musicals, romances, and other escapist fare designed to take filmgoers away from the grim realities of war, if only for an hour or two.

Hitler, Beast of Berlin, produced in 1939, was one of the most popular hiss-and-boo films. Viewing audiences watched in rage as the Nazis conducted one horrible act after another. Photo: Frank Capra and Colonel Hugh Stewart

Photo: Frank Capra and Colonel Hugh Stewart

Moviemakers also turned out informational films. The most important of these films—the Why We Fight series—were made by the great director Frank Capra. Capra is shown (right) consulting with Colonel Hugh Stewart (commander of the British Army film unit) in a joint effort in the making of Tunisian Victory, the first official film record of the campaign that expelled Germany from North Africa. 773

Mobilization of Scientists

That same year, in 1941, Roosevelt created the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD) to bring scientists into the war effort. The OSRD spurred improvements in radar and sonar, new technologies for locating submarines underwater. It encouraged the use of pesticides like DDT to fight insects. As a result, U.S. soldiers were probably the first in history to be relatively free from body lice. The OSRD also pushed the development of “miracle drugs,” such as penicillin, that saved countless lives on and off the battlefield.

The most significant achievement of the OSRD, however, was the secret development of a new weapon, the atomic bomb. Interest in such a weapon began in 1939, after German scientists succeeded in splitting uranium atoms, releasing an enormous amount of energy. This news prompted physicist and German refugee Albert Einstein to write a letter to President Roosevelt, warning that the Germans could use their discovery to construct a weapon of enormous destructive power.

Roosevelt responded by creating an Advisory Committee on Uranium to study the new discovery. In 1941, the committee reported that it would take from three to five years to build an atomic bomb. Hoping to shorten that time, the OSRD set up an intensive program in 1942 to develop a bomb as quickly as possible. Because much of the early research was performed at Columbia University in Manhattan, the Manhattan Project became the code name for research work that extended across the country.

The Federal Government Takes Control

As war production increased, there were fewer consumer products available for purchase. Much factory production was earmarked for the war. With demand increasing and supplies dropping, prices seemed likely to shoot upwards.

Economic Controls

Roosevelt responded to this threat by creating the Office of Price Administration (OPA). The OPA fought inflation by freezing prices on most goods. Congress also raised income tax rates and extended the tax to millions of people who had never paid it before. The higher taxes reduced consumer demand on scarce goods by leaving workers with less to spend. In addition,

The Government Takes Control of the Economy, 1942–1945
Agencies and Laws	What the Regulations Did
Office of Price Administration (OPA)	• Fought inflation by freezing wages, prices, and rents • Rationed foods, such as meat, butter, cheese, vegetables, sugar, and coffee
National War Labor Board (NWLB)	• Limited wage increases • Allowed negotiated benefits, such as paid vacation, pensions, and medical insurance • Kept unions stable by forbidding workers to change unions
War Production Board (WPB)	• Rationed fuel and materials vital to the war effort, such as gasoline, heating oil, metals, rubber, and plastics
Department of the Treasury	• Issued war bonds to raise money for the war effort and to fight inflation
Revenue Act of 1942	• Raised the top personal-income tax rate to 88% • Added lower- and middle-income Americans to the income-tax rolls
Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act (1943)	• Limited the right to strike in industries crucial to the war effort • Gave the president power to take over striking plants

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the government encouraged Americans to use their extra cash to buy war bonds. As a result of these measures, inflation remained below 30 percent—about half that of World War I—for the entire period of World War II.

Besides controlling inflation, the government needed to ensure that the armed forces and war industries received the resources they needed to win the war. The War Production Board (WPB) assumed that responsibility. The WPB decided which companies would convert from peacetime to wartime production and allocated raw materials to key industries. The WPB also organized drives to collect scrap iron, tin cans, paper, rags, and cooking fat for recycling into war goods. Across America, children scoured attics, cellars, garages, vacant lots, and back alleys, looking for useful junk. During one five-month-long paper drive in Chicago, schoolchildren collected 36 million pounds of old paper—about 65 pounds per child.

Children of all ages helped with wartime recycling. This 5-year-old boy pounded the pavement in New York City collecting aluminum.

Rationing

In addition, the OPA set up a system for rationing, or establishing fixed allotments of goods deemed essential for the military. Under this system, households received ration books with coupons to be used for buying such scarce goods as meat, shoes, sugar, coffee, and gasoline. Gas rationing was particularly hard on those who lived in western regions, where driving was the only way to get around. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt sympathized with their complaints. “To tell the people in the West not to use their cars,” she observed, “means that these people may never see another soul for weeks and weeks nor have a way of getting a sick person to a doctor.”

Most Americans accepted rationing as a personal contribution to the war effort. Workers carpooled or rode bicycles. Families coped with shortages of every-thing from tires to toys. Inevitably, some cheated by hoarding scarce goods or by purchasing them through the “black market,” where rationed items could be bought illegally without coupons at inflated prices.

While people tightened their belts at home, millions of other Americans put their lives on the line in air, sea, and land battles on the other side of the world.

Section 1: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• George Marshall

• Women’s Auxiliary Army Corp (WAAC)

• A. Philip Randolph

• Manhattan Project

• Office of Price Administration (OPA)

• War Production Board (WPB)

• rationing

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the web below on your paper, and fill in ways that America prepared for war.

Diagram: provides four spaces for Preparations for War 1941 - 1942

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING EVENTS

How did government regulations impact the lives of civilians?

4. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

What is the message of the World War II poster to the right? Why was this message important?

Poster: shows a man driving with HITLER next to him. Words read: When you ride alone, you ride with Hitler! Join a car-sharing club today.

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Section 2: The War for Europe and North Africa

One American’s Story

It was 1951, and John Patrick McGrath was just finishing his second year in drama school. For an acting class, his final exam was to be a performance of a death scene. McGrath knew his lines perfectly. But as he began the final farewell, he broke out in a sweat and bolted off the stage. Suddenly he had a flashback to a frozen meadow in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge in 1945. Three German tanks were spraying his platoon with machine-gun fire.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOHN PATRICK MCGRATH

“Only a few feet away, one of the men in my platoon falls.… He calls out to me. ‘Don’t leave me. Don’t.…’ The tanks advance, one straight for me. I grab my buddy by the wrist and pull him across the snow.… The tank nearest to us is on a track to run us down.… When the German tank is but 15 yards away, I grab my buddy by the wrist and feign a lurch to my right. The tank follows the move. Then I lurch back to my left. The German tank clamors by, only inches away.… In their wake the meadow is strewn with casualties. I turn to tend my fallen comrade. He is dead.”
—A Cue for Passion

Like countless other soldiers, McGrath would never forget both the heroism and the horrors he witnessed while fighting to free Europe.

Photos: handwritten letter containing bullet holes and man visiting a cemetery

Private John P. McGrath carried this bullet-riddled letter in a pack that saved his life. In 1990, he visited Anzio, where members of his company were buried.

The United States and Britain Join Forces

“Now that we are, as you say, ‘in the same boat,’” British Prime Minister Winston Churchill wired President Roosevelt two days after the Pearl Harbor attack, “would it not be wise for us to have another conference.… and the sooner the better.” Roosevelt responded with an invitation for Churchill to come at once. So began a remarkable alliance between the two nations.

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War Plans

Prime Minister Churchill arrived at the White House on December 22, 1941, and spent the next three weeks working out war plans with President Roosevelt and his advisors. Believing that Germany and Italy posed a greater threat than Japan, Churchill convinced Roosevelt to strike first against Hitler. Once the Allies had gained an upper hand in Europe, they could pour more resources into the Pacific War.

By the end of their meeting, Roosevelt and Churchill had formed, in Churchill’s words, “a very strong affection, which grew with our years of comradeship.” When Churchill reached London, he found a message from the president waiting for him. “It is fun,” Roosevelt wrote in the message, “to be in the same decade with you.”

The Battle Of The Atlantic

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hitler ordered submarine raids against ships along America’s east coast. The German aim in the Battle of the Atlantic was to prevent food and war materials from reaching Great Britain and the Soviet Union. Britain depended on supplies from the sea. The 3,000-mile-long shipping lanes from North America were her lifeline. Hitler knew that if he cut that lifeline, Britain would be starved into submission.

For a long time, it looked as though Hitler might succeed in his mission. Unprotected American ships proved to be easy targets for the Germans. In the first four months of 1942, the Germans sank 87 ships off the Atlantic shore. Seven months into the year, German wolf packs had destroyed a total of 681 Allied ships in the Atlantic. Something had to be done or the war at sea would be lost.

A convoy of British and American ships ride at anchor in the harbor of Hvalfjord, Iceland.

The Allies responded by organizing their cargo ships into convoys. Convoys were groups of ships traveling together for mutual protection, as they had done in the First World War. The convoys were escorted across the Atlantic by destroyers equipped with sonar for detecting submarines underwater. They were also accompanied by airplanes that used radar to spot U-boats on the ocean’s surface. With this improved tracking, the Allies were able to find and destroy German U-boats faster than the Germans could build them. In late spring of 1943, Admiral Karl Doenitz, the commander of the German U-boat offensive, reported that his losses had “reached an unbearable height.”

At the same time, the United States launched a crash shipbuilding program. By early 1943, 140 Liberty ships were produced each month. Launchings of Allied ships began to outnumber sinkings.

By mid-1943, the tide of the Battle of the Atlantic had turned. A happy Churchill reported to the House of Commons that June “was the best month [at sea] from every point of view we have ever known in the whole 46 months of the war. ”

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The Eastern Front and the Mediterranean

By the winter of 1943, the Allies began to see victories on land as well as sea. The first great turning point came in the Battle of Stalingrad.

The Battle Of Stalingrad

The Germans had been fighting in the Soviet Union since June 1941. In November 1941, the bitter cold had stopped them in their tracks outside the Soviet cities of Moscow and Leningrad. When spring came, the German tanks were ready to roll.

In the summer of 1942, the Germans took the offensive in the southern Soviet Union. Hitler hoped to capture Soviet oil fields in the Caucasus Mountains. He also wanted to wipe out Stalingrad, a major industrial center on the Volga River. (See map, page 778.)

The German army confidently approached Stalingrad in August 1942. “To reach the Volga and take Stalingrad is not so difficult for us,” one German soldier wrote home. “Victory is not far away.” The Luftwaffe—the German air force—prepared the way with nightly bombing raids over the city. Nearly every wooden building in Stalingrad was set ablaze. The situation looked so desperate that Soviet officers in Stalingrad recommended blowing up the city’s factories and abandoning the city. A furious Stalin ordered them to defend his namesake city no matter what the cost.

For weeks the Germans pressed in on Stalingrad, conquering it house by house in brutal hand-to-hand combat. By the end of September, they controlled nine-tenths of the city—or what was left of it. Then another winter set in. The Soviets saw the cold as an opportunity to roll fresh tanks across the frozen landscape and begin a massive counterattack. The Soviet army closed around Stalingrad, trapping the Germans in and around the city and cutting off their supplies. The Germans’ situation was hopeless, but Hitler’s orders came: “Stay and fight! I won’t go back from the Volga.”

The fighting continued as winter turned Stalingrad into a frozen wasteland. “We just lay in our holes and froze, knowing that 24 hours later and 48 hours later we should be shivering precisely as we were now,” wrote a German soldier, Benno Zieser. “But there was now no hope whatsoever of relief, and that was the worst thing of all.” The German commander surrendered on January 31, 1943. Two days later, his starving troops also surrendered.

In defending Stalingrad, the Soviets lost a total of 1,100,000 soldiers—more than all American deaths during the entire war. Despite the staggering death toll, the Soviet victory marked a turning point in the war. From that point on, the Soviet army began to move westward toward Germany.

Photo: German soldiers bundled against the snow

Dazed, starved, and freezing, these German soldiers were taken prisoner after months of struggle. But they were the lucky ones. More than 230,000 of their comrades died in the Battle of Stalingrad. 778

The North African Front

While the Battle of Stalingrad raged, Stalin pressured Britain and America to open a “second front” in Western Europe. He argued that an invasion across the English Channel would force Hitler to divert troops from the Soviet front. Churchill and Roosevelt didn’t think the Allies had enough troops to attempt an invasion on European soil. Instead, they launched Operation Torch, an invasion of Axis-controlled North Africa, commanded by American General Dwight D. Eisenhower.

In November 1942, some 107,000 Allied troops, the great majority of them Americans, landed in Casablanca, Oran, and Algiers in North Africa. From there they sped eastward, chasing the Afrika Korps led by General Erwin Rommel, the legendary Desert Fox. After months of heavy fighting, the last of the Afrika Korps surrendered in May 1943. British general Harold Alexander sent a message to Churchill, reporting that “All enemy resistance has ceased. We are masters of the North African shores.” American war correspondent Ernie Pyle caught the mood of the victorious troops.

Photo: Ernie Pyle at work at an outside table

American journalist Ernie Pyle, shown here in 1944, was one of the most famous war correspondents of World War II.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ERNIE PYLE

“ This colossal German surrender has done more for American morale here than anything that could possibly have happened. Winning in battle is like winning at poker or catching lots of fish.… As a result, the hundreds of thousands of Americans in North Africa now are happy men.”
—Ernie’s War: The Best of Ernie Pyle’s World War II Dispatches

Description:

Map: World War II Europe and Africa 1942 - 1944. Shows Axis and Axis controlled areas, Allied areas, and Neutral countries; movements by Axis, Allied, and Soviet forces; and major battles.

Axis and Axis controlled areas: Norway, Finland, western section of Soviet Union, Romania, Bulgaria, Libya, Greece, Albania, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Austria, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Italy.
Allied areas: Area of Soviet Union, Asia, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Great Britain.
Neutral countries: Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Sweden, Ireland.
November 8, 1942, Operation Torch: Allied forces move into Casablanca, Oran, and Algiers.
1942: Axis forces move deeper into the eastern section of Soviet Union.
November 1942: Farthest Axis advance into the Soviet Union, near the Volga River.
May 13, 1943: Axis surrender of North Africa.
1943: Allied forces move into Italy.
Soviet forces move into the Axis controlled section of the Soviet Union in 1942, 1943, and 1944, and move from Libya into Egypt.
Major battles: Anzio, El Alamein, Stalingrad.

World War II: Europe and Africa, 1942–1944
INTERACTIVE November 8, 1942 Operation Torch November 1942 Farthest Axis advance May 13, 1943 Axis surrender of North Africa Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 779

The Italian Campaign

Even before the battle in North Africa was won, Roosevelt, Churchill, and their commanders met in Casablanca. At this meeting, the two leaders agreed to accept only the unconditional surrender of the Axis powers. That is, enemy nations would have to accept whatever terms of peace the Allies dictated. The two leaders also discussed where to strike next. The Americans argued that the best approach to victory was to assemble a massive invasion fleet in Britain and to launch it across the English Channel, through France, and into the heart of Germany. Churchill, however, thought it would be safer to first attack Italy.

The Italian campaign got off to a good start with the capture of Sicily in the summer of 1943. Stunned by their army’s collapse in Sicily, the Italian government forced dictator Benito Mussolini to resign. On July 25, 1943, King Victor Emmanuel III summoned Il Duce (Italian for “the leader”) to his palace, stripped him of power, and had him arrested. “At this moment,” the king told Mussolini, “you are the most hated man in Italy.” Italians began celebrating the end of the war.

Their cheers were premature. Hitler was determined to stop the Allies in Italy rather than fight on German soil. One of the hardest battles the Allies encountered in Europe was fought less than 40 miles from Rome. This battle, “Bloody Anzio,” lasted four months—until the end of May 1944—and left about 25,000 Allied and 30,000 Axis casualties. During the year after Anzio, German armies continued to put up strong resistance. The effort to free Italy did not succeed until 1945, when Germany itself was close to collapse.

Photo: African-American pilots and their Spit Fire insignia of a tiger breathing fire

On May 31, 1943, the 99th Pursuit Squadron, the first group of African-American pilots trained at the Tuskegee Institute, arrived in North Africa. Below is their regimental insignia.

Heroes In Combat

Among the brave men who fought in Italy were pilots of the all-black 99th Pursuit Squadron—the Tuskegee Airmen. In Sicily, the squadron registered its first victory against an enemy aircraft and went on to more impressive strategic strikes against the German forces throughout Italy. The Tuskegee Airmen won two Distinguished Unit Citations (the military’s highest commendation) for their outstanding aerial combat against the German Luftwaffe.

Another African-American unit to distinguish itself was the famous 92nd Infantry Division, nicknamed the Buffaloes. In just six months of fighting in Europe, the Buffaloes won 7 Legion of Merit awards, 65 Silver Stars, and 162 Bronze Stars for courage under fire.

Like African Americans, most Mexican Americans served in segregated units. Seventeen Mexican-American soldiers were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. An all-Chicano unit—Company E of the 141st Regiment, 36th Division became one of the most decorated of the war.

Japanese Americans also served in Italy and North Africa. At the urging of General Delos Emmons, the army created the 100th Battalion, which consisted of 1,300 Hawaiian Nisei. (The word Nisei refers to American citizens whose parents had emigrated from Japan.) The 100th saw brutal combat and became known as the Purple Heart Battalion. Later the 100th was merged into the all-Nisei 442nd Regimental Combat Team. It became the most decorated unit in U.S. history.

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The Allies Liberate Europe

Even as the Allies were battling for Italy in 1943, they had begun work on a dramatic plan to invade France and free Western Europe from the Nazis. The task of commanding Operation Overlord, as it was called, fell to American General Dwight D. (“Ike”) Eisenhower.

D-Day

Under Eisenhower’s direction in England, the Allies gathered a force of nearly 3 million British, American, and Canadian troops, together with mountains of military equipment and supplies. Eisenhower planned to attack Normandy in northern France. To keep their plans secret, the Allies set up a huge phantom army with its own headquarters and equipment. In radio messages they knew the Germans could read, Allied commanders sent orders to this make-believe army to attack the French port of Calais—150 miles away—where the English Channel is narrowest. As a result, Hitler ordered his generals to keep a large army at Calais.

The Allied invasion, code-named Operation Overlord, was originally set for June 5, but bad weather forced a delay. Banking on a forecast for clearing skies, Eisenhower gave the go-ahead for D-Day—June 6, 1944, the first day of the invasion. Shortly after midnight, three divisions parachuted down behind German lines. They were followed in the early morning hours by thousands upon thousands of seaborne soldiers—the largest land-sea-air operation in army history.

Despite the massive air and sea bombardment by the Allies, German retaliation was brutal, particularly at Omaha Beach. “People were yelling, screaming, dying, running on the beach, equipment was flying everywhere, men were bleeding to death, crawling, lying everywhere, firing coming from all directions,” soldier Felix Branham wrote of the scene there. “We dropped down behind anything that was the size of a golf ball.”

The Allies Gain Ground

Despite heavy casualties, the Allies held the beachheads. After seven days of fighting, the Allies held an 80-mile strip of France. Within a month, they had landed a million troops, 567,000 tons of supplies, and 170,000 vehicles in France. On July 25, General Omar Bradley unleashed massive air and land bombardment against the enemy at St. Lô, providing a gap in the German line of defense through which General George Patton and his Third Army could advance. On August 23, Patton and the Third Army reached the Seine River south of Paris. Two days later, French resistance forces and American troops liberated the French capital from four years of German occupation. Parisians were delirious with joy. Patton announced this joyous event to his commander in a message that read, “Dear Ike: Today I spat in the Seine.”

By September 1944, the Allies had freed France, Belgium, and Luxembourg. This good news—and the American people’s desire not to “change horses in midstream”—helped elect Franklin Roosevelt to an unprecedented fourth term in November, along with his running mate, Senator Harry S. Truman.

Key Player: Dwight D. “Ike” Eisenhower 1890–1969 Photo: Dwight D. Eisenhower in uniform and the presidential seal

When Army Chief of Staff General George Marshall chose modest Lieutenant General Dwight David Eisenhower to become the Supreme Commander of U.S. forces in Europe, he knew what he was doing. Ike was a superb planner and possessed a keen mind for military tactics.

More important, Eisenhower had an uncommon ability to work with all kinds of people, even competitive and temperamental allies. After V-E Day, a grateful Marshall wrote to Ike, saying, “You have been selfless in your actions, always sound and tolerant in your judgments and altogether admirable in the courage and wisdom of your military decisions. You have made history, great history for the good of mankind.” In 1953, Dwight D. Eisenhower became president of the United States.

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On D-Day morning, a platoon of American infantry wade ashore to Omaha Beach. Map with 2 Map Insets: Normandy Invasions, D-Day, June 6, 1944

Description:

Map Inset Normandy Invasions, D-Day: shows Allied forces leaving from points along Great Britain's southern coast, crossing the English Channel, and moving into the northern coast of France.

Map Inset of Mulberry Harbor: shows prefabricated barriers and sunken ships forming a breakwater around piers and floating jetties.

Map Normandy Invasions, D-Day, June 6, 1944: shows components of the invasions including ground forces, glider landing areas, and parachute drop areas on the northern coast of France.

21st army group commanded by Montgomery, U.S. 1st army comanded by Bradley, and British 2nd army commanded by Dempsey, invaded Utah Beach, Omaha Beach, Gold Beach, Juno Beach, and Sword Beach.
Gliders landed along Utah Beach and Sword Beach, included flooded areas.
Parachute drop zones were planned for the Utah Beach and Sword Beach areas.

D-Day, June 6, 1944
INTERACTIVE 21st ARMY GROUP COMMANDER OF GROUND FORCES Montgomery U.S. 1st ARMY Bradley BRITISH 2nd ARMY Dempsey Mulberry Harbor In order to accommodate the vast number of invading ships, the Allies built two enormous concrete ports and towed them to Gold Beach on the French coast n D-Day. They sank 70 old ships to create a breakwater for the artifical harbor. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 782 Historical Spotlight: Audie Murphy Photo: Audie Murphy

Near the end of the Second World War, Audie Murphy became famous as the most decorated American soldier of the war. He received 24 medals from the United States—including the Congressional Medal of Honor. He was also awarded three medals by France and one more by Belgium.

Born in Kingston, Texas, Murphy enlisted in the army in 1942. He served in North Africa and Europe, and in 1944 he rose to the rank of second lieutenant. His most impressive act of bravery occurred in January 1945 near Colmar, France, when in the midst of a furious German attack, he jumped onto a burning tank destroyer and killed about 50 Axis troops with his machine gun. Although wounded in the leg, he rallied his troops to retake the ground the Germans had gained earlier in the day.

The Battle Of The Bulge

In October 1944, Americans captured their first German town, Aachen. Hitler responded with a desperate last-gasp offensive. He ordered his troops to break through the Allied lines and to recapture the Belgian port of Antwerp. This bold move, the Führer hoped, would disrupt the enemy’s supply lines and demoralize the Allies.

On December 16, under cover of dense fog, eight German tank divisions broke through weak American defenses along an 80-mile front. Hitler hoped that a victory would split American and British forces and break up Allied supply lines. Tanks drove 60 miles into Allied territory, creating a bulge in the lines that gave this desperate last-ditch offensive its name, the Battle of the Bulge. As the Germans swept westward, they captured 120 American GIs near Malmédy. Elite German troops—the SS troop-ers—herded the prisoners into a large field and mowed them down with machine guns and pistols.

The battle raged for a month. When it was over, the Germans had been pushed back, and little seemed to have changed. But, in fact, events had taken a decisive turn. The Germans had lost 120,000 troops, 600 tanks and assault guns, and 1,600 planes in the Battle of the Bulge—soldiers and weapons they could not replace. From that point on, the Nazis could do little but retreat.

Liberation Of The Death Camps

Meanwhile, Allied troops pressed eastward into the German heartland, and the Soviet army pushed westward across Poland toward Berlin. Soviet troops were the first to come upon one of the Nazi death camps, in July 1944. As the Soviets drew near a camp called Majdanek in Poland, SS guards worked feverishly to bury and burn all evidence of their hideous crimes. But they ran out of time. When the Soviets entered Majdanek, they found a thousand starving prisoners barely alive, the world’s largest crematorium, and a storehouse containing 800,000 shoes. “This is not a concentration camp,” reported a stunned Soviet war correspondent, “it is a gigantic murder plant.” The Americans who later liberated Nazi death camps in Germany were equally horrified.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ROBERT T. JOHNSON

“We started smelling a terrible odor and suddenly we were at the concentration camp at Landsberg. Forced the gate and faced hundreds of starving prisoners.… We saw emaciated men whose thighs were smaller than wrists, many had bones sticking out thru their skin.… Also we saw hundreds of burned and naked bodies.… That evening I wrote my wife that ‘For the first time I truly realized the evil of Hitler and why this war had to be waged.’”
—quoted in Voices: Letters from World War II

Unconditional Surrender

By April 25, 1945, the Soviet army had stormed Berlin. As Soviet shells burst overhead, the city panicked. “Hordes of soldiers stationed in Berlin deserted and were shot on the spot or hanged from the nearest tree,” wrote Claus Fuhrmann, a Berlin clerk. “On their chests they had placards reading, ‘We betrayed the Führer.’”

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In his underground headquarters in Berlin, Hitler prepared for the end. On April 29, he married Eva Braun, his longtime companion. The same day, he wrote out his last address to the German people. In it he blamed the Jews for starting the war and his generals for losing it. “I die with a happy heart aware of the immeasurable deeds of our soldiers at the front. I myself and my wife choose to die in order to escape the disgrace of … capitulation,” he said. The next day Hitler shot himself while his new wife swallowed poison. In accordance with Hitler’s orders, the two bodies were carried outside, soaked with gasoline, and burned.

A week later, General Eisenhower accepted the unconditional surrender of the Third Reich. On May 8, 1945, the Allies celebrated V-E Day—Victory in Europe Day. The war in Europe was finally over.

Photo: Thousands celebrate in the streets

New Yorkers celebrate V-E Day with a massive party that began in Times Square and went on for days at sites throughout the city.

Roosevelt’s Death

President Roosevelt did not live to see V-E Day. On April 12, 1945, while posing for a portrait in Warm Springs, Georgia, the president had a stroke and died. That night, Vice President Harry S. Truman became the nation’s 33rd president.

Section 2: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Dwight D. Eisenhower

• D-Day

• Omar Bradley

• George Patton

• Battle of the Bulge

• V-E Day

• Harry S. Truman

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of the major events influencing the fighting in Europe and North Africa.

Timeline: provides spaces to list four events

Write a paragraph indicating how any two of these events are related.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Do you agree with the decision made by Roosevelt and Churchill to require unconditional surrender by the Axis powers? Why or why not? Think About:

• the advantages of defeating a foe decisively

• the advantages of ending a war quickly

• how other conflicts, such as the Civil War and World War I, ended

4. Analyzing Primary Sources

When President Roosevelt’s body was brought by train to Washington, Betty Conrad was among the servicewomen who escorted his casket.

“ The body in the casket was not only our leader but the bodies of all the men and women who had given their lives for freedom. They must not and will not have died in vain.”

What did Roosevelt’s body symbolize to Betty Conrad?

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Section 3: The War in the Pacific

One American’s Story

The writer William Manchester left college after Pearl Harbor to join the marines. Manchester says that, as a child, his “horror of violence had been so deep-seated that I had been unable to trade punches with other boys.” On a Pacific island, he would have to confront that horror the first time he killed a man in face-to-face combat. Manchester’s target was a Japanese sniper firing on Manchester’s buddies from a fisherman’s shack.

Photo: soldiers crouching with rifles behind a demolished shack

American soldiers on Leyte in the Philippine Islands in late 1944.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WILLIAM MANCHESTER

“My mouth was dry, my legs quaking, and my eyes out of focus. Then my vision cleared. I … kicked the door with my right foot, and leapt inside.…

I … saw him as a blur to my right.… My first shot missed him, embedding itself in the straw wall, but the second caught him dead-on.… A wave of blood gushed from the wound.… He dipped a hand in it and listlessly smeared his cheek red.… Almost immediately a fly landed on his left eyeball.… A feeling of disgust and self-hatred clotted darkly in my throat, gagging me.”
—from Goodbye Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War
The Pacific War was a savage conflict fought with raw courage. Few who took part in that fearsome struggle would return home unchanged.

The Allies Stem the Japanese Tide

While the Allies agreed that the defeat of the Nazis was their first priority, the United States did not wait until V-E Day to move against Japan. Fortunately, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 had missed the Pacific Fleet’s submarines. Even more importantly, the attack had missed the fleet’s aircraft carriers, which were out at sea at the time.

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Japanese Advances

In the first six months after Pearl Harbor, the Japanese conquered an empire that dwarfed Hitler’s Third Reich. On the Asian mainland, Japanese troops overran Hong Kong, French Indochina, Malaya, Burma, Thailand, and much of China. They also swept south and east across the Pacific, conquering the Dutch East Indies, Guam, Wake Island, the Solomon Islands, and countless other outposts in the ocean, including two islands in the Aleutian chain, which were part of Alaska.

In the Philippines, 80,000 American and Filipino troops battled the Japanese for control. At the time of the Japanese invasion in December 1941, General Douglas MacArthur was in command of Allied forces on the islands. When American and Filipino forces found themselves with their backs to the wall on Bataan, President Roosevelt ordered MacArthur to leave. On March 11, 1942, MacArthur left the Philippines with his wife, his son, and his staff. As he left, he pledged to the many thousands of men who did not make it out, “I shall return.”

Doolittle’s Raid

In the spring of 1942, the Allies began to turn the tide against the Japanese. The push began on April 18 with a daring raid on Tokyo and other Japanese cities. Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle led 16 bombers in the attack. The next day, Americans awoke to headlines that read “Tokyo Bombed! Doolittle Do’od It.” Pulling off a Pearl Harbor–style air raid over Japan lifted America’s sunken spirits. At the same time, it dampened spirits in Japan.

Battle Of The Coral Sea

The main Allied forces in the Pacific were Americans and Australians. In May 1942 they succeeded in stopping the Japanese drive toward Australia in the five-day Battle of the Coral Sea. During this battle, the fighting was done by airplanes that took off from enormous aircraft carriers. Not a single shot was fired by surface ships. For the first time since Pearl Harbor, a Japanese invasion had been stopped and turned back.

The Battle Of Midway

Japan’s next thrust was toward Midway, a strategic island which lies northwest of Hawaii. Here again the Allies succeeded in stopping the Japanese. Americans had broken the Japanese code and knew that Midway was to be their next target.

Admiral Chester Nimitz, the commander of American naval forces in the Pacific, moved to defend the island. On June 3, 1942, his scout planes found the Japanese fleet. The Americans sent torpedo planes and dive bombers to the attack. The Japanese were caught with their planes still on the decks of their carriers. The results were devastating. By the end of the Battle of Midway, the Japanese had lost four aircraft carriers, a cruiser, and 250 planes. In the words of a Japanese official, at Midway the Americans had “avenged Pearl Harbor.”

The Battle of Midway was a turning point in the Pacific War. Soon the Allies began “island hopping.” Island by island they won territory back from the Japanese. With each island, Allied forces moved closer to Japan.

Historical Spotlight: Navajo Code Talkers

On each of the Pacific islands that American troops stormed in World War II, the Japanese heard a “strange language gurgling” in their radio headsets. The code seemed to have Asian overtones, but it baffled everyone who heard it. In fact, the language was Navajo, which was spoken only in the American Southwest and traditionally had no alphabet or other written symbols. Its “hiddenness” made it a perfect candidate for a code language.

Though the Navajo had no words for combat terms, they developed terms such as chicken hawk for divebomber and war chief for commanding general. Throughout the Pacific campaign—from Midway to Iwo Jima—the code talkers were considered indispensable to the war effort. They finally received national recognition in 1969.

Photo: a Navajo code talker holds a radio

Four hundred Navajo were recruited into the Marine Corps as code talkers. Their primary duty was transmitting telephone and radio messages. 786 Timeline 1941 - 1943 Pacific and Europe

Description:

Timeline: 1941 - 1943 Pacific and Europe

April 1941 Europe: Germany invades Greece and Yugoslavia.
June 1941 Europe: Germany invades the Soviet Union.
December 1941 Pacific: U.S. declares war on Japan.
December 1941 Europe: Germany and Italy declare war on the United States.
April 1942 Pacific: U.S. surrenders Bataan in the Philippines.
May 1942 Pacific: Allies turn back Japanese fleet in Battle of the Coral Sea.
June 1942 Pacific: Allies defeat Japan in Battle of Midway.
August 1942 Pacific: U.S. marines land on Guadalcanal.
August 1942 Europe: Hitler orders attack on Stalingrad.
November 1942 Europe: Allies land in North Africa.
February 1943 Europe: German troops surrender at Stalingrad.
May 1943 Europe: Axis forces surrender in North Africa.

War in the Pacific and in Europe Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 786 and page 787 in the print version.

Description:

Map: World War II, The War in the Pacific 1942 - 1945, shows Japanese Empire and conquest, major Allied campaign, limit of Japanese advance, atomic bombing, and major battles.

Japanese Empire: Japan, Manchuria, Burma, Thailand, Indochina, Dutch East Indies, Malaya, Brunei, Philippines, Papua.
Major Allied campaign: from Pearl Harbor and the Fiji Islands, movement East through the Pacific Ocean, South China Sea, and Coral Sea, plus Allied air supply route to China.
Limit of Japanese advance: a line encircles part of the Pacific Ocean, South China Sea, Indian Ocean, and the Coral Sea and the islands within the area, plus parts of the mainland controlled by the Japanese Empire
Atomic bombing: Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, and Nagasaki on August 9, 1945.
14 major battles:
Coral Sea, May 1942
Battle of Midway, June 1942
Guadalcanal, August 1942 - February 1943
Tarawa, November 1943
Kwajalein, January - February 1944
Enewetak, February 1944
Bougainville, March 1944
Philippine Sea, June 1944
Saipan, June - July 1944
Guam, July - August 1944
Peleliu, September - November 1944
Leyte Gulf, October 1944
Iow Jima, February - March 1945
Okinawa, April - June, 1945

World War II: The War in the Pacific, 1942–1945
INTERACTIVE 787

Description:

Timeline: War in the Pacific and in Europe 1943 - 1945

Europe July 1943: Allies invade Sicily.
Europe September 1943: Italy secretly surrenders to Allies.
Europe May 1944: "Bloody Anzio" ends.
Europe June 1944: Allies invade Europe on D-Day.
Pacific June 1944: Allies win Battle of the Philippine Sea.
Europe July 1944: Soviets first liberate death camps.
Europe August 1944: Allies liberate Paris.
Pacific October 1944: Allies win Battle of Leyte Gulf.
Europe December 1944: Germans attack Allies in Battle of the Bulge.
Pacific March 1945: Allies capture Iwo Jima.
Europe April 1945: Italians execute Mussolini. Hitler commits suicide.
Europe May 1945: V-E Day ends war in Europe.
Pacific June 1945: Allies capture Okinawa.
Pacific August 1945: U.S. drops atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Pacific September 1945: Japan surrenders.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 786 and page 787 in the print version.

The Allies Go on the Offensive

The first Allied offensive began in August 1942 when 19,000 troops stormed Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. By the time the Japanese abandoned Guadalcanal six months later, they called it the Island of Death. To war correspondent Ralph Martin and the troops who fought there, it was simply “hell.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

RALPH G. MARTIN

“ Hell was red furry spiders as big as your fist, giant lizards as long as your leg, leeches falling from trees to suck blood, armies of white ants with a bite of fire, scurrying scorpions inflaming any flesh they touched, enormous rats and bats everywhere, and rivers with waiting crocodiles. Hell was the sour, foul smell of the squishy jungle, humidity that rotted a body within hours, … stinking wet heat of dripping rain forests that sapped the strength of any man.”
—The GI War

Guadalcanal marked Japan’s first defeat on land, but not its last. The Americans continued leapfrogging across the Pacific toward Japan, and in October 1944, some 178,000 Allied troops and 738 ships converged on Leyte Island in the Philippines. General MacArthur, who had left the Philippines two years earlier, waded ashore and announced, “People of the Philippines: I have returned.”

Photo: Young Japanese aviators stand in front of a plane

Japanese kamikaze pilots pose—smiling—just before taking off on the mission that would be their last.

The Japanese Defense

The Japanese threw their entire fleet into the Battle of Leyte Gulf. They also tested a new tactic, the kamikaze (kä′mĭkä′zē), or suicide-plane, attack in which Japanese pilots crashed their bomb-laden planes into Allied ships. (Kamikaze means “divine wind” and refers to a legendary typhoon that saved Japan in 1281 by destroying a Mongol invasion.) In the Philippines, 424 kamikaze pilots embarked on suicide missions, sinking 16 ships and damaging another 80.

Americans watched these terrifying attacks with “a strange mixture of respect and pity” according to Vice Admiral Charles Brown. “You have to admire the devotion to country demonstrated by those pilots,” recalled Seaman George Marse. “Yet, when they were shot down, rescued and brought aboard our ship, we were surprised to find the pilots looked like ordinary, scared young men, not the wide-eyed fanatical ‘devils’ we imagined them to be.”

Despite the damage done by the kamikazes, the Battle of Leyte Gulf was a dis-aster for Japan. In three days of battle, it lost 3 battleships, 4 aircraft carriers, 13 cruisers, and almost 500 planes. From then on, the Imperial Navy played only a minor role in the defense of Japan.

788 History Through Photojournalism: Raising The Flag On Iwo Jima

On February 19, 1945, the war in Europe was nearing its end, but in the Pacific one of the fiercest battles of World War II was about to erupt. On that day, 70,000 marines converged on the tiny, Japanese-controlled island of Iwo Jima. Four days later, they had captured Mount Suribachi, the island’s highest point, but the battle for Iwo Jima would rage on for four more weeks.

Photo: Marines lift an American flag fluttering atop a pole.

Photographer Lou Lowery documented the men of “Easy Company” hoisting an American flag on a makeshift pole atop Mount Suribachi. But the original flag was soon taken down to be kept as a souvenir by the commanding officer. Photo: Holding a flagpole at an angle, Marines plant its end in a pile of rubble.

Photo: Holding a flagpole at an angle, Marines plant its end in a pile of rubble.

Six marines were sent to replace the flag with an even larger one. Joe Rosenthal, a wire-service photographer, saw the second flag raising, grabbed his camera, and clicked off a frame without even looking through his viewfinder. Rosenthal’s photo appeared the next morning on the front pages of American newspapers. In the minds of Americans, it immediately replaced the gloomy, blurred images of Pearl Harbor going up in flames. 789

Iwo Jima

After retaking much of the Philippines and liberating the American prisoners of war there, the Allies turned to Iwo Jima, an island that writer William Manchester later described as “an ugly, smelly glob of cold lava squatting in a surly ocean.” Iwo Jima (which means “sulfur island” in Japanese) was critical to the United States as a base from which heavily loaded bombers might reach Japan. It was also perhaps the most heavily defended spot on earth, with 20,700 Japanese troops entrenched in tunnels and caves. More than 6,000 marines died taking this desolate island, the greatest number in any battle in the Pacific to that point. Only 200 Japanese survived. Just one obstacle now stood between the Allies and a final assault on Japan—the island of Okinawa.

Key Player: Douglas Macarthur 1880–1964 Photo: Douglas MacArthur

Douglas MacArthur was too arrogant and prickly to be considered a “regular guy” by his troops. But he was arguably the most brilliant Allied strategist of World War II. For every American soldier killed in his campaigns, the Japanese lost ten.

He was considered a real hero of the war, both by the military and by the prisoners on the Philippines, whom he freed. “MacArthur took more territory with less loss of life,” observed journalist John Gunther, “than any military commander since Darius the Great [king of Persia, 522–486 B.C.].”

The Battle For Okinawa

In April 1945, U.S. Marines invaded Okinawa. The Japanese unleashed more than 1,900 kamikaze attacks on the Allies during the Okinawa campaign, sinking 30 ships, damaging more than 300 more, and killing almost 5,000 seamen.

Once ashore, the Allies faced even fiercer opposition than on Iwo Jima. By the time the fighting ended on June 21, 1945, more than 7,600 Americans had died. But the Japanese paid an even ghastlier price—110,000 lives—in defending Okinawa. This total included two generals who chose ritual suicide over the shame of surrender. A witness to this ceremony described their end: “A simultaneous shout and a flash of the sword … and both generals had nobly accomplished their last duty to their Emperor.”

The Battle for Okinawa was a chilling foretaste of what the Allies imagined the invasion of Japan’s home islands would be. Churchill predicted the cost would be a million American lives and half that number of British lives.

The Atomic Bomb Ends the War

The taking of Iwo Jima and Okinawa opened the way for an invasion of Japan. However, Allied leaders knew that such an invasion would become a desperate struggle. Japan still had a huge army that would defend every inch of homeland. President Truman saw only one way to avoid an invasion of Japan. He decided to use a powerful new weapon that had been developed by scientists working on the Manhattan Project—the atomic bomb.

The Manhattan Project

Led by General Leslie Groves with research directed by American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer, the development of the atomic bomb was not only the most ambitious scientific enterprise in history, it was also the best-kept secret of the war. At its peak, more than 600,000 Americans were involved in the project, although few knew its ultimate purpose. Even Truman did not learn about it until he became president.

The first test of the new bomb took place on the morning of July 16, 1945, in an empty expanse of desert near Alamogordo, New Mexico. A blinding flash, which was visible 180 miles away, was followed by a deafening roar as a tremendous shock wave rolled across the trembling desert. Otto Frisch, a scientist on the project, described the huge mushroom cloud that rose over the desert as “a redhot elephant standing balanced on its trunk.” The bomb worked!

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President Truman now faced a difficult decision. Should the Allies use the bomb to bring an end to the war? Truman did not hesitate. On July 25, 1945, he ordered the military to make final plans for dropping two atomic bombs on Japanese targets. A day later, the United States warned Japan that it faced “prompt and utter destruction” unless it surrendered at once. Japan refused. Truman later wrote, “The final decision of where and when to use the atomic bomb was up to me. Let there be no mistake about it. I regarded the bomb as a military weapon and never had any doubt that it should be used.”

Hiroshima And Nagasaki

On August 6, a B-29 bomber named Enola Gay released an atomic bomb, code-named Little Boy, over Hiroshima, an important Japanese military center. Forty-three seconds later, almost every building in the city collapsed into dust from the force of the blast. Hiroshima had ceased to exist. Still, Japan’s leaders hesitated to surrender. Three days later, a second bomb, code-named Fat Man, was dropped on Nagasaki, leveling half the city. By the end of the year, an estimated 200,000 people had died as a result of injuries and radiation poisoning caused by the atomic blasts. Yamaoka Michiko was 15 years old and living near the center of Hiroshima when the first bomb hit.

Photo: A mushroom-shaped cloud rises from a thick smoky column.

A PERSONAL VOICE

YAMAOKA MICHIKO

“ They say temperatures of 7,000 degrees centigrade hit me.… Nobody there looked like human beings.… Humans had lost the ability to speak. People couldn’t scream, ‘It hurts!’ even when they were on fire.… People with their legs wrenched off. Without heads. Or with faces burned and swollen out of shape. The scene I saw was a living hell.”
—quoted in Japan at War: An Oral History

Emperor Hirohito was horrified by the destruction wrought by the bomb. “I cannot bear to see my innocent people suffer any longer,” he told Japan’s leaders tearfully. Then he ordered them to draw up papers “to end the war.” On September 2, formal surrender ceremonies took place on the U.S. battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay. “Today the guns are silent,” said General MacArthur in a speech marking this historic moment. “The skies no longer rain death—the seas bear only commerce—men everywhere walk upright in the sunlight. The entire world is quietly at peace.”

Photo: two pedestrians wear masks as they pass piles of rubble

Hiroshima in ruins following the atomic bomb blast on August 6, 1945 791

Point

“The only way to end the war against Japan was to bomb the Japanese mainland.”

Many advisors to President Truman, including Secretary of War Henry Stimson, had this point of view. They felt the bomb would end the war and save American lives. Stimson said, “The face of war is the face of death.”

Some scientists working on the bomb agreed—even more so as the casualty figures from Iwo Jima and Okinawa sank in. “Are we to go on shedding American blood when we have available a means to a steady victory?” they petitioned. “No! If we can save even a handful of American lives, then let us use this weapon—now!”

Two other concerns pushed Americans to use the bomb. Some people feared that if the bomb were not dropped, the project might be viewed as a gigantic waste of money.

The second consideration involved the Soviet Union. Tension and distrust were already developing between the Western Allies and the Soviets. Some American officials believed that a successful use of the atomic bomb would give the United States a powerful advantage over the Soviets in shaping the postwar world.

Counterpoint

“Japan’s staggering losses were enough to force Japan’s surrender.”

Many of the scientists who had worked on the bomb, as well as military leaders and civilian policymakers, had doubts about using it. Dr. Leo Szilard, a Hungarian-born physicist who had helped President Roosevelt launch the project and who had a major role in developing the bomb, was a key figure opposing its use.

A petition drawn up by Szilard and signed by 70 other scientists argued that it would be immoral to drop an atomic bomb on Japan without fair warning. Many supported staging a demonstration of the bomb for Japanese leaders, perhaps by exploding one on a deserted island near Japan, to convince the Japanese to surrender.

Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower agreed. He maintained that “dropping the bomb was completely unnecessary” to save American lives and that Japan was already defeated. Ike told Secretary of War Henry Stimson, “I was against it [the bomb] on two counts. First the Japanese were ready to surrender and it wasn’t necessary to hit them with that awful thing. Second, I hated to see our country be the first to use such a weapon.”

Rebuilding Begins

With Japan’s surrender, the Allies turned to the challenge of rebuilding war-torn nations. Even before the last guns fell silent, they began thinking about principles that would govern the postwar world.

The Yalta Conference

In February 1945, as the Allies pushed toward victory in Europe, an ailing Roosevelt had met with Churchill and Stalin at the Black Sea resort city of Yalta in the Soviet Union. Stalin graciously welcomed the president and the prime minister, and the Big Three, as they were called, toasted the defeat of Germany that now seemed certain.

For eight grueling days, the three leaders discussed the fate of Germany and the postwar world. Stalin, his country devastated by German forces, favored a harsh approach. He wanted to keep Germany divided into occupation zones—areas controlled by Allied military forces—so that Germany would never again threaten the Soviet Union.

When Churchill strongly disagreed, Roosevelt acted as a mediator. He was prepared to make concessions to Stalin for two reasons. First, he hoped that the Soviet Union would stand by its commitments to join the war against Japan that was still waging in the Pacific. (The first test of the atom bomb was still five months away.) Second, Roosevelt wanted Stalin’s support for a new world peace-keeping organization, to be named the United Nations.

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The historic meeting at Yalta produced a series of compromises. To pacify Stalin, Roosevelt convinced Churchill to agree to a temporary division of Germany into four zones, one each for the Americans, the British, the Soviets, and the French. Churchill and Roosevelt assumed that, in time, all the zones would be brought together in a reunited Germany. For his part, Stalin promised “free and unfettered elections” in Poland and other Soviet-occupied Eastern European countries.

Stalin also agreed to join in the war against Japan. That struggle was expected to continue for another year or more. In addition, he agreed to participate in an international conference to take place in April in San Francisco. There, Roosevelt’s dream of a United Nations (UN) would become a reality.

The Nuremberg War Trials

Besides geographic division, Germany had another price to pay for its part in the war. The discovery of Hitler’s death camps led the Allies to put 24 surviving Nazi leaders on trial for crimes against humanity, crimes against the peace, and war crimes. The trials were held in the southern German town of Nuremberg.

At the Nuremberg trials, the defendants included Hitler’s most trusted party officials, government ministers, military leaders, and powerful industrialists. As the trial began, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson explained the significance of the event.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JUSTICE ROBERT JACKSON

“ The wrongs which we seek to condemn and punish have been so calculated, so malignant and so devastating, that civilization cannot tolerate their being ignored because it cannot survive their being repeated.… It is hard now to perceive in these miserable men … the power by which as Nazi leaders they once dominated much of the world and terrified most of it. Merely as individuals, their fate is of little consequence to the world. What makes this inquest significant is that these prisoners represent sinister influences that will lurk in the world long after their bodies have returned to dust. They are living symbols of racial hatreds, of terrorism and violence, and of the arrogance and cruelty of power.… Civilization can afford no compromise with the social forces which would gain renewed strength if we deal ambiguously or indecisively with the men in whom those forces now precariously survive.”
—quoted in opening address to the Nuremberg War Crimes Trial

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In the end, 12 of the 24 defendants were sentenced to death, and most of the remaining were sent to prison. In later trials of lesser leaders, nearly 200 more Nazis were found guilty of war crimes. Still, many people have argued that the trials did not go far enough in seeking out and punishing war criminals. Many Nazis who took part in the Holocaust did indeed go free.

Yet no matter how imperfect the trials might have been, they did establish an important principle—the idea that individuals are responsible for their own actions, even in times of war. Nazi executioners could not escape punishment by claiming that they were merely “following orders.” The principle of individual responsibility was now firmly entrenched in international law.

“ I was only following orders.”
DEFENDANTS AT THE NUREMBERG TRIALS

The Occupation Of Japan

Japan was occupied by U.S. forces under the command of General Douglas MacArthur. In the early years of the occupation, more than 1,100 Japanese, from former Prime Minister Hideki Tojo to lowly prison guards, were arrested and put on trial. Seven, including Tojo, were sentenced to death. In the Philippines, in China, and in other Asian battlegrounds, additional Japanese officials were tried for atrocities against civilians or prisoners of war.

During the seven-year American occupation, MacArthur reshaped Japan’s economy by introducing free-market practices that led to a remarkable economic recovery. MacArthur also worked to transform Japan’s government. He called for a new constitution that would provide for woman suffrage and guarantee basic freedoms. In the United States, Americans followed these changes with interest. The New York Times reported that “General MacArthur … has swept away an autocratic regime by a warrior god and installed in its place a democratic government presided over by a very human emperor and based on the will of the people as expressed in free elections.” The Japanese apparently agreed. To this day, their constitution is known as the MacArthur Constitution.

Section 3: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Douglas MacArthur

• Chester Nimitz

• Battle of Midway

• kamikaze

• J. Robert Oppenheimer

• Hiroshima

• Nagasaki

• Nuremberg trials

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Using a chart such as the one below, describe the significance of key military actions in the Pacific during World War II.

Military Action	Significance
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Which military action was a turning point for the Allies?

Critical Thinking

3. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

At the trials, many Nazis defended themselves by saying they were only following orders. What does this rationale tell you about the German military? Why was it important to negate this justification?

4. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Explain how the United States was able to defeat the Japanese in the Pacific.

5. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Is it legitimate to hold people accountable for crimes committed during wartime? Why or why not? Think About:

• the laws that govern society

• the likelihood of conducting a fair trial

• the behavior of soldiers, politicians, and civilians during war

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Tracing Themes: Science and Technology

Radar, guided missiles, nuclear submarines, reconnaissance satellites, atomic bombs—the inventions of the 20th century seem intended mainly for war, with the usual dreaded results. But these technological developments have also had far-reaching applications in peacetime. Because the innovations were originally intended for the battlefield, they were developed quickly and with a narrow purpose. However, their applications during peacetime have led to life-enhancing benefits that will extend far into the 21st century.

Photo: Sopwith Camel biplane with spinning propeller

Photo: passenger planes parked on a tarmac

1914–1918 WORLD WAR I FIGHTER PLANES TO COMMUTER FLIGHTS Airplanes were first used to gather military information but were soon put to work as fighters and bombers. The Sopwith Camel (shown at right), was one of the most successful British fighter planes, bringing down almost 1,300 enemy aircraft during World War I. The development of flight technology eventually led to sophisticated supersonic aircraft. Today, non-military aircraft are primarily used for travel and cargo transport. Jumbo jets carry hundreds of passengers with each takeoff. Brain scans: 4 views show auditory stimulation for a resting state, language and music, language only, and music only.

Brain scans: 4 views show auditory stimulation for a resting state, language and music, language only, and music only.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 794 and page 795 in the print version. 795 Photo: atomic blast

1939–1945 WORLD WAR II ATOM BOMBS TO BRAIN SCANS Faced with alarming rumors of work on a German atomic bomb, America mobilized some of the finest scientific minds in the world to create its own atomic bomb. The energy released by its nuclear reaction was enough to kill hundreds of thousands of people, as evidenced by the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But the resulting ability to harness the atom’s energy also led to new technologies for diagnosing and treating human diseases. Techniques such as positron emission tomography (PET) now reveal the inner workings of the human brain itself.

Applications of World War II Technology
TECHNOLOGY	MILITARY USE	PEACETIME USE
Semiconductors	Navigation	Transistors, radios, electronics
Computers	Code breaking	Software programs, video games
Freeze-dried food	Soldiers’ rations	TV dinners, space-shuttle rations
Synthetic materials	Parachutes, weapons parts, tires	Telephones, automobile fenders, pacemakers
Radar	Tracking and surveillance	Weather tracking, air traffic control, archaeological digs

Photo: researcher with small satellite dish and equipment in a field

1945–1991 THE COLD WAR SATELLITES TO CELLULAR PHONES The Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the first successful artificial space satellite, in 1957. As the United States raced to catch up with the Soviets in space, both countries eventually produced satellites that have improved life for people around the world. Satellites not only track weather patterns and control air traffic but also link the continents in a vast communications network. 796

Section 4: The Home Front

One American’s Story

The writer and poet Maya Angelou was a teenager living in San Francisco when the United States got involved in World War II. The first change she noticed was the disappearance of the city’s Japanese population. The second change was an influx of workers, including many African Americans, from the South. San Franciscans, she noted, maintained that there was no racism in their city by the bay. But Angelou knew differently.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MAYA ANGELOU

“ A story went the rounds about a San Franciscan white matron who refused to sit beside a Negro civilian on the streetcar, even after he made room for her on the seat. Her explanation was that she would not sit beside a draft dodger who was a Negro as well. She added that the least he could do was fight for his country the way her son was fighting on Iwo Jima. The story said that the man pulled his body away from the window to show an armless sleeve. He said quietly and with great dignity, ‘Then ask your son to look around for my arm, which I left over there.’ ”
—I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

At the end of the war, returning veterans—even those who weren’t disabled—had to begin dealing with the very real issues of reentry and adjustment to a society that offered many opportunities but still had many unsolved problems.

Poster: shows a one-armed African-American man holding a welder. Caption: Twice a Patriot! Ex-Private Obie Bartlett lost left arm - Pearl Harbor - Released December 1941. Now at work welding in a West Coast shipyard.

Like many minority veterans, Obie Bartlett was twice a patriot—and was still regarded as a second-class citizen.

Opportunity and Adjustment

In contrast to the Great Depression, World War II was a time of opportunity for millions of Americans. Jobs abounded, and despite rationing and shortages, people had money to spend. At the end of World War II, the nation emerged as the world’s dominant economic and military power.

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Economic Gains

The war years were good ones for working people. As defense industries boomed, unemployment fell to a low of 1.2 percent in 1944. Even with price and wage controls, average weekly pay (adjusted for inflation) rose 10 percent during the war. And although workers still protested long hours, overtime, and night shifts, they were able to save money for the future. Some workers invested up to half their paychecks in war bonds.

Farmers also prospered during the war. Unlike the depression years, when farmers had battled dust storms and floods, the early 1940s had good weather for growing crops. Farmers benefited from improvements in farm machinery and fertilizers and reaped the profits from rising crop prices. As a result, crop production increased by 50 percent, and farm income tripled. Before the war ended, many farmers could pay off their mortgages.

Women also enjoyed employment gains during the war, although many lost their jobs when the war ended. Over 6 million women had entered the work force for the first time, boosting the percentage of women in the total work force to 35 percent. A third of those jobs were in defense plants, which offered women more challenging work and better pay than jobs traditionally associated with women, such as as waitressing, clerking, and domestic service. With men away at war, many women also took advantage of openings in journalism and other professions. “The war really created opportunities for women,” said Winona Espinosa, a wife and mother who became a riveter and bus driver during the war. “It was the first time we got a chance to show that we could do a lot of things that only men had done before.”

Poster: A woman wields a wrench. Caption: The girl he left behind is still behind him. She's a WOW. Woman Ordnance Worker.

The war gave women the chance to prove they could be just as productive as men. But their pay usually did not reflect their productivity.

Population Shifts

In addition to revamping the economy, the war triggered one of the greatest mass migrations in American history. Americans whose families had lived for decades in one place suddenly uprooted themselves to seek work elsewhere. More than a million newcomers poured into California between 1941 and 1944. Towns with defense industries saw their populations double and even triple, sometimes almost overnight. As shown in the map to the right, African Americans left the South for cities in the North in record numbers.

Description:

Map: African-American Migration 1940 - 1950 shows movement within the continental United States

West Coast gained 283,600
Mountain and Plains States gained 26,300
Midwest gained 523,200
Middle Atlantic gained 386,800
New England gained 24,900
South lost 1,244,800

African-American Migration, 1940–1950 798 Photo: William Oskay, Jr., and his family

Attending Pennsylvania State College under the GI Bill of Rights, William Oskay, Jr., paid $28 a month for the trailer home in which you see him working.

Social Adjustments

Families adjusted to the changes brought on by war as best they could. With millions of fathers in the armed forces, mothers struggled to rear their children alone. Many young children got used to being left with neighbors or relatives or in child-care centers as more and more mothers went to work. Teenagers left at home without parents sometimes drifted into juvenile delinquency. And when fathers finally did come home, there was often a painful period of readjustment as family members got to know one another again.

The war helped create new families, too. Longtime sweethearts—as well as couples who barely knew each other—rushed to marry before the soldier or sailor was shipped overseas. In booming towns like Seattle, the number of marriage licenses issued went up by as much as 300 percent early in the war. A New Yorker observed in 1943, “On Fridays and Saturdays, the City Hall area is blurred with running soldiers, sailors, and girls hunting the license bureau, floral shops, ministers, blood-testing laboratories, and the Legal Aid Society.”

In 1944, to help ease the transition of returning servicemen to civilian life, Congress passed the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, better known as the GI Bill of Rights. This bill provided education and training for veterans, paid for by the federal government. Just over half the returning soldiers, or about 7.8 million veterans, attended colleges and technical schools under the GI Bill. The act also provided federal loan guarantees to veterans buying homes or farms or starting new businesses.

Discrimination and Reaction

Despite the opportunities that opened up for women and minorities during the war, old prejudices and policies persisted, both in the military and at home.

Civil Rights Protests

African Americans made some progress on the home front. During the war, thousands of African Americans left the South. The majority moved to the Midwest, where better jobs could be found. Between 1940 and 1944, the percentage of African Americans working in skilled or semiskilled jobs rose from 16 to 30 percent.

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Wherever African Americans moved, however, discrimination presented tough hurdles. In 1942, civil rights leader James Farmer founded an interracial organization called the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) to confront urban segregation in the North. That same year, CORE staged its first sit-in at a segregated Chicago restaurant.

As African-American migrants moved into already overcrowded cities, tensions rose. In 1943, a tidal wave of racial violence swept across the country. The worst conflict erupted in Detroit on a hot Sunday afternoon in June. What started as a tussle between blacks and whites at a beach on the Detroit River mushroomed into a riot when white sailors stationed nearby joined the fray. The fighting raged for three days, fueled by false rumors that whites had murdered a black woman and her child and that black rioters had killed 17 whites. By the time President Roosevelt sent federal troops to restore order, 9 whites and 25 blacks lay dead or dying.

The violence of 1943 revealed to many Americans—black and white alike—just how serious racial tensions had become in the United States. By 1945, more than 400 committees had been established by American communities to improve race relations. Progress was slow, but African Americans were determined not to give up the gains they had made.

Tension In Los Angeles

Mexican Americans also experienced prejudice during the war years. In the violent summer of 1943, Los Angeles exploded in anti-Mexican “zoot-suit” riots. The zoot suit was a style of dress adopted by Mexican-American youths as a symbol of their rebellion against tradition. It consisted of a long jacket and pleated pants. Broad-brimmed hats were often worn with the suits.

The riots began when 11 sailors in Los Angeles reported that they had been attacked by zoot-suit-wearing Mexican Americans. This charge triggered violence involving thousands of servicemen and civilians. Mobs poured into Mexican neighborhoods and grabbed any zoot-suiters they could find. The attackers ripped off their victims’ clothes and beat them senseless. The riots lasted almost a week and resulted in the beating of hundreds of Mexican-American youth and other minorities.

Despite such unhappy experiences with racism, many Mexican Americans believed that their sacrifices during wartime would lead to a better future.

Photo: Mexican-American men stand in line, guarded by policemen

These Mexican Americans, involved in the 1943 Los Angeles riots, are seen here leaving jail to make court appearances.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MANUEL DE LA RAZA

“ This war … is doing what we in our Mexican-American movement had planned to do in one generation.… It has shown those ‘across the tracks’ that we all share the same problems. It has shown them what the Mexican American will do, what responsibility he will take and what leadership qualities he will demonstrate. After this struggle, the status of the Mexican Americans will be different.”

—quoted in A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America

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Description:

Map: Japanese Relocation Camps, 1942, shows camps in 7 states

Jerome and Rohwer, Arkansas
Granada (Amache), Colorado
Heart Mountain, Wyoming
Minidoka, Idaho
Topax, Utah
Poston and Gila River, Arizona
Tule Lake and Manzanar, California

Japanese Relocation Camps, 1942 Photo: a Japanese mother and child have tags on their coats

On March 3, 1942, a Japanese-American mother carries her sleeping daughter during their relocation to an internment camp.

Internment of Japanese Americans

While Mexican Americans and African Americans struggled with racial tension, the war produced tragic results for Japanese Americans. When the war began, 120,000 Japanese Americans lived in the United States. Most of them were citizens living on the West Coast.

The surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii had stunned the nation. After the bombing, panic-stricken citizens feared that the Japanese would soon attack the United States. Frightened people believed false rumors that Japanese Americans were committing sabotage by mining coastal harbors and poisoning vegetables.

This sense of fear and uncertainty caused a wave of prejudice against Japanese Americans. Early in 1942, the War Department called for the mass evacuation of all Japanese Americans from Hawaii. General Delos Emmons, the military governor of Hawaii, resisted the order because 37 percent of the people in Hawaii were Japanese Americans. To remove them would have destroyed the islands’ economy and hindered U.S. military operations there. However, he was eventually forced to order the internment, or confinement, of 1,444 Japanese Americans, 1 percent of Hawaii’s Japanese-American population.

On the West Coast, however, panic and prejudice ruled the day. In California, only 1 percent of the people were Japanese, but they constituted a minority large enough to stimulate the prejudice of many whites, without being large enough to effectively resist internment. Newspapers whipped up anti-Japanese sentiment by running ugly stories attacking Japanese Americans.

On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed an order requiring the removal of people of Japanese ancestry from California and parts of Washington, Oregon, and Arizona. Based on strong recommendations from the military, he justified this step as necessary for national security. In the following weeks, the army rounded up some 110,000 Japanese Americans and shipped them to ten hastily constructed remote “relocation centers,” euphemisms for prison camps.

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About two-thirds were Nisei, or Japanese people born in this country of parents who emigrated from Japan. Thousands of Nisei had already joined the armed forces, and to Ted Nakashima, an architectural draftsman from Seattle, the evacuation seemed utterly senseless.

A PERSONAL VOICE

TED NAKASHIMA

“[There are] electricians, plumbers, draftsmen, mechanics, carpenters, painters, farmers—every trade—men who are able and willing to do all they can to lick the Axis.… We’re on this side and we want to help. Why won’t America let us?”
—from New Republic magazine, June 15, 1942

No specific charges were ever filed against Japanese Americans, and no evidence of subversion was ever found. Faced with expulsion, terrified families were forced to sell their homes, businesses, and all their belongings for less than their true value.

Japanese Americans fought for justice, both in the courts and in Congress. The initial results were discouraging. In 1944, the Supreme Court decided, in Korematsu v. United States, that the government’s policy of evacuating Japanese Americans to camps was justified on the basis of “military necessity.” (See pages 802–803.) After the war, however, the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) pushed the government to compensate those sent to the camps for their lost property. In 1965, Congress authorized the spending of $38 million for that purpose—less than a tenth of Japanese Americans’ actual losses.

The JACL did not give up its quest for justice. In 1978, it called for the payment of reparations, or restitution, to each individual that suffered internment. A decade later, Congress passed, and President Ronald Reagan signed, a bill that promised $20,000 to every Japanese American sent to a relocation camp. When the checks were sent in 1990, a letter from President George Bush accompanied them, in which he stated, “We can never fully right the wrongs of the past. But we can take a clear stand for justice and recognize that serious injustices were done to Japanese Americans during World War II.”

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• GI Bill of Rights

• James Farmer

• Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

• internment

• Japanese American Citizens League (JACL)

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

List the advances and problems in the economy and in civil rights during World War II.

	Advances	Problems
Economy
Civil Rights

Which of these advances and problems do you think had the most far-reaching effect? Explain your answer.

Critical Thinking

3. COMPARING

How were the experiences of African Americans, Mexican Americans, and Japanese Americans similar during World War II? How were they different?

4. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Do you think that the government’s policy of evacuating Japanese Americans to camps was justified on the basis of “military necessity”? Explain your answer.

5. ANALYZING EFFECTS

What effect did World War II have on American families? Think About:

• the role of women in families and the economy

• the relationship between the races

• the impact of the federal government on society

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Illustration: An oval encircles the Supreme Court building with the words Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court

Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court Korematsu v. United States (1944)

Origins Of The Case Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, U.S. military officials argued that Japanese Americans posed a threat to the nation’s security. Based on recommendations from the military, President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which gave military officials the power to limit the civil rights of Japanese Americans. Military authorities began by setting a curfew for Japanese Americans. Later, they forced Japanese Americans from their homes and moved them into detention camps. Fred Korematsu was convicted of defying the military order to leave his home. At the urging of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Korematsu appealed that conviction.

THE RULING The Court upheld Korematsu’s conviction and argued that military necessity made internment constitutional.

Legal Reasoning

Executive Order 9066 was clearly aimed at one group of people—Japanese Americans. Korematsu argued that this order was unconstitutional because it was based on race. Writing for the Court majority, Justice Hugo Black agreed “that all legal restrictions which curtail the civil rights of a single racial group are immediately suspect.” However, in this case, he said, the restrictions were based on “a military imperative” and not “group punishment based on antagonism to those of Japanese origin.” As such, Justice Black stated that the restrictions were constitutional.

“Compulsory exclusion of large groups, … except under circumstances of direct emergency and peril, is inconsistent with our basic governmental institutions. But when under conditions of modern warfare our shores are threatened by hostile forces, the power to protect must be commensurate with the threatened danger.”

Justice Frank Murphy, however, dissented—he opposed the majority. He believed that military necessity was merely an excuse that could not conceal the racism at the heart of the restrictions.

“This exclusion … ought not to be approved. Such exclusion goes over ‘the very brink of constitutional power’ and falls into the ugly abyss of racism.”

Two other justices also dissented, but Korematsu’s conviction stood.

Legal Sources 803 Photo: Japanese-American internment camp

Why it Mattered

About 110,000 Japanese Americans were forced into internment camps, as shown above, during World War II. Many had to sell their businesses and homes at great loss. Thousands were forced to give up their possessions. In the internment camps, Japanese Americans lived in a prison-like setting under constant guard.

The Court ruled that these government actions did not violate people’s rights because the restrictions were based on military necessity rather than on race. But the government treated German Americans and Italian Americans much differently. In those instances, the government identified potentially disloyal people but did not harass the people it believed to be loyal. By contrast, the government refused to make distinctions between loyal and potentially disloyal Japanese Americans.

Historical Impact

In the end, the internment of Japanese Americans became a national embarrassment. In 1976, President Gerald R. Ford repealed Executive Order 9066.

Similarly, the Court’s decision in Korematsu became an embarrassing example of court-sanctioned racism often compared to the decisions on Dred Scott (1857) and Plessy v. Ferguson (1896). In the early 1980s, a scholar conducting research obtained copies of government documents related to the Hirabayashi and Korematsu cases. The documents showed that the army had lied to the Court in the 1940s. Japanese Americans had not posed any security threat. Korematsu’s conviction was overturned in 1984. Hirabayashi’s conviction was overturned in 1986. In 1988, Congress passed a law ordering reparations payments to surviving Japanese Americans who had been detained in the camps.

Photo: President Clinton and Fred Korematsu

President Clinton presents Fred Korematsu with a Presidential Medal of Freedom during a ceremony at the White House on January 15, 1998. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Hypothesizing The internment of Japanese Americans during World War II disrupted lives and ripped apart families. What do you think can be done today to address this terrible mistake? How can the government make amends?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R13. Connect to Today

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court to locate the three dissenting opinions in Korematsu written by Justices Frank Murphy, Robert Jackson, and Owen Roberts. Read one of these opinions, and then write a summary that states its main idea. What constitutional principle, if any, does the opinion use?

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Chapter 25: Assessment

Visual Summary: The United States In World War II Long Term Causes

• Discontent about Treaty of Versailles

• Economic instability in Europe

• Rise of totalitarian governments

Immediate Causes

• Expansion of Germany, Italy, and Japan

• Failure of appeasement

• German invasion of Poland

• Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor

WORLD WAR II Immediate Effects

• Defeat of Axis powers

• Destruction and immense loss of life

• Recognition of Holocaust

• Founding of United Nations

Long Term Effects

• Rise of United States and Soviet Union as superpowers

• Cold War

• Soviet control of Eastern Europe

• Divided Germany

• Development of nuclear capability

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to World War II.

1. A. Philip Randolph

2. Manhattan Project

3. rationing

4. Dwight D. Eisenhower

5. D-Day

6. V-E Day

7. Douglas MacArthur

8. Hiroshima

9. GI Bill of Rights

10. Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Mobilizing for Defense (pages 768–774)

1. How did the U.S. military reflect the diversity of American society during World War II?

2. How did the federal government’s actions influence civilian life during World War II?

3. What role did the media play in helping the country mobilize?

The War for Europe and North Africa (pages 775–783)

4. How did the Allies win control of the Atlantic Ocean between 1941 and 1943?

5. What was the significance of the Battle of Stalingrad?

6. How did the Battle of the Bulge signal the beginning of the end of World War II in Europe?

The War in the Pacific (pages 784–793)

7. Briefly describe the island war in the Pacific.

8. Why did President Truman decide to use atomic weapons?

The Home Front (pages 796–801)

9. How did the U.S. economy change during World War II?

10. What events show the persistence of racial tensions?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a chart like the one shown, provide causes for the listed effects of World War II.

Chart: provides four spaces to list causes for effects of World War II Description:

Effects of World War II:

The U.S. enters the war.
Congress creates the Office of Price Administration.
Japanese Americans are sent to relocation centers.
Top Nazi officials are put on trial at Nuremberg.

2. ANALYZING ISSUES Would you support the use of nuclear weapons today, and if so, under what circumstances?

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Judging from the map on page 778, why was a victory in North Africa essential to an invasion of southern Europe?

805 Standardized Test Practice

Use the map and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

Map: Japan and surroundings, shows Iwo Jima and Ikinawa just south of Japan in the Pacific Ocean

1. Why was it critical for the Allies to take the Japanese-held islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa?

A The islands were highly populated areas with little military protection.

B The islands were critical as bases from which Allied bombers could reach Japan.

C The islands were centers for Japanese development of a nuclear bomb.

D The Allies intended to drop atomic bombs on the islands.

2. How did World War II lead to one of the largest population shifts in U.S. history?

F Service men and women were forced to leave their homes for Europe.

G The loss of loved ones led people to move in with their families.

H People moved to states with military bases and factories for better jobs.

J People moved to the middle of the country to escape wars on both coasts.

3. How did natural geography contribute to Germany’s defeat in World War II?

A Large bodies of water stood between Germany and its enemies.

B Germany had to fight a war on three fronts: North Africa, Western Europe, and Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.

C There were too few rivers to be used for German supplies.

D Switzerland pledged to remain neutral throughout the war.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 767:

How can the United States use its resources to achieve victory?

Write a newspaper article in which you describe the ways in which the United States used its resources during World War II. Include information about rationing and about the various offices that the federal government established to monitor inflation and convert a peacetime economy into a wartime economy.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Chapter Assessment to find out more about A. Philip Randolph. Write a brief biography of Randolph in which you describe his lifelong contributions as a labor leader. Here are some questions to consider:

• What did he do during his youth that prepared him for his life’s work?

• What role did he play in ending discrimination in the armed services?

• What union did he organize?

• What role did he play in the march on Washington in 1963?

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Chapter 26: Cold War Conflicts

Photo: Senator Joseph McCarthy at a hearing. Title: Cold War Conflicts

Senator Joseph McCarthy, shown here, charged that Communists had infiltrated many areas of American life. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 806 and page 807 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1945 - 1952 USA and World

1945 World: United Nations is established.
1946 World: Churchill gives his Iron Curtain speech.
1948 USA: Harry S. Truman is elected president.
1948 World: Berlin airlift begins.
1949 USA: United States joins NATO.
1949 World: China becomes communist under Mao Zedong.
1950 USA: U.S. sends troops to Korea.
1950 World: Korean War begins.
1952 USA: U.S. explodes first hydrogen bomb.
1952 USA: Dwight D. Eisenhower is elected president.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 806 and page 807 in the print version. 807 Photo: a crowded hearing-room

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 806 and page 807 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1953 - 1960 USA and World

1953 USA: Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are executed as spies.
1953 World: Participants in Korean War agree on cease-fire.
1954 USA: Senator Joseph McCarthy alleges Communist involvement in U.S. Army
1954 World: French are defeated in Vietnam.
1957 World: Soviets launch Sputnik.
1959 World: Fidel Castro comes to power in Cuba.
1960 USA: Francis Gary Powers's U-2 spy plane is shot down by the Soviets.
1960 USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 806 and page 807 in the print version. Interact with History

At the end of World War II, Americans begin to be haunted by a new fear. The Soviets have embraced a tightly controlled political system called communism. Many believe it threatens the American way of life. Throughout the nation, suspected communists are called before a House subcommittee for questioning. Anyone accused of un-American activity faces public humiliation and professional ruin.

What do you do when a friend is accused?

Examine the Issues

• Do Americans with communist beliefs pose a threat to the nation?

• What can individual citizens do to protect the rights of all people?

• Should citizens speak out to preserve the rights of others?

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Section 1: Origins of the Cold War

One American’s Story

Seventy miles south of Berlin, Joseph Polowsky and a patrol of American soldiers were scouting for signs of the Soviet army advancing from the east. As the soldiers neared the Elbe River, they saw lilacs in bloom. Polowsky later said the sight of the flowers filled them with joy.

Across the Elbe, the Americans spotted Soviet soldiers, who signaled for them to cross over. When the Americans reached the opposite bank, their joy turned to shock. They saw to their horror that the bank was covered with dead civilians, victims of bombing raids.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOSEPH POLOWSKY

“Here we are, tremendously exhilarated, and there’s a sea of dead.… [The platoon leader] was much moved.… He said, ‘Joe, let’s make a resolution with these Russians here and also the ones on the bank: this would be an important day in the lives of the two countries.’ … It was a solemn moment. There were tears in the eyes of most of us.… We embraced. We swore never to forget.”
—quoted in The Good War

Photo: American and Soviet soldiers shake hands

American and Soviet soldiers meet (top) at the Elbe River in Germany near the end of World War II. A 1996 postage stamp (above) commemorates the historic meeting.

The Soviet and U.S. soldiers believed that their encounter would serve as a symbol of peace. Unfortunately, such hopes were soon dashed. After World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as rival superpowers, each strong enough to greatly influence world events.

Former Allies Clash

The United States and the Soviet Union had very different ambitions for the future. These differences created a climate of icy tension that plunged the two countries into a bitter rivalry.

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Under Soviet communism, the state controlled all property and economic activity, while in the capitalistic American system, private citizens controlled almost all economic activity. In the American system, voting by the people elected a president and a congress from competing political parties; in the Soviet Union, the Communist Party established a totalitarian government with no opposing parties.

Key Players Harry S. Truman 1884–1972 Portrait: Harry S. Truman and Presidential Seal

Harry S. Truman, the son of a Missouri livestock trader and his wife, did not seem destined for greatness. When he graduated from high school in 1901, he drifted from job to job. After WWI, he invested in a men’s clothing store, but the business failed.

Discouraged by his business failure, Truman sought a career in politics. As a politician, his blunt and outspoken style won both loyal friends and bitter enemies. As presi-dent, his decisiveness and willingness to accept responsibility for his decisions (“The Buck Stops Here” read a sign on his desk) earned him respect that has grown over the years.

Joseph Stalin 1879–1953 Photo: Joseph Stalin

As a young revolutionary, Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili took the name Stalin, which means ”man of steel” in Russian.

His father was a failed shoe-maker and an alcoholic. His mother helped support the family as a washerwoman.

Stalin is credited with turning the Soviet Union into a world power but at a terrible cost to its citizens. He ruled with terror and brutality and saw “enemies” everywhere, even among friends and sup-porters. He subdued the population with the use of secret police and labor camps, and he is believed to have been responsible for the murder of millions of Soviets.

The United States was furious that Joseph Stalin—the leader of the Soviet Union—had been an ally of Hitler for a time. Stalin had supported the Allies only after Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941. In some ways, the Americans and Soviets became more suspicious of each other during the war. Stalin resented the Western Allies’ delay in attacking the Germans in Europe. Such an attack, he thought, would draw part of the German army away from the Soviet Union. Relations worsened after Stalin learned that the United States had kept its development of the atomic bomb secret.

The United Nations

In spite of these problems, hopes for world peace were high at the end of the war. The most visible symbol of these hopes was the United Nations (UN). On April 25, 1945, the representatives of 50 nations met in San Francisco to establish this new peacekeeping body. After two months of debate, on June 26, 1945, the delegates signed the charter establishing the UN.

Ironically, even though the UN was intended to promote peace, it soon became an arena in which the two superpowers competed. Both the United States and the Soviet Union used the UN as a forum to spread their influence over others.

Truman Becomes President

For the United States, the key figure in the early years of conflict with the Soviets was President Harry S. Truman. On April 12, 1945, Truman had suddenly become president when Franklin Roosevelt died. This former Missouri senator had been picked as Roosevelt’s running mate in 1944. He had served as vice-president for just a few months before Roosevelt’s death. During his term as vice-president, Truman had not been included in top policy decisions. He had not even known that the United States was developing an atomic bomb. Many Americans doubted Truman’s ability to serve as president. But Truman was honest and had a willingness to make tough decisions—qualities that he would need desperately during his presidency.

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The Potsdam Conference

Truman’s test as a diplomat came in July 1945 when the Big Three—the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union—met at the final wartime conference at Potsdam near Berlin. The countries that participated were the same ones that had been present at Yalta in February 1945. Stalin still represented the Soviet Union. Clement Attlee replaced Churchill as Britain’s representative mid-conference, because Churchill’s party lost a general election. And Harry Truman took Roosevelt’s place.

At Yalta, Stalin had promised Roosevelt that he would allow free elections—that is, a vote by secret ballot in a multiparty system—in Poland and other parts of Eastern Europe that the Soviets occupied at the end of the war. By July 1945, however, it was clear that Stalin would not keep this promise. The Soviets prevented free elections in Poland and banned democratic parties.

Tension Mounts

Stalin’s refusal to allow free elections in Poland convinced Truman that U.S. and Soviet aims were deeply at odds. Truman’s goal in demanding free elections was to spread democracy to nations that had been under Nazi rule. He wanted to create a new world order in which all nations had the right of self-determination.

Bargaining at Potsdam

At the Yalta conference, the Soviets had wanted to take reparations from Germany to help repay Soviet wartime losses. Now, at Potsdam, Truman objected to that. After hard bargaining, it was agreed that the Soviets, British, Americans, and French would take reparations mainly from their own occupation zones within Germany.

Truman also felt that the United States had a large economic stake in spreading democracy and free trade across the globe. U.S. industry boomed during the war, making the United States the economic leader of the world. To continue growing, American businesses wanted access to raw materials in Eastern Europe, and they wanted to be able to sell goods to Eastern European countries.

Soviets Tighten Their Grip On Eastern Europe

The Soviet Union had also emerged from the war as a nation of enormous economic and military strength. However, unlike the United States, the Soviet Union had suffered heavy devastation on its own soil. Soviet deaths from the war have been estimated at 20 million, half of whom were civilians. As a result, the Soviets felt justified in their claim to Eastern Europe. By dominating this region, the Soviets felt they could stop future invasions from the west.

U.S. Aims Versus Soviet Aims in Europe

The United States wanted to …	The Soviets wanted to …
• Create a new world order in which all nations had the right of self-determination • Gain access to raw materials and markets for its industries • Rebuild European governments to ensure stability and to create new markets for American goods • Reunite Germany, believing that Europe would be more secure if Germany were productive	• Encourage communism in other countries as part of the worldwide struggle between workers and the wealthy • Rebuild its war-ravaged economy using Eastern Europe’s industrial equipment and raw materials • Control Eastern Europe to balance U.S. influence in Western Europe • Keep Germany divided and weak so that it would never again threaten the Soviet Union

811

Map: The Iron Curtain 1949 with inset Postwar Germany 1949

Description:

Map: The Iron Curtain 1949 shows communist nations and the Iron Curtain.

Communist Nations: Soviet Union, Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, and Albania.
Iron Curtain: West Germany and Austria in the West, with East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia in the East.
Map inset of Portwar Germany 1949: a line divides East Germany from West Germany's British, French, and American Zones. Berlin is divided in two with American, British and french zones in West Berlin separated from East Berlin.

The Iron Curtain, 1949

INTERACTIVE

Postwar Germany, 1949

Stalin installed communist governments in Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Poland. These countries became known as satellite nations, countries dominated by the Soviet Union. In early 1946, Stalin gave a speech announcing that communism and capitalism were incompatible—and that another war was inevitable.

United States Establishes a Policy of Containment

Faced with the Soviet threat, American officials decided it was time, in Truman’s words, to stop “babying the Soviets.” In February 1946, George F. Kennan, an American diplomat in Moscow, proposed a policy of containment. By containment he meant taking measures to prevent any extension of communist rule to other countries. This policy began to guide the Truman administration’s foreign policy.

Europe was now divided into two political regions, a mostly democratic Western Europe and a communist Eastern Europe. In March 1946, Winston Churchill traveled to the United States and gave a speech that described the situation in Europe.

A PERSONAL VOICE

WINSTON CHURCHILL

“A shadow has fallen upon the scenes so lately lighted by the Allied victory.… From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe.… All these famous cities and the populations around them lie in … the Soviet sphere, and all are subject in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very high and … increasing measure of control from Moscow.”
—“Iron Curtain” speech in Fulton, Missouri

Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of Great Britain

The phrase “iron curtain” came to stand for the division of Europe. When Stalin heard about the speech, he declared in no uncertain terms that Churchill’s words were a “call to war.”

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Cold War in Europe

The conflicting U.S. and Soviet aims in Eastern Europe led to the Cold War, a conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union in which neither nation directly confronted the other on the battlefield. The Cold War would dominate global affairs—and U.S. foreign policy—from 1945 until the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991.

The Truman Doctrine

The United States first tried to contain Soviet influence in Greece and Turkey. Britain was financially supporting both nations’ resistance to growing communist influence in the region. However, Britain’s economy had been badly hurt by the war, and the formerly wealthy nation could no longer afford to give aid. It asked the United States to take over the responsibility.

President Truman accepted the challenge. On March 12, 1947, Truman asked Congress for $400 million in economic and military aid for Greece and Turkey. In a statement that became known as the Truman Doctrine, he declared that “it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures.” Congress agreed with Truman and decided that the doctrine was essential to keeping Soviet influence from spreading. Between 1947 and 1950, the United States sent $400 million in aid to Turkey and Greece, greatly reducing the danger of communist takeover in those nations.

The Marshall Plan

Like postwar Greece, Western Europe was in chaos. Most of its factories had been bombed or looted. Millions of people were living in refugee camps while European governments tried to figure out where to resettle them. To make matters worse, the winter of 1946–1947 was the bitterest in several centuries. The weather severely damaged crops and froze rivers, cutting off water transportation and causing a fuel shortage.

In June 1947, Secretary of State George Marshall proposed that the United States provide aid to all European nations that needed it, saying that this move was directed “not against any country or doctrine but against hunger, poverty, desperation, and chaos.”

The Marshall Plan revived European hopes. Over the next four years, 16 countries received some $13 billion in aid. By 1952, Western Europe was flourishing, and the Communist party had lost much of its appeal to voters.

Description:

Graph: U.S. Aid in millions of dollars, with countries listed from most aid received to least aid

Great Britain 2,826
France 2,445
Italy 1,316
West Germany 1,297
Holland 877
Austria 561
Belgium and Luxembourg 547
Greece 515
Denmark 257
Norway 237
Turkey 153
Ireland 146
Sweden 119
Portugal 51
Yugoslavia 33
Iceland 29
Other 350

The Marshall Plan Source: Problemes Economiques, No. 306

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Superpowers Struggle over Germany

As Europe began to get back on its feet, the United States and its allies clashed with the Soviet Union over the issue of German reunification. At the end of World War II, Germany was divided into four zones occupied by the United States, Great Britain, and France in the west and the Soviet Union in the east. In 1948, Britain, France, and the United States decided to combine their three zones into one nation. The western part of Berlin, which had been occupied by the French, British, and Americans, was surrounded by Soviet-occupied territory. (See map, page 811.)

Although the three nations had intended to unify their zones, they had no written agreement with the Soviets guaranteeing free access to Berlin by road or rail. Stalin saw this loophole as an opportunity. If he moved quickly, he might be able to take over the part of Berlin held by the three Western powers. In June 1948, Stalin closed all highway and rail routes into West Berlin. As a result, no food or fuel could reach that part of the city. The 2.1 million residents of the city had only enough food to last for approximately five weeks.

The Berlin Airlift

The resulting situation was dire. In an attempt to break the blockade, American and British officials started the Berlin airlift to fly food and supplies into West Berlin. For 327 days, planes took off and landed every few minutes, around the clock. In 277,000 flights, they brought in 2.3 million tons of supplies—everything from food, fuel, and medicine to Christmas presents that the planes’ crews bought with their own money.

West Berlin survived because of the airlift. In addition, the mission to aid Berlin boosted American prestige around the world. By May 1949, the Soviet Union realized it was beaten and lifted the blockade.

Photo: Children sit on a fence, watching a plane fly low overhead

Beginning in June 1948, planes bringing tons of food and other supplies to West Berlin landed every few minutes. 814

In the same month, the western part of Germany officially became a new nation, the Federal Republic of Germany, also called West Germany. It included West Berlin. A few months later, from its occupation zone, the Soviet Union created the German Democratic Republic, called East Germany. It included East Berlin.

The Nato Alliance

The Berlin blockade increased Western European fear of Soviet aggression. As a result, ten Western European nations—Belgium, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and Portugal—joined with the United States and Canada on April 4, 1949, to form a defensive military alliance called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). (See map, page 830.) The 12 members of NATO pledged military support to one another in case any member was attacked. For the first time in its history, the United States had entered into a military alliance with other nations during peacetime. The Cold War had ended any hope of a return to U.S. isolationism. Greece and Turkey joined NATO in 1952, and West Germany joined in 1955. By then, NATO kept a standing military force of more than 500,000 troops as well as thousands of planes, tanks, and other equipment.

Cartoon: Next to a doorway labeled Atlantic Pact, hats on a hatpole have labels. From bottom to top: United States and Britain, France, Canada and Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg.

This cartoon depicts the nations that signed the North Atlantic Pact, which created NATO in 1949. The nations, shown as hats, are arranged in a pyramid to show the bigger countries on the bottom supporting the smaller, weaker nations on top.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• United Nations (UN)

• satellite nation

• containment

• iron curtain

• Cold War

• Truman Doctrine

• Marshall Plan

• Berlin airlift

• North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Use a graphic organizer like the one below to describe the U.S. actions and the Soviet actions that contributed most to the Cold War.

Diagram: provides spaces to list U.S Actions and Soviet Actions

Write a paragraph explaining which country was more responsible and why you think so.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

People who had served as aides to President Franklin Roosevelt worried that Truman was not qualified to handle world leadership. Considering what you learned in this section, evaluate Truman as a world leader. Think About:

• his behavior toward Stalin

• his economic support of European nations

• his support of West Berlin

4. MAKING INFERENCES

Which of the two superpowers do you think was more successful in achieving its aims during the period 1945–1949? Support your answer by referring to historical events.

5. ANALYZING MOTIVES

What were Stalin’s motives in supporting Communist governments in Eastern Europe?

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Section 2: The Cold War Heats Up

One American’s Story

First Lieutenant Philip Day, Jr., vividly remembers his first taste of battle in Korea. On the morning of July 5, 1950, Philip Day spotted a column of eight enemy tanks moving toward his company.

A PERSONAL VOICE

PHILIP DAY, JR.

“I was with a 75-mm recoilless-rifle team. ‘Let’s see,’ I shouted, ‘if we can get one of those tanks.’ We picked up the gun and moved it to where we could get a clean shot. I don’t know if we were poorly trained, … but we set the gun on the forward slope of the hill. When we fired, the recoilless blast blew a hole in the hill which instantly covered us in mud and dirt.… When we were ready again, we moved the gun to a better position and began banging away. I swear we had some hits, but the tanks never slowed down.… In a little less than two hours, 30 North Korean tanks rolled through the position we were supposed to block as if we hadn’t been there.”
—quoted in The Korean War: Pusan to Chosin

American soldiers in Korea, November 1950.

Only five years after World War II ended, the United States became embroiled in a war in Korea. The policy of containment had led the United States into battle to halt communist expansion. In this conflict, however, the enemy was not the Soviet Union, but North Korea and China.

China Becomes a Communist Country

For two decades, Chinese Communists had struggled against the nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek (chăng′ kīshĕk′). The United States supported Chiang. Between 1945 and 1949, the American government sent the Nationalists approximately $3 billion in aid.

816 Nationalists Versus Communists, 1945 Photo: Chiang Kai-shek

Nationalists Leader: Chiang Kai-shek

• Ruled in southern and eastern China

• Relied heavily on aid from United States

• Struggled with inflation and a failing economy

• Suffered from weak leadership and poor morale

Communists Leader: Mao Zedong

• Ruled in northern China

• Relied heavily on financial aid from Soviet Union

• Attracted peasants with promises of land reform

• Benefited from experienced guerrilla army and a highly motivated leadership

Many Americans were impressed by Chiang Kai-shek and admired the courage and determination that the Chinese Nationalists showed in resisting the Japanese during the war. However, U.S. officials who dealt with Chiang held a different view. They found his government inefficient and hopelessly corrupt.

Furthermore, the policies of Chiang’s government undermined Nationalist support. For example, the Nationalists collected a grain tax from farmers even during the famine of 1944. When city dwellers demonstrated against a 10,000 percent increase in the price of rice, Chiang’s secret police opened fire on them.

In contrast, the Communists, led by Mao Zedong (mouPdzOPdJngP), gained strength throughout the country. In the areas they controlled, Communists worked to win peasant support. They encouraged peasants to learn to read, and they helped to improve food production. As a result, more and more recruits flocked to the Communists’ Red Army. By 1945, much of northern China was under communist control.

Renewed Civil War

As soon as the defeated Japanese left China at the end of World War II, cooperation between the Nationalists and the Communists ceased. Civil war erupted again between the two groups. In spite of the problems in the Nationalist regime, American policy favored the Nationalists because they opposed communism.

From 1944 to 1947, the United States played peacemaker between the two groups while still supporting the Nationalists. However, U.S. officials repeatedly failed to negotiate peace. Truman refused to commit American soldiers to back up the nationalists, although the United States did send $2 billion worth of military equipment and supplies.

The aid wasn’t enough to save the Nationalists, whose weak military leadership and corrupt, abusive practices drove the peasants to the Communist side. In May 1949, Chiang and the remnants of his demoralized government fled to the island of Taiwan, which Westerners called Formosa. After more than 20 years of struggle, the Communists ruled all of mainland China. They established a new government, the People’s Republic of China, which the United States refused to accept as China’s true government.

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America Reacts to Communist Takeover

The American public was stunned that China had become Communist. Containment had failed! In Congress, conservative Republicans and Democrats attacked the Truman administration for supplying only limited aid to Chiang. If containing communism was important in Europe, they asked, why was it not equally important in Asia?

The State Department replied by saying that what had happened in China was a result of internal forces. The United States had failed in its attempts to influence these forces, such as Chiang’s inability to retain the support of his people. Trying to do more would only have started a war in Asia—a war that the United States wasn’t prepared to fight.

Some conservatives in Congress rejected this argument as a lame excuse. They claimed that the American government was riddled with Communist agents. Like wildfire, American fear of communism began to burn out of control, and the flames were fanned even further by events in Korea the following year.

The Korean War

Japan had annexed Korea in 1910 and ruled it until August 1945. As World War II ended, Japanese troops north of the 38th parallel (38º North latitude) surrendered to the Soviets. Japanese troops south of the parallel surrendered to the Americans. As in Germany, two nations developed, one communist and one democratic.

In 1948, the Republic of Korea, usually called South Korea, was established in the zone that had been occupied by the United States. Its government, headed by Syngman Rhee, was based in Seoul, Korea’s traditional capital. Simultaneously, the Communists formed the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in the north. Kim Il Sung led its government, which was based in Pyongyang. (See map, page 819.)

Soon after World War II, the United States had cut back its armed forces in South Korea. As a result, by June of 1949 there were only 500 American troops there. The Soviets concluded that the United States would not fight to defend South Korea. They prepared to back North Korea with tanks, airplanes, and money in an attempt to take over the entire peninsula.

North Korea Attacks South Korea

On June 25, 1950, North Korean forces swept across the 38th parallel in a surprise attack on South Korea. The conflict that followed became known as the Korean War.

Within a few days, North Korean troops had penetrated deep into South Korea. South Korea called on the United Nations to stop the North Korean invasion. When the matter came to a vote in the UN Security Council, the Soviet Union was not there. The Soviets were boycotting the council in protest over the presence of Nationalist China (Taiwan). Thus, the Soviets could not veto the UN’s plan of military action. The vote passed.

On June 27, in a show of military strength, President Truman ordered troops stationed in Japan to support the South Koreans. He also sent an American fleet into the waters between Taiwan and China.

World Stage: Taiwan Map: Taiwan in relation to China, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Japan, and Philippines

In 1949, Chiang Kai-shek and other Nationalist leaders retreated to the island of Taiwan, which lies about 100 miles off the southeast coast of the Chinese mainland. There the United States helped set up a Nationalist government-—the Republic of China. From 1949 through the 1960s, the United States poured millions of dollars of aid into the Taiwanese economy.

During the 1970s, a number of nations, including the United States, decided to end diplomatic relations with Taiwan and established ties with Communist China. With the collapse of Soviet communism in the early 1990s, relations between Taiwan and the United States improved. In 2001, the United States sold weapons to Taiwan to bolster the island nation’s defense system.

818

In all, 16 nations sent some 520,000 troops to aid South Korea. Over 90 percent of these troops were American. South Korean troops numbered an additional 590,000. The combined forces were placed under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, former World War II hero in the Pacific.

The United States Fights in Korea

At first, North Korea seemed unstoppable. Driving steadily south, its troops captured Seoul. After a month of bitter combat, the North Koreans had forced UN and South Korean troops into a small defensive zone around Pusan in the southeastern corner of the peninsula.

Macarthur’s Counterattack

MacArthur launched a counterattack with tanks, heavy artillery, and fresh troops from the United States. On September 15, 1950, his troops made a surprise amphibious landing behind enemy lines at Inchon, on Korea’s west coast. Other troops moved north from Pusan. Trapped between the two attacking forces, about half of the North Korean troops surrendered; the rest fled back across the 38th parallel. MacArthur’s plan had saved his army from almost certain defeat.

The UN army chased the retreating North Korean troops across the 38th parallel into North Korea. In late November, UN troops approached the Yalu River, the border between North Korea and China. It seemed as if Korea was about to become a single country again.

The Chinese Fight Back

The Chinese, however, had other ideas. Communist China’s foreign minister, Zhou En-lai, warned that his country would not stand idly by and “let the Americans come to the border”—meaning the Yalu River. In late November 1950, 300,000 Chinese troops joined the war on the side of North Korea. The Chinese wanted North Korea as a Communist buffer state to protect their northeastern provinces that made up Manchuria. They also felt threatened by the American fleet that lay off their coast. The fight between North Korea and South Korea had escalated into a war in which the main opponents were the Chinese communists and the Americans.

By sheer force of numbers, the Chinese drove the UN troops southward. At some points along the battlefront, the Chinese outnumbered UN forces ten to one. By early January 1951, all UN and South Korean troops had been pushed out of North Korea. The Chinese advanced to the south, capturing the South Korean capital, Seoul. “We face an entirely new war,” declared MacArthur.

For two years, the two sides fought bitterly to obtain strategic positions in the Korean hills, but neither side was able to make important advances. One officer remembered the standoff.

A PERSONAL VOICE

BEVERLY SCOTT

“Our trenches … were only about 20 meters in front of theirs. We were eyeball to eyeball.… We couldn’t move at all in the daytime without getting shot at. Machine-gun fire would come in, grenades, small-arms fire, all from within spitting distance. It was like World War I. We lived in a maze of bunkers and deep trenches. … There were bodies strewn all over the place. Hundreds of bodies frozen in the snow.”
—quoted in No Bugles, No Drums: An Oral History of the Korean War

Beverly Scott 819 Map: The Korean War 1950 - 1953, with four insets shows troop movements between North and South Korea. Main map shows the 1953 Truce Line, the present-day boundary, dividing the long land mass into North and South Korea.

Map: The Korean War 1950 - 1953, with four insets shows troop movements between North and South Korea. Main map shows the 1953 Truce Line, the present-day boundary, dividing the long land mass into North and South Korea.

The Korean War, 1950–1953
INTERACTIVE June 1950 North Korean troops invade South Korea and capture the capital, Seoul. September 1950 North Koreans push South Koreans and UN troops south to the perimeter of Pusan. September to October 1950 UN troops under MacArthur land at Inchon and move north from Pusan. This two-pronged attack drives the North Koreans out of South Korea. UN troops then continue into North Korea, take Pyongyang, and advance to the Yalu River. November 1950 to January 1951 The Chinese intervene and force UN troops to retreat across the 38th parallel. Truce Line, 1953 (present-day boundary) Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Photo: Paratroopers enter a burning village

Photo: Paratroopers enter a burning village

American paratroopers comb through a village in North Korea on October 20, 1950, during the Korean War. 820

Macarthur Recommends Attacking China

To halt the bloody stalemate, in early 1951, MacArthur called for an extension of the war into China. Convinced that Korea was the place “where the Communist conspirators have elected to make their play for global conquest,” MacArthur called for the use of nuclear weapons against Chinese cities.

Truman rejected MacArthur’s request. The Soviet Union had a mutual-assistance pact with China. Attacking China could set off World War III. As General Omar N. Bradley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said, an allout conflict with China would be “the wrong war, at the wrong place, at the wrong time, and with the wrong enemy.”

Instead of attacking China, the UN and South Korean forces began to advance once more, using the U.S. Eighth Army, led by Matthew B. Ridgway, as a spearhead. By April 1951, Ridgway had retaken Seoul and had moved back up to the 38th parallel. The situation was just what it had been before the fighting began.

Macarthur Versus Truman

Not satisfied with the recapture of South Korea, MacArthur continued to urge the waging of a full-scale war against China. Certain that his views were correct, MacArthur tried to go over the president’s head. He spoke and wrote privately to newspaper and magazine publishers and, especially, to Republican leaders.

MacArthur’s superiors informed him that he had no authority to make decisions of policy. Despite repeated warnings to follow orders, MacArthur continued to criticize the president. President Truman, who as president was commander-in-chief of the armed forces and thus MacArthur’s boss, was just as stubborn as MacArthur. Truman refused to stand for this kind of behavior. He wanted to put together a settlement of the war and could no longer tolerate a military commander who was trying to sabotage his policy. On April 11, 1951, Truman made the shocking announcement that he had fired MacArthur.

Many Americans were outraged over their hero’s downfall. A public opinion poll showed that 69 percent of the American public backed General MacArthur. When MacArthur returned to the United States, he gave an address to Congress, an honor usually awarded only to heads of government. New York City honored him with a ticker-tape parade. In his closing remarks to Congress, MacArthur said, “Old soldiers never die, they just fade away.”

Throughout the fuss, Truman stayed in the background. After MacArthur’s moment of public glory passed, the Truman administration began to make its case. Before a congressional committee investigating MacArthur’s dismissal, a parade of witnesses argued the case for limiting the war. The committee agreed with them. As a result, public opinion swung around to the view that Truman had done the right thing. As a political figure, MacArthur did indeed fade away.

Photo: General MacArthur and President Truman

General Douglas MacArthur (left) and President Truman (right) strongly disagreed about how best to proceed in the Korean War. 821

Settling For Stalemate

As the MacArthur controversy died down, the Soviet Union unexpectedly suggested a cease-fire on June 23, 1951. Truce talks began in July 1951. The opposing sides reached agreement on two points: the location of the cease-fire line at the existing battle line and the establishment of a demilitarized zone between the opposing sides. Negotiators spent another year wrangling over the exchange of prisoners. Finally, in July 1953, the two sides signed an armistice ending the war.

At best, the agreement was a stalemate. On the one hand, the North Korean invaders had been pushed back, and communism had been contained without the use of atomic weapons. On the other hand, Korea was still two nations rather than one.

On the home front, the war had affected the lives of ordinary Americans in many ways. It had cost 54,000 American lives and $67 billion in expenditures. The high cost of this unsuccessful war was one of many factors leading Americans to reject the Democratic Party in 1952 and to elect a Republican administration under World War II hero Dwight D. Eisenhower. In addition, the Korean War increased fear of communist aggression and prompted a hunt for Americans who might be blamed for the communist gains.

Now & Then: The Two Koreas

Korea is still split into North Korea and South Korea, even after 50 years. South Korea is booming economically, while North Korea, still communist, struggles with severe shortages of food and energy.

Periodically, discussions about reuniting the two countries resume. In 2000, South Korean President Kim Dae-jung won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to improve ties with North Korea. The two nations met in North Korea for the first time since the nations were established in 1948. Although economic and political differences continue to keep the two countries apart, there is renewed hope that one day Korea will become a united nation.

South Korean President Kim Dae-jung waves to cheering North Koreans on June 13, 2000.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Chiang Kai-shek

• Mao Zedong

• Taiwan

• 38th parallel

• Korean War

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

On a time line such as the one shown below, list the major events of the Korean War.

Timeline: spaces provided to list four events

Choose two events and explain how one event led to the other.

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

What might have happened if MacArthur had convinced Truman to expand the fighting into China? How might today’s world be different?

4. ANALYZING EVENTS

Many Americans have questioned whether fighting the Korean War was worthwhile. What is your opinion? Why? Think About:

• the loss of American lives

• the fear of communism that enveloped the country at the time

• the stalemate that ended the war

5. EVALUATING DECISIONS

At the end of China’s civil war, the United States refused to accept the communist People’s Republic of China as China’s true government. What were the advantages of such a policy? What were the disadvantages? Do you agree with this decision? Why or why not?

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Section 3: The Cold War at Home

One American’s Story

Tony Kahn made the neighbors uncomfortable because they thought his father, Gordon Kahn, was a Communist. In 1947, Gordon Kahn was a successful screenwriter. However, when a congressional committee began to investigate Communists in Hollywood, Kahn was blacklisted—named as unfit to hire. Later, in 1951, he was scheduled to testify before the committee himself.

To save himself, Gordon Kahn simply had to name others as Communists, but he refused. Rather than face the congressional committee, he fled to Mexico. Tony Kahn remembers how the Cold War hurt him and his family.

A PERSONAL VOICE

TONY KAHN

“The first time I was called a Communist, I was four years old.… I’ll never forget the look in our neighbors’ eyes when I walked by. I thought it was hate. I was too young to realize it was fear.”
—from The Cold War Comes Home

Photo: Tony Kahn as a child/>
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Video: The Cold War Comes Home

Hollywood Blacklists the Kahn Family

The members of the Kahn family were among thousands of victims of the anti-Communist hysteria that gripped this country in the late 1940s and early 1950s. By the end of the period, no one was immune from accusations.

Fear of Communist Influence

In the early years of the Cold War, many Americans believed that there was good reason to be concerned about the security of the United States. The Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and the Communist takeover of China shocked the American public, fueling a fear that communism would spread around the world. In addition, at the height of World War II, about 80,000 Americans claimed membership in the Communist Party. Some people feared that the first loyalty of these American Communists was to the Soviet Union.

823

Loyalty Review Board

Strongly anti-Communist Republicans began to accuse Truman of being soft on communism. Consequently, in March 1947, President Truman issued an executive order setting up the Federal Employee Loyalty Program, which included the Loyalty Review Board. Its purpose was to investigate government employees and to dismiss those who were found to be disloyal to the U.S. government. The U.S. attorney general drew up a list of 91 “subversive” organizations; membership in any of these groups was grounds for suspicion.

From 1947 to 1951, government loyalty boards investigated 3.2 million employees and dismissed 212 as security risks. Another 2,900 resigned because they did not want to be investigated or felt that the investigation violated their constitutional rights. Individuals under investigation were not allowed to see the evidence against them.

Historical Spotlight: Paul Robeson Photo: Paul Robeson

Paul Robeson was an all-American football player and Phi Beta Kappa member at Rutgers University. After earning a law degree in 1923, he began a distinguished international career as a singer and actor. He was a vocal civil rights activist, and he was sympathetic to the Soviet culture and political philosophy.

In 1950, when he refused to sign an affidavit indicating whether he had ever been a member of the Communist Party, the State Department revoked his passport for eight years. During that time, he was unable to perform abroad and was blacklisted at home. His income fell from $150,000 a year to $3,000 a year.

The House Un-American Activities Committee

Other agencies investigated possible Communist influence, both inside and outside the U.S. government. The most famous of these was the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). HUAC first made headlines in 1947, when it began to investigate Communist influence in the movie industry. The committee believed that Communists were sneaking propaganda into films. The committee pointed to the pro-Soviet films made during World War II when the Soviet Union had been a United States ally.

HUAC subpoenaed 43 witnesses from the Hollywood film industry in September 1947. Many of the witnesses were “friendly,” supporting the accusation that Communists had infiltrated the film industry. For example, the movie star Gary Cooper said he had “turned down quite a few scripts because I thought they were tinged with Communistic ideas.” However, when asked which scripts he meant, Cooper couldn’t remember their titles.

Ten “unfriendly” witnesses were called to testify but refused. These men, known as the Hollywood Ten, decided not to cooperate because they believed that the hearings were unconstitutional. Because the Hollywood Ten refused to answer questions, they were sent to prison.

Photo: Protesters carry signs reading Free the Hollywood 10

Protesters demonstrate in support of the Hollywood Ten. 824

In response to the hearings, Hollywood executives instituted a blacklist, a list of people whom they condemned for having a Communist background. People who were blacklisted—approximately 500 actors, writers, producers, and directors—had their careers ruined because they could no longer work.

The Mccarran Act

As Hollywood tried to rid itself of Communists, Congress decided that Truman’s Loyalty Review Board did not go far enough. In 1950, Congress passed the McCarran Internal Security Act. This made it unlawful to plan any action that might lead to the establishment of a totalitarian dictatorship in the United States. Truman vetoed the bill, saying, “In a free country, we punish men for the crimes they commit, but never for the opinions they have.” But Congress enacted the law over Truman’s veto.

Spy Cases Stun the Nation

Two spy cases added to fear that was spreading like an epidemic across the country. One case involved a former State Department official named Alger Hiss.

Alger Hiss

In 1948, a former Communist spy named Whittaker Chambers accused Alger Hiss of spying for the Soviet Union. To support his charges, Chambers produced microfilm of government documents that he claimed had been typed on Hiss’s typewriter. Too many years had passed for government prosecutors to charge Hiss with espionage, but a jury convicted him of perjury—for lying about passing the documents—and sent him to jail. A young conservative Republican congressman named Richard Nixon gained fame for pursuing the charges against Hiss. Within four years of the highly publicized case, Nixon was elected vice president of the United States.

Hiss claimed that he was innocent and that Chambers had forged the documents used against him. However, in the 1990s, Soviet cables released by the National Security Agency seemed to prove Hiss’s guilt.

TV still: John Kennedy and Richard Nixon

1960 In the 1960 presidential election, a major factor in John Kennedy’s victory over Richard Nixon was a series of four televised debates, the first televised presidential debates in history. An estimated 85 million to 120 million Americans watched one or more of the debates, which turned the tide in favor of Kennedy. Photo: Joseph McCarthy and a TV camera

1954 In 1954, the Communist-hunting senator Joseph McCarthy, in U.S. Senate hearings that were televised live, accused the U.S. Army of “coddling Communists.” As many as 20 million Americans watched the combative senator malign people who had no chance to defend themselves. 825

The Rosenbergs

Another spy case rocked the nation even more than the Hiss case, partially because of international events occurring about the same time. On September 3, 1949, Americans learned that the Soviet Union had exploded an atomic bomb. Most American experts had predicted that it would take the Soviets three to five more years to make the bomb. People began to wonder if Communist supporters in the United States had leaked the secret of the bomb.

This second spy case seemed to confirm that suspicion. In 1950, the German-born physicist Klaus Fuchs admitted giving the Soviet Union information about America’s atomic bomb. The information prob-ably enabled Soviet scientists to develop their own atomic bomb years earlier than they would have otherwise. Implicated in the Fuchs case were Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, minor activists in the American Communist Party.

When asked if they were Communists, the Rosenbergs denied the charges against them and pleaded the Fifth Amendment, choosing not to incriminate themselves. They claimed they were being persecuted both for being Jewish and for holding radical beliefs. The Rosenbergs were found guilty of espionage and sentenced to death. In pronouncing their sentence, Judge Irving Kaufman declared their crime “worse than murder.” To him, they were directly responsible for one of the deadliest clashes of the Cold War.

A PERSONAL VOICE

IRVING KAUFMAN

“I believe your conduct in putting into the hands of the Russians the A-bomb years before our best scientists predicted Russia would perfect the bomb has already caused, in my opinion, the Communist aggression in Korea.…”
—quoted in The Unquiet Death of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg

Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were executed in June 1953 despite numerous pleas to spare their lives. Photo: journalists with soldiers

1967 By 1967, American support for the Vietnam War had plummeted as millions of TV viewers witnessed the horrors of war on the nightly news. Photo: John Dean at a Watergate hearing

1974 The Watergate scandal that toppled Richard Nixon’s presidency in 1974 played to a rapt TV audience. During the Senate hearings in 1973, the televised testimony of John Dean, the president’s counsel, had convinced two out of three Americans that the president had committed a crime. TV still: Gore and Bush vote count

2000 During the 2000 presidential election, the TV networks first projected that Al Gore would win Florida. Later, George W. Bush was declared the winner of Florida, a declaration that led Al Gore to concede. Then, when the Florida vote became too close to call, Gore retracted his concession. That “election muddle” blurred even further the already indistinct line between reporting the news and making it. 826 Analyzing Political Cartoons Cartoon: A car labeled Committee on Un-American Activities runs down pedestrians. A man in the passenger seat comments that It's Okay, we're hunting Communists.

Cartoon: A car labeled Committee on Un-American Activities runs down pedestrians. A man in the passenger seat comments that It's Okay, we're hunting Communists.

a 1947 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by the Herb Block Foundation

People from all over the world appealed for clemency for the Rosenbergs. Many considered the evidence and the testimony too weak to warrant the death sentence. The case was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the Court refused to overturn the conviction. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg died in the electric chair in June 1953, leaving behind two sons. They became the first U.S. civilians executed for espionage.

McCarthy Launches His “Witch Hunt”

The most famous anti-Communist activist was Senator Joseph McCarthy, a Republican from Wisconsin. During his first three years in the Senate, he had acquired a reputation for being an ineffective legislator. By January 1950, he realized that he was going to need a winning issue in order to be reelected in 1952. Looking for such an issue, McCarthy charged that Communists were taking over the government.

Mccarthy’s Tactics

Taking advantage of people’s concerns about communism, McCarthy made one unsupported accusation after another. These attacks on suspected Communists in the early 1950s became known as McCarthyism. Since that time, McCarthyism has referred to the unfair tactic of accusing people of dis-loyalty without providing evidence. At various times McCarthy claimed to have in his hands the names of 57, 81, and 205 Communists in the State Department. (He never actually produced a single name.) He also charged that the Democratic Party was guilty of “20 years of treason” for allowing Communist infiltration into the government. He was always careful to do his name-calling only in the Senate, where he had legal immunity that protected him from being sued for slander.

The Republicans did little to stop McCarthy’s attacks because they believed they would win the 1952 presidential election if the public saw them purging the nation of Communists. But one small group of six senators, led by Senator Margaret Chase Smith of Maine, did speak out.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARGARET CHASE SMITH

“I speak as a Republican. I speak as a woman. I speak as a United States senator. I speak as an American.… I am not proud of the way in which the Senate has been made a publicity platform for irresponsible sensationalism. I am not proud of the reckless abandon in which unproved charges have been hurled from this side of the aisle.”
—Declaration of Conscience

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Mccarthy’s Downfall

Finally, in 1954, McCarthy made accusations against the U.S. Army, which resulted in a nationally televised Senate investigation. McCarthy’s bullying of witnesses alienated the audience and cost him public support. The Senate condemned him for improper conduct that “tended to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute.” Three years later, Joseph McCarthy, suffering from alcoholism, died a broken man.

Other Anti-Communist Measures

Others besides Joseph McCarthy made it their mission to root communism out of American society. By 1953, 39 states had passed laws making it illegal to advocate the violent overthrow of the government, even though such laws clearly violated the constitutional right of free speech. Across the nation, cities and towns passed similar laws.

At times, the fear of communism seemed to have no limits. In Indiana, professional wrestlers had to take a loyalty oath. In experiments run by newspapers, pedestrians on the street refused to sign petitions that quoted the Declaration of Independence because they were afraid the ideas were communist. The government investigated union leaders, librarians, newspaper reporters, and scientists. It seemed that no profession was safe from the hunt for Communists.

Causes and Effects of McCarthyism Causes

• Soviets successfully establish Communist regimes in Eastern Europe after World War II.

• Soviets develop the atomic bomb more quickly than expected.

• Korean War ends in a stalemate.

• Republicans gain politically by accusing Truman and Democrats of being soft on communism.

Effects

• Millions of Americans are forced to take loyalty oaths and undergo loyalty investigations.

• Activism by labor unions goes into decline.

• Many people are afraid to speak out on public issues.

• Anti-communism continues to drive U.S. foreign policy.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• HUAC

• Hollywood Ten

• blacklist

• Alger Hiss

• Ethel and Julius Rosenberg

• Joseph McCarthy

• McCarthyism

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the web below on your paper and fill in events that illustrate the main idea in the center.

Diagram: provides five spaces to list events illustrating the idea, Anti-Communist fear gripped the country.

Which event had the greatest impact on the country?

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

If you had lived in this period and had been accused of being a Communist, what would you have done? Think About:

• the Hollywood Ten, who refused to answer questions

• the Rosenbergs, who pleaded the Fifth Amendment

4. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Choose one of the following roles: Harry Truman, a member of HUAC, Judge Irving Kaufman, or Joseph McCarthy. As the person you have chosen, explain your motivation for opposing communism. Cartoon: Joseph MacCarthy caught in a web “I Can’t Do This To Me!” a 1954 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by the Herb Block Foundation

5. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

What does this cartoon suggest about McCarthy’s downfall?

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Section 4: Two Nations Live on the Edge

One American’s Story

Writer Annie Dillard was one of thousands of children who grew up in the 1950s with the chilling knowledge that nuclear war could obliterate their world in an instant. Dillard recalls practicing what to do in case of a nuclear attack.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ANNIE DILLARD

“At school we had air-raid drills. We took the drills seriously; surely Pittsburgh, which had the nation’s steel, coke, and aluminum, would be the enemy’s first target.… When the air-raid siren sounded, our teachers stopped talking and led us to the school basement. There the gym teachers lined us up against the cement walls and steel lockers, and showed us how to lean in and fold our arms over our heads.… The teachers stood in the middle of the room, not talking to each other. We tucked against the walls and lockers.… We folded our skinny arms over our heads, and raised to the enemy a clatter of gold scarab bracelets and gold bangle bracelets.”
—An American Childhood

Photo: a girl climbs into a bomb shelter's round opening

A father helps his daughter practice getting into a bomb shelter.

The fear of nuclear attack was a direct result of the Cold War. After the Soviet Union developed its atomic bomb, the two superpowers embarked on an arms race that enormously increased both the number and the destructive power of weapons.

Brinkmanship Rules U.S. Policy

Although air-raid drills were not common until the Eisenhower years (1953–1961), the nuclear arms race began during Truman’s presidency. When the Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb in 1949, President Truman had to make a terrible decision—whether to develop an even more horrifying weapon.

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Race For The H-Bomb

The scientists who developed the atomic bomb had suspected since 1942 that it was possible to create an even more destructive thermo-nuclear weapon—the hydrogen bomb, or H-bomb. They estimated that such a bomb would have the force of 1 million tons of TNT (67 times the power of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima). But they argued vehemently about the morality of creating such a destructive weapon.

Despite such concerns, the United States entered into a deadly race with the Soviet Union to see which country would be the first to produce an H-bomb. On November 1, 1952, the United States won the race when it exploded the first H-bomb. However, the American advantage lasted less than a year. In August 1953, the Soviets exploded their own thermonuclear weapon.

The Policy of Brinkmanship

By the time both countries had the H-bomb, Dwight D. Eisenhower was president. His secretary of state, John Foster Dulles, was staunchly anti-Communist. For Dulles, the Cold War was a moral crusade against communism. Dulles proposed that the United States could prevent the spread of communism by promising to use all of its force, including nuclear weapons, against any aggressor nation. The willingness of the United States, under President Eisenhower, to go to the edge of all-out war became known as brinkmanship. Under this policy, the United States trimmed its army and navy and expanded its air force (which would deliver the bombs) and its buildup of nuclear weapons. The Soviet Union followed suit.

The threat of nuclear attack was unlike any the American people had ever faced. Even if only a few bombs reached their targets, millions of civilians would die. Schoolchildren like Annie Dillard practiced air-raid procedures, and some families built underground fallout shelters in their back yards. Fear of nuclear war became a constant in American life for the next 30 years.

Poster: Words over an illustration of a mushroom cloud read, You can protect yourself from radioactive fallout. Get the Facts from your Civil Defense Director.

A dramatic civil defense poster shows the fear of nuclear attack.

The Cold War Spreads Around the World

As the nation shifted to a dependence on nuclear arms, the Eisenhower administration began to rely heavily on the recently formed Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) for information. The CIA used spies to gather information abroad. The CIA also began to carry out covert, or secret, operations to weaken or overthrow governments unfriendly to the United States.

Covert Actions in the Middle East and Latin America

One of the CIA’s first covert actions took place in the Middle East. In 1951, Iran’s prime minister, Mohammed Mossadegh, nationalized Iran’s oil fields; that is, he placed the formerly private industries (owned mostly by Great Britain) under Iranian control. To protest, the British stopped buying Iranian oil. As the Iranian economy

830

Description:

Map: The Warsaw Pact and NATO 1955 shows Warsaw Pact countries, European NATO members, and Nonaligned nations

Warsaw Pact countries: Soviet Union, Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania.
European NATO members: Iceland, Norway, United Kingdom, Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium, West Germany, Luxembourg, France, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Turkey.
Nonaligned nations: Finland, Sweden, Ireland, Spain, Switzerland, Austria, Yugoslavia.

The Warsaw Pact and NATO, 1955

faltered, the United States feared that Mossadegh might turn to the Soviets for help. In 1953, the CIA gave several million dollars to anti-Mossadegh supporters. The CIA wanted the pro-American Shah of Iran, who had recently been forced to flee, to return to power. The plan worked. The Shah returned to power and turned over control of Iranian oil fields to Western companies.

In 1954, the CIA also took covert actions in Guatemala, a Central American country just south of Mexico. Eisenhower believed that Guatemala’s government had Communist sympathies because it had given more than 200,000 acres of American-owned land to peasants. In response, the CIA trained an army, which invaded Guatemala. The Guatemalan army refused to defend the president, and he resigned. The army’s leader then became dictator of the country.

The Warsaw Pact

In spite of the growing tension between the superpowers, U.S.-Soviet relations seemed to thaw following the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953. The Soviets recognized West Germany and concluded peace treaties with Austria and Japan. However, in 1955, when West Germany was allowed to rearm and join NATO, the Soviet Union grew fearful. It formed its own military alliance, known as the Warsaw Pact. The Warsaw Pact linked the Soviet Union with seven Eastern European countries.

A Summit in Geneva

In July 1955, Eisenhower traveled to Geneva, Switzerland, to meet with Soviet leaders. There Eisenhower put forth an “open skies” proposal. The United States and the Soviet Union would allow flights over each other’s territory to guard against surprise nuclear attacks. Although the Soviet Union rejected this proposal, the world hailed the “spirit of Geneva” as a step toward peace.

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The Suez War

In 1955, the same year in which the Geneva Summit took place, Great Britain and the United States agreed to help Egypt finance construction of a dam at Aswan on the Nile River. However, Gamal Abdel-Nasser, Egypt’s head of government, tried to play the Soviets and the Americans against each other, by improving relations with each one in order to get more aid. In 1956, after learning that Nasser was making deals with the Soviets, Dulles withdrew his offer of a loan. Angered, Nasser responded by nationalizing the Suez Canal, the Egyptian waterway that was owned by France and Great Britain. The French and the British were outraged.

World Stage: Israel Map: shows Israel in relation to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt

On May 14, 1948, the United Nations created the nation of Israel by partitioning Palestine into two states, one Jewish and one Arab. Thousands of Jews had im-migrated to Palestine from Europe before and during World War II, and Israel became the “promised land” they had known since biblical times. The creation of Israel was one of the few issues upon which the United States and the Soviet Union agreed, as the world reacted uniformly to the horror that had befallen the Jews in the Holocaust.

Egyptian control of the canal also affected Israel. Nasser refused to let ships bound for Israel pass through the canal, even though the canal was supposed to be open to all nations. Israel responded by sending troops. So did Great Britain and France. The three countries seized the Mediterranean end of the canal. The UN quickly stepped in to stop the fighting. It persuaded Great Britain, France, and Israel to withdraw. However, it allowed Egypt to keep control of the canal.

The Eisenhower Doctrine

The Soviet Union’s prestige in the Middle East rose because of its support for Egypt. To counterbalance this development, President Eisenhower issued a warning in January 1957. This warning, known as the Eisenhower Doctrine, said that the United States would defend the Middle East against an attack by any communist country. In March, Congress officially approved the doctrine.

The Hungarian Uprising

Even as fighting was raging in the Middle East, a revolt began in Hungary. Dominated by the Soviet Union since the end of World War II, the Hungarian people rose in revolt in 1956. They called for a democratic government.

Imre Nagy, the most popular and liberal Hungarian Communist leader, formed a new government. He promised free elections, denounced the Warsaw Pact, and demanded that all Soviet troops leave Hungary.

The Soviet response was swift and brutal. In November 1956, Soviet tanks rolled into Hungary and killed approximately 30,000 Hungarians. Armed with only pistols and bottles, thousands of Hungarian freedom fighters threw up barricades in the streets and fought the invaders to no avail. The Soviets overthrew the Nagy government and replaced it with pro-Soviet leaders. Nagy himself was executed. Some 200,000 Hungarians fled to the west.

Although the Truman Doctrine had promised to support free peoples who resisted communism, the United States did nothing to help Hungary break free of Soviet control. Many

Crowds surround a captured Russian tank during the anti-Communist revolution in Hungary. 832

Hungarians were bitterly disappointed. The American policy of containment did not extend to driving the Soviet Union out of its satellites.

No help came to Hungary from the United Nations either. Although the UN passed one resolution after another condemning the Soviet Union, the Soviet veto in the Security Council stopped the UN from taking any action.

The Cold War Takes to the Skies

After Stalin’s death in 1953, the Soviet Union had no well-defined way for one leader to succeed another. For the first few years, a group of leaders shared power. As time went by, however, one man did gain power. That man was Nikita Khrushchev (krMshPchDf). Like Stalin, Khrushchev believed that communism would take over the world, but Khrushchev thought it could triumph peacefully. He favored a policy of peaceful coexistence in which two powers would compete economically and scientifically.

Pie charts: U.S. Defense Budget 1940 - 2000

Description:

Pie charts: four charts show percentages spent on U.S. defense 1940 - 2000

1940: 18
1950: 32
1960: 52
2000: 16

U.S. Budget, 1940–2000 Percentage Spent on Defense Source: Historical Tables, Budget of the United States Government

The Space Race

In the competition for international prestige, the Soviets leaped to an early lead in what came to be known as the space race. On October 4, 1957, they launched Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite. Sputnik traveled around the earth at 18,000 miles per hour, circling the globe every 96 minutes. Its launch was a triumph of Soviet technology.

Americans were shocked at being beaten and promptly poured money into their own space program. U.S. scientists worked frantically to catch up to the Soviets. The first attempt at an American satellite launch was a humiliating failure, with the rocket toppling to the ground. However, on January 31, 1958, the United States successfully launched its first satellite.

A U-2 Is Shot Down

Following the rejection of Eisenhower’s “open skies” proposal at the 1955 Geneva summit conference, the CIA began making secret high-altitude flights over Soviet territory. The plane used for these missions was the U-2, which could fly at high altitudes without detection. As a U-2 passed over the Soviet Union, its infrared cameras took detailed photographs of troop movement and missile sites.

By 1960, however, many U.S. officials were nervous about the U-2 program for two reasons. First, the existence and purpose of the U-2 was an open secret among some members of the American press. Second, the Soviets had been aware of the flights since 1958, as Francis Gary Powers, a U-2 pilot, explained.

A PERSONAL VOICE

FRANCIS GARY POWERS

“We … knew that the Russians were radar-tracking at least some of our flights. … We also knew that SAMs [surface-to-air missiles] were being fired at us, that some were uncomfortably close to our altitude. But we knew too that the Russians had a control problem in their guidance system.… We were concerned, but not greatly.”
—Operation Overflight: The U-2 Spy Pilot Tells His Story for the First Time

833

Finally, Eisenhower himself wanted the flights discontinued. He and Khrushchev were going to hold another summit conference on the arms race on May 15, 1960. “If one of these aircraft were lost when we were engaged in apparently sincere deliberations, it could … ruin my effectiveness,” he told an aide. However, Dulles persuaded him to authorize one last flight.

That flight took place on May 1, and the pilot was Francis Gary Powers. Four hours after Powers entered Soviet airspace, a Soviet pilot shot down his plane, and Powers was forced to parachute into Soviet-controlled territory. The Soviets sentenced Powers to ten years in prison.

Renewed Confrontation

At first, Eisenhower denied that the U-2 had been spying. The Soviets had evidence, however, and Eisenhower finally had to admit it. Khrushchev demanded an apology for the flights and a promise to halt them. Eisenhower agreed to stop the U-2 flights, but he would not apologize.

Khrushchev angrily called off the summit. He also withdrew his invitation to Eisenhower to visit the Soviet Union. Because of the U-2 incident, the 1960s opened with tension between the two super-powers as great as ever.

Francis Gary Powers’s military identification card Photo: Francis Gary Powers holds a model airplane

Francis Gary Powers at a Senate committee hearing following his release by the Soviets

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• H-bomb

• Dwight D. Eisenhower

• John Foster Dulles

• brinkmanship

• Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)

• Warsaw Pact

• Eisenhower Doctrine

• Nikita Khrushchev

• Francis Gary Powers

• U-2 incident

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

List Cold War trouble spots in Iran, Guatemala, Egypt, and Hungary. For each, write a newspaper headline that summarizes the U.S. role and the outcome of the situation.

Diagram: provides spaces to list Trouble Spots and Headlines

Choose one headline and write a paragraph about that trouble spot.

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

How might the Cold War have progressed if the U-2 incident had never occurred? Think About:

• the mutual distrust between the Soviet Union and the United States

• the outcome of the incident

4. EVALUATING

Which of the two superpowers do you think contributed more to Cold War tensions during the 1950s?

5. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

Should one nation have the right to remove another nation’s head of government from power? If so, when? If not, why?

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American Literature Science Fiction Reflects Cold War Fears

1950–1959 Many writers of science fiction draw on the scientific and social trends of the present to describe future societies that might arise if those trends were to continue. Nuclear proliferation, the space race, early computer technology, and the pervasive fear of known and unknown dangers during the Cold War were the realities that prompted a boom in science fiction during the 1950s and 1960s.

The Body Snatchers

Published in 1955 at the height of the Great Fear, Jack Finney’s The Body Snatchers (on which the movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers was based) tells of giant seed pods from outer space that descend on the inhabitants of a California town. The pods create perfect physical duplicates of the townspeople and lack only one thing—human souls.

“Miles, he looks, sounds, acts, and remembers exactly like Ira. On the outside. But inside he’s different. His responses”—she stopped, hunting for the word—“aren’t emotionally right, if I can explain that. He remembers the past, in detail, and he’ll smile and say ‘You were sure a cute youngster, Willy. Bright one, too,’ just the way Uncle Ira did. But there’s something missing, and the same thing is true of Aunt Aleda, lately.” Wilma stopped, staring at nothing again, face intent, wrapped up in this, then she continued. “Uncle Ira was a father to me, from infancy, and when he talked about my childhood, Miles, there was—always—a special look in his eyes that meant he was remembering the wonderful quality of those days for him. Miles, that look, ’way in back of the eyes, is gone. With this—this Uncle Ira, or whoever or whatever he is, I have the feeling, the absolutely certain knowledge, Miles, that he’s talking by rote. That the facts of Uncle Ira’s memories are all in his mind in every last detail, ready to recall. But the emotions are not. There is no emotion—none—only the pretense of it. The words, the gestures, the tones of voice, everything else—but not the feeling.”

Her voice was suddenly firm and commanding: “Miles, memories or not, appearances or not, possible or impossible, that is not my Uncle Ira.”

—Jack Finney, The Body Snatchers (1955)

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The Martian Chronicles

In The Martian Chronicles, Ray Bradbury describes how earthlings who have colonized Mars watch helplessly as their former planet is destroyed by nuclear warfare.

They all came out and looked at the sky that night. They left their suppers or their washing up or their dressing for the show and they came out upon their now-not-quite-as-new porches and watched the green star of Earth there. It was a move without conscious effort; they all did it, to help them understand the news they had heard on the radio a moment before. There was Earth and there the coming war, and there hundreds of thousands of mothers or grandmothers or fathers or brothers or aunts or uncles or cousins. They stood on the porches and tried to believe in the existence of Earth, much as they had once tried to believe in the existence of Mars; it was a problem reversed. To all intents and purposes, Earth now was dead; they had been away from it for three or four years. Space was an anesthetic; seventy million miles of space numbed you, put memory to sleep, depopulated Earth, erased the past, and allowed these people here to go on with their work. But now, tonight, the dead were risen, Earth was reinhabited, memory awoke, a million names were spoken: What was so-and-so doing tonight on Earth? What about this one and that one? The people on the porches glanced sidewise at each other’s faces.

At nine o’clock Earth seemed to explode, catch fire, and burn.

The people on the porches put up their hands as if to beat the fire out.

They waited.

—Ray Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles (1950)

A Canticle For Leibowitz

In A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr., portrays the centuries after a nuclear holocaust as a new “Dark Age” for humanity on earth.

He had been wandering for a long time. The search seemed endless, but there was always the promise of finding what he sought across the next rise or beyond the bend in the trail. When he had finished fanning himself, he clapped the hat back on his head and scratched at his bushy beard while blinking around at the landscape. There was a patch of unburned forest on the hillside just ahead. It offered welcome shade, but still the wanderer sat there in the sunlight and watched the curious buzzards.…

Pickings were good for a while in the region of the Red River; but then out of the carnage, a city-state arose. For rising city-states, the buzzards had no fondness, although they approved of their eventual fall. They shied away from Texarkana and ranged far over the plain to the west. After the manner of all living things, they replenished the Earth many times with their kind.

Eventually it was the Year of Our Lord 3174.

There were rumors of war.

—Walter M. Miller, Jr., A Canticle for Leibowitz (1959)

Ray Bradbury in 1965. Thinking Critically

1. Comparing What themes, or general messages about life or humanity, do you think these three books convey? How might readers’ interpretations of these messages today differ from readers’ interpretations during the Cold War?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R8.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links for American Literature to learn more about Ray Bradbury and The Martian Chronicles. When was The Martian Chronicles published? How does it reflect Cold War fears? What does the writing tell you about Ray Bradbury’s view of American society at the time?

836

Chapter 26: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance to the Cold War.

1. containment

2. North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

3. Mao Zedong

4. Korean War

5. McCarthyism

6. John Foster Dulles

7. brinkmanship

8. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)

9. Nikita Khrushchev

10. U-2 incident

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Origins of the Cold War (pages 808–814)

1. What were the goals of U.S. foreign policy in the Cold War?

2. Describe the Truman Doctrine and how America reacted to it.

3. What was the purpose of the NATO alliance?

The Cold War Heats Up (pages 815–821)

4. What global events led to U.S. involvement in Korea?

5. What issue between General Douglas MacArthur and President Truman eventually cost MacArthur his job?

The Cold War at Home (pages 822–827)

6. What actions of Joseph McCarthy worsened the national hysteria about communism?

7. How did the Rosenberg case fuel anti-communist feeling?

Two Nations Live on the Edge (pages 828–833)

8. How did the U.S., including the CIA, wage the Cold War in the 1950s?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a cause-and-effect diagram like the one shown for each of these events: (a) the United States’ adoption of a policy of containment, and (b) the beginning of the nuclear arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Diagram: spaces provided to list causes leading to an event, and the effects of that event

2. ANALYZING EVENTS What government actions during the Communist scare conflicted with the Bill of Rights? Explain.

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look carefully at the map on page 811. How did the absence of a natural barrier on the western border of the Soviet Union affect post-World War II Soviet foreign policy? Explain your answer.

837 Standardized Test Practice

Use the quotation below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

“In 1945 I had ordered the A Bomb dropped on Japan at two places devoted almost exclusively to war production. We were at war. We were trying to end it in order to save the lives of our soldiers and sailors.… We stopped the war and saved thousands of casualties on both sides.

In Korea we were fighting a police action with sixteen allied nations to support the World Organization which had set up the Republic of Korea. We had held the Chinese after defeating the North Koreans and whipping the Russian Air Force. I just could not make the order for a Third World War. I know I was right. ”
—Off the Record: The Private Papers of Harry S. Truman

1. According to President Truman, what was the main difference between using the atomic bomb on Japan in 1945 and the possibility of using it on China in 1951?

A Japan was more of a military power in 1945 than China was in 1951.

B In 1945 we had many allies, but in 1951 we had only two.

C In 1945 the bomb ended a world war, but in 1951 it would have started one.

D The Japanese were much fiercer fighters than the Chinese were.

Use the cartoon below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 2.

Cartoon: The World is caught in a vise, depicted by two bombs labeled Russia's and U.S.

2. What point of view about the arms race does this 1950 cartoon best support?

F The arms race between “Russia” and the United States is as dangerous as a war.

G Communism uncontained will spread.

H The bombs of the United States only threaten countries other than the United States.

J The United States needs to build up its arsenal in order to compete with “Russia.”

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 807:

What do you do when a friend is accused?

Suppose your best friend has been accused of being a Communist. You have been called to serve as a character witness for him or her.

Write a speech that you will present to the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). In your speech explain why you feel that your friend’s constitutional rights are being violated.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “The Cold War Comes Home: Hollywood Blacklists the Kahn Family.” Discuss the following questions, and then do the activity:

• How was Gordon Kahn caught up in events beyond his control?

• What alternatives did Gordon have? Do you think he chose the right path? Explain your opinion.

Cooperative Learning Activity With a small group, create a step-by-step flowchart to show how Gordon Kahn’s life, reputation, and career were ruined by blacklisting.

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Chapter 27: The Postwar Boom

In the 1950s, the backyard was the perfect place for suburban homeowners to relax. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 838 and page 839 in the print version.

Description:

Timeline: 1946 - 1952 USA and World

1946 USA: Baby boom begins.
1947 USA: Jackie Robinson integrates major league baseball.
1948 USA: Harry S. Truman is elected president.
1949 World: Mao Zedong's Communist forces gain control of China.
1950 World: Korean War begins.
1950's USA: Disc jocket Alan Freed is the first to use the term rock n roll on the air.
1952 USA: Dwight D. Eisenhower is elected president.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 838 and page 839 in the print version. 839 Illustration: Yards separated by fences

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 838 and page 839 in the print version. Interact with History

You have returned home from serving in World War II to find that your country is changing. The cities have swelled. Outlying suburbs are being built up with almost identical homes. America produces more and cheaper goods. In a booming economy, couples marry and start families in record numbers. As you watch clever ads on TV for the newest labor-saving gadgets, you feel nostalgia for a simpler time.

What is the American dream of the 1950s?

Examine the Issues

• How does pressure to conform affect the American dream?

• Who might be excluded from the new prosperity?

• How does advertising promote certain lifestyles and ideals?

Description:

Timeline: 1953 - 1960 USA and World

1953 USA: Korean War cease-fire is signed.
1954 USA: Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka outlaws school segregation.
1954 World: USSR opens the first small nuclear power plant.
1956 World: Soviets crush uprising in Hungary.
1956 USA: Eisenhower is reelected.
1957 World: Soviets launch Sputnik 1.
1958 USA: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is established.
1959 USA: Alaska and Hawaii become the 49th and 50th states.
1959 World: Fidel Castro comes to power in Cuba.
1960 USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 838 and page 839 in the print version. 840

Section 1: Postwar America

One American’s Story

Sam Gordon had been married less than a year when he was shipped overseas in July 1943. As a sergeant in the United States Army, he fought in Belgium and France during World War II. Arriving back home in November 1945, Sam nervously anticipated a reunion with his family. A friend, Donald Katz, described Sam’s reactions.

A PERSONAL VOICE

DONALD KATZ

“Sam bulled through the crowd and hailed a taxi. The cab motored north through the warm autumn day as he groped for feelings appropriate to being back home alive from a terrible war.… [He was] nearly panting under the weight of fear.… Back home alive … married to a girl I haven’t seen since 1943 … father of a child I’ve never seen at all.”
—Home Fires

GIs returned home to their families after World War II with new hope, but also with new problems.

Sam Gordon met his daughter, Susan, for the first time the day he returned home from the war, and he went to work the next morning. Like many other young couples, the Gordons began to put the nightmare of the war behind them and to return to normality.

Readjustment and Recovery

By the summer of 1946, about 10 million men and women had been released from the armed forces. Veterans like Sam Gordon—along with the rest of American society—settled down to rebuild their lives.

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The Impact of the Gi Bill

To help ease veterans’ return to civilian life, Congress passed the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, or the GI Bill of Rights, in 1944. In addition to encouraging veterans to get an education by paying part of their tuition, the GI Bill guaranteed them a year’s worth of unemployment benefits while job hunting. It also offered low-interest, federally guaranteed loans. Millions of young families used these benefits to buy homes and farms or to establish businesses.

The suburbs were a mass phenomenon, even on moving day.

Housing Crisis

In 1945 and 1946, returning veterans faced a severe housing shortage. Many families lived in cramped apartments or moved in with relatives. In response to this housing crisis, developers like William Levitt and Henry Kaiser used efficient, assembly-line methods to mass-produce houses. Levitt, who bragged that his company could build a house in 16 minutes, offered homes in small residential communities surrounding cities, called suburbs, for less than $7,000.

Levitt’s first postwar development—rows of standardized homes built on treeless lots—was located on New York’s Long Island and named Levittown. These homes looked exactly alike, and certain zoning laws ensured that they would stay the same. Despite their rigid conformity, Americans loved the openness and small-town feel to the planned suburbs. With the help of the GI Bill, many veterans and their families moved in and cultivated a new lifestyle.

Redefining the Family

Tension created by changes in men’s and women’s roles after the war contributed to a rising divorce rate. Traditionally, men were the breadwinners and heads of households, while women were expected to stay home and care for the family. During the war, however, about 8 million women, 75 percent of whom were married, entered the paid work force. These women supported their families and made important household decisions. Many were reluctant to give up their newfound independence when their husbands returned. Although most women did leave their jobs, by 1950 more than a million war marriages had ended in divorce.

Economic Readjustment

After World War II, the United States converted from a wartime to a peacetime economy. The U.S. government immediately canceled war contracts totaling $35 billion. Within ten days of Japan’s surrender, more than a million defense workers were laid off. Unemployment increased as veterans joined laid-off defense workers in the search for jobs. At the peak of post-war unemployment, in March 1946, nearly 3 million people were seeking work.

Rising unemployment was not the nation’s only postwar economic problem, however. During the war, the Office of Price Administration (OPA) had halted inflation by imposing maximum prices on goods. When these controls ended on June 30, 1946, prices skyrocketed. In the next two weeks, the cost of consumer products soared 25 percent, double the increase of the previous three years. In some cities, consumers stood in long lines, hoping to buy scarce items, such as sugar, coffee, and beans. Prices continued to rise for the next two years until the supply of goods caught up with the demand.

While prices spiraled upward, many American workers also earned less than they had earned during the war. To halt runaway inflation and to help the nation convert to a peacetime economy, Congress eventually reestablished controls similar to the wartime controls on prices, wages, and rents.

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Remarkable Recovery

Most economists who had forecast a postwar depression were proved wrong because they had failed to consider consumers’ pent-up accumulation of needs and wants. People had gone without many goods for so long that by the late 1940s, with more than $135 billion in savings from defense work, service pay, and investments in war bonds, Americans suddenly had money to spend. They snatched up everything from automobiles to houses. After a brief period of postwar economic readjustment, the American economy boomed. The demand for goods and services outstripped the supply and increased production, which created new jobs. Judging from the graphs (shown left), many Americans prospered in the 1950s in what the economist John Kenneth Galbraith called “the affluent society.”

The Cold War also contributed to economic growth. Concern over Soviet expansion kept American defense spending high and people employed. Foreign-aid programs, such as the Marshall Plan, provided another boost to the American economy. By helping nations in Western Europe recover from the war, the United States helped itself by creating strong foreign markets for its exports.

A Dynamic Economy

Description:

Graph: Millions of Homeowners 1950 - 1960. Numbers are approximate.

1950: 24
1952: 26
1954: 28
1956: 31
1958: 32
1960: 33

Home Ownership

Description:

Graph: Millions of Automobile Registrations 1950 - 1960. Numbers are approximate.

1950: 41
1952: 44
1954: 49
1956: 54
1958: 56
1960: 62

Automobile Registrations

Description:

Graph: Median Family Income in Dollars 1950 - 1960. Numbers are approximate.

1950: 3200
1952: 3900
1954: 4100
1956: 4900
1958: 5100
1960: 5700

Median Family Income

Description:

Graph: Savings Accounts in Billions of Dollars 1950 - 1962. Numbers are approximate.

1950: 2.5
1952: 8
1954: 9
1956: 10
1958: 14
1960: 12.5
1962: 24

Savings Accounts Source: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial times to 1970

Meeting Economic Challenges

Despite an impressive recovery, Americans faced a number of economic problems. Their lives had been in turmoil throughout the war, and a desire for stability made the country more conservative.

President Truman’s Inheritance

When Harry S. Truman suddenly became president after Franklin D. Roosevelt’s death in 1945, he asked Roosevelt’s widow, Eleanor, whether there was anything he could do for her. She replied, “Is there anything we can do for you? For you are the one in trouble now.” In many ways, President Truman was in trouble.

A PERSONAL VOICE

HARRY S. TRUMAN

“I don’t know whether you fellows ever had a load of hay fall on you, but when they told me yesterday what had happened [Roosevelt’s death], I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me.”
—excerpt from a speech, April 13, 1945

Despite his lack of preparation for the job, Truman was widely viewed as honorable, down-to-earth, and self-confident. Most important of all, he had the ability to make difficult decisions and to accept full responsibility for their consequences. As the plaque on his White House desk read, “The Buck Stops Here.” Truman faced two huge challenges: dealing with the rising threat of communism, as discussed in Chapter 18, and restoring the American economy to a strong footing after the war’s end.

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Truman Faces Strikes

One economic problem that Truman had to address was strikes. Facing higher prices and lower wages, 4.5 million discontented workers, including steelworkers, coal miners, and railroad workers, went on strike in 1946. Although he generally supported organized labor, Truman refused to let strikes cripple the nation. He threatened to draft the striking workers and to order them as soldiers to stay on the job. He authorized the federal government to seize the mines, and he threatened to take control of the railroads as well. Truman appeared before Congress and asked for the authority to draft the striking railroad workers into the army. Before he could finish his speech, the unions gave in.

“Had Enough?”

Disgusted by shortages of goods, rising inflation, and labor strikes, Americans were ready for a change. The Republicans asked the public, “Had enough?” Voters gave their answer at the polls: in the 1946 congressional elections, the Republican Party won control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives for the first time since 1928. The new 80th Congress ignored Truman’s domestic proposals. In 1947, Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act over Truman’s veto. This bill overturned many rights won by the unions under the New Deal.

Historical Spotlight: Jackie Robinson

Jackie Robinson took a brave step when he turned the Brooklyn Dodgers into an integrated baseball team in 1947. But he—and the country—had a long way to go.

Unhappy fans hurled insults at Robinson from the stands. Some players on opposing teams tried to hit him with pitches or to injure him with the spikes on their shoes. He even received death threats. But he endured this with poise and restraint, saying,

“Plenty of times, I wanted to haul off when somebody insulted me for the color of my skin but I had to hold to myself. I knew I was kind of an experiment.”

In 1949, Robinson was voted the National League’s most valuable player. He later became the first African American to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

In 1947, Jackie Robinson joined the Brooklyn Dodgers, angering some fans but winning the hearts, and respect, of many others.

Social Unrest Persists

Problems arose not only in the economy but in the very fabric of society. After World War II, a wave of racial violence erupted in the South. Many African Americans, particularly those who had served in the armed forces during the war, demanded their rights as citizens.

Truman Supports Civil Rights

Truman put his presidency on the line for civil rights. “I am asking for equality of opportunity for all human beings,” he said, “… and if that ends up in my failure to be reelected, that failure will be in a good cause.” In 1946, Truman created a President’s Commission on Civil Rights. Following the group’s recommendations, Truman asked Congress for several measures including a federal antilynching law, a ban on the poll tax as a voting requirement, and a permanent civil rights commission.

Congress refused to pass these measures, or a measure to integrate the armed forces. As a result, Truman himself took action. In July 1948, he issued an executive order for integration of the armed forces, calling for “equality of treatment and opportunity in the armed forces without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin.” In addition, he ordered an end to discrimination in the hiring of government employees. The Supreme Court also ruled that the lower courts could not bar

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African Americans from residential neighborhoods. These actions represented the beginnings of a federal commitment to dealing with racial issues.

The 1948 Election

Although many Americans blamed Truman for the nation’s inflation and labor unrest, the Democrats nominated him for president in 1948. To protest Truman’s emphasis on civil rights, a number of Southern Democrats—who became known as Dixiecrats—formed the States’ Rights Democratic Party, and nominated their own presidential candidate, Governor J. Strom Thurmond of South Carolina. Discontent reigned at the far left of the Democratic spectrum as well. The former vice-president Henry A. Wallace led his supporters out of mainstream Democratic ranks to form a more liberal Progressive Party.

As the election approached, opinion polls gave the Republican candidate, New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey, a comfortable lead. Refusing to believe the polls, Truman poured his energy into the campaign. First, he called the Republican-dominated Congress into a special session. He challenged it to pass laws supporting such elements of the Democratic Party platform as public housing, federal aid to education, a higher minimum wage, and extended Social Security coverage. Not one of these laws was passed. Then he took his campaign to the people. He traveled from one end of the country to the other by train, speaking from the rear platform in a sweeping “whistlestop campaign.” Day after day, people heard the president denounce the “do-nothing, 80th Congress.”

Poster: A hand wipes a graffitied wall reading wipe out discrimination against races, religioins, on the job, in restaurants, in housing.

Wipe Out Discrimination (1949), a poster by Milton Ackoff, depicts the civil rights consciousness that angered the Dixiecrats.

Stunning Upset

Truman’s “Give ’em hell, Harry” campaign worked. He won the election in a close political upset. The Democrats gained control of Congress as well, even though they suffered losses in the South, which had been solidly Democratic since Reconstruction.

Presidential Election of 1948 Map: electoral votes 1948 election

Description:

Map of the continental United States showing electoral votes in the 1948 Presidential election.

Thurmond carried four Southern states: South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.
Dewey carried the most of the Northeast, parts of the Midwest, and one Northwestern state: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Michigan, Indiana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oregon.
Truman carried all other states in the Continental USA.

* Tennessee—11 electoral votes for Truman, 1 electoral vote for Thurmond Photo: Truman holds a newspaper with the headline Dewey defeats Truman.

Truman surprised the newspapers by winning the 1948 election.

Party	Candidate	Electoral Votes	Popular Votes
Democratic	Harry S. Truman	303	24,179,000
Republican	Thomas E. Dewey	189	21,991,000
States’ Rights	J. Strom Thurmond	39	1,176,000
Progressive	Henry A. Wallace	—	1,157,000

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The Fair Deal

After his victory, Truman continued proposing an ambitious economic program. Truman’s Fair Deal, an extension of Roosevelt’s New Deal, included proposals for a nationwide system of compulsory health insurance and a crop-subsidy system to provide a steady income for farmers. In Congress, some Northern Democrats joined Dixiecrats and Republicans in defeating both measures.

In other instances, however, Truman’s ideas prevailed. Congress raised the hourly minimum wage from 40 cents to 75 cents, extended Social Security coverage to about 10 million more people, and initiated flood control and irrigation projects. Congress also provided financial support for cities to clear out slums and build 810,000 housing units for low-income families.

Republicans Take the Middle Road

Despite these social and economic victories, Truman’s approval rating sank to an all-time low of 23 percent in 1951. The stalemate in the Korean War and the rising tide of McCarthyism, which cast doubt on the loyalty of some federal employees, became overwhelming issues. Truman decided not to run for reelection. The Democrats nominated the intellectual and articulate governor Adlai Stevenson of Illinois to run against the Republican candidate, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, known popularly as “Ike.”

I Like Ike!

During the campaign, the Republicans accused the Democrats of “plunder at home and blunder abroad.” To fan the anti-Communist hysteria that was sweeping over the country, Republicans raised the specter of the rise of communism in China and Eastern Europe. They also criticized the growing power of the federal government and the alleged bribery and corruption among Truman’s political allies.

Eisenhower’s campaign hit a snag, however, when newspapers accused his running mate, California Senator Richard M. Nixon, of profiting from a secret slush fund set up by wealthy supporters. Nixon decided to reply to the charges. In an emotional speech to an audience of 58 million, now known as the “Checkers speech,” he exhibited masterful use of a new medium—television. Nixon denied any wrongdoing, but he did admit to accepting one gift from a political supporter.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RICHARD M. NIXON

“You know what it was? It was a little cocker spaniel dog in a crate, that he’d [the political supporter] sent all the way from Texas. Black and white spotted. And our little girl—Tricia, the six-year-old—named it Checkers. And you know the kids, like all kids, love the dog and I just want to say this right now, that regardless of what they say about it, we’re going to keep it.”
—“Checkers speech,” September 23, 1952

Photo: Ike campaign accessories - golf tees, sunglasses, and a button reading I like Ike

Campaign accessories expressed Ike’s popularity and projected an upbeat political mood. 846

Nixon’s speech saved his place on the Republican ticket. In November 1952, Eisenhower won 55 percent of the popular vote and a majority of the electoral college votes, while the Republicans narrowly captured Congress.

Walking the Middle of the Road

President Eisenhower’s style of governing differed from that of the Democrats. His approach, which he called “dynamic conservatism,” was also known as “Modern Republicanism.” He called for government to be “conservative when it comes to money and liberal when it comes to human beings.”

Eisenhower followed a middle-of-the-road course and avoided many controversial issues, but he could not completely sidestep a persistent domestic issue—civil rights—that gained national attention due to court rulings and acts of civil disobedience in the mid-1950s. The most significant judicial action occurred in 1954, when the Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka that public schools must be racially integrated. (See page 914.) In a landmark act of civil disobedience a year later, a black seamstress named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. Her arrest sparked a boycott of the entire Montgomery, Alabama, bus system. The civil rights movement had entered a new era.

Although Eisenhower did not assume leadership on civil rights issues, he accomplished much on the domestic scene. Shortly after becoming president, Eisenhower pressed hard for programs that would bring around a balanced budget and a cut in taxes. During his two terms, Ike’s administration raised the minimum wage, extended Social Security and unemployment benefits, increased funding for public housing, and backed the creation of interstate highways and the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. His popularity soared, and he won reelection in 1956.

Countering slush fund charges, Richard Nixon speaks to TV viewers about his daughters and their dog, Checkers.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS &NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• GI Bill of Rights

• suburb

• Harry S. Truman

• Dixiecrat

• Fair Deal

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of key events relating to postwar America. Use the dates below as a guide.

Timeline: provides spaces to list events related to the years 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, and 1952

Write a paragraph describing the effects of one of these events.

Critical Thinking

3. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Do you think Eisenhower’s actions reflected his philosophy of dynamic conservatism? Why or why not? Think About:

• the definition of dynamic conservatism

• Eisenhower’s actions on civil rights policies

• Eisenhower’s accomplishments on other domestic issues

4. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

Why do you think most Americans went along with Eisenhower’s conservative approach to domestic policy?

5. CONTRASTING

How did Presidents Truman and Eisenhower differ regarding civil rights?

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Section 2: The American Dream in the Fifties

One American’s Story

Settled into her brand new house near San Diego, California, Carol Freeman felt very fortunate. Her husband Mark had his own law practice, and when their first baby was born, she became a full-time homemaker. She was living the American dream, yet Carol felt dissatisfied—as if there were “something wrong” with her because she was not happy.

A PERSONAL VOICE

CAROL FREEMAN

“As dissatisfied as I was, and as restless, I remember so well this feeling [we] had at the time that the world was going to be your oyster. You were going to make money, your kids were going to go to good schools, everything was possible if you just did what you were supposed to do. The future was rosy. There was a tremendous feeling of optimism.… Much as I say it was hateful, it was also hopeful. It was an innocent time.”
—quoted in The Fifties: A Women’s Oral History

Photo: a smiling young woman wearing an apron removes a turkey from an oven

The dream woman of the 1950s was depicted in advertising and on TV as doing constant housework, but always with a smile.

After World War II ended, Americans turned their attention to their families and jobs. The economy prospered. New technologies and business ideas created fresh opportunities for many, and by the end of the decade Americans were enjoying the highest standard of living in the world. The American dream of a happy and successful life seemed within the reach of many people.

The Organization and the Organization Man

During the 1950s, businesses expanded rapidly. By 1956, the majority of Americans no longer held blue-collar, or industrial, jobs. Instead, more people worked in higher-paid, white-collar positions—clerical, managerial, or professional occupations. Unlike blue-collar workers, who manufactured goods for sale, white-collar workers tended to perform services in fields like sales, advertising, insurance, and communications.

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Conglomerates

Many white-collar workers performed their services in large corporations or government agencies. Some of these corporations continued expanding by forming conglomerates. (A conglomerate is a major corporation that includes a number of smaller companies in unrelated industries.) For example, one conglomerate, International Telephone and Telegraph (ITT), whose original business was communications, bought car-rental companies, insurance companies, and hotel and motel chains. Through this diversification, or investment in various areas of the economy, ITT tried to protect itself from declines in individual industries. Other huge parent companies included American Telephone and Telegraph, Xerox, and General Electric.

Franchises

In addition to diversifying, another strategy for business expansion—franchising—developed at this time. A franchise is a company that offers similar products or services in many locations. (Franchise is also used to refer to the right, sold to an individual, to do business using the parent company’s name and the system that the parent company developed.)

Fast-food restaurants developed some of the first and most successful franchises. McDonald’s, for example, had its start when the McDonald brothers developed unusually efficient service, based on assembly-line methods, at their small drive-in restaurant in San Bernardino, California. They simplified the menu, featured 15-cent hamburgers, and mechanized their kitchen.

Salesman Ray Kroc paid the McDonalds $2.7 million for the franchise rights to their hamburger drive-in. In April 1955, he opened his first McDonald’s restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois, where he further improved the assembly-line process and introduced the trademark arches that are now familiar all over the world.

Now & Then: Franchises

In the decades since Ray Kroc opened his first McDonald’s restaurant (shown below), franchising has become all but a way of life in the United States. Today, nearly 3,000 franchised companies operate over 500,000 businesses throughout the country. Officials estimate that franchises account for nearly one-third of all U.S. retail sales. American franchises today provide a wide array of goods and services, from car maintenance, to tax services, to hair care.

In an attempt to tap into the international market, hundreds of U.S. companies have established overseas franchises. The franchise with perhaps the greatest global reach is the one that started it all. In addition to its more than 13,000 U.S. franchises, McDonald’s now operates over 18,600 franchises in dozens of countries around the world.

Photo: A McDonald's fast food restaurant

A PERSONAL VOICE

RAY KROC

“It requires a certain kind of mind to see the beauty in a hamburger bun. Yet is it any more unusual to find grace in the texture and softly curved silhouette of a bun than to reflect lovingly on the … arrangements and textures and colors in a butterfly’s wings? … Not if you view the bun as an essential material in the art of serving a great many meals fast.”
—quoted in The Fifties

Social Conformity

While franchises like McDonald’s helped standardize what people ate, some American workers found themselves becoming standardized as well. Employees who were well paid and held secure jobs in thriving companies sometimes paid a price for economic advancement: a loss of their individuality. In general, businesses did not want creative thinkers, rebels, or anyone who would rock the corporate boat.

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In The Organization Man, a book based on a classic 1956 study of suburban Park Forest, Illinois, and other communities, William H. Whyte described how the new, large organizations created “company people.” Companies would give personality tests to people applying for jobs to make sure they would “fit in” the corporate culture. Companies rewarded employees for teamwork, cooperation, and loyalty and so contributed to the growth of conformity, which Whyte called “belongingness.” Despite their success, a number of workers questioned whether pursuing the American dream exacted too high a price, as conformity replaced individuality.

The Suburban Lifestyle

Though achieving job security did take a psychological toll on some Americans who resented having to repress their own personalities, it also enabled people to provide their families with the so-called good things in life. Most Americans worked in cities, but fewer and fewer of them lived there. New highways and the availability and affordability of automobiles and gasoline made commuting possible. By the early 1960s, every large city in the United States was surrounded by suburbs. Of the 13 million new homes built in the 1950s, 85 percent were built in the suburbs. For many people, the suburbs embodied the American dream of an affordable single-family house, good schools, a safe, healthy environment for children, and congenial neighbors just like themselves.

Photo: A businessman carrying a briefcase sprints

The “organization man” had to step lively to keep up with the Joneses.

The Baby Boom

As soldiers returned from World War II and settled into family life, they contributed to an unprecedented population explosion known as the baby boom. During the late 1940s and through the early 1960s, the birthrate (number of live births per 1,000 people) in the United States soared. At the height of the baby boom, in 1957, one American infant was born every seven seconds—a total of 4,308,000 that year. The result was the largest generation in the nation’s history.

American Birthrate, 1940–1970

Description:

Graph: American Birthrate 1940 - 1970, Live Births per 1000 people. Numbers are approximate.

1940: 19
1945: 21
1950: 24
1955: 25
1960: 24
1965: 19
1970: 18

*First year for which figures include Alaska and Hawaii. Source: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970 Photo: children in an auditorium

Some of the 40 million new Americans who were born during the baby boom. 850

Contributing to the size of the baby-boom generation were many factors, including: reunion of husbands and wives after the war, decreasing marriage age, desirability of large families, confidence in continued economic prosperity, and advances in medicine.

Advances in Medicine and Childcare

Among the medical advances that saved hundreds of thousands of children’s lives was the discovery of drugs to fight and prevent childhood diseases, such as typhoid fever. Another breakthrough came when Dr. Jonas Salk developed a vaccine for the crippling disease poliomyelitis—polio.

Many parents raised their children according to guidelines devised by the author and pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Spock. His Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, published in 1946, sold nearly 10 million copies during the 1950s. In it, he advised parents not to spank or scold their children. He also encouraged families to hold meetings in which children could express themselves. He considered it so important for mothers to be at home with their children that he proposed having the government pay mothers to stay home.

The baby boom had a tremendous impact not only on child care but on the American economy and the educational system as well. In 1958, toy sales alone reached $1.25 billion. During the decade, 10 million new students entered the elementary schools. The sharp increase in enrollment caused overcrowding and teacher shortages in many parts of the country. In California, a new school opened every seven days.

Women’s Roles

During the 1950s, the role of homemaker and mother was glorified in popular magazines, movies, and TV programs such as Father Knows Best and The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. Time magazine described the homemaker as “the key figure in all suburbia, the thread that weaves between family and community—the keeper of the suburban dream.” In contrast to the ideal portrayed in the media, however, some women, like Carol Freeman, who spoke of her discontentment, were not happy with their roles; they felt isolated, bored, and unfulfilled. According to one survey in the 1950s, more than one-fifth of suburban wives were dissatisfied with their lives. Betty Friedan, author of the groundbreaking 1963 book about women and society, The Feminine Mystique, described the problem.

A PERSONAL VOICE

BETTY FRIEDAN

“For the first time in their history, women are becoming aware of an identity crisis in their own lives, a crisis which … has grown worse with each succeeding generation.… I think this is the crisis of women growing up—a turning point from an immaturity that has been called femininity to full human identity.”
—The Feminine Mystique

The number of women working outside the home rose steadily during the decade. By 1960, almost 40 percent of mothers with children between ages 6 and 17 held paying jobs.

Key Player: Jonas Salk 1914–1995 Photo: Jonas Salk injects vaccine into a girl's arm

One of the most feared diseases in the 1950s was polio, the disease that had partially paralyzed President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Polio afflicted 58,000 American children in 1952, killing some and making others reliant on crutches, wheelchairs, or iron lungs (machines that helped people with paralyzed chest muscles to breathe).

In the early 1950s, Dr. Jonas Salk (at right in photo above) developed an effective vaccine to prevent the disease, and the government sponsored a free inoculation program for children. The vaccine was extremely effective. By 1974, thanks to Salk’s vaccine and a new oral vaccine developed by Dr. Albert Sabin, only seven new polio cases were reported in the country.

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But having a job didn’t necessarily contribute to a woman’s happiness. A woman’s career opportunities tended to be limited to fields such as nursing, teaching, and office support, which paid less than other professional and business positions did. Women also earned less than men for comparable work. Although increasing numbers of women attended four-year colleges, they generally received little financial, academic, or psychological encouragement to pursue their goals.

Leisure in the Fifties

Most Americans of the 1950s had more leisure time than ever before. Employees worked a 40-hour week and earned several weeks’ vacation per year. People owned more labor-saving devices, such as washing machines, clothes dryers, dishwashers, and power lawn mowers, which allowed more time for leisure activities. Fortune magazine reported that, in 1953, Americans spent more than $30 billion on leisure goods and activities.

Americans also enjoyed a wide variety of recreational pursuits—both active and passive. Millions of people participated in such sports as fishing, bowling, hunting, boating, and golf. More fans than ever attended baseball, basketball, and football games; others watched professional sports on television.

Americans also became avid readers. They devoured books about cooking, religion, do-it-yourself projects, and homemaking. They also read mysteries, romance novels, and fiction by popular writers such as Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, Daphne du Maurier, and J. D. Salinger. Book sales doubled, due in part to a thriving paperback market. The circulation of popular magazines like Reader’s Digest and Sports Illustrated steadily rose, from about 148 million to more than 190 million readers. Sales of comic books also reached a peak in the mid-1950s.

Painting: a young couple sitting on stools in a cafe

Photo: boys wearing 3-D glasses read comic books

3-D comics and 3-D movies were two of the many fads that mesmerized the nation in the 1950s. 852

The Automobile Culture

Now & Then: Southern California and The Automobile Photo: a highway

No state has exemplified auto-mania in the U.S. more than California. By the late 1990s, Californians owned more cars, held more driver’s licenses, and traveled more miles on their roads than the people of any other state. The center of this automobile culture is the metropolitan area of Los Angeles.

Contributing to the importance of the automobile is Southern California’s suburban lifestyle. This dependence on cars has contributed to problems of air pollution and traffic jams. But, California is addressing these problems by reviving public transportation systems and promoting the use of electric cars that produce no pollution.

During World War II, the U.S. government had rationed gasoline to curb inflation and conserve supplies. After the war, however, an abundance of both imported and domestically produced petroleum—the raw material from which gasoline is made—led to inexpensive, plentiful fuel for consumers. Easy credit terms and extensive advertising persuaded Americans to buy cars in record numbers. In response, new car sales rose from 6.7 million in 1950 to 7.9 million in 1955. The total number of private cars on the road jumped from 40 million in 1950 to over 60 million in 1960.

Automania

Suburban living made owning a car a necessity. Most of the new suburbs, built in formerly rural areas, did not offer public transportation, and people had to drive to their jobs in the cities. In addition, many of the schools, stores, synagogues, churches, and doctors’ and dentists’ offices were not within walking distance of suburban homes.

The Interstate Highway System

The more cars there were, the more roads were needed. “Automania” spurred local and state governments to construct roads linking the major cities while connecting schools, shopping centers, and workplaces to residential suburbs. The Interstate Highway Act, which President Eisenhower signed in 1956, authorized the building of a nationwide highway network—41,000 miles of expressways. The new roads, in turn, encouraged the development of new suburbs farther from the cities.

Interstate highways also made high-speed, long-haul trucking possible, which contributed to a decline in the commercial use of railroads. Towns along the new highways prospered, while towns along the older, smaller roads experienced hard times. The system of highways also helped unify and homogenize the nation. As John Keats observed in his 1958 book, The Insolent Chariots, “Our new roads, with their ancillaries, the motels, filling stations, and restaurants advertising Eats, have made it possible for you to drive from Brooklyn to Los Angeles without a change of diet, scenery, or culture.” With access to cars, affordable gas, and new highways, more and more Americans hit the road. They flocked to mountains, lakes, national parks, historic sites, and amusement parks for family vacations. Disneyland, which opened in California in July 1955, attracted 3 million visitors the next year.

Mobility Takes its Toll

As the automobile industry boomed, it stimulated production and provided jobs in other areas, such as drive-in movies, restaurants, and shopping malls. Yet cars also created new problems for both society and the environment. Noise and exhaust polluted the air. Automobile accidents claimed more lives every year. Traffic jams raised people’s stress levels, and heavy use damaged the roads. Because cars made it possible for Americans to live in suburbs, many upper-class and middle-class whites left the crowded cities. Jobs and businesses eventually followed them to the suburbs. Public transportation declined, and poor people in the inner cities were often left without jobs and vital services. As a result, the economic gulf between suburban and urban dwellers and between the middle class and the poor widened.

853 Americans Hit the Road

In the 1950s Americans loved their cars—big, powerful, and flashy. Some car owners spent their leisure time maintaining their automobiles for the daily commute to work or for the annual family vacation on any one of the nation’s 22 new interstate highways.

Photo: a waitress takes an order at a drive-in restaurant

The Drive-Thru Fast-food restaurants catered to the car culture by offering drive-up service. Waitresses wearing fancy uniforms or roller skates added to the fun of front-seat dining. photo: family in a car at a drive-in movie

photo: family in a car at a drive-in movie

The Drive-In Young suburban families piled into their cars to see a movie at one of the country’s 5,000 or so drive-in theaters. Photo: a young couple riding in a convertible

Photo: a young couple riding in a convertible

Cruising Teens Often teenagers drove around familiar neighborhoods ending up at popular teen meeting places to see and be seen. Advertisement: a couple rides in a convertible. Words read: Nearly everyone knows by now, Pontiac's got a hit!

Advertisement: a couple rides in a convertible. Words read: Nearly everyone knows by now, Pontiac's got a hit!

Car Ads Not just for transport, cars were marketed for fashion and fun. Car ads used words like ”fresh” and ”frisky.” Photo: cars on a highway

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Consumerism Unbound

By the mid-1950s, nearly 60 percent of Americans were members of the middle class, about twice as many as before World War II. They wanted, and had the money to buy, increasing numbers of products. Consumerism, buying material goods, came to be equated with success.

New Products

One new product after another appeared in the marketplace, as various industries responded to consumer demand. Newsweek magazine reported in 1956 that “hundreds of brand-new goods have become commonplace overnight.” Consumers purchased electric household appliances—such as washing machines, dryers, blenders, freezers, and dishwashers—in record numbers.

With more and more leisure time to fill, people invested in recreational items. They bought televisions, tape recorders, and the new hi-fi (high-fidelity) record players. They bought casual clothing to suit their suburban lifestyles and power lawn mowers, barbecue grills, swimming pools, and lawn decorations for their suburban homes.

Planned Obsolescence

In addition to creating new products, manufacturers began using a marketing strategy called planned obsolescence. In order to encourage consumers to purchase more goods, manufacturers purposely designed products to become obsolete—that is, to wear out or become outdated—in a short period of time. Carmakers brought out new models every year, urging consumers to stay up-to-date. Because of planned obsolescence, Americans came to expect new and better products, and they began to discard items that were sometimes barely used. Some observers commented that American culture was on its way to becoming a “throwaway society.”

Advertisements: televisions and appliances

In the 1950s, advertisers made ”keeping up with the Joneses” a way of life for consumers.

Buy Now, Pay Later

Many consumers made their purchases on credit and therefore did not have to pay for them right away. The Diner’s Club issued the first credit card in 1950, and the American Express card was introduced in 1958. In addition, people bought large items on the installment plan and made regular payments over a fixed time. Home mortgages (loans for buying a house) and automobile loans worked the same way. During the decade, the total private debt grew from $73 billion to $179 billion. Instead of saving money, Americans were spending it, confident that prosperity would continue.

The Advertising Age

The advertising industry capitalized on this runaway consumerism by encouraging even more spending. Ads were everywhere—in newspapers and magazines, on radio and television, and on billboards along the

855

highways—prompting people to buy goods that ranged from cars to cereals to cigarettes. Advertisers spent about $6 billion in 1950; by 1955, the figure was up to $9 billion. Since most Americans had satisfied their basic needs, advertisers tried to convince them to buy things they really didn’t need.

A PERSONAL VOICE

VANCE PACKARD

“On May 18, 1956, The New York Times printed a remarkable interview with a young man named Gerald Stahl, executive vice-president of the Package Designers Council. He stated: ‘Psychiatrists say that people have so much to choose from that they want help—they will like the package that hypnotizes them into picking it.’ He urged food packers to put more hypnosis into their package designing, so that the housewife will stick out her hand for it rather than one of many rivals.

Mr. Stahl has found that it takes the average woman exactly twenty seconds to cover an aisle in a supermarket if she doesn’t tarry; so a good package design should hypnotize the woman like a flashlight waved in front of her eyes.”
—The Hidden Persuaders

More and more, ad executives and designers turned to psychology to create new strategies for selling. Advertisers appealed to people’s desire for status and “belongingness” and strived to associate their products with those values.

Television became a powerful new advertising tool. The first one-minute TV commercial was produced in 1941 at a cost of $9. In 1960, advertisers spent a total of $1.6 billion for television ads. By 2001, a 30-second commercial during the Superbowl cost an advertiser $2.2 million. Television had become not only the medium for mass transmission of cultural values, but a symbol of popular culture itself.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS &NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• conglomerate

• franchise

• baby boom

• Dr. Jonas Salk

• consumerism

• planned obsolescence

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a graphic organizer like the one below, list examples of specific goals that characterized the American dream for suburbanites in the 1950s.

Diagram entitled The American Dream: provides spaces to list examples related to Values, Home/Family, and Work

What do you think the most important goal was?

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING EFFECTS

In what ways do you think current environmental consciousness is related to the “throwaway society” of the 1950s? Support your answer. Think About:

• the purchasing habits of 1950s consumers

• the effects of planned obsolescence

• today’s emphasis on recycling

4. EVALUATING

Do you think that the life of a typical suburban homemaker during the 1950s was fulfilling or not? Support your answer.

Advertisement: A woman wearing a gold crown grins in front of a refrigerator-freezer. Words read: The final frost barrier! Designed with you in mind! You'll feel like a queen.

5. INTERPRETING VISUAL SOURCES

This ad is typical of how the advertising industry portrayed housewives in the 1950s. What message about women is conveyed by this ad?

856

Geography Spotlight The Road to Suburbia

“Come out to Park Forest where small-town friendships grow—and you still live so close to a big city.” Advertisements like this one for a scientifically planned Chicago suburb captured the lure of the suburbs for thousands of growing families in the 1950s. The publicity promised affordable housing, congenial neighbors, fresh air and open spaces, good schools, and easy access to urban jobs and culture. Good transportation was the lifeline of suburban growth a half century ago, and it continues to spur expansion today.

/Map: proposed plan for Village at Park Forest, Illinois

1 WHERE THE ’BURBS ARE Park Forest was planned from its conception in 1945 to be a “complete community for middle-income families with children.” The setting was rural—amidst cornfields and forest preserves about 30 miles south of Chicago. But it was convenient to commuter lines, like the Illinois Central (IC) Railroad, and to major roads, such as Western Avenue. Photo: aerial view of Park Forest

Shared Privacy By 1952, development in Park Forest, Illinois had expanded to include both low-cost rental units and single-family homes. All the streets were curved to slow traffic, present a pleasing sweep of space, and give residents maximum privacy and space for yards. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 856 and page 857 in the print version. 857 Photo: businessmen on a train platform

2 THE COMMUTER CRUSH Men commuted to work on the IC railroad, while their wives usually stayed home to take care of the children, who thrived in Park Forest’s safe, wholesome family environment. Photo: shopping center

3 SHOPPING CENTERS Consumerism became a driving force in the 1950s, and Park Forest kept up with the trend. The central shopping center served the community well until the late 1960s. When Interstate 57 was built, a mammoth mall, built just off the highway, caused the original shopping area to decline. Park Forest is still struggling to revive its central shopping area. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 856 and page 857 in the print version.

858

Section 3: Popular Culture

One American’s Story

H. B. Barnum, a 14-year-old saxophone player who later became a music producer, was one of many teenagers in the 1950s drawn to a new style of music that featured hard-driving African-American rhythm and blues. Barnum described the first time he saw the rhythm-and-blues performer Richard Wayne Penniman, better known as Little Richard.

A PERSONAL VOICE

H. B. BARNUM

“He’d just burst onto the stage from anywhere, and you wouldn’t be able to hear anything but the roar of the audience.… He’d be on the stage, he’d be off the stage, he’d be jumping and yelling, screaming, whipping the audience on.… Then when he finally did hit the piano and just went into di-di-di-di-di-di-di, you know, well nobody can do that as fast as Richard. It just took everybody by surprise.”
—quoted in The Rise and Fall of Popular Music

Little Richard helped change rhythm and blues into a new musical genre—rock ‘n’ roll.

Born poor, Little Richard wore flashy clothes on stage, curled his hair, and shouted the lyrics to his songs. As one writer observed, “In two minutes [he] used as much energy as an all-night party.” The music he and others performed became a prominent part of the American culture in the 1950s, a time when both mainstream America and those outside it embraced new and innovative forms of entertainment.

New Era of the Mass Media

Compared with other mass media—means of communication that reach large audiences—television developed with lightning speed. First widely available in 1948, television had reached 9 percent of American homes by 1950 and 55 percent of homes by 1954. In 1960, almost 90 percent—45 million—of American homes had television sets. Clearly, TV was the entertainment and information marvel of the postwar years.

859

The Rise of Television

Early television sets were small boxes with round screens. Programming was meager, and broadcasts were in black and white. The first regular broadcasts, beginning in 1949, reached only a small part of the East Coast and offered only two hours of programs per week. Post–World War II innovations such as microwave relays, which could transmit television waves over long distances, sent the television industry soaring. By 1956, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)—the government agency that regulates and licenses television, telephone, telegraph, radio, and other communications industries—had allowed 500 new stations to broadcast.

This period of rapid expansion was the “golden age” of television entertainment—and entertainment in the 1950s often meant comedy. Milton Berle attracted huge audiences with The Texaco Star Theater, and Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz’s early situation comedy, I Love Lucy, began its enormously popular run in 1951.

At the same time, veteran radio broadcaster Edward R. Murrow introduced two innovations: on-the-scene news reporting, with his program, See It Now (1951–1958), and interviewing, with Person to Person (1953–1960). Westerns, sports events, and original dramas shown on Playhouse 90 and Studio One offered entertainment variety. Children’s programs, such as The Mickey Mouse Club and The Howdy Doody Show, attracted loyal young fans.

American businesses took advantage of the opportunities offered by the new television industry. Advertising expenditures on TV, which were $170 million in 1950, reached nearly $2 billion in 1960.

Sales of TV Guide, introduced in 1953, quickly out-paced sales of other magazines. In 1954, the food industry introduced a new convenience item, the frozen TV dinner. Complete, ready-to-heat individual meals on disposable aluminum trays, TV dinners made it easy for people to eat without missing their favorite shows.

Historical Spotlight: Tv Quiz Shows Magazine cover: Quiz Champ Van Doren appears on the cover of Time Magazine

Beginning with The $64,000 Question in 1955, television created hit quiz shows by adopting a popular format from radio and adding big cash prizes.

The quiz show Twenty-One made a star of a shy English professor named Charles Van Doren. He rode a wave of fame and fortune until 1958, when a former contestant revealed that, to heighten the dramatic impact, producers had been giving some of the contestants the right answers.

A scandal followed when a congressional subcommittee confirmed the charges. Most of the quiz shows soon left the air.

Glued to the Set

Description:

Timeline: Millions of Households with TV sets 1950 - 2000. Numbers are approximate.

1950: 2
1955: 30
1960: 45
1965: 54
1970: 59
1975: 70
1980: 72
1985: 83
1990: 92
1995: 98
2000: 100

Households with TV Sets, 1950–2000 Source: Nielson Media Research, 2000

Description:

Graph: Average Daily Hours of TV Viewing 1950 - 1999. Numbers are approximate.

1950: 4.6
1955: 4.9
1960: 5.1
1965: 5.5
1970: 5.9
1975: 6.2
1980: 6.3
1985: 7.2
1990: 6.9
1995: 7.3
1999: 7.0

Average Daily Hours of TV Viewing, 1950–1999 Source: Nielson Media Research, 2000 860

Stereotypes and Gunslingers

Not everyone was thrilled with television, though. Critics objected to its effects on children and its stereotypical portrayal of women and minorities. Women did, in fact, appear in stereotypical roles, such as the ideal mothers of Father Knows Best and The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. Male characters outnumbered women characters three to one. African Americans and Latinos rarely appeared in television programs at all.

Television in the 1950s portrayed an idealized white America. For the most part, it omitted references to poverty, diversity, and contemporary conflicts, such as the struggle of the civil rights movement against racial discrimination. Instead, it glorified the historical conflicts of the Western frontier in hit shows such as Gunsmoke and Have Gun Will Travel. The level of violence in these popular shows led to ongoing concerns about the effect of television on children. In 1961, Federal Communications Commission chairman Newton Minow voiced this concern to the leaders of the television industry.

Lucille Ball had to fight to have her real-life husband, Cuban-born Desi Arnaz, cast in the popular TV series I Love Lucy.

A PERSONAL VOICE

NEWTON MINOW

“When television is bad, nothing is worse. I invite you to sit down in front of your television set when your station goes on the air … and keep your eyes glued to that set until the station signs off. I can assure you that you will observe a vast wasteland.”
—speech to the National Association of Broadcasters, Washington, D.C., May 9, 1961

Radio and Movies

Although TV turned out to be wildly popular, radio and movies survived. But instead of competing with television’s mass market for drama and variety shows, radio stations turned to local programming of news, weather, music, and community issues. The strategy paid off. During the decade, radio advertising rose by 35 percent, and the number of radio stations increased by 50 percent.

From the beginning, television cut into the profitable movie market. In 1948, 18,500 movie theaters had drawn nearly 90 million paid admissions per week. As more people stayed home to watch TV, the number of moviegoers decreased by nearly half. As early as 1951, producer David Selznick worried about Hollywood: “It’ll never come back. It’ll just keep on crumbling until finally the wind blows the last studio prop across the sands.”

But Hollywood did not crumble and blow away. Instead, it capitalized on the advantages that movies still held over television—size, color, and stereophonic sound. Stereophonic sound, which surrounded the viewer, was introduced in 1952. By 1954, more than 50 percent of movies were in color. By contrast, color television, which became available that year, did not become widespread until the

James Dean, seen here in the movie Giant, had a self-confident indifference that made him the idol of teenagers. He died in a car accident at age 24. 861

next decade. In 1953, 20th Century Fox introduced CinemaScope, which projected a wide-angle image on a broad screen. The industry also tried novelty features: Smell-O-Vision and Aroma-Rama piped smells into the theaters to coincide with events shown on the screen. Three-dimensional images, viewed through special glasses supplied by the theaters, appeared to leap into the audience.

A Subculture Emerges

Although the mass media found a wide audience for their portrayals of mostly white popular culture, dissenting voices rang out throughout the 1950s. The messages of the beat movement in literature, and of rock ‘n’ roll in music, clashed with the tidy suburban view of life and set the stage for the counterculture that would burst forth in the late 1960s.

The Beat Movement

Centered in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York City’s Greenwich Village, the beat movement expressed the social and literary nonconformity of artists, poets, and writers. The word beat originally meant “weary” but came to refer as well to a musical beat.

Followers of this movement, called beats or beatniks, lived nonconformist lives. They tended to shun regular work and sought a higher consciousness through Zen Buddhism, music, and, sometimes, drugs.

Many beat poets and writers believed in imposing as little structure as possible on their artistic works, which often had a free, open form. They read their poetry aloud in coffeehouses and other gathering places. Works that capture the essence of this era include Allen Ginsberg’s long, free-verse poem, Howl, published in 1956, and Jack Kerouac’s novel of the movement, On the Road, published in 1957. This novel describes a nomadic search across America for authentic experiences, people, and values.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JACK KEROUAC

“[T]he only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved … the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars.”
—On the Road

Novelist Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, published in 1957, sold over 500,000 copies.

Many mainstream Americans found this lifestyle less enchanting. Look magazine proclaimed, “There’s nothing really new about the beat philosophy. It consists merely of the average American’s value scale—turned inside out. The goals of the Beat are not watching TV, not wearing gray flannel, not owning a home in the suburbs, and especially—not working.” Nonetheless, the beatnik attitudes, way of life, and literature attracted the attention of the media and fired the imaginations of many college students.

African Americans and Rock ‘n’ Roll

While beats expressed themselves in unstructured literature, musicians in the 1950s added electronic instruments to traditional blues music, creating rhythm and blues. In 1951, a Cleveland, Ohio, radio disc jockey named Alan Freed was among the first to play the music. This audience was mostly white but the music usually was produced by African-American musicians. Freed’s listeners responded enthusiastically, and Freed began promoting the new music that grew out of rhythm and blues and country and pop. He called the music rock ‘n’ roll, a name that has come to mean music that’s both black and white—music that is American.

862

Rock ‘N’ Roll

In the early and mid-1950s, Richard Penniman, Chuck Berry, Bill Haley and His Comets, and especially Elvis Presley brought rock ‘n’ roll to a frantic pitch of popularity among the newly affluent teens who bought their records. The music’s heavy rhythm, simple melodies, and lyrics—featuring love, cars, and the problems of being young—captivated teenagers across the country.

Elvis Presley, the unofficial “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” first developed his musical style by singing in church and listening to gospel, country, and blues music on the radio in Memphis, Tennessee. When he was a young boy, his mother gave him a guitar, and years later he paid four dollars of his own money to record two songs in 1953. Sam Phillips, a rhythm-and-blues producer, discovered Presley and produced his first records. In 1955, Phillips sold Presley’s contract to RCA for $35,000.

Presley’s live appearances were immensely popular, and 45 of his records sold over a million copies, including “Heartbreak Hotel,” “Hound Dog,” “All Shook Up,” “Don’t Be Cruel,” and “Burning Love.” Although Look magazine dismissed him as “a wild troubadour who wails rock ‘n’ roll tunes, flails erratically at a guitar, and wriggles like a peep-show dancer,” Presley’s rebellious style captivated young audiences. Girls screamed and fainted when he performed, and boys tried to imitate him.

Not surprisingly, many adults condemned rock ‘n’ roll. They believed that the new music would lead to teenage delinquency and immorality. In a few cities, rock ‘n’ roll concerts were banned. But despite this controversy, television and radio exposure helped bring rock ‘n’ roll into the mainstream, and it became more acceptable by the end of the decade. Record sales, which were 189 million in 1950, grew with the popularity of rock ‘n’ roll, reaching 600 million in 1960.

Chuck Berry is as much known for his “duck walk” as for his electric guitar-playing heard on hit records including “Johnny B. Goode” and “Maybellene.” History Through Music: “Hound Dog”—A Rock ‘N’ Roll Crossover

Few examples highlight the influence African Americans had on rock ‘n’ roll—and the lack of credit and compensation they received for their efforts—more than the story of Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton.

In 1953, she recorded and released the song “Hound Dog” to little fanfare. She received a mere $500 in royalties. Only three years later, Elvis Presley recorded a version of the tune, which sold millions of records. Despite her contributions, Thornton reaped few rewards and struggled her entire career to make ends meet.

Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton is remembered as the first artist to record “Hound Dog.” Photo: Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley recorded “Hound Dog” in 1956—making it a popular hit. 863

The Racial Gap

African-American music had inspired the birth of rock ‘n’ roll, and many of the genre’s greatest performers were—like Berry and Penniman—African Americans. In other musical genres, singers Nat “King” Cole and Lena Horne, singer and actor Harry Belafonte, and many others paved the way for minority representation in the entertainment fields. Musicians like Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Thelonius Monk played a style of music characterized by the use of improvisation, called jazz. These artists entertained audiences of all races.

But throughout the 1950s, African-American shows were mostly broadcast on separate stations. By 1954, there were 250 radio stations nationwide aimed specifically at African-American listeners. African-American stations were part of radio’s attempt to counter the mass popularity of television by targeting specific audiences. These stations also served advertisers who wanted to reach a large African-American audience. But it was the black listeners—who had fewer television sets than whites and did not find themselves reflected in mainstream programming—who appreciated the stations most. Thulani Davis, a poet, journalist, and playwright, expressed the feelings of one listener about African-American radio (or “race radio” as the character called it) in her novel 1959.

Innovative American jazz trumpeter and composer Miles Davis, shown during a recording session in 1959, continued to blaze musical trails throughout his career.

A PERSONAL VOICE

THULANI DAVIS

“Billie Holiday died and I turned twelve on the same hot July day. The saddest singing in the world was coming out of the radio, race radio that is, the radio of the race. The white stations were on the usual relentless rounds of Pat Boone, Teresa Brewer, and anybody else who couldn’t sing but liked to cover songs that were once colored.… White radio was at least honest—they knew anybody in the South could tell Negro voices from white ones, and so they didn’t play our stuff.”
—1959

At the end of the 1950s, African Americans were still largely segregated from the dominant culture. This ongoing segregation—and the racial tensions it fed—would become a powerful force for change in the turbulent 1960s.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS &NAMES For each term, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• mass media

• Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

• beat movement

• rock ‘n’ roll

• jazz

Main Idea

2. SUMMARIZING

Create a “Who’s Who” chart of popular culture idols of the 1950s. Identify the art form and major achievements associated with each person.

Chart: spaces provided to list people with their art forms and achievements

Why do you think they appealed to the young people of the 1950s?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

Do you agree with Newton Minow’s statement, on page 860, that TV was “a vast wasteland”? Support your answer with details from the text.

4. ANALYZING EFFECTS

How did radio, TV, and the movies contribute to the success of rock ‘n’ roll?

5. COMPARING AND CONTRASTING

In what ways were the rock ‘n’ roll musicians and the beat poets of the 1950s similar and different? Support your answer with details from the text. Think About:

• the values the musicians and poets believed in

• people’s reactions to the musicians, poets, and writers

864

Daily Life 1950–1960: The Emergence of the Teenager

Life after World War II brought changes in the family. For the first time, the teenage years were recognized as an important and unique developmental stage between childhood and adulthood. The booming postwar economy made it possible for teenagers to stay in school instead of working to help support their families, and allowed their parents to give them generous allowances. American business, particularly the music and movie industries, rushed to court this new consumer group.

Teen Magazine cover and advertisement for 7-Up

TEENS AS CONSUMERS Comic books, pimple creams, and soft drinks were just a few of the products aimed at teenagers with money to spend. Photo: Dick Clark from American Bandstand

Photo: Dick Clark from American Bandstand

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 864 and page 865 in the print version. 865 Photo: James Dean and Natalie Wood

THE TEEN MOVIE SCENE Teenagers with money in their pockets often found themselves at the movies. Hollywood responded by producing films especially for teens. Rebel Without a Cause (1955) told the story of a troubled youth driven by anger and fear. It starred teen heart-throbs James Dean and Natalie Wood. Photo: A group of five doo-wop singers

ROCKING TO A NEW BEAT Teenagers seeking a collective identity found it in rock ‘n’ roll, a fresh form of music that delighted teenagers and enraged their parents. Dick Clark’s American Bandstand (shown at left) showcased young performers playing music ranging from doo-wop (shown above) to hard-driving rhythm and blues. The songs they sang underscored themes of alienation and heartbreak. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 864 and page 865 in the print version. Data File Teenage Tidbits

• A Life magazine survey showed that, during the 1950s, teens spent $20 million on lipstick alone.

• In 1956, a total of 42,000 drive-in movie theaters—heavily frequented by teenagers—took in one-quarter of the year’s total box-office receipts.

• College enrollments more than doubled between 1946 and 1960.

• A weekly credit payment for a record player was $1.

Description:

Graph: U.S. School Enrollments 1950 - 1990, in thousands of teenagers. Numbers show elementary, high school, and college enrollments. Numbers are approximate.

1950: Elementary 22,500, High School 6,000, College 2,000.
1955: Elementary 26,000, High School 9,000, College 3,000.
1960: Elementary 32,000, High School 10,000, College 4,000.
1965: Elementary 31,000, High School 17,000, College 6,000.
1970: Elementary 31,000, High School 19,000, College 8,000.
1975: Elementary 29,000, High School 20,000, College 11,000.
1980: Elementary 28,000, High School 18,000, College 12,000.
1985: Elementary 28,000, High School 17,000, College 12,500.
1990: Elementary 31,000, High School 15,000, College 14,000.

U.S. School Enrollments, 1950–1990 Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1995

Description:

Graph: Teenagers and Employment 1950 - 1990, in millions of teenagers. Males 16 - 19 years. Females 16 - 19 years. Numbers are approximate.

1950: males 2.9, females 1.8
1955: males 2.9, females 1.8
1960: males 3.1, females 2.0
1965: males 3.9, females 2.5
1970: males 4.3, females 3.2
1975: males 5.0, females 4.0
1980: males 4.9, females 4.3
1985: males 4.0, females 3.8
1990: males 3.9, females 3.5

Teenagers and Employment, 1950–1990 Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1995

internet icon Research Links: Classzone.Com

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Section 4: The Other America

One American’s Story

James Baldwin was born in New York City, the eldest of nine children, and grew up in the poverty of the Harlem ghetto. As a novelist, essayist, and playwright, he eloquently portrayed the struggles of African Americans against racial injustice and discrimination. He wrote a letter to his young nephew to mark the 100th anniversary of emancipation, although, in his words, “the country is celebrating one hundred years of freedom one hundred years too soon.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

JAMES BALDWIN

“[T]hese innocent and well-meaning people, your countrymen, have caused you to be born under conditions not very far removed from those described for us by Charles Dickens in the London of more than a hundred years ago.… This innocent country set you down in a ghetto in which, in fact, it intended that you should perish.… You were born where you were born and faced the future that you faced because you were black and for no other reason.”
—The Fire Next Time

James Baldwin

For many Americans, the 1950s were a time of unprecedented prosperity. But not everyone experienced this financial well-being. In the “other” America, about 40 million people lived in poverty, untouched by the economic boom.

The Urban Poor

Despite the portrait painted by popular culture, life in postwar America did not live up to the “American dream.” In 1962, nearly one out of every four Americans was living below the poverty level. Many of these poor were elderly people, single women and their children, or members of minority groups, including African Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans.

White Flight

In the 1950s, millions of middle-class white Americans left the cities for the suburbs, taking with them precious economic resources and isolating themselves from other races and classes. At the same time, the rural poor migrated to the inner cities. Between the end of World War II and 1960, nearly 5 million African Americans moved from the rural South to urban areas.

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The urban crisis prompted by the “white flight” had a direct impact on poor whites and nonwhites. The cities lost not only people and businesses but also the property they owned and income taxes they had paid. City governments could no longer afford to properly maintain or improve schools, public transportation, and police and fire departments—and the urban poor suffered.

The Inner Cities

While poverty grew rapidly in the decaying inner cities, many suburban Americans remained unaware of it. Some even refused to believe that poverty could exist in the richest, most powerful nation on earth. Each year, the federal government calculates the minimum amount of income needed to survive—the poverty line. In 1959, the poverty line for a family of four was $2,973. In 2000, it was $17,601.

After living among the nation’s poor across America, Michael Harrington published a shocking account that starkly illuminated the issue of poverty. In The Other America: Poverty in the United States (1962), he not only confirmed that widespread poverty existed but also exposed its brutal reality.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MICHAEL HARRINGTON

“The poor get sick more than anyone else in the society.… When they become sick, they are sick longer than any other group in the society. Because they are sick more often and longer than anyone else, they lose wages and work, and find it difficult to hold a steady job. And because of this, they cannot pay for good housing, for a nutritious diet, for doctors.”
—The Other America

Urban Renewal

Most African Americans, Native Americans, and Latinos in the cities had to live in dirty, crowded slums. One proposed solution to the housing problem in inner cities was urban renewal. The National Housing Act of 1949 was passed to provide “a decent home and a suitable living environment for every American family.” This act called for tearing down rundown neighborhoods and constructing low-income housing. Later, the nation’s leaders would create a new cabinet position, Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to aid in improving conditions in the inner city.

Although dilapidated areas were razed, parking lots, shopping centers, highways, parks, and factories were constructed on some of the cleared land, and there was seldom enough new housing built to accommodate all the displaced people. For example, a barrio in Los Angeles was torn down to make way for Dodger Stadium, and poor people who were displaced from their homes simply moved from one ghetto to another. Some critics of urban renewal claimed that it had merely become urban removal.

Income Gap in America

(Ratio of Black Male Earnings to White Male Earnings*)

Description:

Graph: Black Earnings as Percentage of White Earnings 1940 - 2000. Numbers are approximate.

1940: 45
1950: 56
1960: 58
1970: 65
1980: 72
1985: 72
1990: 67
1998: 72
1999: 76

*Figures are for year-round, full-time employment. Source: The First Measured Century, Theodore Caplow, 2001 868

Poverty Leads to Activism

Despite ongoing poverty, during the 1950s, African Americans began to make significant strides toward the reduction of racial discrimination and segregation. Inspired by the African-American civil rights movement, other minorities also began to develop a deeper political awareness and a voice. Mexican-American activism gathered steam after veterans returned from World War II, and a major change in government policy under Eisenhower’s administration fueled Native American protest.

Mexicans Seek Employment

Many Mexicans had become U.S. citizens during the 19th century, when the United States had annexed the Southwest after the War with Mexico. Large numbers of Mexicans had also crossed the border to work in the United States during and after World War I.

When the United States entered World War II, the shortage of agricultural laborers spurred the federal government to initiate, in 1942, a program in which Mexican braceros (brə-sâr’ōs), or hired hands, were allowed into the United States to harvest crops. Hundreds of thousands of braceros entered the United States on a short-term basis between 1942 and 1947. When their employment was ended, the braceros were expected to return to Mexico. However, many remained in the United States illegally. In addition, hundreds of thousands of Mexicans entered the country illegally to escape poor economic conditions in Mexico.

Photo: farmworkers wave from train windows

In 1942, Mexican farm workers on their way to California bid farewell to their families.

The Longoria Incident

One of the more notorious instances of prejudice against Mexican Americans involved the burial of Felix Longoria. Longoria was a Mexican-American World War II hero who had been killed in the Philippines. The only undertaker in his hometown in Texas refused to provide Longoria’s family with funeral services.

In the wake of the Longoria incident, outraged Mexican Americans stepped up their efforts to stamp out discrimination. In 1948, Mexican-American veterans organized the G.I. Forum. Meanwhile, activist Ignacio Lopez founded the Unity League of California to register Mexican-American voters and to promote candidates who would represent their interests.

Native Americans Continue their Struggle

Native Americans also continued to fight for their rights and identity. From the passage of the Dawes Act, in 1887, until 1934, the policy of the federal government toward Native Americans had been one of “Americanization” and assimilation. In 1924, the Snyder Act granted citizenship to all Native Americans, but they remained second-class citizens.

In 1934, the Indian Reorganization Act moved official policy away from assimilation and toward Native American autonomy. Its passage signaled a change in federal policy. In addition, because the government was reeling from

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the Great Depression, it wanted to stop subsidizing the Native Americans. Native Americans also took the initiative to improve their lives. In 1944, they established the National Congress of American Indians. The congress had two main goals: (1) to ensure for Native Americans the same civil rights that white Americans had, and (2) to enable Native Americans on reservations to retain their own customs.

During World War II, over 65,000 Native Americans left their reservations for military service and war work. As a result, they became very aware of discrimination. When the war ended, Native Americans stopped receiving family allotments and wages. Outsiders also grabbed control of tribal lands, primarily to exploit their deposits of minerals, oil, and timber.

The Termination Policy

In 1953, the federal government announced that it would give up its responsibility for Native American tribes. This new approach, known as the termination policy, eliminated federal economic support, discontinued the reservation system, and distributed tribal lands among individual Native Americans. In response to the termination policy, the Bureau of Indian Affairs began a voluntary relocation program to help Native Americans resettle in cities.

The termination policy was a dismal failure, however. Although the Bureau of Indian Affairs helped relocate 35,000 Native Americans to urban areas during the 1950s, they were often unable to find jobs in their new locations because of poor training and racial prejudice. They were also left without access to medical care when federal programs were abolished. In 1963, the termination policy was abandoned.

Native Americans like the man above received job training from the Bureau of Indian Affairs to help them settle in urban areas.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS &NAMES For each term, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• urban renewal

• bracero

• termination policy

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In overlapping circles like the ones below, fill in the common problems that African Americans, Mexican Americans, and Native Americans faced during the 1950s.

Diagram: Three circles labeled African Americans, Mexican Americans, and Native Americans overlap

What do these problems illustrate about life in the 1950s?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

Do you think that urban renewal was an effective approach to the housing problem in inner cities? Why or why not? Think About:

• the goals of the National Housing Act of 1949

• the claims made by some critics of urban renewal

• the residents’ best interest

4. ANALYZING ISSUES

How did Native Americans work to increase their participation in the U.S. political process?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Which major population shift—”white flight,” migration from Mexico, or relocation of Native Americans—do you think had the greatest impact on U.S. society? Why? Think About:

• the impact of “white flight”

• the influx of “braceros”

• the effects of the termination policy

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Chapter 27: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each item below, write a sentence explaining its historical significance in the 1950s.

1. suburb

2. Dixiecrat

3. Fair Deal

4. conglomerate

5. baby boom

6. mass media

7. beat movement

8. rock ‘n’ roll

9. urban renewal

10. bracero

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Postwar America (pages 840–846)

1. How did the GI Bill of Rights help World War II veterans?

2. What domestic and foreign issues concerned voters during the 1952 presidential election?

The American Dream in the Fifties (pages 847–855)

3. What shift in employment trends had occurred by the mid-1950s?

4. How did life in the suburbs provide the model for the American dream?

Popular Culture (pages 858–863)

5. What strategies did radio stations use to counteract the mass popularity of television?

6. How did African-American performers influence American popular culture in the 1950s?

The Other America (pages 866–869)

7. How did many major cities change in the 1950s?

8. What obstacles to improving their lives did Native Americans face in the 1950s?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a web like the one below, show the postwar technological advances you consider most influential.

Diagram: provides four spaces to list breakthroughs

2. HYPOTHESIZING During America’s first two centuries, the national character was marked by individualism. Why do you think conformity became the norm in the 1950s?

3. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES Do you agree or disagree with the following quotation from Life magazine on American culture in 1954: “Never before so much for so few”? Support your answer with evidence.

Visual Summary: The Postwar Boom Diagram lists four aspects of Life in Postwar America 1945 - 1960: suburban growth, politics, popular culture, and unequal opportunities

LIFE IN POSTWAR AMERICA 1945–1960 Suburban Growth

• Baby boom causes population growth.

• Demand for goods exceeds supply.

• Highways and affordable homes make suburban living desirable.

Politics

• Eisenhower’s presidency brings prosperity and political conservatism.

• Equal rights remains a problem.

• The Cold War creates fear and anxiety.

Popular Culture

• Rock ’n’ roll and jazz pave the way for minority representation.

• The beat movement rejects conformity.

• Recreation and consumerism flourish.

• Television portrays an idealized white America.

Unequal Opportunities

• Urban areas fall into decay.

• Minorities experience prejudice and discrimination.

• Minorities establish organizations to improve civil rights.

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 871 Standardized Test Practice

Use the chart and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer questions 1 and 2.

Geographic Distribution of U.S. Population, 1930–1970
Year	Central Cities	Suburbs	Rural Areas and Small Towns
1930	31.8%	18.0%	50.2%
1940	31.6%	19.5%	48.9%
1950	32.3%	23.8%	43.9%
1960	32.6%	30.7%	36.7%
1970	31.4%	37.6%	31.0%
Source: Adapated from U.S. Bureau of the Census, Decennial Censuses, 1930–1970

1. Which of the following statements supports the information in the chart?

A From 1940–1960, more people lived in cities than in rural areas.

B In 1960, twice as many people lived in cities as in suburbs.

C By 1960, suburbs had surpassed cities in total population.

D From 1930–1970, the precentage of U.S. population in rural areas decreased every decade.

2. From 1940–1970 the distribution doubled—

F in cities and suburbs.

G only in suburbs.

H only in cities.

J only in rural areas.

Use the song lyric below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 3.

“Little Boxes” Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes made of ticky-tacky, Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes all the same. There’s a pink one and a green one And a blue one and a yellow one, And they’re all made out of ticky-tacky And they all look just the same. —Malvina Reynolds

3. This popular song of the era describes—

A planned obsolescence.

B urban renewal.

C suburban communities.

D beatnik life style.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 839:

What is the American dream of the 1950s?

Suppose you are a beat poet and have been asked to write an original poem entitled A Postwar American Dream. Use information from Chapter 19 and your knowledge of American history to support your poem. Remember to include a wide range of lifestyles in your poem.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Chapter Assessment to plan and prepare a Web page about one aspect of popular culture—music, television, fashion, or the movies—from the 1950s. Include particular events and personalities of that period.

Cooperative Learning Activity Talk to other students in your class to identify those who chose a topic that was different from yours. Then work with those students to plan an electronic presentation that includes all elements of popular culture. Present your complete guide to 1950s popular culture to the class.

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Unit 8: Living with Great Turmoil 1954–1975

Chapter 28 The New Frontier and the Great Society 1960–1968

Chapter 29 Civil Rights 1954–1968

Chapter 30 The Vietnam War Years 1954–1975

Chapter 31 An Era of Social Change 1960–1975

Photo: African-Americans and whites march together in a field.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 872 and page 873 in the print version. 873 Photo: African-Americans and whites march together in a
field.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 872 and page 873 in the print version. 874

Chapter 28: The New Frontier and the Great Society

Photo: An astronaut
floats in space above the earth. A title: The New Frontier and the Great Society.

Scientific and technological advances in the early 1960s made possible the first American spacewalk during the Gemini 6 mission on June 3, 1965. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 874 and page 875 in the print version. A timeline of
historical events from 1960 to 1968 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of
historical events from 1960 to 1968 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1960-1968.

1960, the World: Seventeen African countries gain independence.
1960, USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.
1961, the World: Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gargarin becomes the first human in outer space.
1961, USA: U.S. launches the Bay of Pigs invasion.
1962, USA: John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the earth.
1962, USA: U.S. and USSR face off in the Cuban missile crisis.
1962, the World: the drug thalidomide is pulled from the market after it is found responsible for thousands of birth defects in Europe.
1963, USA: President Kennedy is assassinated; Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1964, USA: Congress passes the Economic Opportunity Act and Civil Rights Act.
1965, USA: U.S. troops enter Vietnam.
1965, the World: Ferdinand Marcos becomes president of the Phillippines.
1966, the World: Indira Gandhi becomes prime minister of India.
1967, USA: Thurgood Marshall becomes the first African-American justice of the Supreme Court. 15. 1967, the World: Israel wins Arab territories in the Six Day War.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1968, the World: Warsaw Pact troops invade Czechoslovakia.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 874 and page 875 in the print version. 875 Photo: An
astronaut floats in space above the earth. A title: The New Frontier and the Great Society.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 874 and page 875 in the print version. A timeline of
historical events from 1960 to 1968 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1960-1968.

1960, the World: Seventeen African countries gain independence.
1960, USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.
1961, the World: Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gargarin becomes the first human in outer space.
1961, USA: U.S. launches the Bay of Pigs invasion.
1962, USA: John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the earth.
1962, USA: U.S. and USSR face off in the Cuban missile crisis.
1962, the World: the drug thalidomide is pulled from the market after it is found responsible for thousands of birth defects in Europe.
1963, USA: President Kennedy is assassinated; Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1964, USA: Congress passes the Economic Opportunity Act and Civil Rights Act.
1965, USA: U.S. troops enter Vietnam.
1965, the World: Ferdinand Marcos becomes president of the Phillippines.
1966, the World: Indira Gandhi becomes prime minister of India.
1967, USA: Thurgood Marshall becomes the first African-American justice of the Supreme Court. 15. 1967, the World: Israel wins Arab territories in the Six Day War.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1968, the World: Warsaw Pact troops invade Czechoslovakia.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 874 and page 875 in the print version. Interact with History

Against the backdrop of an intense space race between America and the Soviet Union, the 1960 presidential election approaches. The leading candidates are a young, charismatic senator and the ambitious, experienced vice-president. The new president will face tremendous responsibilities. Abroad, the Soviet Union is stockpiling nuclear weapons. At home, millions suffer from poverty and discrimination.

What are the qualities of effective leaders?

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Section 1: Kennedy and the Cold War

One American’s Story

John F. Kennedy became the 35th president of the United States on a crisp and sparkling day in January 1961. Appearing without a coat in freezing weather, he issued a challenge to the American people. He said that the world was in “its hour of maximum danger,” as Cold War tensions ran high. Rather than shrinking from the danger, the United States should confront the “iron tyranny” of communism.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOHN F. KENNEDY

“Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans, born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed.…

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any … foe, in order to assure … the survival and the success of liberty.”
—Inaugural Address, January 20, 1961

John F. Kennedy delivers his inaugural address on January 20, 1961.

The young president won praise for his well-crafted speech. However, his words were put to the test when several Cold War crises tried his leadership.

The Election of 1960

In 1960, as President Eisenhower’s second term drew to a close, a mood of restlessness arose among voters. The economy was in a recession. The USSR’s launch of Sputnik I in 1957 and its development of long-range missiles had sparked fears that the American military was falling behind that of the Soviets. Further setbacks including the U-2 incident and the alignment of Cuba with the Soviet Union had Americans questioning whether the United States was losing the Cold War.

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Photo: a black-and-white
TV screen shows Kennedy and Richard Nixon.

John F. Kennedy (right) appeared confident and at ease during a televised debate with his opponent Richard M. Nixon.

The Democratic nominee for president, Massachusetts senator John Kennedy, promised active leadership “to get America moving again.” His Republican opponent, Vice President Richard M. Nixon, hoped to win by riding on the coattails of Eisenhower’s popularity. Both candidates had similar positions on policy issues. Two factors helped put Kennedy over the top: television and the civil rights issue.

The Televised Debate Affects Votes

Kennedy had a well-organized campaign and the backing of his wealthy family, and was handsome and charismatic. Yet many felt that, at 43, he was too inexperienced. If elected, he would be the second-youngest president in the nation’s history.

Americans also worried that having a Roman Catholic in the White House would lead either to influence of the pope on American policies or to closer ties between church and state. Kennedy was able to allay worries by discussing the issue openly.

One event in the fall determined the course of the election. Kennedy and Nixon took part in the first televised debate between presidential candidates. On September 26, 1960, 70 million TV viewers watched the two articulate and knowledgeable candidates debating issues. Nixon, an expert on foreign policy, had agreed to the forum in hopes of exposing Kennedy’s inexperience. However, Kennedy had been coached by television producers, and he looked and spoke better than Nixon.

“ That night, image replaced the printed word as the natural language of politics.”
RUSSELL BAKER

Kennedy’s success in the debate launched a new era in American politics: the television age. As journalist Russell Baker, who covered the Nixon campaign, said, “That night, image replaced the printed word as the natural language of politics.”

Kennedy and Civil Rights

A second major event of the campaign took place in October. Police in Atlanta, Georgia, arrested the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., and 33 other African-American demonstrators for sitting at a segregated lunch counter. Although the other demonstrators were released, King was sentenced to months of hard labor—officially for a minor traffic violation. The Eisenhower administration refused to intervene, and Nixon took no public position.

When Kennedy heard of the arrest and sentencing, he telephoned King’s wife, Coretta Scott King, to express his sympathy. Meanwhile, Robert Kennedy, his brother and campaign manager, persuaded the judge who had sentenced King to release the civil rights leader on bail, pending appeal. News of the incident captured the immediate attention of the African-American community, whose votes would help Kennedy carry key states in the Midwest and South.

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The Camelot Years

The election in November 1960 was the closest since 1884; Kennedy won by fewer than 119,000 votes. His inauguration set the tone for a new era at the White House: one of grace, elegance, and wit. On the podium sat over 100 writers, artists, and scientists that the Kennedys had invited, including opera singer Marian Anderson, who had once been barred from singing at Constitution Hall because she was African American. Kennedy’s inspiring speech called for hope, commitment, and sacrifice. “And so, my fellow Americans,” he proclaimed, “ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”

During his term, the president and his beautiful young wife, Jacqueline, invited many artists and celebrities to the White House. In addition, Kennedy often appeared on television. The press loved his charm and wit and helped to bolster his image.

Photo: Kennedy and his wife
sit on deck chairs with their young son and daughter, petting a half-dozen dogs.

President and Mrs. Kennedy enjoy time with their children, Caroline and John, Jr., while vacationing in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts.

The Kennedy Mystique

Critics of Kennedy’s presidency argued that his smooth style lacked substance. But the new first family fascinated the public. For example, after learning that JFK could read 1,600 words a minute, thousands of people enrolled in speed-reading courses. The first lady, too, captivated the nation with her eye for fashion and culture. It seemed the nation could not get enough of the first family. Newspapers and magazines filled their pages with pictures and stories about the president’s young daughter Caroline and his infant son John. With JFK’s youthful glamour and his talented advisers, the Kennedy White House reminded many of a modern-day Camelot, the mythical court of King Arthur. Coincidentally, the musical Camelot had opened on Broadway in 1960. Years later, Jackie recalled her husband and the vision of Camelot.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JACQUELINE KENNEDY

“At night, before we’d go to sleep, Jack liked to play some records and the song he loved most came at the very end of [the Camelot] record. The lines he loved to hear were: ‘Don’t let it be forgot, that once there was a spot, for one brief shining moment that was known as Camelot.’ There’ll be great presidents again … but there’ll never be another Camelot again.”
—quoted in Life magazine, John F. Kennedy Memorial Edition

The Best and The Brightest

Kennedy surrounded himself with a team of advisers that one journalist called “the best and the brightest.” They included McGeorge Bundy, a Harvard University dean, as national security adviser; Robert McNamara, president of Ford Motor Company, as secretary of defense; and Dean Rusk, president of the Rockefeller Foundation, as secretary of state. Of all the advisers who filled Kennedy’s inner circle, he relied most heavily on his 35-year-old brother Robert, whom he appointed attorney general.

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A New Military Policy

From the beginning, Kennedy focused on the Cold War. He thought the Eisenhower administration had not done enough about the Soviet threat. The Soviets, he concluded, were gaining loyalties in the economically less-developed third-world countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. He blasted the Republicans for allowing communism to develop in Cuba, at America’s doorstep.

Defining a Military Strategy

Kennedy believed his most urgent task was to redefine the nation’s nuclear strategy. The Eisenhower administration had relied on the policy of massive retaliation to deter Soviet aggression and imperialism. However, threatening to use nuclear arms over a minor conflict was not a risk Kennedy wished to take. Instead, his team developed a policy of flexible response. Kennedy’s secretary of defense, Robert McNamara, explained the policy.

Another Perspective: Eisenhower’s Warning

The increase in defense spending in the 1960s continued the trend in which Defense Department suppliers were becoming more dominant in the American economy. Before leaving office, President Eisenhower warned against the dangers of what he called the “military-industrial complex.” He included in his parting speech the following comments:

“This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence—economic, political, even spiritual—is felt in every city, every statehouse, every office of the federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications.… The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

ROBERT S. MCNAMARA

“The Kennedy administration worried that [the] reliance on nuclear weapons gave us no way to respond to large non-nuclear attacks without committing suicide.… We decided to broaden the range of options by strengthening and modernizing the military’s ability to fight a nonnuclear war.”
—In Retrospect

Kennedy increased defense spending in order to boost conventional military forces—nonnuclear forces such as troops, ships, and artillery—and to create an elite branch of the army called the Special Forces, or Green Berets. He also tripled the overall nuclear capabilities of the United States. These changes enabled the United States to fight limited wars around the world while maintaining a balance of nuclear power with the Soviet Union. However, even as Kennedy hoped to reduce the risk of nuclear war, the world came perilously close to nuclear war under his command as a crisis arose over the island of Cuba.

Crises over Cuba

The first test of Kennedy’s foreign policy came in Cuba, just 90 miles off the coast of Florida. About two weeks before Kennedy took office, on January 3, 1961, President Eisenhower had cut off diplomatic relations with Cuba because of a revolutionary leader named Fidel Castro. Castro openly declared himself a communist and welcomed aid from the Soviet Union.

The Cuban Dilemma

Castro gained power with the promise of democracy. From 1956 to 1959, he led a guerrilla movement to topple dictator Fulgencio Batista. He won control in 1959 and later told reporters, “Revolutionaries are not born, they are made by poverty, inequality, and dictatorship.” He then promised to eliminate these conditions from Cuba.

The United States was suspicious of Castro’s intentions but nevertheless recognized the new government. However, when Castro seized three American and British oil refineries, relations between the United States and Cuba worsened. Castro also broke up commercial farms into communes that would be worked by formerly landless peasants. American sugar companies,

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which controlled 75 percent of the crop land in Cuba, appealed to the U.S. government for help. In response, Congress erected trade barriers against Cuban sugar.

Castro relied increasingly on Soviet aid—and on the political repression of those who did not agree with him. While some Cubans were taken by his charisma and his willingness to stand up to the United States, others saw Castro as a tyrant who had replaced one dictatorship with another. About 10 percent of Cuba’s population went into exile, mostly to the United States. Within the large exile community of Miami, Florida, a counterrevolutionary movement took shape.

The Bay of Pigs

In March 1960, President Eisenhower gave the CIA permission to secretly train Cuban exiles for an invasion of Cuba. The CIA and the exiles hoped it would trigger a mass uprising that would overthrow Castro. Kennedy learned of the plan only nine days after his election. Although he had doubts, he approved it. On the night of April 17, 1961, some 1,300 to 1,500 Cuban exiles supported by the U.S. military landed on the island’s southern coast at Bahia de Cochinos, the Bay of Pigs. Nothing went as planned. An air strike had failed to knock out the Cuban air force, although the CIA reported that it had succeeded. A small advance group sent to distract Castro’s forces never reached shore. When the main unit landed, it lacked American air support as it faced 25,000 Cuban troops backed up by Soviet tanks and jets. Some of the invading exiles were killed, others imprisoned.

The Cuban media sensationalized the defeat of “North American mercenaries.” One United States commentator observed that Americans “look like fools to our friends, rascals to our enemies, and incompetents to the rest.” The disaster left Kennedy embarrassed. Publicly, he accepted blame for the fiasco. Privately, he asked, “How could that crowd at the CIA and the Pentagon be this wrong.”

Photo: Fidel Castro holds a
smiling girl while a crowd looks on.

Cartoon: Kennedy smokes a Cuban cigar that explodes.

(top) Castro celebrates after gaining power in Cuba. (above) The Bay of Pigs mission was said to have blown up in Kennedy’s face.

Kennedy negotiated with Castro for the release of surviving commandos and paid a ransom of $53 million in food and medical supplies. In a speech in Miami, he promised exiles that they would one day return to a “free Havana.” Although Kennedy warned that he would resist further Communist expansion in the Western Hemisphere, Castro defiantly welcomed further Soviet aid.

The Cuban Missile Crisis

Castro had a powerful ally in Moscow: Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, who promised to defend Cuba with Soviet arms. During the summer of 1962, the flow to Cuba of Soviet weapons—including nuclear missiles—increased greatly. President Kennedy responded with a warning that America would not tolerate offensive nuclear weapons in Cuba. Then, on October 14, photographs taken by American planes revealed Soviet missile bases in Cuba—and some contained missiles ready to launch. They could reach U.S. cities in minutes.

On October 22, Kennedy informed an anxious nation of the existence of Soviet missile sites in Cuba and of his plans to remove them. He made it clear that any missile attack from Cuba would trigger an all-out attack on the Soviet Union.

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Map: Cuban Missile Crisis,
October 1962.

DESCRIPTION:

A map shows the range of Cuban missiles and the time they would take to fly from Cuba to various U.S. cities.

To New York: 1,432 miles; less than 15 minutes.
To Washington DC: less than 15 minutes
To Chicago: less than 15 minutes
To Atlanta: less than 12 minutes
To Houston: less than 12 minutes.
To Denver: less than 17 minutes.

A timeline shows the events on five dates in October.

October 14: U.S. spy planes reveal nuclear missile sites in Cuba.
October 22: Kennedy tells nation of his intention to halt the missile buildup.
October 24: Kennedy implements a naval quarantine of Cuba, blocking SOviet ships from reaching the island. Below, a U.S. fighter plane flies over a Soviet freighter.
October 25: Soviet ships approaching Cuba come to a halt.
October 28: Khruschev announces plan to remove missiles from Cuba.

882 Key Players John F. Kennedy 1917–1963 The U.S. presidential seal adorns a photo of Kennedy reading into a microphone.

John F. “Jack” Kennedy grew up in a politically powerful family that helped make his dreams possible. His parents instilled in him the drive to accomplish great things.

During World War II he enlisted in the navy and was decorated for heroism. In 1946, he won his first seat in Congress from a Boston district where he had never lived. While a senator, he won a Pulitzer Prize for his book Profiles in Courage.

Although he radiated self-confidence, Kennedy suffered many ailments, including Addison’s disease—a debilitating condition that he treated with daily injections of cortisone. “At least one half of the days that he spent on this earth were days of intense physical pain,” recalled his brother Robert.

Nikita Khrushchev 1894–1971 Photo: Nikita Khruschev.

“No matter how humble a man’s beginnings,” boasted Nikita Khrushchev, “he achieves the stature of the office to which he is elected.” Khrushchev, the son of a miner, became a Communist Party organizer in the 1920s. Within four years of Stalin’s death in 1953, Khrushchev had consolidated his power in the Soviet Union.

During his regime, which ended in 1964, Khrushchev kept American nerves on edge with alternately conciliatory and aggressive behavior. During a 1959 trip to the United States, he met for friendly talks with President Eisenhower. The next year, in front of the UN General Assembly, he took off his shoe and angrily pounded it on a desk to protest the U-2 incident.

For the next six days, the world faced the terrifying possibility of nuclear war. In the Atlantic Ocean, Soviet ships—presumably carrying more missiles—headed toward Cuba, while the U.S. Navy prepared to quarantine Cuba and prevent the ships from coming within 500 miles of it. In Florida, 100,000 troops waited—the largest invasion force ever assembled in the United States. C. Douglas Dillon, Kennedy’s secretary of the treasury and a veteran of nuclear diplomacy, recalled those tension-filled days of October.

A PERSONAL VOICE

C. DOUGLAS DILLON

“The only time I felt a fear of nuclear war or a use of nuclear weapons was on the very first day, when we’d decided that we had to do whatever was necessary to get the missiles out. There was always some background fear of what would eventually happen, and I think this is what was expressed when people said they feared they would never see another Saturday.”
—quoted in On the Brink

The first break in the crisis occurred when the Soviet ships stopped suddenly to avoid a confrontation at sea. Secretary of State Dean Rusk said, “We are eyeball to eyeball, and the other fellow just blinked.” A few days later, Khrushchev offered to remove the missiles in return for an American pledge not to invade Cuba. The United States also secretly agreed to remove missiles from Turkey. The leaders agreed, and the crisis ended. “For a moment, the world had stood still,” Robert Kennedy wrote years later, “and now it was going around again.”

Kennedy and Khrushchev Take the Heat

The crisis severely damaged Khrushchev’s prestige in the Soviet Union and the world. Kennedy did not escape criticism either. Some people criticized Kennedy for practicing brinkmanship when private talks might have resolved the crisis without the threat of nuclear war. Others believed he had passed up an ideal chance to invade Cuba and oust Castro. (It was learned in the 1990s that the CIA had underestimated the numbers of Soviet troops and nuclear weapons on the island.)

The effects of the crisis lasted long after the missiles had been removed. Many Cuban exiles blamed the Democrats for “losing Cuba” (a charge that Kennedy had earlier leveled at the Republicans) and switched their allegiance to the GOP.

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Meanwhile, Castro closed Cuba’s doors to the exiles in November 1962 by banning all flights to and from Miami. Three years later, hundreds of thousands of people took advantage of an agreement that allowed Cubans to join relatives in the United States. By the time Castro sharply cut down on exit permits in 1973, the Cuban population in Miami had increased to about 300,000.

Crisis over Berlin

One goal that had guided Kennedy through the Cuban missile crisis was that of proving to Khruschev his determination to contain communism. All the while, Kennedy was thinking of their recent confrontation over Berlin, which had led to the construction of the Berlin Wall, a concrete wall topped with barbed wire that severed the city in two.

The Berlin Crisis

In 1961, Berlin was a city in great turmoil. In the 11 years since the Berlin Airlift, almost 3 million East Germans—20 percent of that country’s population—had fled into West Berlin because it was free from Communist rule. These refugees advertised the failure of East Germany’s Communist government. Their departure also dangerously weakened that country’s economy.

World Stage: The Berlin Wall, 1961

In 1961, Nikita Khrushchev, the Soviet premier, ordered the Berlin Wall built to stop the flow of refugees from East to West Berlin. Most were seeking freedom from Communist rule.

The wall isolated West Berlin from a hostile German Democratic Republic (GDR). Passing from East to West was almost impossible without the Communist government’s permission.

During the 28 years the wall was standing, approximately 5,000 people succeeded in fleeing. Almost 200 people died in the attempt; most were shot by the GDR border guards. In 1989, East Germany opened the Berlin Wall to cheering crowds. Today the rubbled concrete is a reminder of the Cold War tensions between East and West.

Photo: two guards patrol outside the Berlin Wall.

The “death strip” stretched like a barren moat around West Berlin, with patrols, floodlights, electric fences, and vehicle traps between the inner and outer walls. Walls and other barriers 10–15 feet high surrounded West Berlin. The length of the barriers around the city totaled about 110 miles. Guard dogs and machine guns disuaded most people from crossing over illegally, yet some still dared. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. Photo: an armed soldier stands by a mason, who trowels cement over bricks in the unfinished wall.

Photo: an armed soldier stands by a mason, who trowels cement over bricks in the unfinished wall.

The Berlin Wall was first made of brick and barbed wire, but was later erected in cement and steel. 884

“I want peace. But, if you want war, that is your problem.”
SOVIET PREMIER NIKITA KHRUSHCHEV

Kennedy's handwritten speech notes include phrases in German and Latin.

Reading from this note card during a speech in West Berlin, Kennedy proclaimed “Ich bin ein Berliner” (“I am a Berliner”).

Khrushchev realized that this problem had to be solved. At a summit meeting in Vienna, Austria, in June 1961, he threatened to sign a treaty with East Germany that would enable that country to close all the access roads to West Berlin. When Kennedy refused to give up U.S. access to West Berlin, Khrushchev furiously declared, “I want peace. But, if you want war, that is your problem.”

After returning home, Kennedy told the nation in a televised address that Berlin was “the great testing place of Western courage and will.” He pledged “[W]e cannot and will not permit the Communists to drive us out of Berlin.”

Kennedy’s determination and America’s superior nuclear striking power prevented Khrushchev from closing the air and land routes between West Berlin and West Germany. Instead, the Soviet premier surprised the world with a shocking decision. Just after midnight on August 13, 1961, East German troops began to unload concrete posts and rolls of barbed wire along the border. Within days, the Berlin Wall was erected, separating East Germany from West Germany.

The construction of the Berlin Wall ended the Berlin crisis but further aggravated Cold War tensions. The wall and its armed guards successfully reduced the flow of East German refugees to a tiny trickle, thus solving Khrushchev’s main problem. At the same time, however, the wall became an ugly symbol of Communist oppression.

Searching for Ways to Ease Tensions

Showdowns between Kennedy and Khrushchev made both leaders aware of the gravity of split-second decisions that separated Cold War peace from nuclear disaster. Kennedy, in particular, searched for ways to tone down his hard-line stance. In 1963, he announced that the two nations had established a hot line between the White House and the Kremlin. This dedicated phone enabled the leaders of the two countries to communicate at once should another crisis arise. Later that year, the United States and Soviet Union also agreed to a Limited Test Ban Treaty that barred nuclear testing in the atmosphere.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• John F. Kennedy

• flexible response

• Fidel Castro

• Berlin Wall

• hot line

• Limited Test Ban Treaty

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Using diagrams such as the one below, list two outcomes for each of these events: first Kennedy-Nixon debate, Bay of Pigs invasion, Cuban missile crisis, and construction of the Berlin Wall.

Diagram: two ovals labled Outcome are connected to an oval labled Event.

Which of these outcomes led directly to other events listed here or described in this section?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING DECISIONS

How well do you think President Kennedy handled the Cuban missile crisis? Justify your opinion with specific examples from the text. Think About:

• Kennedy’s decision to impose a naval “quarantine” of Cuba

• the nuclear showdown between the superpowers

• Kennedy’s decision not to invade Cuba

Cartoon: John Kennedy, dressed like a gunfighter, faces Castro, who rides a little donkey, with Khruschev riding behind him on a horse. Kennedy wears a white cowboy hat, while Khruschev's is black.

4. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

Examine the cartoon above of Kennedy (left) facing off with Khrushchev and Castro. What do you think the cartoonist was trying to convey?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

What kind of political statement was made by the United States’ support of West Berlin?

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Section 2: The New Frontier

One American’s Story

On May 5, 1961, American astronaut Alan Shepard climbed into Freedom 7, a tiny capsule on top of a huge rocket booster. The capsule left the earth’s atmosphere in a ball of fire and returned the same way, and Shepard became the first American to travel into space. Years later, he recalled his emotions when a naval crew fished him out of the Atlantic.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ALAN SHEPARD

“Until the moment I stepped out of the flight deck… I hadn’t realized the intensity of the emotions and feelings that so many people had for me, for the other astronauts, and for the whole manned space program.

…I was very close to tears as I thought, it’s no longer just our fight to get ‘out there.’ The struggle belongs to everyone in America.… From now on there was no turning back.”
—Moon Shot: The Inside Story of America’s Race to the Moon

The entire trip—which took only 15 minutes from liftoff to splashdown—reaffirmed the belief in American ingenuity. John F. Kennedy inspired many Americans with the same kind of belief.

Photo: a rocket takes off from a launching pad.

Photo: an astronaut in a spacesuit shakes hands with a man in a suit.

Astronaut Alan Shepard (inset) prepares to enter the space capsule for his Mercury flight.

The Promise of Progress

Kennedy set out to transform his broad vision of progress into what he called the New Frontier. “We stand today on the edge of a New Frontier,” Kennedy had announced upon accepting the nomination for president. He called on Americans to be “new pioneers” and explore “uncharted areas of science and space, … unconquered pockets of ignorance and prejudice, unanswered questions of poverty and surplus.”

Kennedy had difficulty turning his vision into reality, however. He offered Congress proposals to provide medical care for the aged, rebuild blighted urban areas, and aid education, but he couldn’t gather enough votes. Kennedy faced the same conservative coalition of Republicans and Southern Democrats that had

886 Economic Background: What is a Recession?

A recession is, in a general sense, a moderate slowdown of the economy marked by increased unemployment and reduced personal consumption. In 1961, the nation’s jobless rate climbed from just under 6 percent to nearly 7 percent. Personal consumption of several major items declined that year, as people worried about job security and spent less money.

Car sales, for example, dropped by more than $1 billion from the previous year, while fewer people took overseas vacations. Perhaps the surest sign that the country had entered a recession was the admission by government officials of how bleak things were. “We are in a full-fledged recession,” Labor Secretary Arthur Goldberg declared in February of 1961. (See recession on page R44 in the Economics Handbook.)

blocked Truman’s Fair Deal, and he showed little skill in pushing his domestic reform measures through Congress. Since Kennedy had been elected by the slimmest of margins, he lacked a popular mandate—a clear indication that voters approved of his plans. As a result, he often tried to play it safe politically. Nevertheless, Kennedy did persuade Congress to enact measures to boost the economy, build the national defense, provide international aid, and fund a massive space program.

Stimulating the Economy

One domestic problem the Kennedy team tackled was the economy. By 1960 America was in a recession. Unemployment hovered around 6 percent, one of the highest levels since World War II. During the campaign, Kennedy had criticized the Eisenhower administration for failing to stimulate growth. The American economy, he said, was lagging behind those of other Western democracies and the Soviet Union.

Kennedy’s advisers pushed for the use of deficit spending, which had been the basis for Roosevelt’s New Deal. They said that stimulating economic growth depended on increased government spending and lower taxes, even if it meant that the government spent more than it took in.

Accordingly, the proposals Kennedy sent to Congress in 1961 called for increased spending. The Department of Defense received a nearly 20 percent budget increase for new nuclear missiles, nuclear submarines, and an expansion of the armed services. Congress also approved a package that increased the minimum wage to $1.25 an hour, extended unemployment insurance, and provided assistance to cities with high unemployment.

Addressing Poverty Abroad

One of the first campaign promises Kennedy fulfilled was the creation of the Peace Corps, a program of volunteer assistance to the developing nations of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Critics in the United States called the program “Kennedy’s Kiddie Korps” because many volunteers were just out of college. Some foreign observers questioned whether Americans could understand other cultures.

Beside an image of a red, white and blue button labled Peace Corps, a photo shows a smiling youg woman carries a young child on her back.

A Peace Corps volunteer gives a ride to a Nigerian girl.

Despite these reservations, the Peace Corps became a huge success. People of all ages and backgrounds signed up to work as agricultural advisers, teachers, or health aides or to do whatever work the host country needed. By 1968, more than 35,000 volunteers had served in 60 nations around the world.

A second foreign aid program, the Alliance for Progress, offered economic and technical assistance to Latin American countries. Between 1961 and 1969, the United States invested almost

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$12 billion in Latin America, in part to deter these countries from picking up Fidel Castro’s revolutionary ideas. While the money brought some development to the region, it didn’t bring fundamental reforms.

Historical Spotlight: Johnson and Mission Control

President Kennedy appointed Vice President Johnson as chairman of the National Aeronautics and Space Council shortly after they assumed office in 1961. The chairman’s duties were vague, but Johnson spelled them out: “He is to advise the president of what this nation’s space policy ought to be.” And Johnson’s advice was to land a man on the moon.

A new home for the moon program’s Manned Spacecraft Center was created. Some NASA administrators had wanted to consolidate the center and the launch site in Florida. However, when Johnson’s friends at Humble Oil donated land to Rice University, which sold 600 acres to NASA and donated the rest, the debate was over. Houston became the center of the new space program.

Race to The Moon

On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri A. Gagarin became the first human in space. Kennedy saw this as a challenge and decided that America would surpass the Soviets by sending a man to the moon.

In less than a month the United States had duplicated the Soviet feat. Later that year, a communications satellite called Telstar relayed live television pictures across the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to Europe. Meanwhile, America’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) had begun to construct new launch facilities at Cape Canaveral, Florida, and a mission control center in Houston, Texas. America’s pride and prestige were restored. Speaking before a crowd at Houston’s Rice University, Kennedy expressed the spirit of “the space race.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY

“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.”
—Address on the Nation’s Space Effort, September 12, 1962

Seven years later, on July 20, 1969, the U.S. would achieve its goal. An excited nation watched with bated breath as U.S. astronaut Neil Armstrong took his first steps on the moon.

As a result of the space program, universities expanded their science programs. The huge federal funding for research and development gave rise to new industries and new technologies, many of which could be used in business and industry and also in new consumer goods. Space- and defense-related industries sprang up in the Southern and Western states, which grew rapidly.

U.S. Space Race Expenditures, 1959–1975 A graph traces spending,1959 to 1975.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows spending in billions of dollars along the left side, with 1959 to 1975 along the bottom in two-year increments.

1959: less than one billion dollars.
1961: almost two billion dallars.
1963: 5.5 billion dollars.
1965: 7 billion dollars.
1967: 6.7 billion dollars.
1969: 6 billion dollars.
1971: 4.7 billion dollars.
1973: 4.9 billion dollars.
1975: 5 billion dollars.

Government Expenditures for Space Activities A pie chart shows spending by state.

DESCRIPTION:

The chart shows spending in billions of dollars per state.

California: 39%, $15.4 billion
Texas: 6%, $2.5 billion
Florida: 7%, $2.8 billion
New York: 9%, $3.4 billion
Other states: 39%, $15.6 billion

Geographical Distribution of NASA Contracts (1961–1975) Source: NASA 888

Addressing Domestic Problems

While progress was being made on the new frontiers of space exploration and international aid, many Americans suffered at home. In 1962, the problem of poverty in America was brought to national attention in Michael Harrington’s book The Other America. Harrington profiled the 50 million people in America who scraped by each year on less than $1,000 per person. The number of poor shocked many Americans.

While Harrington awakened the nation to the nightmare of poverty, the fight against segregation took hold. Throughout the South, demonstrators raised their voices in what would become some of the most controversial civil rights battles of the 1960s. (See Chapter 29.) Kennedy had not pushed aggressively for legislation on the issues of poverty and civil rights, although he effected changes by executive action. However, now he felt that it was time to live up to a campaign promise.

In 1963, Kennedy began to focus more closely on the issues at home. He called for a “national assault on the causes of poverty.” He also ordered Robert Kennedy’s Justice Department to investigate racial injustices in the South. Finally, he presented Congress with a sweeping civil rights bill and a proposal to cut taxes by over $10 billion.

Tragedy in Dallas

In the fall of 1963, public opinion polls showed that Kennedy was losing popularity because of his advocacy of civil rights. Yet most still supported their beloved president. No one could foresee the terrible national tragedy just ahead.

Four Days in November

On the sunny morning of November 22, 1963, Air Force One, the presidential aircraft, landed in Dallas, Texas. President and Mrs. Kennedy had come to Texas to mend political fences with members of the state’s Democratic Party. Kennedy had expected a cool reception from the conservative state, but he basked instead in warm waves of applause from crowds that lined the streets of downtown Dallas.

Jacqueline and her husband sat in the back seat of an open-air limousine. In front of them sat Texas Governor John Connally and his wife, Nellie. As the car approached a state building known as the Texas School Book Depository, Nellie Connally turned to Kennedy and said, “You can’t say that Dallas isn’t friendly to you today.” A few seconds later, rifle shots rang out, and Kennedy was shot in the head. His car raced to a nearby hospital, where doctors frantically tried to revive him, but it was too late. President Kennedy was dead.

As the tragic news spread through America’s schools, offices, and homes, people reacted with disbelief. Questions were on everyone’s lips: Who had killed the president, and why? What would happen next?

Photo: John Kennedy's family attends the funeral. Three-year-old John Jr. salutes.

John Kennedy, Jr., salutes his father’s casket as it is prepared for the trip to Arlington National Cemetery. His uncles, Edward Kennedy and Attorney General Robert Kennedy; his mother; and his sister look on. 889

During the next four days, television became “the window of the world.” A photograph of a somber Lyndon Johnson taking the oath of office aboard the presidential airplane was broadcast. Soon, audiences watched as Dallas police charged Lee Harvey Oswald with the murder. His palm print had been found on the rifle used to kill John F. Kennedy.

Now & Then: Kennedy’s Assassination

From the beginning, people have questioned the Warren Commission report. Amateur investigators have led to increasing public pressure on the government to tell all it knows about the assassination.

In response, Congress passed the JFK Records Act in 1992, which created a panel to review government and private files and decide which should be part of the public record.

Since the law was enacted, newly declassified information has added some weight to a body of evidence that JFK was shot from the front (the Warren Commission had concluded that a single bullet struck the president from behind) and that Oswald, thus, could not have acted alone. While such evidence challenges the Warren Commission’s report, no information has yet surfaced that conclusively disproves its findings.

The 24-year-old ex-Marine had a suspicious past. After receiving a dishonorable discharge, Oswald had briefly lived in the Soviet Union, and he supported Castro. On Sunday, November 24, as millions watched live television coverage of Oswald being transferred between jails, a nightclub owner named Jack Ruby broke through the crowd and shot and killed Oswald.

The next day, all work stopped for Kennedy’s funeral as America mourned its fallen leader. The assassination and televised funeral became a historic event. Americans who were alive then can still recall what they were doing when they first heard about the shooting of their president.

Unanswered Questions

The bizarre chain of events made some people wonder if Oswald was part of a conspiracy. In 1963, the Warren Commission investigated and concluded that Oswald had shot the president while acting on his own. Later, in 1979, a reinvestigation concluded that Oswald was part of a conspiracy. Investigators also said that two persons may have fired at the president. Numerous other people have made investigations. Their explanations have ranged from a plot by anti-Castro Cubans, to a Communist-sponsored attack, to a conspiracy by the CIA.

What Americans did learn from the Kennedy assassination was that their system of government is remarkably sturdy. A crisis that would have crippled a dictatorship did not prevent a smooth transition to the presidency of Lyndon Johnson. In a speech to Congress, Johnson expressed his hope that “from the brutal loss of our leader we will derive not weakness but strength.” Not long after, Johnson drove through Congress the most ambitious domestic legislative package since the New Deal.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• New Frontier

• mandate

• Peace Corps

• Alliance for Progress

• Warren Commission

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the web shown and fill it in with programs of the New Frontier.

A web chart shows the words New Frontier surrounded by five blank ovals.

Which do you think was most successful? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Why do you think Congress was so enthusiastic about allocating funds for the space program but rejected spending in education, social services, and other pressing needs?

4. MAKING INFERENCES

Why do you think Kennedy lost popularity for supporting civil rights?

5. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

Do you think President Kennedy was a successful leader? Explain your viewpoint. Think About:

• the reasons for his popularity

• the goals he expressed

• his foreign policy

• his legislative record

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Geography Spotlight: The Movement of Migrant Workers

The nation’s 3 million farm workers are responsible for harvesting much of the fruit and vegetables that families eat each day. Most field workers on United States farms remain in one place most of the year. Others are migrant workers, who move with their entire family from one region to the next as the growing seasons change. Nationally, migrant workers make up around 10 percent of hired farm workers, depending on the season and other factors.

As the map shows, there were three major streams of migrant worker movements in the 1960s: the Pacific Coast, the Midwest, and the Atlantic Coast. While these paths may have changed slightly since then, the movement of migrant workers into nearly every region of the nation continues today.

Photo: farm workers pick crops in a field.

THE PACIFIC COAST The Pacific Coast region’s moderate climate allows for year-round harvesting. Most of California’s migrant farm workers work on large fruit farms for much of the year. More than 62,000 workers make their way up to Washington each year to pick cherries, apples, and other crops. Photo: workers pick strawberries.

THE MIDWEST Workers along the Midwest and East Coast streams, where crops are smaller, must keep moving in order to find work. These workers picking strawberries in Michigan will soon move on. For example, one family may travel to Ohio for the tomato harvest and then return to Michigan to pick apples before heading back to Texas for the winter months. 891 A map shows paths of migrant workers in the U.S.

A map shows paths of migrant workers in the U.S.

DESCRIPTION:

The Atlantic Coast paths start in Southern Florida and run up the East Coast to New England and New York, with a branch splitting off in Georgia and running North to Ohio.
The Midwest paths start in Texas on the Gulf of Mexico, and spread North to the Upper midwest and the Rocky Mountain region. One branch splits off and runs east to Florida, while another runs west through New Mexico and Arizona to Southern California.
The Pacific Coast path runs north from California's border with Mexico through Oreon and Washington, with a small path leading east to Arizona into New Mexico.
Migrant base areas are shown in Mexico on the California border, and in sourthern Texas. Year-round work is found in parts of Florida, in Central California, and in southern Texas on the Gulf of Mexico.

The map above shows the three major streams of migrant worker movements in the 1960s. Photo: workers pick onions.

THE ATLANTIC COAST While some workers along the Atlantic Coast stream remain in Florida, others travel as far north as New Hampshire and New York, like the workers shown here harvesting onions. There, they work from March through September. Due to the winters, migrant workers in most of the Midwest and Atlantic regions can find work for only six months out of the year. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Analyzing Patterns Retrace the movement of migrant workers in the three regions. Why do you think migrant workers have to keep moving?

Connect to Today

2. Creating a Database Pose a historical question about the relationship between crops and planting seasons. For example, what types of crops are harvested in Michigan during the fall? Then research and create a database that answers this and other such questions.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R33 892

Section 3: The Great Society

One American’s Story

In 1966, family finances forced Larry Alfred to drop out of high school in Mobile, Alabama. He turned to the Job Corps, a federal program that trained young people from poor backgrounds. He learned to operate construction equipment, but his dream was to help people. On the advice of his Job Corps counselor, he joined VISTA—Volunteers in Service to America—often called the “domestic Peace Corps.”

Both the Job Corps and VISTA sprang into being in 1964, when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Economic Opportunity Act. This law was the main offensive of Johnson’s “war on poverty” and a cornerstone of the Great Society.

VISTA assigned Alfred to work with a community of poor farm laborers in Robstown, Texas, near the Mexican border. There he found a number of children with mental and physical disabilities who had no special assistance, education, or training. So he established the Robstown Association for Retarded People, started a parents education program, sought state funds, and created a rehabilitation center. At age 20, Larry Alfred was a high school dropout, Job Corps graduate, VISTA volunteer, and in Robstown, an authority on people with disabilities. Alfred embodied Johnson’s Great Society in two ways: its programs helped him turn his life around, and he made a difference in people’s lives.

VISTA volunteers worked in a variety of capacities. This woman is teaching art to young pupils.

LBJ’s Path to Power

By the time Lyndon Baines Johnson, or LBJ, as he was called, succeeded to the presidency, his ambition and drive had become legendary. In explaining his frenetic energy, Johnson once remarked, “That’s the way I’ve been all my life. My daddy used to wake me up at dawn and shake my leg and say, ‘Lyndon, every boy in town’s got an hour’s head start on you.’”

From the Texas Hills to Capitol Hill

A fourth-generation Texan, Johnson grew up in the dry Texas hill country of Blanco County. The Johnsons never knew great wealth, but they also never missed a meal.

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LBJ entered politics in 1937 when he won a special election to fill a vacant seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Johnson styled himself as a “New Dealer” and spokesperson for the small ranchers and struggling farmers of his district. He caught the eye of President Franklin Roosevelt, who took Johnson under his wing. Roosevelt helped him secure key committee assignments in Congress and steer much-needed electrification and water projects to his Texas district. Johnson, in turn, idolized FDR and imitated his leadership style.

Key Player: Lyndon B. Johnson 1908–1973 A photo of Lyndon B. Johnson is adorned with the presidential seal of the U.S.

LBJ received his teaching degree from Southwest Texas State Teachers College in 1930. To finance his own education, Johnson took a year off from college to work at a Mexican-American school in Cotulla, Texas. He later taught public speaking and debate at the Sam Houston High School in Houston. At age 26, he became the state director of the National Youth Administration, a New Deal agency.

As president, Johnson pushed hard for the passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. In 1965, he signed the act at the one-room schoolhouse near Stonewall, Texas, where his own education had begun. Johnson later wrote,

“My education had begun with what I learned in that schoolroom. Now what I had learned and experienced since that time had brought me back to fulfill a dream.”

Once in the House, Johnson eagerly eyed a seat in the Senate. In 1948, after an exhausting, bitterly fought campaign, he won the Democratic primary election for the Senate by a margin of only 87 votes out of 988,000.

A Master Politician

Johnson proved himself a master of party politics and behind-the-scenes maneuvering, and he rose to the position of Senate majority leader in 1955. People called his legendary ability to persuade senators to support his bills the “LBJ treatment.” As a reporter for the Saturday Evening Post explained, Johnson also used this treatment to win over reporters.

A PERSONAL VOICE

STEWART ALSOP

“The Majority Leader [Johnson] was, it seemed, in a relaxed, friendly, reminiscent mood. But by gradual stages this mood gave way to something rather like a human hurricane. Johnson was up, striding about his office, talking without pause, occasionally leaning over, his nose almost touching the reporter’s, to shake the reporter’s shoulder or grab his knee.… Appeals were made, to the Almighty, to the shades of the departed great, to the reporter’s finer instincts and better nature, while the reporter, unable to get a word in edgewise, sat collapsed upon a leather sofa, eyes glazed, mouth half open.”
—“The New President,” Saturday Evening Post, December 14, 1963

Johnson’s deft handling of Congress led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957, a voting rights measure that was the first civil rights legislation since Reconstruction. Johnson’s knack for achieving legislative results had captured John F. Kennedy’s attention, too, during Kennedy’s run for the White House. To Kennedy, Johnson’s congressional connections and his Southern Protestant background compensated for his own drawbacks as a candidate, so he asked Johnson to be his running mate. Johnson’s presence on the ticket helped Kennedy win key states in the South, especially Texas, which went Democratic by 47,000 votes.

Johnson’s Domestic Agenda

In the wake of Kennedy’s assassination, President Johnson addressed a joint session of Congress. It was the fifth day of his administration. “All I have I would have given gladly not to be standing here today,” he began. Kennedy had inspired Americans to begin to solve national and world problems. Johnson urged Congress to pass the civil rights and tax-cut bills that Kennedy had sent to Capitol Hill.

894 World Stage: The War in Vietnam Map: the nations of southeast Asia: Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and China surround North Vietnam with its capital Hanoi, and South Vietnam with its capital Saigon.

Map: the nations of southeast Asia: Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and China surround North Vietnam with its capital Hanoi, and South Vietnam with its capital Saigon.

As LBJ pushed through his domestic programs, the U.S. grew more interested in halting the spread of communism around the world. In Vietnam, anti-Communist nationalists controlled South Vietnam while Communist leader Ho Chi Minh had taken over North Vietnam. The Geneva Accords had temporarily provided peace, dividing Vietnam along the 17th parallel into two distinct political regions. Despite this treaty, the North was supporting Communist rebels who were trying to take over the South.

Though Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy had provided economic and military aid to South Vietnam, soon the U.S. would be directly involved in fighting the war.

In February 1964 Congress passed a tax reduction of over $10 billion into law. As the Democrats had hoped, the tax cut spurred economic growth. People spent more, which meant profits for businesses, which increased tax revenues and lowered the federal budget deficit from $6 billion in 1964 to $4 billion in 1966.

Then in July, Johnson pushed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 through Congress, persuading Southern senators to stop blocking its passage. It prohibited discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, and sex and granted the federal government new powers to enforce its provisions.

The War on Poverty

Following these successes, LBJ pressed on with his own agenda—to alleviate poverty. Early in 1964, he had declared “unconditional war on poverty in America” and proposed sweeping legislation designed to help Americans “on the outskirts of hope.”

In August 1964, Congress enacted the Economic Opportunity Act (EOA), approving nearly $1 billion for youth programs, antipoverty measures, small-business loans, and job training. The EOA legislation created:

• the Job Corps Youth Training Program

• VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America)

• Project Head Start, an education program for underprivileged preschoolers

• the Community Action Program, which encouraged poor people to participate in public-works programs.

The 1964 Election

In 1964, the Republicans nominated conservative senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona to oppose Johnson. Goldwater believed the federal government had no business trying to right social and economic wrongs such as poverty, discrimination, and lack of opportunity. He attacked such long-established federal programs as Social Security, which he wanted to make voluntary, and the Tennessee Valley Authority, which he wanted to sell.

In 1964, most American people were in tune with Johnson—they believed that government could and should help solve the nation’s problems. Moreover, Goldwater had frightened many Americans by suggesting that he might use nuclear weapons on Cuba and North Vietnam. Johnson’s campaign capitalized on this fear. It produced a chilling television commercial in which a picture of a little girl counting the petals on a daisy dissolved into a mushroom cloud created by an atomic bomb. Where Goldwater advocated intervention in Vietnam, Johnson assured the American people that sending U.S. troops there “would offer no solution at all to the real problem of Vietnam.”

LBJ won the election by a landslide, winning 61 percent of the popular vote and 486 electoral votes, while Senator Goldwater won only 52. The Democrats also increased their majority in Congress. For the first time since 1938, a Democratic president did not need the votes of conservative Southern Democrats in order to get laws passed. Now Johnson could launch his reform program in earnest.

A campaign button: the words I Used to be a Republican above an image of an elephant carrying a suitcase labled Vote LBJ.

Campaign buttons like this one capitalized on the nation’s growing liberal democratic sentiments. 895 photo: teachers and young children sit on a classroom floor holding books.

photo: teachers and young children sit on a classroom floor holding books.

These preschoolers in a Head Start classroom are among the millions of Americans whose daily lives have been affected by Great Society programs.

Building the Great Society

In May 1964, Johnson had summed up his vision for America in a phrase: the Great Society. In a speech at the University of Michigan, Johnson outlined a legislative program that would end poverty and racial injustice. But, he told an enthusiastic crowd, that was “just the beginning.” Johnson envisioned a legislative program that would create not only a higher standard of living and equal opportunity, but also promote a richer quality of life for all.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LYNDON B. JOHNSON

“The Great Society is a place where every child can find knowledge to enrich his mind and to enlarge his talents. It is a place where leisure is a welcome chance to build and reflect, not a feared cause of boredom and restlessness. It is a place where the city of man serves not only the needs of the body and the demands of commerce but the desire for beauty and the hunger for community. It is a place where man can renew contact with nature. It is a place which honors creation for its own sake and for what it adds to the understanding of the race.”
—“The Great Society,” May 22, 1964

Like his idol FDR, LBJ wanted to change America. By the time Johnson left the White House in 1969, Congress had passed 206 of his measures. The president personally led the battle to get most of them passed.

Education

During 1965 and 1966, the LBJ administration introduced a flurry of bills to Congress. Johnson considered education “the key which can unlock the door to the Great Society.” The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 provided more than $1 billion in federal aid to help public and parochial schools purchase textbooks and new library materials. This was one of the earliest federal aid packages for education in the nation’s history.

896 Great Society Programs, 1964–1967 Poverty

1964 Tax Reduction Act cut corporate and individual taxes to stimulate growth.

1964 Economic Opportunity Act created Job Corps, VISTA, Project Head Start, and other programs to fight the “war on poverty.”

1965 Medicare Act established Medicare and Medicaid programs.

1965 Appalachian Regional Development Act targeted aid for highways, health centers, and resource development in that economically depressed area.

Cities

1965 Omnibus Housing Act provided money for low-income housing.

1965 Department of Housing and Urban Development was formed to administer federal housing programs.

1966 Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Area Redevelopment Act funded slum rebuilding, mass transit, and other improvements for selected “model cities.”

Education

1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act directed money to schools for textbooks, library materials, and special education.

1965 Higher Education Act funded scholarships and low-interest loans for college students.

1965 National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities was created to financially assist painters, musicians, actors, and other artists.

1967 Corporation for Public Broadcasting was formed to fund educational TV and radio broadcasting.

Discrimination

1964 Civil Rights Act outlawed discrimination in public accommodations, housing, and jobs; increased federal power to prosecute civil rights abuses.

1964 Twenty-Fourth Amendment abolished the poll tax in federal elections.

1965 Voting Rights Act ended the practice of requiring voters to pass literacy tests and permitted the federal government to monitor voter registration.

1965 Immigration Act ended national-origins quotas established in 1924.

Environment

1965 Wilderness Preservation Act set aside over 9 million acres for national forest lands.

1965 Water Quality Act required states to clean up their rivers.

1965 Clean Air Act Amendment directed the federal government to establish emission standards for new motor vehicles.

1967 Air Quality Act set federal air pollution guidelines and extended federal enforcement power.

Consumer Advocacy

1966 Truth in Packaging Act set standards for labeling consumer products.

1966 National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act set federal safety standards for the auto and tire industries.

1966 Highway Safety Act required states to set up highway safety programs.

1966 Department of Transportation was created to deal with national air, rail, and highway transportation.

Healthcare

LBJ and Congress changed Social Security by establishing Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare provided hospital insurance and low-cost medical insurance for almost every American age 65 or older. Medicaid extended health insurance to welfare recipients.

Housing

Congress also made several important decisions that shifted the nation’s political power from rural to urban areas. These decisions included appropriating money to build some 240,000 units of low-rent public housing and help low- and moderate-income families pay for better private housing; establishing the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); and appointing Robert Weaver, the first African-American cabinet member in American history, as Secretary of HUD.

897

Immigration

The Great Society also brought profound changes to the nation’s immigration laws. The Immigration Act of 1924 and the National Origins Act of 1924 had established immigration quotas that discriminated strongly against people from outside Western Europe. The Act set a quota of about 150,000 people annually. It discriminated against southern and eastern Europeans and barred Asians completely. The Immigration Act of 1965 opened the door for many non-European immigrants to settle in the United States by ending quotas based on nationality.

Now & Then: Medicare on The Line

When President Johnson signed the Medicare bill in 1965, only half of the nation’s elderly had health insurance. Today, thanks largely to Medicare, nearly all persons 65 years or older are eligible.

In 2006, federal spending on Medicare was $374 billion. Experts have debated whether Medicare can be sustained as people live longer, health care costs increase, and the baby boomer generation approaches retirement age. Though most Americans are not in favor of cut-backs to Medicare, the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 reduced federal spending on Medicare from 1998 through 2002 by $112 billion. In 2006, a new Medicare prescription drug coverage began.

The Environment

In 1962, Silent Spring, a book by Rachel Carson, had exposed a hidden danger: the effects of pesticides on the environment. Carson’s book and the public’s outcry resulted in the Water Quality Act of 1965, which required states to clean up rivers. Johnson also ordered the government to search out the worst chemical polluters. “There is no excuse … for chemical companies and oil refineries using our major rivers as pipelines for toxic wastes.” Such words and actions helped trigger the environmental movement in the United States. (See Chapter 32.)

Consumer Protection

Consumer advocates also made headway. They convinced Congress to pass major safety laws, including a truth-in-packaging law that set standards for labeling consumer goods. Ralph Nader, a young lawyer, wrote a book, Unsafe at Any Speed, that sharply criticized the U.S. automobile industry for ignoring safety concerns. His testimony helped persuade Congress to establish safety standards for automobiles and tires. Precautions extended to food, too. Congress passed the Wholesome Meat Act of 1967. “Americans can feel a little safer now in their homes, on the road, at the supermarket, and in the department store,” said Johnson.

Reforms of the Warren Court

The wave of liberal reform that characterized the Great Society also swept through the Supreme Court of the 1960s. Beginning with the 1954 landmark decision Brown v. Board of Education, which ruled school segregation unconstitutional, the Court under Chief Justice Earl Warren took an activist stance on the leading issues of the day.

Several major court decisions in the 1960s affected American society. The Warren Court banned prayer in public schools and declared state-required loyalty oaths unconstitutional. It limited the power of communities to censor books and films and said that free speech included the wearing of black armbands to school by antiwar students. Furthermore, the Court brought about change in federal and state reapportionment and the criminal justice system.

Congressional Reapportionment

In a key series of decisions, the Warren Court addressed the issue of reapportionment, or the way in which states redraw election districts based on the changing number of people in them. By 1960, about 80 percent of Americans lived in cities and suburbs. However, many states had failed to change their congressional districts to reflect this development; instead, rural districts might have fewer than 200,000 people, while some urban districts had more than 600,000. Thus the voters in rural areas had more representation—and also more power—than those in urban areas.

Chief Justice Earl Warren 898

Baker v. Carr (1962) was the first of several decisions that established the principle of “one person, one vote.” The Court asserted that the federal courts had the right to tell states to reapportion—redivide—their districts for more equal representation. In later decisions, the Court ruled that congressional district boundaries should be redrawn so that districts would be equal in population, and in Reynolds v. Sims (1964), it extended the principle of “one person, one vote” to state legislative districts. (See Reynolds v. Sims, page 980.) These decisions led to a shift of political power throughout the nation from rural to urban areas.

Rights of the Accused

Other Warren Court decisions greatly expanded the rights of people accused of crimes. In Mapp v. Ohio (1961), the Court ruled that evidence seized illegally could not be used in state courts. This is called the exclusionary rule. In Gideon v. Wainwright (1963), the justices required criminal courts to provide free legal counsel to those who could not afford it. In Escobedo v. Illinois (1964), the justices ruled that an accused person has a right to have a lawyer present during police questioning. In 1966, the Court went one step further in Miranda v. Arizona, where it ruled that all suspects must be read their rights before questioning. (See Miranda v. Arizona, page 900.)

These rulings greatly divided public opinion. Liberals praised the decisions, arguing that they placed necessary limits on police power and protected the right of all citizens to a fair trial. Conservatives, however, bitterly criticized the Court. They claimed that Mapp and Miranda benefited criminal suspects and severely limited the power of the police to investigate crimes. During the late 1960s and 1970s, Republican candidates for office seized on the “crime issue,” portraying liberals and Democrats as being soft on crime and citing the decisions of the Warren Court as major obstacles to fighting crime.

Point

“The Great Society succeeded in prompting far-reaching social change.”

Defenders of the Great Society contend that it bettered the lives of millions of Americans. Historian John Morton Blum notes, “The Great Society initiated policies that by 1985 had had profound consequences: Blacks now voted at about the same rate as whites, and nearly 6,000 blacks held public offices; almost every elderly citizen had medical insurance, and the aged were no poorer than Americans as a whole; a large majority of small children attended preschool programs.”

Attorney Margaret Burnham argues that the civil rights gains alone justify the Great Society: “For tens of thousands of human beings … giving promise of a better life was significant.… What the Great Society affirmed was the responsibility of the federal government to take measures necessary to bring into the social and economic mainstream any segment of the people [who had been] historically excluded.”

Counterpoint

“Failures of the Great Society prove that government-sponsored programs do not work.”

The major attack on the Great Society is that it created “big government”: an oversized bureaucracy, too many regulations, waste and fraud, and rising budget deficits. As journalist David Alpern writes, this comes from the notion that government could solve all the nation’s problems: “The Great Society created unwieldy new mechanisms like the Office of Economic Opportunity and began ‘throwing dollars at problems.…’ Spawned in the process were vast new constituencies of government bureaucrats and beneficiaries whose political clout made it difficult to kill programs off.”

Conservatives say the Great Society’s social welfare programs created a culture of dependency. Economist Paul Craig Roberts argues that “The Great Society … reflected our lack of confidence in the institutions of a free society. We came to the view that it is government spending and not business innovation that creates jobs and that it is society’s fault if anyone is poor.”

899

Impact of the Great Society

The Great Society and the Warren Court changed the United States. People disagree on whether these changes left the nation better or worse, but most agree on one point: no president in the post–World War II era extended the power and reach of the federal government more than Lyndon Johnson. The optimism of the Johnson presidency fueled an activist era in all three branches of government, for at least the first few years.

The “war on poverty” did help. The number of poor people fell from 21 percent of the population in 1962 to 11 percent in 1973. However, many of Johnson’s proposals, though well intended, were hastily conceived and proved difficult to accomplish.

Johnson’s massive tax cut spurred the economy. But funding the Great Society contributed to a growing budget deficit—a problem that continued for decades. Questions about government finances, as well as debates over the effectiveness of these programs and the role of the federal government, left a number of people disillusioned. A conservative backlash began to take shape as a new group of Republican leaders rose to power. In 1966, for example, a conservative Hollywood actor named Ronald Reagan swept to victory in the race for governor of California over the Democratic incumbent.

Thousands of miles away, the increase of Communist forces in Vietnam also began to overshadow the goals of the Great Society. The fear of communism was deeply rooted in the minds of Americans from the Cold War era. Four years after initiating the Great Society, Johnson, a peace candidate in 1964, would be labeled a “hawk”—a supporter of one of the most divisive wars in recent U.S. history.

Cartoon: Lyndon Johnson wears a bathrobe and says Sunrise-- All the foreign troublemakers goin' to sleep an' all the domestic ones wakin' up.

As this cartoon points out, President Johnson had much to deal with at home and abroad. This autographed copy was presented to President Johnson by the cartoonist.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Lyndon Baines Johnson

• Economic Opportunity Act

• Great Society

• Medicare and Medicaid

• Immigration Act of 1965

• Warren Court

• reapportionment

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

List four or more Great Society programs and Warren Court rulings.

Great Society Programs	Warren Court Rulings
1.	1.
2.	2.
3.	3.
4.	4.

Choose one item and describe its lasting effects.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

Explain how Lyndon Johnson’s personal and political experiences might have influenced his actions as president. Think About:

• his family’s background and education

• his relationship with Franklin Roosevelt

• his powers of persuasion

4. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

Look at the political cartoon above. What do you think the artist was trying to convey about the Johnson administration?

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Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

ORIGINS OF THE CASE In 1963, Ernesto Miranda was arrested at his home in Phoenix, Arizona, on charges of kidnapping and rape. After two hours of questioning by police, he signed a confession and was later convicted, largely based on the confession. Miranda appealed. He claimed that his confession was invalid because it was coerced and because the police never advised him of his right to an attorney or his right to avoid self-incrimination.

THE RULING The Court overturned Miranda’s conviction, holding that the police must inform criminal suspects of their legal rights at the time of arrest and may not interrogate suspects who invoke their rights.

Legal Reasoning

Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote the majority opinion in Miranda v. Arizona. He based his argument on the Fifth Amendment, which guarantees that an accused person cannot be forced “to be a witness against himself” or herself. Warren stressed that when suspects are interrogated in police custody, the situation is “inherently intimidating.” Such a situation, he argued, undermines any evidence it produces because “no statement obtained from the defendant [while in custody] can truly be the product of his free choice.”

For this reason, the Court majority found that Miranda’s confession could not be used as evidence. In the opinion, Chief Justice Warren responded to the argument that police officials might find this requirement difficult to meet.

“Not only does the use of the third degree [harassment or torture used to obtain a confession] involve a flagrant violation of law by the officers of the law, but it involves also the dangers of false confessions, and it tends to make police and prosecutors less zealous in the search for objective evidence.”

Photo: men in suits talk while a police officer stands by.

Ernesto Miranda (at right) converses with attorney John J. Flynn in February 1967. Legal Sources 901

Why it Mattered

Miranda was one of four key criminal justice cases decided by the Warren Court (see Related Cases). In each case, the decision reflected the chief justice’s strong belief that all persons deserve to be treated with respect by their government. In Miranda, the Court directed police to inform every suspect of his or her rights at the time of arrest and even gave the police detailed instructions about what to say.

The rights of accused people need to be protected in order to ensure that innocent people are not punished. These protections also ensure that federal, state, or local authorities will not harass people for political reasons—as often happened to civil rights activists in the South in the 1950s and 1960s, for example.

Critics of the Warren Court claimed that Miranda would lead to more crime because it would become more difficult to convict criminals. Police departments, however, adapted to the decision. They placed the list of suspects’ rights mentioned in Miranda on cards for police officers to read to suspects. The statement of these rights became known as the Miranda warning and quickly became familiar to anyone who watched a police show on television.

As for the defendant, Ernesto Miranda, he was retried and convicted on the basis of other evidence.

Historical Impact

The Miranda decision was highly controversial. Critics complained that the opinion would protect the rights of criminals at the expense of public safety.

Since Miranda, the Court has continued to try to strike a balance between public safety and the rights of the accused. Several cases in the 1970s and 1980s softened the Miranda ruling and gave law enforcement officers more power to gather evidence without informing suspects of their rights. Even so, conservatives still hoped to overturn the Miranda decision.

In 2000, however, the Supreme Court affirmed Miranda by a 7-to-2 majority in Dickerson v. United States. Writing for the majority, Chief Justice William Rehnquist argued, “There is no such justification here for overruling Miranda. Miranda has become embedded in routine police practice to the point where warnings have become part of our national culture.”

photo: a police officer reads from a card to a handcuffed suspect.

DESCRIPTION:

An inset shows the card. It reads Miranda Warning, custodial interrogation, juvenile and adult. The officer must determine whether the suspect understands the warning and waives his rights: "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used as evidence against you. You have the right to consult with an attorney before questioning and to have him with you during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you free of charge. Knowing these rights, do you want to talk to me without having a lawyer present? You may stop talking to me at any time and you may also demand a lawyer at any time."

(right) This card is carried by police officers in order to read suspects their rights. (far right) An officer reads a suspect his rights. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Drawing Conclusions Critics charged that Miranda incorrectly used the Fifth Amendment. The right to avoid self-incrimination, they said, should only apply to trials, not to police questioning. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R18. Connect to Today

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court to research laws and other court decisions related to Mapp and Miranda. Then, prepare a debate on whether courts should or should not set a guilty person free if the government broke the law in establishing that person’s guilt.

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Chapter 28: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the Kennedy and Johnson administrations.

1. John F. Kennedy

2. Fidel Castro

3. Berlin Wall

4. hot line

5. New Frontier

6. Peace Corps

7. Warren Commission

8. Great Society

9. Medicare and Medicaid

10. Warren Court

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Kennedy and the Cold War (pages 876–884)

1. Explain the factors that led to Kennedy’s victory over Nixon in the 1960 presidential campaign.

2. What were the most significant results of the Cuban missile crisis?

The New Frontier (pages 885–889)

3. What was Kennedy’s New Frontier? Why did he have trouble getting his New Frontier legislation through Congress?

4. What two international aid programs were launched during the Kennedy administration?

5. How did Kennedy’s assassination affect the public?

The Great Society (pages 892–899)

6. Describe ways that Great Society programs addressed the problem of poverty.

7. How did the courts increase the political power of people in urban areas and those accused of crimes?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Use a Venn diagram to show the major legislative programs of the New Frontier and the Great Society.

A diagram: two ovals intersect. One oval is labled New Frontier, and reads Passed Under JFK. The second oval is labled Great Society,and reads Passed under LBJ. Where the ovals intersect is labled Proposed under JFK, passed under LBJ.

2. MAKING GENERALIZATIONS John F. Kennedy said, “[M]y fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.” Do you agree with his view about the relationship between individuals and the country? Explain your opinion.

3. EVALUATING Do you think the Great Society helped people achieve their hopes of making life better for themselves and their children? Explain.

Visual Summary: The New Frontier and The Great Society JFK

photo: John F. Kennedy.

photo: a plane flies low over a ship.

• Peace Corps

• new “flexible response” strategy for Cold War

• Cuban missile crisis

• Bay of Pigs

• race to the moon

• boosted the economy by increasing government spending

• increased minimum wage to $1.25

• extended unemployment insurance

• provided assistance to cities with high unemployment supported civil rights

LBJ

photo: Lyndon Johnson.

photo: teachers and young children sit on a classroom floor holding books.

• Great Society reform legislation and federal assistance programs

• war on poverty

• increased protection of individual rights

• pushed civil rights bill through Congress

• EOA, VISTA, Project Head Start

• established Medicare and Medicaid

• changed immigration laws to open doors for many non-European immigrants

• furthered environmental movement

• cut taxes but increased budget deficit

903 Standardized Test Practice

Use the graph as well as your knowledge of United States history to answer question 3.

“It is our purpose to win the Cold War, not merely wage it in the hope of attaining a standoff.… [I]t is really astounding that our government has never stated its purpose to be that of complete victory over the tyrannical forces of international communism.… We need a declaration that our intention is victory.… And we need an official act, such as the resumption of nuclear testing, to show our own peoples and the other freedom-loving peoples of the world that we mean business.”

—Senator Barry Goldwater, address to the U.S. Senate, July 14, 1961

1. Based on the quotation, it is reasonable to infer that Senator Goldwater probably opposed—

A the space race.

B the Bay of Pigs invasion.

C the Tax Reduction Act.

D the Limited Test Ban Treaty.

2. Lyndon Johnson helped to bring about all of the following except—

F the Voting Rights Act.

G Head Start.

H Social Security.

J Medicare.

Use the quotation and your knowledge of United States history to answer questions 1 and 2.

A graph traces the percentage of people below the poverty level from 1960-1969.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the percentage of people below the poverty level from 1960-1969.

1960: 22%
1963: 19%
1966: 15%
1969: 12.5%

U.S. Poverty, 1960–1969

3. Which of the following is true about the graph?

A Johnson’s war on poverty failed.

B Poverty began to rise again after 1969.

C Poverty decreased throughout the 1960s.

D In 1960, the poverty level was about 12%.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on p. 875:

What are the qualities of effective leaders?

Write a job description for “U.S. President.” Include sections on “Responsibilities” and “Requirements” that list necessary traits and experience. Think About:

• Kennedy’s and Johnson’s (and Nixon’s) background and style

• the role of the media

• the challenges each leader faced and how he dealt with them

• the American public’s tastes and preferences

2. cd rom icon LEARNING FROM MEDIA Use the CD-ROM Electronic Library of Primary Sources and other resources for Chapter 28. Discuss the following questions in a small group.

• Consider key events such as the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Cuban missile crisis, and the Berlin crisis. What are the dangers of nuclear armament?

• What are the constitutional responsibilities of the federal government to defend and protect the people of the United States?

Cooperative Learning Activity It is June 1963, and President Kennedy announces his intention to negotiate with the Soviets to limit or halt nuclear testing. What is your reaction to this plan—do you approve or disapprove? Working with a partner, design and create a poster that supports or criticizes President Kennedy’s proposal.

904

Chapter 29: Civil Rights

photo: Martin Luther King Jr. leads a crowd of marchers. Some carry American flags. A title: Civil Rights.

Civil Rights activists lead the 1965 voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 904 and page 905 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1954 to 1970 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1954 to 1970 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1954-1970.

1954, USA: Brown v. Board of Education decision orders the desegregation of public schools.
1955, USA: Montgomery bus boycott begins.
1956, the World: Suez Canal crisis occurs in Egypt.
1956, USA: Dwight D. Eisenhower is reelected.
1957, USA: School desegregation crisis occurs in Little Rock, Arkansas.
1957, the World: African nation of Ghana wins independence.
1960, USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.
1959, the World: Fidel Castro assumes power in Cuba.
1962, the World: South African civil rights leader Nelson Mandela is imprisoned.
1963, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president upon John F. Kennedy's assassination.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1964, USA: Congress passes the Civil Rights Act.
1966, the World: Cultural Revolution begins in China.
1967, USA: Race riots occur in major U.S. cities.
1968, the World: Tet offensive begins in Vietnam.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1968, USA: Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated.
1969, USA: astronauts walk on the moon.
1970, the World: President Nasser of Egypt dies.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 904 and page 905 in the print version. 905 photo: Martin Luther King Jr. leads a crowd of marchers. Some carry American flags. A title: Civil Rights.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 904 and page 905 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1954 to 1970 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1954-1970.

1954, USA: Brown v. Board of Education decision orders the desegregation of public schools.
1955, USA: Montgomery bus boycott begins.
1956, the World: Suez Canal crisis occurs in Egypt.
1956, USA: Dwight D. Eisenhower is reelected.
1957, USA: School desegregation crisis occurs in Little Rock, Arkansas.
1957, the World: African nation of Ghana wins independence.
1960, USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.
1959, the World: Fidel Castro assumes power in Cuba.
1962, the World: South African civil rights leader Nelson Mandela is imprisoned.
1963, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president upon John F. Kennedy's assassination.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1964, USA: Congress passes the Civil Rights Act.
1966, the World: Cultural Revolution begins in China.
1967, USA: Race riots occur in major U.S. cities.
1968, the World: Tet offensive begins in Vietnam.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1968, USA: Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated.
1969, USA: astronauts walk on the moon.
1970, the World: President Nasser of Egypt dies.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 904 and page 905 in the print version. Interact with History

The year is 1960, and segregation divides the nation’s people. African Americans are denied access to jobs and housing and are refused service at restaurants and stores. But the voices of the oppressed rise up in the churches and in the streets, demanding civil rights for all Americans.

What rights are worth fighting for?

Examine the Issues

• Are all Americans entitled to the same civil rights?

• What are the risks of demanding rights?

• Why might some people fight against equal rights?

906

Section 1: Taking on Segregation

One American’s Story

Jo Ann Gibson Robinson drew back in self-defense as the white bus driver raised his hand as if to strike her. “Get up from there!” he shouted. Robinson, laden with Christmas packages, had forgotten the rules and sat down in the front of the bus, which was reserved for whites.

Humiliating incidents were not new to the African Americans who rode the segregated buses of Montgomery, Alabama, in the mid-1950s. The bus company required them to pay at the front and then exit and reboard at the rear. “I felt like a dog,” Robinson later said. A professor at the all-black Alabama State College, Robinson was also president of the Women’s Political Council, a group of professional African-American women determined to increase black political power.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JO ANN GIBSON ROBINSON

“We had members in every elementary, junior high, and senior high school, and in federal, state, and local jobs. Wherever there were more than ten blacks employed, we had a member there. We were prepared to the point that we knew that in a matter of hours, we could corral the whole city.”
—quoted in Voices of Freedom: An Oral History of the Civil Rights Movement

On December 1, 1955, police arrested an African-American woman for refusing to give up her seat on a bus. Robinson promptly sent out a call for all African Americans to boycott Montgomery buses.

The Segregation System

Segregated buses might never have rolled through the streets of Montgomery if the Civil Rights Act of 1875 had remained in force. This act outlawed segregation in public facilities by decreeing that “all persons … shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the accommodations … of inns, public conveyances on land or water, theaters, and other places of public amusement.” In 1883, however, the all-white Supreme Court declared the act unconstitutional.

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Plessy V. Ferguson

During the 1890s, a number of other court decisions and state laws severely limited African-American rights. In 1890, Louisiana passed a law requiring railroads to provide “equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races.” In the Plessy v. Ferguson case of 1896, the Supreme Court ruled that this “separate but equal” law did not violate the Fourteenth Amendment, which guarantees all Americans equal treatment under the law.

Armed with the Plessy decision, states throughout the nation, but especially in the South, passed what were known as Jim Crow laws, aimed at separating the races. These laws forbade marriage between blacks and whites and established many other restrictions on social and religious contact between the races. There were separate schools as well as separate streetcars, waiting rooms, railroad coaches, elevators, witness stands, and public restrooms. The facilities provided for blacks were always inferior to those for whites. Nearly every day, African Americans faced humiliating signs that read: “Colored Water”; “No Blacks Allowed”; “Whites Only!”

Segregation Continues Into the 20th Century

After the Civil War, some African Americans tried to escape Southern racism by moving north. This migration of Southern African Americans speeded up greatly during World War I, as many African-American sharecroppers abandoned farms for the promise of industrial jobs in Northern cities. However, they discovered racial prejudice and segregation there, too. Most could find housing only in all-black neighborhoods. Many white workers also resented the competition for jobs. This sometimes led to violence.

World Stage: Apartheid—Segregation in South Africa

In 1948, the white government of South Africa passed laws to ensure that whites would stay in control of the country. Those laws established a system called apartheid, which means “apartness.” The system divided South Africans into four segregated racial groups—whites, blacks, coloreds of mixed race, and Asians. It restricted what jobs nonwhites could hold, where they could live, and what rights they could exercise. Because of apartheid, the black African majority were denied the right to vote.

In response to worldwide criticism, the South African government gradually repealed the apartheid laws, starting in the late 1970s. In 1994, South Africa held its first all-race election and elected as president Nelson Mandela, a black anti-apartheid leader whom the white government had imprisoned for nearly 30 years.

U.S. School Segregation, 1952 a map shows the areas of segregation in the U.S.

DESCRIPTION:

A map shows segregation required in the southeastern U.S., from Texas to Missouri to Delaware. Segregation was permitted in four states: Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas and Wyoming. Segregation was prohibited in most of the northeast, the upper midwest and in Colorado, Washington and Idaho. There was no specific legislation or a local option in the rest of the west and in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.

photos: top photo shows a large brick building. The bottom photo shows a rundown wooden building with broken windows.

These photos of the public schools for white children (top) and for black children (above) in a Southern town in the 1930s show that separate facilities were often unequal in the segregation era. 908

A Developing Civil Rights Movement

In many ways, the events of World War II set the stage for the civil rights movement. First, the demand for soldiers in the early 1940s created a shortage of white male laborers. That labor shortage opened up new job opportunities for African Americans, Latinos, and white women.

Second, nearly one million African Americans served in the armed forces, which needed so many fighting men that they had to end their discriminatory policies. Such policies had previously kept African Americans from serving in fighting units. Many African-American soldiers returned from the war determined to fight for their own freedom now that they had helped defeat fascist regimes overseas.

Third, during the war, civil rights organizations actively campaigned for African-American voting rights and challenged Jim Crow laws. In response to protests, President Roosevelt issued a presidential directive prohibiting racial discrimination by federal agencies and all companies that were engaged in war work. The groundwork was laid for more organized campaigns to end segregation throughout the United States.

Key Player: Thurgood Marshall 1908–1993 A photo: Thurgood Marshall

Thurgood Marshall dedicated his life to fighting racism. His father had labored as a steward at an all-white country club, his mother as a teacher at an all-black school. Marshall himself was denied admission to the University of Maryland Law School because of his race.

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy nominated Marshall to the U.S. Court of Appeals. Lyndon Johnson picked Marshall for U.S. solicitor general in 1965 and two years later named him as the first African-American Supreme Court justice. In that role, he remained a strong advocate of civil rights until he retired in 1991.

After Marshall died in 1993, a copy of the Brown v. Board of Education decision was placed beside his casket. On it, an admirer wrote: “You shall always be remembered.”

Challenging Segregation in Court

The desegregation campaign was led largely by the NAACP, which had fought since 1909 to end segregation. One influential figure in this campaign was Charles Hamilton Houston, a brilliant Howard University law professor who also served as chief legal counsel for the NAACP from 1934 to 1938.

The Naacp Legal Strategy

In deciding the NAACP’s legal strategy, Houston focused on the inequality between the separate schools that many states provided. At that time, the nation spent ten times as much money educating a white child as an African-American child. Thus, Houston focused the organization’s limited resources on challenging the most glaring inequalities of segregated public education.

In 1938, he placed a team of his best law students under the direction of Thurgood Marshall. Over the next 23 years, Marshall and his NAACP lawyers would win 29 out of 32 cases argued before the Supreme Court.

Several of the cases became legal milestones, each chipping away at the segregation platform of Plessy v. Ferguson. In the 1946 case Morgan v. Virginia, the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional those state laws mandating segregated seating on interstate buses. In 1950, the high court ruled in Sweatt v. Painter that state law schools must admit black applicants, even if separate black schools exist.

Brown V. Board of Education

Marshall’s most stunning victory came on May 17, 1954, in the case known as Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. (See page 914). In this case, the father of eight-year-old Linda Brown had charged the board of education of Topeka, Kansas, with violating Linda’s rights by denying her admission to an all-white elementary school four blocks from her house. The nearest all-black elementary school was 21 blocks away.

In a landmark verdict, the Supreme Court unanimously struck down segregation in schooling as an unconstitutional violation of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection

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Clause. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote that, “[I]n the field of public education, the doctrine of separate but equal has no place.” The Brown decision was relevant for some 12 million schoolchildren in 21 states.

Reaction to the Brown Decision

Official reaction to the ruling was mixed. In Kansas and Oklahoma, state officials said they expected segregation to end with little trouble. In Texas, the governor warned that plans might “take years” to work out. He actively prevented desegregation by calling in the Texas Rangers. In Mississippi and Georgia, officials vowed total resistance. Governor Herman Talmadge of Georgia said “The people of Georgia will not comply with the decision of the court…. We’re going to do whatever is necessary in Georgia to keep white children in white schools and colored children in colored schools.”

Resistance to School Desegregation

Within a year, more than 500 school districts had desegregated their classrooms. In Baltimore, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C., black and white students sat side by side for the first time in history. However, in many areas where African Americans were a majority, whites resisted desegregation. In some places, the Ku Klux Klan reappeared and White Citizens Councils boycotted businesses that supported desegregation.

To speed things up, in 1955 the Supreme Court handed down a second ruling, known as Brown II, that ordered school desegregation implemented “with all deliberate speed.” Initially President Eisenhower refused to enforce compliance. “The fellow who tries to tell me that you can do these things by force is just plain nuts,” he said. Events in Little Rock, Arkansas, would soon force Eisenhower to go against his personal beliefs.

Crisis in Little Rock

In 1948, Arkansas had become the first Southern state to admit African Americans to state universities without being required by a court order. By the 1950s, some scout troops and labor unions in Arkansas had quietly ended their Jim Crow practices. Little Rock citizens had elected two men to the school board who publicly backed desegregation—and the school superintendent, Virgil Blossom, began planning for desegregation soon after Brown.

photo: An African American girl carries a notebook as she walks past screaming white people.

As white students jeer her and Arkansas National Guards look on, Elizabeth Eckford enters Little Rock Central High School in 1957.

However, Governor Orval Faubus publicly showed support for segregation. In September 1957, he ordered the National Guard to turn away the “Little Rock Nine”—nine African-American students who had volunteered to integrate Little Rock’s Central High School as the first step in Blossom’s plan. A federal judge ordered Faubus to let the students into school.

NAACP members called eight of the students and arranged to drive them to school. They could not reach the ninth student, Elizabeth Eckford, who did not have a phone, and she set out alone. Outside Central High, Eckford faced an abusive crowd. Terrified, the 15-year-old made it to a bus stop where two friendly whites stayed with her.

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The crisis in Little Rock forced Eisenhower to act. He placed the Arkansas National Guard under federal control and ordered a thousand paratroopers into Little Rock. The nation watched the televised coverage of the event. Under the watch of soldiers, the nine African-American teenagers attended class.

But even these soldiers could not protect the students from troublemakers who confronted them in stairways, in the halls, and in the cafeteria. Throughout the year African-American students were regularly harassed by other students. At the end of the year, Faubus shut down Central High rather than let integration continue.

On September 9, 1957, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the first civil rights law since Reconstruction. Shepherded by Senator Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas, the law gave the attorney general greater power over school desegregation. It also gave the federal government jurisdiction—or authority—over violations of African-American voting rights.

Key Player: Rosa Parks 1913–2005

Long before December 1955, Rosa Parks (shown being finger printed) had protested segregation through everyday acts. She refused to use drinking fountains labeled “Colored Only.” When possible, she shunned segregated elevators and climbed stairs instead.

Parks joined the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP in 1943 and became the organization’s secretary. A turning point came for her in the summer of 1955, when she attended a workshop designed to promote integration by giving the students the experience of interracial living.

Returning to Montgomery, Parks was even more determined to fight segregation. As it happened, her act of protest against injustice on the buses inspired a whole community to join her cause.

photo: A police officer takes the fingerprints of Rosa Parks.

The Montgomery Bus Boycott

The face-to-face confrontation at Central High School was not the only showdown over segregation in the mid-1950s. Impatient with the slow pace of change in the courts, African-American activists had begun taking direct action to win the rights promised to them by the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution. Among those on the frontline of change was Jo Ann Robinson.

Boycotting Segregation

Four days after the Brown decision in May 1954, Robinson wrote a letter to the mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, asking that bus drivers no longer be allowed to force riders in the “colored” section to yield their seats to whites. The mayor refused. Little did he know that in less than a year another African-American woman from Alabama would be at the center of this controversy, and that her name and her words would far outlast segregation.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, a seamstress and an NAACP officer, took a seat in the front row of the “colored” section of a Montgomery bus. As the bus filled up, the driver ordered Parks and three other African-American passengers to empty the row they were occupying so that a white man could sit down without having to sit next to any African Americans. “It was time for someone to stand up—or in my case, sit down,” recalled Parks. “I refused to move.”

As Parks stared out the window, the bus driver said, “If you don’t stand up, I’m going to call the police and have you arrested.” The soft-spoken Parks replied, “You may do that.”

News of Parks’s arrest spread rapidly. Jo Ann Robinson and NAACP leader E. D. Nixon suggested a bus boycott. The leaders of the African-American community, including many ministers, formed the Montgomery Improvement Association to organize the boycott. They elected the pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, 26-year-old Martin Luther King, Jr., to lead the group. An ordained minister since 1948, King had just earned a Ph.D. degree in theology from Boston University. “Well, I’m not sure I’m the best person for the position,” King confided to Nixon, “but if no one else is going to serve, I’d be glad to try.”

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photo: African Americans gather on a street corner.

During the bus boycott, Montgomery’s black citizens relied on an efficient car pool system that ferried people between more than forty pickup stations like the one shown.

Walking for Justice

On the night of December 5, 1955, Dr. King made the following declaration to an estimated crowd of between 5,000 and 15,000 people.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

“ There comes a time when people get tired of being trampled over by the iron feet of oppression…. I want it to be known—that we’re going to work with grim and bold determination—to gain justice on buses in this city. And we are not wrong…. If we are wrong—the Supreme Court of this nation is wrong. If we are wrong—God Almighty is wrong…. If we are wrong—justice is a lie.”
—quoted in Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954–63

King’s passionate and eloquent speech brought people to their feet and filled the audience with a sense of mission. African Americans filed a lawsuit and for 381 days refused to ride the buses in Montgomery. In most cases they had to find other means of transportation by organizing car pools or walking long distances. Support came from within the black community-—workers donated one-fifth of their weekly salaries—as well as from outside groups like the NAACP, the United Auto Workers, Montgomery’s Jewish community, and sympathetic white southerners. The boycotters remained nonviolent even after a bomb ripped apart King’s home (no one was injured). Finally, in 1956, the Supreme Court outlawed bus segregation.

Martin Luther King and the SCLC

The Montgomery bus boycott proved to the world that the African-American community could unite and organize a successful protest movement. It also proved the power of nonviolent resistance, the peaceful refusal to obey unjust laws. Despite threats to his life and family, King urged his followers, “Don’t ever let anyone pull you so low as to hate them.”

Changing the World With Soul Force

King called his brand of non-violent resistance “soul force.” He based his ideas on the teachings of several people. From Jesus, he learned to love one’s enemies. From writer Henry David Thoreau he took the concept of civil disobedience—the refusal to obey an unjust law. From labor organizer A. Philip Randolph he learned to organize massive demonstrations. From Mohandas Gandhi, the leader who helped India throw off British rule, he learned to resist oppression without violence.

“We will not hate you,” King said to white racists, “but we cannot … obey your unjust laws…. We will soon wear you down by our capacity to suffer. And in winning our freedom, we will so appeal to your heart and conscience that we will win you in the process.”

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King held steadfast to his philosophy, even when a wave of racial violence swept through the South after the Brown decision. The violence included the 1955 murder of Emmett Till—a 14-year-old African-American boy who had allegedly flirted with a white woman. There were also shootings and beatings, some fatal, of civil rights workers.

From the Grassroots Up

After the bus boycott ended, King joined with ministers and civil rights leaders in 1957 to found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Its purpose was “to carry on nonviolent crusades against the evils of second-class citizenship.” Using African-American churches as a base, the SCLC planned to stage protests and demonstrations throughout the South. The leaders hoped to build a movement from the grass-roots up and to win the support of ordinary African Americans of all ages. King, president of the SCLC, used the power of his voice and ideas to fuel the move-ment’s momentum.

The nuts and bolts of organizing the SCLC was handled by its first director, Ella Baker, the granddaughter of slaves. While with the NAACP, Baker had served as national field secretary, traveling over 16,000 miles throughout the South. From 1957 to 1960, Baker used her contacts to set up branches of the SCLC in Southern cities. In April 1960, Baker helped students at Shaw University, an African-American university in Raleigh, North Carolina, to organize a national protest group, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, or SNCC, pronounced “snick” for short.

It had been six years since the Brown decision, and many college students viewed the pace of change as too slow. Although these students risked a great deal—losing college scholarships, being expelled from college, being physically harmed—they were determined to challenge the system. SNCC hoped to harness the energy of these student protesters; it would soon create one of the most important student activist movements in the nation’s history.

Key Player: Martin Luther King, JR. 1929–1968 photo: Martin Luther King, Jr. makes a speech.

Born Michael Luther King, Jr., King had to adjust to a new name in 1934. In that year, his father—Rev. Michael King, Sr.—returned home from a trip to Europe, where he had toured the site where Martin Luther had begun the Protestant Reformation. Upon his return home, the elder King changed his and his son’s names to Martin.

Like Luther, the younger King became a reformer. In 1964, he won the Nobel peace prize. Yet there was a side of King unknown to most people—his inner battle to overcome his hatred of the white bigots. As a youth, he had once vowed “to hate all white people.” As leader of the civil rights movement, King said all Americans had to be freed: “Negroes from the bonds of segregation and shame, whites from the bonds of bigotry and fear.”

The Movement Spreads

Although SNCC adopted King’s ideas in part, its members had ideas of their own. Many people called for a more confrontational strategy and set out to reshape the civil rights movement.

Demonstrating for Freedom

The founders of SNCC had models to build on. In 1942 in Chicago, the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) had staged the first sit-ins, in which African-American protesters sat down at segregated lunch counters and refused to leave until they were served. In February 1960, African-American students from North Carolina’s Agricultural and Technical College staged a sit-in at a whites-only lunch counter at a Woolworth’s store in Greensboro. This time, television crews brought coverage of the protest into homes throughout the United States. There was no denying the ugly face of racism. Day after day, news reporters captured the scenes of whites beating, jeering at, and pouring food over students who refused to strike back. The coverage sparked many other sit-ins across the South. Store managers called

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photo: a crowd of white people dumps food over African-Americans and whites sitting together at a counter.

Sit-in demonstrators, such as these at a Jackson, Mississippi, lunch counter in 1963, faced intimidation and humiliation from white segregationists. © Fred Blackwell

in the police, raised the price of food, and removed counter seats. But the movement continued and spread to the North. There, students formed picket lines around national chain stores that maintained segregated lunch counters in the South.

By late 1960, students had descended on and desegregated lunch counters in some 48 cities in 11 states. They endured arrests, beatings, suspension from college, and tear gas and fire hoses, but the army of nonviolent students refused to back down. “My mother has always told me that I’m equal to other people,” said Ezell Blair, Jr., one of the students who led the first SNCC sit-in in 1960. For the rest of the 1960s, many Americans worked to convince the rest of the country that blacks and whites deserved equal treatment.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Thurgood Marshall

• Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

• Rosa Parks

• Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)

• Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

• sit-in

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Fill in a spider diagram like the one below with examples of tactics, organizations, leaders, and Supreme Court decisions of the civil rights movement up to 1960.

diagram: an oval is labled Challenging Segregation. Blank lines extend from four surrounding categories: Organizations, Supreme Court Decisions, Leaders, and Tactics.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

Do you think the nonviolence used by civil rights activists was a good tactic? Explain. Think About:

• the Montgomery bus boycott

• television coverage of events

• sit-ins

4. CONTRASTING

How did the tactics of the student protesters from SNCC differ from those of the boycotters in Montgomery?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

After the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka ruling, what do you think was the most significant event of the civil rights movement prior to 1960? Why? Think About:

• the role of civil rights leaders

• the results of confrontations and boycotts

• the role of grassroots organizations

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Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)

ORIGINS OF THE CASE In the early 1950s, the school system of Topeka, Kansas, like all Southern elementary school systems, operated separate schools for “the two races”—blacks and whites. Reverend Oliver Brown protested that this was unfair to his eight-year-old daughter Linda. Although the Browns lived near a “white” school, Linda was forced to take a long bus ride to her “black” school across town.

THE RULING The Court ruled that segregated public schools were “inherently” unequal and therefore unconstitutional.

Linda Brown’s name headed a list of five school desegregation cases heard by the Supreme Court.

Legal Reasoning

While the correctness of the Brown ruling seems obvious today, some justices had difficulty agreeing to it. One reason was the force of legal precedent. Normally, judges follow a policy of stare decisis, “let the decision stand.” The Plessy v. Ferguson decision endorsing segregation (see page 496) had stood for over 50 years. It clearly stated that “separate but equal” facilities did not violate the Fourteenth Amendment.

Thurgood Marshall, the NAACP lawyer who argued Brown, spent years laying the groundwork to chip away at Jim Crow—the local laws that required segregated facilities. Marshall had recently won two Supreme Court decisions in 1950 (Mclaurin and Sweatt; see Legal Sources at right) that challenged segregation at graduate schools. Then in 1952, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the Browns’ case. The Court deliberated for two years deciding how to interpret the Fourteenth Amendment.

In the end, Chief Justice Earl Warren carefully sidestepped Plessy, claiming that segregated schools were not and never could be equal. On Monday, May 17, 1954, Warren read the unanimous decision:

“ Does segregation of children in public schools … deprive children of … equal opportunities? We believe it does…. To separate them … solely because of their race generates a feeling of inferiority … that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone.”
—Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

Legal Sources U.S. Constitution

FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT, EQUAL PROTECTION CLAUSE (1868)

“No state shall … deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

Related Cases

PLESSY V. FERGUSON (1896)

• Upheld Louisiana’s laws requiring that train passengers be segregated by race.

• Established the doctrine of “separate but equal.”

MCLAURIN V. OKLAHOMA STATE (1950)

Ruled that Oklahoma State University violated the Constitution by keeping its one “Negro” student in the back of the class and the cafeteria.

SWEATT V. PAINTER (1950)

Required the University of Texas to admit an African-American student to its previously all-white law school.

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Why it Mattered

The Court’s decision in Brown had an immediate impact on pending rulings. In a series of cases after Brown, the Supreme Court prohibited segregation in housing, at public beaches, at recreation facilities, and in restaurants. Later decisions extended equal access to other groups, including women and resident aliens.

The decision encountered fierce resistance, however. It awakened the old battle cry of states’ rights. Directly following Brown, some Congress members circulated the “Southern Manifesto,” claiming the right of the states to ignore the ruling. In taking a stand on a social issue, they said, the Court had taken a step away from simply interpreting legal precedents. Critics charged that the Warren Court had acted as legislators and even as sociologists.

The Brown case strengthened the Civil Rights movement, however, and paved the way for the end of Jim Crow. The NAACP had fought and won the legal battle and had gained prestige and momentum. Americans got the strong message that the federal government now took civil rights seriously.

Historical Impact

Three of the parties involved in Brown—Delaware, Kansas, and the District of Columbia—began to integrate schools in 1954. Topeka County informed the Court that 123 black students were already attending formerly all-white schools. Even so, the Supreme Court was well aware that its decision would be difficult to enforce. In a follow-up ruling, Brown II (1955), the Court required that integration take place with “all deliberate speed.” To some this meant quickly. Others interpreted deliberate to mean slowly.

Only two Southern states even began to integrate classrooms in 1954: Texas and Arkansas opened one and two districts, respectively. By 1960, less than one percent of the South’s students attended integrated schools. Many school districts were ordered to use aggressive means to achieve racial balance. Courts spent decades supervising forced busing, a practice that often pitted community against community.

Still, despite the resistance and the practical difficulties of implementation, Brown stands today as a watershed, the single point at which breaking the “color barrier” officially became a federal priority.

The front page headline of the New York Times: High Court Bans School Segregation.

Thurgood Marshall was appointed the first African-American Supreme Court justice by President Johnson in 1967. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Analyzing Primary Sources Legal precedents are set not only by rulings but also by dissenting opinions, in which justices explain why they disagree with the majority. Justice John Marshall Harlan was the one dissenting voice in Plessy v. Ferguson. Read his opinion and comment on how it might apply to Brown.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R22. Connect to Today

2. internet icon Internet Activity Classzone.Com

Visit the links for Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court to research the Supreme Court’s changing opinions on civil rights. Compile a chart or time line to present the facts—date, plaintiff, defendant, major issue, and outcome—of several major cases. Then give an oral presentation explaining the Supreme Court’s role in civil rights.

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Section 2: The Triumphs of a Crusade

One American’s Story

In 1961, James Peck, a white civil rights activist, joined other CORE members on a historic bus trip across the South. The two-bus trip would test the Supreme Court decisions banning segregated seating on interstate bus routes and segregated facilities in bus terminals. Peck and other freedom riders hoped to provoke a violent reaction that would convince the Kennedy administration to enforce the law. The violence was not long in coming.

At the Alabama state line, white racists got on Bus One carrying chains, brass knuckles, and pistols. They brutally beat African-American riders and white activists who tried to intervene. Still the riders managed to go on. Then on May 4, 1961—Mother’s Day—the bus pulled into the Birmingham bus terminal. James Peck saw a hostile mob waiting, some holding iron bars.

photo: with a bandage on his head, James Peck wears a sign: I am a victim of an attempt at lynching.

Three days after being beaten unconscious in Birmingham, freedom rider James Peck demonstrates in New York City to pressure national bus companies to support desegregation.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JAMES PECK

“ I looked at them and then I looked at Charles Person, who had been designated as my team mate…. When I looked at him, he responded by saying simply, ‘Let’s go.’ As we entered the white waiting room, … we were grabbed bodily and pushed toward the alleyway … and out of sight of onlookers in the waiting room, six of them started swinging at me with fists and pipes. Five others attacked Person a few feet ahead.”
—Freedom Ride

The ride of Bus One had ended, but Bus Two continued southward on a journey that would shock the Kennedy administration into action.

Riding for Freedom

In Anniston, Alabama, about 200 angry whites attacked Bus Two. The mob followed the activists out of town. When one of the tires blew, they smashed a window and tossed in a fire bomb. The freedom riders spilled out just before the bus exploded.

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New Volunteers

The bus companies refused to carry the CORE freedom riders any farther. Even though the determined volunteers did not want to give up, they ended their ride. However, CORE director James Farmer announced that a group of SNCC volunteers in Nashville were ready to pick up where the others had left off.

When a new band of freedom riders rode into Birmingham, policemen pulled them from the bus, beat them, and drove them into Tennessee. Defiantly, they returned to the Birmingham bus terminal. Their bus driver, however, feared for his life and refused to transport them. In protest, they occupied the whites-only waiting room at the terminal for eighteen hours until a solution was reached. After an angry phone call from U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy, bus company officials convinced the driver to proceed. The riders set out for Montgomery on May 20.

Arrival of Federal Marshals

Although Alabama officials had promised Kennedy that the riders would be protected, a mob of whites—many carrying bats and lead pipes—fell upon the riders when they arrived in Montgomery. John Doer, a Justice Department official on the scene, called the attorney general to report what was happening. “A bunch of men led by a guy with a bleeding face are beating [the passengers]. There are no cops. It’s terrible. There’s not a cop in sight. People are yelling. ‘Get ‘em, get ‘em.’ It’s awful.”

photo: African-Americans gather outside a burning bus.

In May 1961, a mob firebombed this bus of freedom riders outside Anniston, Alabama, and attacked passengers as they tried to escape.

The violence provoked exactly the response the freedom riders wanted. Newspapers throughout the nation and abroad denounced the beatings.

“ We will continue our journey one way or another…. We are prepared to die.”
JIM ZWERG, FREEDOM RIDER

President Kennedy arranged to give the freedom riders direct support. The Justice Department sent 400 U.S. marshals to protect the riders on the last part of their journey to Jackson, Mississippi. In addition, the attorney general and the Interstate Commerce Commission banned segregation in all interstate travel facilities, including waiting rooms, restrooms, and lunch counters.

Standing Firm

With the integration of interstate travel facilities under way, some civil rights workers turned their attention to integrating some Southern schools and pushing the movement into additional Southern towns. At each turn they encountered opposition and often violence.

Integrating Ole Miss

In September 1962, Air Force veteran James Meredith won a federal court case that allowed him to enroll in the all-white University of Mississippi, nicknamed Ole Miss. But when Meredith arrived on campus, he faced Governor Ross Barnett, who refused to let him register as a student.

President Kennedy ordered federal marshals to escort Meredith to the registrar’s office. Barnett responded with a heated radio appeal: “I call on every Mississippian to keep his faith and courage. We will never surrender.” The broadcast turned out white demonstrators by the thousands.

On the night of September 30, riots broke out on campus, resulting in two deaths. It took thousands of soldiers, 200 arrests, and 15 hours to stop the rioters. In the months that followed, federal officials accompanied Meredith to class and protected his parents from nightriders who shot up their house.

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photo: a white policeman holds the leash of a dog that lunges at an African-American man.

News photos and television coverage of police dogs in Birmingham attacking African Americans shocked the nation.

Heading Into Birmingham

The trouble continued in Alabama. Birmingham, a city known for its strict enforcement of total segregation in public life, also had a reputation for racial violence, including 18 bombings from 1957 to 1963.

Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth, head of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights and secretary of the SCLC, decided something had to be done about Birmingham and that it would be the ideal place to test the power of non-violence. He invited Martin Luther King, Jr., and the SCLC to help desegregate the city. On April 3, 1963, King flew into Birmingham to hold a planning meeting with members of the African-American community. “This is the most segregated city in America,” he said. “We have to stick together if we ever want to change its ways.”

After days of demonstrations led by Shuttlesworth and others, King and a small band of marchers were finally arrested during a demonstration on Good Friday, April 12th. While in jail, King wrote an open letter to white religious leaders who felt he was pushing too fast.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

“ I guess it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, ‘Wait.’ But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at whim; when you have seen hate-filled policemen curse, kick, brutalize and even kill your black brothers and sisters; … when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in the air-tight cage of poverty;… when you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son asking: … ‘Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?’ … then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.”
—“Letter from a Birmingham Jail”

On April 20, King posted bail and began planning more demonstrations. On May 2, more than a thousand African-American children marched in Birmingham; Police commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor’s men arrested 959 of them. On May 3, a second “children’s crusade” came face to face with a helmeted police force. Police swept the marchers off their feet with high-pressure fire hoses, set attack dogs on them, and clubbed those who fell. TV cameras captured all of it, and millions of viewers heard the children screaming.

Continued protests, an economic boycott, and negative media coverage finally convinced Birmingham officials to end segregation. This stunning civil rights victory inspired African Americans across the nation. It also convinced President Kennedy that only a new civil rights act could end racial violence and satisfy the demands of African Americans—and many whites—for racial justice.

919 History Through Photojournalism: Ernest Withers photo: Ernest Withers holds a cameranext to a car with a sign bearing his name.

Withers in 1950

Born in Memphis in 1922, photographer Ernest Withers believed that if the struggle for equality could be shown to people, things would change. Armed with only a camera, he braved violent crowds to capture the heated racism during the Montgomery bus boycott, the desegregation of Central High in Little Rock, and the 1968 Memphis sanitation workers strike (below) led by Martin Luther King, Jr. The night before the Memphis march, Withers had helped make some of the signs he photographed.

“ G. C. Brown printed those ‘I AM A MAN’ signs right over there…. I had a car and it was snowing, so we went and rented the saw and came back that night and cut the sticks.”

photo: dozens of African American men stand together, holding signs that read I Am a Man.

Withers had to be careful about his involvement in groups like the NAACP and COME (Community On the Move for Equality), for he had a wife and children to support. He went to several meetings a night, sometimes taking pictures, other times offering a suggestion. “I always had FBI agents looking over my shoulder and wanting to question me. I never tried to learn any high-powered secrets.”

photo: Withers wears an African-style hat and scarf with a suit.

Withers in 1992 920

“ I say, Segregation now! Segregation tomorrow! Segregation forever!”
GEORGE WALLACE, ALABAMA GOVERNOR, 1963

Kennedy Takes a Stand

On June 11, 1963, the president sent troops to force Governor George Wallace to honor a court order desegregating the University of Alabama. That evening, Kennedy asked the nation: “Are we to say to the world—and much more importantly, to each other—that this is the land of the free, except for the Negroes?” He demanded that Congress pass a civil rights bill.

A tragic event just hours after Kennedy’s speech highlighted the racial tension in much of the South. Shortly after midnight, a sniper murdered Medgar Evers, NAACP field secretary and World War II veteran. Police soon arrested a white supremacist, Byron de la Beckwith, but he was released after two trials resulted in hung juries. His release brought a new militancy to African Americans. Many demanded, “Freedom now!”

Marching to Washington

The civil rights bill that President Kennedy sent to Congress guaranteed equal access to all public accommodations and gave the U.S. attorney general the power to file school desegregation suits. To persuade Congress to pass the bill, two veteran organizers—labor leader A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin of the SCLC—summoned Americans to a march on Washington, D.C.

The Dream of Equality

On August 28, 1963, more than 250,000 people—including about 75,000 whites—converged on the nation’s capital. They assembled on the grassy lawn of the Washington Monument and marched to the Lincoln Memorial. There, people listened to speakers demand the immediate passage of the civil rights bill.

When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., appeared, the crowd exploded in applause. In his now famous speech, “I Have a Dream,” he appealed for peace and racial harmony.

Civll Rights Acts of the 1950s and 1960s Civil Rights Act of 1957

• Established federal Commission on Civil Rights

• Established a Civil Rights Division in the Justice Department to enforce civil rights laws

• Enlarged federal power to protect voting rights

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

“ I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal.’ … I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character…. I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama … will be transformed into a situation where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers.”
—“I Have a Dream”

More Violence

Two weeks after King’s historic speech, four young Birmingham girls were killed when a rider in a car hurled a bomb through their church window. Two more African Americans died in the unrest that followed.

Two months later, an assassin shot and killed John F. Kennedy. His successor, President Lyndon B. Johnson, pledged to carry on Kennedy’s work. On July 2, 1964, Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited discrimination because of race, religion, national origin, and gender. It gave all citizens the right to enter libraries, parks, washrooms, restaurants, theaters, and other public accommodations.

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photo: young adults stand outside a bus, their hands joined.

In the summer of 1964, college students volunteered to go to Mississippi to help register that state’s African-American voters.

Fighting for Voting Rights

Meanwhile, the right of all African Americans to vote remained elusive. In 1964, CORE and SNCC workers in the South began registering as many African Americans as they could to vote. They hoped their campaign would receive national publicity, which would in turn influence Congress to pass a voting rights act. Focused in Mississippi, the project became known as Freedom Summer.

Freedom Summer

To fortify the project, civil rights groups recruited college students and trained them in nonviolent resistance. Thousands of student volunteers—mostly white, about one-third female—went into Mississippi to help register voters. For some, the job proved deadly. In June of 1964, three civil rights workers disappeared in Neshoba County, Mississippi. Investigators later learned that Klansmen and local police had murdered the men, two of whom were white. Through the summer, the racial beatings and murders continued, along with the burning of businesses, homes, and churches.

A New Political Party

African Americans needed a voice in the political arena if sweeping change was to occur. In order to gain a seat in Mississippi’s all-white Democratic Party, SNCC organized the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP). Fannie Lou Hamer, the daughter of Mississippi sharecroppers, would be their voice at the 1964 Democratic National Convention. In a televised speech that shocked the convention and viewers nationwide, Hamer described how she was jailed for registering to vote in 1962, and how police forced other prisoners to beat her.

A PERSONAL VOICE

FANNIE LOU HAMER

“ The first [prisoner] began to beat [me], and I was beat by the first until he was exhausted…. The second [prisoner] began to beat…. I began to scream and one white man got up and began to beat me in my head and tell me to ‘hush.’ … All of this on account we want to register, to become first-class citizens, and if the Freedom Democratic Party is not seated now, I question America.”
—quoted in The Civil Rights Movement: An Eyewitness History

In response to Hamer’s speech, telegrams and telephone calls poured in to the convention in support of seating the MFDP delegates. President Johnson feared losing the Southern white vote if the Democrats sided with the MFDP, so his administration pressured civil rights leaders to convince the MFDP to accept a compromise. The Democrats would give 2 of Mississippi’s 68 seats to the MFDP, with a promise to ban discrimination at the 1968 convention.

When Hamer learned of the compromise, she said, “We didn’t come all this way for no two seats.” The MFDP and supporters in SNCC felt that the leaders had betrayed them.

922 Historical Spotlight: Twenty-Fourth Amendment—Barring Poll Taxes

On January 24, 1964, South Dakota became the 38th state to ratify the Twenty-fourth Amendment to the Constitution. The key clause in the amendment reads: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election … shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.”

Poll taxes were often used to keep poor African Americans from voting. Although most states had already abolished their poll taxes by 1964, five Southern states—Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, and Virginia—still had such laws on the books. By making these laws unconstitutional, the Twenty-fourth Amendment gave the vote to millions who had been disqualified because of poverty.

The Selma Campaign

At the start of 1965, the SCLC conducted a major voting rights campaign in Selma, Alabama, where SNCC had been working for two years to register voters. By the end of 1965, more than 2,000 African Americans had been arrested in SCLC demonstrations. After a demonstrator named Jimmy Lee Jackson was shot and killed, King responded by announcing a 50-mile protest march from Selma to Montgomery, the state capital. On March 7, 1965, about 600 protesters set out for Montgomery.

That night, mayhem broke out. Television cameras captured the scene. The rest of the nation watched in horror as police swung whips and clubs, and clouds of tear gas swirled around fallen marchers. Demonstrators poured into Selma by the hundreds. Ten days later, President Johnson presented Congress with a new voting rights act and asked for its swift passage.

On March 21, 3,000 marchers again set out for Montgomery, this time with federal protection. Soon the number grew to an army of 25,000.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

That summer, Congress finally passed Johnson’s Voting Rights Act of 1965. The act eliminated the so-called literacy tests that had disqualified many voters. It also stated that federal examiners could enroll voters who had been denied suffrage by local officials. In Selma, the proportion of African Americans registered to vote rose from 10 percent in 1964 to 60 percent in 1968. Overall the percentage of registered African-American voters in the South tripled.

Although the Voting Rights Act marked a major civil rights victory, some felt that the law did not go far enough. Centuries of discrimination had produced social and economic inequalities. Anger over these inequalities led to a series of violent disturbances in the cities of the North.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• freedom riders

• James Meredith

• Civil Rights Act of 1964

• Freedom Summer

• Fannie Lou Hamer

• Voting Rights Act of 1965

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a graphic like the one shown, list the steps that African Americans took to desegregate buses and schools from 1962 to 1965.

graphic shows seven empty steps beside the years 1962-1965.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING ISSUES

What assumptions and beliefs do you think guided the fierce opposition to the civil rights movement in the South? Support your answer with evidence from the text. Think About:

• the social and political structure of the South

• Mississippi governor Ross Barnett’s comment during his radio address

• the actions of police and some white Southerners

4. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES

Just after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, white Alabama governor George Wallace said,

“ It is ironical that this event occurs as we approach the celebration of Independence Day. On that day we won our freedom. On this day we have largely lost it.”

What do you think Wallace meant by his statement?

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Section 3: Challenges and Changes in the Movement

One American’s Story

Alice Walker, the prize-winning novelist, became aware of the civil rights movement in 1960, when she was 16. Her mother had recently scraped together enough money to purchase a television.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ALICE WALKER

“ Like a good omen for the future, the face of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was the first black face I saw on our new television screen. And, as in a fairy tale, my soul was stirred by the meaning for me of his mission—at the time he was being rather ignominiously dumped into a police van for having led a protest march in Alabama—and I fell in love with the sober and determined face of the Movement.”
—In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens

Alice Walker during an interview in New York’s Central Park in August 1970

The next year, Walker attended the all-black Spelman College. In 1963, Walker took part in the March on Washington and then traveled to Africa to discover her spiritual roots. After returning home in 1964, she worked on voter registration, taught African American history and writing, and wrote poetry and fiction.

Walker’s interest in her heritage was part of a growing trend among African Americans in the mid-1960s. But millions of African Americans were still living in poverty. Angry and frustrated over the difficulty in finding jobs and decent housing, some participated in riots that broke out between 1964 and 1966.

African Americans Seek Greater Equality

What civil rights groups had in common in the early 1960s were their calls for a newfound pride in black identity and a commitment to change the social and economic structures that kept people in a life of poverty. However, by 1965, the

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leading civil rights groups began to drift apart. New leaders emerged as the movement turned its attention to the North, where African Americans faced not legal segregation but deeply entrenched and oppressive racial prejudice.

Northern Segregation

The problem facing African Americans in the North was de facto segregation—segregation that exists by practice and custom. De facto segregation can be harder to fight than de jure (dē jr′ē) segregation, or segregation by law, because eliminating it requires changing people’s attitudes rather than repealing laws. Activists in the mid-1960s would find it much more difficult to convince whites to share economic and social power with African Americans than to convince them to share lunch counters and bus seats.

De facto segregation intensified after African Americans migrated to Northern cities during and after World War II. This began a “white flight,” in which great numbers of whites moved out of the cities to the nearby suburbs. By the mid-1960s, most urban African Americans lived in decaying slums, paying rent to landlords who didn’t comply with housing and health ordinances. The schools for African-American children deteriorated along with their neighborhoods. Unemployment rates were more than twice as high as those among whites.

In addition, many blacks were angry at the sometimes brutal treatment they received from the mostly white police forces in their communities. In 1966, King spearheaded a campaign in Chicago to end segregation there and create an “open city.” On July 10, he led about 30,000 African Americans in a march on City Hall.

In late July, when King led demonstrators through a Chicago neighborhood, angry whites threw rocks and bottles. On August 5, hostile whites stoned King as he led 600 marchers. King left Chicago without accomplishing what he wanted, yet pledging to return.

Urban Violence Erupts

In the mid 1960s, clashes between white authority and black civilians spread like wildfire. In New York City in July 1964, an encounter between white police and African-American teenagers ended in the death of a 15-year-old student. This sparked a race riot in central Harlem. On August 11, 1965, only five days after President Johnson signed the Voting

photo: black smoke rises from a demolished building.

photo: soldiers aim rifles outside a burning building.

Between 1964 and 1968, more than 100 race riots erupted in major American cities. The worst included Watts in Los Angeles in 1965 (top) and Detroit in 1967 (right). In Detroit, 43 people were killed and property damage topped $40 million. 925

Rights Act into law, one of the worst race riots in the nation’s history raged through the streets of Watts, a predominantly African-American neighborhood in Los Angeles. Thirty-four people were killed, and hundreds of millions of dollars worth of property was destroyed. The next year, 1966, saw even more racial disturbances, and in 1967 alone, riots and violent clashes took place in more than 100 cities.

The African-American rage baffled many whites. “Why would blacks turn to violence after winning so many victories in the South?” they wondered. Some realized that what African Americans wanted and needed was economic equality of opportunity in jobs, housing, and education.

Even before the riots in 1964, President Johnson had announced his War on Poverty, a program to help impoverished Americans. But the flow of money needed to fund Johnson’s Great Society was soon redirected to fund the war in Vietnam. In 1967, Dr. King proclaimed, “The Great Society has been shot down on the battlefields of Vietnam.”

Key Player: Malcolm X 1925–1965 photo: Malcolm X.

Malcolm X’s early life left him alienated from white society. His father was allegedly killed by white racists, and his mother had an emotional collapse, leaving Malcolm and his siblings in the care of the state. At the end of eighth grade, Malcolm quit school and was later jailed for criminal behavior. In 1946, while in prison, Malcolm joined the Nation of Islam. He developed a philosophy of black superiority and separatism from whites.

In the later years of his life, he urged African Americans to identify with Africa and to work with world organizations and even progressive whites to attain equality. Although silenced by gunmen, Malcolm X is a continuing inspiration for many Americans.

New Leaders Voice Discontent

The anger that sent rioters into the streets stemmed in part from African-American leaders who urged their followers to take complete control of their communities, livelihoods, and culture. One such leader, Malcolm X, declared to a Harlem audience, “If you think we are here to tell you to love the white man, you have come to the wrong place.”

African-American Solidarity

Malcolm X, born Malcolm Little, went to jail at age 20 for burglary. While in prison, he studied the teachings of Elijah Muhammad, the head of the Nation of Islam, or the Black Muslims. Malcolm changed his name to Malcolm X (dropping what he called his “slave name”) and, after his release from prison in 1952, became an Islamic minister. As he gained a following, the brilliant thinker and engaging speaker openly preached Elijah Muhammad’s views that whites were the cause of the black condition and that blacks should separate from white society.

Malcolm’s message appealed to many African Americans and their growing racial pride. At a New York press conference in March 1964, he also advocated armed self-defense.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MALCOLM X

“ Concerning nonviolence: it is criminal to teach a man not to defend himself when he is the constant victim of brutal attacks. It is legal and lawful to own a shotgun or a rifle. We believe in obeying the law…. [T]he time has come for the American Negro to fight back in self-defense whenever and wherever he is being unjustly and unlawfully attacked.”
—quoted in Eyewitness: The Negro in American History

The press gave a great deal of publicity to Malcolm X because his controversial statements made dramatic news stories. This had two effects. First, his call for armed self-defense frightened most whites and many moderate African Americans. Second, reports of the attention Malcolm received awakened resentment in some other members of the Nation of Islam.

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Ballots or Bullets?

In March 1964, Malcolm broke with Elijah Muhammad over differences in strategy and doctrine and formed another Muslim organization. One month later, he embarked on a pilgrimage to Mecca, in Saudi Arabia, a trip required of followers of orthodox Islam. In Mecca, he learned that orthodox Islam preached racial equality, and he worshiped alongside people from many countries. Wrote Malcolm, “I have [prayed] … with fellow Muslims whose eyes were the bluest of blue, whose hair was the blondest of blond, and whose skin was the whitest of white.” When he returned to the United States, his attitude toward whites had changed radically. He explained his new slogan, “Ballots or bullets,” to a follower: “Well, if you and I don’t use the ballot, we’re going to be forced to use the bullet. So let us try the ballot.”

Because of his split with the Black Muslims, Malcolm believed his life might be in danger. “No one can get out without trouble,” he confided. On February 21, 1965, while giving a speech in Harlem, the 39-year-old Malcolm X was shot and killed.

Black Power

In early June of 1966, tensions that had been building between SNCC and the other civil rights groups finally erupted in Mississippi. Here, James Meredith, the man who had integrated the University of Mississippi, set out on a 225-mile “walk against fear.” Meredith planned to walk all the way from the Tennessee border to Jackson, but he was shot by a white racist and was too injured to continue.

Martin Luther King, Jr., of the SCLC, Floyd McKissick of CORE, and Stokely Carmichael of SNCC decided to lead their followers in a march to finish what Meredith had started. But it soon became apparent that SNCC and CORE members were quite militant, as they began to shout slogans similar to those of the black separatists who had followed Malcolm X. When King tried to rally the marchers with the refrain of “We Shall Overcome,” many SNCC workers—bitter over the violence they’d suffered during Freedom Summer—began singing, “We shall overrun.”

Police in Greenwood, Mississippi, arrested Carmichael for setting up a tent on the grounds of an all-black high school. When Carmichael showed up at a rally later, his face swollen from a beating, he electrified the crowd.

A PERSONAL VOICE

STOKELY CARMICHAEL

“ This is the twenty-seventh time I have been arrested—and I ain’t going to jail no more! … We been saying freedom for six years—and we ain’t got nothin’. What we’re gonna start saying now is BLACK POWER.”
—quoted in The Civil Rights Movement: An Eyewitness History

photo: Stokely Carmichael speaks into a microphone. beside the words Black Power.

Stokely Carmichael (1968). The slogan “Black Power” became the battle-cry of militant civil rights activists.

Black Power, Carmichael said, was a “call for black people to begin to define their own goals … [and] to lead their own organizations.” King urged him to stop using the phrase because he believed it would provoke African Americans to violence and antagonize whites. Carmichael refused and urged SNCC to stop recruiting whites and to focus on developing African-American pride.

Black Panthers

Later that year, another development demonstrated the growing radicalism of some segments of the African-American community. In Oakland, California, in October 1966, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded a political party known as the Black Panthers to fight police brutality in the ghetto. The party advocated self-sufficiency for African-American communities, as well as full employment and decent housing. Members maintained that African Americans should be exempt from military service because an unfair number of black youths had been drafted to serve in Vietnam.

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Dressed in black leather jackets, black berets, and sunglasses, the Panthers preached self-defense and sold copies of the writings of Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Communist revolution. Several police shootouts occurred between the Panthers and police, and the FBI conducted numerous investigations of group members (sometimes using illegal tactics). Even so, many of the Panthers’ activities—the establishment of daycare centers, free breakfast programs, free medical clinics, assistance to the homeless, and other services—won support in the ghettos.

1968—A Turning Point in Civil Rights

Martin Luther King, Jr., objected to the Black Power movement. He believed that preaching violence could only end in grief. King was planning to lead a Poor People’s March on Washington, D.C. However, this time the people would have to march without him.

King’s Death

Dr. King seemed to sense that death was near. On April 3, 1968, he addressed a crowd in Memphis, where he had gone to support the city’s striking garbage workers. “I may not get there with you but … we as a people will get to the Promised Land.” He added, “I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.” The next day as King stood on his hotel balcony, James Earl Ray thrust a high-powered rifle out of a window and squeezed the trigger. King crumpled to the floor.

Reactions to King’s Death

The night King died, Robert F. Kennedy was campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination. Fearful that King’s death would spark riots, Kennedy’s advisers told him to cancel his appearance in an African-American neighborhood in Indianapolis. However, Kennedy attended anyway, making an impassioned plea for nonviolence.

photo: Coretta Scott King wears a veil at her husband's funeral.

(above) Coretta Scott King mourns her husband at his funeral service. (below) Robert F. Kennedy

A PERSONAL VOICE

ROBERT F. KENNEDY

“ For those of you who are black—considering the evidence … that there were white people who were responsible—you can be filled with bitterness, with hatred, and a desire for revenge. We can move in that direction as a country, in great polarization—black people amongst black, white people amongst white, filled with hatred toward one another.

Or we can make an effort, as Martin Luther King did, to understand and comprehend, and to replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand [with] compassion and love.”
—“A Eulogy for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.”

Despite Kennedy’s plea, rage over King’s death led to the worst urban rioting in United States history. Over 100 cities exploded in flames. The hardest-hit cities included Baltimore, Chicago, Kansas City, and Washington, D.C. Then in June 1968, Robert Kennedy himself was assassinated by a Jordanian immigrant who was angry over Kennedy’s support of Israel.

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Legacy of the Civil Rights Movement

On March 1, 1968, the Kerner Commission, which President Johnson had appointed to study the causes of urban violence, issued its 200,000-word report. In it, the panel named one main cause: white racism. Said the report: “This is our basic conclusion: Our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white—separate and unequal.” The report called for the nation to create new jobs, construct new housing, and end de facto segregation in order to wipe out the destructive ghetto environment. However, the Johnson administration ignored many of the recommendations because of white opposition to such sweeping changes. So what had the civil rights movement accomplished?

Civil Rights Gains

The civil rights movement ended de jure segregation by bringing about legal protection for the civil rights of all Americans. Congress passed the most important civil rights legislation since Reconstruction, including the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which ended discrimination in housing. After school segregation ended, the numbers of African Americans who finished high school and who went to college increased significantly. This in turn led to better jobs and business opportunities.

Another accomplishment of the civil rights movement was to give African Americans greater pride in their racial identity. Many African Americans adopted African-influenced styles and proudly displayed symbols of African history and culture. College students demanded new Black Studies programs so they could study African-American history and literature. In the entertainment world, the “color bar” was lowered as African Americans began to appear more frequently in movies and on television shows and commercials.

In addition, African Americans made substantial political gains. By 1970, an estimated two-thirds of eligible African Americans were registered to vote, and a significant increase in African-American elected officials resulted. The number of African Americans holding elected office grew from fewer than 100 in 1965 to more than 7,000 in 1992. Many civil rights activists went on to become political leaders, among them Reverend Jesse Jackson, who sought the Democratic nomination for president in 1984 and 1988; Vernon Jordan, who led voter-registration drives that enrolled about 2 million African Americans; and Andrew Young, who has served as UN ambassador and Atlanta’s mayor.

Historical Spotlight: Shirley Chisholm photo: Shirley Chisholm.

African-American women such as Shirley Chisholm exemplified the advances won in the civil rights movement. In 1968, Chisholm became the first African-American woman in the United States House of Representatives.

In the mid-1960s, Chisholm served in the New York state assembly, representing a district in New York City. While there, she supported programs to establish public day-care centers and provide unemployment insurance to domestic workers.

In 1972, Chisholm gained national prominence by running for the Democratic presidential nomination. Despite the fact that she never won more than 10% of the vote in the primaries, she controlled 152 delegates at the Democratic convention in Miami.

Unfinished Work

The civil rights movement was successful in changing many discriminatory laws. Yet as the 1960s turned to the 1970s, the challenges for the movement changed. The issues it confronted—housing and job discrimination, educational inequality, poverty, and racism—involved the difficult task of changing people’s attitudes and behavior. Some of the proposed solutions, such as more tax monies spent in the inner cities and the forced busing of schoolchildren, angered some whites, who resisted further changes. Public support for the civil rights movement declined because some whites were frightened by the urban riots and the Black Panthers.

By 1990, the trend of whites fleeing the cities for the suburbs had reversed much of the progress toward school

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integration. In 1996–1997, 28 percent of blacks in the South and 50 percent of blacks in the Northeast were attending schools with fewer than 10 percent whites. Lack of jobs also remained a serious problem for African Americans, who had a poverty rate three times that of whites.

Changes in Poverty and Education A graph compares poverty status and education between African-Americans and Whites in 1959 and 1999.

DESCRIPTION:

Eight pipe charts compare Whites and African-Americans in education and poverty status in 1959 and 1999.

African-Americans, 1959: 56% living in poverty.
African-Americans, 1999: 22.7% living in poverty.
Whites, 1959: 16.5% living in poverty.
Whites, 1999: 8.1% living in poverty.
African-Americans, 1959: 3.3% with four or more years of college.
African-Americans, 1999: 15.4% with four or more years of college.
Whites, 1959: 8.6% with four or more years of college.
Whites, 1999: 25.9% with four or more years of college.

To help equalize education and job opportunities, the government in the 1960s began to promote affirmative action. Affirmative-action programs involve making special efforts to hire or enroll groups that have suffered discrimination. Many colleges and almost all companies that do business with the federal government adopted such programs. But in the late 1970s, some people began to criticize affirmative-action programs as “reverse discrimination” that set minority hiring or enrollment quotas and deprived whites of opportunities. In the 1980s, Republican administrations eased affirmative-action requirements for some government contractors. The fate of affirmative action is still to be decided.

Today, African Americans and whites interact in ways that could have only been imagined before the civil rights movement. In many respects, Dr. King’s dream has been realized—yet much remains to be done.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• de facto segregation

• de jure segregation

• Malcolm X

• Nation of Islam

• Stokely Carmichael

• Black Power

• Black Panthers

• Kerner Commission

• Civil Rights Act of 1968

• affirmative action

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a timeline of key events of the civil rights movement.

A blank timeline shows five dates: July 1964, February 1965, August 1965, October 1966, and April 1968.

In your opinion, which event was most significant? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING ISSUES

What factors contributed to the outbreak of violence in the fight for civil rights? Think About:

• different leaders’ approach to civil rights issues

• living conditions in urban areas

• de facto and de jure segregation

4. COMPARING AND CONTRASTING

Compare and contrast the civil rights strategies of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. Whose strategies do you think were more effective? Explain and support your response.

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Tracing Themes: Civil Rights

Thomas Jefferson asserted in the Declaration of Independence that “all men are created equal” and are endowed with the “unalienable rights” of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” With these words, a new nation was founded on the principle that citizens have certain fundamental civil rights. These include the right to vote, the right to enjoy freedom of speech and religion, and others. For more than 200 years, the United States has stood as a worldwide example of a country committed to securing the rights of its people.

However, throughout the nation’s history, some Americans have had to struggle to obtain even the most basic civil rights. Laws or customs prevented certain people from voting freely, from speaking their minds on political issues, and from living and going where they wish. Over time, many of these barriers have been torn down.

In recent years, the United States has tried to promote human rights in other countries through its foreign policy. Even as it does so, the United States continues to struggle to fulfill for all Americans the lofty ideals established by the nation’s founders.

illustration: delegates to the Consitutional Congress debate.

1791 BILL OF RIGHTS During the Constitutional Convention, the question of a bill of rights arose, but none was included. During the process of ratification, many people argued that the Constitution needed to list the basic civil rights and liberties that the federal government could not take away from the people. Accordingly, the nation ratified ten amendments to the Constitution—the Bill of Rights. It establishes such rights as freedom of speech, religion, and assembly, freedom of the press, and the right to a trial by jury. While these rights have been subject to interpretation over the nation’s history, the Bill of Rights serves as the cornerstone of American democracy. Engraving: African-Americans and whites raise their hats and dance in celebration.

Engraving: African-Americans and whites raise their hats and dance in celebration.

THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT 1868 In the engraving above, a crowd of black and white Americans celebrates the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1866. This act recognized the citizenship of African Americans and granted the same civil rights to all people born in the United States except Native Americans. The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified two years later, made these changes part of the Constitution. The Amendment declared that states cannot deny anyone “equal protection of the laws” and extended the right to vote to all 21-year-old males, including former slaves. Despite these provisions, African Americans and other groups would still struggle to claim their full rights as U.S. citizens. 931 photo: water sprayed from a hose hits a group of African-Americans.

photo: water sprayed from a hose hits a group of African-Americans.

1950s & 1960s THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT Despite the Fourteenth Amendment and later the Fifteenth Amendment, which forbade states from denying anyone the right to vote on account of race, African Americans continued to live as second-class citizens, especially in the South. During the 1950s and 1960s, African Americans and other Americans led a powerful movement to fight for racial equality. The movement often met with strong resistance, such as in Birmingham, Alabama, where police sprayed demonstrators with high-pressure fire hoses (right). Nevertheless, it succeeded in securing for African Americans the civil rights promised by the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. The civil rights movement has also been the basis for other groups gaining equal rights, including other minorities, women, and people with disabilities. photo: Jimmy Carter.

1970s THINKING CRITICALLY HUMAN RIGHTS President Jimmy Carter considered human rights an important foreign policy issue. Human rights are what Americans think of as their civil rights, including the right to vote and to receive a fair trial. The Carter administration tried to encourage greater freedom abroad by taking such steps as cutting off military aid to countries with poor human rights records. While these efforts met with mixed results, the issue of human rights has continued to influence U.S. foreign policy. In the 1990s, for example, the U.S. government tried to push China toward increasing human rights while keeping alive its trade ties with that country. As a private citizen, Jimmy Carter has also continued to champion human rights causes. In 1982, he and his wife, Rosalynn, founded the Carter Center, whose programs seek to end human rights abuses and promote democracy worldwide. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Analyzing Issues The Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments both provided for the voting rights of African Americans. Based on what you have read in the chapter, how were these rights denied African Americans? How were they finally secured?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R14. Connect to Today

2. Writing About Rights Have you or anyone you’ve known had their civil rights denied them in any way? Research a current-day instance of an alleged civil rights injustice. Write an account of the issue and share it with your class.

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Chapter 29: Assessment

Visual Summary: Civil Rights a timeline shows events in the civil rights movement, 1854-1968.

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events in civil rights, 1954-1968.

1954: Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.
1955: Montgomery bus boycott.
1957: School desegregation crisis in Arkansas.
1957: Southern Christian Leadership Conference is formed to carry on nonviolent crusades.
1961: Freedom Riders begin a bus ride through the South to protest segregation.
1963: More than 250,000 people march on Washington to demand immediate passage of the civil rights bill.
1964: Congress passes the Civil Rights Act.
1965: Malcolm X is assassinated.
1965: March from Selma to Montgomery to fight for voting Rights.
1965: Congress passes the Voting Rights Act.
1967: Rioting in Detroit and more than 100 other cities.
1968: Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated.

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the civil rights movement.

1. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

2. Rosa Parks

3. Martin Luther King, Jr.

4. Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

5. freedom rider

6. Civil Rights Act of 1964

7. Fannie Lou Hamer

8. de facto segregation

9. Malcolm X

10. Black Power

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Taking on Segregation (pages 906–913)

1. What were Jim Crow laws and how were they applied?

2. What were the roots of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s beliefs in nonviolent resistance?

The Triumphs of a Crusade (pages 916–922)

3. What was the significance of the federal court case won by James Meredith in 1962?

4. Cite three examples of violence committed between 1962 and 1964 against African Americans and civil rights activists.

Challenges and Changes in the Movement (pages 923–929)

5. What were some of the key beliefs advocated by Malcolm X?

6. Why did some civil rights leaders urge Stokely Carmichael to stop using the slogan “Black Power”?

Thinking Critically

1. USING YOUR NOTES On your own paper, draw a cluster diagram like the one shown below. Then, fill it in with four events from the civil rights movement that were broadcast on nationwide television and that you find the most compelling.

Diagram: the words TV Coverage of the Civil Rights Movement are surrounded by four blank ovals labled Example:

2. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Overall, would you characterize the civil rights struggle as a unified or disunified movement? Explain.

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look carefully at the map of U.S. school segregation on page 907. What regional differences do you think spurred civil rights activists to target the South before the North?

933 Standardized Test Practice

Use the diagram and your knowledge of United States history to answer question 1.

diagram: three ovals intersect in an area labled X. The ovals are labeled: SCLC March on Washington, SNCC Voter Registration, and NAACP Brown v. Board of Ed. Lawsuit.

Civil Rights Strategies and Actions, 1954-1968

1. The Venn diagram is partially filled in with the strategies of various civil rights groups in the 1960s. Which of the following could be added to the area of the diagram labeled X?

A provide social services to the needy

B boycotts

C nonviolent demonstrations

D armed self-defense

Use the quotation as well as your knowledge of United States history to answer question 2.

“An illegal attack, an unjust attack, and an immoral attack can be made against you by any one. Just because a person has on a [police] uniform does not give him the right to come and shoot up your neighborhood. No, this is not right, and my suggestion would be that as long as the police department does-n’t use those methods in white neighborhoods, they shouldn’t come … and use them in our neighborhood….”
—MALCOLM X, “Prospects for Freedom in 1965”

2. Which of the following events justifies Malcolm X’s concerns about police brutality?

F the Rosa Parks incident in 1955

G the 1963 Birmingham demonstrations

H the desegregation of Little Rock’s Central High in 1957

J the first sit-ins in 1942

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 905:

What rights are worth fighting for?

Choose one participant in the civil rights movement. From that person’s perspective, write a speech in which you evaluate your role in the movement. Consider these questions:

• What civil rights did you work for?

• Why are these rights important?

• How successful were you?

• What were the costs of your struggle?

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video, “Justice in Montgomery.” Discuss the following questions with a small group of classmates. Then do the activity.

• What role did Jo Ann Gibson Robinson and the African-American women of Montgomery play in the boycott?

• What responsibilities do you think individuals have to stop injustice?

Cooperative Learning Activity You have just seen an account of the Montgomery bus boycott through the eyes of one person, Jo Ann Gibson Robinson. With your group, decide how you would teach people about the boycott—from what perspective and with what materials. Create a multimedia presentation to give to the class.

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Chapter 30: The Vietnam War Years

photo: soldiers walk across a field, while helicopters fly low overhead. A title: The Vietnam War Years.

U.S. troops on patrol with helicopter support in Vietnam, 1965. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 934 and page 935 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1960 to 1975 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1960 to 1975 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1960-1975.

1960, the World: The National Liberation Front forms in South Vietnam.
1960, USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.
1962, the World: the African nation of Uganda becomes independent.
1963: USA: Kennedy is assassinated; Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1965, USA: First major U.S. combat units arrive in Vietnam.
1966, the World: Mao Zedong begins the Cultural Revolution in China.
1967, the World: Israel captures Gaza Strip and West Bank in Six-Day War.
1968, USA: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy are assassinated.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1969, USA: U.S. troops begin their withdrawal from Vietnam.
1970, USA: Ohio National Guard kills four students at Kent State University.
1972, the World: Ferdinand Marcos declares martial law in the Phillippines.
1972, USA: Richard M. Nixon is reelected.
1973, USA: United States signs cease-fire with North Vietnam and Vietcong.
1974, USA: Gerald R. Ford becomes president after Richard M. Nixon resigns.
1975, the World: Communists capture Saigon; South Vietnam surrenders.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 934 and page 935 in the print version. 935 photo: soldiers walk across a field, while helicopters fly low overhead. A title: The Vietnam War Years.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 934 and page 935 in the print version. Interact with History

In 1965, America’s fight against communism has spread to Southeast Asia, where the United States is becoming increasingly involved in another country’s civil war. Unable to claim victory, U.S. generals call for an increase in the number of combat troops. Facing a shortage of volunteers, the president implements a draft.

Who should be exempt from the draft?

Examine the Issues

• Should people who believe the war is wrong be forced to fight?

• Should people with special skills be exempt?

• How can a draft be made fair?

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1960-1975.

1960, the World: The National Liberation Front forms in South Vietnam.
1960, USA: John F. Kennedy is elected president.
1962, the World: the African nation of Uganda becomes independent.
1963: USA: Kennedy is assassinated; Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1965, USA: First major U.S. combat units arrive in Vietnam.
1966, the World: Mao Zedong begins the Cultural Revolution in China.
1967, the World: Israel captures Gaza Strip and West Bank in Six-Day War.
1968, USA: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy are assassinated.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1969, USA: U.S. troops begin their withdrawal from Vietnam.
1970, USA: Ohio National Guard kills four students at Kent State University.
1972, the World: Ferdinand Marcos declares martial law in the Phillippines.
1972, USA: Richard M. Nixon is reelected.
1973, USA: United States signs cease-fire with North Vietnam and Vietcong.
1974, USA: Gerald R. Ford becomes president after Richard M. Nixon resigns.
1975, the World: Communists capture Saigon; South Vietnam surrenders.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 934 and page 935 in the print version. 936

Section 1: Moving Toward Conflict

One American’s Story

On the morning of September 26, 1945, Lieutenant Colonel A. Peter Dewey was on his way to the Saigon airport in Vietnam. Only 28, Dewey served in the Office of Strategic Services, the chief intelligence-gathering body of the U.S. military and forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency. Dewey was sent to assess what was becoming an explosive situation in Vietnam, a Southeast Asian country that had recently been freed from Japanese rule as a result of the allied victory in World War II. (See map on page 939.)

Before the war, France had ruled Vietnam and the surrounding countries; now it sought—with British aid—to regain control of the region. The Vietnamese had resisted Japanese occupation; now they were preparing to fight the French. Dewey saw nothing but disaster in France’s plan. “Cochinchina [southern Vietnam] is burning,” he reported, “the French and British are finished here, and we [the United States] ought to clear out of Southeast Asia.”

Lieutenant Colonel A. Peter Dewey

On his way to the airport, Dewey encountered a roadblock staffed by Vietnamese soldiers and shouted at them in French. Presumably mistaking him for a French soldier, the guards shot him in the head. Thus, A. Peter Dewey, whose body was never recovered, was the first American to die in Vietnam.

Unfortunately, Dewey would not be the last. As Vietnam’s independence effort came under communist influence, the United States grew increasingly concerned about the small country’s future. Eventually, America would fight a war to halt the spread of communism in Vietnam. The war would claim the lives of almost 60,000 Americans and more than 2 million Vietnamese. It also would divide the American nation as no other event since the Civil War.

America Supports France in Vietnam

America’s involvement in Vietnam began in 1950, during the French Indochina War, the name given to France’s attempt to reestablish its rule in Vietnam after World War II. Seeking to strengthen its ties with France and to help fight the spread of communism, the United States provided the French with massive economic and military support.

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French Rule in Vietnam

From the late 1800s until World War II, France ruled most of Indochina, including Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. French colonists, who built plantations on peasant land and extracted rice and rubber for their own profit, encountered growing unrest among the Vietnamese peasants. French rulers reacted harshly by restricting freedom of speech and assembly and by jailing many Vietnamese nationalists. These measures failed to curb all dissent, and opposition continued to grow.

The Indochinese Communist Party, founded in 1930, staged a number of revolts under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh. Although the French condemned Ho Chi Minh to death for his rebellious activity, he fled Vietnam and orchestrated Vietnam’s growing independence movement from exile in the Soviet Union and later from China.

Key Player: Ho Chi Minh 1890–1969 photo: Ho Chi Minh.

Born Nguyen Tat Thanh to a poor Vietnamese family, Ho Chi Minh (which means “He Who Enlightens”) found work as a cook on a French steamship. This allowed him to visit such cities as Boston and New York.

Ho Chi Minh based the phrasing of the Vietnamese Declaration of Independence on the U.S. Declaration of Independence. His admiration for the United States turned to disappointment, however, after the government chose to support France rather than his nationalist movement.

The Communist ruler’s name lived on after his death in 1969. In 1975, the North Vietnamese Army conquered South Vietnam and changed the name of the South’s capital from Saigon to Ho Chi Minh City.

In 1940 the Japanese took control of Vietnam. The next year, Ho Chi Minh returned home and helped form the Vietminh, an organization whose goal it was to win Vietnam’s independence from foreign rule. When the Allied defeat of Japan in August 1945 forced the Japanese to leave Vietnam, that goal suddenly seemed a reality. On September 2, 1945, Ho Chi Minh stood in the middle of a huge crowd in the northern city of Hanoi and declared Vietnam an independent nation.

France Battles the Vietminh

France, however, had no intention of relinquishing its former colony. French troops moved back into Vietnam by the end of 1945, eventually regaining control of the cities and the country’s southern half. Ho Chi Minh vowed to fight from the North to liberate the South from French control. “If ever the tiger pauses,” Ho had said, referring to the Vietminh, “the elephant [France] will impale him on his mighty tusks. But the tiger will not pause, and the elephant will die of exhaustion and loss of blood.”

In 1950, the United States entered the Vietnam struggle—despite A. Peter Dewey’s warnings. That year, President Truman sent nearly $15 million in economic aid to France. Over the next four years, the United States paid for much of France’s war, pumping nearly $1 billion into the effort to defeat a man America had once supported. Ironically, during World War II, the United States had forged an alliance with Ho Chi Minh, supplying him with aid to resist the Japanese. But by 1950, the United States had come to view its one-time ally as a communist aggressor.

The Vietminh Drive out the French

Upon entering the White House in 1953, President Eisenhower continued the policy of supplying aid to the French war effort. By this time, the United States had settled for a stalemate with the communists in Korea, which only stiffened America’s resolve to halt the spread of communism elsewhere. During a news conference in 1954, Eisenhower explained the domino theory, in which he likened the countries on the brink of communism to a row of dominoes waiting to fall one after the other. “You have a row of dominoes set up,” the president said. “You knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly.”

Despite massive U.S. aid, however, the French could not retake Vietnam. They were forced to surrender in May of 1954, when the Vietminh overran the French outpost at Dien Bien Phu, in northwestern Vietnam.

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From May through July 1954, the countries of France, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, the United States, China, Laos, and Cambodia met in Geneva, Switzerland, with the Vietminh and with South Vietnam’s anticommunist nationalists to hammer out a peace agreement. The Geneva Accords temporarily divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel. The Communists and their leader, Ho Chi Minh, controlled North Vietnam from the capital of Hanoi. The anticommunist nationalists controlled South Vietnam from the capital and southern port city of Saigon. An election to unify the country was called for in 1956.

The United States Steps In

In the wake of France’s retreat, the United States took a more active role in halting the spread of communism in Vietnam. Wading deeper into the country’s affairs, the Eisenhower and the Kennedy administrations provided economic and military aid to South Vietnam’s non-Communist regime.

Diem Cancels Elections

Although he directed a brutal and repressive regime, Ho Chi Minh won popular support in the North by breaking up large estates and redistributing land to peasants. Moreover, his years of fighting the Japanese and French had made him a national hero. Recognizing Ho Chi Minh’s widespread popularity, South Vietnam’s president, Ngo Dinh Diem (ngIP dGnP dC-DmP), a strong anti-Communist, refused to take part in the countrywide election of 1956. The United States also sensed that a countrywide election might spell victory for Ho Chi Minh and supported canceling elections. The Eisenhower administration promised military aid and training to Diem in return for a stable reform government in the South.

Diem, however, failed to hold up his end of the bargain. He ushered in a corrupt government that suppressed opposition of any kind and offered little or no land distribution to peasants. In addition, Diem, a devout Catholic, angered the country’s majority Buddhist population by restricting Buddhist practices.

By 1957, a Communist opposition group in the South, known as the Vietcong, had begun attacks on the Diem government, assassinating thousands of South Vietnamese government officials. Although the political arm of the group would later be called the National Liberation Front (NLF), the United States continued to refer to the fighters as the Vietcong.

poster: Vietnames villagers attack a U.S. soldier with pitchforks and spears.

The Vietcong saw the United States and South Vietnam as oppressors. This propaganda poster reads, “Vietnam will surely be victorious and America will surely be defeated..”

Ho Chi Minh supported the group, and in 1959 began supplying arms to the Vietcong via a network of paths along the borders of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia that became known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail. (See map on page 939.) As the fighters stepped up their surprise attacks, or guerrilla tactics, South Vietnam grew more unstable. The Eisenhower administration took little action, however, deciding to “sink or swim with Ngo Dinh Diem.”

Kennedy and Vietnam

The Kennedy administration, which entered the White House in 1961, also chose initially to “swim” with Diem. Wary of accusations that Democrats were “soft” on communism, President Kennedy increased financial aid to Diem’s teetering regime and sent thousands of military advisers to help train South Vietnamese troops. By the end of 1963, 16,000 U.S. military personnel were in South Vietnam.

Meanwhile, Diem’s popularity plummeted because of ongoing corruption and his failure to respond to calls for land reform. To combat the growing Vietcong presence in the South’s countryside, the Diem administration initiated the strategic hamlet program, which meant moving all villagers to protected areas.

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DESCRIPTION:

The Ho Chi Minh Trail leads south from North Vietnam into Laos and Cambodia, and runs along the border of South Vietnam. Seven arrows branch off the main trail, where attacks into South Vietnam reached toward cities like Hue, Da Nang and Saigon.

Indochina, 1959 photo: oldiers stand at attention in a field near mountains.

After parachuting into the mountains north of Dien Bien Phu, South Vietnamese troops await orders from French officers in 1953. photo: soldiers charge through a cloud of white smoke.

photo: soldiers charge through a cloud of white smoke.

The swampy terrain of South Vietnam made for difficult and dangerous fighting. This 1961 photograph shows South Vietnamese Army troops in combat operations against Vietcong photo: a Vietnamese civillian carries bundles to a river.

photo: a Vietnamese civillian carries bundles to a river.

Rivers serve as places to work, bathe, and wash clothing. 940

Many Vietnamese deeply resented being moved from their home villages where they had lived for generations and where ancestors were buried.

photo: a man engulfed in flames sits in a road.

A Buddhist monk sets himself on fire in a busy Saigon intersection in 1963 as a protest against the Diem regime.

Diem also intensified his attack on Buddhism. Fed up with continuing Buddhist demonstrations, the South Vietnamese ruler imprisoned and killed hundreds of Buddhist clerics and destroyed their temples. To protest, several Buddhist monks and nuns publicly burned themselves to death. Horrified, American officials urged Diem to stop the persecutions, but Diem refused.

It had become clear that for South Vietnam to remain stable, Diem would have to go. On November 1, 1963, a U.S.-supported military coup toppled Diem’s regime. Against Kennedy’s wishes, Diem was assassinated. A few weeks later, Kennedy, too, fell to an assassin’s bullet. The United States presidency—along with the growing crisis in Vietnam—now belonged to Lyndon B. Johnson.

President Johnson Expands the Conflict

Shortly before his death, Kennedy had announced his intent to withdraw U.S. forces from South Vietnam. “In the final analysis, it’s their war,” he declared. Whether Kennedy would have withdrawn from Vietnam remains a matter of debate. However, Lyndon Johnson escalated the nation’s role in Vietnam and eventually began what would become America’s longest war.

The South Grows more Unstable

Diem’s death brought more chaos to South Vietnam. A string of military leaders attempted to lead the country, but each regime was more unstable and inefficient than Diem’s had been. Meanwhile, the Vietcong’s influence in the countryside steadily grew.

President Johnson believed that a communist takeover of South Vietnam would be disastrous. Johnson, like Kennedy, was particularly sensitive to being perceived as “soft” on communism. “If I … let the communists take over South Vietnam,” Johnson said, “then … my nation would be seen as an appeaser and we would … find it impossible to accomplish anything … anywhere on the entire globe.”

The Tonkin Gulf Resolution

On August 2, 1964, a North Vietnamese patrol boat fired a torpedo at an American destroyer, the USS Maddox, which was patrolling in the Gulf of Tonkin off the North Vietnamese coast. The torpedo missed its target, but the Maddox returned fire and inflicted heavy damage on the patrol boat.

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The Navy destroyer U.S.S. Maddox.

Two days later, the Maddox and another destroyer were again off the North Vietnamese coast. In spite of bad weather that could affect visibility, the crew reported enemy torpedoes, and the American destroyers began firing. The crew of the Maddox later declared, however, that they had neither seen nor heard hostile gunfire.

The alleged attack on the U.S. ships prompted President Johnson to launch bombing strikes on North Vietnam. He asked Congress for powers to take “all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.” Congress approved Johnson’s request, with only two senators voting against it, and adopted the Tonkin Gulf Resolution on August 7. While not a declaration of war, it granted Johnson broad military powers in Vietnam.

Johnson did not tell Congress or the American people that the United States had been leading secret raids against North Vietnam. The Maddox had been in the Gulf of Tonkin to collect information for these raids. Furthermore, Johnson had prepared the resolution months beforehand and was only waiting for the chance to push it through Congress.

In February of 1965, President Johnson used his newly granted powers. In response to a Vietcong attack that killed eight Americans, Johnson unleashed “Operation Rolling Thunder,” the first sustained bombing of North Vietnam. In March of that year the first American combat troops began arriving in South Vietnam. By June, more than 50,000 U.S. soldiers were battling the Vietcong. The Vietnam War had become Americanized.

Section 1: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Ho Chi Minh

• Vietminh

• domino theory

• Dien Bien Phu

• Geneva Accords

• Ngo Dinh Diem

• Vietcong

• Ho Chi Minh Trail

• Tonkin Gulf Resolution

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a chart like the one below, cite the Vietnam policy for each of the following presidents: Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson.

A blank chart is divided into two columns: President on the left side and Vietnam Policy on the right.

Choose one of the four presidents and explain his goals in Vietnam.

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

How did the United States become more involved in the war? Explain your answer in a short paragraph.

4. SYNTHESIZING

In what ways was America’s support of the Diem government a conflict of interests? Cite examples to support your answer.

5. EVALUATING

Do you think Congress was justified in passing the Tonkin Gulf Resolution? Use details from the text to support your response. Think About:

• the questionable report of torpedo attacks on two U.S. destroyers

• the powers that the resolution would give the president

• the fact that the resolution was not a declaration of war

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Section 2: U.S. Involvement and Escalation

One American’s Story

Tim O’Brien is a novelist who has written several books about his experience in Vietnam and its lasting effects. Drafted at the age of 21, O’Brien was sent to Vietnam in August 1968. He spent the first seven months of his nearly two-year duty patrolling the fields outside of Chu Lai, a seacoast city in South Vietnam. O’Brien described one of the more nerve-racking experiences of the war: walking through the fields and jungles, many of which were filled with land mines and booby traps.

photo: soldiers wade through thigh-deep water in a jungle.

Vietnam’s terrain was often treacherous, such as the thick jungles and rivers these U.S. soldiers encountered in 1966.

A PERSONAL VOICE

TIM O’BRIEN

“You do some thinking. You hallucinate. You look ahead a few paces and wonder what your legs will resemble if there is more to the earth in that spot than silicates and nitrogen. Will the pain be unbearable? Will you scream and fall silent? Will you be afraid to look at your own body, afraid of the sight of your own red flesh and white bone? …

It is not easy to fight this sort of self-defeating fear, but you try. You decide to be ultra-careful—the hard-nosed realistic approach. You try to second-guess the mine. Should you put your foot to that flat rock or the clump of weeds to its rear? Paddy dike or water? You wish you were Tarzan, able to swing on the vines. You trace the footprints of the men to your front. You give up when he curses you for following too closely; better one man dead than two.”
—quoted in A Life in a Year: The American Infantryman in Vietnam 1965–1972

Deadly traps were just some of the obstacles that U.S. troops faced. As the infiltration of American ground troops into Vietnam failed to score a quick victory, a mostly supportive U.S. population began to question its government’s war policy.

Johnson Increases U.S. Involvement

Much of the nation supported Lyndon Johnson’s determination to contain communism in Vietnam. In the years following 1965, President Johnson began sending large numbers of American troops to fight alongside the South Vietnamese.

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Strong Support for Containment

Even after Congress had approved the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, President Johnson opposed sending U.S. ground troops to Vietnam. Johnson’s victory in the 1964 presidential election was due in part to charges that his Republican opponent, Barry Goldwater, was an anti-Communist who might push the United States into war with the Soviet Union. In contrast to Goldwater’s heated, warlike language, Johnson’s speeches were more moderate, yet he spoke determinedly about containing communism. He declared he was “not about to send American boys 9 or 10,000 miles away from home to do what Asian boys ought to be doing for themselves.”

However, in March of 1965, that is precisely what the president did. Working closely with his foreign-policy advisers, particularly Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and Secretary of State Dean Rusk, President Johnson began dis-patching tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers to fight in Vietnam. Some Americans viewed Johnson’s decision as contradictory to his position during the presidential campaign. However, most saw the president as following an established and popular policy of confronting communism anywhere in the world. Congress, as well as the American public, strongly supported Johnson’s strategy. A 1965 poll showed that 61 percent of Americans supported the U.S. policy in Vietnam, while only 24 percent opposed.

There were dissenters within the Johnson administration, too. In October of 1964, Undersecretary of State George Ball had argued against escalation, warning that “once on the tiger’s back, we cannot be sure of picking the place to dis-mount.” However, the president’s closest advisers strongly urged escalation, believing the defeat of communism in Vietnam to be of vital importance to the future of America and the world. Dean Rusk stressed this view in a 1965 memo to President Johnson.

Key Player: General William Westmoreland (1914–2005) photo: General William Westmoreland.

General Westmoreland retired from the military in 1972, but even in retirement, he could not escape the Vietnam War.

In 1982, CBS-TV aired a documentary entitled The Uncounted Enemy: A Vietnam Deception. The report, viewed by millions, asserted that Westmoreland and the Pentagon had deceived the U.S. government about the enemy’s size and strength during 1967 and 1968 to make it appear that U.S. forces were winning the war.

Westmoreland, claiming he was the victim of “distorted, false, and specious information … derived by sinister deception,” filed a $120 million libel suit against CBS. The suit was eventually settled, with both parties issuing statements pledging mutual respect. CBS, how-ever, stood by its story.

A PERSONAL VOICE

DEAN RUSK

“The integrity of the U.S. commitment is the principal pillar of peace throughout the world. If that commitment becomes unreliable, the communist world would draw conclusions that would lead to our ruin and almost certainly to a catastrophic war. So long as the South Vietnamese are prepared to fight for themselves, we cannot abandon them without disaster to peace and to our interests throughout the world.”
—quoted in In Retrospect

The Troop Buildup Accelerates

By the end of 1965, the U.S. government had sent more than 180,000 Americans to Vietnam. The American commander in South Vietnam, General William Westmoreland, continued to request more troops. Westmoreland, a West Point graduate who had served in World War II and Korea, was less than impressed with the fighting ability of the South Vietnamese Army, or the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN). The ARVN “cannot stand up to this pressure without substantial U.S. combat support on the ground,” the general reported. “The only possible response is the aggressive deployment of U.S. troops.” Throughout the early years of the war, the Johnson administration complied with Westmoreland’s requests; by 1967, the number of U.S. troops in Vietnam had climbed to about 500,000.

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Fighting in the Jungle

The United States entered the war in Vietnam believing that its superior weaponry would lead it to victory over the Vietcong. However, the jungle terrain and the enemy’s guerrilla tactics soon turned the war into a frustrating stalemate.

An Elusive Enemy

Because the Vietcong lacked the high-powered weaponry of the American forces, they used hit-and-run and ambush tactics, as well as a keen knowledge of the jungle terrain, to their advantage. Moving secretly in and out of the general population, the Vietcong destroyed the notion of a traditional front line by attacking U.S. troops in both the cities and the countryside. Because some of the enemy lived amidst the civilian population, it was difficult for U.S. troops to discern friend from foe. A woman selling soft drinks to U.S. soldiers might be a Vietcong spy. A boy standing on the corner might be ready to throw a grenade.

Adding to the Vietcong’s elusiveness was a network of elaborate tunnels that allowed them to withstand airstrikes and to launch surprise attacks and then dis-appear quickly. Connecting villages throughout the countryside, the tunnels became home to many guerrilla fighters. “The more the Americans tried to drive us away from our land, the more we burrowed into it,” recalled Major Nguyen Quot of the Vietcong Army.

In addition, the terrain was laced with countless booby traps and land mines. Because the exact location of the Vietcong was often unknown, U.S. troops laid land mines throughout the jungle. The Vietcong also laid their own traps, and disassembled and reused U.S. mines. American soldiers marching through South

A map: Tunnels of the Vietcong. The map shows an underwater entrance leading to a web of tunnels with its own water well, kitchen, sleeping chambers and storage cache.

Tunnels of the Vietcong
INTERACTIVE Remote smoke outlets Kitchen Submerged entrance Firing post Ventilation shaft Conference chamber Punji stake pit Sleeping chamber Conical air raid shelter that also amplified sound of approaching aircraft Blast, gas, and waterproof trap doors False tunnel First-aid station powered by bicycle Well Booby trap grenade Storage cache for weapons, explosives, and rice Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 945

Vietnam’s jungles and rice paddies not only dealt with sweltering heat and leeches but also had to be cautious of every step. In a 1969 letter to his sister, Specialist Fourth Class Salvador Gonzalez described the tragic result from an unexploded U.S. bomb that the North Vietnamese Army had rigged.

A PERSONAL VOICE

SALVADOR GONZALEZ

“Two days ago 4 guys got killed and about 15 wounded from the first platoon. Our platoon was 200 yards away on top of a hill. One guy was from Floral Park [in New York City]. He had five days left to go [before being sent home]. He was standing on a 250-lb. bomb that a plane had dropped and didn’t explode. So the NVA [North Vietnamese Army] wired it up. Well, all they found was a piece of his wallet.”
—quoted in Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam

Now & Then: Land Mines

Perhaps 3 million armed mines remain in Vietnam. Worldwide, 15,000–20,000 civilians are killed or maimed by land mines each year.

The 1997 Mine Ban Treaty bans production and use of antipersonnel mines worldwide. As of 2007, 155 nations had agreed to the treaty, with the notable exceptions of the United States, Russia, and China. In 1998, President Clinton declared that the United States would sign the treaty by 2006, if “suitable alternatives” to land mines had been developed, and asked the military to begin working toward this goal. In 2005, a U.S. plan to begin production of a new mine was made public.

The United States has been a big financial contributor to humanitarian land mine clearance. The budget for 2008 programs is $76 million.

A Frustrating War of Attrition

Westmoreland’s strategy for defeating the Vietcong was to destroy their morale through a war of attrition, or the gradual wearing down of the enemy by continuous harassment. Introducing the concept of the body count, or the tracking of Vietcong killed in battle, the general believed that as the number of Vietcong dead rose, the guerrillas would inevitably surrender.

However, the Vietcong had no intention of quitting their fight. Despite the growing number of casualties and the relentless pounding from U.S. bombers, the Vietcong—who received supplies from China and the Soviet Union—remained defiant. Defense Secretary McNamara confessed his frustration to a reporter in 1966: “If I had thought they would take this punishment and fight this well, … I would have thought differently at the start.”

General Westmoreland would say later that the United States never lost a battle in Vietnam. Whether or not the general’s words were true, they underscored the degree to which America misunderstood its foe. The United States viewed the war strictly as a military struggle; the Vietcong saw it as a battle for their very existence, and they were ready to pay any price for victory.

The Battle for “Hearts and Minds”

Another key part of the American strategy was to keep the Vietcong from winning the support of South Vietnam’s rural population. Edward G. Lansdale, who helped found the fighting unit known as the U.S. Army Special Forces, or Green Berets, stressed the plan’s importance. “Just remember this. Communist guerrillas hide among the people. If you win the people over to your side, the communist guerrillas have no place to hide.”

The campaign to win the “hearts and minds” of the South Vietnamese villagers proved more difficult than imagined. For instance, in their attempt to expose Vietcong tunnels and hideouts, U.S. planes dropped napalm, a gasoline-based bomb that set fire to the jungle. They also sprayed Agent Orange, a leaf-killing toxic chemical. The saturation use of these weapons often wounded civilians and left villages and their surroundings in ruins. Years later, many would blame Agent Orange for cancers in of Vietnamese civilians and American veterans.

U.S. soldiers conducted search-and-destroy missions, uprooting civilians with suspected ties to the Vietcong, killing their livestock, and burning villages. Many villagers fled into the cities or refugee camps, creating by 1967 more than 3 million refugees in the South. The irony of the strategy was summed up in February 1968 by a U.S. major whose forces had just leveled the town of Ben Tre: “We had to destroy the town in order to save it.”

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Sinking Morale

The frustrations of guerrilla warfare, the brutal jungle conditions, and the failure to make substantial headway against the enemy took their toll on the U.S. troops’ morale. Philip Caputo, a marine lieutenant in Vietnam who later wrote several books about the war, summarized the soldiers’ growing disillusionment: “When we marched into the rice paddies … we carried, along with our packs and rifles, the implicit convictions that the Vietcong could be quickly beaten. We kept the packs and rifles; the convictions, we lost.”

As the war continued, American morale dropped steadily. Many soldiers, required by law to fight a war they did not support, turned to alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs. Low morale even led a few soldiers to murder their superior officers. Morale would worsen during the later years of the war when soldiers realized they were fighting even as their government was negotiating a withdrawal.

Another obstacle was the continuing corruption and instability of the South Vietnamese government. Nguyen Cao Ky, a flamboyant air marshal, led the government from 1965 to 1967. Ky ignored U.S. pleas to retire in favor of an elected civilian government. Mass demonstrations began, and by May of 1966, Buddhist monks and nuns were once again burning themselves in protest against the South Vietnamese government. South Vietnam was fighting a civil war within a civil war, leaving U.S. officials confused and angry.

photo: a soldier wears bandoliers of bullets and a peace-sign necklace.

A soldier with the 61st Infantry Division wears symbols of both war and peace on his chest.

Fulfilling a Duty

Most American soldiers, however, firmly believed in their cause—to halt the spread of communism. They took patriotic pride in fulfilling their duty, just as their fathers had done in World War II.

Most American soldiers fought courageously. Particularly heroic were the thousands of soldiers who endured years of torture and confinement as prisoners of war. In 1966, navy pilot Gerald Coffee’s plane was shot down over North Vietnam. Coffee spent the next seven years—until he was released in 1973 as part of a cease-fire agreement—struggling to stay alive in an enemy prison camp.

A PERSONAL VOICE

GERALD COFFEE

“My clothes were filthy and ragged…. With no boots, my socks—which I’d been able to salvage—were barely recognizable…. Only a few threads around my toes kept them spread over my feet; some protection, at least, as I shivered through the cold nights curled up tightly on my morguelike slab…. My conditions and predicament were so foreign to me, so stifling, so overwhelming. I’d never been so hungry, so grimy, and in such pain.”
—Beyond Survival

The Early War at Home

The Johnson administration thought the war would end quickly. As it dragged on, support began to waver, and Johnson’s domestic programs began to unravel.

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The Great Society Suffers

As the number of U.S. troops in Vietnam continued to mount, the war grew more costly, and the nation’s economy began to suffer. The inflation rate, which was less than 2 percent through most of the early 1960s, more than tripled to 5.5 percent by 1969. In August of 1967, President Johnson asked for a tax increase to help fund the war and to keep inflation in check. Congressional conservatives agreed, but only after demanding and receiving a $6 billion reduction in funding for Great Society programs. Vietnam was slowly claiming an early casualty: Johnson’s grand vision of domestic reform.

The living-Room War

Through the media, specifically television, Vietnam became America’s first “living-room war.” The combat footage that appeared nightly on the news in millions of homes showed stark pictures that seemed to contradict the administration’s optimistic war scenario.

Quoting body-count statistics that showed large numbers of communists dying in battle, General Westmoreland continually reported that a Vietcong surrender was imminent. Defense Secretary McNamara backed up the general, saying that he could see “the light at the end of the tunnel.”

The repeated television images of Americans in body bags told a different story, though. While communists may have been dying, so too were Americans—over 16,000 between 1961 and 1967. Critics charged that a credibility gap was growing between what the Johnson administration reported and what was really happening.

First used in World War I, dog tags were stamped with personal identification information and worn by U.S. military personnel.

One critic was Senator J. William Fulbright, chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Fulbright, a former Johnson ally, charged the president with a “lack of candor” in portraying the war effort. In early 1966, the senator conducted a series of televised committee hearings in which he asked members of the Johnson administration to defend their Vietnam policies. The Fulbright hearings delivered few major revelations, but they did contribute to the growing doubts about the war. One woman appeared to capture the mood of Middle America when she told an interviewer, “I want to get out, but I don’t want to give in.”

By 1967, Americans were evenly split over supporting and opposing the war. However, a small force outside of mainstream America, mainly from the ranks of the nation’s youth, already had begun actively protesting the war. Their voices would grow louder and capture the attention of the entire nation.

Section 2: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Robert McNamara

• Dean Rusk

• William Westmoreland

• Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)

• napalm

• Agent Orange

• search-and-destroy mission

• credibility gap

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the chart below. Then, show key military tactics and weapons of the Vietcong and Americans.

	Vietcong	U.S.
Tactics
Weapons

Which weapons and tactics do you think were most successful? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Why did Americans fail to win the “hearts and minds” of the Vietnamese?

4. CONTRASTING

In a paragraph, contrast the morale of the U.S. troops with that of the Vietcong. Use evidence from the text to support your response.

5. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

What were the effects of the nightly TV coverage of the Vietnam War? Support your answer with examples from the text. Think About:

• television images of Americans in body bags

• the Johnson administration’s credibility gap

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Section 3: A Nation Divided

One American’s Story

In 1969, Stephan Gubar was told to report for possible military service in Vietnam. Gubar, 22, a participant in the civil rights movement, had filed as a conscientious objector (CO), or someone who opposed war on the basis of religious or moral beliefs. He was granted 1-A-O status, which meant that while he would not be forced to carry a weapon, he still qualified for noncombatant military duty. That year, Gubar was drafted—called for military service.

As did many other conscientious objectors, Gubar received special training as a medic. He described the memorable day his training ended.

A PERSONAL VOICE

STEPHAN GUBAR

“The thing that stands out most was … being really scared, being in formation and listening to the names and assignments being called. The majority of COs I knew had orders cut for Vietnam. And even though I could hear that happening, even though I could hear that every time a CO’s name came up, the orders were cut for Vietnam, I still thought there was a possibility I might not go. Then, when they called my name and said ‘Vietnam,’… I went to a phone and I called my wife. It was a tremendous shock.”
—quoted in Days of Decision

While many young Americans proudly went off to war, some found ways to avoid the draft, and others simply refused to go. The growing protest movement sharply divided the country between supporters and opponents of the government’s policy in Vietnam.

The Working Class Goes to War

The idea of fighting a war in a faraway place for what they believed was a questionable cause prompted a number of young Americans to resist going to Vietnam.

A “Manipulatable” Draft

Most soldiers who fought in Vietnam were called into combat under the country’s Selective Service System, or draft, which had been established during World War I. Under this system, all males had to register with their local draft boards when they turned 18. All registrants were screened, and unless they were excluded—such as for medical reasons—in the event of war, men between the ages of 18 and 26 would be called into military service.

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As Americans’ doubts about the war grew, thousands of men attempted to find ways around the draft, which one man characterized as a “very manipulatable system.” Some men sought out sympathetic doctors to grant medical exemptions, while others changed residences in order to stand before a more lenient draft board. Some Americans even joined the National Guard or Coast Guard, which often secured a deferment from service in Vietnam.

A Life magazine cover from 1965 shows men in civilian clothes gathered near a few soldiers. A caption reads The Draft, New Inductees at Ft. Knox answer the call-up.

A Life magazine cover shows new draft inductees arriving for training at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

One of the most common ways to avoid the draft was to receive a college deferment, by which a young man enrolled in a university could put off his military service. Because university students during the 1960s tended to be white and financially well-off, many of the men who fought in Vietnam were lower-class whites or minorities who were less privileged economically. With almost 80 percent of American soldiers coming from lower economic levels, Vietnam was a working-class war.

African Americans in Vietnam

African Americans served in disproportionate numbers as ground combat troops. During the first several years of the war, blacks accounted for more than 20 percent of American combat deaths despite representing only about 10 percent of the U.S. population. The Defense Department took steps to correct that imbalance by instituting a draft lottery system in 1969.

Martin Luther King, Jr., had refrained from speaking out against the war for fear that it would divert attention from the civil rights movement. But he could not maintain that stance for long. In 1967 he lashed out against what he called the “cruel irony” of American blacks dying for a country that still treated them as second-class citizens.

A PERSONAL VOICE

DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

“We were taking the young black men who had been crippled by our society and sending them eight thousand miles away to guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in Southwest Georgia and East Harlem…. We have been repeatedly faced with the cruel irony of watching Negro and white boys on TV screens as they kill and die together for a nation that has been unable to seat them together in the same schools.”
—quoted in America’s Vietnam War: A Narrative History

Racial tension ran high in many platoons, and in some cases, the hostility led to violence. The racism that gripped many military units was yet another factor that led to low troop morale in Vietnam.

DESCRIPTION:

A graph tracks the number of troops from 1963-1972. The graph forms a rough bell shape, with the highest peak in 1968 with 536,000 troops.

1963: 10,000
1964: 12,000
1965: 190,000
1966: 390,000
1967: 490,000
1968: 536,000
1969: 480,000
1970: 220,000
1971: 160,000
1972: 20,000

U.S. Military Personnel in Vietnam* Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1985; Encyclopedia Americana

*Year-end figures

photo: African-American and white soldiers stand together.

Despite racial tensions, black and white soldiers fought side by side in Vietnam. 950 photo: two women in military uniforms sit on sandbags.

Two U.S. nurses rest at Cam Ranh Bay, the major entry point in South Vietnam for American supplies and troops.

Women Join the Ranks

While the U.S. military in the 1960s did not allow females to serve in combat, 10,000 women served in Vietnam—most of them as military nurses. Thousands more volunteered their services in Vietnam to the American Red Cross and the United Services Organization (USO), which delivered hospitality and entertainment to the troops.

As the military marched off to Vietnam to fight against communist guerrillas, some of the men at home, as well as many women, waged a battle of their own. Tensions flared across the country as many of the nation’s youths began to voice their opposition to the war.

The Roots of Opposition

Even before 1965, students were becoming more active socially and politically. Some participated in the civil rights struggle, while others pursued public service. As America became more involved in the war in Vietnam, college students across the country became a powerful and vocal group of protesters.

The New Left

The growing youth movement of the 1960s became known as the New Left. The movement was “new” in relation to the “old left” of the 1930s, which had generally tried to move the nation toward socialism, and, in some cases, communism. While the New Left movement did not preach socialism, its followers demanded sweeping changes in American society.

Voicing these demands was one of the better-known New Left organizations, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), founded in 1960 by Tom Hayden and Al Haber. The group charged that corporations and large government institutions had taken over America. The SDS called for a restoration of “participatory democracy” and greater individual freedom.

In 1964, the Free Speech Movement (FSM) gained prominence at the University of California at Berkeley. The FSM grew out of a clash between students and administrators over free speech on campus. Led by Mario Savio, a philosophy student, the FSM focused its criticism on what it called the American “machine,” the nation’s faceless and powerful business and government institutions.

Campus Activism

Across the country the ideas of the FSM and SDS quickly spread to college campuses. Students addressed mostly campus issues, such as dress codes, curfews, dormitory regulations, and mandatory Reserved Officer

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Training Corps (ROTC) programs. At Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey, students marched merely as “an expression of general student discontent.”

With the onset of the Vietnam War, students across the country found a galvanizing issue and joined together in protest. By the mid-sixties, many youths believed the nation to be in need of fundamental change.

The Protest Movement Emerges

Throughout the spring of 1965, groups at a number of colleges began to host “teach-ins” to protest the war. At the University of Michigan, where only a year before President Johnson had announced his sweeping Great Society Program, teachers and students now assailed his war policy. “This is no longer a casual form of campus spring fever,” journalist James Reston noted about the growing demonstrations. As the war continued, the protests grew and divided the country.

The Movement Grows

In April of 1965, SDS helped organize a march on Washington, D.C., by some 20,000 protesters. By November of that year, a protest rally in Washington drew more than 30,000. Then, in February of 1966, the Johnson administration changed deferments for college students, requiring students to be in good academic standing in order to be granted a deferment. Campuses around the country erupted in protest. SDS called for civil disobedience at Selective Service Centers and openly counseled students to flee to Canada or Sweden. By the end of 1969, SDS had chapters on nearly 400 campuses.

Youths opposing the war did so for several reasons. The most common was the belief that the conflict in Vietnam was basically a civil war and that the U.S. military had no business there. Some said that the oppressive South Vietnamese regime was no better than the Communist regime it was fighting. Others argued that the United States could not police the entire globe and that war was draining American strength in other important parts of the world. Still others saw war simply as morally unjust.

The antiwar movement grew beyond college campuses. Small numbers of returning veterans began to protest the war, and folk singers such as the trio Peter, Paul, and Mary, and Joan Baez used music as a popular protest vehicle. The number one song in September 1965 was “Eve of Destruction,” in which singer Barry McGuire stressed the ironic fact that in the 1960s an American male could be drafted at age 18 but had to be 21 to vote:

Historical Spotlight: “The Ballad of the Green Berets”

Not every Vietnam-era pop song about war was an antiwar song. At the top of the charts for five weeks in 1966 was “The Ballad of the Green Berets” by Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler of the U.S. Army Special Forces, known as the Green Berets:

Fighting soldiers from the sky, Fearless men who jump and die, Men who mean just what they say, The brave men of the Green Beret.

The recording sold over a million copies in its first two weeks of release and was Billboard magazine’s song of the year.

The Eastern world, it is explodin’, Violence flaring, bullets loadin’, You’re old enough to kill, but not for votin’, You don’t believe in war, but what’s that gun you’re totin’?

From Protest to Resistance

By 1967, the antiwar movement had intensified, with no sign of slowing down. “We were having no effect on U.S. policy,” recalled one protest leader, “so we thought we had to up the ante.” In the spring of 1967, nearly half a million protesters of all ages gathered in New York’s Central Park. Shouting “Burn cards, not people!” and “Hell, no, we won’t go!” hundreds tossed their draft cards into a bonfire. A woman from New Jersey told a reporter, “So many of us are frustrated. We want to criticize this war because we think it’s wrong, but we want to do it in the framework of loyalty.”

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Others were more radical in their view. David Harris, who would spend 20 months in jail for refusing to serve in Vietnam, explained his motives.

A PERSONAL VOICE

DAVID HARRIS

“Theoretically, I can accept the notion that there are circumstances in which you have to kill people. I could not accept the notion that Vietnam was one of those circumstances. And to me that left the option of either sitting by and watching what was an enormous injustice … or [finding] some way to commit myself against it. And the position that I felt comfortable with in committing myself against it was total noncooperation—I was not going to be part of the machine.”
—quoted in The War Within

Draft resistance continued from 1967 until President Nixon phased out the draft in the early 1970s. During these years, the U.S. government accused more than 200,000 men of draft offenses and imprisoned nearly 4,000 draft resisters. (Although some were imprisoned for four or five years, most won parole after 6 to 12 months.) Throughout these years, about 10,000 Americans fled, many to Canada.

In October of 1967, a demonstration at Washington’s Lincoln Memorial drew about 75,000 protesters. After listening to speeches, approximately 30,000 demonstrators locked arms for a march on the Pentagon in order “to disrupt the center of the American war machine,” as one organizer explained. As hundreds of protesters broke past the military police and mounted the Pentagon steps, they were met by tear gas and clubs. About 1,500 demonstrators were injured and at least 700 arrested.

Difficult Decisions: Resist the Draft or Serve your Country?

As the fighting in Vietnam intensified, young men of draft age who opposed the war found themselves considering one of two options: register with the draft board and risk heading off to war, or find a way to avoid military service. Ways to avoid service included medical and educational deferments. But a great many men did not qualify for these. The choices that remained, such as fleeing the country, going to jail, or giving in and joining the ranks, came with a high price. Once a decision was made, there was no turning back.

1. Imagine you oppose the war and are called to serve in Vietnam. What decision would you make? Would you feel guilty if you avoided the draft? If you chose to serve, how would you view those who did not serve your country?

2. Do you think more young men would have been willing to serve had this been a different war? Explain.

War Divides the Nation

By 1967, Americans increasingly found themselves divided into two camps regarding the war. Those who strongly opposed the war and believed the United States should withdraw were known as doves. Feeling just as strongly that America should unleash much of its greater military force to win the war were the hawks.

Despite the visibility of the antiwar protesters, a majority of American citizens in 1967 still remained committed to the war. Others, while less certain about the proper U.S. role in Vietnam, were shocked to see protesters publicly criticize a war in which their fellow Americans were fighting and dying. A poll taken in December of 1967 showed that 70 percent of Americans believed the war protests were “acts of disloyalty.” A firefighter who lost his son in Vietnam articulated the bitter feelings a number of Americans felt toward the antiwar movement.

Photo: a sign below a flag reads Our flag, love it or leave.

This sign reflects the view of many Americans that the antiwar protests undermined the war effort in Vietnam.

A PERSONAL VOICE

“I’m bitter…. It’s people like us who give up our sons for the country…. The college types, the professors, they go to Washington and tell the government what to do…. But their sons, they don’t end up in the swamps over there, in Vietnam. No sir. They’re deferred, because they’re in school. Or they get sent to safe places…. What bothers me about the peace crowd is that you can tell from their attitude, the way they look and what they say, that they don’t really love this country.”
—a firefighter quoted in Working-Class War

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Responding to antiwar posters, Americans who supported the government’s Vietnam policy developed their own slogans: “Support our men in Vietnam” and “America—love it or leave it.”

Johnson Remains Determined

Throughout the turmoil and division that engulfed the country during the early years of the war, President Johnson remained firm. Attacked by doves for not withdrawing and by hawks for not increasing military power rapidly enough, Johnson was dismissive of both groups and their motives. He continued his policy of slow escalation.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LYNDON B. JOHNSON

“There has always been confusion, frustration, and difference of opinion in this country when there is a war going on…. You know what President Roosevelt went through, and President Wilson in World War I. He had some senators from certain areas … that gave him serious problems until victory was assured…. We are going to have these differences. No one likes war. All people love peace. But you can’t have freedom without defending it.”
—quoted in No Hail, No Farewell

However, by the end of 1967, Johnson’s policy—and the continuing stale-mate—had begun to create turmoil within his own administration. In November, Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, a key architect of U.S. escalation in Vietnam, quietly announced he was resigning to become head of the World Bank. “It didn’t add up,” McNamara recalled later. “What I was trying to find out was how … the war went on year after year when we stopped the infiltration [from North Vietnam] or shrunk it and when we had a very high body count and so on. It just didn’t make sense.”

As it happened, McNamara’s resignation came on the threshold of the most tumultuous year of the sixties. In 1968 the war—and Johnson’s presidency—would take a drastic turn for the worse.

Section 3: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each of the following, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• draft

• New Left

• Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)

• Free Speech Movement

• dove

• hawk

poster: a man with a white beard dressed as Uncle Sam wears bandages. Words appear: I want out.

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the tree diagram below on your paper. Then fill it in with examples of student organizations, issues, and demonstrations of the New Left.

Diagram: Below the words The New Left, lines lead to three rectangles, labled Student Organizations, Issues, and Demonstrations. Space for Examples is located below each rectangle.

Critical Thinking

3. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Imagine it is 1967. Do you think you would ally yourself with the hawks or the doves? Give reasons that support your position.

4. EVALUATING

Do you agree that antiwar protests were “acts of disloyalty”? Why or why not?

5. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

This antiwar poster is a parody of the World War I Uncle Sam poster (shown on page 588), which states, “I want you for the U.S. Army.” Why might the artist have chosen this American character to express the antiwar message?

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Section 4: 1968: A Tumultuous Year

One American’s Story

On June 5, 1968, John Lewis, the first chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, fell to the floor and wept. Robert F. Kennedy, a leading Democratic candidate for president, had just been fatally shot. Two months earlier, when Martin Luther King, Jr., had fallen victim to an assassin’s bullet, Lewis had told himself he still had Kennedy. And now they both were gone. Lewis, who later became a congressman from Georgia, recalled the lasting impact of these assassinations.

John Lewis

A PERSONAL VOICE

JOHN LEWIS

“There are people today who are afraid, in a sense, to hope or to have hope again, because of what happened in … 1968. Something was taken from us. The type of leadership that we had in a sense invested in, that we had helped to make and to nourish, was taken from us…. Something died in all of us with those assassinations.”
—quoted in From Camelot to Kent State

These violent deaths were but two of the traumatic events that rocked the nation in 1968. From a shocking setback in Vietnam to a chaotic Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the events of 1968 made it the most tumultuous year of a turbulent decade.

The Tet Offensive Turns the War

The year 1968 began with a daring surprise attack by the Vietcong on numerous cities in South Vietnam. The simultaneous strikes, while ending in military defeat for the Communist guerrillas, stunned the American public. Many people with moderate views began to turn against the war.

A Surprise Attack

January 30 was the Vietnamese equivalent of New Year’s Eve, the beginning of the lunar new year festivities known in Vietnam as Tet.

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Throughout that day in 1968, villagers—taking advantage of a week-long truce proclaimed for Tet—streamed into cities across South Vietnam to celebrate their new year. At the same time, many funerals were being held for war victims. Accompanying the funerals were the traditional firecrackers, flutes, and, of course, coffins.

A map: Tet Offensive, Jan. 30-Feb. 24, 1968.

DESCRIPTION:

The map shows the Ho Chi Minh Trail from North Vietnam through Laos and Cambodia. 15 major battles are marked in locations in South Vietnam, mostly at U.S. bases. Battle sites include Khe Sanh, Hoi An, Ban Me Thuot, Bien Hoa and Saigon.

Tet Offensive, Jan. 30–Feb. 24, 1968
INTERACTIVE

The coffins, however, contained weapons, and many of the villagers were Vietcong agents. That night the Vietcong launched an overwhelming attack on over 100 towns and cities in South Vietnam, as well as 12 U.S. air bases. The fighting was especially fierce in Saigon and the former capital of Hue. The Vietcong even attacked the U.S. embassy in Saigon, killing five Americans. The Tet offensive continued for about a month before U.S. and South Vietnamese forces re-gained control of the cities.

General Westmoreland declared the attacks an overwhelming defeat for the Vietcong, whose “well-laid plans went afoul.” From a purely military standpoint, Westmoreland was right. The Vietcong lost about 32,000 soldiers during the month-long battle, while the American and ARVN forces lost little more than 3,000.

Tet Changes Public Opinion

From a psychological—and political—standpoint, Westmoreland’s claim could not have been more wrong. The Tet offensive greatly shook the American public, which had been told repeatedly and had come to believe that the enemy was close to defeat. Now the Pentagon’s continued reports of favorable body counts—or massive Vietcong casualties—rang hollow. Daily, Americans saw the shocking images of attacks by an enemy that seemed to be everywhere.

In a matter of weeks, the Tet offensive changed millions of minds about the war. Despite the years of antiwar protest, a poll taken just before Tet showed that only 28 percent of Americans called themselves doves, while 56 percent claimed to be hawks. After Tet, both sides tallied 40 percent. The mainstream media, which had reported the war in a skeptical but generally balanced way, now openly criticized the war. One of the nation’s most respected journalists, Walter Cronkite, told his viewers that it now seemed “more certain than ever that the bloody experience of Vietnam is to end in a stalemate.”

Minds were also changing at the White House. To fill the defense secretary position left vacant by Robert McNamara’s resignation, Johnson picked Clark Clifford, a friend and supporter of the president’s Vietnam policy. However, after settling in and studying the situation, Clifford concluded that the war was unwinnable. “We seem to have a sinkhole,” Clifford said. “We put in more—they match it. I see more and more fighting with more and more casualties on the U.S. side and no end in sight to the action.”

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Following the Tet offensive, Johnson’s popularity plummeted. In public opinion polls taken at the end of February 1968, nearly 60 percent of Americans disapproved of his handling of the war. Nearly half of the country now felt it had been a mistake to send American troops to Vietnam.

“ If I’ve lost Walter [Cronkite], then it’s over. I’ve lost Mr. Average Citizen.”
LYNDON B. JOHNSON

War weariness eventually set in, and 1968 was the watershed year. Johnson recognized the change, too. Upon learning of Cronkite’s pessimistic analysis of the war, the president lamented, “If I’ve lost Walter, then it’s over. I’ve lost Mr. Average Citizen.”

Days of Loss and Rage

The growing division over Vietnam led to a shocking political development in the spring of 1968, a season in which Americans also endured two assassinations, a series of urban riots, and a surge in college campus protests.

Johnson Withdraws

Well before the Tet offensive, an anti-war coalition within the Democratic Party had sought a Democratic candidate to challenge Johnson in the 1968 primary elections. Robert Kennedy, John F. Kennedy’s brother and a senator from New York, decided not to run, citing party loyalty. However, in November of 1967, Minnesota senator Eugene McCarthy answered the group’s call, declaring that he would run against Johnson on a platform to end the war in Vietnam.

McCarthy’s early campaign attracted little notice, but in the weeks following Tet it picked up steam. In the New Hampshire Democratic primary in March 1968, the little-known senator captured 42 percent of the vote. While Johnson won the primary with 48 percent of the vote, the slim margin of victory was viewed as a defeat for the president. Influenced by Johnson’s perceived weakness at the polls, Robert Kennedy declared his candidacy for president. The Democratic Party had become a house divided.

In a televised address on March 31, 1968, Johnson announced a dramatic change in his Vietnam policy—the United States would seek negotiations to end the war. In the meantime, the policy of U.S. escalation would end, the bombing would eventually cease, and steps would be taken to ensure that the South Vietnamese played a larger role in the war.

photo: Lyndon Johnson leans over, his hand held to his head.

The Vietnam War and the divisiveness it caused took its toll on President Johnson.

The president paused and then ended his speech with a statement that shocked the nation. Declaring that he did not want the presidency to become “involved in the partisan divisions that are developing in this political year,” Lyndon Johnson announced, “Accordingly, I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president.” The president was stepping down from national politics, his grand plan for domestic reform done in by a costly and divisive war. “That … war,” Johnson later admitted, “killed the lady I really loved—the Great Society.”

Violence and Protest Grip the Nation

The Democrats—as well as the nation—were in for more shock in 1968. On April 4, America was rocked by the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Violence ripped through more than 100 U.S. cities as enraged followers of the slain civil rights leader burned buildings and destroyed neighborhoods.

Just two months later, a bullet cut down yet another popular national figure. Robert Kennedy had become a strong candidate in the Democratic primary, drawing support from minorities and urban Democratic voters. On June 4, Kennedy won the crucial California primary. Just after midnight of June 5, he gave a victory

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speech at a Los Angeles hotel. On his way out he passed through the hotel’s kitchen, where a young Palestinian immigrant, Sirhan Sirhan, was hiding with a gun. Sirhan, who later said he was angered by Kennedy’s support of Israel, fatally shot the senator.

Jack Newfield, a speechwriter for Kennedy, described the anguish he and many Americans felt over the loss of two of the nation’s leaders.

photo: a busboy kneels over the fallen Robert Kennedy.

Hotel busboy Juan Romero was the first person to reach Robert Kennedy after he was shot June 5, 1968. Kennedy had just won the California Democratic primary.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JACK NEWFIELD

“Things were not really getting better … we shall not overcome…. We had already glimpsed the most compassionate leaders our nation could produce, and they had all been assassinated. And from this time forward, things would get worse: Our best political leaders were part of memory now, not hope.”
—quoted in Nineteen Sixty-Eight

Meanwhile, the nation’s college campuses continued to protest. During the first six months of 1968, almost 40,000 students on more than 100 campuses took part in more than 200 major demonstrations. While many of the demonstrations continued to target U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, students also clashed with university officials over campus and social issues. A massive student protest at Columbia University in New York City held the nation’s attention for a week in April. There, students protesting the university’s community policies took over several buildings. Police eventually restored order and arrested nearly 900 protesters.

Recalling the violence and turmoil that plagued the nation in 1968, the journalist and historian Garry Wills wrote, “There was a sense everywhere … that things were giving way. That [people] had not only lost control of [their] history, but might never regain it.”

A Turbulent Race for President

The chaos and violence of 1968 climaxed in August, when thousands of antiwar demonstrators converged on the city of Chicago to protest at the Democratic National Convention. The convention, which featured a bloody riot between protesters and police, fractured the Democratic Party and thus helped a nearly forgotten Republican win the White House.

Turmoil in Chicago

With Lyndon Johnson stepping down and Robert Kennedy gone, the 1968 Democratic presidential primary race pitted Eugene McCarthy against Hubert Humphrey, Johnson’s vice-president. McCarthy, while still popular with the nation’s antiwar segment, had little chance of defeating Humphrey, a loyal party man who had President Johnson’s support. During the last week of August, the Democrats met at their convention in Chicago, supposedly to choose a candidate. In reality, Humphrey’s nomination had already been determined, a decision that upset many antiwar activists.

As the delegates arrived in Chicago, so, too, did nearly 10,000 protesters. Led by men such as SDS veteran Tom Hayden, many demonstrators sought to pressure the Democrats into adopting an antiwar platform. Others came to voice their

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displeasure with Humphrey’s nomination. Still others, known as Yippies (members of the Youth International Party), had come hoping to provoke violence that might discredit the Democratic Party. Chicago’s mayor, Richard J. Daley, was determined to keep the protesters under control. With memories of the nationwide riots after King’s death still fresh, Daley mobilized 12,000 Chicago police officers and over 5,000 National Guard. “As long as I am mayor,” Daley vowed, “there will be law and order.”

photo: police in helmets pummel protestors with clubs.

Chicago police attempt to disperse antiwar demonstrators at the 1968 Democratic convention. Protesters shouted, “The whole world is watching!”

Order, however, soon collapsed. On August 28, as delegates cast votes for Humphrey, protesters were gathering in a downtown park to march on the convention. With television cameras focused on them, police moved into the crowd, sprayed the protesters with Mace, and beat them with nightsticks. Many protesters tried to flee, while others retaliated, pelting the riot-helmeted police with rocks and bottles. “The whole world is watching!” protesters shouted, as police attacked demonstrators and bystanders alike.

The rioting soon spilled out of the park and into the downtown streets. One nearby hotel, observed a New York Times reporter, became a makeshift aid station.

A PERSONAL VOICE

J. ANTHONY LUKAS

“Demonstrators, reporters, McCarthy workers, doctors, all began to stagger into the [hotel] lobby, blood streaming from face and head wounds. The lobby smelled from tear gas, and stink bombs dropped by the Yippies. A few people began to direct the wounded to a makeshift hospital on the fifteenth floor, the McCarthy staff headquarters.”
—quoted in Decade of Shocks

Disorder of a different kind reigned inside the convention hall, where delegates bitterly debated an antiwar plank in the party platform. When word of the riot filtered into the hall, delegates angrily shouted at Mayor Daley, who was present as a delegate himself. Daley returned their shouts with equal vigor. The whole world indeed was watching—on their televisions. The images of the Democrats—both inside and outside the convention hall—as a party of disorder became etched in the minds of millions of Americans.

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Nixon Triumphs

One beneficiary of this turmoil was Republican presidential candidate Richard M. Nixon, who by 1968 had achieved one of the greatest political comebacks in American politics. After his loss to Kennedy in the presidential race of 1960, Nixon tasted defeat again in 1962 when he ran for governor of California. His political career all but dead, Nixon joined a New York law firm, but he never strayed far from politics. In 1966, Nixon campaigned for Republican candidates in congressional elections, helping them to win back 47 House seats and 3 Senate seats from Democrats. In 1968, Nixon announced his candidacy for president and won the party’s nomination.

Election of 1968 A map shows election results.

DESCRIPTION:

The map shows the electoral and popular vote totals for Nixon, Humphrey and Wallace.

Nixon had 301 electoral votes and 31,785,40 popular votes.
Humphrey had 191 electoral votes and 31,275,166 popular votes.
Wallace received 46 electoral votes and 9,906,472 popular votes.
Humphrey was the winner in most of the northeast, parts of the upper midwest, and Washington and Texas.
Wallace won five states in the south.

Party	Candidate	Electoral votes	Popular votes
Republican	Richard M. Nixon	301	31,785,480
Democratic	Hubert H. Humphrey	191	31,275,166
American Independent	George C. Wallace	46	9,906,473

Not shown:

3 Alaska

4 Hawaii

3 District of Columbia

Production note: captions associated with this image are legends that correspond to text within the image.

During the presidential race, Nixon campaigned on a promise to restore law and order, which appealed to many middle-class Americans tired of years of riots and protests. He also promised, in vague but appealing terms, to end the war in Vietnam. Nixon’s candidacy was helped by the entry of former Alabama governor George Wallace into the race as a third-party candidate. Wallace, a Democrat running on the American Independent Party ticket, was a longtime champion of school segregation and states’ rights. Labeled the “white backlash” candidate, Wallace captured five Southern states. In addition, he attracted a high number of Northern white working-class voters disgusted with inner-city riots and antiwar protests.

In the end, Nixon defeated Humphrey and inherited the quagmire in Vietnam. He eventually would end America’s involvement in Vietnam, but not before his war policies created even more protest and uproar within the country.

Section 4: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Tet offensive

• Clark Clifford

• Robert Kennedy

• Eugene McCarthy

• Hubert Humphrey

• George Wallace

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of major events that occurred in 1968. Use the months already plotted on the time line below as a guide.

A blank timeline shows the months January, March, April, June and August.

Which event do you think was most significant? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING EVENTS

Why do you think the Tet offensive turned so many Americans against the war? Support your answer with reasons.

4. MAKING INFERENCES

Refer to President Johnson’s quote on page 956. What do you think he meant when he said “If I’ve lost Walter [Cronkite], then it’s over. I’ve lost Mr. Average Citizen”? Explain.

5. MAKING INFERENCES

Do you think there might have been a relationship between the violence of the Vietnam War and the growing climate of violence in the United States during 1968? Why or why not?

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Section 5: The End of the War and Its Legacy

One American’s Story

Alfred S. Bradford served in Vietnam from September 1968 to August 1969. A member of the 25th Infantry Division, he was awarded several medals, including the Purple Heart, given to soldiers wounded in battle. One day, Bradford’s eight-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, inquired about his experience in Vietnam. “Daddy, why did you do it?” she asked. Bradford recalled what he had told himself.

A U.S. soldier sits near Quang Tri, Vietnam, during a break in the fighting.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ALFRED S. BRADFORD

“Vietnam was my generation’s adventure. I wanted to be part of that adventure and I believed that it was my duty as an American, both to serve my country and particularly not to stand by while someone else risked his life in my place. I do not regret my decision to go, but I learned in Vietnam not to confuse America with the politicians elected to administer America, even when they claim they are speaking for America, and I learned that I have a duty to myself and to my country to exercise my own judgment based upon my own conscience.”
—quoted in Some Even Volunteered

The legacy of the war was profound; it dramatically affected the way Americans viewed their government and the world. Richard Nixon had promised in 1968 to end the war, but it would take nearly five more years—and over 20,000 more American deaths—to end the nation’s involvement in Vietnam.

President Nixon and Vietnamization

In the summer of 1969, newly elected president Richard Nixon announced the first U.S. troop withdrawals from Vietnam. “We have to get rid of the nightmares we inherited,” Nixon later told reporters. “One of the nightmares is war without end.” However, as Nixon pulled out the troops, he continued the war against North Vietnam, a policy that some critics would charge prolonged the “war without end” for several more bloody years.

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The Pullout Begins

As President Nixon settled into the White House in January of 1969, negotiations to end the war in Vietnam were going nowhere. The United States and South Vietnam insisted that all North Vietnamese forces withdraw from the South and that the government of Nguyen Van Thieu, then South Vietnam’s ruler, remain in power. The North Vietnamese and Vietcong demanded that U.S. troops withdraw from South Vietnam and that the Thieu government step aside for a coalition government that would include the Vietcong.

In the midst of the stalled negotiations, Nixon conferred with National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger on a plan to end America’s involvement in Vietnam. Kissinger, a German immigrant who had earned three degrees from Harvard, was an expert on international relations. Their plan, known as Vietnamization, called for the gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops in order for the South Vietnamese to take on a more active combat role in the war. By August of 1969, the first 25,000 U.S. troops had returned home from Vietnam. Over the next three years, the number of American troops in Vietnam dropped from more than 500,000 to less than 25,000.

“Peace with Honor”

Part of Nixon and Kissinger’s Vietnamization policy was aimed at establishing what the president called a “peace with honor.” Nixon intended to maintain U.S. dignity in the face of its withdrawal from war. A further goal was to preserve U.S. clout at the negotiation table, as Nixon still demanded that the South Vietnamese government remain intact. With this objective—and even as the pullout had begun—Nixon secretly ordered a massive bombing campaign against supply routes and bases in North Vietnam. The president also ordered that bombs be dropped on the neighboring countries of Laos and Cambodia, which held a number of Vietcong sanctuaries. Nixon told his aide H. R. Haldeman that he wanted the enemy to believe he was capable of anything.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RICHARD M. NIXON

“I call it the madman theory, Bob…. I want the North Vietnamese to believe I’ve reached the point where I might do anything to stop the war. We’ll just slip the word to them that ‘for God’s sake, you know Nixon is obsessed about Communists. We can’t restrain him when he’s angry—and he has his hand on the nuclear button’—and Ho Chi Minh himself will be in Paris in two days begging for peace.”
—quoted in The Price of Power

A chart shows 2.6 million tons of bombs dropped in World War II and the Korean War, compared to 8 million tons in the Vietnam War.

Total U.S. Bomb Tonnage Source: Vietnam War Almanac A graph shows the number of tons dropped from 1965 to 1971.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows bomb tonnage rising quickly, peaking in 1968 and 1969, then declining.

1965: 300,000 tons
1966: 500,000 tons
1967: 950,000 tons
1968: 1.4 million tons
1969: 1.3 million tons
1970: 900,000 tons
1971: 700,000 tons

U.S. Aerial Bomb Tonnage, 1965–1971 World War II and Korean War 2.6 million tons Vietnam War 8 million tons Source: The Air War in Indochina 962

Trouble Continues on the Home Front

Seeking to win support for his war policies, Richard Nixon appealed to what he called the silent majority—moderate, mainstream Americans who quietly supported the U.S. efforts in Vietnam. While many average Americans did support the president, the events of the war continued to divide the country.

The My Lai Massacre

In November of 1969, Americans learned of a shocking event. That month, New York Times correspondent Seymour Hersh reported that on March 16, 1968, a U.S. platoon under the command of Lieutenant William Calley, Jr., had massacred innocent civilians in the small village of My Lai (mCP lFP) in northern South Vietnam. Calley was searching for Vietcong rebels. Finding no sign of the enemy, the troops rounded up the villagers and shot more than 200 innocent Vietnamese—mostly women, children, and elderly men. “We all huddled them up,” recalled 22-year-old Private Paul Meadlo. “I poured about four clips into the group…. The mothers was hugging their children…. Well, we kept right on firing.”

The troops insisted that they were not responsible for the shootings because they were only following Lieutenant Calley’s orders. When asked what his directive had been, one soldier answered, “Kill anything that breathed.” Twenty-five army officers were charged with some degree of responsibility, but only Calley was convicted and imprisoned.

The Invasion of Cambodia

Despite the shock over My Lai, the country’s mood by 1970 seemed to be less explosive. American troops were on their way home, and it appeared that the war was finally winding down.

On April 30, 1970, President Nixon announced that U.S. troops had invaded Cambodia to clear out North Vietnamese and Vietcong supply centers. The president defended his action: “If when the chips are down, the world’s most powerful nation acts like a pitiful, helpless giant, the forces of totalitarianism and anarchy will threaten free nations … throughout the world.”

Upon hearing of the invasion, college students across the country burst out in protest. In what became the first general student strike in the nation’s history, more than 1.5 million students closed down some 1,200 campuses. The president of Columbia University called the month that followed the Cambodian invasion “the most disastrous month of May in the history of … higher education.”

President Nixon points to a map of Cambodia during a televised speech on April 30, 1970.

Violence on Campus

Disaster struck hardest at Kent State University in Ohio, where a massive student protest led to the burning of the ROTC building. In response to the growing unrest, the local mayor called in the National Guard. On May 4, 1970, the Guards fired live ammunition into a crowd of campus protesters who were hurling rocks at them. The gunfire wounded nine people and killed four, including two who had not even participated in the rally.

Ten days later, similar violence rocked the mostly all-black college of Jackson State in Mississippi. National Guardsmen there confronted a group of antiwar demonstrators and fired on the crowd after several bottles were thrown. In the hail of bullets, 12 students were wounded and 2 were killed, both innocent bystanders.

In a sign that America still remained sharply divided about the war, the country hotly debated the campus shootings. Polls indicated that many Americans supported the National Guard; respondents claimed that the students “got what

963 History Through Photojournalism: Kent State

Photographer John Filo was a senior at Kent State University when anti-war demonstrations rocked the campus. When the National Guard began firing at student protesters, Filo began shooting pictures, narrowly escaping a bullet himself.

As he continued to document the horrific scene, a girl running to the side of a fallen student caught his eye. Just as she dropped to her knees and screamed, Filo snapped a photograph that would later win the Pulitzer Prize and become one of the most memorable images of the decade.

photo: Her mouth gaping, a young woman kneels over a man lying on the ground.

Mary Ann Vecchio grieves over the body of Jeffrey Glenn Miller, a student shot by National Guard troops at Kent State. In the original photograph, a fence post appeared behind the woman’s head. It is believed that someone manipulated the image in the early 1970s to make it more visually appealing.

they were asking for.” The weeks following the campus turmoil brought new attention to a group known as “hardhats,” construction workers and other blue-collar Americans who supported the U.S. government’s war policies. In May of 1970, nearly 100,000 members of the Building and Construction Trades Council of New York held a rally outside city hall to support the government.

The Pentagon Papers

Nixon and Kissinger’s Cambodia policy, however, cost Nixon significant political support. By first bombing and then invading Cambodia without even notifying Congress, the president stirred anger on Capitol Hill. On December 31, 1970, Congress repealed the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, which had given the president near independence in conducting policy in Vietnam.

Support for the war eroded even further when in June of 1971 former Defense Department worker Daniel Ellsberg leaked what became known as the Pentagon Papers. The 7,000-page document, written for Defense Secretary Robert McNamara in 1967–1968, revealed among other things that the government had drawn up plans for entering the war even as President Lyndon Johnson promised that he would not send American troops to Vietnam. Furthermore, the papers showed that there was never any plan to end the war as long as the North Vietnamese persisted.

For many Americans, the Pentagon Papers confirmed their belief that the government had not been honest about its war intentions. The document, while not particularly damaging to the Nixon administration, supported what opponents of the war had been saying.

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America’s Longest War Ends

In March of 1972, the North Vietnamese launched their largest attack on South Vietnam since the Tet offensive in 1968. President Nixon responded by ordering a massive bombing campaign against North Vietnamese cities. He also ordered that mines be laid in Haiphong harbor, the North’s largest harbor, into which Soviet and Chinese ships brought supplies. The Communists “have never been bombed like they are going to be bombed this time,” Nixon vowed. The bombings halted the North Vietnamese attack, but the grueling stalemate continued. It was after this that the Nixon administration took steps to finally end America’s involvement in Vietnam.

Key Player: Henry Kissinger 1923– Photo: Henry Kissinger.

Henry Kissinger, who helped negotiate America’s withdrawal from Vietnam and who later would help forge historic new relations with China and the Soviet Union, held a deep interest in the concept of power. “You know,” he once noted, “most of these world leaders, you wouldn’t want to know socially. Mostly they are intellectual mediocrities. The thing that is interesting about them is … their power.”

At first, Kissinger seemed an unlikely candidate to work for Richard Nixon. Kissinger declared, “That man Nixon is not fit to be president.” However, the two became trusted colleagues.

“Peace is at Hand”

By the middle of 1972, the country’s growing social division and the looming presidential election prompted the Nixon administration to change its negotiating policy. Polls showed that more than 60 percent of Americans in 1971 thought that the United States should withdraw all troops from Vietnam by the end of the year.

Henry Kissinger, the president’s adviser for national security affairs, served as Nixon’s top negotiator in Vietnam. Since 1969, Kissinger had been meeting privately with North Vietnam’s chief negotiator, Le Duc Tho. Eventually, Kissinger dropped his insistence that North Vietnam withdraw all its troops from the South before the complete withdrawal of American troops. On October 26, 1972, days before the presidential election, Kissinger announced, “Peace is at hand.”

The Final Push

President Nixon won reelection, but the promised peace proved to be elusive. The Thieu regime, alarmed at the prospect of North Vietnamese troops stationed in South Vietnam, rejected Kissinger’s plan. Talks broke off on December 16. Two days later, the president unleashed a ferocious bombing campaign against Hanoi and Haiphong, the two largest cities in North Vietnam. In what became known as the “Christmas bombings,” U.S. planes dropped 100,000 bombs over the course of eleven straight days, pausing only on Christmas Day.

At this point, calls to end the war resounded from the halls of Congress as well as from Beijing and Moscow. Everyone, it seemed, had finally grown weary of the war. The warring parties returned to the peace table, and on January 27, 1973, the United States signed an “Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam.” Under the agreement, North Vietnamese troops would remain in South Vietnam. However, Nixon promised to respond “with full force” to any violation of the peace agreement. On March 29, 1973, the last U.S. combat troops left for home. For America, the Vietnam War had ended.

The Fall of Saigon

The war itself, however, raged on. Within months of the United States’ departure, the cease-fire agreement between North and South Vietnam collapsed. In March of 1975, after several years of fighting, the North Vietnamese launched a full-scale invasion against the South. Thieu appealed to the United States for help. America provided economic aid but refused to send troops. Soon thereafter, President Gerald Ford—who assumed the presidency after the Watergate scandal forced President Nixon to resign—gave a speech in which he captured the nation’s attitude toward the war:

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“America can regain its sense of pride that existed before Vietnam. But it cannot be achieved by refighting a war that is finished as far as America is concerned.” On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese tanks rolled into Saigon and captured the city. Soon after, South Vietnam surrendered to North Vietnam.

The War Leaves a Painful Legacy

The Vietnam War exacted a terrible price from its participants. In all, 58,000 Americans were killed and some 303,000 were wounded. North and South Vietnamese deaths topped 2 million. In addition, the war left Southeast Asia highly unstable, which led to further war in Cambodia. In America, a divided nation attempted to come to grips with an unsuccessful war. In the end, the conflict in Vietnam left many Americans with a more cautious outlook on foreign affairs and a more cynical attitude toward their government.

American Veterans Cope Back Home

While families welcomed home their sons and daughters, the nation as a whole extended a cold hand to its returning Vietnam veterans. There were no brass bands, no victory parades, no cheering crowds. Instead, many veterans faced indifference or even hostility from an America still torn and bitter about the war. Lily Jean Lee Adams, who served as an army nurse in Vietnam, recalled arriving in America in 1970 while still in uniform.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LILY JEAN LEE ADAMS

“In the bus terminal, people were staring at me and giving me dirty looks. I expected the people to smile, like, ‘Wow, she was in Vietnam, doing something for her country—wonderful.’ I felt like I had walked into another country, not my country. So I went into the ladies’ room and changed.”
—quoted in A Piece of My Heart

Many Vietnam veterans readjusted successfully to civilian life. However, about 15 percent of the 3.3 million soldiers who served developed post-traumatic stress disorder. Some had recurring nightmares about their war experiences, while many suffered from severe headaches and memory lapses. Other veterans became

photo: on an airport runway, a man's family comes running to him.

Lieutenant Colonel Robert Stirm, a returning POW, receives a warm welcome from his family in 1973. The longest-held Vietnam POW was Lieutenant Everett Alvarez, Jr., of California. He was imprisoned for more than eight years. 966 Photo: a man in a military coat leans forward and rests his hand on the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial wall, his head down.

Photo: a man in a military coat leans forward and rests his hand on the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial wall, his head down.

photo: visitors gather at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Flowers and flags line the ground by the wall.

Each year, over two million people visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Many leave remembrances that are collected nightly by park rangers and stored in a museum. Inscribed on the memorial are over 58,000 names of Americans who died in the war or were then still listed as missing in action.

highly apathetic or began abusing drugs or alcohol. Several thousand even committed suicide.

Historical Spotlight: Vietnam Veterans Memorial: The Wall Photo: Maya Ying Lin.

In 1981, a national competition was held to determine the Vietnam memorial’s design. Maya Ying Lin, above, a 21-year-old architecture student of Chinese descent, submitted the winning design—two long, black granite walls on which are etched the names of the men and women who died or are missing in action.

“I didn’t want a static object that people would just look at,” Lin said, “but something they could relate to as on a journey, or passage, that would bring each to his own conclusions.” Lin’s design became known simply as “the Wall.”

In an effort to honor the men and women who served in Vietnam, the U.S. government unveiled the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., in 1982. Many Vietnam veterans, as well as their loved ones, have found visiting the memorial a deeply moving, even healing, experience.

Further Turmoil in Southeast Asia

The end of the Vietnam War ushered in a new period of violence and chaos in Southeast Asia. In unifying Vietnam, the victorious Communists initially held out a conciliatory hand to the South Vietnamese. “You have nothing to fear,” declared Colonel Bui Tin of the North Vietnamese Army.

However, the Communists soon imprisoned more than 400,000 South Vietnamese in harsh “reeducation,” or labor, camps. As the Communists imposed their rule throughout the land, nearly 1.5 million people fled Vietnam. They included citizens who had supported the U.S. war effort, as well as business owners, whom the Communists expelled when they began nationalizing the country’s business sector.

Also fleeing the country was a large group of poor Vietnamese, known as boat people because they left on anything from freighters to barges to rowboats. Their efforts to reach safety across the South China Sea often met with tragedy; nearly 50,000 perished on the high seas due to exposure, drowning, illness, or piracy.

The people of Cambodia also suffered greatly after the war. The U.S. invasion of Cambodia had unleashed a brutal civil war in which a communist group known as the Khmer Rouge, led by Pol Pot, seized power in 1975. In an effort to transform the country into a peasant society, the Khmer Rouge executed professionals and anyone with an education or foreign ties. During its reign of terror, the Khmer Rouge is believed to have killed at least 1 million Cambodians.

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The Legacy of Vietnam

Even after it ended, the Vietnam War remained a subject of great controversy for Americans. Many hawks continued to insist that the war could have been won if the United States had employed more military power. They also blamed the antiwar movement at home for destroying American morale. Doves countered that the North Vietnamese had displayed incredible resiliency and that an increase in U.S. military force would have resulted only in a continuing stalemate. In addition, doves argued that an unrestrained war against North Vietnam might have prompted a military reaction from China or the Soviet Union.

The war resulted in several major U.S. policy changes. First, the government abolished the draft, which had stirred so much antiwar sentiment. The country also took steps to curb the president’s war-making powers. In November 1973, Congress passed the War Powers Act, which stipulated that a president must inform Congress within 48 hours of sending forces into a hostile area without a declaration of war. In addition, the troops may remain there no longer than 90 days unless Congress approves the president’s actions or declares war.

Now & Then: U.S. Recognition of Vietnam

In July of 1995, more than 20 years after the Vietnam War ended, the United States extended full diplomatic relations to Vietnam. In announcing the resumption of ties with Vietnam, President Bill Clinton declared, “Let this moment … be a time to heal and a time to build.” Demonstrating how the war still divides Americans, the president’s decision drew both praise and criticism from members of Congress and veterans’ groups.

In an ironic twist, Clinton nominated as ambassador to Vietnam a former prisoner of war from the Vietnam War, Douglas Peterson, a congress member from Florida. Peterson, a former air force pilot, was shot down over North Vietnam in 1966 and spent six and a half years in a Hanoi prison.

In a broader sense, the Vietnam War significantly altered America’s views on foreign policy. In what has been labeled the Vietnam syndrome, Americans now pause and consider possible risks to their own interests before deciding whether to intervene in the affairs of other nations.

Finally, the war contributed to an overall cynicism among Americans about their government and political leaders that persists today. Americans grew suspicious of a government that could provide as much misleading information or conceal as many activities as the Johnson and Nixon administrations had done. Coupled with the Watergate scandal of the mid-1970s, the war diminished the optimism and faith in government that Americans felt during the Eisenhower and Kennedy years.

Section 5: Assessment

1. Terms & Names For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Richard Nixon

• Henry Kissinger

• Vietnamization

• silent majority

• My Lai

• Kent State University

• Pentagon Papers

• War Powers Act

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a web like the one shown, list the effects of the Vietnam War on America.

In a web diagram, the words Vietnam War's Effect on America are connected to five blank ovals.

Choose one effect to further explain in a paragraph.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING EFFECTS

In your opinion, what was the main effect of the U.S. government’s deception about its policies and military conduct in Vietnam? Support your answer with evidence from the text. Think About:

• the contents of the Pentagon Papers

• Nixon’s secrecy in authorizing military maneuvers

4. MAKING INFERENCES

How would you account for the cold homecoming American soldiers received when they returned from Vietnam? Support your answer with reasons.

5. SYNTHESIZING

In the end, do you think the United States’ withdrawal from Vietnam was a victory for the United States or a defeat? Explain your answer.

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American Literature: Literature of the Vietnam War

photos: dozens of helicopters fill the sky over soldiers walking across a field.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 968 and page 969 in the print version.

Throughout history, soldiers as well as citizens have written about the traumatic and moving experiences of war. The Vietnam War, which left a deep impression on America’s soldiers and citizens alike, has produced its share of literature. From the surreal fantasy of Going After Cacciato to the grim realism of A Rumor of War, much of this literature reflects the nation’s lingering disillusionment with its involvement in the Vietnam War.

Going after Cacciato

In Going After Cacciato, Vietnam veteran Tim O’Brien tells the story of Paul Berlin, a newcomer to Vietnam who fantasizes that his squad goes all the way to Paris, France, in pursuit of an AWOL soldier.

Tim O’Brien in 2002.

“How many days you been at the war?” asked Alpha’s [Alpha Company’s] mail clerk, and Paul Berlin answered that he’d been at the war seven days now.

The clerk laughed. “Wrong,” he said. “Tomorrow, man, that’s your first day at the war.”

And in the morning PFC [Private First Class] Paul Berlin boarded a resupply chopper that took him fast over charred pocked mangled country, hopeless country, green skies and speed and tangled grasslands and paddies and places he might die, a million possibilities. He couldn’t watch. He watched his hands. He made fists of them, opening and closing the fists. His hands, he thought, not quite believing. His hands.

Very quickly, the helicopter banked and turned and went down.

“How long you been at the war?” asked the first man he saw, a wiry soldier with ringworm in his hair.

PFC Paul Berlin smiled. “This is it,” he said. “My first day.”

—Tim O’Brien, Going After Cacciato (1978) 969 photos: dozens of helicopters fill the sky over soldiers walking across a field.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 968 and page 969 in the print version.

A Rumor of War

In A Rumor of War, considered to be among the best nonfiction accounts of the war, former marine Philip Caputo reflects on his years as a soldier in Vietnam.

At the age of twenty-four, I was more prepared for death than I was for life…. I knew how to face death and how to cause it, with everything on the evolutionary scale of weapons from the knife to the 3.5-inch rocket launcher. The simplest repairs on an automobile engine were beyond me, but I was able to field-strip and assemble an M-14 rifle blindfolded. I could call in artillery, set up an ambush, rig a booby trap, lead a night raid.

Simply by speaking a few words into a two-way radio, I had performed magical feats of destruction. Summoned by my voice, jet fighters appeared in the sky to loose their lethal droppings on villages and men. High-explosive bombs blasted houses to fragments, napalm sucked air from lungs and turned human flesh to ashes. All this just by saying a few words into a radio transmitter. Like magic.

—Philip Caputo, A Rumor of War (1977) photo: Soldiers gaze at a memorial display of boots, rifles and helmets.

U.S. 101st Airborne Brigade memorial service—Lai Khe, Vietnam, 1965

Fallen Angels

Richie Perry, a 17-year-old Harlem youth, describes his harrowing tour of duty in Vietnam in Walter Dean Myers’s novel Fallen Angels.

The war was about us killing people and about people killing us, and I couldn’t see much more to it. Maybe there were times when it was right. I had thought that this war was right, but it was only right from a distance. Maybe when we all got back to the World and everybody thought we were heroes for winning it, then it would seem right from there…. But when the killing started, there was no right or wrong except in the way you did your job, except in the way that you were part of the killing.

What you thought about, what filled you up more than anything, was the being scared and hearing your heart thumping in your temples and all the noises, the terrible noises, the screeches and the booms and the guys crying for their mothers or for their wives.

—Walter Dean Myers, Fallen Angels (1988) Thinking Critically

1. Comparing What similar views about war do you think these books convey?

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R8.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links for American Literature to research personal accounts of the Vietnam War, such as interviews, letters, and essays. Copy several excerpts you find particularly interesting or moving and assemble them in a book. Write an introduction to your collection explaining why you chose them. Share your book with the class.

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Chapter 30: Assessment

Visual Summary: The Vietnam War Years A timeline shows events from 1964 to 1975.

DESCRIPTION:

The timeline shows major events from the Vietnam War.

1964: Congress passes the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, giving the president broad military powers in Vietnam.
1965: First major U.S. combat troops arrive in Vietnam to fight the Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army.
1967: Antiwar protests in the United States intensify.
1968: Vietcong launch massive Tet Offensive on numerous South Vietnamese cities.
1969: Paris peace talks begin in earnest; President Nixon announces Vietnamization of war-- gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops.
1970: President Nixon orders invasion of Cambodia to destroy supply bases; American college campuses erupt in protest.
1972: Nixon unleashes Christmas bombings on North Vietnamese cities after peace talks break off.
1973: United States and North Vietnam sign a truce; the U.S. withdraws the last of its troops from Vietnam.

1964 Congress passes the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, giving the president broad military powers in Vietnam. 1965 First major U.S. combat troops arrive in Vietnam to fight the Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army. 1967 Antiwar protests in the United States intensify. 1968 Vietcong launch massive Tet offensive on numerous South Vietnamese cities. 1969 Paris peace talks begin in earnest; President Nixon announces Vietnamization of war-gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops. 1970 President Nixon orders invasion of Cambodia to destroy enemy supply bases; American college campuses erupt in protest. 1972 Nixon unleashes “Christmas bombings” on North Vietnamese cities after peace talks break off. 1973 United States and North Vietnam sign a truce; the U.S. withdraws the last of its troops from Vietnam. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Terms and Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the Vietnam War years.

1. Ho Chi Minh

2. Ngo Dinh Diem

3. Vietcong

4. William Westmoreland

5. napalm

6. Tet offensive

7. Robert Kennedy

8. Henry Kissinger

9. Vietnamization

10. Pentagon Papers

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Moving Toward Conflict (pages 936–941)

1. How did the Tonkin Gulf Resolution lead to greater U.S. involvement in Vietnam?

2. What was President Eisenhower’s explanation of the domino theory?

U.S. Involvement and Escalation (pages 942–947)

3. Why did so much of the American public and many in the Johnson administration support U.S. escalation in Vietnam?

4. Why did the war begin to lose support at home? What contributed to the sinking morale of the U.S. troops?

A Nation Divided (pages 948–953)

5. What race-related problems existed for African-American soldiers who served in the Vietnam War?

6. Summarize the ways in which the United States was sharply divided between hawks and doves.

1968: A Tumultuous Year (pages 954–959)

7. What circumstances set the stage for President Johnson’s public announcement that he would not seek another term as president?

8. What acts of violence occurred in the United States during 1968 that dramatically altered the mood of the country?

The End of the War and Its Legacy (pages 960–967)

9. Briefly describe the military conflict in Vietnam soon after the last U.S. combat troops departed in 1973.

10. List the immediate effects and the more lasting legacies of America’s involvement in the Vietnam War.

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a cause-and-effect diagram like the one below for each of these congressional measures: a. Tonkin Gulf Resolution (1964), b. repeal of the Tonkin Gulf Resolution (1970), c. War Powers Act (1973).

Diagram: an arrow labled Cause leads to an oval labled Congressional Measure, by another arrow labled Effect.

2. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Why do you think so many young Americans became so vocal in their condemnation of the Vietnam War?

971 Standardized Test Practice

Use the cartoon and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

Cartoon: by a gravestone marked 20,000 American Dead Since 1968, Nixon holds a folder reading Secret Election-Year Plans to End the War.

a 1972 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by The Herb Block Foundation

1. In which of the following ways did the Vietnam War affect Americans’ attitudes towards their government?

A Americans tried to change their government from representative democracy to Communism.

B Americans lost confidence that those in government would tell the truth.

C Americans took new pride in their country’s reputation abroad.

D Americans worried that the United States would start another world war.

Use the quotation and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 2.

“Perhaps the place to start looking for a credibility gap is not in the offices of the government in Washington, but in the studios of the networks in New York.”
—Spiro T. Agnew

2. During the Vietnam War, the term “credibility gap” referred to the American people’s lack of trust in—

F Presidents Johnson and Nixon.

G television news reporters.

H antiwar protesters.

J Ho Chi Minh.

3. What happened to Vietnam after the U.S. pullout in 1973?

A The North and South remained divided and at peace.

B The North and South remained enemies, separated by a United Nations-controlled demilitarized zone.

C The North became a Chinese puppet state; the South experienced continual violent rebellions.

D The North defeated the South and incorporated it under a communist government.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 935:

Who should be exempt from the draft?

What lessons do you think can be learned from the ways in which Americans reacted to the draft? Write a paragraph expressing and giving reasons for your judgments. Think About:

• how the draft affected Americans’ views on the Vietnam War

• how the draft affected Americans’ participation in the Vietnam War

• how draft protests affected other Americans

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video “Matters of Conscience.” Discuss the following questions in a group; then do the activity.

• What different views about the Vietnam War were expressed in the video?

• Why does Gubar say he feels guilt about having served in the war?

Cooperative Learning Activity Organize two teams for debate. One team should argue for the side of the hawks, and the other team should argue on behalf of the doves. Research the arguments put forth by both sides and debate the issue before the class.

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Chapter 31: An Era Of Social Change

Photo: young people with long hair and colorful clothes sit atop a bus painted in wild colors. A title: An Era of Social Change.

Hippies gather in El Rito, New Mexico, at a Fourth of July parade in 1969. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 972 and page 973 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1960 to 1974 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1960 to 1974 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1960-1974.

1962, the World: Chinese forces invade India.
1962, USA: Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta found the National Farm Workers Association.
1963, the World: Civil War breaks out between Greeks and Turks on Cyprus.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1966, USA: National Organization for Women (NOW) is formed.
1967, the World: Six-Day War between Israel and Arab nations.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1969, the World: President Charles de Gaulle of France resigns.
1970, USA: Political party La Raza Unida is formed.
1970, USA: Grape boycott forces growers to sign contracts with United Farm Workers.
1970, the World: Anwar el-Sadat becomes president of Egypt.
1972, USA: Richard M. Nixon is reelected.
1972, the World: Earthquake kills 10,000 in Nicaragua.
1973, USA: Native Americans stage protest at Wounded Knee, South Dakota.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 972 and page 973 in the print version. 973 Photo: young people with long hair and colorful clothes sit atop a bus painted in wild colors. A title: An Era of Social Change.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 972 and page 973 in the print version. Interact with History

In the late 1960s, a new breed of youth known as the counterculture rejects the fashions, traditions, and morals of American society. Minority groups assert their equal rights, demanding changes to long-standing practices and prejudices. Women protest forms of oppression and male privileges that have “always,” it seems, been taken for granted. Many Americans begin to feel as if the whole nation has been turned on its side.

How much can a society change?

Examine the Issues

• Does every individual have a responsibility to follow the unwritten rules of society?

• What are the positive and negative aspects of change?

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1960-1974.

1962, the World: Chinese forces invade India.
1962, USA: Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta found the National Farm Workers Association.
1963, the World: Civil War breaks out between Greeks and Turks on Cyprus.
1964, USA: Lyndon B. Johnson is elected president.
1966, USA: National Organization for Women (NOW) is formed.
1967, the World: Six-Day War between Israel and Arab nations.
1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1969, the World: President Charles de Gaulle of France resigns.
1970, USA: Political party La Raza Unida is formed.
1970, USA: Grape boycott forces growers to sign contracts with United Farm Workers.
1970, the World: Anwar el-Sadat becomes president of Egypt.
1972, USA: Richard M. Nixon is reelected.
1972, the World: Earthquake kills 10,000 in Nicaragua.
1973, USA: Native Americans stage protest at Wounded Knee, South Dakota.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 972 and page 973 in the print version. 974

Section 1: Latinos and Native Americans Seek Equality

One American’s Story

Jessie Lopez de la Cruz’s life changed one night in 1962, when César Chávez came to her home. Chávez, a Mexican-American farm worker, was trying to organize a union for California’s mostly Spanish-speaking farm workers. Chávez said, “The women have to be involved. They’re the ones working out in the fields with their husbands.” Soon Jessie was in the fields, talking to farm workers about the union.

A PERSONAL VOICE

JESSIE LOPEZ DE LACRUZ

“ Wherever I went to speak … I told them about … how we had no benefits, no minimum wage, nothing out in the fields—no restrooms, nothing…. I said, ‘Well! Do you think we should be putting up with this in this modern age? … We can stand up! We can talk back! … This country is very rich, and we want a share of the money those growers make [off] our sweat and our work by exploiting us and our children!’ ”
— quoted in Moving the Mountain: Women Working for Social Change

photo: protesters carry picket signs reading HUELGA NFWA.

Carrying signs that say “Strike” (huelga), Mexican-American farm workers protest poor working conditions.

The efforts of Jessie Lopez de la Cruz were just part of a larger rights movement during the turbulent and revolutionary 1960s. As African Americans were fighting for civil rights, Latinos and Native Americans rose up to assert their own rights and improve their lives.

The Latino Presence Grows

Latinos, or Americans of Latin American descent, are a large and diverse group. During the 1960s, the Latino population in the United States grew from 3 million to more than 9 million. Today the Latino population includes people from several different areas, primarily Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Central America, and South America. Each of these groups has its own history, its

975

photo: men wearing broad-brimmed hats gather in a park across from a church.

In the 1920s, thousands of Mexican people came to the U.S. and settled in barrios. Shown here, Hispanic men gather in a park in California.

own pattern of settlement in the United States, and its own set of economic, social, cultural, and political concerns.

Latinos of Varied Origins

Mexican Americans, the largest Latino group, have lived mostly in the Southwest and California. This group includes descendants of the nearly 100,000 Mexicans who had lived in territories ceded by Mexico to the United States in 1848. Another million or so Mexicans came to the United States in the 1910s, following Mexico’s revolution. Still others came as braceros, or temporary laborers, during the 1940s and 1950s. In the 1960s close to half a million Mexicans immigrated, most in search of better paying jobs.

Puerto Ricans began immigrating to the United States after the U.S. occupation of Puerto Rico in 1898. As of 1960, almost 900,000 Puerto Ricans were living in the continental United States, including almost half a million on New York City’s West Side.

Historical Spotlight: Desperate Journeys

In the 1960s and 1970s, thousands of poor Mexicans illegally crossed the 2,000-mile border between the United States and Mexico each year. The journey these illegal aliens undertook was often made more difficult by “coyotes,” guides who charged large amounts of money to help them cross the border, but who often didn’t deliver on their promises.

Illegal immigrants’ problems didn’t end when they entered the United States, where they were denied many social services, including unemployment insurance and food stamps. In addition, the Immigration and Naturalization Service urged businesses to refrain from hiring them. As a result, some owners stopped employing people with Latino names, including legal immigrants.

Large Cuban communities also formed in New York City and in Miami and New Jersey. This is because hundreds of thousands of Cubans, many of whom were academics and professionals, fled to the United States in 1959 to escape Fidel Castro’s Communist rule. In addition, tens of thousands of Salvadorans, Guatemalans, Nicaraguans, and Colombians immigrated to the United States after the 1960s to escape civil war and chronic poverty.

Wherever they had settled, during the 1960s many Latinos encountered ethnic prejudice and discrimination in jobs and housing. Most lived in segregated barrios, or Spanish-speaking neighborhoods. The Latino jobless rate was nearly 50 percent higher than that of whites, as was the percentage of Latino families living in poverty.

Latinos Fight for Change

As the presence of Latinos in the United States grew, so too did their demand for greater representation and better treatment. During the 1960s, Latinos demanded not only equal opportunity, but also a respect for their culture and heritage.

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The Farm Worker Movement

As Jessie Lopez de la Cruz explained, thou-sands working on California’s fruit and vegetable farms did backbreaking work for little pay and few benefits. César Chávez believed that farm workers had to unionize, that their strength would come from bargaining as a group. In 1962, Chávez and Dolores Huerta established the National Farm Workers Association. Four years later, this group merged with a Filipino agricultural union (also founded by Huerta) to form the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC).

“ To us, the boycott of grapes was the most near-perfect of nonviolent struggles.”
CÉSAR CHÁVEZ

Chávez and his fellow organizers insisted that California’s large fruit and vegetable companies accept their union as the bargaining agent for the farm workers. In 1965, when California’s grape growers refused to recognize the union, Chávez launched a nationwide boycott of the companies’ grapes. Chávez, like Martin Luther King, Jr., believed in using nonviolence to reach his goal. The union sent farm workers across the country to convince supermarkets and shoppers not to buy California grapes. Chávez then went on a three-week fast in which he lost 35 pounds. He ended his fast by attending Mass with Senator Robert F. Kennedy. The efforts of the farm workers eventually paid off. In 1970, Huerta negotiated a con-tract between the grape growers and the UFWOC. Union workers would finally be guaranteed higher wages and other benefits long denied them.

Key Player: César Chávez 1927–1993 photo: Cesar Chavez.

César Chávez spoke from experience when he said, “Many things in farm labor are terrible.”

As a teenager, Chávez moved with his family from farm to farm, picking such crops as grapes, apricots, and olives. “The worst crop was the olives,” Chávez recalled. “The olives are so small you can never fill the bucket.”

The seeds of protest grew early in Chávez. As a teenager, he once went to see a movie, only to find that the theater was segregated—whites on one side of the aisle and Mexicans on the other side. “I really hadn’t thought much about what I was going to do, but I had to do something,” Chávez recalled. The future union leader sat down in the whites-only section and stayed there until the police arrived and arrested him.

Cultural Pride

The activities of the California farm workers helped to inspire other Latino “brown power” movements across the country. In New York, members of the Puerto Rican population began to demand that schools offer Spanish-speaking children classes taught in their own language as well as programs about their culture. In 1968, Congress enacted the Bilingual Education Act, which provided funds for schools to develop bilingual and cultural heritage programs for non-English-speaking children.

Young Mexican Americans started to call themselves Chicanos or Chicanas—a shortened version of “Mexicanos” that expressed pride in their ethnic heritage. A Chicano community action group called the Brown Berets formed under the leadership of David Sanchez. In 1968, the Brown Berets organized walkouts in East Los Angeles high schools. About 15,000 Chicano students walked out of class demanding smaller classes, more Chicano teachers and administrators, and programs designed to reduce the high Latino dropout rate. Militant Mexican-American students also won the establishment of Chicano studies programs at colleges and universities.

Political Power

Latinos also began organizing politically during the 1960s. Some worked within the two-party system. For example, the Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) helped elect Los Angeles politician Edward Roybal to the House of Representatives. During the 1960s, eight Hispanic Americans served in the House, and one Hispanic senator was elected—Joseph Montoya of New Mexico.

Others, like Texan José Angel Gutiérrez, sought to create an independent Latino political movement. In 1970, he established La Raza Unida (The People United). In the 1970s, La Raza Unida ran Latino candidates in five states and won races for mayor, as well as other local positions on school boards and city councils.

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Still other Latinos took on a more confrontational tone. In 1963, one-time evangelical preacher Reies Tijerina founded the Alianza Federal de Mercedes (Federal Alliance of Land Grants) to help reclaim U.S. land taken from Mexican landholders in the 19th century. He and his followers raided the Rio Arriba County Courthouse in Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico, in order to force authorities to recognize the plight of New Mexican small farmers. They were later arrested.

Native Americans Struggle for Equality

As are Latinos, Native Americans are sometimes viewed as a single homogeneous group, despite the hundreds of distinct Native American tribes and nations in the United States. One thing that these diverse tribes and nations have shared is a mostly bleak existence in the United States and a lack of autonomy, or ability to control and govern their own lives. Through the years, many Native Americans have clung to their heritage, refusing to assimilate, or blend, into mainstream society. Native American nationalist Vine Deloria, Jr., expressed the view that mainstream society was nothing more than “ice cream bars and heart trouble and … getting up at six o’clock in the morning to mow your lawn in the suburbs.”

Native Americans Seek Greater Autonomy

Despite their cultural diversity, Native Americans as a group have been the poorest of Americans and have suffered from the highest unemployment rate. They have also been more likely than any other group to suffer from tuberculosis and alcoholism. Although the Native American population rose during the 1960s, the death rate among Native American infants was nearly twice the national average, while life expectancy was several years less than for other Americans.

Now & Then: Ben Nighthorse Campbell photo: Ben Nighthorse Campbell.

Whereas many Native Americans rejected assimilation, Ben Nighthorse Campbell chose to work within the system to improve the lives of Native Americans. Campbell’s father was a North Cheyenne, and his great-grandfather, Black Horse, fought in the 1876 Battle of the Little Bighorn—in which the Cheyenne and the Sioux defeated Lieutenant Colonel George Custer.

In 1992, Campbell was elected to the U.S. Senate from Colorado, marking the first time since 1929 that a Native American had been elected to the Senate. Campbell stated that while he served the entire nation, the needs of Native Americans would always remain a priority. He retired from the Senate in 2004.

In 1954, the Eisenhower administration enacted a “termination” policy to deal with these problems, but it did not respect Native American culture. Native Americans were relocated from isolated reservations into mainstream urban American life. The plan failed miserably. Most who moved to the cities remained desperately poor.

In 1961, representatives from 61 Native American groups met in Chicago and drafted the Declaration of Indian Purpose, which stressed the determination of Native Americans to “choose our own way of life.” The declaration called for an end to the termination program in favor of new policies designed to create economic opportunities for Native Americans on their reservations. In 1968, President Lyndon Johnson established the National Council on Indian Opportunity to “ensure that programs reflect the needs and desires of the Indian people.”

Voices of Protest

Many young Native Americans were dissatisfied with the slow pace of reform. Their discontent fueled the growth of the American Indian Movement (AIM), an often militant Native American rights organization. While AIM began in 1968 largely as a self-defense group against police brutality, it soon branched out to include protecting the rights of large Native American populations in northern and western states.

978

photo: Dennis Banks speaks near Mount Rushmore.

AIM leader Dennis Banks speaks at the foot of Mount Rushmore, in South Dakota, during a 1970s rally.

For some, this new activism meant demanding that Native American lands, burial grounds, and fishing and timber rights be restored. Others wanted a new respect for their culture. Mary Crow Dog, a Lakota Sioux, described AIM’s impact.

A PERSONAL VOICE

MARY CROW DOG

“ My first encounter with AIM was at a pow-wow held in 1971…. One man, a Chippewa, stood up and made a speech. I had never heard anybody talk like that. He spoke about genocide and sovereignty, about tribal leaders selling out…. He had himself wrapped up in an upside-down American flag, telling us that every star in this flag represented a state stolen from the Indians…. Some people wept. An old man turned to me and said, ‘These are the words I always wanted to speak, but had kept shut up within me.’”
—Lakota Women

Confronting the Government

In its early years, AIM, as well as other groups, actively—and sometimes violently—confronted the government. In 1972, AIM leader Russell Means organized the “Trail of Broken Treaties” march in Washington, D.C., to protest the U.S. government’s treaty violations throughout history. Native Americans from across the country joined the march. They sought the restoration of 110 million acres of land. They also pushed for the abolition of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), which many believed was corrupt. The marchers temporarily occupied the BIA building, destroyed records, and caused $2 million in property damage.

“ If the government doesn’t start living up to its obligations, armed resistance … will have to become a regular thing.”
CHIPPEWA PROTESTER

A year later, AIM led nearly 200 Sioux to the tiny village of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, where the U.S. cavalry had massacred a Sioux village in 1890. In protest against both tribal leadership and federal policies, the Sioux seized the town, taking hostages. After tense negotiations with the FBI and a shootout that left two Native Americans dead and others wounded, the confrontation ended with a government promise to reexamine Native American treaty rights.

Native American Victories

Congress and the federal courts did make some reforms on behalf of Native Americans. In 1972, Congress passed the Indian Education Act. In 1975, it passed the Indian Self-Determination and Education

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Native American Legal Victories 1970 Taos of New Mexico regain possession of Blue Lake as well as surrounding forestland. 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act gives Alaskan natives 44 million acres and more than $962 million. 1979 Maine Implementing Act provides $81.5 million for native tribes, including Penobscot and Passamaquoddy, to buy back land. 1980 U.S. awards Sioux $106 million for illegally taken land in South Dakota. 1988 U.S. awards Puyallup tribe $162 million forland claims in Washington. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Assistance Act. These laws gave tribes greater control over their own affairs and over their children’s education.

Armed with copies of old land treaties that the U.S. government had broken, Native Americans went to federal court and regained some of their rights to land. In 1970, the Taos of New Mexico regained possession of their sacred Blue Lake, as well as a portion of its surrounding forestland. Land claims by natives of Alaska resulted in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971. This act gave more than 40 million acres to native peoples and paid out more than $962 million in cash. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Native Americans won settlements that provided legal recognition of their tribal lands as well as financial compensation.

While the 1960s and the early 1970s saw a wave of activism from the nation’s minority groups, another group of Americans also pushed for changes. Women, while not a minority group, were in many ways treated like second-class citizens, and many joined together to demand equal treatment in society.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

•César Chávez

•United Farm Workers Organizing Committee

•La Raza Unida

•American Indian Movement (AIM)

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a Venn diagram like the one below to show the broad similarities between the issues faced by Latinos and Native Americans during the 1960s, as well as the unique concerns of the two groups.

A diagram shows two overlapping ovals, one labled Latinos and one labled Native Americans. The place where they overlap is labled Both.

Issues Faced by Latinos and Native Americans

Which group do you think had more to gain by fighting for what they wanted?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

How would you judge whether an activist organization was effective? List criteria you would use, and justify your criteria. Think About:

• UFWOC, MAPA, and La Raza Unida

• AIM

• the leaders and activities of these organizations

4. ANALYZING EFFECTS

In what ways did the Latino campaign for economic and social equality affect non-Latino Americans?

5. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES

Vine Deloria, Jr., said,

“ When you get far enough away from the reservation, you can see it’s the urban man who has no identity.”

What do you think he meant by this?

980

Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court: REYNOLDS v. SIMS (1964)

ORIGINS OF THE CASE In 1901, seats in the Alabama state legislature were apportioned, or assigned to districts, based on population. By the early 1960s, each Alabama county still had the same number of representatives as it did in 1901, even though the populations of the counties had changed. A group of voters sued to make representation proportional to the changed populations. When the suit succeeded, state legislators who were threatened with losing their seats appealed to the Supreme Court.

THE RULING The Supreme Court upheld the principle of “one person, one vote” and ruled that the equal protection clause required representation in state legislatures to be based on population.

Legal Reasoning

Prior to Reynolds, the Court had already applied the “one person, one vote” principle to federal congressional elections (see Legal Sources). In Reynolds, Chief Justice Earl Warren extended this principle to state legislatures. He argued that when representation does not reflect population, some people’s votes are worth more than others’.

Legal Sources

“ The fundamental principle of representative government in this country is one of equal representation for equal numbers of people, without regard to … place of residence within a State…. Legislators represent people, not trees or acres. Legislators are elected by voters, not farms or cities or economic interests.”

Warren concluded that Alabama’s apportionment scheme discriminated against people because of where they live.

For these reasons, the Court ruled that any acceptable apportionment plan must provide an equal number of legislative seats for equally populated areas. A plan that does not is unconstitutional because it denies some voters the equal protection of the laws.

photo: the nine justices of the 1964 Supreme Court wear black robes.

Chief Justice Warren (front, center) and members of the 1964 Supreme Court. 981

Why it Mattered

The voters who initiated the suit against Alabama’s apportionment were part of America’s tremendous urban growth in the 20th century. During and after World War II, tens of thousands of Americans—including large numbers of African Americans—moved from rural areas to cities and suburbs. Voters in Alabama’s more urban areas found that they were underrepresented. Likewise, before Reynolds, urban residents as a whole paid far more in taxes than they received in benefits. A great deal was at stake.

The “one person, one vote” principle increased the influence of urban residents by forcing legislatures to create new election districts in the cities to reflect their large populations. As more legislators representing urban and suburban needs were elected, they were able to change funding formulas, funneling more money into their districts. In addition, minorities, immigrants, and professionals, who tend to make up a large proportion of urban populations, gained better representation.

On the other hand, the power of farmers was eroded as election districts in rural areas were combined and incumbents had to campaign against each other for a single seat.

Historical Impact

The Warren Court’s reapportionment decisions in Baker v. Carr, Gray v. Sanders, Wesberry v. Sanders, and Reynolds were a revolution in U.S. politics. The lawsuit that culminated in the Reynolds decision was also part of a broader movement in the 1960s to protect voting rights. Largely because of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, voter registration among African Americans in Mississippi, for instance, climbed from 6.7 percent to 59.8 percent. Viewed together, the combination of increased protection of voting rights and acceptance of the “one person, one vote” principle brought the United States several steps closer to fulfilling its democratic ideals.

In the 1990s, the Court revisited reapportionment. A 1982 act of Congress had required states to create districts with “minority majorities” in order to increase the number of nonwhite representatives. As a result, following the 1990 census, a record number of African Americans were elected to Congress. But opponents contended that defining districts by race violated equal protection and “one person, one vote.” In a series of decisions, the Court agreed and abolished minority districting.

Maps: two maps show Alabama divided into many different districts. The map on the right has many tiny districts in and around cities.

ALABAMA 1901 ALABAMA 1973 These two apportionment maps show Alabama’s 35 state senatorial districts in 1901 (left) and 1973 (right). The 1973 map shows how the districts were redrawn after the Reynolds decision, based on the 1970 census. Notice how the 1973 map reflects the growth of Alabama cities. Thinking Critically Connect to Today

1. Analyzing Maps Obtain a map of the state legislative districts in your state. Then compare the map created following the 2000 census with the map based on the 1990 census. Study the differences in the size and location of the districts. Write a paragraph explaining which regions of the state gained representatives and which lost representatives.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R26. Connect to History

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court to research minority redistricting decisions such as Shaw v. Hunt (1996). Write a summary of the rulings and how they have affected elections.

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Section 2: Women Fight for Equality

One American’s Story

During the 1950s, writer Betty Friedan seemed to be living the American dream. She had a loving husband, healthy children, and a house in the suburbs. According to the experts—doctors, psychologists, and women’s magazines—that was all a woman needed to be fulfilled. Why, then, wasn’t she happy? In 1957, after conducting a survey of her Smith College classmates 15 years after graduation, she found she was not alone. Friedan eventually wrote a book, The Feminine Mystique, in which she addressed this “problem that has no name.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

BETTY FRIEDAN

“ The problem lay buried, unspoken…. It was a strange stirring, a sense of dissatisfaction, a yearning that women suffered in the middle of the twentieth century in the United States. Each suburban wife struggled with it alone. As she made the beds, shopped for groceries, matched slipcover material, ate peanut butter sandwiches with her children, chauffeured Cub Scouts and Brownies, lay beside her husband at night—she was afraid to ask even of herself the silent question—‘Is this all?’”
—The Feminine Mystique

Betty Friedan, November 1967

During the 1960s, women answered Friedan’s question with a resounding “no.” In increasing numbers they joined the nation’s African Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans in the fight for greater civil rights and equality in society.

A New Women’s Movement Arises

The theory behind the women’s movement of the 1960s was feminism, the belief that women should have economic, political, and social equality with men. Feminist beliefs had gained momentum during the mid-1800s and in 1920 won women the right to vote. While the women’s movement declined after this achievement, it reawakened during the 1960s, spurred by the political activism of the times.

983 Women in the Workplace, 1950–2000 Graphs show women as a percentage of the labor force, and median incomes for working men and women.

DESCRIPTION:

The first graph shows the percentage of the workforce made up of women rising steadily from 1950 to 2000. The second graph compares median incomes for working men and women in 1950, 1970 and 2000.

1950: women are 30% of the workforce
1960: women are 33% of the workforce
1970: women are 38% of the workforce
1980: women are 43% of the workforce
1990: women are 45% of the workforce
2000: women are 48% of the workforce

1950: Men $2,750; Women $953
1970: Men $6,670; Women $2,237
2000: Men $33,592; Women $25,532

Working Women and Percent of Labor Force Median Incomes for Working Women and Men A political button reads Women Make Policy, Not Coffee.

This 1960s pin displays a slogan used by Betty Friedan at the National Women’s Political Caucus.

Women in the Workplace

In 1950, only one out of three women worked for wages. By 1960, that number had increased to about 40 percent. Still, during this time, certain jobs were considered “men’s work” and women were shut out. The jobs available to women—mostly clerical work, domestic service, retail sales, social work, teaching, and nursing—paid poorly.

The country largely ignored this discrimination until President Kennedy appointed the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women in 1961. In 1963, the commission reported that women were paid far less than men, even when doing the same jobs. Furthermore, women were seldom promoted to management positions, regardless of their education, experience, and ability. These newly publicized facts awakened many women to their unequal status in society.

Women and Activism

Ironically, many women felt the sting of discrimination when they became involved in the civil rights and antiwar movements—movements that toted the ideological banner of protecting people’s rights. Within some of these organizations, such as SNCC and SDS, men led most of the activities, while women were assigned lesser roles. When women protested this arrangement, the men usually brushed them aside.

“Move on little girl; we have more important issues to talk about here than women’s liberation.”
A MALE ANTIWAR ACTIVIST

Such experiences led some women to organize small groups to discuss their concerns. During these discussions, or “consciousness-raising” sessions, women shared their lives with each other and discovered that their experiences were not unique. Rather, they reflected a much larger pattern of sexism, or discrimination based on gender. Author Robin Morgan delineated this pattern.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ROBIN MORGAN

“ It makes you very sensitive—raw, even, this consciousness. Everything, from the verbal assault on the street, to a ‘well-meant’ sexist joke your husband tells, to the lower pay you get at work (for doing the same job a man would be paid more for), to television commercials, to rock-song lyrics, to the pink or blue blanket they put on your infant in the hospital nursery, to speeches by male ‘revolutionaries’ that reek of male supremacy—everything seems to barrage your aching brain…. You begin to see how all-pervasive a thing is sexism.”
—quoted in Sisterhood Is Powerful: An Anthology of Writings from the Women’s Liberation Movement

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The Women’s Movement Emerges

The Feminine Mystique, which captured the very discontent that many women were feeling, quickly became a bestseller and helped to galvanize women across the country. By the late 1960s, women were working together for change. “This is not a movement one ‘joins,’” observed Robin Morgan. “The Women’s Liberation Movement exists where three or four friends or neighbors decide to meet regularly … on the welfare lines, in the supermarket, the factory, the convent, the farm, the maternity ward.”

The Movement Experiences Gains and Losses

As the women’s movement grew, it achieved remarkable and enduring political and social gains for women. Along the way, however, it also suffered setbacks, most notably in its attempt to ensure women’s equality in the Constitution.

Key Player: Gloria Steinem 1934– photo: Gloria Steinam.

Gloria Steinem became one of the more prominent figures of the women’s movement after she and several other women founded Ms. magazine in 1972. The magazine soon became a major voice of the women’s movement.

Steinem said that she decided to start the feminist magazine after editors in the mainstream media continually rejected her stories about the women’s movement:

“Editors who had assumed I had some valuable biological insight into food, male movie stars, and textured stockings now questioned whether I or other women writers were biologically capable of writing objectively about feminism. That was the beginning.”

The Creation of Now

The women’s movement gained strength with the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, and gender and created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to handle discrimination claims. By 1966, however, some women argued that the EEOC didn’t adequately address women’s grievances. That year, 28 women, including Betty Friedan, created the National Organization for Women (NOW) to pursue women’s goals. “The time has come,” the founders of NOW declared, “to confront with concrete action the conditions which now prevent women from enjoying the equality of opportunity … which is their right as individual Americans and as human beings.”

NOW members pushed for the creation of child-care facilities that would enable mothers to pursue jobs and education. NOW also pressured the EEOC to enforce more vigorously the ban on gender discrimination in hiring. NOW’s efforts prompted the EEOC to declare sex-segregated job ads illegal and to issue guidelines to employers, stating that they could no longer refuse to hire women for traditionally male jobs.

A Diverse Movement

In its first three years, NOW’s ranks swelled to 175,000 members. A number of other women’s groups sprang up around the country, too. In 1968, a militant group known as the New York Radical Women staged a well-publicized demonstration at the annual Miss America Pageant. The women threw bras, girdles, wigs, and other “women’s garbage” into a “Freedom Trash Can.” They then crowned a sheep “Miss America.” Around this time, Gloria Steinem, a journalist, political activist, and ardent supporter of the women’s liberation movement, made her voice heard on the subjects of feminism and equality. Steinem’s grandmother had served as president of the Ohio Woman’s Suffrage Association from 1908 to 1911; Steinem had inherited her passion and conviction. In 1971, Steinem helped found the National Women’s Political Caucus, a moderate group that encouraged women to seek political office. In 1972, she and other women created a new women’s magazine, Ms., designed to treat contemporary issues from a feminist perspective.

Legal and Social Gains

As the women’s movement progressed, women began to question all sorts of gender-based distinctions. People protested that a woman’s physical

985

photo: women hold a huge banner that reads Women of the World Unite!

Thousands of women march through the streets of New York City during the summer of 1970 to promote women’s equality.

appearance was often considered a job qualification. Girls’ exclusion from sports such as baseball and football came into question. Some women began using the title Ms., instead of the standard Miss or Mrs., and refused to adopt their husband’s last name upon marriage.

These changes in attitude were paralleled by numerous legal changes. In 1972, Congress passed a ban on gender discrimination in “any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance,” as part of the Higher Education Act. As a result, several all-male colleges opened their doors to women. That same year, Congress expanded the powers of the EEOC and gave working parents a tax break for child-care expenses.

ROE v. WADE

One of the more controversial positions that NOW and other feminist groups supported was a woman’s right to have an abortion. In 1973, the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that women do have the right to choose an abortion during the first three months of pregnancy. Some thought the ruling might “bring to an end the emotional and divisive public argument….” However, the issue still divides Americans today.

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

In what seemed at first to be another triumph for the women’s movement, Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in 1972. The amendment then needed ratification by 38 states to become part of the Constitution. First introduced to Congress in 1923, the ERA would guarantee that both men and women would enjoy the same rights and protections under the law. It was, many supporters said, a matter of “simple justice.”

The amendment scared many people, and a Stop-ERA campaign was launched in 1972. Conservative Phyllis Schlafly, along with conservative religious groups, political organizations, and many anti-feminists, felt that the ERA would lead to “a parade of horribles,” such as the drafting of women, the end of laws protecting homemakers, the end of a husband’s responsibility to provide for his family, and same-sex marriages. Schlafly said that radical feminists “hate men, marriage, and children” and were oppressed “only in their distorted minds.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

PHYLLIS SCHLAFLY

“ The U.S. Constitution is not the place for symbols or slogans, it is not the proper device to alleviate psychological problems of personal inferiority. Symbols and slogans belong on bumper strips—not in the Constitution. It would be a tragic mistake for our nation to succumb to the tirades and demands of a few women who are seeking a constitutional cure for their personal problems.”
— quoted in The Equal Rights Amendment: The History and the Movement

photo: Phyllis Schlafly wears a sign on her chest that reads Stop Era.

Phyllis Schlafly in 1977.

The New Right Emerges

In order to combat the ERA and the pro-abortion supporters, conservatives built what they called a new “pro-family” movement. In the 1970s, this coalition—which focused on social, cultural, and moral problems—came to be known as the New Right. The New Right and the women’s movement debated family-centered issues such as whether the government should pay for daycare, which the New Right opposed. Throughout the 1970s, the New Right built grassroots support for social conservatism. It would later play a key role in the election of Ronald Reagan to the presidency in 1980.

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The Movement’s Legacy

The New Right and the women’s movement clashed most dramatically over the ERA. By 1977 it had won approval from 35 of the 38 states needed for ratification, but the New Right gained strength. By June of 1982—the deadline for ratification—not enough states had approved the amendment. The ERA went down in defeat.

Despite ERA’s defeat, the women’s movement altered society in countless ways, such as by transforming women’s conventional roles and their attitudes toward career and family. Interviews with women graduates at Stanford University reflect the change. Of graduates in 1965, 70 percent planned not to work at all when their children were of preschool age. When the class of 1972 was surveyed, only 7 percent said they would stop working to raise children.

A poster reads A Woman's Polace is in the House... And Also in the Senate!

As this poster shows, women have made significant political strides by being elected to the U.S. Congress.

The women’s movement also succeeded in expanding career opportunities for women. For instance, as of 1970, 8 percent of all medical school graduates and 5 percent of all law school graduates were women. By 1998, those proportions had risen to 42 and 44 percent, respectively. Yet many women ran into a “glass ceiling”—an invisible, but very real, resistance to promoting women into top positions.

By 1983 women held 13.5 percent of elected state offices as well as 24 seats in the U.S. Congress. More importantly, as historian Sara Evans has noted, by 1980 “feminist concerns were firmly on the national political agenda and clearly there to stay.” Most of all, the women’s movement helped countless women open their lives to new possibilities. “For we have lived the second American revolution,” wrote Betty Friedan in 1976, “and our very anger said a ‘new YES’ to life.”

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Betty Friedan

• feminism

• National Organization for Women (NOW)

• Gloria Steinem

• Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

• Phyllis Schlafly

The cover of Ms. magazine.

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of key events relating to the women’s movement.

A blank timeline shows the years 1964, 1966, 1971, 1972 and 1973.

Explain which event you think best demonstrates progressive reform.

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

What if the Equal Rights Amendment had been ratified? Speculate on how women’s lives might have been different. Use reasons to support your answer. Think About:

• rights addressed by the amendment

• legal support that the amendment might have provided

• possible reactions from groups opposing the amendment

A timeline with the years: 1964, 1966, 1971, 1972, 1973.

4. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

Examine the drawing on this 1972 cover of Ms. The woman shown has eight arms and is holding a different object in each hand. What do you think these objects symbolize in terms of women’s roles? What do you think this drawing says about women in the 1960s? Explain.

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Section 3: Culture and Counterculture

One American’s Story

In 1966, Alex Forman left his conventional life in mainstream America and headed to San Francisco. Arriving there with little else but a guitar, he joined thousands of others who were determined to live in a more peaceful and carefree environment. He recalled his early days in San Francisco’s HaightAshbury district, the hub of hippie life.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ALEX FORMAN

“ It was like paradise there. Everybody was in love with life and in love with their fellow human beings to the point where they were just sharing in incredible ways with everybody. Taking people in off the street and letting them stay in their homes…. You could walk down almost any street in HaightAshbury where I was living, and someone would smile at you and just go, ‘Hey, it’s beautiful, isn’t it?’… It was a very special time.”
—quoted in From Camelot to Kent State

photo: young people with long hair gather in a park.

Members of the counterculture relax in a California park.

Forman was part of the counterculture—a movement made up mostly of white, middle-class college youths who had grown disillusioned with the war in Vietnam and injustices in America during the 1960s. Instead of challenging the system, they turned their backs on traditional America and tried to establish a whole new society based on peace and love. Although their heyday was short-lived, their legacy remains.

The Counterculture

In the late 1960s, the historian Theodore Roszak deemed these idealistic youths the counterculture. It was a culture, he said, so different from the mainstream “that it scarcely looks to many as a culture at all, but takes on the alarming appearance of a barbarian intrusion.”

988

“Tune in, Turn on, Drop out”

Members of the counterculture, known as hippies, shared some of the beliefs of the New Left movement. Specifically, they felt that American society—and its materialism, technology, and war—had grown hollow. Influenced by the nonconformist beat movement of the 1950s, hippies embraced the credo of Harvard psychology professor and counterculture philosopher Timothy Leary: “Tune in, turn on, drop out.” Throughout the mid- and late 1960s, tens of thousands of idealistic youths left school, work, or home to create what they hoped would be an idyllic community of peace, love, and harmony.

“ How does it feel to be without a home … like a rolling stone?”
BOB DYLAN

Hippie Culture

The hippie era, sometimes known as the Age of Aquarius, was marked by rock ’n’ roll music, outrageous clothing, sexual license, and illegal drugs—in particular, marijuana and a new hallucinogenic drug called LSD, or acid. Timothy Leary, an early experimenter with the drug, promoted the use of LSD as a “mind-expanding” aid for self-awareness. Hippies also turned to Eastern religions such as Zen Buddhism, which professed that one could attain enlightenment through meditation rather than the reading of scriptures.

Hippies donned ragged jeans, tie-dyed T-shirts, military garments, love beads, and Native American ornaments. Thousands grew their hair out, despite the fact that their more conservative elders saw this as an act of disrespect. Signs across the country said, “Make America beautiful—give a hippie a haircut.”

Hippies also rejected conventional home life. Many joined communes, in which the members renounced private property to live communally. By the mid-sixties, Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco was known as the hippie capital, mainly because California did not outlaw hallucinogenic drugs until 1966.

Decline of the Movement

After only a few years, the counterculture’s peace and harmony gave way to violence and disillusionment. The urban communes eventually turned seedy and dangerous. Alex Forman recalled, “There were ripoffs, violence … people living on the street with no place to stay.” Having dispensed with society’s conventions and rules, the hippies had to rely on each other. Many discovered that the philosophy of “do your own thing” did not provide enough guidance for how to live. “We were together at the level of peace and love,” said one disillusioned hippie. “We fell apart over who would cook and wash dishes and pay the bills.” By 1970, many had fallen victim to the drugs they used, experiencing drug addiction and mental breakdowns. The rock singer Janis Joplin and the legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix both died of drug overdoses in 1970.

As the mystique of the 1960s wore off, thousands of hippies lined up at government offices to collect welfare and food stamps—dependent on the very society they had once rejected.

photo: a woman in a colorful dress stands by a van painted in bright patterns.

A prominent symbol of the counterculture movement was bright colors. 989

A Changing Culture

Although short-lived, some aspects of the counterculture—namely, its fine arts and social attitudes—left a more lasting imprint on the world.

Art

The counterculture’s rebellious style left its mark on the art world. The 1960s saw the rise of pop art (popular art). Pop artists, led by Andy Warhol, attempted to bring art into the mainstream. Pop art was characterized by bright, simple, commercial-looking images often depicting everyday life. For instance, Warhol became famous for his bright silk-screen portraits of soup cans, Marilyn Monroe, and other icons of mass culture. These images were repeated to look mass-produced and impersonal, a criticism of the times implying that individual freedoms had been lost to a more conventional, “cookie-cutter” lifestyle.

Rock Music

During the 1960s, the counterculture movement embraced rock ’n’ roll as its loud and biting anthem of protest. The music was an offshoot of African-American rhythm and blues music that had captivated so many teenagers during the 1950s.

The band that, perhaps more than any other, helped propel rock music into main-stream America was the Beatles. The British band, made up of four youths from working-class Liverpool, England, arrived in America in 1964 and immediately took the country by storm. By the time the Beatles broke up in 1970, the four “lads” had inspired a countless number of other bands and had won over mil-lions of Americans to rock ’n’ roll.

One example of rock ’n’ roll’s popularity occurred in August 1969 on a farm in upstate New York. More than 400,000 showed up for a music festival called “Woodstock Music and Art Fair.” This festival represented, as one song-writer put it, “the ’60s movement of peace and love and some higher cultural cause.” For three days, the most popular bands and musicians performed, including Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Joe Cocker, Joan Baez, the Grateful Dead, and Jefferson Airplane. Despite the huge crowd, Woodstock was peaceful and well organized. However, Tom Mathews, a writer who attended the Woodstock festival, recalled his experience there as less than blissful.

The Beatles, shown here in 1967, influenced fashion with their long hair and psychedelic clothing.

A PERSONAL VOICE

TOM MATHEWS

“ The last night of the concert I was standing in a narrow pit at the foot of the stage. I made the mistake of looking over the board fence separating the pit from Max Yasgur’s hillside. When I peered up I saw 400,000 … people wrapped in wet, dirty ponchos, sleeping bags and assorted, tie-dyed mufti slowly slipping toward the stage. It looked like a human mud slide…. After that night I couldn’t get out of there fast enough.”
—“The Sixties Complex,” Newsweek, Sept. 5, 1988

Changing Attitudes

While the counterculture movement faded, its casual “do your own thing” philosophy left its mark. American attitudes toward sexual behavior became more casual and permissive, leading to what became known as the sexual revolution. During the 1960s and 1970s, mass culture—including TV, books,

990 History Through Music: Protest Songs of the Sixties

During the turbulent climate of the sixties, hippies and other activists used music as a vehicle for political expression. In bus terminals, in the streets, and on the White House lawn, thousands united in song, expressing their rejection of mainstream society, their demand for civil rights, and their outrage over the Vietnam War. Musicians like Bob Dylan stirred up antiwar sentiment in songs like “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” while Joan Baez and Pete Seeger popularized the great African-American spiritual “We Shall Overcome,” which became the anthem of the Civil Rights Movement.

We shall overcome (African-American Spiritual) We shall overcome, We shall overcome, We shall overcome some day. (Chorus) Oh, deep in my heart I do believe: We shall overcome some day. We’ll walk hand in hand.… We shall all be free.… We are not afraid.… We are not alone.… The whole wide world around.… We shall overcome.… photo: Joan Baez plays a guitar.

Joan Baez, 1965 photo: African-American students join hands.

Joined in harmony, African-American students in Selma, Alabama, gather on the steps of the Tabernacle Baptist Church to sing “We Shall Overcome.” (1963) from The Times They Are A-Changin’ (Bob Dylan, 1962) Come senators, congressmen Please heed the call Don’t stand in the doorway Don’t block up the hall For he that gets hurt Will be he who has stalled There’s a battle outside And it is ragin’. It’ll soon shake your windows And rattle your walls For the times they are a-changin’. Come mothers and fathers Throughout the land And don’t criticize What you can’t understand Your sons and your daughters Are beyond your command Your old road is Rapidly agin’. Please get out of the new one If you can’t lend your hand For the times they are a-changin’. photo: Bob Dylan sings and plays an electric guitar.

photo: Bob Dylan sings and plays an electric guitar.

Bob Dylan, 1966

magazines, music, and movies—began to address subjects that had once been prohibited, particularly sexual behavior and explicit violence.

While some hailed the increasing permisiveness as liberating, others attacked it as a sign of moral decay. For millions of Americans, the new tolerance was merely an uncivilized lack of respect for established social norms. Eventually, the counterculture movement would lead a great many Americans to more liberal attitudes about dress and appearance, lifestyle, and social behavior; yet in the short run, it produced largely the opposite effect.

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The Conservative Response

In the late 1960s, many believed that the country was losing its sense of right and wrong. Increasingly, conservative voices began to express people’s anger. At the 1968 Republican convention in Miami, candidate Richard M. Nixon expressed that anger.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RICHARD NIXON

“As we look at America, we see cities enveloped in smoke and flame. We hear sirens in the night.… We see Americans hating each other … at home.… Did we come all this way for this? … die in Normandy and Korea and in Valley Forge for this? ”
—Speech at Republican Convention, 1968

Conservatives Attack the Counterculture

Nixon was not the only conservative voice expressing alarm. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover issued a warning that “revolutionary terrorism” was a threat on campuses and in cities. Other conservative critics warned that campus rebels posed a danger to traditional values and threatened to plunge American society into anarchy. Conservatives also attacked the counterculture for what they saw as its decadent values. In the view of psychiatrist Bruno Bettelheim, student rebels and members of the counterculture had been pampered in childhood; as young adults, they did not have the ability for delayed gratification. According to some conservative commentators, the counterculture had abandoned rational thought in favor of the senses and uninhibited self-expression.

photo: Richard Nixon stands onstage with his family at the 1968 Republican convention.

In contrast to the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, the Republican convention was orderly and united—particularly in the delegates’ opposition to the counterculture.

The angry response of mainstream Americans caused a profound change in the political landscape of the United States. By the end of the 1960s, conservatives were presenting their own solutions on such issues as lawlessness and crime, the size of the federal government, and welfare. This growing conservative movement would propel Nixon into the White House—and set the nation on a more conservative course.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• counterculture

• Haight-Ashbury

• the Beatles

• Woodstock

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the tree diagram below on your paper. Then fill in examples that illustrate the topics in the second row of boxes.

a diagram shows three categories below the words The Counterculture: Beliefs, Lifestyle and Impact on Society. Below each of the categories is a space for Examples.

Which example do you think had the biggest impact on society? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

A stereotype is a generalization made about a group. What stereotype do you think hippies might have formed about mainstream Americans? What stereotype do you think mainstream Americans might have formed about hippies? Why? Think About:

• Alex Forman’s comments in “A Personal Voice” (page 987)

• hippies’ values and lifestyle

• mainstream Americans’ values and lifestyle

4. MAKING INFERENCES

In your opinion, why didn’t the hippies succeed?

5. ANALYZING ISSUES

What role did the counterculture and antiwar movement play in helping Richard Nixon win the presidency?

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Daily Life 1960–1970: Signs of the Sixties

The wave of social change that swept across America during the 1960s affected everyone, but especially the nation’s teenagers. Abandoning the conservative and “clean-cut” look of the 1950s, many teens experimented with new and different appearances. In a declaration of their individuality and desire for more freedom, they also embraced a variety of new music and films during the 1960s.

photo: a young couple stands barefoot by a tent.

FASHION: A NEW LOOK During the 1960s, many youths wore a wide range of unconventional clothing. While most Americans did not adopt the outlandish look of hippies, many came out of the sixties wearing longer hair and blue jeans, which became a staple in nearly every wardrobe. Bright colors and psychedelic patterns also became wildly popular. photo: the three African-American women of the Supremes.

photo: the three African-American women of the Supremes.

THE RISE OF SOUL MUSIC African-American soul artists, whose music had inspired the more popular white rock ’n’ roll performers of the 1950s, grew widely popular themselves during the 1960s. During this decade, Detroit’s Motown label produced the most popular and successful African-American artists, including Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and the Supremes (left). photo: Jimi Hendrix plays guitar.

A DIVERSE MUSIC SCENE Scores of teenagers also tuned to surf music, a harmonic, light sound made popular by a California band, the Beach Boys. Other teens listened to the poetic and socially conscious lyrics of folk rock. Heavy, or psychedelic, rock, sung by bands such as the Doors (whose 1967 concert advertisement appears to the right), also found its way into many album collections. In the later part of the decade, musicians like Jimi Hendrix (far right) took rock ’n’ roll in a new direction. 993 photo: an astronaut walks in a spaceship.

photo: an astronaut walks in a spaceship.

GOING TO THE SHOW As the nation’s movie industry grew, more and more teenagers flocked to the cinema. Teens took in such diverse films as the counterculture classic Easy Rider and the science fiction classic 2001: A Space Odyssey (above), which tells the story of HAL, a spaceship computer that develops a mind of its own. photo: an image of Marilyn Monroe is tinted bright pink and yellow.

photo: an image of Marilyn Monroe is tinted bright pink and yellow.

POP ART Andy Warhol created this image of movie actress and popular icon Marilyn Monroe. A leader of the pop art movement, Warhol attempted to criticize the conventional lifestyle of the mass culture through commercial-looking images that depicted the loss of individuality. Data File Popular Songs

• “Blowin’ in the Wind” (1962)

• “Surfin’ USA” (1963)

• “Where Did Our Love Go?” (1964)

• “California Dreamin’” (1966)

• “Light My Fire” (1967)

• “Mrs. Robinson” (1967)

• “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” (1968)

• “Come Together” (1969)

• “Everyday People” (1968)

Popular Tv Shows

• The Dick Van Dyke Show (1962–1966)

• The Beverly Hillbillies (1962–1971)

• Green Acres (1965–1971)

• The Addams Family (1964–1966)

• The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964–1968)

• Mission: Impossible (1966–1973)

• Laugh-In (1968–1973)

• Bonanza (1959–1973)

A timeline shows cultural events from 1960 to 1969.

DESCRIPTION:

The timeline is adorned with a yellow Smiley Face pin.

1960: Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho terrifies movie audiences across the nation.
1962: Wilt Chamberlain scores 100 points in a basketball game.
1963: The movie Cleopatra, produced for $37 million, is the most expensive film to date.
1963: Graphic artist Harvey Ball invents the Smiley Face for an ad campaign aimed at boosting workers' morale.
1965: The miniskirt is introduced.
1966: The National Association of Broadcasters instructs disc jockeys to screen records for obscene or hidden meanings.
1967: The Green Bay Packers defeat the Kansas City Chiefs in the first Super Bowl.
1968: The government mandates that all new cars must be equipped with seat belts.
1969: Pantsuits become acceptable for everyday wear by women.

1960: Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho terrifies movie audiences across the nation. 1963: The movie Cleopatra, produced for $37 million, is the most expensive film to date. 1964: The Beatles arrive in America. 1966: The National Association of Broadcasters instructs disc jockeys to screen records for obscene or hidden meanings. 1968: The government mandates that all new cars must be equipped with seat belts. 1962: Wilt Chamberlain scores 100 points in a basketball game. 1963: Graphic Artist Harvey Ball invents the smiley face for an ad campaign aimed at boosting workers’ morale. 1965: The miniskirt is introduced. 1967: The Green Bay Packers defeat the Kansas City Chiefs in the first Super Bowl. 1969: Pantsuits become acceptable for everyday wear by women. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 994

Chapter 31: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its connection to the 1960s.

1. César Chávez

2. La Raza Unida

3. American Indian Movement (AIM)

4. feminism

5. Betty Friedan

6. Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

7. Phyllis Schlafly

8. counterculture

9. Haight-Ashbury

10. Woodstock

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

Latinos and Native Americans Seek Equality (pages 974–979)

1. What strategies did both César Chávez and the UFWOC use to achieve their goals? How did they successfully apply these tactics?

2. What were the demands of the American Indian Movement (AIM) organizers who staged “The Trail of Broken Treaties” march on Washington in 1972?

Women Fight for Equality (pages 982–986)

3. Name three changes that members of the National Organization of Women (NOW) advocated.

4. What was the Supreme Court’s decision in the Roe v. Wade case?

Culture and Counterculture (pages 987–991)

5. Briefly explain the role Timothy Leary played in the counterculture movement.

6. What unintended impact did the counterculture have on many mainstream Americans?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Re-create the diagram shown below. Then fill in the appropriate areas with key individual and shared achievements of Latinos, Native Americans, and feminists.

A diagram shows three intersecting ovals: Latinos, Feminists and Native Americans. The space where they all overlap is titled All Three.

2. DEVELOPING HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Consider the organizations that Latinos, Native Americans, and women formed during the 1960s. Which do you think was the most influential? Why?

3. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES Reread the song lyrics of Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’” on page 990. How do you think this song captured the main message of the counterculture movement?

Visual Summary: An Era of Social Change A chart in the shape of a peace symbol is labled Changes Brought About by the Counterculture. The chart is broken down into four sections: Political, Social, Music, Art and Fashion.

A chart in the shape of a peace symbol is labled Changes Brought About by the Counterculture. The chart is broken down into four sections: Political, Social, Music, Art and Fashion.

CHANGES BROUGHT ABOUT BY THE COUNTERCULTURE Political

• protests against Vietnam War

• NOW fuels feminism

• the New Right emerges

• ERA defeated

• Roe v. Wade

• more women in the work force

• AIM wins reforms and land rights

• La Raza Unida and MAPA fight for more rights for Latinos

• bilingual education

• Latino farm workers unionize

Social

• hippies reject mainstream society

• more communal living

• new fashion trends reflect freedom of expression

• traditional forms of worship rejected in favor of Eastern religious teachings

• more drug use

• women and minorities seek equality

• more permissive sexual behavior

• books, magazines, and movies show explicit violence

Music

• music as political expression

• Motown label produces African-American artists

• rock music; the Beatles; Woodstock festival

Art and Fashion

• pop art movement

• long hair as rebellion

• hippies popularize bright, colorful clothing, beads, and blue jeans

Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. 995 Standardized Test Practice

Use the flowchart and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

DESCRIPTION:

In a flowchart, arrows connect 4 boxes.

UFWOC organizes a boycott of grapes.
Growers lose money.
UFWOC signs new contract with growers.
This box is empty.

1. Which event accurately completes the cause-and-effect chain?

A EEOC rules that unhealthful working conditions amount to illegal discrimination.

B UFWOC disbands.

C Grape boycott is extended to apricots and olives.

D Working conditions for migrant farm workers are improved.

2. In the 1960s, women fought in Congress, in the courts, and in their everyday lives for treatment as political and social equals. Today, job discrimination against women is illegal because of—

F the Fourteenth Amendment.

G the ERA.

H the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

J the Roe v. Wade decision.

3. Which of the following statements is a fact?

A Hippies believed that everyone should love each other.

B Hippies spoiled the Woodstock festival.

C The hippie movement failed because the hippies’ beliefs were too radical.

D Hippies invented rock music in Liverpool, England.

4. The women’s rights movement largely grew out of—

F the counterculture movement.

G the civil rights movement.

H the movement to organize farm workers.

J reaction to the Warren Court decisions.

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 973:

How much can a society change?

Write a script in which five people debate the question: a Native American activist, a Latino activist, a feminine activist, a hippie, and a conservative politician who wants to preserve the status quo in 1964. If you work in a group, be sure that each group member considers several points of view.

2. internet icon IINTERNET ACTIVITIY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Chapter Assessment to find examples of 1960s culture, such as songs, paintings, posters, clothing, cars, and so on. Prepare a paper or electronic museum exhibit of several artifacts that display a trend or theme discussed in the chapter. Write captions for the artifacts explaining their historical context and relating them to your chosen theme.

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Unit 9: Passage to a New Century 1968–2001

Chapter 32 An Age of Limits 1968–1980

Chapter 33 The Conservative Tide 1980–1992

Chapter 34 The United States in Today’s World 1992–2001

Epilogue Issues for the 21st Century

UNIT PROJECT: Campaign Scrapbook

As you read this unit, choose a candidate for political office whom you would like to support. Create a scrapbook that recounts your experiences on the campaign trail.

Exhibit at the Ellis Island Immigration Museum, design by MetaForm; portraits in flag by Pablo Delano

photo: a wall-sized exhibit shows faces of Americans over the stars and stripes of the American flag.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 996 and page 997 in the print version. 997 a wall-sized exhibit shows faces of Americans over the stars and stripes of the American flag.

a wall-sized exhibit shows faces of Americans over the stars and stripes of the American flag.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 996 and page 997 in the print version. 998

Chapter 32: An Age of Limits

photo: Richard Nixon stands in the doorway of a helicopter. His arms spread wide, his fingers form V-for-Victory signs.

Richard Nixon leaves the White House after resigning as president on Friday, August 9, 1974. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 998 and page 999 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1968 to 1979 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1968 to 1979 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1968-1979.

1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1969, USA: Astronaut Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to walk on the moon.
1970, USA: America celebrates the first Earth Day.
1972, USA: Nixon visits China and the Soviet Union.
1972, USA: Nixon is reelected.
1972, the World: China gives the U.S. two pandas.
1972, the World: terrorists kill eleven Israeli athletes at the XX Olympiad in Munich.
1973, USA: Energy crisis begins, and gasoline prices soar.
1973, the World: War breaks out in the Middle East when seven Arab states attack Israel on Yom Kippur.
1974, USA: Vice President Gerald R. Ford becomes president after the Watergate scandal forces President Nixon to resign.
1976, USA: Jimmy Carter is elected president.
1976, USA: Americans celebrate the nation's bicentennial.
1977, USA: The movie Saturday Night Fever inspires disco fashion.
1978, the World: Egyptian and Israeli leaders meet and sign the Camp David Accords with President Carter.
1979, USA: A nuclear power accident occurs at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania.
1979, the World: Ayatollah Khomeini seizes power in Iran.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 998 and page 999 in the print version. 999 Interact with History

The date is August 9, 1974. You are serving your country as an honor guard at the White House. As a member of the military, you’ve always felt patriotic pride in your government. Now the highest officer of that government, President Richard M. Nixon, is stepping down in disgrace. The trust you once placed in your leaders has been broken.

In what ways can a president misuse power?

Examine the Issues

• What are some powers granted to the president?

• What systems exist to protect against abuse of power?

• How can a president lose or restore the nation’s trust?

Richard Nixon stands in the doorway of a helicopter. His arms spread wide, his fingers form V-for-Victory signs.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 998 and page 999 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1968 to 1979 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1968-1979.

1968, USA: Richard M. Nixon is elected president.
1969, USA: Astronaut Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to walk on the moon.
1970, USA: America celebrates the first Earth Day.
1972, USA: Nixon visits China and the Soviet Union.
1972, USA: Nixon is reelected.
1972, the World: China gives the U.S. two pandas.
1972, the World: terrorists kill eleven Israeli athletes at the XX Olympiad in Munich.
1973, USA: Energy crisis begins, and gasoline prices soar.
1973, the World: War breaks out in the Middle East when seven Arab states attack Israel on Yom Kippur.
1974, USA: Vice President Gerald R. Ford becomes president after the Watergate scandal forces President Nixon to resign.
1976, USA: Jimmy Carter is elected president.
1976, USA: Americans celebrate the nation's bicentennial.
1977, USA: The movie Saturday Night Fever inspires disco fashion.
1978, the World: Egyptian and Israeli leaders meet and sign the Camp David Accords with President Carter.
1979, USA: A nuclear power accident occurs at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania.
1979, the World: Ayatollah Khomeini seizes power in Iran.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 998 and page 999 in the print version. 1000

Section 1: The Nixon Administration

One American’s Story

In November of 1968, Richard M. Nixon had just been elected president of the United States. He chose Henry Kissinger to be his special adviser on foreign affairs. During Nixon’s second term in 1972, as the United States struggled to achieve an acceptable peace in Vietnam, Kissinger reflected on his relationship with Nixon.

A PERSONAL VOICE HENRY KISSINGER

“ I … am not at all so sure I could have done what I’ve done with him with another president.

… I don’t know many leaders who would entrust to their aide the task of negotiating with the North Vietnamese, informing only a tiny group of people of the initiative.”
—quoted in The New Republic, December 16, 1972

Nixon and Kissinger ended America’s involvement in Vietnam, but as the war wound down, the nation seemed to enter an era of limits. The economic prosperity that had followed World War II was ending. President Nixon wanted to limit the federal government to reduce its power and to reverse some of Johnson’s liberal policies. At the same time, he would seek to restore America’s prestige and influence on the world stage—prestige that had been hit hard by the Vietnam experience.

President Nixon (right) confers with Henry Kissinger.

Nixon’s New Conservatism

President Richard M. Nixon entered office in 1969 determined to turn America in a more conservative direction. Toward that end, he tried to instill a sense of order into a nation still divided over the continuing Vietnam War.

1001 Analyzing Political Cartoons: “Domestic Life”

Pulitzer Prize–winning cartoonist Paul Szep frequently used Nixon as the subject of his cartoons. Although President Nixon focused his domestic policy on dismantling a number of Great Society social programs, his chief interest was foreign policy.

cartoon: a house filled with crying children is shaped like a shoe. It's labled Domestic Programs. Nixon is shown leaving, carrying suitcases.

New Federalism

One of the main items on President Nixon’s agenda was to decrease the size and influence of the federal government. Nixon believed that Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society programs, by promoting greater federal involvement with social problems, had given the federal government too much responsibility. Nixon’s plan, known as New Federalism, was to distribute a portion of federal power to state and local governments.

To implement this program, Nixon proposed a plan to give more financial freedom to local governments. Normally, the federal government told state and local governments how to spend their federal money. Under revenue sharing, state and local governments could spend their federal dollars however they saw fit within certain limitations. In 1972, the revenue-sharing bill, known as the State and Local Fiscal Assistance Act, became law.

Welfare Reform

Nixon was not as successful, however, in his attempt to overhaul welfare, which he believed had grown cumbersome and inefficient. In 1969, the president advocated the so-called Family Assistance Plan (FAP). Under the FAP, every family of four with no outside income would receive a basic federal payment of $1,600 a year, with a provision to earn up to $4,000 a year in supplemental income. Unemployed participants, excluding mothers of preschool children, would have to take job training and accept any reasonable work offered them.

Nixon presented the plan in conservative terms—as a program that would reduce the supervisory role of the federal government and make welfare recipients responsible for their own lives. The House approved the plan in 1970. However, when the bill reached the Senate, lawmakers from both parties attacked it. Liberal legislators considered the minimum payments too low and the work requirement too stiff, while conservatives objected to the notion of guaranteed income. The bill went down in defeat.

New Federalism Wears Two Faces

In the end, Nixon’s New Federalism enhanced several key federal programs as it dismantled others. To win backing for his New Federalism program from a Democrat-controlled Congress, Nixon supported a number of congressional measures to increase federal spending for some social programs. Without fanfare, the Nixon administration increased Social

1002 Historical Spotlight: Americans Walk on the Moon

Not all was political war during the Nixon administration. On July 20, 1969, one of America’s long-held dreams became a reality.

Nearly ten years after John F. Kennedy challenged America to put a person on the moon, astronaut Neil Armstrong climbed down the ladder of his lunar module and stepped onto the surface of the moon. “That’s one small step for man,” Armstrong said, “one giant leap for mankind.”

Americans swelled with pride and accomplishment as they watched the historic moon landing on their televisions. Speaking to the astronauts from the White House, President Nixon said, “For every American, this has to be the proudest day of our lives.”

Security, Medicare, and Medicaid payments and made food stamps more accessible.

However, the president also worked to dismantle some of the nation’s social programs. Throughout his term, Nixon tried unsuccessfully to eliminate the Job Corps pro-gram that provided job training for the unemployed and in 1970 he vetoed a bill to provide additional funding for Housing and Urban Development. Confronted by laws that he opposed, Nixon also turned to a little-used presidential practice called impoundment. Nixon impounded, or withheld, necessary funds for programs, thus holding up their implementation. By 1973, it was believed that Nixon had impounded almost $15 billion, affecting more than 100 federal programs, including those for health, housing, and education.

The federal courts eventually ordered the release of the impounded funds. They ruled that presidential impoundment was unconstitutional and that only Congress had the authority to decide how federal funds should be spent. Nixon did use his presidential authority to abolish the Office of Economic Opportunity, a cornerstone of Johnson’s antipoverty program.

Law And Order Politics

As President Nixon fought with both houses of Congress, he also battled the more liberal elements of society, including the antiwar movement. Nixon had been elected in 1968 on a dual promise to end the war in Vietnam and mend the divisiveness within America that the war had created. Throughout his first term, Nixon aggressively moved to fulfill both pledges. The president de-escalated America’s involvement in Vietnam and oversaw peace negotiations with North Vietnam. At the same time, he began the “law and order” policies that he had promised his “silent majority”—those middle-class Americans who wanted order restored to a country beset by urban riots and antiwar demonstrations.

To accomplish this, Nixon used the full resources of his office—sometimes illegally. Nixon and members of his staff ordered wiretaps of many left-wing individuals and the Democratic Party offices at the Watergate office building in Washington, D.C. The CIA also investigated and compiled documents on thou-sands of American dissidents—people who objected to the government’s policies. The administration even used the Internal Revenue Service to audit the tax returns of antiwar and civil rights activists. Nixon began building a personal “enemies list” of prominent Americans whom the administration would harass.

photo: An astronaut in a space suit stands on the moon.

Neil Armstrong’s photograph of Buzz Aldrin on the moon

Nixon also enlisted the help of his combative vice-president, Spiro T. Agnew, to denounce the opposition. The vice-president confronted the antiwar protesters and then turned his scorn on those who controlled the media, whom he viewed as liberal cheerleaders for the antiwar movement. Known for his colorful quotes, Agnew lashed out at the media and liberals as “an effete [weak] corps of impudent snobs” and “nattering nabobs of negativism.”

Nixon’s Southern Strategy

Even as President Nixon worked to steer the country along a more conservative course, he had his eyes on the 1972 presidential election. Nixon had won a slim majority in 1968—less than one percent of the popular vote. As president, he began

1003

working to forge a new conservative coalition to build on his support. In one approach, known as the Southern strategy, Nixon tried to attract Southern conservative Democrats by appealing to their unhappiness with federal desegregation policies and a liberal Supreme Court. He also promised to name a Southerner to the Supreme Court.

A New South

Since Reconstruction, the South had been a Democratic stronghold. But by 1968 many white Southern Democrats had grown disillusioned with their party. In their eyes, the party—champion of the Great Society and civil rights—had grown too liberal. This conservative backlash first surfaced in the 1968 election, when thousands of Southern Democrats helped former Alabama governor George Wallace, a conservative segregationist running as an independent, carry five Southern states and capture 13 percent of the popular vote.

Nixon wanted these voters. By winning over the Wallace voters and other discontented Democrats, the president and his fellow Republicans hoped not only to keep the White House but also to recapture a majority in Congress.

Nixon Slows Integration

To attract white voters in the South, President Nixon decided on a policy of slowing the country’s desegregation efforts. In September of 1969, less than a year after being elected president, Nixon made clear his views on civil rights. “There are those who want instant integration and those who want segregation forever. I believe we need to have a middle course between those two extremes,” he said.

Throughout his first term, President Nixon worked to reverse several civil rights policies. In 1969, he ordered the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) to delay desegregation plans for school districts in South Carolina and Mississippi. Nixon’s actions violated the Supreme Court’s second Brown v. Board of Education ruling—which called for the desegregation of schools “with all deliberate speed.” In response to an NAACP suit, the high court ordered Nixon to abide by the second Brown ruling. The president did so reluctantly, and by 1972, nearly 90 percent of children in the South attended desegregated schools—up from about 20 percent in 1969.

In a further attempt to chip away at civil rights advances, Nixon opposed the extension of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The act had added nearly one million African Americans to the voting rolls. Despite the president’s opposition, Congress voted to extend the act.

Controversy over Busing

President Nixon then attempted to stop yet another civil rights initiative—the integration of schools through busing. In 1971, the Supreme Court ruled in Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education that school districts may bus students to other schools to end the pattern of all-black or all-white educational institutions. White students and parents in cities such as Boston and Detroit angrily protested busing. One South Boston mother spoke for other white Northerners, many of whom still struggled with the integration process.

A PERSONAL VOICE

“ I’m not against any individual child. I am not a racist, no matter what those high-and-mighty suburban liberals with their picket signs say. I just won’t have my children bused to some … slum school, and I don’t want children from God knows where coming over here.”
—A South Boston mother quoted in The School Busing Controversy, 1970–75

photo: a girl holds a sign that reads Send the Buses Empty.

A demonstrator in Boston protests court-ordered school busing during the early 1970s. 1004

Nixon also opposed integration through busing and went on national television to urge Congress to halt the practice. While busing continued in some cities, Nixon had made his position clear to the country—and to the South.

A Battle Over the Supreme Court

During the 1968 campaign, Nixon had criticized the Warren Court for being too liberal. Once in the White House, Nixon suddenly found himself with an opportunity to change the direction of the court. During Nixon’s first term, four justices, including chief justice Earl Warren, left the bench through retirement. President Nixon quickly moved to put a more conservative face on the Court. In 1969, the Senate approved Nixon’s chief justice appointee, U.S. Court of Appeals judge Warren Burger.

Eventually, Nixon placed on the bench three more justices, who tilted the Court in a more conservative direction. However, the newly shaped Court did not always take the conservative route—for example, it handed down the 1971 ruling in favor of racially integrating schools through busing.

Historical: Spotlight: The Twenty-Sixth Amendment photo: a young woman pulls a lever on a voting machine.

During President Nixon’s first term, the Twenty-sixth Amendment was ratified in 1971, extending voting rights to Americans 18 years or older. The amendment was one example of efforts in the 1960s and 1970s to expand opportunities to participate in government.

At the time, liberals supported the amendment because they believed that young people were more likely to be liberal. Conservatives opposed it because they didn’t want to extend the vote to more liberals.

Opponents also argued that the amendment would be too expensive for states to administer and that 18-year-olds were not mature enough for the responsibility. Many Americans, however, considered it unfair to be asked to fight and die for their country in Vietnam without being allowed to vote.

Confronting a Stagnant Economy

One of the more pressing issues facing Richard Nixon was a troubled economy. Between 1967 and 1973, the United States faced high inflation and high unemployment—a situation economists called stagflation.

The Causes of Stagflation

The economic problems of the late 1960s and early 1970s had several causes. Chief among them were high inflation—a result of Lyndon Johnson’s policy to fund the war and social programs through deficit spending. Also, increased competition in international trade, and a flood of new workers, including women and baby boomers, led to stagflation. Another cause of the nation’s economic woes was its heavy dependency on foreign oil. During the 1960s, America received much of its petroleum from the oil-producing countries of the

photo: people with gas cans stand in a long line at a gas station.

Dependent on foreign oil, Americans in 1979 wait in line for gas during the oil embargo. 1005

Middle East. Many of these countries belonged to a cartel called OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries). During the 1960s, OPEC gradually raised oil prices. Then in 1973, the Yom Kippur War broke out, with Israel against Egypt and Syria. When the United States sent massive military aid to Israel, its longtime ally, the Arab OPEC nations responded by cutting off all oil sales to the United States. When OPEC resumed selling its oil to the United States in 1974, the price had quadrupled. This sharp rise in oil prices only worsened the problem of inflation.

Nixon Battles Stagflation

President Nixon took several steps to combat stagflation, but none met with much success. To reverse deficit spending, Nixon attempted to raise taxes and cut the budget. Congress, however, refused to go along with this plan. In another effort to slow inflation, Nixon tried to reduce the amount of money in circulation by urging that interest rates be raised. This measure did little except drive the country into a mild recession, or an overall slowdown of the economy.

In August 1971, the president turned to price and wage controls to stop inflation. He froze workers’ wages as well as businesses’ prices and fees for 90 days. Inflation eased for a short time, but the recession continued.

Worldstage: The Yom Kippur War photo: a soldier standing on a sand dune holds an Israeli flag.

On October 6, 1973, Syria and Egypt invaded Israel on Yom Kippur, the most sacred Jewish holiday. The war—the climax of years of intense border disputes—was short but brutal. Even though fighting lasted only three weeks, as many as 7,700 Egyptians, 7,700 Syrians, and 4,500 Israelis were killed or wounded.

Although the United States supplied massive amounts of military aid to Israel, U.S. officials also worked to broker a cease-fire between the warring nations. In what became known as “shuttle diplomacy,” Secretary of State Henry Kissinger traveled back and forth between Middle Eastern countries in an attempt to forge a peace agreement. Kissinger’s diplomatic efforts finally paid off. Israel signed an official peace accord with Egypt in January 1974. Four months later in May, Israel signed a cease-fire with Syria.

Nixon’s Foreign Policy Triumphs

Richard Nixon admittedly preferred world affairs to domestic policy. “I’ve always thought this country could run itself domestically without a president,” he said in 1968. Throughout his presidency, Nixon’s top priority was gaining an honorable peace in Vietnam. At the same time, he also made significant advances in America’s relationships with China and the Soviet Union.

Kissinger And Realpolitik

The architect of Nixon’s foreign policy was his adviser for national security affairs, Henry Kissinger. Kissinger, who would later become Nixon’s secretary of state, promoted a philosophy known as realpolitik, from a German term meaning “political realism.” According to realpolitik, foreign policy should be based solely on consideration of power, not ideals or moral principles. Kissinger believed in evaluating a nation’s power, not its philosophy or beliefs. If a country was weak, Kissinger argued, it was often more practical to ignore that country, even if it was Communist.

Realpolitik marked a departure from the former confrontational policy of containment, which refused to recognize the major Communist countries. On the other hand, Kissinger’s philosophy called for the United States to fully confront the powerful nations of the globe. In the world of realpolitik, however, confrontation largely meant negotiation as well as military engagement.

Nixon shared Kissinger’s belief in realpolitik, and together the two men adopted a more flexible approach in dealing with Communist nations. They called their policy détente—a policy aimed at easing Cold War tensions. One of the most startling applications of détente came in early 1972 when President Nixon—who had risen in politics as a strong anti-Communist—visited Communist China.

1006

photo: Nixon stands on the Great Wall of China.

President Nixon tours the Great Wall as part of his visit to China in 1972. Key Player: Richard M. Nixon 1913–1994 A logo: the presidential seal of the U.S.

The hurdles that Richard Nixon overcame to win the presidency in 1968 included his loss in the 1960 presidential race and a 1962 defeat in the race for governor of California.

Nixon faced many obstacles from the start. As a boy, he rose every day at 4 A.M. to help in his father’s grocery store. Nixon also worked as a janitor, a bean picker, and a barker at an amusement park.

The Nixon family suffered great tragedy when one of Nixon’s brothers died from meningitis and another from tuberculosis.

None of these traumatic experiences, however, dulled the future president’s ambition. Nixon finished third in his law class at Duke University, and after serving in World War II, he launched his political career.

After winning a seat in Congress in 1946, Nixon announced, “I had to win. That’s the thing you don’t understand. The important thing is to win.”

Nixon Visits China

Since the takeover of mainland China by the Communists in 1949, the United States had not formally recognized the Chinese Communist government. In late 1971, Nixon reversed that policy by announcing to the nation that he would visit China “to seek the normalization of relations between the two countries.”

By going to China, Nixon was trying, in part, to take advantage of the decade-long rift between China and the Soviet Union. China had long criticized the Soviet Union as being too “soft” in its policies against the West. The two Communist superpowers officially broke ties in 1960. Nixon had thought about exploiting the fractured relationship for several years. “We want to have the Chinese with us when we sit down and negotiate with the Russians,” he told a reporter in 1968. Upon his arrival at the Beijing Airport in February, 1972, Nixon recalls his meeting with Chinese premier Zhou En-lai.

A PERSONAL VOICE RICHARD M. NIXON

“ I knew that Zhou had been deeply insulted by Foster Dulles’s refusal to shake hands with him at the Geneva Conference in 1954. When I reached the bottom step, therefore, I made a point of extending my hand as I walked toward him. When our hands met, one era ended and another began.”
—The Memoirs of Richard Nixon

Besides its enormous symbolic value, Nixon’s visit also was a huge success with the American public. Observers noted that it opened up diplomatic and economic relations with the Chinese and resulted in important agreements between China and the United States. The two nations agreed that neither would try to dominate the Pacific and that both would cooperate in settling disputes peacefully. They also agreed to participate in scientific and cultural exchanges as well as to eventually reunite Taiwan with the mainland.

Nixon Travels to Moscow

In May 1972, three months after visiting Beijing, President Nixon headed to Moscow—the first U.S. president ever to visit the

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photo: trucks carry a huge missile through Moscow.

The Soviet Union regularly displayed its military strength in parades. Shown here is an ICBM in a 1965 parade through Moscow’s Red Square.

Soviet Union. Like his visit to China, Nixon’s trip to the Soviet Union received wide acclaim. After a series of meetings called the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT), Nixon and Brezhnev signed the SALT I Treaty. This five-year agreement limited the number of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched missiles to 1972 levels.

The foreign policy triumphs with China and the Soviet Union and the administration’s announcement that peace “is at hand” in Vietnam helped reelect Nixon as president in 1972.

But peace in Vietnam proved elusive. The Nixon administration grappled with the war for nearly six more months before withdrawing troops and ending America’s involvement in Vietnam. By that time, another issue was about to dominate the Nixon administration—one that would eventually lead to the downfall of the president.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Richard M. Nixon

• New Federalism

• revenue sharing

• Family Assistance Plan (FAP)

• Southern strategy

• stagflation

• OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)

• realpolitik

• détente

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a two-column chart similar to the one shown, list the policies of Richard Nixon that promoted change and those that slowed it down.

A blank chart is divided into two sections: Policies That Promoted Change on the left side, and Policies That Slowed Change on the right.

In what ways do you think Nixon was most conservative? In what ways was he least conservative? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING EFFECTS

What were the effects of the Arab OPEC oil embargo on the United States?

4. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Why was the timing of Nixon’s foreign policy achievements particularly important? Relate his achievements to other events.

5. EVALUATING DECISIONS

In your opinion, did Nixon’s policy of détente help solve the country’s major foreign policy problems? Support your answer with evidence from the text. Think About:

• the definition and origin of détente

• the effect of détente on U.S. dealings with Communist countries

• the effect of détente on the American public

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Section 2: Watergate: Nixon’s Downfall

One American’s Story

On July 25, 1974, Representative Barbara Jordan of Texas, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, along with the other committee members, considered whether to recommend that President Nixon be impeached for “high crimes and misdemeanors.” Addressing the room, Jordan cited the Constitution in urging her fellow committee members to investigate whether impeachment was appropriate.

A PERSONAL VOICE BARBARA JORDAN

“ ‘We the people’—it is a very eloquent beginning. But when the Constitution of the United States was completed…I was not included in that ‘We the people’. … But through the process of amendment, interpretation, and court decision, I have finally been included in ‘We the people’. … Today … [my] faith in the Constitution is whole. It is complete. It is total. I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator in the diminution, the subversion, the destruction of the Constitution. … Has the President committed offenses … which the Constitution will not tolerate? ”
—quoted in Notable Black American Women

The committee eventually voted to recommend the impeachment of Richard Nixon for his role in the Watergate scandal. However, before Congress could take further action against him, the president resigned. Nixon’s resignation, the first by a U.S. president, was the climax of a scandal that led to the imprisonment of 25 government officials and caused the most serious constitutional crisis in the United States since the impeachment of Andrew Johnson in 1868.

U.S. Representative Barbara Jordan, 1974.

President Nixon and His White House

The Watergate scandal centered on the Nixon administration’s attempt to cover up a burglary of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters at the Watergate office and apartment complex in Washington, D.C. However, the

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Watergate story began long before the actual burglary. Many historians believe that Watergate truly began with the personalities of Richard Nixon and those of his advisers, as well as with the changing role of the presidency.

An Imperial Presidency

When Richard Nixon took office, the executive branch—as a result of the Great Depression, World War II, and the Cold War—had become the most powerful branch of government. In his book The Imperial Presidency, the historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., argued that by the time Richard Nixon became president, the executive branch had taken on an air of imperial, or supreme, authority.

President Nixon settled into this imperial role with ease. Nixon believed, as he told a reporter in 1980, that “a president must not be one of the crowd. … People… don’t want him to be down there saying, ‘Look, I’m the same as you.’” Nixon expanded the power of the presidency with little thought to constitutional checks, as when he impounded funds for federal programs that he opposed, or when he ordered troops to invade Cambodia without congressional approval.

The President’s Men

As he distanced himself from Congress, Nixon confided in a small and fiercely loyal group of advisers. They included H. R. Haldeman, White House chief of staff; John Ehrlichman, chief domestic adviser; and John Mitchell, Nixon’s former attorney general. These men had played key roles in Nixon’s 1968 election victory and now helped the president direct White House policy.

These men also shared President Nixon’s desire for secrecy and the consolidation of power. Critics charged that these men, through their personalities and their attitude toward the presidency, developed a sense that they were somehow above the law. This sense would, in turn, prompt President Nixon and his advisers to cover up their role in Watergate, and fuel the coming scandal.

The Drive Toward Reelection

Throughout his political career, Richard Nixon lived with the overwhelming fear of losing elections. By the end of the 1972 reelection campaign, Nixon’s campaign team sought advantages by any means possible, including an attempt to steal information from the DNC headquarters.

A Bungled Burglary

At 2:30 A.M., June 17, 1972, a guard at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C., caught five men breaking into the campaign head-quarters of the DNC. The burglars planned to photograph documents outlining Democratic Party strategy and to place wiretaps, or “bugs,” on the office telephones. The press soon discovered that the group’s leader, James McCord, was a former CIA agent. He was also a security coordinator for a group known as the Committee to Reelect the President (CRP). John Mitchell, who had resigned as attorney general to run Nixon’s reelection campaign, was the CRP’s director.

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Just three days after the burglary, H. R. Haldeman noted in his diary Nixon’s near obsession with how to respond to the break-in.

A PERSONAL VOICE H. R. HALDEMAN

“ The P[resident] was concerned about what our counterattack is. … He raised it again several times during the day, and it obviously is bothering him. … He called at home tonight, saying that he wanted to change the plan for his press conference and have it on Thursday instead of tomorrow, so that it won’t look like he’s reacting to the Democratic break-in thing.”
—The Haldeman Diaries

The cover-up quickly began. Workers shredded all incriminating documents in Haldeman’s office. The White House, with President Nixon’s consent, asked the CIA to urge the FBI to stop its investigations into the burglary on the grounds of national security. In addition, the CRP passed out nearly $450,000 to the Watergate burglars to buy their silence after they were indicted in September of 1972.

Throughout the 1972 campaign, the Watergate burglary generated little interest among the American public and media. Only the Washington Post and two of its reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, kept on the story. In a series of articles, the reporters uncovered information that linked numerous members of the administration to the burglary. The White House denied each new Post allegation. Upon learning of an upcoming story that tied him to the burglars, John Mitchell told Bernstein, “That’s the most sickening thing I ever heard.”

The firm White House response to the charges, and its promises of imminent peace in Vietnam, proved effective in the short term. In November, Nixon was reelected by a landslide over liberal Democrat George S. McGovern. But Nixon’s popular support was soon to unravel.

Historical Spotlight: Woodward and Bernstein photo: Woodward and Bernstein.

Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein of the Washington Post seemed an unlikely team. Woodward, 29 (at right in the photo above), had graduated from Yale, while the 28-year-old Bernstein was a college dropout.

As the two men dug deeper into the Watergate break-in, a mysterious inside source helped them to uncover the scandal. For more than 30 years the reporters refused to identify their source. Then in June 2005, W. Mark Felt, the No. 2 man at the FBI at the time of Watergate, stepped forward and identified him-self as the inside source of the reporters’ information.

While people lauded the two reporters for their dogged determi-nation, some Nixon officials remain bitter toward them.

Woodward defended the reporters’ work, saying, “We tried to do our job and, in fact, if you look at it, our coverage was pretty conservative.”

The Cover-Up Unravels

In January 1973, the trial of the Watergate burglars began. The trial’s presiding judge, John Sirica, made clear his belief that the men had not acted alone. On March 20, a few days before the burglars were scheduled to be sentenced, James McCord sent a letter to Sirica, in which he indicated that he had lied under oath. He also hinted that powerful members of the Nixon administration had been involved in the break-in.

The Senate Investigates Watergate

McCord’s revelation of possible White House involvement in the burglary aroused public interest in Watergate. President Nixon moved quickly to stem the growing concern. On April 30, 1973, Nixon dismissed White House counsel John Dean and announced the resignations of Haldeman, Ehrlichman, and Attorney General Richard Kleindienst, who had recently replaced John Mitchell following Mitchell’s resignation. The president then went on television and denied any attempt at a cover-up. He announced that he was

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appointing a new attorney general, Elliot Richardson, and was authorizing him to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Watergate. “There can be no whitewash at the White House,” Nixon said.

The president’s reassurances, however, came too late. In May 1973, the Senate began its own investigation of Watergate. A special committee, chaired by Senator Samuel James Ervin of North Carolina, began to call administration officials to give testimony. Throughout the summer millions of Americans sat by their televisions as the “president’s men” testified one after another.

Startling Testimony

John Dean delivered the first bomb. In late June, during more than 30 hours of testimony, Dean provided a startling answer to Senator Howard Baker’s repeated question, “What did the president know and when did he know it?” The former White House counsel declared that President Nixon had been deeply involved in the cover-up. Dean referred to one meeting in which he and the president, along with several advisers, discussed strategies for continuing the deceit.

The White House strongly denied Dean’s charges. The hearings had suddenly reached an impasse as the committee attempted to sort out who was telling the truth. The answer came in July from an unlikely source: presidential aide Alexander Butterfield. Butterfield stunned the committee when he revealed that Nixon had taped virtually all of his presidential conversations. Butterfield later claimed that the taping system was installed “to help Nixon write his memoirs.” However, for the Senate committee, the tapes were the key to revealing what Nixon knew and when he knew it.

The Saturday Night Massacre

A year-long battle for the “Nixon tapes” followed. Archibald Cox, the special prosecutor whom Elliot Richardson had appointed to investigate the case, took the president to court in October 1973 to obtain the tapes. Nixon refused and ordered Attorney General Richardson to fire Cox. In what became known as the Saturday Night Massacre, Richardson refused the order and resigned. The deputy attorney general also refused the order, and he was fired. Solicitor General Robert Bork finally fired Cox. However, Cox’s replacement, Leon Jaworski, proved equally determined to get the tapes. Several months after the “massacre,” the House Judiciary Committee began examining the possibility of an impeachment hearing.

The entire White House appeared to be under siege. Just days before the Saturday Night Massacre, Vice President Spiro Agnew had resigned after it was revealed that he had accepted bribes from engineering firms while governor of Maryland. Agnew pleaded nolo contendere (no contest) to the charge. Acting under the Twenty-fifth

“ Divine right went out with the American Revolution and doesn’t belong to White House aides.”
SENATOR SAM ERVIN

The Watergate hearings were chaired by Senator Sam Ervin, shown (top left) with Sam Dash, chief counsel to the Senate Watergate Committee. John Dean’s testimony (above) stunned the nation. 1012

Amendment, Nixon nominated the House minority leader, Gerald R. Ford, as his new vice-president. Congress quickly confirmed the nomination.

The Fall of a President

In March 1974, a grand jury indicted seven presidential aides on charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and perjury. The investigation was closing in on the president of the United States.

Nixon Releases the Tapes

In the spring of 1974, President Nixon told a television audience that he was releasing 1,254 pages of edited transcripts of White House conversations about Watergate. Nixon’s offering failed to satisfy investigators, who demanded the unedited tapes. Nixon refused, and the case went before the Supreme Court. On July 24, 1974, the high court ruled unanimously that the president must surrender the tapes. The Court rejected Nixon’s argument that doing so would violate national security. Evidence involving possible criminal activity could not be withheld, even by a president. President Nixon maintained that he had done nothing wrong. At a press conference in November 1973, he proclaimed defiantly, “I am not a crook.”

The original Nixon White House tape recorder and tape from the 1970s.

The President Resigns

Even without holding the original tapes, the House Judiciary Committee determined that there was enough evidence to impeach Richard Nixon. On July 27, the committee approved three articles of impeachment, charging the president with obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress for refusing to obey a congressional subpoena to release the tapes.

Analyzing Political Cartoons: The White House Tapes

During the Watergate hearings a bombshell exploded when it was revealed that President Nixon secretly tape-recorded all conversations in the Oval Office. Although Nixon hoped the tapes would one day help historians document the triumphs of his presidency, they were used to confirm his guilt.

cartoon: the White House is a huge tape recorder.

On August 5, Nixon released the tapes. They contained many gaps, and one tape revealed a disturbing 18 1/2-minute gap. According to the White House, Rose Mary Woods, President Nixon’s secretary, accidentally erased part of a conversation between H. R. Haldeman and Nixon. More importantly, a tape dated June 23, 1972—six days after the Watergate break-in—that contained a conversation between Nixon and Haldeman, disclosed the evidence investigators needed. Not only had the president known about the role of members of his administration in the burglary, he had agreed to the plan to obstruct the FBI’s investigation.

The evidence now seemed overwhelming. On August 8, 1974, before the full House vote on the articles of impeachment began, President Nixon announced his resignation from office. Defiant as always, Nixon admitted no guilt. He merely said that some of his judgments “were wrong.” The next day, Nixon and his wife, Pat, returned home to California. A short time later, Gerald Ford was sworn in as the 38th president of the United States.

The Effects of Watergate

The effects of Watergate have endured long after Nixon’s resignation. Eventually, 25 members of the Nixon Administration were convicted and served prison terms for crimes connected to Watergate. Along with the divisive war in Vietnam, Watergate produced a deep disillusionment with the “imperial” presidency. In the years following Vietnam and Watergate, the American public and the media developed a general cynicism about public officials that still exists today. Watergate remains the scandal and investigative story against which all others are measured.

photo: Richard Nixon frowns as his wife watches.

photo: Nixon's typewritten resignation letter.

With wife Pat looking on, Richard Nixon bids farewell to his staff on his final day as president. Nixon’s resignation letter is shown above.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• impeachment

• Watergate

• H. R. Haldeman

• John Ehrlichman

• John Mitchell

• Committee to Reelect the President

• John Sirica

• Saturday Night Massacre

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Use a time line like the one below to trace the events of the Watergate scandal.

a timeline from June 1972 to August 1974 has four blank spaces to list Events.

Which event made Nixon’s downfall certain?

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

If Nixon had admitted to and apologized for the Watergate break-in, how might subsequent events have been different? Explain. Think About:

• the extent of the cover-up

• the impact of the cover-up

• Nixon’s public image

4. ANALYZING EVENTS

How did the Watergate scandal create a constitutional crisis?

5. EVALUATING

Do you think that Nixon would have been forced to resign if the tapes had not existed? Explain your answer.

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Daily Life 1968–1980: Television Reflects American Life

From May until November 1973, the Senate Watergate hearings were the biggest daytime TV viewing event of the year. Meanwhile, television programming began to more closely reflect the realities of American life. Shows more often addressed relevant issues, more African-American characters appeared, and working women as well as homemakers were portrayed. In addition, the newly established Public Broadcasting System began showing many issue-oriented programs and expanded educational programming for children.

DIVERSITY Chico and the Man was the first series set in a Mexican-American barrio, East Los Angeles. The program centered on the relationship between Ed Brown, a cranky garage owner, and Chico Rodriguez, an optimistic young mechanic Brown reluctantly hired. photo: in the T show All in the Fmaily, Archie Bunker sits with his son-in-law Mike.

photo: in the T show All in the Fmaily, Archie Bunker sits with his son-in-law Mike.

SOCIAL VALUES All in the Family was the most popular series of the 1970s. It told the story of a working-class family, headed by the bigoted Archie Bunker and his long-suffering wife, Edith. Through the barbs Bunker traded with his son-in-law and his African-American neighbor, George Jefferson, the show dealt openly with the divisions in American society. 1015 a photo: Mary Tyler Moore.

INDEPENDENT WOMEN The Mary Tyler Moore Show depicted Mary Richards, a single woman living in Minneapolis and working as an assistant manager in a local TV news department. Mary symbolized the young career woman of the 1970s. photo: in a wedding scene from Roots, a slave couple jumps over a broom together.

photo: in a wedding scene from Roots, a slave couple jumps over a broom together.

CULTURAL IDENTITY The miniseries Roots, based on a book by Alex Haley, told the saga of several generations of an African-American family. The eight-part story began with Kunta Kinte, who was captured outside his West African village and taken to America as a slave. It ended with his great-grandson’s setting off for a new life as a free man. The groundbreaking series, broadcast in January 1977, was one of the most-watched television events in history. Data File: Tv Events of the 1970s

• A congressional ban on TV cigarette commercials took effect in 1971.

• ABC negotiated an $8-million-a-year contract to televise Monday Night Football, first broadcast in September 1970.

• In 1972, President Nixon, accompanied by TV cameras and reporters from the major networks, made a groundbreaking visit to China.

• Saturday Night Live—a show that would launch the careers of Dan Aykroyd, Jane Curtin, Eddie Murphy, and many other comic actors—premiered in October 1975.

• WTCG-TV (later WTBS) in Atlanta, owned by Ted Turner, became the basis of the first true satellite-delivered “superstation” in 1976.

• In November 1979, ABC began broadcasting late-night updates on the hostage crisis in Iran. These reports evolved into the program Nightline with Ted Koppel.

a chart shows the hours of TV watched per week.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the hours of television watched per week over the years from 1970 to 1998 for children aged 2 to 11, teens from 12 to 17 years old, and adults.

Children, 1970: 21 hours
Children, 1975: 24 hours
Children, 1980: 27.5 hours
Children, 1985: 33 hours
Children, 1990: 25 hours
Children, 1995: 24 hours
Children, 1998: 21 hours
Teens, 1970: 19 hours
Teens, 1975: 21 hours
Teens, 1980: 23 hours
Teens, 1985: 24 hours
Teens, 1990: 22 hours
Teens, 1995: 20 hours
Teens, 1998: 20 hours
Adults, 1970: 24 hours
Adults, 1975: 26 hours
Adults, 1980: 31 hours
Adults, 1985: 28 hours
Adults, 1990: 32 hours
Adults, 1995: 31 hours
Adults, 1998: 30 hours

Average Weekly Hours of TV Viewing Source: Nielson Media Research 1016

Section 3: The Ford and Carter Years

One American’s Story

James D. Denney couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Barely a month after Richard Nixon had resigned amid the Watergate scandal, President Gerald R. Ford had granted Nixon a full pardon. “[S]omeone must write, ‘The End,’” Ford had declared in a televised statement. “I have concluded that only I can do that.” Denney wrote a letter to the editors of Time magazine, in which he voiced his anger at Ford’s decision.

A PERSONAL VOICE JAMES D. DENNEY

“ Justice may certainly be tempered by mercy, but there can be no such thing as mercy until justice has been accomplished by the courts. Since it circumvented justice, Mr. Ford’s act was merely indulgent favoritism, a bland and unworthy substitute for mercy.”
—Time, September 23, 1974

James Denney’s feelings were typical of the anger and the disillusionment with the presidency that many Americans felt in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal. During the 1970s, Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter sought to restore America’s faith in its leaders. At the same time, both men had to focus much of their attention on battling the nation’s worsening economic situation.

photo: women hold signs that read 'Nixon did not commit pardonable offenses' and 'Ford's pardon defies Justice.'

Two women protest President Ford’s pardon of Richard Nixon.

Ford Travels a Rough Road

Upon taking office, Gerald R. Ford urged Americans to put the Watergate scandal behind them. “Our long national nightmare is over,” he declared. The nation’s nightmarish economy persisted, however, and Ford’s policies offered little relief.

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“A Ford, not a Lincoln”

Gerald Ford seemed to many to be a likable and honest man. Upon becoming vice president after Spiro Agnew’s resignation, Ford candidly admitted his limitations. “I’m a Ford, not a Lincoln,” he remarked. On September 8, 1974, President Ford pardoned Richard Nixon in an attempt to move the country beyond Watergate. The move cost Ford a good deal of public support.

Ford Tries to “Whip” Inflation

By the time Ford took office, America’s economy had gone from bad to worse. Both inflation and unemployment continued to rise. After the massive OPEC oil-price increases in 1973, gasoline and heating oil costs had soared, pushing inflation from 6 percent to over 10 percent by the end of 1974. Ford responded with a program of massive citizen action, called “Whip Inflation Now” or WIN. The president called on Americans to cut back on their use of oil and gas and to take other energy-saving measures.

In the absence of incentives, though, the plan fell flat. Ford then tried to curb inflation through a “tight money” policy. He cut government spending and encouraged the Federal Reserve Board to restrict credit through higher interest rates. These actions triggered the worst economic recession in 40 years. As Ford implemented his economic programs, he continually battled a Democratic Congress intent on pushing its own economic agenda. During his two years as president, Ford vetoed more than 50 pieces of legislation.

Difficult Decisions: Pardoning President Nixon a Time magazine cover shows Ford and the headline 'The Healing Begins.'

President Ford’s pardon of Richard Nixon outraged many Americans. But President Ford argued that the pardon of Richard Nixon was in the country’s best interest. In the event of a Watergate trial, Ford argued, “ugly passions would again be aroused. … And the credibility of our free institutions … would again be challenged at home and abroad.” Ford called the pardon decision “the most difficult of my life, by far.”

In 2001, after more than 25 years, Ford received the John F. Kennedy Profiles in Courage Award for his courageous decision in the face of public opposition.

1. How might the country have been affected if a former United States president had gone on trial for possible criminal wrongdoing?

2. If you had been in President Ford’s position, would you have pardoned Richard Nixon? Why or why not?

Ford’s Foreign Policy

Ford fared slightly better in the international arena. He relied heavily on Henry Kissinger, who continued to hold the key position of secretary of state.

Carrying Out Nixon’S Foreign Policies

Following Kissinger’s advice, Ford pushed ahead with Nixon’s policy of negotiation with China and the Soviet Union. In November 1974, he met with Soviet premier Leonid Brezhnev. Less than a year later, he traveled to Helsinki, Finland, where 35 nations, including the Soviet Union, signed the Helsinki Accords—a series of agreements that promised greater cooperation between the nations of Eastern and Western Europe. The Helsinki Accords would be Ford’s greatest presidential accomplishment.

Ongoing Turmoil in Southeast Asia

Like presidents before him, Ford encountered trouble in Southeast Asia. The 1973 cease-fire in Vietnam had broken down. Heavy fighting resumed and Ford asked Congress for over $722 million to help South Vietnam. Congress refused. Without American financial help, South Vietnam surrendered to the North in 1975. In the same year, the Communist government of Cambodia seized the U.S. merchant ship Mayagüez in the Gulf of Siam. President Ford responded with a massive show of military force to rescue 39 crew members aboard the ship. The operation cost the lives of 41 U.S. troops. Critics argued that the mission had cost more lives than it had saved.

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Carter Enters the White House

Gerald Ford won the Republican nomination for president in 1976 after fending off a powerful conservative challenge from former California governor Ronald Reagan. Because the Republicans seemed divided over Ford’s leadership, the Democrats confidently eyed the White House. “We could run an aardvark this year and win,” predicted one Democratic leader. The Democratic nominee was indeed a surprise: a nationally unknown peanut farmer and former governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter.

Mr. Carter goes to Washington

During the post-Watergate era, cynicism toward the Washington establishment ran high. The soft-spoken, personable man from Plains, Georgia, promised to restore integrity to the nation’s highest office, “I will never tell a lie to the American people.”

Throughout the presidential campaign, Carter and Ford squared off over the key issues of inflation, energy, and unemployment. On Election Day, Jimmy Carter won by a narrow margin, claiming 40.8 million popular votes to Ford’s 39.1 million.

From the very beginning, the new first family brought a down-to-earth style to Washington. After settling into office, Carter stayed in touch with the people by holding Roosevelt-like “fireside chats” on radio and television.

Carter failed to reach out to Congress in a similar way, refusing to play the “insider” game of deal making. Relying mainly on a team of advisers from Georgia, Carter even alienated congressional Democrats. Both parties on Capitol Hill often joined to sink the president’s budget proposals, as well as his major policy reforms of tax and welfare programs.

Key Player: Jimmy Carter 1924– The presidential seal of the U.S. adorns a photo of Jimmy Carter.

James Earl Carter, Jr., was born into relative prosperity. His father, Earl Carter, was a disciplinarian who tried to instill a sense of hard work and responsibility in his son.

To earn money for himself, Carter undertook a variety of jobs selling peanuts, running a hamburger and hot dog stand, collecting newspapers and selling them to fish markets, and selling scrap iron.

Before entering politics, Carter joined the navy, where he excelled in electronics and naval tactics. In 1952, he joined a select group of officers who helped develop the world’s first nuclear submarines. The group’s commander was Captain Hyman G. Rickover. Carter later wrote that Rickover “had a profound effect on my life—perhaps more than anyone except my own parents. … He expected the maximum from us, but he always contributed more.”

Carter’s Domestic Agenda

Like Gerald Ford, President Carter focused much of his attention on battling the country’s energy and economic crises but was unable to bring the United States out of its economic slump.

Confronting the Energy Crisis

Carter considered the energy crisis the most important issue facing the nation. A large part of the problem, the president believed, was America’s reliance on imported oil. On April 18, 1977, during a fireside chat, Carter urged his fellow Americans to cut their consumption of oil and gas.

a wind-up toy in the shape of a peanut has a face with toothy grin.

This 1976 campaign toy exaggerates Jimmy Carter’s well-known smile and parodies his occupation as a peanut farmer.

A PERSONAL VOICE JIMMY CARTER

“ The energy crisis … is a problem … likely to get progressively worse through the rest of this century. … Our decision about energy will test the character of the American people. … This difficult effort will be the ‘moral equivalent of war,’ except that we will be uniting our efforts to build and not to destroy.”
—quoted in Keeping Faith

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In addition, Carter presented Congress with more than 100 proposals on energy conservation and development. Representatives from oil- and gas-producing states fiercely resisted some of the proposals. Automobile manufacturers also lobbied against gas-rationing provisions. “It was impossible for me to imagine the bloody legislative battles we would have to win,” Carter later wrote.

Out of the battle came the National Energy Act. The act placed a tax on gas-guzzling cars, removed price controls on oil and natural gas produced in the United States, and extended tax credits for the development of alternative energy. With the help of the act, as well as voluntary conservation measures, U.S. dependence on foreign oil had eased slightly by 1979.

The Economic Crisis Worsens

Unfortunately, these energy-saving measures could do little to combat a sudden new economic crisis. In the summer of 1979, renewed violence in the Middle East produced a second major fuel shortage in the United States. To make matters worse, OPEC announced another major price hike. In 1979 inflation soared from 7.6 percent to 11.3 percent.

Faced with increasing pressure to act, Carter attempted an array of measures, none of which worked. Carter’s scatter-shot approach convinced many people that he had no economic policy at all. Carter fueled this feeling of uncertainty by delivering his now-famous “malaise” speech, in which he complained of a “crisis of spirit” that had struck “at the very heart and soul of our national will.” Carter’s address made many Americans feel that their president had given up.

By 1980, inflation had climbed to nearly 14 percent, the highest rate since 1947. The standard of living in the United States slipped from first place to fifth place in the world. Carter’s popularity slipped along with it. This economic downswing—and Carter’s inability to solve it during an election year—was one key factor in sending Ronald Reagan to the White House.

Economic Background: The Early 1980s Texas Oil Boom photo: oil wells.

The economic crisis that gripped the country in the late 1970s was largely caused by the increased cost of oil. The OPEC cartel raised the price of oil by agreeing to restrict oil production. The resulting decrease in the supply of oil in the market caused the price to go up.

Most Americans were hurt by the high energy prices. However, in areas that produced oil, such as Texas, the rise in prices led to a booming economy in the early 1980s. Real-estate values—for land on which to drill for oil, as well as for office space in cities like Houston and Dallas—increased greatly. (See supply and demand on page R46 in the Economics Handbook.)

a graph shows the unemployment rate and the inflation rate from 1970 to 1980.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the inflation rate rising higher than the unemployment rate in 1974 and again from 1978 to 1980.

	Unemployment	Inflation
1970	5	5.9
1971	6	4
1972	5.9	3.1
1973	5	6.1
1974	5.9	11
1975	8.8	9
1976	7.5	6
1977	7	6.5
1978	6	7.5
1979	6	11.5
1980	7	13.5

Unemployment and Inflation, 1970–1980 Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1980, 1995 1020 Three pie compare goods and services.

DESCRIPTION:

The charts compare Goods and Services as percentages in 1950, 1980 and 2000, and show Services increasing and Goods decreasing over time.

1950: Services 59%; Goods 41%
1980: Services 72%; Goods 28%
2000: Services 80%; Goods 20%

Nonfarm Employment by Sector, 1950–2000 Sources: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2000; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Historical Statistics of the United States

A Changing Economy

Many of the economic problems Jimmy Carter struggled with resulted from long-term trends in the economy. Since the 1950s, the rise of automation and foreign competition had reduced the number of manufacturing jobs. At the same time, the service sector of the economy expanded rapidly. This sector includes industries such as communications, transportation, and retail trade.

The rise of the service sector and the decline of manufacturing jobs meant big changes for some American workers. Workers left out of manufacturing jobs faced an increasingly complex job market. Many of the higher-paying service jobs required more education or specialized skills than did manufacturing jobs. The lower-skilled service jobs usually did not pay well.

Growing overseas competition during the 1970s caused further change in America’s economy. The booming economies of West Germany and countries on the Pacific Rim (such as Japan, Taiwan, and Korea) cut into many U.S. markets. Many of the nation’s primary industries—iron and steel, rubber, clothing, auto-mobiles—had to cut back production, lay off workers, and even close plants. Especially hard-hit were the automotive industries of the Northeast. There, high energy costs, foreign competition, and computerized production led companies to eliminate tens of thousands of jobs.

Carter and Civil Rights

Although Carter felt frustrated by the country’s economic woes, he took special pride in his civil rights record. His administration included more African Americans and women than any before it. In 1977, the president appointed civil rights leader Andrew Young as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Young was the first African American to hold that post. To the judicial branch alone, Carter appointed 28 African Americans, 29 women (including 6 African Americans), and 14 Latinos.

However, President Carter fell short of what many civil rights groups had expected in terms of legislation. Critics claimed that Carter—preoccupied with battles over energy and the economy—failed to give civil rights his full attention. Meanwhile, the courts began to turn against affirmative action. In 1978, in the case of Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, the Supreme Court decided that the affirmative action policies of the university’s medical school were unconstitutional. The decision made it more difficult for organizations to establish effective affirmative action programs. (See Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, page 1024.)

Andrew Young stands outside the United Nations in New York City, in 1997. 1021

A Human Rights Foreign Policy

Jimmy Carter rejected the philosophy of realpolitik—the pragmatic policy of negotiating with powerful nations despite their behavior—and strived for a foreign policy committed to human rights.

Advancing Human Rights

Jimmy Carter, like Woodrow Wilson, sought to use moral principles as a guide for U.S. foreign policy. He believed that the United States needed to commit itself to promoting human rights—such as the freedoms and liberties listed in the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights—throughout the world.

Putting his principles into practice, President Carter cut off military aid to Argentina and Brazil, countries that had good relations with the United States but had imprisoned or tortured thousands of their own citizens. Carter followed up this action by establishing a Bureau of Human Rights in the State Department.

Carter’s philosophy was not without its critics. Supporters of the containment policy felt that the president’s policy undercut allies such as Nicaragua, a dictatorial but anti-Communist country. Others argued that by supporting dictators in South Korea and the Philippines, Carter was acting inconsistently. In 1977, Carter’s policies drew further criticism when his administration announced that it planned to give up ownership of the Panama Canal.

Yielding the Panama Canal

Since 1914, when the United States obtained full ownership over the Panama Canal, Panamanians had resented having their nation split in half by a foreign power. In 1977, the two nations agreed to two treaties, one of which turned over control of the Panama Canal to Panama on December 31, 1999.

In 1978, the U.S. Senate, which had to ratify each treaty, approved the agreements by a vote of 68 to 32—one more vote than the required two-thirds. Public opinion was also divided. In the end, the treaties did improve relationships between the United States and Latin America.

The Collapse Of Détente

When Jimmy Carter took office, détente—the relaxation of tensions between the world’s super-powers—had reached a high point. Beginning with President Nixon and continuing with President Ford, U.S. officials had worked to ease relations with the Communist superpowers of China and the Soviet Union.

However, Carter’s firm insistence on human rights led to a breakdown in relations with the Soviet Union. President Carter’s dismay over the Soviet Union’s treatment of dissidents, or opponents of the government’s policies, delayed a second round of SALT negotiations. President Carter and Soviet premier Leonid Brezhnev finally met in June of 1979 in Vienna, Austria, where they signed an agreement known as SALT II. Although the agreement did not reduce armaments, it did provide for limits on the number of strategic weapons and nuclear-missile launchers that each side could produce.

The SALT II agreement, however, met sharp opposition in the Senate. Critics argued that it would put the United States at a military disadvantage. Then, in December 1979, the Soviets invaded the neighboring country of Afghanistan. Angered over the invasion, President Carter refused to fight for the SALT II agreement, and the treaty died.

World Stage: Soviet–Afghanistan War a map of southwest Asia highlights Afghanistan, surrounded by the USSR, Pakistan and Iran.

Afghanistan, an Islamic country along the southern border of the Soviet Union, had been run by a Communist, pro-Soviet government for a number of years. However, a strong Muslim rebel group known as the mujahideen was intent on overthrowing the Afghan government. Fearing a rebel victory in Afghanistan, the Soviet Union sent troops to Afghanistan in late 1979.

While the Soviets had superior weaponry, the rebels fought the Soviets to a stalemate by using guerrilla tactics and intimate knowledge of the country’s mountainous terrain.

After suffering thousands of casualties, the last Soviet troops pulled out of Afghanistan in February 1989. Fighting between rival factions continued for years. By 2000, the Taliban, a radical Muslim faction, controlled 90 percent of Afghanistan.

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DESCRIPTION:

The map shows Israel surrounded by the nations Jordan, Egypt, Syria and Lebanon. The map highlights Israeli conquests that were returned to Egypt, including the Sinai peninsula between Israel and Egypt. Israeli-controlled land includes the Golan Heights in Syria, the West Bank of the Jordan, and the Gaza Strip on the Mediterranean Sea. The OPEC nations Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia are on the Persian Gulf, while fellow OPEC countries Libya and Algeria are in Africa on the Mediterranean.

Middle East, 1978–1982 INTERACTIVE photo: Jimmy Carter, Menachem Begin and Anwar el-Sadat smile and join hands.

President Carter, President Anwar el-Sadat, and Prime Minister Menachem Begin reach a peace agreement in 1978.

Triumph and Crisis in the Middle East

Through long gasoline lines and high energy costs, Americans became all too aware of the troubles in the Middle East. In that area of ethnic, religious, and economic conflict, Jimmy Carter achieved one of his greatest diplomatic triumphs—and suffered his most tragic defeat.

The Camp David Accords

Through negotiation and arm-twisting, Carter helped forge peace between long-time enemies Israel and Egypt. In 1977, Egyptian president Anwar el-Sadat and Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin met in Jerusalem to discuss an overall peace between the two nations. In the summer of 1978, Carter seized on the peace initiative. When the peace talks stalled, he invited Sadat and Begin to Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland.

After 12 days of intense negotiations, the three leaders reached an agreement that became known as the Camp David Accords. Under this first signed peace agreement with an Arab country, Israel agreed to withdraw from the Sinai Peninsula, which it had seized from Egypt during the Six-Day War in 1967. Egypt, in turn, formally recognized Israel’s right to exist. Still, many issues were left unresolved.

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Joking at the hard work ahead, Carter wrote playfully in his diary, “I resolved to do everything possible to get out of the negotiating business!” Little did the president know that his next Middle East negotiation would be his most painful.

The Iran Hostage Crisis

By 1979, the shah of Iran, an ally of the United States, was in deep trouble. Many Iranians resented his regime’s widespread corruption and dictatorial tactics.

In January 1979, revolution broke out. The Muslim religious leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (ī′yə-tō′lər-hō′ləkō-mā′nē) led the rebels in overthrowing the shah and establishing a religious state based on strict obedience to the Qur’an, the sacred book of Islam. Carter had supported the shah until the very end. In October 1979, the president allowed the shah to enter the United States for cancer treatment, though he had already fled Iran in January 1979.

The act infuriated the revolutionaries of Iran. On November 4, 1979, armed students seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran and took 52 Americans hostage. The militants demanded that the United States send the shah back to Iran in return for the release of the hostages.

Carter refused, and a painful year-long standoff followed, in which the United States continued quiet but intense efforts to free the hostages. The captives were finally released on January 20, 1981, shortly after the new president, Ronald Reagan, was sworn in as president. Despite the hostages’ release after 444 days in captivity, the crisis in Iran seemed to underscore the limits that Americans faced during the 1970s. Americans also realized that there were limits to the nation’s environmental resources. This realization prompted both citizens and the government to actively address environmental concerns.

U.S. hostages were blindfolded and paraded through the streets of Tehran.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Gerald R. Ford

• Jimmy Carter

• National Energy Act

• human rights

• Camp David Accords

• Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of the major events of the Ford and Carter administrations, using a form such as the one below.

A blank timeline has space for four Events.

Which two events do you think were the most important? Why?

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Do you think that Ford made a good decision in pardoning Nixon? Explain why or why not.

4. COMPARING

How were the actions taken by Presidents Ford and Carter to address the country’s economic downturn similar? How did they differ?

5. ANALYZING ISSUES

Do you agree with President Carter that human rights concerns should steer U.S. foreign policy? Why or why not? Think About:

• the responsibility of promoting human rights

• the loss of good relations with certain countries

• the collapse of détente with the Soviet Union

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History Decisions of the Supreme Court: Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978)

ORIGINS OF THE CASE In 1973, Allan Bakke applied to the University of California at Davis medical school. The school had a quota-based affirmative-action plan that reserved 16 out of 100 spots for racial minorities. Bakke, a white male, was not admitted to the school despite his competitive test scores and grades. Bakke sued for admission, arguing that he had been discriminated against on the basis of race. The California Supreme Court agreed with Bakke, but the school appealed the case.

THE RULING The Court ruled that racial quotas were unconstitutional, but that schools could still consider race as a factor in admissions.

Legal Reasoning

The Court was closely divided on whether affirmative-action plans were constitutional. Two different sets of justices formed 5-to-4 majorities on two different issues in Bakke.

Five justices agreed the quota was unfair to Bakke. They based their argument on the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice Lewis Powell, writing for the majority, explained their reasoning.

“ The guarantee of equal protection cannot mean one thing when applied to one individual and something else when applied to a person of another color. If both are not accorded the same protection, then it is not equal.”

Allan Bakke receives his degree in medicine from the medical school at U.C. Davis on June 4, 1982.

The four justices that joined Powell in this part of the decision said race should never play a part in admissions decisions. Powell and the other four justices disagreed. These five justices formed a separate majority, arguing that “the attainment of a diverse student body … is a constitutionally permissible goal for an institution of higher education.” In other words, schools could have affirmative-action plans that consider race as one factor in admission decisions in order to achieve a diverse student body.

Legal Sources 1025 photo: protesters carry a sign that reads California federation of Teachers Reverse Bakke!

On October 8, 1977, protestors march in suppport of affirmative action at a park in Oakland, California.

Why it Mattered

Many people have faced discrimination in America. The struggle of African Americans for civil rights in the 1950s and 1960s succeeded in overturning Jim Crow segregation. Even so, social inequality persisted for African Americans, as well as women and other minority groups. In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson explained why more proactive measures needed to be taken to end inequality.

“ You do not take a person who for years has been hobbled by chains and … bring him up to the starting line of a race and then say, ‘you are free to compete with all the others’ and still justly believe that you have been completely fair.”

As a result, Johnson urged companies to begin to take “affirmative action” to hire and promote African Americans, helping them to overcome generations of inequality. Critics quickly opposed affirmative action plans as unfair to white people and merely a replacement of one form of racial discrimination with another.

University admissions policies became a focus of the debate over affirmative action. The Court’s ruling in Bakke allowed race to be used as one factor in admissions decisions. Schools could consider a prospective student’s race, but they could not use quotas or use race as the only factor for admission.

Historical Impact

Since Bakke, the Court has ruled on affirmative action several times, usually limiting affirmative-action plans. For example, in Adarand Constructors v. Pena (1995), the Court struck a federal law to set aside “not less than 10 percent” of highway construction funds for businesses owned by “socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.” The Court said that affirmative-action pro-grams must be narrowly focused to achieve a “compelling government interest.”

On cases regarding school affirmative-action plans, the courts have not created clear guidelines. The Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a 1996 lower court ruling that outlawed any consideration of race for admission to the University of Texas law school. Yet in the 2003 decision in Grutter v. Bollinger, the Court protected a University of Michigan law school admissions policy that required the admissions committee to consider the diversity of its student body. The Court reaffirmed the Bakke view that “student body diversity is a compelling state interest.”

Since the Grutter decision, several states have passed laws or constitutional amendments requiring race-blind admissions—effectively barring affirmative action. These laws were passed by ballot initiative, reflecting a popular view that sees affirmative action as “reverse discrimination.”

Thinking Critically Connect To History

1. Evaluating Research articles about Bakke in the library or on the Internet. Read the articles and write a para-graph for each one explaining the writer’s point of view on the case. Conclude by telling which article gives the best discussion of the case. Cite examples to support your choice.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R16. Connect To Today

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court to research and read about Proposition 209, California’s 1996 law banning affirmative action at state universities. Prepare arguments for an in-class debate about whether the law will have a positive or negative long-term effect.

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Section 4: Environmental Activism

One American’s Story

In 1972, Lois Gibbs and her family moved to Niagara Falls, New York. Underneath this quiet town, however, was a disaster in the making. In the 1890s, the Love Canal had been built to provide hydroelectric power for the Niagara Falls area. Chemical companies were dumping hazardous waste into the canal. In 1953, bulldozers filled in the canal. Shortly thereafter, a school and rows of homes were built nearby.

In 1977, when Lois Gibbs’s son fell sick, she decided to investigate. She eventually uncovered the existence of the toxic waste and mobilized the community to demand government action. In 1980, President Carter authorized funds for many Niagara Falls families to move to safety. Years later, Lois Gibbs wrote a book detailing her efforts.

A PERSONAL VOICE LOIS GIBBS

“ I want to tell you our story—my story—because I believe that ordinary citizens—using the tools of dignity, self-respect, common sense, and perseverance—can influence solutions to important problems in our society. … In solving any difficult problem, you have to be prepared to fight long and hard, sometimes at great personal cost; but it can be done. It must be done if we are to survive … at all.”
—Love Canal: My Story

A video case cover reads 'American Stories.'

Video POISONED PLAYGROUND Lois Gibbs and the Crisis at Love Canal

Lois Gibbs’s concerns about environmental hazards were shared by many Americans in the 1970s. Through the energy crisis, Americans learned that their natural resources were limited; they could no longer take the environment for granted. Americans—from grassroots organizations to the government—began to focus on conservation of the environment and new forms of energy.

The Roots of Environmentalism

The widespread realization that pollution and overconsumption were damaging the environment began in the 1960s. One book in particular had awakened

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America’s concerns about the environment and helped lay the groundwork for the activism of the early seventies.

Rachel Carson and Silent Spring

In 1962, Rachel Carson, a marine biologist, published a book entitled Silent Spring. In it, she warned against the growing use of pesticides—chemicals used to kill insects and rodents. Carson argued that pesticides poisoned the very food they were intended to protect and as a result killed many birds and fish.

Carson cautioned that America faced a “silent spring,” in which birds killed off by pesticides would no longer fill the air with song. She added that of all the weapons used in “man’s war against nature,” pesticides were some of the most harmful.

Key Player: Rachel Carson 1907–1964 photo: Rachel Carson.

The marine biologist Rachel Carson was born far from the sea, in the small town of Springdale, Pennsylvania.

Carson was a sickly child who often had to remain at home, where her mother tutored her. Throughout her youth and into her college years, Carson was a studious, but quiet and aloof, person.

Carson entered college intent on becoming a writer. During her sophomore year, she took a biology class to fulfill her science requirement and quickly fell in love with the study of nature. By the next year Carson switched her major from English to zoology—the study of animals.

A PERSONAL VOICE RACHEL CARSON

“ These sprays, dusts, and aerosols … have the power to kill every insect, the ‘good’ and the ‘bad,’ to still the song of birds and the leaping of fish in the streams, to coat the leaves with a deadly film, and to linger on in soil—all this though the intended target may be only a few weeds or insects. Can anyone believe it is possible to lay down such a barrage of poisons on the surface of the earth without making it unfit for all life?”
—Silent Spring

Within six months of its publication, Silent Spring sold nearly half a million copies. Many chemical companies called the book inaccurate and threatened legal action. However, for a majority of Americans, Carson’s book was an early warning about the danger that human activity posed to the environment. Shortly after the book’s publication, President Kennedy established an advisory committee to investigate the situation.

With Rachel Carson’s prodding, the nation slowly began to focus more on environmental issues. Although Carson would not live to see the U.S. government outlaw DDT in 1972, her work helped many Americans realize that their everyday behavior, as well as the nation’s industrial growth, had a damaging effect on the environment.

Environmental Concerns in the 1970s

During the 1970s, the administrations of Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter confronted such environmental issues as conservation, pollution, and the growth of nuclear energy.

A flag shows the planet earth yelling 'Help!'

A flag celebrating the first Earth Day in 1970.

The First Earth Day

The United States ushered in the 1970s—a decade in which it would actively address its environmental issues—fittingly enough with the first Earth Day celebration. On that day, April 22, 1970, nearly every community

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in the nation and more than 10,000 schools and 2,000 colleges hosted some type of environmental-awareness activity and spotlighted such problems as pollution, the growth of toxic waste, and the earth’s dwindling resources. The Earth Day celebration continues today. Each year on April 22, millions of people around the world gather to heighten public awareness of environmental problems.

The Government Takes Action

Although President Nixon was not considered an environmentalist, or someone who takes an active role in the protection of the environment, he recognized the nation’s growing concern about the environment. In an effort to “make our peace with nature,” President Nixon set out on a course that led to the passage of several landmark measures. In 1970, he consolidated 15 existing federal pollution programs into the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The new agency was given the power to set and enforce pollution standards, to conduct environmental research, and to assist state and local governments in pollution control. Today, the EPA remains the federal government’s main instrument for dealing with environmental issues.

In 1970 Nixon signed a new Clean Air Act that added several amendments to the Clean Air Act of 1963. The new act gave the government the authority to set air standards. Following the 1970 Clean Air Act, Congress also passed the Endangered Species Act, in addition to laws that limited pesticide use and curbed strip mining—the practice of mining for ore and coal by digging gaping holes in the land. Some 35 environmental laws took effect during the decade, addressing every aspect of conservation and clean-up, from protecting endangered animals to regulating auto emissions.

Balancing Progress and Conservation in Alaska

During the 1970s, the federal government took steps to ensure the continued well-being of Alaska, the largest state in the nation and one of its most ecologically sensitive.

The discovery of oil there in 1968, and the subsequent construction of a massive pipeline to transport it, created many new jobs and greatly increased state revenues. However, the influx of new development also raised concerns about Alaska’s wildlife, as well as the rights of its native peoples. In 1971, Nixon signed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, which turned over millions of acres of land to the state’s native tribes for conservation and tribal use. In 1978, President Carter enhanced this conservation effort by setting aside an additional 56 million acres in Alaska as national monuments. In 1980, Congress added another 104 million acres as protected areas.

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline, stretching across hundreds of miles of tundra, was completed in 1977.

The Debate Over Nuclear Energy

As the 1970s came to a close, Americans became acutely aware of the dangers that nuclear power plants posed to both humans and the environment. During the 1970s, as America realized the drawbacks to its heavy dependence on foreign oil for energy, nuclear power seemed to many to be an attractive alternative.

Opponents of nuclear energy warned the public against the industry’s growth. They contended that nuclear plants, and the wastes they produced, were potentially dangerous to humans and their environment.

Three Mile Island

In the early hours of March 28, 1979, the concerns of nuclear energy opponents were validated. That morning, one of the nuclear reactors at a plant on Three Mile Island near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, malfunctioned. The reactor over-heated after its cooling system failed, and fear quickly arose that radiation might escape and spread over the region. Two days later,

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Science & Technology: The Accident at Three Mile Island

A series of human and mechanical errors that caused the partial meltdown of the reactor core brought the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant to the brink of disaster. The accident at Three Mile Island caused widespread concern about nuclear power throughout the American public.

DESCRIPTION:

the diagram shows a capsule-shaped Containment Structure housing control rods in the reactor core, which heats a steam generator. Water is pumped past the steam generator, which powers a turbine connected to another generator that makes electricity. The water is sent to a colling tower, then back into the reactor, where the process begins again.

Containment Structure Pump Backup Cooling Water Control Rods Heat Steam Generator Water Fuel Elements Reactor Core Pumps Turbine Generator Hot water Cool Water Condenser Pumps Electricity Cooling Tower Production note: captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in the label contained in this image. Reactor Meltdown

1 The radioactive reactor core generates heat as its atoms split during a controlled chain reaction.

2 An inoperative valve releases thousands of gallons of coolant from the reactor core.

3 Half of the 36,816 exposed fuel rods melt in temperatures above five thousand degrees.

4 The melted material burns through the lining of the reactor chamber and spills to the floor of the containment structure.

photo: at a nuclear power plant, steam is released from a huge cooling tower.

More than 20 years after the accident, clean-up at Three Mile Island continues. The final ‘clean-up bill’ could soar to more than $3 billion. The TMI-2 reactor was dangerously contaminated and could not be entered for two years. All the materials in the containment structure, along with anything used in the clean-up, had to be decontaminated. Because the reactor will never be completely free of radioactivity, it will one day be entombed in cement. 1030

low-level radiation actually did escape from the crippled reactor. Officials evacuated some residents, while others fled on their own. One homemaker who lived near the plant recalled her desperate attempt to find safety.

A PERSONAL VOICE

“ On Friday, a very frightening thing occurred in our area. A state policeman went door-to-door telling residents to stay indoors, close all windows, and turn all air conditioners off. I was alone, as were many other homemakers, and my thoughts were focused on how long I would remain a prisoner in my own home. … Suddenly, I was scared, real scared. I decided to get out of there, while I could. I ran to the car not knowing if I should breathe the air or not, and I threw the suitcases in the trunk and was on my way within one hour. If anything dreadful happened, I thought that I’d at least be with my girls. Although it was very hot in the car, I didn’t trust myself to turn the air conditioner on. It felt good as my tense muscles relaxed the farther I drove.”
—an anonymous homemaker quoted in Accident at Three Mile Island: The Human Dimensions

In all, more than 100,000 residents were evacuated from the surrounding area. On April 9, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the federal agency that monitors the nuclear power industry, announced that the immediate danger was over.

The events at Three Mile Island rekindled the debate over nuclear power. Supporters of nuclear power pointed out that no one had been killed or seriously injured. Opponents countered by saying that chance alone had averted a tragedy.

History Through Film: Hollywood And Nuclear Fears

At the end of the 1970s and in the early 1980s, Hollywood responded to Americans’ concerns over nuclear power by making pointed social-awareness films exposing dangers in the nuclear industry. These films alerted the public to the importance of regulations in the relatively new field of atomic energy.

photo: Jane fonda and Jack Lemmon in a nuclear power plant in the movie 'The China Syndrome.'

In 1979, The China Syndrome, starring Jane Fonda and Jack Lemmon, became the movie everyone was talking about. Only 12 days after the film’s release, a serious accident similar to the one portrayed in the movie occurred at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant. photo: a scene from the film 'Silkwood.'

photo: a scene from the film 'Silkwood.'

In 1983, on her way to meet with a reporter from the New York Times, Karen Silkwood, a worker at a nuclear power facility, was hit and died in a car crash. In the film dramatization, Silkwood (1983), Meryl Streep played Karen, and Kurt Russell and Cher, her co-workers. 1031

They demanded that the government call a halt to the construction of new power plants and gradually shut down existing nuclear facilities.

While the government did not do away with nuclear power, federal officials did recognize nuclear energy’s potential danger to both humans and the environment. As a result of the accident at Three Mile Island, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission strengthened its safety standards and improved its inspection procedures.

Historical Spotlight: Private Conservation Groups

As concerns about pollution and the depletion of nonrenewable resources grew, so did membership in private, nonprofit organizations dedicated to the preservation of wilderness and endangered species. Many of these groups lobbied government for protective legislation. Some filed lawsuits to block projects such as road or dam construction or logging that would threaten habitats. The Environmental Defense Fund (today Environmental Defense) brought lawsuits that led to the bans on DDT and on leaded gasoline.

Radical groups also emerged. Members of Greenpeace risked their lives at sea to escort whales and protect them from commercial hunters.

A Continuing Movement

Although the environmental movement of the 1970s gained popular support, opponents of the movement also made their voices heard. In Tennessee, for example, where a federal dam project was halted because it threatened a species of fish, local developers took out ads asking residents to “tell the government that the size of your wallet is more important than some two-inch-long minnow.” When confronted with environmental concerns, one unemployed steelworker spoke for others when he remarked, “Why worry about the long run, when you’re out of work right now?”

The environmental movement that blossomed in the 1970s became in the 1980s and 1990s a struggle to balance environmental concerns with jobs and progress. In the years since the first Earth Day, however, environmental issues have gained increasing attention and support.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Rachel Carson

• Earth Day

• environmentalist

• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• Three Mile Island

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Re-create the web below on your paper and fill in events that illustrate the main idea in the center.

A web diagram shows five blank ovals connected to the words Concern for the environment grew in the United States.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING CAUSES

How much should the United States rely on nuclear power as a source of energy? Explain your view. Think About:

• the safety of nuclear power

• the alternatives to nuclear power

• U.S. energy demands

4. ANALYZING VISUAL SOURCES

What message does this 1969 poster from the Environmental Protection Agency give about the government’s role in pollution?

A poster reads 'Clean air is a product of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.'

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Chapter 32: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance to the Nixon, Ford, or Carter administrations.

1. Richard M. Nixon

2. stagflation

3. OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)

4. SALT I Treaty

5. Watergate

6. Saturday Night Massacre

7. Camp David Accords

8. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini

9. Rachel Carson

10. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

The Nixon Administration (pages 1000–1007)

1. In what ways did President Nixon attempt to reform the federal government?

2. How did Nixon try to combat stagflation?

Watergate: Nixon’s Downfall (pages 1008–1013)

3. In what ways did the participants in Watergate attempt to cover up the scandal?

4. What were the results of the Watergate scandal?

The Ford and Carter Years (pages 1016–1023)

5. What were Gerald Ford’s greatest successes as president?

6. How did President Carter attempt to solve the energy crisis?

Environmental Activism (pages 1026–1031)

7. What factors increased Americans’ concerns about environmental issues during the 1960s and 1970s?

8. What was the impact of the Three Mile Island incident?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES In a chart like the one shown, identify one major development for each issue listed that occurred between 1968 and 1980. Indicate whether you think the impact of the development was positive (+) or negative (–).

Issue	Development	Impact
Economic conditions
Democratic government
Efficient energy use
Environmental protection

2. ANALYZING EVENTS Between 1972 and 1974, Americans were absorbed by the fall of President Nixon in the Watergate scandal. What might Americans have learned about the role of the executive office? Explain.

3. INTERPRETING GRAPHS Study the graph on page 1019. Describe the changes in unemployment as compared to inflation from 1970 to 1980.

Visual Summary: An Age Of Limits photo: Richard Nixon visits the Great Wall of China.

THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION

• Revenue sharing

• Law-and-order politics

• Integration delays

• Inflation, recession, and unemployment

• Opening to China

• Détente with the Soviet Union

• Watergate scandal

• Nixon resignation

A Time magazine cover shows Gerald Ford and the headline 'The Healing Begins.'

THE FORD ADMINISTRATION

• Unelected president

• Nixon pardon

• Whip Inflation Now program

• Economic recession

• Mayagüez incident

• Helsinki Accords

The Carter Administration

• Energy crisis

• Worsening inflation

• Panama Canal Treaties

• Camp David Accords

• Nuclear power

• Iran hostage crisis

1033 Standardized Test Practice

Use the two graphs below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

A graph: U.S. oil consumption 1965-1979.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows oil consumption steadily rising from 1965 to 1979.

1965: 11 million barrels per day
1967: 13 million barrels per day
1969: 14 million barrels per day
1971: 15 million barrels per day
1973: 17 million barrels per day
1975: 16 million barrels per day
1977: 18 million barrels per day
1979: 18 million barrels per day

U.S. Oil Consumption, 1965–1979 Source: Annual Energy Review, 1999 A graph: U.S. Oil production from 1965-1979

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows oil production remaining consistent from 1965-1979.

1965: 9 million million barrels per day
1967: 10 million million barrels per day
1969: 11 million million barrels per day
1971: 11.5 million million barrels per day
1973: 11 million million barrels per day
1975: 10 million million barrels per day
1977: 10 million million barrels per day
1979: 10.5 million million barrels per day

U.S. Oil Production, 1965–1979 Source: Annual Energy Review, 1999

1. The OPEC oil embargo hit the United States so hard in 1973 because—

A domestic oil consumption decreased as production decreased

B domestic oil consumption remained steady as production decreased

C domestic oil consumption increased while production decreased slightly

D domestic production increased, although consumption increased faster

2. How did Watergate affect the presidents who followed after Richard Nixon?

F It caused them to be less trusted and less powerful.

G It made them reluctant to oppose Congress.

H It made them more popular with the media.

J It caused them to rely less on the counsel of cabinet members.

3. Which of the following is a contribution made by Rachel Carson to the American environmental movement?

A Carson researched “cleaner” sources of energy.

B Carson lobbied for the passage of the National Energy Act.

C Carson lobbied for making April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day.

D Carson published a book on the hazards of pesticide use.

Alternative Assessment

1. Interact with History Recall your discussion of the question on page 999:

In what ways can a president misuse power?

Now that you’ve learned how your country’s highest office holder, President Nixon, lost the nation’s trust after the Watergate scandal, would you change your response? Discuss your suggestions with a small group. Then create a list, ranking the misuses from least to most severe.

2. VIDEO LEARNING FROM MEDIA View the American Stories video “Poisoned Playground.” Discuss the following questions in a group; then do the activity.

• How did Lois Gibbs’s struggle affect her personal life?

• What finally prompted the government to evacuate the residents of Love Canal?

Cooperative Learning Activity In a small group, discuss possible environmental problems in each group member’s neighborhood, listing them on a sheet of paper. Compare lists with other groups to determine the most common problems. List possible solutions for each problem.

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Chapter 33: The Conservative Tide

photo: Ronald Reagan speaks to a large crowd at a convention. Delegates hold signs that read We Love Ron. A title: The Conservative Tide.

Ronald Reagan addresses the 1980 Republican convention. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1034 and page 1035 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1980 to 1991 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1980 to 1991 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1980-1991.

1980, the World: Zimbabwe claims independence.
1980, USA: Ronald Reagan is elected president.
1981, USA: Sandra Day O'Connor becomes the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court.
1982, the World: Great Britain and Argentina go to war over the Falkland Islands.
1982, USA: Equal Rights Amendment fails to win ratification.
1984, the World: South African Bishop Desmond Tutu receives the Nobel Peace Prize.
1984, USA: President Reagan is reelected.
1986, the World: The Soviet Union suffers a disastrous accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
1986, USA: Iran arms deal is revealed.
1988, USA: George Bush is elected president.
1988, USA: Reverend Jesse Jackson runs for the Democratic presidential nomination.
1989, the World: The Chinese government kills student protesters in Tiananmen Square.
1989, the World: Germans dismantle the Berlin Wall.
1991, USA: Persian Gulf War breaks out.
1991, the World: Soviet Union breaks apart.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1034 and page 1035 in the print version. 1035 photo: Ronald Reagan speaks to a large crowd at a convention. Delegates hold signs that read We Love Ron. A title: The Conservative Tide.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1034 and page 1035 in the print version. Interact with History

It is the autumn of 1980. You are a campaign manager for Republican presidential candidate, Ronald Reagan, former film star and past governor of California. Reagan must defeat President Jimmy Carter, who has lost support. Carter has failed to bring home the hostages in Iran and to revive the economy. Reagan, an optimist, pledges to do both. He also plans to cut taxes and cut back on government programs.

What campaign slogan will you create?

Examine the Issues

• What qualities in your candidate will win support?

• What issues are important?

• How can you present Reagan as a winner?

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1980-1991.

1980, the World: Zimbabwe claims independence.
1980, USA: Ronald Reagan is elected president.
1981, USA: Sandra Day O'Connor becomes the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court.
1982, the World: Great Britain and Argentina go to war over the Falkland Islands.
1982, USA: Equal Rights Amendment fails to win ratification.
1984, the World: South African Bishop Desmond Tutu receives the Nobel Peace Prize.
1984, USA: President Reagan is reelected.
1986, the World: The Soviet Union suffers a disastrous accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
1986, USA: Iran arms deal is revealed.
1988, USA: George Bush is elected president.
1988, USA: Reverend Jesse Jackson runs for the Democratic presidential nomination.
1989, the World: The Chinese government kills student protesters in Tiananmen Square.
1989, the World: Germans dismantle the Berlin Wall.
1991, USA: Persian Gulf War breaks out.
1991, the World: Soviet Union breaks apart.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1034 and page 1035 in the print version. 1036

Section 1: A Conservative Movement Emerges

One American’s Story

Peggy Noonan grew up with a strong sense of social and political justice. As a child, she idolized the liberal Kennedys; as a teenager, she devoured articles on social and political issues. After college, Noonan went to work for CBS.

Over the years, Noonan’s political views became increasingly conservative. She eventually won a job as a speechwriter for Ronald Reagan, whose commitment to his conservative values moved her deeply. Noonan recalled that her response to Reagan was not unusual.

Peggy Noonan

A PERSONAL VOICE

PEGGY NOONAN

“ The young people who came to Washington for the Reagan revolution came to make things better. … They looked at where freedom was and … where freedom wasn’t and what that did, and they wanted to help the guerrilla fighters who were trying to overthrow the Communist regimes that had been imposed on them. … The thing the young conservatives were always talking about, … was freedom, freedom:
we’ll free up more of your money, we’ll free up more of the world, freedom freedom freedom—
It was the drumbeat that held a disparate group together, the rhythm that kept a fractious, not-made-in-heaven alliance in one piece.”
—What I Saw at the Revolution: A Political Life in the Reagan Era

Like millions of other Reagan supporters, Noonan agreed with the slogan that was the heart of Reagan’s political creed: “Government is not the solution to our problem. Government is the problem.”

The Conservative Movement Builds

Ever since Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona had run for president in 1964, conservatives had argued that state governments, businesses, and individuals needed more freedom from the heavy hand of Washington, D.C. By 1980, government

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spending on entitlement programs—programs that provide guaranteed benefits to particular groups—was nearly $300 billion annually. The costs together with stories of fraudulently-obtained benefits caused resentment among many taxpayers.

In addition, some people had become frustrated with the government’s civil rights policies. Congress had passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in an effort to eliminate racial discrimination. Over the years, however, judicial decisions and government regulations had broadened the reach of the act. A growing number of Americans viewed with skepticism what had begun as a movement toward equal opportunity. Although many people had rejected separate schools for blacks and whites as unfair and unequal, few wanted to bus their children long distances to achieve a fixed ratio of black and white students.

The New Right

As the 1970s progressed, right-wing grass-roots groups across the country emerged to support and promote single issues that reflected their key interests. These people became known as the New Right. The New Right focused its energy on controversial social issues, such as opposing abortion, blocking the Equal Rights Amendment, and evading court-ordered busing. It also called for a return to school prayer, which had been outlawed by the Supreme Court in 1962.

Many in the New Right criticized the policy of affirmative action. Affirmative action required employers and educational institutions to give special consideration to women, African Americans, and other minority groups, even though these people were not necessarily better qualified. Many conservatives saw affirmative action as a form of reverse discrimination, favoring one group over another on the basis of race or gender. To members of the New Right, liberal positions on affirmative action and other issues represented an assault on traditional values.

Photo: students sit at a table in a circle, their heads lowered.

Several high school students in New York hold a prayer meeting in 1973.

The Conservative Coalition

Beginning in the mid-1960s, the conservative movement in the United States grew in strength. Eventually, conservative groups formed the conservative coalition—an alliance of business leaders, middle-class voters, disaffected Democrats, and fundamentalist Christian groups.

Conservative intellectuals argued the cause of the conservative coalition in newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal and magazines such as the National Review, founded in 1955 by conservative William F. Buckley, Jr. Conservative think tanks, such as the American Enterprise Institute and The Heritage Foundation, were founded to develop conservative policies and principles that would appeal to the majority of voters.

The Moral Majority

Religion, especially evangelical Christianity, played a key role in the growing strength of the conservative coalition. The 1970s had brought a huge religious revival, especially among fundamentalist sects. Each week, millions of Americans watched evangelist preachers on television or listened to them on the radio. Two of the most influential televangelists were Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. Falwell formed an organization called the Moral Majority. The Moral Majority consisted mostly of evangelical and fundamentalist Christians who interpreted

Goals of the Conservative Movement

• Shrink the size of the federal government and reduce spending

• Promote family values and patriotic ideals

• Stimulate business by reducing government regulations and lowering taxes

• Strengthen the national defense

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the Bible literally and believed in absolute standards of right and wrong. They condemned liberal attitudes and behaviors and argued for a restoration of traditional moral values. They worked toward their political goals by using direct-mail campaigns and by raising money to support candidates. Jerry Falwell became the spokesperson for the Moral Majority.

A PERSONAL VOICE

REVEREND JERRY FALWELL

“ Our nation’s internal problems are the direct result of her spiritual condition. … Right living must be reestablished as an American way of life. … Now is the time to begin calling America back to God, back to the Bible, back to morality.”

As individual conservative groups formed networks, they created a movement dedicated to bringing back what they saw as traditional “family values.” They hoped their ideas would help to reduce the nation’s high divorce rate, lower the number of out-of-wedlock births, encourage individual responsibility, and generally revive bygone prosperity and patriotic times.

Key Player: Ronald Reagan 1911–2004 The presidential seal of the U.S. adorns a photo of Ronald Reagan.

Ronald Wilson Reagan was born in 1911 in Tampico, Illinois. He grew up in Dixon, Illinois, graduated from nearby Eureka College, and then worked as a sports announcer in Iowa. In 1937, Reagan moved to Hollywood and became a movie actor, eventually making more than 50 films. As president of the Screen Actors Guild, he worked actively to remove alleged Communist influences from the movie industry.

Reagan had the ability to express his ideas in simple and clear language that the average voter could understand. When he proposed a 10 percent cut in government spending on social programs, he stated, “We can lecture our children about extravagance until we run out of voice and breath. Or we can cure their extravagance by simply reducing their allowance.”

Conservatives Win Political Power

In 1976, Ronald Reagan lost the Republican nomination to the incumbent, Gerald Ford, in a very closely contested race. Four years later in a series of hard-fought primaries, Reagan won the 1980 nomination and chose George H. W. Bush as his running mate. Reagan and Bush ran against the incumbent president and vice-president, Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale, who were nominated again by the Democrats despite their low standing in the polls.

Reagan’s Qualifications

Originally a New Deal Democrat, Ronald Reagan had become a conservative Republican during the 1950s. He claimed that he had not left the Democratic Party but rather that the party had left him. As a spokesman for General Electric, he toured the country making speeches in favor of free enterprise and against big government. In 1964, he campaigned hard for Barry Goldwater, the Republican candidate for president. His speech supporting Goldwater in October 1964 made Reagan a serious candidate for public office. In 1966, Reagan was elected governor of California, and in 1970, he was reelected.

The 1980 Presidential Election

In 1980, Reagan ran on a number of key issues. Supreme Court decisions on abortion, pornography, the teaching of evolution, and prayer in public schools all concerned conservative voters, and they rallied to Reagan. The prolonged Iranian hostage crisis and the weak economy under Carter, particularly the high rate of inflation, also helped Reagan.

Thanks in part to his acting career and his long experience in the public eye, Reagan was an extremely effective candidate. In contrast to Carter, who often seemed stiff and nervous, Reagan was relaxed, charming, and affable. He loved making quips: “A recession is when your neighbor loses his job. A depression is when you lose yours. And recovery is

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when Jimmy Carter loses his.” Reagan’s long-standing skill at simplifying issues and presenting clear-cut answers led his supporters to call him the Great Communicator. Also, his commitment to military and economic strength appealed to many Americans.

Only 52.6 percent of American voters went to the polls in 1980. Reagan won the election by a narrow majority; he got 44 million votes, or 51 percent of the total. His support, however, was spread throughout the country, so that he carried 44 states and won 489 electoral votes. Republicans also gained control of the Senate for the first time since 1954. As Reagan assumed the presidency, many people were buoyed by his genial smile and his assertion that it was “morning again in America.”

Now, conservatives had elected one of their own—a true believer in less government, lower taxes, and traditional values. Once elected, Reagan worked to translate the conservative agenda into public policy.

Presidential Election of 1980 A map shows 1980 election results.

DESCRIPTION:

A map shows vote totals and the states won by Republican Ronald Reagan, Democrat Jimmy Carter, and Independent John Anderson. Reagan won 489 electoral votes to Carter's 49. Anderson received 5.7 million votes, but won no states. Every state west of Georgia was won by Reagan, except for Minnesota which was won by Carter. The only other states that Carter won were Georgia, West Virginia, Maryland, Rhode Island, Hawaii and the District of Columbia.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• entitlement program

• New Right

• affirmative action

• reverse discrimination

• conservative coalition

• Moral Majority

• Ronald Reagan

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Use a cluster diagram to record the issues that conservatives strongly endorsed.

Diagram: Six blank ovals are surround the words Conservative Issues.

Choose one issue and explain in a paragraph the conservative position on that issue.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING MOTIVES

How did the leaders of the conservative movement of the 1980s want to change government?

Think About:

• the difference between the conservative view of government and the liberal view

• the groups that made up the conservative coalition

• conservatives’ attitudes toward existing government programs

4. ANALYZING EFFECTS

What role did the Moral Majority play in the conservative movement of the 1970s and early 1980s?

5. EVALUATING LEADERSHIP

What personal qualities in Ronald Reagan helped him to win election as president in 1980?

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Section 2: Conservative Policies Under Reagan and Bush

One American’s Story

Throughout the 1980 presidential campaign and in the early days of his administration, President Reagan emphasized the perilous state of the economy during the Carter administration. In a speech to the nation on February 5, 1981—his first televised speech from the White House—Reagan announced his new economic program. He called for a reduction in income tax rates for individuals and a big reduction in government spending.

President Ronald Reagan

A PERSONAL VOICE

RONALD REAGAN

“ I’m speaking to you tonight to give you a report on the state of our nation’s economy. I regret to say that we’re in the worst economic mess since the Great Depression. … It’s time to recognize that we’ve come to a turning point. We’re threatened with an economic calamity of tremendous proportions, and the old business-as-usual treatment can’t save us. Together, we must chart a different course.”
—televised speech to the nation, February 5, 1981

President Reagan would deal with these problems by consistently stressing a sweeping package of new economic policies. These economic policies, dubbed “Reaganomics,” consisted of three parts: (1) budget cuts, (2) tax cuts, and (3) increased defense spending.

“Reaganomics” Takes Over

As soon as Reagan took office, he worked to reduce the size and influence of the federal government, which, he thought, would encourage private investment. Because people were anxious about the economy in 1980, their concern opened the door for new approaches to taxes and the federal budget.

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Budget Cuts

Reagan’s strategy for downsizing the federal government included deep cuts in government spending on social programs. Yet his cuts did not affect all segments of the population equally. Entitlement programs that benefited the middle class, such as Social Security, Medicare, and veterans’ pensions, remained intact. On the other hand, Congress slashed by 10 percent the budget for programs that benefited other groups: urban mass transit, food stamps, welfare benefits, job training, Medicaid, school lunches, and student loans.

Tax Cuts

“Reaganomics” rested heavily upon supply-side economics. This theory held that if people paid fewer taxes, they would save more money. Banks could then loan that money to businesses, which could invest the money in resources to improve productivity. The supply of goods then would increase, driving down prices. At Reagan’s urging, Congress lowered income taxes by about 25 percent over a three-year period. Reagan based his ideas for supply-side economics on the work of economists such as George Gilder and Arthur Laffer.

A PERSONAL VOICE

ARTHUR LAFFER

“ The most debilitating act a government can perpetrate on its citizens is to adopt policies that destroy the economy’s production base, for it is the production base that generates any prosperity to be found in the society. U.S. tax policies over the last decade have had the effect of damaging this base by removing many of the incentives to economic advancement. It is necessary to restore those incentives if we are to cure our economic palsy.”
—The Economics of the Tax Revolt: A Reader

Increased Defense Spending

At the same time, Reagan authorized increases in military spending that more than offset cuts in social programs. Between 1981 and 1984, the Defense Department budget almost doubled. Indeed, the president revived two controversial weapons systems—the MX missile and the B-1 bomber. In 1983, Reagan asked the country’s scientists to develop a defense system that would keep Americans safe from enemy missiles. Officially called the Strategic Defense Initiative, or SDI, the system quickly became known as Star Wars, after the title of a popular movie. The Defense Department estimated that the system would cost trillions of dollars.

Recession and Recovery

While Reagan was charting a new course for the American economy, the economy itself was sinking into recession. Lasting from July 1981 until November 1982, it was the most severe recession since the Great Depression. However, early in 1983, an economic upturn began as consumers went on a spending spree. Their confidence in the economy was bolstered by tax cuts, a decline in interest rates, and lower inflation. The stock market surged, unemployment declined, and the gross national product went up by almost 10 percent. The stock market boom lasted until 1987, when the market crashed, losing 508 points in one day. This fall was due in large part to automated and computerized buying and selling systems. However, the market recovered and then continued its upward climb.

The National Debt Climbs

Beneath the surface of recovery lay problems that continued to plague the economy. Tax cuts had helped the rich, while social welfare cuts had hurt the poor. Despite large reductions in parts of the

Economic Background: The “Trickle-Down” Theory

Ronald Reagan’s budget director, David Stockman, used supply-side economics to draft the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981. His tax package cut income taxes and business taxes by an average of 25 percent; the largest tax cuts went to those with the highest incomes. Administration officials defended the plan by claiming that as prosperity returned, the profits at the top would trickle down to the middle class and even the poor.

Despite Reagan’s “trickle-down” theory, the wealthy gained the most from these tax cuts. In the 1980s, the rich got richer as poverty deepened for many others.

1042 Analyzing Political Cartoons: “The Inflation Stagecoach”

During Reagan’s first term, federal spending far outstripped federal revenue and created a huge budget deficit. In this cartoon, Reagan (with budget director David Stockman sitting beside him on the inflation stagecoach) sees something that “shouldn’t be there.”

budget, federal spending still outstripped federal revenue. Budget deficits were growing. Even though Reagan backed away from supply-side economics in 1982 and imposed new taxes, they were not enough to balance the budget. By the end of his first term, the national debt had almost doubled.

Judicial Power Shifts to the Right

One of the most important ways in which Reagan accomplished his conservative goals was through his appointments to the Supreme Court. Reagan nominated Sandra Day O’Connor, Antonin Scalia, and Anthony M. Kennedy to fill seats left by retiring judges. O’Connor was the first woman to be appointed to the Court. He also nominated Justice William Rehnquist, the most conservative justice on the court at the time, to the position of chief justice.

Anita Hill and Clarence Thomas testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee in October 1991.

President Bush later made the Court even more conservative when David H. Souter replaced retiring justice William Brennan. Bush also nominated Clarence Thomas to take the place of Thurgood Marshall. However, controversy exploded when law professor Anita Hill testified that Thomas had sexually harassed her when she worked for him in the 1980s. During several days of televised Senate hearings, committee members questioned Thomas, Hill, and witnesses for each side. Thomas eventually won approval by a final vote of 52 to 48.

The Reagan and Bush appointments to the Supreme Court ended the liberal control over the Court that had begun under Franklin Roosevelt. These appointments became increasingly significant as the Court revisited constitutional issues related to such topics as discrimination, abortion, and affirmative action. In 1989, the Court, in a series of rulings, restricted a woman’s right to an abortion. The Court also imposed new restrictions on civil rights laws that had been designed to protect the rights of women and minorities. During the 1990–1991 session, the Court narrowed the rights of arrested persons.

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Deregulating the Economy

Reagan achieved one of his most important objectives—reducing the size and power of the federal government—in part by cutting federal entitlement pro-grams but also through deregulation, the cutting back of federal regulation of industry. As part of his campaign for smaller government, he removed price controls on oil and eliminated federal health and safety inspections for nursing homes. He deregulated the airline industry (allowing airlines to abandon unprofitable air routes) and the savings and loan industry. One of the positive results of this deregulation was that it increased competition and often resulted in lower prices for consumers.

In a further effort at deregulation, President Reagan cut the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which had been established in 1970 to fight pollution and conserve natural resources. He ignored pleas from Canada to reduce acid rain and appointed opponents of the regulations to enforce them. For example, James Watt, Reagan’s secretary of the interior, sold millions of acres of public land to private developers—often at bargain prices. He opened the continental shelf to oil and gas drilling, which many people thought posed environmental risks. Watt also encouraged timber cutting in national forests and eased restrictions on coal mining.

Historical Spotlight: An Assassination Attempt

On March 30, 1981, President Reagan and other members of his staff were shot by a mentally unbalanced man named John Hinckley, Jr. While being wheeled into surgery to have a bullet removed, the president said to his wife, “Honey, I forgot to duck” (a line first used by boxer Jack Dempsey in the 1920s, after losing his heavy-weight title). In the operating room, Reagan said to the team of surgeons, “I hope you fellas are Republicans.” Reagan recovered speedily and his popularity grew.

President Reagan is pushed into a presidential limousine after being shot by a deranged man.

Conservative Victories in 1984 and 1988

It was clear by 1984 that Reagan had forged a large coalition of conservative voters who highly approved of his policies. These voters included the following:

• businesspeople—who wanted to deregulate the economy

• Southerners—who welcomed the limits on federal power

• Westerners—who resented federal controls on mining and grazing

• Reagan Democrats—who agreed with Reagan on limiting federal government and thought that the Democratic Party had drifted too far to the left

The 1984 Presidential Election

In 1984, Reagan and Bush won the Republican nominations for reelection without challenge. Walter Mondale, who had been vice-president under President Carter, won the Democratic Party’s nomination and chose Representative Geraldine Ferraro of New York as his running mate. Ferraro became the first woman on a major party’s presidential ticket.

In 1984 the economy was strong. Reagan and Bush won by a landslide, carrying every state but Mondale’s home state of Minnesota and the District of Columbia.

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George Bush announces his presidential candidacy at a rally in 1987.

The 1988 Presidential Election

In 1988, a majority of Americans were economically comfortable, and they attributed their comfort to Reagan and Bush. When Michael Dukakis, the Democratic governor of Massachusetts, ran for the presidency in 1988 against George Bush, Reagan’s vice-president, most voters saw little reason for change.

George Bush simply built on President Reagan’s legacy by promising, “Read my lips: no new taxes” in his acceptance speech at the Republican Convention. He stressed his commitment to the conservative ideas of the Moral Majority. Though Bush asserted that he wanted a “kinder, gentler nation,” his campaign sponsored a number of negative “attack ads” aimed at his opponents. He told audiences that Dukakis was an ultraliberal whose views were outside the mainstream of American values. In particular, Bush suggested that Dukakis was soft on crime and unpatriotic.

“ Read my lips: no new taxes.”
GEORGE BUSH

Some commentators believed that the negative ads contributed to the lowest voter turnout in 64 years. Only half of the eligible voters went to the polls in 1988. Fifty-three percent voted for George Bush, who won 426 electoral votes. Bush’s electoral victory was viewed, as Reagan’s had been, as a mandate for conservative social and political policies.

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• Reaganomics

• supply-side economics

• Strategic Defense Initiative

• Sandra Day O’Connor

• deregulation

• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• Geraldine Ferraro

• George Bush

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Use a diagram like the one below to explore the effects of “Reaganomics.”

DESCRIPTION:

The top rectangle is labled 'Definition of Reaganomics.' And arrow leads to the second rectangle, 'Short-Term Effects.' Another arrow leads to the bottome rectangle, 'Long-Term Effects.'

Explain in a paragraph whether you think “Reaganomics” was good or bad for the economy.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Why did President Reagan and President Bush think it was important to appoint conservative justices to the Supreme Court?

4. EVALUATING

In your opinion, was Reagan’s first term a success? Think About:

• how his tax cuts impacted the rich and the poor

• the economy

• the federal budget

5. ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES

Read the following excerpt from Ronald Reagan’s speech at the 1992 Republican Convention.

“ We mustn’t forget … the very different America that existed just 12 years ago; an America with 21 percent interest rates and … double-digit inflation; an America where mortgage payments doubled, paychecks plunged, and motorists sat in gas lines; an America whose leaders told us … that what we really needed was another good dose of government control and higher taxes.”

What picture did Reagan paint of the Carter administration?

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Section 3: Social Concerns in the 1980s

One American’s Story

Trevor Ferrell lived an ordinary life in Gladwyne, an affluent suburb 12 miles from downtown Philadelphia. Trevor had brothers and sisters, his own room, a favorite pillow, a fondness for video games, and a bike. In short, he seemed like a typical 11-year-old boy until he watched a television news report about homeless people.

Trevor was astonished. “Do people really live like that?” he asked his parents. “I thought they lived like that in India, but not here, I mean in America.” Trevor convinced his parents to drive downtown that night, where he gave a pillow and a blanket to the first homeless man he saw. Soon he and his family were collecting food and clothes to give to the homeless.

Photo: a boy hands clothes to a man in a heavy coat.

Trevor Ferrell offers clothes to a homeless person in Philadelphia, 1983.

A PERSONAL VOICE

TREVOR FERRELL

“ They have to live on the streets, and right after you see one of them, you see somebody in a limousine pull up to a huge, empty mansion. It’s such a difference. Some people can get anything they want, and these other people couldn’t get a penny if they needed one.”
—quoted in Trevor’s Place

As Trevor saw, the restored American economy of the 1980s did not mean renewed prosperity for everyone. As Presidents Reagan and Bush pursued conservative domestic policies, people disagreed about the impact of these policies.

Health, Education, and Cities in Crisis

In the 1980s, both in the cities and in rural and suburban areas, local governments strove to deal with crises in health, education, and safety. Americans directed their attention to issues such as AIDS, drug abuse, abortion, and education.

1046 Now & Then: Aids Worldwide

In the year 2006, it was estimated that 4.3 million people worldwide became infected with HIV/AIDS. Impoverished countries that lie in sub-Saharan Africa remain hardest hit by the deadly pandemic, accounting for an estimated 2.8 million, or 63 percent, of new cases during the year. At the end of 2006, the number of adults and children living with HIV/AIDS worldwide was estimated at nearly 40 million people, of whom the proportions of males and females were almost equal.

Photo: people walk on a huge quilt the size of several football fields.

The AIDS quilt was displayed on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in 1987. Each panel honors a person who died of AIDS.

Health Issues

One of the most troubling issues that concerned Americans in the 1980s was AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome). Possibly beginning as early as the 1960s, AIDS spread rapidly throughout the world. Caused by a virus that destroys the immune system, AIDS weakens the body so that it is prone to infections and normally rare cancers.

AIDS is transmitted through bodily fluids, and most of the early victims of the disease were either homosexual men or intravenous drug users who shared needles. However, many people also contracted AIDS through contaminated blood transfusions, and children acquired it by being born to infected mothers. As the 1980s progressed, increasing numbers of heterosexuals began contracting AIDS. As the epidemic grew, so did concern over prevention and cure.

Abortion

Many Americans were concerned about abortion in the 1980s. Abortion had been legal in the United States since 1973, when the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that first-trimester abortions were protected by a woman’s right to privacy. Opponents of legalized abortion quickly organized under the pro-life banner. They argued that human life begins at conception and that no woman has the right to terminate a human life by her individual decision. Proponents of legalized abortion described themselves as pro-choice. They argued that reproductive choices were personal health-care matters and noted that many women had died from abortions performed by unskilled people in unsterile settings before the procedure was legalized.

In July 1989, the Supreme Court ruled in Webster v. Reproductive Health Care Services that states had the right to impose new restrictions on abortion. As a result, abortion restrictions varied from state to state.

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Drug Abuse

Battles over abortion rights sometimes competed for public attention with concerns about rising drug abuse. A few people argued that drugs should be legalized to reduce the power of gangs who made a living selling illegal drugs. Others called for treatment facilities to treat addictions. The Reagan administration launched a war on drugs and supported moves to prosecute users as well as dealers. First Lady Nancy Reagan toured the country with an antidrug campaign that admonished students to “Just say no!” to drugs.

“ Just say no!”
NANCY REAGAN, SLOGAN IN THE WAR ON DRUGS

Education

Education became another issue that stirred people’s concerns. In 1983, a federal commission issued a report on education titled A Nation at Risk. The report revealed that American students lagged behind students in most other industrialized nations. In addition, the report stated that 23 million Americans were unable to follow an instruction manual or fill out a job application form.

The commission’s findings touched off a debate about the quality of education. The commission recommended more homework, longer school days, and an extended school year. It also promoted increased pay and merit raises for teachers, as well as a greater emphasis on basic subjects such as English, math, science, social studies, and computer science.

Difficult Decisions: Sending Money into Space Photo: Astronauts in jumpsuits leave a building.

Under the Reagan administration, the government shifted the emphasis of the space program from scientific to military and commercial applications.

Beginning in 1981, NASA directed a series of space shuttle flights. The agency hoped to establish a space station and have the shuttle ferry workers and materials to it.

The explosion of the space shuttle Challenger in 1986 in which the crew was killed (crew shown above) caused a reexamination of ventures into space. Many people thought the money spent on space should be spent on social needs.

1. Should the federal government spend money on space exploration when so many American citizens require basic assistance?

2. If you were a legislator being asked to vote in favor of funding space exploration today, how would you vote? Why?

In April 1991, President Bush announced an education initiative, “America 2000.” He argued that choice was the salvation of American schools and recommended allowing parents to use public funds to send their children to schools of their choice—public, private, or religious. First Lady Barbara Bush toured the country to promote reading and writing skills.

The Urban Crisis

The crisis in education was closely connected to the crisis in the cities. Many undereducated students lived in cities such as Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. During the 1970s, the United States had become increasingly suburbanized as more and more white families responded to the lure of new homes, big lawns, shopping malls, and well-equipped schools outside the cities. Businesses moved, too, taking jobs and tax revenue with them.

Poor people and racial minorities were often left in cities burdened by high unemployment rates, crumbling infrastructures, inadequate funds for sanitation and health services, deteriorating schools, and growing social problems. By 1992, thousands of people were homeless, including many families with children. Cities were increasingly divided into wealthy neighborhoods and poverty-stricken areas.

One poverty-stricken area, south-central Los Angeles (which had erupted in violence in 1965 and 1968) erupted again in 1992. Four white police officers had been videotaped beating an African-American man named Rodney King, who had been fleeing from the officers in a speeding car. An all-white jury found the officers not guilty on charges of brutality. This verdict resulted in riots that lasted five days and caused the deaths of 53 people.

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The Equal Rights Struggle

Within this environment of dwindling resources and social struggle, women worked to achieve economic and social gains.

Political Losses and Gains

During the early 1980s, women’s rights activists worked to obtain ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). Although Congress had passed the amendment in 1972, it had not yet been ratified, or approved, by three-fourths of the states. Supporters of the amendment had until June 30, 1982, to gain ratification from 38 states. They obtained only 35 of the 38 ratifications they needed, and the ERA did not become law. With the failure of the Equal Rights Amendment, women’s organizations began to concentrate on electing women to public office. More women candidates began to run for office, and in 1984 the Democrats chose Geraldine Ferraro as their vice-presidential candidate. She had spoken of the necessity for women to continue working for equal opportunities in American society.

A PERSONAL VOICE

GERALDINE FERRARO

“ It is not just those of us who have reached the top who are fighting this daily battle. It is a fight in which all of us—rich and poor, career and home oriented, young and old—participate, simply because we are women.”
—quoted in Vital Speeches of the Day

Geraldine Ferraro speaks at the 1984 Democratic Convention.

In the November 1992 election, the number of women in the House of Representatives increased from 23 to 47, and the number of women senators tripled—from two to six. President Reagan also had earlier named two women to his cabinet: In 1983, Elizabeth Dole became secretary of transportation, and Margaret Heckler became secretary of health and human services. Nevertheless, women remained under-represented in political affairs.

Women’s and Men’s Average Yearly Earnings in Selected Careers, 1982

Career	Women	Men
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey, 1983–1989.
Accountant	$19,916	$25,272
Advertising Manager	19,396	32,292
Computer Operator	13,728	17,992
Cook	8,476	9,880
Engineer	26,052	31,460
Financial Manager	19,136	30,004
High School Teacher	18,980	21,424
Insurance Salesperson	15,236	22,152
Lawyer	30,264	34,008
Personnel Specialist	17,836	26,832
Physician	21,944	26,884
Police/Detective	15,548	20,072
Real Estate Salesperson	16,432	24,076
Registered Nurse	20,592	20,696
Retail Sales Worker	8,736	13,728
Social Worker	15,600	20,436
University Professor	20,748	26,832

Inequality

Several factors contributed to what some called the “feminization of poverty.” By 1992, 57.8 percent of the nation’s women were part of the work force, and a growing percentage of women worked as professionals and managers. However, in that year women earned only about 75 cents for every dollar men earned. Female college graduates earned only slightly more than male high-school graduates. Also, about 31 percent of female heads of households lived in poverty, and among African-American women, the poverty rate was even higher. New trends in divorce settlements aggravated the situation. Because of no-fault divorce, fewer women won alimony payments, and the courts rarely enforced the meager child support payments they awarded.

To close the income gap that left so many women poor, women’s organizations and unions proposed a system of pay equity. Jobs would

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be rated on the basis of the amount of education they required, the amount of physical strength needed to perform them, and the number of people that an employee supervised. Instead of relying on traditional pay scales, employers would establish pay rates that reflected each job’s requirements. By 1989, 20 states had begun adjusting government jobs to offer pay equity for jobs of comparable worth.

Women also fought for improvements in the workplace. Since many working women headed single-parent households or had children under the age of six, they pressed for family benefits. Government and corporate benefit packages began to include maternity leaves, flexible hours and workweeks, job sharing, and work-at-home arrangements. Some of these changes were launched by individual firms, while others required government intervention. Yet the Reagan administration sharply cut the budget for daycare and other similar programs.

The Fight for Rights Continues

Cuts in government programs and the backlash against civil rights initiatives, such as affirmative action, affected other groups as well.

African Americans

African Americans made striking political gains during the 1980s, even though their economic progress suffered. By the mid-1980s, African-American mayors governed many cities, including Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta, New Orleans, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. Hundreds of communities in both the North and the South had elected African Americans to serve as sheriffs, school board members, state legislators, and members of Congress. In 1990, L. Douglas Wilder of Virginia became the nation’s first African-American governor. The Reverend Jesse Jackson ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988.

Middle-class African Americans often held professional and managerial positions. But the poor faced an uncertain future of diminishing opportunities. In 1989, the newly conservative Supreme Court handed down a series of decisions that continued to change the nation’s course on civil rights. In the case of Richmond v. J. A. Croson Company, for example, the Court further limited the scope of affirmative action, policies that were designed to correct the effects of discrimination in the employment or education of minority groups or women. Other decisions by the Court outlawed contracts set aside for minority businesses. Sylvester Monroe, an African-American correspondent for Newsweek magazine, commented on the way in which some African Americans saw the backlash against affirmative action.

Photo: Jesse Jackson shakes hands with African-American children.

Jesse Jackson campaigns for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984.

A PERSONAL VOICE

SYLVESTER MONROE

“ There’s a finite pie and everybody wants his piece. Everybody is afraid of losing his piece of the pie. That’s what the fight against affirmative action is all about. People feel threatened. As for blacks, they’re passé. They’re not in any more. Nobody wants to talk about race.”
—quoted in The Great Divide

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Gains for Latinos

Latinos became the fastest growing minority during the 1980s. By 1990, they constituted almost nine percent of the population, and demographers estimated that Latinos would soon out-number African Americans as the nation’s largest minority group. About two out of three Latinos were Mexican Americans, who lived mostly in the Southwest. A Puerto Rican community thrived in the Northeast, and a Cuban population was concentrated in Florida. Like African Americans, Latinos gained political power during the 1980s. Toney Anaya became governor of New Mexico, while Robert Martinez became governor of Florida. In August 1988, President Reagan appointed Lauro Cavazos as secretary of education. In 1990, President Bush named Dr. Antonia Coello Novello to the post of surgeon general.

Dr. Antonia Coello Novello served as surgeon general under President George Bush.

Many Latinos supported bilingual education. They feared that abandoning Spanish would weaken their distinctive culture. In the words of Daniel Villanueva, a television executive, “We want to be here, but without losing our language and our culture. They are a richness, a treasure that we don’t care to lose.” The Bilingual Education Act of 1968 and the 1975 amendent to the Voting Rights Act enabled Spanish speakers to attend school and vote in their own language, but by the mid-1980s opposition to bilingualism was rising. Critics argued that it slowed the rate at which Spanish-speaking people entered mainstream American life. They also feared that the nation would become split between English speakers and Spanish speakers.

Native Americans Speak Out

Native Americans also became more self-conscious of their dignity and more demanding of their rights. In the 1970s, they organized schools to teach young Native Americans about their past. They also began to fight for the return of ancestral lands wrongfully taken from them.

During the 1980s, the Reagan administration slashed aid to Native Americans for health, education, and other services. Driven to find new sources of revenue, Native Americans campaigned for gambling casinos on their land as a way to bring in money. After the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Native Americans, many tribes opened Las Vegas-style casinos, which provided additional funding for the tribes that operated them. Nonetheless, the long-term problems faced by Native Americans have not been solved by gambling casinos, although the new wealth has helped to some extent.

Now & Then: Affirmative Action

Affirmative action refers to the effort to provide education and employment opportunities for historically disadvantaged groups, such as women and racial and ethnic minorities. The federal government first instituted affirmative action policies under the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Presidents Reagan and Bush actively opposed affirmative action and racial quotas. Today the future of affirmative action is uncertain. In 2001, President Bush expressed support for equal opportunity, but his first attorney general, John Ashcroft, was denounced by civil rights groups, in part because of his anti-affirmative action record. In 2003 the Supreme Court protected the University of Michigan’s race-conscious admissions policy. But in 2007, initiative campaigns to prohibit affirmative action were active in several states.

An Expanding Asian-American Population

Asian Americans were the second fastest growing minority in the United States during the 1980s. By 1982, the U.S. population included about 8.3 million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Asian Americans constituted 3.25 percent of the population.

Some have cited Asian Americans as an example of how minorities can succeed in the U.S. Yet while Asian Americans have low crime rates, low school dropout rates, and low divorce rates, Asian-American unemployment and poverty have been higher than the national figures.

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photo: people hold a banner reading 'We Too Have a Dream' adorned with pink triangles.

A gay rights march in Washington, D.C., October 1987

The Gay Rights Movement Advances

During the 1970s and 1980s, gay men and lesbians began to fight openly for civil rights. While the gay rights movement suffered a setback during the early 1980s in the face of conservative opposition and the AIDS crisis, by the late 1980s and early 1990s a new surge of gay activism was under way in the country. Direct action groups sprang up throughout the country, calling for an end to anti-gay discrimination. Although several speakers at the 1992 Republican National Convention condemned gay activism, these speakers were unable to slow the pace of change. By the year 1993, seven states and 110 communities had outlawed such discrimination.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome)

• pay equity

• L. Douglas Wilder

• Jesse Jackson

• Lauro Cavazos

• Antonia Coello Novello

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Use a chart like the one below to list some of the social problems of the Reagan and Bush years and how the government responded to them.

A blank chart is divided into two sectioons: Social Problems and Government Responses.

Choose one issue and write other responses the government might have made.

Critical Thinking

3. PREDICTING EFFECTS

How might improvements in the educational system help solve other social problems?

Think About:

• the impact education might have on health-related problems

• the impact that education might have on urban problems

• the impact that education might have on unemployment

4. COMPARING

Compare the political gains and losses experienced by various groups during the Reagan and Bush administrations.

5. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

Why might a widening gap between the richest and poorest citizens of a country be a cause for concern about that country’s future?

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Geography Spotlight: Sunbelt, Rustbelt, Ecotopia

In the 1970s, people on the move created new names for areas to which they moved. The West was sometimes called Ecotopia because of its varied scenery and ecological attractions. The South and Southwest were called the Sunbelt because of their warm climate. The North Central and Northeast regions were called the Rustbelt because many of their aging factories had been closed.

As a geographical term, region is used to designate an area with common features or characteristics that set it apart from its surroundings. For example, the Mississippi Valley is a large physical region; Warren Woods is a small physical region. The term is often used for groups of states that share an area and certain characteristics.

As people move from state to state, and from region to region, they gradually transform the balance of political and economic power in the nation. Each census in recent times has recorded how certain states have gained population and others have lost population. If the gains or losses are large enough, a state’s representation in the U.S. House of Representatives will increase or decrease commensurately.

A map tracks population changes in the U.S.

DESCRIPTION:

On a map, arrows show the direction of population movement between regions.

964,000 people moved from the Northeast to the South.
67,000 moved from the Northeast to the Midwest, and 311,000 moved from the Northeast to the West.
790,000 moved from the Midwest to the South, and 472,000 moved from the Midwest to the West.
75,000 people moved from the West to the South.

Americans on the Move, 1970s Source: Bernard L. Weinstein and Robert E. Firestine, Regional Growth and Decline in the United States (1978) A graph tracks popullation in four regions from 1982 to 1998.

A graph tracks popullation in four regions from 1982 to 1998.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows population movement gradually changing from negative to positive in the Midwest, while the Northeast steadily loses about 200,000 every two years. Population in the West stays about the same, while the South generally gains 200,000 to 400,000 every two years.

Midwest
- 1982: Loses 375,000
- 1984: Loses 300,000
- 1986: no gain or loss
- 1988: Loses 100,000
- 1990: Loses 100,000
- 1992: Loses 50,000
- 1994: Loses no gain or loss
- 1996: Gains 75,000
- 1998: Gains 125,000
Northeast
- 1982: Loses 200,000
- 1984: Loses 100,000
- 1986: Loses 225,000
- 1988: Loses 225,000
- 1990: Loses 300,000
- 1992: Loses 300,000
- 1994: Loses 350,000
- 1996: Loses 225,000
- 1998: Loses 200,000
West
- 1982: Gains 100,000
- 1984: Loses 100,000
- 1986: Gains 200,000
- 1988: Loses 100,000
- 1990: Gains 200,000
- 1992: Gains 150,000
- 1994: no gain or loss
- 1996: no gain or loss
- 1998: Loses 150,000
South
- 1982: Gains 450,000
- 1984: Gains 400,000
- 1986: no gain or loss
- 1988: Gains 450,000
- 1990: Gains 200,000
- 1992: Gains 200,000
- 1994: Gains 400,000
- 1996: Gains 175,000
- 1989: Gains 225,000

Regional Internal Migration, 1982–1998 Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Regional Exchanges

Between 1970 and 1975, the population center of the United States, which had generally moved westward for 17 decades, suddenly moved southward as well. The arrows show the net number of Americans who migrated and their patterns of migration in the early 1970s. The West gained 311,000 from the Northeast plus 472,000 from the North Central region, for a total of 783,000 people. However, it also lost 75,000 people to the South. During the 1980s and 1990s the southward and westward shift continued.

An aerial photo: houses line suburban streets and cul-de-sacs.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1052 and page 1053 in the print version. 1053 a map shows population gains and losses by state. The only states to lose population were Wyoming, South Dakota and North Dakota. North Dakota lost the most, 37,387 people.

a map shows population gains and losses by state. The only states to lose population were Wyoming, South Dakota and North Dakota. North Dakota lost the most, 37,387 people.

Americans on the Move, 1990–2000 Between 1990 and 2000, our country’s population grew by a record 32.7 million people to 281.4 million. For the first time in the 20th century, all 50 states gained people between census years. But because of internal migration (see graph on page 1052) and other factors, 10 states lost and 8 states gained seats in the 2000 Congressional apportionment. CALIFORNIA Despite a net loss through migration to other states of 2 million people in the 1990s, international immigrants and in-state births gave California the greatest net increase in population among the 50 states. NEVADA There has been such a large influx of people since 1945 that building houses for newcomers has become a major industry in Nevada. TEXAS During the 1990s, Texas eclipsed New York to become the nation’s second-most populous state behind California. Sixty percent of the Texas increase has been driven by Hispanic growth. WASHINGTON, D.C. While all 50 states gained in population during the decade, the population of Washington, D.C., decreased by nearly 6 percent. FLORIDA During the 1990s, Florida’s population increased 23.5 percent, making it the nation’s fourth-largest. With so many new residents, Florida gained two additional House seats, bringing its congressional delegation to 25. Source: U.S. Dept. of the Treasury Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. An aerial photo: houses line suburban streets and cul-de-sacs.

(below) Housing development near Danville, California, 1990 Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1052 and page 1053 in the print version. Thinking Critically

1. Analyzing Distributions Which states lost the most people between 1990 and 2000? Which states gained the most people?

2. Creating a Graph Choose one of the most populous states and then pose a historical question about population in that state. Create a graph or graphs that show various aspects of population for the state you have chosen. Be sure that the graph(s) help to answer the question you posed. Then display the graph(s) and the question in the classroom.

SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R28. 1054

Section 4: Foreign Policy After the Cold War

One American’s Story

Colin Powell did not start out in life with any special privileges. He was born in Harlem and raised in the Bronx, where he enjoyed street games and tolerated school. Then, while attending the City College of New York, he joined the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC). He got straight A’s in ROTC, and so he decided to make the army his career.

Powell served first in Vietnam and then in Korea and West Germany. He rose in rank to become a general; then President Reagan made him national security adviser. In this post, Powell noted that the Soviet Union was a factor in all the administration’s foreign policy decisions.

General Colin Powell

A PERSONAL VOICE

COLIN POWELL

“ Our choosing sides in conflicts around the world was almost always decided on the basis of East-West competition. The new Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, however, was turning the old Cold War formulas on their head. … Ronald Reagan … had the vision and flexibility, lacking in many knee-jerk Cold Warriors [participants in the Cold War between the U.S. and the USSR], to recognize that Gorbachev was a new man in a new age offering new opportunities for peace.”
—My American Journey

Though U.S. foreign policy in the early 1980s was marked by intense hostility toward the Soviet Union, drastic economic problems in the Soviet Union destroyed its ability to continue the Cold War standoff.

The Cold War Ends

In March of 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became the general secretary of the Communist Party in the Soviet Union. His rise to power marked the beginning of a new era in the Soviet Union.

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Gorbachev Initiates Reform

Gorbachev had inherited a host of problems in the Soviet Union. Many of them revolved around the Soviet economy, which was under a great amount of stress. Reagan added pressure by increasing U.S. defense spending. When the Soviets attempted to keep up, their economy was pushed to the brink of collapse.

A skilled diplomat and political leader, Gorbachev advocated a policy known as glasnost (Russian for “openness”). He allowed open criticism of the Soviet government and took steps toward freedom of the press. In 1985, he outlined his plans for perestroika, a restructuring of Soviet society. He called for less government control of the economy, the introduction of some private enterprise, and steps toward establishing a democratic government.

Gorbachev recognized that better relations with the United States would allow the Soviets to reduce their military spending and reform their economy. As a result, he initiated a series of arms-control meetings that led to the INF Treaty (Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty) signed on December 8, 1987. The treaty eliminated two classes of weapons systems in Europe and allowed each nation to make on-site inspections of the other’s military installations.

World Stage: Democratic Elections in Russia The cover of National Review magazine shows a shattered portrait of Lenin. A headline: The Coming Crack-Up of Communism.

The cover of National Review magazine shows a shattered portrait of Lenin. A headline: The Coming Crack-Up of Communism.

After the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, Boris Yeltsin continued as president of Russia. Yeltsin ended price controls and increased private business ownership. The Russian parliament opposed Yeltsin’s policies, even though a majority of voters supported them.

In December 1993, Russian voters installed a new parliament and approved a new constitution, parts of which resembled the U.S. Constitution. In 1996, Yeltsin won reelection as president of Russia. He was succeeded in 2000 by Vladimir Putin.

The Soviet Union Declines

Gorbachev’s introduction of democratic ideals led to a dramatic increase in nationalism on the part of the Soviet Union’s non-Russian republics. In December 1991, 14 non-Russian republics declared their independence from the Soviet Union. Muscled aside by Russian reformers who thought he was working too slowly toward democracy, Gorbachev resigned as Soviet president. After 74 years, the Soviet Union dissolved.

A loose federation known as the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) took the place of the Soviet Union. In February 1992, President George Bush and Russian president Boris Yeltsin issued a formal statement declaring an end to the Cold War that had plagued the two nations and divided the world since 1945. In January 1993, Yeltsin and Bush signed the START II pact, designed to cut both nations’ nuclear arsenals by two-thirds.

The Collapse of Communist Regimes

Before his resignation, Gorbachev had encouraged the people of East Germany and Eastern Europe to go their own ways. In 1988, when the Soviet Union was still intact, he reduced the number of Soviet troops in Eastern Europe and allowed non-Communist parties to organize in satellite nations, such as East Germany and Poland. He encouraged the satellite nations to move toward democracy.

During a speech given at the Berlin Wall in 1987, President Reagan challenged Gorbachev to back up his reforms with decisive action.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RONALD REAGAN

“ General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”
—speech, June 12, 1987

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photo: a man swins a sledgehammer at the graffiti-covered Berlin Wall.

A demonstrator pounds away on the Berlin Wall as East German border guards look on from above at the Brandenberg Gate, on November 11, 1989.

In October 1989, East Germans startled the world by repudiating their Communist government. On November 9, 1989, East Germany opened the Berlin Wall, allowing free passage between the two parts of the city for the first time in 28 years. East German border guards stood by and watched as Berliners pounded away with hammers and other tools at the despised wall. In early 1990, East Germany held its first free elections, and on October 3 of that year, the two German nations were united.

Other European nations also adopted democratic reforms. Czechoslovakia withdrew from the Soviet bloc. The Baltic states of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania declared their independence from the Soviet Union. Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania made successful transitions from communism.

Yugoslavia, however, collapsed. Four of its six republics seceded. Ethnic rivalries deteriorated into a brutal war among Muslims, Orthodox Serbs, and Roman Catholic Croats, who were dividing Yugoslavia, each claiming parts of it. Serbia backed Serb minorities that were stirring up civil unrest in Croatia and Bosnia.

Communism Continues in China

Even before perestroika unfolded in the Soviet Union, economic reform had begun in China. Early in the 1980s, the Chinese Communist government loosened its grip on business and eliminated some price controls. Students in China began to demand freedom of speech and a greater voice in government.

In April 1989, university students in China held marches that quickly grew into large demonstrations in Beijing’s Tiananmen (tyänPänPmDnP) Square and on the streets of other cities. In Tiananmen Square, Chinese students constructed a version of the Statue of Liberty to symbolize their struggle for democracy.

China’s premier, Li Peng, eventually ordered the military to crush the protesters. China’s armed forces stormed into Tiananmen Square, slaughtering unarmed students. The world’s democratic countries watched these events in horror on television. The collapse of the pro-democracy movement left the future in China uncertain. As one student leader said, “The government has won the battle here today. But they have lost the people’s hearts.”

photo: a man stands alone in front of a line of tanks.

A Chinese protester defies the tanks in Tiananmen Square in 1989. 1057 A map: Central America and the Caribbean, 1981-1992.

Central America and the Caribbean, 1981–1992
INTERACTIVE El Salvador 1981–1992 U.S. expands economic and military aid; sends advisers, including Green Berets, to help government combat leftist guerrillas. Guatemala Dec. 1990 U.S. suspends military aid because of regime’s civil rights abuses. Honduras 1982–1990 Military aid includes 100 military advisers. Country is a base for Nicaraguan Contras. Panama Dec. 20, 1989 In Operation Just Cause, 22,000 U.S. troops overthrow General Manuel Noriega. Grenada Oct. 25, 1983 In first large-scale invasion in region since 1965, 1,200 marines and 700 Army Rangers restore law and order after overthrow of Bishop government. Nicaragua 1982–1990 Opposed to military buildup of Sandinista government and its aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador, U.S. trains and aids Nicaraguan Contra rebels. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Central American and Caribbean Policy

Cold War considerations during the Reagan and Bush administrations continued to influence affairs in Central America and the Caribbean. In these places, the United States still opposed left-leaning and socialist governments in favor of governments friendly to the United States.

Nicaragua

The United States had had a presence in Nicaragua ever since 1912, when President Taft sent U.S. Marines to protect American investments there. The marines left in 1933, but only after helping the dictator Anastasio Somoza come to power.

The Somoza family ruled Nicaragua for 42 years. To keep control of its business empire, the family rigged elections and assassinated political rivals. Many people believed that only a revolution would end the Somoza dictatorship.

Between 1977 and 1979, Nicaragua was engulfed in a civil war between Somoza’s national guard and the Sandinistas, rebels who took their name from a rebel leader named Sandino who had been killed in 1934. When Sandinista rebels toppled the dictatorship of Somoza’s son in 1979, President Carter recognized the new regime and sent it $83 million in economic aid. The Soviet Union and Cuba sent aid as well.

In 1981, however, President Reagan charged that Nicaragua was a Soviet out-post that was exporting revolution to other Central American countries. Reagan cut all aid to the Sandinista government and threw his support to guerrilla forces known as the Contras because they were against the Sandinistas. By 1983, the Contra army had grown to nearly 10,000 men, and American officials from the CIA had stationed themselves to direct operations—without congressional approval. In response, Congress passed the Boland Amendment, banning military

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aid to the Contras for two years. However, Reagan’s administration still found ways to negotiate aid to the Contras.

On February 25, 1990, Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega held free elections, and Violeta de Chamorro, a Contra supporter, was elected the nation’s new president. Chamorro’s coalition was united only in opposition to the Sandinistas; it was too weak and divided to solve Nicaragua’s ongoing problems.

Grenada

On the tiny Caribbean island of Grenada, the United States used direct military force to accomplish its aims. After noting that the island was developing ties to Communist Cuba, President Reagan sent approximately 2,000 troops to the island in 1983. There they overthrew the pro-Cuban government, which was replaced by one friendlier to the United States. Eighteen American soldiers died in the attack, but Reagan declared that the invasion had been necessary to defend U.S. security.

Panama

Six years later, in 1989, President Bush sent more than 20,000 soldiers and marines into Panama to overthrow and arrest General Manuel Antonio Noriega on charges of drug trafficking. Noriega had been receiving money since 1960 from the CIA, but he was also involved in the international drug trade. After he was indicted by a Miami grand jury, Noriega was taken by force by the American military and flown to Miami to stand trial. In April 1992, Noriega was convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison. Many Latin American governments deplored the “Yankee imperialism” of the action. However, many Americans—and Panamanians—were pleased by the removal of a military dictator who supported drug smuggling.

Middle East Trouble Spots

Results favorable to U.S. interests were more difficult to obtain in the Middle East. Negotiating conflicts between ever-shifting governments drew the United States into scandal and its first major war since Vietnam.

The Iran-Contra Scandal

In 1983, terrorist groups loyal to Iran took a number of Americans hostage in Lebanon. Reagan denounced Iran and urged U.S. allies not to sell arms to Iran for its war against Iraq. In 1985, he declared that “America will never make concessions to terrorists.” Therefore, Americans were shocked to learn in 1986 that President Reagan had approved the sale of arms to Iran. In exchange for those sales, Iran promised to win the release of seven American hostages held in Lebanon by pro-Iranian terrorists. What’s more, members of Reagan’s staff sent part of the

President Reagan’s message to television audiences about selling arms to Iran differed greatly from what was going on behind the scenes. a 1986 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by the Herb Block Foundation 1059

profits from those illegal arms sales to the Contras in Nicaragua—in direct violation of the Boland Amendment. President Reagan held a press conference to explain what had happened.

A PERSONAL VOICE

RONALD REAGAN

“ I am deeply troubled that the implementation of a policy aimed at resolving a truly tragic situation in the Middle East has resulted in such controversy. As I’ve stated previously, I believe our policy goals toward Iran were well founded.”
—presidential press conference, November 25, 1986

In the summer of 1987, special committees of both houses of Congress conducted a dramatic inquiry into the Iran-Contra affair during a month of joint televised hearings. Among those testifying was Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, a member of the National Security Council staff who played a key role in providing aid to the Contras. North appeared in military uniform adorned with service ribbons and badges. In defending his actions, North talked about patriotism and love of country. He asserted that he thought he was carrying out the president’s wishes and that the end of helping the Contras justified almost any means.

After a congressional investigation, Special Prosecutor Lawrence E. Walsh, early in 1988, indicted various members of the Reagan administration who were involved in the scandal. Oliver North was found guilty of aiding the cover-up. He was fined and sentenced to perform community service. (His conviction was later overturned because he testified under a grant of limited immunity.). On Christmas Eve of 1992, President Bush pardoned a number of Reagan officials.

The Persian Gulf War

Regardless of the scandal surrounding the Iran-Contra affair, conflict with Iraq (which was Iran’s long-standing enemy) and its leader, Saddam Hussein, soon eclipsed U.S. problems with Iran. During the 1980s, Iran and Iraq had fought a prolonged war, and Hussein found himself with enormous war debts to pay. Several times, Hussein had claimed that the oil-rich nation of Kuwait was really part of Iraq. On August 2, 1990, Iraqi troops invaded Kuwait. The Iraqi invaders looted Kuwait; then they headed toward Saudi Arabia and

Point

“The United States must occasionally intervene militarily in regional conflicts.”

Proponents of U.S. military intervention abroad agreed with General Norman Schwarzkopf that “as the only remaining superpower, we have an awesome responsibility … to the rest of the world.”

“The United States must take the lead in promoting democracy,” urged Morton H. Halperin, former director of the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union). “To say ‘Let the UN do it’ is a cop-out,” stated adviser Robert G. Neumann.

Political scientist Jane Sharp expressed a similar sentiment. She asked, “Can any nation that has taken no action [in Bosnia] to stop the Serbian practice of ethnic cleansing continue to call itself civilized?”

Counterpoint

“The United States should not intervene militarily in regional conflicts.”

A foreign-policy analyst at the Cato Institute, Barbara Conry, stated that “intervention in regional wars is a distraction and a drain on resources.” What’s more, she argued, “it does not work.” Recalling the presence of American troops in Lebanon, Conry argued that intervention not only jeopardized American soldiers, it often obstructed what it sought to achieve.

“The internal freedom of a political community can be achieved only by members of that community,” agreed Professor Stephen R. Shalom. He added that “using [military action] encourages quick fix solutions that ignore the underlying sources of conflict.”

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The Persian Gulf War, 1990–1991
INTERACTIVE Jan. 16, 1991 US/UN air attacks begin against Iraq. Aug. 2, 1990 Iraq invades Kuwait. Feb. 23, 1991 UN coalition launches ground war. Production note: captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in the label contained in this image. Photo: women soldiers wear camouflage uniforms.

Photo: women soldiers wear camouflage uniforms.

Women served along with men in the military during the Gulf War (right). Massive oil fires started by the Iraqis burned in Kuwait (below). 1061

its oil fields. If Iraq conquered Saudi Arabia as well as Kuwait, it would control one-half of the world’s known oil reserves, which would severely threaten U.S. oil supplies.

For several months, President Bush and Secretary of State James Baker organized an international coalition against Iraqi aggression. With the support of Congress and the UN, President Bush launched Operation Desert Storm to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi control. On January 16, 1991, the United States and its allies staged a massive air assault against Iraq. On February 23, they launched a successful ground offensive from Saudi Arabia. On February 28, 1991, President Bush announced a cease-fire. Operation Desert Storm was over. Kuwait was liberated.

Millions of Americans turned out for the victory parades that greeted returning soldiers. After the debacle in Vietnam, they were thrilled the war was over, with fewer than 400 casualties among UN coalition forces. (However, there were subsequent reports that Gulf veterans were suffering from disabilities caused by chemicals used in the war.) By contrast, Iraq had suffered an estimated 100,000 military and civilian deaths. During the embargo that followed, many Iraqi children died from outbreaks of cholera, typhoid, enteritis, and other diseases.

Bush’s Domestic Policies

Despite his great achievement in the Persian Gulf War, President Bush was not as successful on the domestic front. He was hurt by rising deficits and a recession that began in 1990 and lasted through most of 1992. Bush was forced to raise taxes despite his campaign pledge. His approval rating had dropped to 49 percent by 1992. The weak economy and the tax hike doomed Bush’s reelection campaign, and 12 years of Republican leadership came to an end.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its meaning.

• Mikhail Gorbachev

• glasnost

• perestroika

• INF Treaty

• Tiananmen Square

• Sandinistas

• Contras

• Operation Desert Storm

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Use a chart like the one below to explain U.S. foreign policy toward world regions.

U.S. Foreign Policy
Europe
Central America and Caribbean
Middle East

Now write a paragraph in which you describe a trouble spot in one of these regions.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING CAUSES

What factors caused the end of the Cold War?

Think About:

• events in the Soviet Union

• events in Germany and Eastern Europe

• how U.S. leaders responded to those events

4. FORMING GENERALIZATIONS

What factors do you think determined whether or not the United States intervened militarily in other nations?

5. HYPOTHESIZING

Is it possible for an authoritarian government to make economic reforms without also making political reforms? Support your answer with details from the text.

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Chapter 33: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

1. entitlement program

2. affirmative action

3. Moral Majority

4. Ronald Reagan

5. supply-side economics

6. Geraldine Ferraro

7. AIDS

8. Mikhail Gorbachev

9. Contras

10. Operation Desert Storm

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

A Conservative Movement Emerges (pages 1036–1039)

1. What caused the conservative revolution of the early 1980s?

2. What factors led to Ronald Reagan’s victory in 1980?

Conservative Policies Under Reagan and Bush (pages 1040–1044)

3. What principles formed the basis of “Reaganomics”?

4. What is deregulation, and how did it affect certain industries in the 1980s?

Social Concerns in the 1980s (pages 1045–1051)

5. What progress and obstacles did different minority groups experience in the 1980s?

6. What were some gains that women achieved in the 1980s?

Foreign Policy After the Cold War (pages 1054–1061)

7. What caused the downfall of the Soviet Union and the founding of the Commonwealth of Independent States?

8. Summarize the U.S. response to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait.

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Choose two events from each of the sections of the chapter and place them in chronological order on a timeline like the one below.

A timeline starts with 'Ronald Reagan becomes president,' then has two blank spaces, then ends with 'George Bush is defeated.'

2. EVALUATING Review the goals of the conservative movement and the actions of the government under Reagan and Bush. Evaluate how well the goals had been achieved by the end of Bush’s term.

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look at the map on page 1057. Between 1982 and 1992, the United States intervened in Latin America many times. How might the presence of a Communist government on the island of Cuba have influenced U.S. actions?

1063 Standardized Test Practice

Use the passage and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 1.

“ That system [of republican government] has never failed us, but, for a time, we failed the system. We asked things of government that government was not equipped to give. We yielded authority to the national government that properly belonged to states or to local governments or to the people themselves. We allowed taxes and inflation to rob us of our earnings and savings and watched the great industrial machine that had made us the most productive people on Earth slow down and the number of unemployed increase.”
—Ronald Reagan, Second Inaugural Address, 1985

1. The passage suggests that President Ronald Reagan supported which point of view?

A There should be an end to all social welfare programs.

B The role of the federal government should be reduced.

C The role of the federal government should be increased.

D The federal government should raise taxes.

2. Which of the following events signaled the end of the Cold War?

F Operation Desert Storm

G Iran-Contra Scandal

H collapse of the Soviet Union

J protests at Tiananmen Square

Use the graph and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer question 3.

a graph charts U.S. debt from 1960 to 1990.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows debt rising steadily until 1980, then rapidly from 1980 to 1990.

1960, $200 billion
1965, $300 billion
1970, $400 billion
1975, $600 billion
1980, $1 trilion
1985, $2 trillion
1990, $3.2 trillion

Gross Federal Debt Source: U.S. Dept. of the Treasury

3. The graph shows that the gross federal debt—

A stayed the same during the Reagan and Bush years.

B greatly increased during the Reagan and Bush years.

C greatly decreased during the Reagan and Bush years.

D did not exist during the Reagan and Bush years.

4. Which of the following was not a goal of the conservative movement of the 1980s?

F strengthen the national defense

G reduce government regulations

H promote family values and patriotic ideals

J increase taxes

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 1035:

What campaign slogan will you create?

As a speechwriter for Ronald Reagan in 1980, write an effective speech that contains your campaign slogan and presents reasons why people should vote for Reagan. Present your speech to the class.

2. internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Chapter Assessment to find out more about Saddam Hussein’s rise to power in Iraq. Write a short (3 to 5 paragraphs) biography. What tactics did he use to become dictator? Why is he often compared to Germany’s Adolf Hitler? How do his policies affect the people of Iraq? Describe his present relationship with the United States.

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Chapter 34: The United States in Today’ World

People in shorts and sneakers gather under a banner that reads 'Start: the Walk for Hunger! A title: the United State in Today's World.'

Participants at the Walk For Hunger, held annually in Massachusetts, help to support local and emergency food programs. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1064 and page 1065 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1992 to 2005 in both the U.S. and the world

A timeline of historical events from 1992 to 2005 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1992-2005.

1992, USA: Twenty-seventh Amendment prohibits midterm congressional pay raises.
1992, USA: William Jefferson Clinton is elected president.
1993, the World: Russia and United States sign START-II treaty reducing warheads and ICBMs.
1994, USA: Republicans gain control of both houses of Congress.
1994, the World: In South Africa's first all-race election, Nelson Mandela is elected president.
1995, USA: 'Million Man March' held in Washington, D.C.
1995, the World: Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated.
1996, USA: President Clinton is reelected.
1997, the World: Scottish scientist clones 'Dolly' the sheep.
1997, USA: Madeleine Albright is the first woman to become secretary of state.
1998, USA: President Clinton is impeached.
1998, the World: Northern Ireland, the Irish Republic, and the United Kingdom sign peace agreements.
2000, USA: George W. Bush is elected 43rd president.
2001, USA: On September 11, terrorists attack New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon with hijacked jets.
2001, the World: Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic is brought before the U.N. war crimes tribunal.
2005, USA: Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans.
2003, the World: U.S. forces invade Iraq.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1064 and page 1065 in the print version. 1065 People in shorts and sneakers gather under a banner that reads 'Start: the Walk for Hunger! A title: the United State in Today's World.'

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1064 and page 1065 in the print version. A timeline of historical events from 1992 to 2005 in both the U.S. and the world

DESCRIPTION:

Timeline of events 1992-2005.

1992, USA: Twenty-seventh Amendment prohibits midterm congressional pay raises.
1992, USA: William Jefferson Clinton is elected president.
1993, the World: Russia and United States sign START-II treaty reducing warheads and ICBMs.
1994, USA: Republicans gain control of both houses of Congress.
1994, the World: In South Africa's first all-race election, Nelson Mandela is elected president.
1995, USA: 'Million Man March' held in Washington, D.C.
1995, the World: Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated.
1996, USA: President Clinton is reelected.
1997, the World: Scottish scientist clones 'Dolly' the sheep.
1997, USA: Madeleine Albright is the first woman to become secretary of state.
1998, USA: President Clinton is impeached.
1998, the World: Northern Ireland, the Irish Republic, and the United Kingdom sign peace agreements.
2000, USA: George W. Bush is elected 43rd president.
2001, USA: On September 11, terrorists attack New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon with hijacked jets.
2001, the World: Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic is brought before the U.N. war crimes tribunal.
2005, USA: Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans.
2003, the World: U.S. forces invade Iraq.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1064 and page 1065 in the print version. Interact with History

You are a high school senior who is active in student government and community service. You have been chosen from among thousands of students nationwide to address an international youth symposium on global issues and reforms. As a U.S. delegate to the event, you address the crowd, confi-dent that young people will be able to change the future.

What are the most important issues that affect the world today?

Examine the Issues

• What makes nations increasingly dependent on one another?

• How does technology affect society worldwide?

• What are the ways to foster cooperation among nations?

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Section 1: The 1990s and the New Millennium

One American’s Story

On January 20, 1993, poet Maya Angelou was honored as the first woman and the first African American to read her work at a presidential inauguration. Bill Clinton asked Angelou to compose and deliver a poem. Angelou expressed the optimism of the day, recalling the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr., as she recited her poem “On the Pulse of Morning.”

A PERSONAL VOICE

MAYA ANGELOU

“ Lift up your faces, you have a piercing need For this bright morning dawning for you. History, despite its wrenching pain, Cannot be unlived, but if faced With courage, need not be lived again.

Lift up your eyes Upon this day breaking for you. Give birth again To the dream.”
—“On the Pulse of Morning”

Maya Angelou

Moments later, William Jefferson Clinton was inaugurated as the 42nd president of the United States. Clinton entered the presidency at a time when America was at a turning point. A severe economic recession had made many Americans uneasy about the future. They looked to Clinton to lead a government that would be more responsive to the people.

Clinton Wins the Presidency

Governor William Jefferson Clinton of Arkansas became the first member of the baby-boom generation to win the presidency. He captured the White House, at the age of 46, by vowing to strengthen the nation’s weak economy and to lead the Democratic Party in a more moderate direction.

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The Election Of 1992

After the U.S. victory in the Persian Gulf War in 1991, Republican president George Bush’s popularity had climbed to an 89 percent approval rating. Shortly after the war ended, however, the nation found itself in the grips of a recession. In early 1992, Bush’s approval rating nose-dived to 40 percent. In his run for reelection, President Bush could not convince the public that he had a clear strategy for ending the recession and creating jobs.

Throughout the presidential race, Bill Clinton campaigned as the candidate to lead the nation out of its economic crisis. So did a third-party candidate—Texas billion-aire H. Ross Perot. Perot targeted the soaring federal budget deficit as the nation’s number one problem. A budget deficit occurs when the federal government borrows money to meet all its spending commitments. “It’s time,” Perot declared in his usual blunt style, “to take out the trash and clean up the barn.”

Election Day results, however, demonstrated that Clinton’s center-of-the-road strategy had the widest appeal. Though Clinton won, he captured only 43 percent of the popular vote. Bush received 38 percent, while Perot managed an impressive 19 percent.

A “New” Democrat

Bill Clinton won the presidency in part by promising to move away from traditional Democratic policies. He also emphasized the need to move people off welfare and called for growth in private business as a means to economic progress.

In office, Clinton worked to move the Democratic Party toward the political center by embracing both liberal and conservative programs. According to an ally, Clinton hoped “to modernize liberalism so it could sell again.” By doing so, he sought to create a “new” and more inclusive Democratic Party.

Key Player: William Jefferson Clinton, 1946– The presidential seal of the U.S. adorns a photo of Bill Clinton.

Born in Hope, Arkansas, at the beginning of the baby boom, Bill Clinton had wanted to be president most of his life. As a college student in the 1960s, he had opposed the Vietnam War and pulled strings to avoid being drafted.

After studying in England as a Rhodes scholar and graduating from Yale Law School, Clinton returned to Arkansas. He taught at the University of Arkansas School of Law and dived into politics, becoming governor in 1979 at the age of thirty-two.

Moderate Reform and Economic Boom

President Clinton demonstated his willingness to pursue both liberal and conservative policies on health care, the budget deficit, crime, and welfare.

Health Care Reform

Clinton had pledged to create a plan to guarantee affordable health care for all Americans, especially for the millions of Americans who lacked medical insurance. Once in office, Clinton appointed First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, a skilled lawyer and child-welfare advocate, to head the team creating the plan. The president presented the health care reform bill to Congress in September 1993.

Congress debated the plan for a year. Intense lobbying and Republican attacks on the plan for promoting “big government” sealed its doom. In the end, Congress never even voted on the bill.

Hillary Rodham Clinton explains the health care reform plan to a Senate subcommittee. 1068

Balanced Budget And An Economic Boom

President Clinton was more successful in his efforts to reduce the federal budget deficit. Clinton and the Republican-controlled Congress agreed in 1997 on legislation to balance the federal budget by the year 2002. The bill cut spending by billions of dollars, lowered taxes to win Republican support, and included programs aimed at helping children and improving health care.

A year later, Clinton announced that—for the first time in nearly 30 years—the federal budget had a surplus. That is, the government took in more than it spent. Surpluses were used, in part, to pay down the nation’s debt, which had soared to around $5.5 trillion.

Perhaps the most effective tool in generating a surplus was the booming economy. About the time Clinton took office, the economy rebounded. Unemployment fell and the stock market soared to new heights. As a result, the government’s tax revenues rose, and fewer people received public aid. These factors helped slash the federal debt.

Reforming Welfare

Clinton and the congressional Republicans cooperated to reform the welfare system. In 1996, a bill was proposed to place limits on how long people could receive benefits. It also put an end to a 61-year federal guarantee of welfare, and instead gave states “block grants”—set amounts of federal money they could spend on welfare or for other social concerns.

Although liberal Democrats feared the effects of eliminating the federal safety net for the poor, the president backed the bill. Over the next few years, states moved millions of people from welfare to jobs. Because of the strong economy, the transition was more successful than some had been predicting.

photo: a bloodied woman holds a boy with his arm in a sling.

Debris litters the remains of the damaged, high-rise Murrah building.

Injured victims after the April 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Crime and Terrorism

The improved economy—along with enlargement of police forces—combined to lower crime rates in the 1990s. However, fears were raised among Americans by acts of violence and terrorism around the country.

A shocking crime occurred April 1999 when two students at Columbine High School, in Colorado, killed 12 students and a teacher and wounded 23 others, and then shot themselves. Americans were appalled at copycat crimes that began to occur. Some called for tougher gun control, while others argued that exposure to violent imagery should be curtailed. Violence had pervaded television news throughout the decade.

In 1993, terrorists had exploded bombs in the World Trade Center in New York City. This was closely followed by a 1995 blast that destroyed a nine-story federal office building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 children, women, and men. Timothy McVeigh, an American veteran of the Gulf War, was found guilty in the Oklahoma bombing. He was executed in 2001, the first use of the federal death penalty in 38 years. Although American embassies and military targets abroad were subject to sporadic and deadly terrorist attacks during the decade, the U.S. was in no way prepared for a devastating attack that took place on its own soil on the morning of September 11, 2001.

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In a coordinated effort, two hijacked commercial jets struck the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, one crashing just minutes after the other. The jets exploded on impact and subsequently leveled the tallest buildings of New York’s skyline, the symbolic center of American finance. About an hour later, a third plane tore into the Pentagon building, the U.S. military headquarters outside Washington, D.C. Air travel ceased almost immediately; across the nation planes in the air were ordered to land. During the evacuation of the White House and the New York financial district, a fourth hijacked plane crashed near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

About 3,000 people were killed in the attacks. These included all the passengers on all four planes, workers and visitors in the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and hundreds of rescue workers. (See the first issue in “Issues for the 21st Century,” on page 1100.)

photo: flames and smoke spew from the World Trade Center towers.

A view across the Brooklyn Bridge shows the devastating impact of two jets used by terrorists as missiles to destroy the World Trade Center.

New Foreign Policy Challenges

Conflicts and confused alliances grew in the wake of the Cold War. The question of U.S. intervention overseas, and the globalization of the economy presented the United States with a host of new challenges.

Relations With Former Cold War Foes

Maintaining strong relations with Russia and China became major goals for the Clinton administration. Throughout the 1990s, the U.S. and Russia cooperated on economic and arms-control issues. Still, Russia criticized U.S. intervention in Yugoslavia, where a bloody civil war raged. Meanwhile, U.S. officials protested against Russian attacks on rebels in the Russian region of Chechnya.

U.S. relations with China were strained as well. Clinton had stressed that he would lean on China to grant its citizens more democratic rights. As president, however, he put greater emphasis on increasing trade with China. Despite concerns that Chinese spies had stolen U.S. defense secrets, Clinton supported a bill—passed in 2000—granting China permanent trade rights.

Troops Abroad

With the Cold War over, the United States turned more of its attention to regional conflicts. President Clinton proved willing to use troops to end conflicts overseas. In 1991, military leaders in Haiti forced the elected president from office. Thousands of refugees fled the military leaders’ harsh rule. In 1994, President Clinton dispatched American troops to Haiti, and the military rulers were forced to step down.

Other interventions occurred in Yugoslavia. In 1991, Yugoslavia broke apart into five nations. In Bosnia, one of the new states, some Serb militias under Slobodan Milosevic (mee•LOH•sheh•vihch) began “ethnic cleansing,” killing or expelling from their homes people of certain ethnic groups. In 1995, the United States helped negotiate peace in Bosnia. Clinton sent U.S. troops to join NATO troops to help ensure the deal. About three years later, Serb forces attacked ethnic Albanians in the Serb province of Kosovo. The U.S. and its NATO allies launched air strikes against Serbian targets in 1999, forcing the Serbs to back down. American troops followed up by participating in an international

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peace-keeping force. In both Bosnia and Kosovo, the administration promised early withdrawal. However, the U.S. troops stayed longer than had been intended, drawing criticism of Clinton’s policies.

Trade And The Global Economy

Seeing flourishing trade as essential to U.S. prosperity and to world economic and political stability, President Clinton championed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This legislation would bring Mexico into the free-trade zone that the United States and Canada already had formed. Supporters said NAFTA would strengthen all three economies and create more American jobs. Opponents insisted that NAFTA would transfer American jobs to Mexico, where wages were lower, and harm the environment because of Mexico’s weaker antipollution laws. Congress rejected these arguments, and the treaty was ratified by all three countries’ legislatures in 1993. Once the treaty took effect, on January 1, 1994, trade with Mexico increased.

Critics of free trade and the global economy remained vocal, however. In late 1999, the World Trade Organization (WTO), an organization that promotes trade and economic development, met in Seattle. Demonstrators protested that the WTO made decisions with little public input and that these decisions harmed poorer countries, the environment, and American manufacturing workers.

Subsequent anti-globalization protests have been held worldwide. Violent clashes erupted between police and demonstrators at the April 2001 third Summit of the Americas, held in Quebec City, Canada. Nevertheless, the activists failed to halt plans to launch, by 2006, the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)—an enlarged version of NAFTA covering the 34 countries in the Western Hemisphere, except Cuba.

photo: protestors wave a Mexican flag and hold signs. One sign reads 'Salinas don't steal my job.'

American workers protest against the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Partisan Politics and Impeachment

While Clinton and Congress worked together on deficit reduction and NAFTA, relations in Washington became increasingly partisan. In the midst of political wrangling, a scandal rocked the White House, and Bill Clinton became the second president in U.S. history to be impeached.

Republicans Take Control Of Congress

In mid-1994, after the failure of President Clinton’s health care plan and recurring questions regarding his leadership, Republican congressman Newt Gingrich began to turn voters’ dissatisfaction with Clinton into support for Republicans. He drafted a document called the Contract with America—ten items Republicans promised to enact if they won control of Congress. They included congressional term limits, a balanced-budget amendment, tax cuts, tougher crime laws, and welfare reform.

In the November 1994 election, the Republicans handed the Democrats a humiliating defeat. Voters gave Republicans control of both houses of Congress for the first time since 1954. Chosen as the new Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich was jubilant.

A PERSONAL VOICE

NEWT GINGRICH

“ I will never forget mounting the rostrum … for the first time…. The whole scene gave me a wonderful sense of the romance of America and the magic by which Americans share power and accept changes in government.”
—To Renew America

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President Clinton and the Republican-controlled Congress clashed. Clinton opposed Republican budgets that slowed entitlements—federal programs which provide for basic human needs—such as Social Security and Medicaid. Clinton and Congress refused to compromise, and the Republicans refused to pass the larger budgets he wanted. As a result, the federal government shut down for almost a week in November 1995, and again for several weeks in the next two months.

The 1996 Reelection

The budget standoff helped Clinton, as did the strong economy and passage of the welfare reform law of 1996, which suggested an improved working relationship with Congress. As a result, voters reelected Clinton in November 1996. With 49 percent of the popular vote, he outpolled the Republican nominee, U.S. Senator Bob Dole, and the Reform Party candidate, H. Ross Perot. Still, the Republicans maintained control of the House and Senate. Both President Clinton and Republican leaders pledged to work more cooperatively. Soon however, the president faced his most severe problems yet.

Clinton Impeached

President Clinton was accused of improperly using money from a land deal with the Whitewater Development Company to fund his 1984 gubernatorial reelection campaign. In addition, Clinton allegedly had lied under oath about having an improper relationship with a young White House intern. In 1998, Clinton admitted that he had had an improper relationship with the young woman, but he denied lying about the incident under oath or attempting to obstruct the investigation.

In December 1998, the House of Representatives approved two articles of impeachment, charging the president with perjury and obstruction of justice. Clinton became only the second president—and the first in 130 years—to face a trial in the Senate. At the trial a month later, the Senate fell short of the 67 votes—a two-thirds majority—required to convict him. Clinton remained in office and apologized for his actions.

photo: protesters hold signs that read 'Enough is Enough' 'No Impeachment' and 'We are all for Clinton.'

These Americans protested the impeachment. Many Democrats claimed that prosecuting President Clinton was “pure partisanship.”

The Race for the White House

In the 2000 presidential race, the Democrats chose Vice President Al Gore to succeed Bill Clinton. The Republicans nominated George W. Bush, governor of Texas and the son of the former president. Ralph Nader, a long-time consumer advocate, ran for the Green Party, which championed environmental causes and promoted an overall liberal agenda. On the eve of the election, polls showed that the race would be tight. In fact, the election proved one of the closest in U.S. history. Determining a winner would take over a month.

Election Night Confusion

As election night unfolded, Al Gore appeared to take the lead. The television networks projected that he would win Florida, Pennsylvania, and Michigan—states rich in electoral votes that would ultimately decide the winner of the race. Then, in a stunning turn of events, the TV networks recanted their original projection about Gore’s victory in Florida and proclaimed the state “too close to call.”

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As midnight passed, it became clear that whoever won Florida would gain the 270 electoral votes needed to win the election. About 2 A.M., the networks predicted Bush the winner of Florida—and thus the presidency. However, as the final votes in Florida rolled in, Bush’s lead shrank considerably and the state again became too close to call. By the next day, Al Gore had won the popular vote by more than 500,000 votes out of 105 million cast across the nation. Meanwhile, George Bush’s razor-thin victory in Florida triggered an automatic recount.

Dispute Rages In Florida

In the weeks following the election, lawyers and spokespersons went to Florida to try to secure victory. The recount of the state’s ballots gave Bush a win by just over 500 votes—but the battle for the presidency did not end there. The Gore campaign requested manual recounts in four mostly Democratic counties. Bush representatives opposed the manual recounts. James A. Baker III, former secretary of state and leader of the Bush team in Florida, argued that such recounts would raise the possibility of political mischief.

More than a month after the votes were cast, Al Gore concedes the 2000 presidential election.

The Battle Moves To The Courts

As the manual recounting began on November 12, the Republicans sued to stop the recounts; a month-long court fight followed. The battle ultimately reached the Supreme Court. On December 12, the court voted 5 to 4 to stop the recounts, thus awarding the Florida electoral votes and the presidency to Bush. The justices argued that manual recounts lacked uniform standards and, therefore, violated equal protection for voters.

Key Player: George W. Bush, 1946– The U.S. presidential seal adorns a photo of George W. Bush.

George W. Bush was born into a family steeped in politics. His father, George H. W. Bush, was the 41st president of the United States (1989–1993). However, George W. Bush did not immediately follow in his father’s political footsteps. In 1975, he started an oil company in Midland, Texas. For a time, he also was part owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team.

Eventually, Bush was elected governor of Texas in 1994. Six years later, he became the 43rd president of the United States. He won reelection in 2004.

The Bush Administration

After the protests and legal actions subsided, George W. Bush was inaugurated as the 43rd president of the United States on January 20, 2001. Bush inherited several challenges, including a weakening national economy and an energy problem in California.

During his first months as president, Bush began to advance his political agenda. He declared plans to reform the federal role in education and to privatize Social Security. Bush also proposed a $1.35 trillion tax cut, which became law in June 2001.

Antiterrorist Measures

The political landscape changed dramatically after the September 11 terrorist attacks. The Bush administration, now with the overwhelming support of Congress and the American people, shifted its energy and attention to combating terrorism.

In October 2001, Bush signed an antiterrorism bill into law. The law allowed the government to detain foreigners suspected of terrorism for seven days without charging them with a crime. By the following month, Bush had created the Department of Homeland Security, a government body set up to coordinate national efforts to combat terrorism. In addition, the federal government increased its involvement in aviation security.

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The Bush Administration also began waging a war against terrorism. In October 2001, coalition forces led by the United States began bombing Afghanistan. The Afghan government was harboring Osama bin Laden and his alQaeda terrorist network believed responsible for the September 11 attacks. In 2002, the coalition successfully broke up the al-Qaeda network in Afghanistan. Osama bin Laden, however, remained at large. (See the first issue in “Issues for the 21st Century,” on page 1100.) Nonetheless, the Bush administration gained widespread public approval for the decisive steps taken.

Bush also scored a major success when direct elections were held for the first time in Afghanistan in October 2004. The Afghan people elected interim president Hamid Karzai as their first democratically elected president. Although Afghanistan still faced many problems, the elections were considered a positive move toward resolving them.

War Against Iraq

In 2003, Bush expanded the war on terrorism to Iraq. Following the Persian Gulf War, Iraq had agreed to UN demands to stop the production of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons. (However, throughout the 1990s, the leader of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, cooperated only partly with UN arms inspectors and eventually barred them from entering his country.)

Hamid Karzai is victorious in Afghanistan’s first direct presidential election.

After the September 11 attacks, Bush alleged that Hussein was supplying terrorists such as al-Qaeda with weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and called for renewed arms inspections in Iraq. The inspectors determined that Iraq had not resumed its WMD programs; but Hussein had again not cooperated fully with the inspection process. The United States and Great Britain then ended diplomacy with Iraq and invaded in March 2003. Within a month, Iraq’s forces were defeated and Hussein had gone into hiding. U.S. forces then began an intensive search for WMD in Iraq. No trace of chemical or biological weaponry were found. In December 2003, U.S. forces found and captured Saddam Hussein. The former dictator was handed over to the Iraqis to stand trial for crimes against humanity. (See the second issue in “Issues for the 21st Century,” on page 1104.) At his trial, Hussein was found guilty, and on December 30, 2006, the former dictator was hanged.

Domestic Agenda

Meanwhile, on the home front, President Bush concentrated on education and the economy. He signed into law an education reform plan entitled No Child Left Behind. This plan called for more accountability by states for students’ success, mandatory achievement testing, and more school options available for parents.

The economy posed a greater challenge, as corporate scandals, such as those related to such highly successful companies as Enron and WorldCom, rocked the nation. Congress responded to these corporate scandals by passing the SarbanesOxley Act. This act established a regulatory board to oversee the accounting industry and its involvement with corporations. The scandals caused investors to lose faith in corporations, which had a negative effect on an already sluggish U.S. economy.

In 2003, Congress passed and Bush signed into law a $350 billion tax cut. Bush claimed that the tax cut would help the sagging economy and create jobs. Democrats opposed the cuts, saying they would mostly benefit the rich. The Democrats were overruled, however, because the Republican Party had gained control of Congress in the 2002 election. Now the Republicans held 51 of 100 seats in the Senate and 229 of 435 seats in the House of Representatives.

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Republicans Gain More Power

In the early 2000s, two more elections garnered even more power for the Republicans.

photo: a family pushes a shopping cart loaded with their possessions through waist-deep floodwater.

This family is among the thousands left homeless by Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the New Orleans region in August 2005.

California Recall

The economic problems that had rocked the country were especially acute in California. These problems, as well as a statewide electricity crisis, caused many Californians to lose confidence in Democratic governor Gray Davis. Davis was reelected in 2002 by a slim margin, but Davis opponents began petitioning for a recall vote. Eventually, they gathered enough signatures to force a recall election. On October 7, 2003, more than 55 percent of voters chose to recall Davis. In the California gubernatorial election that followed, the actor Arnold Schwarzenegger defeated 134 other candidates, capturing over 48 percent of the vote.

Bush Reelected In 2004

Although President Bush had received much initial support for the war on terrorism that he began waging after the September 11 attacks, many Americans came to question his decision to invade Iraq. They were dismayed by the daily reports of violence and chaos in the country and the failure to find weapons of mass destruction there. In 2004, Bush was reelected in a presidential race that deeply divided the nation.

During Bush’s second term, discontent about the war grew. At the same time, controversies arose over warrantless spying on American citizens and alleged misuses of government agencies for partisan political gain. The president was also criticized over his response to Hurricane Katrina. In the 2006 mid-term elections, Democrats regained control of the House and the Senate, and many were hopeful about their chances to win the White House in 2008.

Section 1: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• William Jefferson Clinton

• H. Ross Perot

• Hillary Rodham Clinton

• North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

• Newt Gingrich

• Contract with America

• Al Gore

• George W. Bush

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Create a time line of President Clinton’s major actions during his two terms. Use a form such as the one below.

A blank timeline has four spaces labled 'Major Action.'

Explain whether each action was a success or a failure for Clinton.

Critical Thinking

3. EVALUATING

What event or trend during the Clinton administration do you think will have the most lasting impact on the United States? Why?

4. ANALYZING MOTIVES

Why did the Gore campaign support manual recounts in Florida and the Bush campaign oppose them?

5. EVALUATING DECISIONS

Do you think President Bush’s decision to invade Iraq was justified? Explain why or why not. Think About:

• arms inspections in Iraq

• fear created by the September 11 attacks

• the search for WMD

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Section 2: The New Global Economy

One American’s Story

As Bill Clinton took office in 1993, some regions of the nation, particularly the Northeast, were still in an economic recession. Near Kennebunkport, Maine, the John Roberts clothing factory faced bankruptcy. With help from their union, the factory workers were able to turn their factory into an employee-owned company.

Ethel Beaudoin, who worked for the company for more than 30 years, was relieved that the plant would not be closing.

Workers at the John Roberts clothing factory

A PERSONAL VOICE

ETHEL BEAUDOIN

“It’s a nice feeling to be part of the process … of deciding what this company buys for machinery and to know the customers more intimately. They’re our customers, and it’s a nicer feeling when the customers know that the coat that we put out is made by owners.”
—quoted in Divided We Fall

Beaudoin’s experience offered one example of the economic possibilities in America. A new global economy—brought about by new technologies, increased international competition, and the end of the Cold War—changed the nation’s economic prospects.

The Shifting Economy

Americans heard a great deal of good news about the economy. Millions of new jobs were created between 1993 and 1999. By the fall of 2000, the unemployment rate had fallen to the lowest it had been since 1970.

1076 Economic Background: Greenspan and the Fed photo: Alan Greenspan.

Alan Greenspan was chairman of the Federal Reserve System (the Fed) from 1987, when he was appointed by President Reagan, until he retired in 2006. The Fed has been described as the economic pacemaker of the United States because it helps deter-mine how much money there will be in the American economy.

Before being elected president in 2000, George W. Bush made it a point to meet with Alan Greenspan before meeting with anyone else in Washington. (See interest rate in the Economics Handbook, page R42.)

But there was alarming news as well. Wage inequality between upper- and lower-income Americans—the income gap—widened. Median household income began to drop. Although economists disagreed about the reasons for the economy’s instability, most everyone agreed it was under-going significant changes.

More Service, Less Security

Chief among the far-reaching changes in the workplace of the 1990s was the explosive growth of jobs in the service sector, the part of the economy that provides services to consumers. By 2000, nearly 80 percent of American workers were teachers, medical professionals, lawyers, engineers, store clerks, waitstaff, and other service workers.

Low-paying jobs, such as sales and fast-food, grew fastest. These positions, often part-time or temporary, offered limited benefits. Many corporations, rather than invest in salaries and benefits for full-time staff, instead hired temporary workers, or temps, and began to down-size—trim payrolls to streamline operations and increase profits. Manpower, Inc., a temporary services agency, became the largest U.S. employer, earning $2 billion in 1993 when fully 640,000 Americans cashed its paychecks. In 1998, over one-fourth of the nation’s work force worked in temporary or part-time positions.

Of those cut in downsizing, younger workers suffered higher rates of unemployment. In 1999, an average 11 per-cent of workers aged 16 to 24 were unemployed—more than double the national rate. Three out of four young Americans expected to earn less money as adults than their parents did.

Farms And Factories

The nation’s shift to a service economy came at the expense of America’s traditional workplaces. Manufacturing, which surpassed farming mid-century as the largest job sector, experienced a sharp decline in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1992, for example, 140,000 steelworkers did the same work that 240,000 had accomplished ten years earlier. Larry Pugh talked about the downsizing of a farm equipment fac-tory in his hometown of Waterloo, Iowa.

A PERSONAL VOICE

LARRY PUGH

“There used to be 17,500 people working here…. Now there are 6000. Those people spent their money. They bought the cars. They bought the houses. They were replaced by people that are at the minimum wage—seven or eight dollars an hour, not 15 or 20 dollars an hour. These people can hardly eke out a living at today’s wages.”
—quoted in Divided We Fall

The decline in industrial jobs contributed to a drop in union membership. In 1945, 35 percent of American workers belonged to unions; by 1998, only 14 per-cent were union members. In the 1990s, unions had trouble organizing. High-tech and professional workers felt no need for unions, while low-wage service employees feared losing their jobs in a strike. Some workers saw their incomes decline. The increased use of computer-driven robots to make manufactured goods eliminated many jobs, but it also spurred a vibrant high-tech economy. Those with advanced training and specialized technical skills or a sense of entrepreneurial risk-taking saw their salaries rise and their economic security expand.

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Persons Employed in Three Economic Sectors*
Year	Farming	Manufacturing	Service Producing
numbers in thousands Sources: Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970; Statistical Abstracts of the United States, 1953, 1954, 2007 (online)*
1900	11,050	7,252	6,832
1950	6,001	18,475	20,721
2005	N/A	14,285	89,579

High-Tech Industries

In the late 1990s, entrepreneurs turned innovative ideas about computer technology into huge personal fortunes, hoping to follow in the footsteps of Bill Gates, the decade’s most celebrated entrepreneur. Gates founded the software company Microsoft. In 2000, it had made him the wealthiest individual in the world, with assets estimated at about $60 billion.

A rapid outcropping of new businesses accompanied the explosive growth of the Internet late in the decade. The NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System), a technology-dominated stock index on Wall Street, rose dramatically as enthusiasm grew for high-tech businesses. These businesses were known as dotcoms, a nickname derived from their identities, or addresses, on the World Wide Web, which often ended in “.com.” The dotcoms expanded rapidly and attracted young talent and at times excessive investment funding for such untested fledgling companies.

Thousands of smaller businesses were quick to anticipate the changes that the Internet would bring. Suddenly companies could work directly with consumers or with other companies. Many predicted that the price of doing business would fall dramatically and that overall worldwide productivity would jump dramatically. The boom of new business was termed “The New Economy.”

However, the positive economic outlook fueled by “The New Economy” was short lived. In 2000, only 38 percent of online retailing made a profit. As a result, many dotcoms went out of business. This decline had many causes. Entrepreneurs often provided inadequate advertising for their e-companies. Also, many dotcoms had hard-to-use Web sites that confused customers. The unsuccessful dotcoms caused many investors to stop putting money in Internet businesses.

In 2002, the U.S. economy was also hard hit by corporate scandals, when Enron was charged with using illegal accounting practices and WorldCom filed the largest bankruptcy claim in U.S. history. Investors began to lose faith in corporations. In addition, after the September 11 attacks, the continued threat of terrorism had a negative effect on the economy. All of these factors caused the NASDAQ index to decline for three straight years (2000–2002). After lows in 2002 and 2003, the NYSE and NASDAQ rose again to record highs in 2007.

At 18 years old, Shawn Fanning started a free music down-loading service on the Internet called Napster. He became a multimillionaire after forming an alliance with a German media company. 1078 A map: World Trading Blocs, 2000. The U.S. is part of NAFTA and the G8. G8 countries include most of Europe and North America as well as Japan.

A map: World Trading Blocs, 2000. The U.S. is part of NAFTA and the G8. G8 countries include most of Europe and North America as well as Japan.

World Trading Blocs, 2000 INTER ACTIVE

An oil well. OPEC Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries

In white. APEC Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation

G8 Group of Eight

In green. Andean Group

In brown. ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations

in red. CACM/MCCA Central American Common Market

In orange. CAEU Council of Arab Economic Unity

In purple. CARICOM Caribbean Community and Common Market

In aqua. CIS Commonwealth of Independent States

In blue EFTA European Free Trade Association

In rose. EU European Union

In pink. MERCOSUR Southern Cone Common Market

In green. NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement

In yellow. SADC Southern African Development Community

In mauve. UDEAC Central African Customs and Economic Union

Change and the Global Economy

In 1900, airplanes hadn’t yet flown and telephone service was barely 20 years old. U.S. trade with the rest of the world was worth about $2.2 billion (roughly 12 percent of the economy). Nearly a century later, New Yorkers could hop a supersonic jet and arrive in London within three hours, information traveled instantly by fax machines and computers, and U.S. trade with other countries approached $2 trillion (more than 25 percent of the economy). As American companies competed for international and domestic markets, American workers felt the sting of competing with workers in other countries.

International Trade

The expansion of U.S. trade abroad was an important goal of President Clinton’s foreign policy, as his sup-port of NAFTA had shown. In 1994, in response to increasing inter-national economic competition among trading blocs, the United States joined many other nations in adopting a new version of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The new treaty lowered trade barriers, such as tariffs, and established the World Trade Organization (WTO) to resolve trade disputes. As President Clinton announced at the 1994 meeting of the Group of Seven, (the world’s seven leading economic powers, which later became the Group of Eight when Russia joined in 1996), “[T]rade as much as troops will increasingly define the ties that bind nations in the twenty-first century.”

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International Competition

International trade agreements caused some American workers to worry about massive job flight to countries that produced the same goods as the United States but at a lower cost.

In the 1990s, U.S. businesses frequently moved their operations to less economically advanced countries, such as Mexico, where wages were lower. After the passage of NAFTA, more than 100,000 low-wage jobs were lost in U.S. manufacturing industries such as apparel, auto parts, and electronics. Also, competition with foreign companies helped U.S. companies to maintain low wages and decrease benefits.

International Slowdown

Around the turn of the 21st century, the global economy began to slow down. Between 1997 and 2002, the gross domestic product in Japan declined by 6 percent. In 2001, the economies of more than a dozen countries were in recession, and many other countries reported lower growth rates than they had the previous year.

The flow of foreign direct investment (FDI) to developing countries declined dramatically. As a result, the economies of these countries were particularly hard hit. For example, the overall growth of Africa’s economies slowed to 2.7 percent in 2002.

The U.S. economy also suffered. As it happened, both the U.S. and world economies began to reverse the downward trend by 2004. But in 2007, with the U.S. economy again sluggish, China’s 10% economic growth marked it as an economic standout.

photo: protesters dressed as cows hold signs that read 'FTAA Mad Cows.'

In Montreal, Canada, on March 29, 2001, protesters demonstrate at a summit on globalization and the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).

Section 2: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• service sector

• downsize

• Bill Gates

• NASDAQ

• dotcom

• General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

In a cluster diagram like the one below, record the major changes that occurred in the U.S. economy during the 1990s. Diagram: five blank ovals surround the words Economic Changes. Economic Changes

Which change has affected you the most? Explain.

Critical Thinking

3. ANALYZING EFFECTS

Explain who was negatively affected by the changes in the economy and what negative effects they suffered. Think About:

• who had the highest unemployment rates

• what types of jobs were eliminated

• what other negative effects there were

4. ANALYZING ISSUES

How do you explain some Americans’ fears over the international trade agreements?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

Considering the economic changes described in this section, how do you think workers can best prepare themselves for the future?

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American Literature: Women Writers Reflect American Diversity

1978–2000

The broadening of opportunities for American women that began in the 1970s is as evident in literature as it is in other fields. Toni Morrison, Mary Oliver, Nikki Giovanni, Amy Tan, Anne Tyler, Alice Walker, Marge Piercy, Sandra Cisneros—these are just a few of the talented women novelists and poets who reflect the multicultural nature of the American identity. These women’s writing shares a common characteristic—that of conveying the American experience through the exploration of personal memories, nature, childhood, and family.

NIKKI GIOVANNI In the late 1960s, Nikki Giovanni won instant attention as an African American poet writing about the Black Power movement. Since then her poetry has often focused on childhood, family ties, and other personal concerns. In the following poem, Giovanni deals with individual empowerment—even under less than ideal circumstances. Choices if i can’t do what i want to do then my job is to not do what i don’t want to do it’s not the same thing but it’s the best i can do if i can’t have what i want then my job is to want what i’ve got and be satisfied that at least there is something more to want since i can’t go where i need to go then i must go where the signs point though always understanding parallel movement isn’t lateral when i can’t express what i really feel i practice feeling what i can express and none of it is equal i know but that’s why mankind alone among the mammals learns to cry —Nikki Giovanni, “Choices,” from Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day (1978) 1081 A book cover decorated with chinese dragons reads 'The Joy Luck Club' by Amy Tan.

A book cover decorated with chinese dragons reads 'The Joy Luck Club' by Amy Tan.

AMY TAN A native of Oakland, California, Amy Tan draws on personal experiences in The Joy Luck Club, a series of interconnected stories about four Chinese-American daughters and their immigrant mothers. The four mothers establish a club for socializing and playing the game of mahjong.

My mother started the San Francisco version of the Joy Luck Club in 1949, two years before I was born. This was the year my mother and father left China with one stiff leather trunk filled only with fancy silk dresses. There was no time to pack anything else, my mother had explained to my father after they boarded the boat. Still his hands swam frantically between the slippery silks, looking for his cotton shirts and wool pants.

When they arrived in San Francisco, my father made her hide those shiny clothes. She wore the same brown-checked Chinese dress until the Refugee Welcome Society gave her two hand-me-down dresses, all too large in sizes for American women. The society was composed of a group of white-haired American missionary ladies from the First Chinese Baptist Church. And because of their gifts, my parents could not refuse their invitation to join the church. Nor could they ignore the old ladies’ practical advice to improve their English through Bible study class on Wednesday nights and, later, through choir practice on Saturday mornings. This was how my parents met the Hsus, the Jongs, and the St. Clairs. My mother could sense that the women of these families also had unspeakable tragedies they had left behind in China and hopes they couldn’t begin to express in their fragile English. Or at least, my mother recognized the numbness in these women’s faces. And she saw how quickly their eyes moved when she told them her idea for the Joy Luck Club.

—Amy Tan, The Joy Luck Club (1989) photo: Sandra Cisneros.

SANDRA CISNEROS Sandra Cisneros is one of many Chicana writers to win fame in recent years. In The House on Mango Street, she traces the experiences of a poor Hispanic girl named Esperanza (Spanish for hope) and her warm-hearted family. Nenny is her sister.

Four Skinny Trees

They are the only ones who understand me. I am the only one who understands them. Four skinny trees with skinny necks and pointy elbows like mine. Four who do not belong here but are here. Four raggedy excuses planted by the city. From our room we can hear them, but Nenny just sleeps and doesn’t appreciate these things.

Their strength is secret. They send ferocious roots beneath the ground. They grow up and they grow down and grab the earth between their hairy toes and bite the sky with violent teeth and never quit their anger. This is how they keep.

Let one forget his reason for being, they’d all droop like tulips in a glass, each with their arms around the other. Keep, keep, keep, trees say when I sleep. They teach.

When I am too sad and too skinny to keep keeping, when I am a tiny thing against so many bricks, then it is I look at trees. When there is nothing left to look at on this street. Four who grew despite concrete. Four who reach and do not forget to reach. Four whose only reason is to be and be.

—Sandra Cisneros The House on Mango Street (1989) 1082

Section 3: Technology and Modern Life

One American’s Story

The crowds stand four-deep cheering for 12-year-old Rudy Garcia-Tolson as he captures a new national record for his age group at the San Diego half-marathon. Despite the loss of his legs, Rudy competes in sports and won a gold medal in swimming at the 2004 paralympics.

For years, Rudy was confined to a wheelchair. After undergoing a double amputation he was fitted with carbon fiber prostheses—artificial replacements for missing body parts. These lightweight, strong, and durable new legs now make many things possible for Rudy.

Rudy Garcia-Tolson, 2001

A PERSONAL VOICE

RUDY GARCIA-TOLSON

“I told them to cut my legs off. I saw pictures of people running with prosthetic legs. I didn’t want to stay in a wheelchair…. My legs won’t stop me. Nothing stops me…. I like to show kids that there’s no limitations—kids or challenged people or adults, there’s no limitations to what a person can do…. My motto is, if you have a brave heart, that’s a powerful weapon.”
—quoted in Press-Enterprise, January 1, 2000

Advances in medical technology have permitted Rudy to live a more fully active life. Throughout the 20th century and into the 21st, technological developments helped Americans become more active in many ways.

The Communications Revolution

The computer industry transformed the 1980s. Instead of giant mainframes and minicomputers, desktop workstations now ruled business. Home computers became widely available, and many thousands of people joined online subscription services that provided electronic mail and magazine-style information.

1083 Analyzing Political Cartoons: “Vacation, 2000”

By the end of the 20th century, millions of Americans owned any number of personal communication devices. People were able to speak to or correspond with each other instantaneously almost anytime, almost anywhere. The cartoon suggests that Americans are dependent on their communication devices, and that the once relaxing and peaceful family vacation has given way to the hustle and bustle of constant access.

Entering The Information Age

The information superhighway—a network of communication devices linking people and institutions across the nation and the world—promised to advance the revolution that had begun with the personal computer. In 1994, Vice President Al Gore began to oversee the government’s participation in developing this superhighway. Even though private industries would build the superhighway, the government would keep access democratic, ensure affordable service for everyone, protect privacy and property rights, and develop incentives for investors.

The 1990s enjoyed explosive growth of the Internet, an international net-work linking computers and allowing almost instant transmittal of text, images, and sound. Originally developed in the late 1960s by the U.S. Department of Defense for defense research, the Internet drew early popularity at universities. By the mid-1990s Internet became a household word. Use of the network was further popularized by the World Wide Web, which provided a simple visual interface for words and pictures to be seen by an unlimited audience. As businesses, schools, and organizations began to use the Web as a primary form of communication, new forms of social interaction emerged. Users developed “electronic presence” in virtual worlds, fantasy environments created with electronics.

New Tools, New Media

Through an electronic connection, such as a TV cable or phone line, users accessed an array of media, from streaming video to research archives, from on-line shopping catalogs to customized news broadcasts. Users could interact with each other across the world. By 2003, as many as 131 million Americans used the Internet regularly to send e-mail (electronic notes and messages), to share music, or to browse or search through “pages” on the Web. During the 1990s, classrooms across the nation increasingly used computer net-working. By 2002, 92 percent of public-school classrooms offered Internet access. Long-distance video and audio transmissions also linked American stu-dents. Some content was delivered not on networks but stored on a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read-Only Memory), which evolved from music CDs that contained code for sound waves. CD-ROMs also carry digital code for pictures, text, and animation to be played on a computer.

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The late-20th-century advances in computers and communications have had an impact on American society and business comparable to the industrial developments of the late 1800s. Americans now have more entertainment options, as cable service has multiplied the number of television channels available and greater bandwidth offers the possibility for high-definition television. Because of cellular phones, fax machines, the Internet, and overnight shipping, people can more readily telecommute, or work out of their homes instead of going to an office every day.

Legislating Technology

In the 1980s, the government was slow to recognize the implications of the new communications technology. In 1994, however, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) began to auction the valuable rights to airwaves and collected over $9 billion. Then, with the rapid growth in the communications industry, the federal government took several steps to ensure that consumers received the best service. Congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996, removing barriers that had previously prevented one type of communications company from starting up or buying another related one. While it increased competition in the industry, the law also paved the way for major media mergers. When Capital Cities/ABC Inc. joined the Walt Disney Company, industry watchdogs noted that this reflected the trend toward concentrating media influence in the hands of a few powerful conglomerates.

The passage of the Telecommunications Act won applause from the communications industry but only mixed reviews from the public. Consumer activists worried that the law would fail to ensure equal access to new technologies for rural residents and poor people. Civil rights advocates contended that the Communications Decency Act (part of the Telecommunications Act) restricted free speech because it barred the transmission of “indecent” materials to minors via the Internet. In addition, Congress also called for a “V-chip” in television sets—a computer chip that would enable parents to block TV programs that they deemed inappropriate for their children. Parts of these laws were later struck down in court.

Scientific Advances Enrich Lives

photo: a woman wears thick white glasses.

At NASA Langley Research Center in Virginia, an aerospace engineer wearing stereo glasses sees a 3-D view of a space station simulation, as shown in the background.

The exciting growth in the telecommunications industry in the 1990s was matched by insights that revolutionized robotics, space exploration, and medicine. The world witnessed marvels that for many of the “baby boom generation,” people born in the late 1940s and the 1950s, echoed science fiction.

Simulation, Robotics, And Machine Intelligence

Visual imaging and artificial intelligence (a computer’s ability to perform activities that require intelligence) were combined to provide applications in industry, medicine, and education. For example, virtual reality began with the flight simulators used to train military and commercial pilots. Today, with a headset that holds tiny video screens and earphones, and with a data glove that translates hand movements to a computer screen, a user can navigate a “virtual landscape.” Doctors have used virtual reality to take

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a computerized tour of a patient’s throat and lungs to check for medical problems. Surgeons have performed long-distance surgery through telepresence systems—gloves, computers, and robotic elements specially wired so that a doctor can operate on a patient hundreds of miles away. Architects and engineers have used virtual reality to create visual, rather than physical, models of their buildings, cars, and other designs. Modeling also affected the nightly newscast. Using supercomputers and improved satellite data, meteorologists could offer three-day weather forecasts that reached the accuracy of one-day forecasts of 1980.

As technology became more sophisticated, computers increased in capability. IBM’s Deep Blue defeated chess champion Garry Kasparov in 1997. Computational linguists steadily improved natural language understanding in computers, thus fine-tuning the accuracy of voice recognition systems.

Robots grew more humanlike as engineers equipped them with high-capacity chips simulating brain function. By the year 2000, robots had the ability to walk on two legs, interact with people, learn taught behaviors, and express artificial feelings with facial gestures.

Space Exploration

In the 1990s, astronomy expanded our view of the universe. In 1997, NASA’s Pathfinder and its rover Sojourner transmitted live pictures of the surface of Mars to millions of Internet users.

Shuttle missions, meanwhile, concentrated on scientific research and assembly, transport, and repair of orbiting objects, paving the way to possible human missions to Mars and other space travel in the coming century. NASA concentrated on working with other nations to build the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS promised to offer scientists a zero-gravity laboratory for research in medicine, space mechanics and architecture, and long-term living in space. Ellen Ochoa, part of the first shuttle crew to dock to the ISS, hoped to inspire young students:

Dr. Ellen Ochoa

A PERSONAL VOICE

ELLEN OCHOA

“I’m not trying to make everyone an astronaut, but I want students to think about a career and the preparation they’ll need…. I tell students that the opportunities I had were a result of having a good educational background. Education is what allows you to stand out.”
—quoted in Stanford University School of Engineering Annual Report, 1997–98.

Another shuttle crew in 1993 aboard the Endeavour repaired the Hubble Space Telescope, which returns dazzling intergalactic views. In late 1995, astronomers using observatories discovered a planet orbiting the fourth closest star to Earth, the first planet to be detected outside our own solar system. Since then dozens more have been detected. Astronomers back on Earth have also spent considerable effort tracking asteroids and comets whose paths might collide with our planet. Astrobiologists hailed the discovery on Antarctica of a small meteorite that traveled to Earth from Mars about 15 million years ago.

Biotechnology

The most profound insight into the book of life came from the field of biotechnology. The Human Genome Project, an international effort to map the genes of the human body, and Celera, a private company in molecular biology, simultaneously announced in 2000 that they had sequenced nearly all of the human genome only a decade after the research began. Cooperation via the Internet and access to computerized databases by multiple research groups vastly accelerated the scientists’ ability to identify and order over three billion chemical

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photo: students work with lab equipment.

High school students Li-Ho (left) and Yu-Fong Hong (right), among the youngest scientists to have worked on the Human Genome Project, are shown at a San Ramon, California, laboratory.

“letters” of the genetic code of DNA. Molecular biologists hoped that this genetic map would offer the key to treating many inherited diseases and diagnosing congenital disabilities, and that drug makers could one day design pharmaceuticals for each patient’s particular profile.

DNA had been in the spotlight before the breakthrough announcement. In well-publicized legal proceedings, prosecutors relied on DNA evidence to help prove the guilt of defendants who may have left behind a single hair at a crime scene. Others, wrongly imprisoned, were released when genetic analysis proved their innocence.

But different opinions arose over some of the new “biotechnology.” Some speculated that technological progress outpaced social evolution and society’s ability to grapple with the consequences. In 1997, Scottish researchers cloned Dolly the sheep from one cell of an adult sheep. Shortly thereafter, two Rhesus monkeys were cloned in Oregon, and many wondered whether human cloning was next. Firms sought to patent genes used for medical and research applications, using the principle of invention and property. Advances such as these, as well as gene therapy, artificial human chromosomes, and testing embryos for genetic defects all sparked heated debates among scientists, ethicists, religious leaders, and politicians.

The use of genetic engineering—the artificial changing of the molecular biology of organisms’ cells to alter an organism—also aroused public concern. However, the Federal Department of Agriculture (FDA) holds that genetically engineered foods are safe and that they require no extra labeling. Scientists in the late 1990s modified corn and rice to provide resistance to pests and increase nutritional value. In 1996, the European Union limited the importation of such products in response to consumer pressure, allowing only those clearly labeled as having been genetically modified.

Medical Progress

People suffering from some diseases benefited from advances in medicine in the 1990s. Cancer survival rates improved drastically as clinicians explored the use of gene therapy, genetically engineered antibodies, and immune system modulation. Improvements in tracking the spread of HIV—the virus that causes AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome)—through the body made researchers better prepared to find a cure. AIDS patients were treated with combination therapies, and public health officials advocated abstinence and “safer sex” practices to control the spread of HIV.

Improved technology for making medical diagnoses offered new hope as well. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), for example, was used to produce cross-sectional images of any part of the body. Advances that will make the MRI procedure ten times faster will also make MRI more widely available and cheaper to use. Medical researchers look ahead to using fleets of tiny “nanosensors” one-thousandth the width of a human hair to find tumors and to deploying “nanobots” to repair tissues and even genes.

1087 Science & Technology: Alternative Cars

In an effort to reduce the nation’s dependence on fossil fuels, researchers have been working to develop a “cleaner” car, or one that runs on something other than gasoline. Such alternative models include an electric car, which uses a rechargable battery and gas power, and a vehicle that runs on compressed natural gas.

photo: a man in a car holds a bowl of seeds. A sign reads 'Powered by Vegetable Oil.'

Carl Bielenberg of Calais, Vermont, holds a container of seeds of the jatropha plant. He runs his compact car on vegetable oil that is made from the seed. photo: a short, narrow car with bicycle wheels drives down a street.

photo: a short, narrow car with bicycle wheels drives down a street.

A solar-powered car built by high school students from Saginaw, Michigan, makes its way through busy traffic.

Environmental Measures

With the spreading use of technology came greater concern about the impact of human activities on the natural environment. Scientists have continued examining ways to reduce American dependence on pollution-producing fossil fuels. Fossil fuels such as oil provided 85 percent of the energy in the United States in the 1990s but also contributed to poor air quality, acid rain, and global warming. Many individuals have tried to help by reducing consumption of raw materials. By the early 1990s, residents set out glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles, newspapers, phone books, cardboard, and aluminum cans for recycling at curbsides, and consumers purchased new products synthesized from recycled materials.

Section 3: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• information superhighway

• Internet

• telecommute

• Telecommunications Act of 1996

• genetic engineering

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

On a chart like the one shown, list four of the technological changes described in this section and explain how each change has affected your life.

Technological Change	Effect on Me
1.
2.
3.
4.

Critical Thinking

3. MAKING INFERENCES

Explain how government, business, and individuals are important to the existence of the information superhighway. Think About:

• the costs of developing the superhighway

• the equipment and personnel needed to maintain it

• who uses the superhighway and why they use it

4. ANALYZING ISSUES

Why is genetic engineering a source of controversy?

5. EVALUATING

Which area of technological change described in this section do you think was the most important one for the country? Explain.

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Section 4: The Changing Face of America

One American’s Story

Every ten years the United States conducts a census, or head count of its population. The results of the census determine, among other things, how billions of federal dollars are spent for housing, health care, and education over the coming decade. The Census Bureau estimates that the 1990 census undercounted Latinos by more than five percent. This undercount resulted in a loss of millions of dollars of aid to municipalities with large Latino populations, as well as denying Latinos political representation in all levels of government.

During the latest census conducted in 2000, Antonia Hernandez, President and General Counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), spearheaded the national ¡Hágase Contar! Make Yourself Count! campaign. MALDEF workers canvassed neighborhoods urging residents to complete the census. They stressed that all information was confidential and discussed the high stakes of being counted.

Antonia Hernandez, MALDEF’s president 1985–2003

A PERSONAL VOICE

ANTONIA HERNANDEZ

“The census not only measures our growth and marks our place in the community, but it is the first and indispensable step toward fair political representation, equal distribution of resources, and enforcement of our civil rights.”
—Public statement for ¡Hágase Contar! campaign, 2000

Data from the 2000 census revealed that the Hispanic population had grown by close to 58 percent since 1990, reaching 35.3 million. The 2000 census also confirmed a vast increase in what were once ethnic minorities.

Urban Flight

One of the most significant socio-cultural changes in American history has been the movement of Americans from the cities to the suburbs. The years after World War II through the 1980s saw a widespread pattern of urban flight, the process in which Americans left the cities and moved to the suburbs. At mid-century, the population of cities exceeded that of suburbs. By 1970, the ratio became even.

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In the year 2000, after decades of decline, some major cities across the country had increased their populations while others slowed or halted declines. The transformation of the United States into a nation of suburbs had intensified the problems of the cities.

Causes Of Urban Change

Several factors contributed to the movement of Americans out of the cities. Because of the continued movement of job-seeking Americans into urban areas in the 1950s and 1960s, many urban American neighborhoods became overcrowded. Overcrowding in turn contributed to such urban problems as increasing crime rates and decaying housing.

During the 1970s and early 1980s, city dwellers who could afford to do so moved to the suburbs for more space, privacy, and security. Often, families left the cities because suburbs offered newer, less crowded schools. As many middle-class Americans left cities for the suburbs, the economic base of many urban neighborhoods declined, and suburbs grew wealthy. Following the well-educated labor force, more industries relocated to suburban areas in the 1990s. The economic base that provided tax money and supported city services in large cities such as New York, Detroit, and Philadelphia continued to shrink as people and jobs moved outward.

In addition, many downtown districts fell into disrepair as suburban shoppers abandoned city stores for suburban shopping malls. According to the 1990 census, the 31 most impoverished communities in the United States were in cities.

By the mid-1990s, however, as the property values in the nation’s inner cities declined, many people returned to live there. In a process known as gentrification, they purchased and rehabilitated deteriorating urban property, oftentimes displacing lower income people. Old industrial sites and neighborhoods in locations convenient to downtown became popular, especially among young, single adults who preferred the excitement of city life and the uniqueness of urban neighborhoods to the often more uniform environment of the suburbs.

History Through Architecture: Rebuilding the Riverfronts

As part of the effort to revitalize cities, a number of architects, landscape architects, and urban planners have focused on enhancing what for many urban centers had become a neglected eyesore—their waterfronts. In Pittsburgh, landscape architects turned a dreary strip of concrete and parking lot into Allegheny River front Park, an inviting stretch of natural walkways and recreation areas.

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Suburban Living

While many suburbanites continued to commute to city jobs during the 1990s, increasing numbers of workers began to telecommute, or use new communications technology, such as computers, modems, and fax machines, to work from their homes. Another notable trend was the movement of minority populations to the suburbs. Nationwide, by the early 1990s, about 43 percent of the Latino population and more than half of the Asian-American population lived in suburbs.

Suburban growth led to intense competition between suburbs and cities, and among the suburbs themselves, for business and industry. Since low-rise suburban homes yielded low tax revenues, tax-hungry suburbs offered tax incentives for companies to locate within their borders. These incentives resulted in lower tax revenues for local governments—meaning that less funds were available for schools, libraries, and police departments. Consequently, taxes were often increased to fund these community services as well as to build the additional roads and other infrastructure necessary to support the new businesses.

The shift of populations from cities to suburbs was not the only significant change in American life in the 1990s. The American public was also growing older, and its aging raised complex issues for American policymakers.

The Graying of America, 1990–2030

Year	Number of Americans 65 and older*	Percent of U.S. population
*numbers in thousands
**projected totals
Source: U.S. Census Bureau; Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2000
1990	31,081	12.4
2000	34,837	12.7
2010	37,385**	13.2**
2020	53,733**	16.5**
2030	70,319**	20**

The Aging of America

The 2000 census documents that Americans were older than ever before, with a median age of 35.3—two years older than a decade prior. Increased longevity and the aging of the baby boom generation were the primary reasons for the rising median age.

Behind the rising median age lie several broad trends. The country’s birthrate has slowed slightly, and the number of seniors has increased as Americans live longer because of advances in medical care and living healthier lifestyles. The number of people over 85 has increased at a faster rate than any other segment of the population, to 4.3 million in the year 2000.

The graying of America has placed new demands on the country’s programs that provide care for the elderly. These programs accounted for only 6 percent of the national budget in 1955. It was projected that the programs would consume about 39 percent of the budget by 2005.

The major programs that provide care for elderly and disabled people are Medicare and Social Security. Medicare, which pays medical expenses for senior citizens, began in 1965, when most Americans had lower life expectancies. By 2000, the costs of this program exceeded $200 billion.

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Social Security, which pays benefits to retired Americans, was designed to rely on continued funding from a vast number of younger workers who would contribute taxes to support a small number of retired workers. That system worked well when younger workers far outnumbered retirees and when most workers didn’t live long after retirement.

In 1996, it took Social Security contributions from three workers to support every retiree. By 2030, however, with an increase in the number of elderly persons and an expected decline in the birthrate, there will be only two workers’ contributions available to support each senior citizen. Few issues loomed as large in the 2000 presidential election as what to do about Social Security. If President Bush and Congress do not restructure the system, Social Security will eventually pay out more money than it will take in. Some people suggest that the system be reformed by raising deductions for workers, taxing the benefits paid to wealthier Americans, and raising the age at which retirees can collect benefits.

The Shifting Population

In addition to becoming increasingly suburban and elderly, the population of the United States has also been transformed by immigration. Between 1970 and 2000, the country’s population swelled from 204 million to more than 284 million. Immigration accounted for much of that growth. As the nation’s newest residents yearned for U.S. citizenship, however, other Americans debated the effects of immigration on American life.

A Changing Immigrant Population

The most recent immigrants to the United States differ from immigrants of earlier years. The large numbers of immigrants who entered the country before and just after 1900 came from Europe.

A map shows increases in U.S. immigration.

DESCRIPTION:

Mississippi and Iowa had increases of more than 200% in their number of immigrants. Many states in the upper midwest, southeast and mountain region had increases between 100% to 199%. Other states had increases of 65% or less. Nationally, the immigrant population increased by 65%.

Change in U.S. Immigration, 2000 Source: U.S. Census Bureau 1092

In contrast, about 45 percent of immi-grants since the 1960s have come from the Western Hemisphere, primarily Mexico, and 30 percent from Asia.

In Mexico, for example, during three months in 1994–1995, the Mexican peso was devalued by 73 percent. The devaluation made the Mexican economy decline. As a result, almost a million Mexicans lost their jobs. Many of the unemployed headed north in search of jobs in the United States.

This search for a better opportunity continues today as thousands of immi-grants and refugees—more than 2,000 legal and 4,000–10,000 illegal—arrive each day. About 4,000 of those who enter illegally are deported to Mexico shortly after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. To help those seeking more opportunity in America, in July 2001, President Bush’s administration proposed a temporary guest worker program for the 3 million Mexicans residing illegally in the United States.

Based on the 2000 census, it was reported that patterns of immigration are changing the country’s ethnic and racial makeup. By 2001, for example, California had become a majority minority state, with Asian Americans, Latinos, African Americans, and Native Americans making up more than half its population. The 2000 census indicated that if cur-rent trends continue, by the year 2050 Latinos will become the nation’s largest minority community overall.

Photo: a white-haired Asian woman raises a mug in front of a monument.

Lowe Shee Miu, of Oakland, California, stands in front of a monument commemorating Chinese immigrants at Angel Island—the Ellis Island of the West.

Debates Over Immigration Policy

The presence of such a large number of immigrants has also added to the continuing debate over U.S. immigration policies. Many Americans believe that their country can’t absorb more immi-grants. By the early 1990s, an estimated 3.2 million illegal immigrants from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Haiti had made their way to the United States. Many illegal immigrants also arrived from Canada, Poland, China, and Ireland. They took jobs many Americans turned down, as farm workers and domestic servants—often receiving the minimum wage or less and no benefits. By 2003, an estimated 8.7 million illegal immigrants resided in the United States.

Hostility toward illegal immigration peaked in California and Florida, two states with high percentages of immigrants. In 1994, Florida Governor Lawton Chiles filed suit against the U.S. government for “its continuing failure to enforce or rationally administer its own immigration laws.” That same year, California passed Proposition 187, which cut all education and nonemergency health benefits to illegal immigrants. By March 1998, Proposition 187 was ruled unconstitutional. Although never implemented, the law inspired political participation among Hispanic voters, who saw themselves as targets.

As more immigrants make their way to the U.S. and the nation’s ethnic com-position changes, debates about immigration will continue. Those who favor tighter restrictions argue that immigrants take desired jobs. Others, however, point to America’s historical diversity and the new ideas and energy immigrants bring.

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Native Americans Continue Legal Battles

As the nation debated its immigrant policies, the ancestors of America’s original inhabitants continued to struggle. The end of the 20th century found most members of this minority enduring extremely difficult lives. In 2001, about 32 percent of Native Americans lived below the poverty line, more than three times the poverty rate for white Americans. Furthermore, Native Americans endured a suicide rate that was 72 percent higher than that of the general population and an alcoholism rate seven times greater.

In the face of such hardships, Native Americans strived to improve their lives. Throughout the 1990s, dozens of tribes attained greater economic independence by establishing thriving gaming resorts. Although controversial for promoting gambling, reservation gaming—a nearly $10 billion a year industry by 2000—provided Native Americans with much-needed money for jobs, education, social services, and infrastructure. Over the past decades, Native Americans have used the courts to attain greater recognition of their tribal ancestry and land rights. In 1999, for example, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Chippewa Indians of Minnesota retained fishing and hunting rights on some 13 million acres of land that were guaranteed to them in an 1837 treaty. Across the nation, a number of other tribes have had similar land rights affirmed.

America in a New Millennium

As the 21st century begins, Americans face both new problems and old ones. Environmental concerns have become a global issue and have moved to center stage. Furthermore, poverty remains a problem for many Americans in the late 20th century, as does the increasing threat that terrorist acts pose to Americans at home and abroad.

It is clear that the new century America faces will bring changes, but those changes need not deepen divisions among Americans. With effort and cooperation, the change could foster growth and tolerance. The 20th century brought new ways of both destroying and enriching lives. What will the 21st bring? Much will depend on you—the dreamers, the decision makers, and the voters of the future.

Section 4: Assessment

1. TERMS & NAMES For each term or name, write a sentence explaining its significance.

• urban flight

• gentrification

• Proposition 187

Main Idea

2. TAKING NOTES

Demography is the study of statistics about human populations. Use a table like the one below to summarize the demographic changes occurring in the United States.

Demographic Changes
Urban distribution
Age
Ethnic and racial makeup

Critical Thinking

3. HYPOTHESIZING

As urban problems become more common in the suburbs, how might the residents of suburbs respond? Base your answer on existing behavior patterns. Think About:

• the spread of suburbs farther and farther from the city

• the new ability to telecommute

• the tax problems that suburbs face

4. COMPARING AND CONTRASTING

How was the immigration that occurred in the years 1990–2000 similar to and different from earlier waves of immigration?

5. DRAWING CONCLUSIONS

How do disagreements over immigration policy reflect the benefits and challenges of a diverse population?

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Tracing Themes: Immigration and Migration

Immigrants to the United States have been part of a worldwide movement pushing people away from traditional means of support and pulling them toward better opportunities. Most immigrants have left their homelands because of economic problems, though some have fled oppressive governments or political turmoil.

War has often been the deciding factor for people to immigrate to the United States or to migrate within the country. Others have migrated to escape poverty, religious persecution, and racial violence. But the chief lure in coming to the United States or migrating within its borders continues to be the opportunity to earn a living.

photo: covered wagons roll along a trail.

1840s Migrating To The West Throughout the 19th century, Americans continued their movement westward to the Pacific Ocean. Victory in the War with Mexico in 1848 greatly increased the amount of land under American control, and thousands of Americans moved out West to take advantage of it. Two important consequences emerged from this movement. First, following the discovery of gold in California, hundreds of thousands of people from around the world rushed in to strike it rich. Within a year, there were enough residents in California to qualify it for statehood. Second, Americans disagreed over whether the new lands should be open to slavery. That disagreement fueled the fires that led to the Civil War. photo: two men with long beards stand by the ocean, with New York's skyline in the distance.

photo: two men with long beards stand by the ocean, with New York's skyline in the distance.

1910–1920 ADAPTING TO AMERICAN WAYS With hope and apprehension, millions of foreign immigrants poured into America’s pulsing cities during the early 20th century. Bringing with them values, habits, and attire from the Old World, they faced a multitude of new experiences, expectations, and products in the New World. Many native-born Americans feared that the new immigrants posed a threat to American culture. Instead of the immigrants being allowed to negotiate their existence by combining the old with the new, they were pressured to forget their old cultures, languages, and customs for more “American” ways. photo: a man on a boat passes a small child to a man on a ladder.

photo: a man on a boat passes a small child to a man on a ladder.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1094 and page 1095 in the print version. 1095 photo: a man on a boat passes a small child to a man on a ladder.

1970–Present IN SEARCH OF A NEW LIFE In 1964, 603 Vietnamese lived in the United States. A decade later, as the Vietnam War ended, hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese refugees fled their homeland for other nations, including the United States. Vietnamese immigration to America continued, and by 1998 there were nearly 1 million Vietnamese-born persons living in the United States. The men and women who made this long and arduous journey from Vietnam are part of the changing face of U.S. immigration. Beginning in the 1970s, Asians and Latin Americans replaced Europeans as the two largest immigrant groups in the United States. Between 1970 and 1990, about 1.5 million Europeans journeyed to America’s shores. During that same period, roughly 5.6 million Latin Americans and 3.5 million Asians arrived. This trend has continued. In 2005, the largest immigrant groups in the United States hailed from Mexico, India, China, the Philippines, and Cuba. These most recent arrivals to the United States have come for largely the same reasons—greater freedom and economic opportunity and the chance to begin a new life. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1094 and page 1095 in the print version. photo: African-American women wait on a sidewalk with their suitcases.

photo: African-American women wait on a sidewalk with their suitcases.

1940s MIGRATING FOR JOBS Throughout the 20th century, African Americans migrated across the United States. In the Great Migration of the early 20th century, they left their homes in the rural South. Of the millions of African Americans who left, most moved to cities, usually in the North. The Second Migration, sparked by World War II, allowed African Americans to take industrial jobs—many formerly held by whites—to support the war effort. This migration had lasting consequences for the civil rights movement. Many African Americans who remained in the South moved to cities, where they developed organizations that helped them fight segregation. Thinking Critically Connect to History

1. Forming Generalizations Based on what you have read about immigration, what generalizations can you make about the causes that led to a rise in the number of immigrants to the United States? How have wars affected the flow of immigration? How does this affect economic change? book icon SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R21.

Connect to Today

2. Research Interview family members and people in your community to find out how immigration and migration have shaped your current surroundings. Try to record specific stories and events that compare a recent immigration with one in the more distant past.

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Chapter 34: Assessment

Terms & Names

For each term or name below, write a sentence explaining its significance.

1. William Jefferson Clinton

2. NAFTA

3. Contract with America

4. George W. Bush

5. service sector

6. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)

7. Telecommunications Act of 1996

8. genetic engineering

9. urban flight

10. Proposition 187

Main Ideas

Use your notes and the information in the chapter to answer the following questions.

The 1990s and The New Millennium (pages 1066–1074)

1. What happened following the investigation of President Clinton?

2. What factors led George W. Bush to victory in 2000?

The New Global Economy (pages 1075–1079)

3. Summarize which parts of the economy grew during the 1990s and which declined.

4. Why was the World Trade Organization founded?

Technology and Modern Life (pages 1082–1087)

5. What resources did the Internet make available?

6. What were the positive and negative influences that technology had on American lives in the 1990s?

The Changing Face of America (pages 1088–1093)

7. How has urban flight changed both cities and suburbs?

8. What challenges do experts think the United States will face in the future?

Critical Thinking

1. USING YOUR NOTES Create a time line of important events from the 2000 election, using a form like the one below.

A blank timeline has spaces for four Events.

Which event do you think was the turning point? Explain.

2. PREDICTING EFFECTS Compile a list of technological innovations of the late 20th century described in the chapter. Then predict what kinds of technological advancements might change American life during the 21st century.

3. INTERPRETING MAPS Look carefully at the map on page 1091. What might account for the high percentage change in numbers of immigrants in Iowa and Mississippi, compared with more traditional destinations—such as California and New York?

Visual Summary: The United States in Today’s World A graphic shows four intertwining gears, labled Economics, Politics, Deomgraphics, and Technology.

Politics

• Clinton is impeached.

• U.S. becomes involved in conflicts in the Balkans and the Middle East.

• Election 2000 is settled by the Supreme Court; George W. Bush wins.

Technology

• Technological revolution transforms daily life.

• Advanced communications allow wider contact.

• Inventions improve health and lifestyle.

Economics

• U.S. records its longest economic expansion.

• Service industries grow; manufacturing declines; telecommuting increases.

• Trade relations become globalized.

Demographics

• Minorities move to suburbs; urban living attracts single adults.

• Changing immigration policy affects culture.

• Native Americans dispute land rights.

1097 Standardized Test Practice

Use the graphs below and your knowledge of U.S. history to answer questions 1 and 2.

A graph: the population of different ethnic groups.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph breaks down the ethnicity of the 248,709,873 people in the U.S. in 1900.

American Indians and Alaskan Natives: less than one million.
Asians and Pacific Islanders: about 3 million.
Blacks: about 22 million.
Latinos (of any race): about 18 million.
Whites: about 200 million.
Others: about 4 million.

DESCRIPTION:

A graph breaks down the ethnicity of the 281,421,906 people in the U.S. in 2000.

American Indians and Alaskan Natives: less than one million.
Asians: about 5 million.
Blacks: about 25 million.
Latinos of any race: about 26 million.
Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders: less than one million.
Whites: about 210 million.
Others: about 12 million.
Two or more races: about three million.

Racial and Ethnic Mix of the U.S., 1990–2000 1990 total: 248,709,873 2000 total: 281,421,906 Source: U.S. Census Bureau *Fewer than 500,000

1. Which U.S. population increased the most between 1990 and 2000?

A Latinos

B Native Americans

C whites

D blacks

2. What conclusion can be drawn from the 2000 census data, compared with the data from 1990?

F There were more immigrants in the Midwest.

G The population of non-Latino whites declined.

H The 2000 census reflects a broader range of categories.

J Immigration slowed in the 1990s.

3. Which country was not a member of the G8 in 2000?

A China

B Japan

C Italy

D United States

Alternative Assessment

1. INTERACT WITH HISTORY Recall your discussion of the question on page 1065:

What are the most important issues that affect the world today?

As a “think tank” director who researches and analyzes future issues, you are asked to write a concise summary of the five most important issues facing Americans in the 21st century. Present and distribute your summary to the class.

2 internet icon INTERNET ACTIVITY CLASSZONE.COM

Visit the links for Chapter Assessment to research the results of the 2000 census. What are some important facts and trends? Consider the following:

• What significant changes took place in the United States during the 1990s?

• What states increased the most in population? the least?

• What changes took place in your state?

Present your findings in an organized poster.

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Epilogue: Issues for the 21st Century

photo: A family hikes a mountain trail. A title: Issues for the 21st century.

Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1098 and page 1099 in the print version. photo: elderly protesters carry signs that read 'Save Our Security' and 'We paid for security not for a Safety Net.'

photo: elderly protesters carry signs that read 'Save Our Security' and 'We paid for security not for a Safety Net.'

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Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1098 and page 1099 in the print version. photo: a teacher helps a student use a computer.

photo: a teacher helps a student use a computer.

photo: Latino people hold American flags and signs in Spanish.

The War on Terrorism

1100

Iraq: Confronting a Dictatorship

1104

The Debate over Immigration

1106

Crime and Public Safety

1108

Issues in Education

1110

The Communications Revolution

1112

Curing the Health Care System

1114

Breaking the Cycle of Poverty

1116

Tough Choices About Social Security

1118

Women in the Work Force

1120

The Conservation Controversy

1122

1100

The War on Terrorism

How can the United States combat terrorism?

On the morning of September 11, 2001, two airliners crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and a third smashed into a section of the Pentagon, across the river from Washington, D.C. A fourth airliner crashed in a field in the Pennsylvania countryside. Nineteen Arab terrorists had hijacked the four planes and used them as missiles in an attempt to destroy predetermined targets. The first three planes hit their intended targets. In the fourth plane, passengers fought the hijackers and the plane went down short of its target.

Explosions and raging fire severely weakened the twin towers. Within two hours after the attacks, both skyscrapers had crumbled to the ground. One wing of the Pentagon was extensively damaged. About 3,000 people were killed in the attacks—the most destructive acts of terrorism in modern history.

Historical Perspective

Terrorism is the use of violence against people or property to extort changes in societies or governments. Throughout history, individuals and groups have used terror tactics to achieve political or social goals. In recent decades, however, terrorist groups have carried out more and increasingly destructive attacks. The U.S. National Counterterrorism Center recorded over 14,000 terrorist incidents worldwide in 2006 alone.

Modern international terrorism gained world attention during the 1972 Summer Olympic Games in Munich, Germany. Members of a Palestinian group killed two Israeli athletes and took nine others hostage, later killing them. Five of the terrorists and a police officer were killed during a rescue attempt.

photo: smoke pours out of the damaged the World Trade Center towers.

The twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York burn after the September 11 attacks.

Since then, terrorist activities have occurred across the globe. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) used terrorist tactics for decades to oppose British control of Northern Ireland. The IRA officially renounced violence in 2005. In South America, a group known as the Shining Path terrorized the residents of Peru throughout the late 20th century. The group sought to overthrow the government and establish a Communist state. In 2004, Islamic radicals killed and injured nearly 2000 people with a series of bombs exploded on the Madrid subways.

Groups belonging to the alQaeda terrorist organization operate in many countries. Officials have linked several major attacks against U.S. facilities in Africa to al-Qaeda, including bombings at the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Jemaah Islamiah, an Islamic revolutionary group linked to al-Qaeda, has organized numerous attacks throughout Southeast Asia.

Tactics and Motives

Most terrorists target high-profile events or crowded places such as subway stations, restaurants, or shopping malls. Terrorists choose these spots carefully to gain the most

1101

attention and to achieve the highest level of intimidation.

Terrorists use bullets and bombs as their main weapons. In recent years, however, some terrorist groups have used biological and chemical agents in their attacks. These actions involve the release of bacteria or poisonous gas into the air. Gas was the weapon of choice for a radical Japanese religious cult, Aum Shinrikyo. In 1995, cult members released sarin, a deadly nerve gas, in subway stations in Tokyo. Twelve people were killed and more than 5,700 injured. The possibility of this type of terrorism is particularly worrying, because biochemical agents are relatively easy to acquire.

The reasons for terrorist attacks vary. Traditional motives include gaining independence, expelling foreigners, or changing society. These objectives frequently give rise to domestic terrorism—violence used by people to change the policies of their own government or to overthrow their government.

In the late 20th century, another type of terrorism began to emerge. Terrorists wanted to achieve political ends or destroy what they considered to be forces of evil. They attacked targets not just in their own country, but anywhere in the world. These terrorists were even willing to commit suicide to ensure the success of their attacks.

Rescue and Rebuilding

On September 11, the weapons the terrorists used were planes loaded with fuel. The planes became destructive missiles when they crashed into their targets.

Amidst the brutal destruction at the World Trade Center, the courage, selflessness, and noble actions of New York City’s firefighters, police officers, and rescue workers stood as a testament. Many of the first firefighters at the scene disappeared into the burning buildings to help those inside and never came out again. Entire squads were lost.

The attacks of September 11 dramatically altered the way Americans looked at life.

Firefighters worked around the clock trying to find survivors in the wreckage. They had to contend with shifting rubble and smoky, ash-filled air. Medical workers from the area rushed to staff the city’s trauma centers. But after the first wave of injured were rescued, there were few survivors to treat.

A flood of volunteers assisted rescue workers. From around the country, people sent generous donations of blood, food, and money to New York City.

After the first few days, the work at “ground zero,” the World Trade Center disaster site, shifted to recovering bodies and removing the massive amount of debris. The destroyed twin towers accounted for an estimated 2 billion pounds of rubble.

Once the area was cleared, plans to rebuild the site were proposed. In February 2003, a development committee chose a design for a new building complex that would rise taller than the World Trade Center towers. The complex, which officials estimated would take about 10 years to build, would include a memorial park with pools, a cultural center, and a 1,776-foot spire.

Impact of 9/1

The attacks of September 11 dramatically altered the way Americans looked at life. For the first time, many Americans became afraid that terrorism could happen in their own country at any time.

This sense of vulnerability was intensified when another wave of attacks hit the United States a few days after September 11. Letters containing anthrax spores were sent to people in the news media

photo: An American flag rises over workers standing by a huge pile of rubble.

A flag flies over the rubble of the World Trade Center while firefighters and rescue workers search for survivors. 1102

and to members of Congress in Washington, D.C. When inhaled, these spores could damage the lungs and cause death. Five people died after inhaling the spores in tainted letters. Two were postal workers.

Some investigators believed that the letters were sent by a lone terrorist and not by a terrorist group. No link between the letters and the September 11 attacks was ever found. The anthrax letters increased Americans’ fear of terrorism.

The United States Responds

After conducting a massive investigation, the U.S. government determined that Osama bin Laden, a Saudi Arabian millionaire, had directed the terrorists responsible for the September 11 attacks. The terrorists were part of the al-Qaeda net-work. The home base for al-Qaeda was Afghanistan, ruled by a strict Islamic regime called the Taliban. The Taliban supported the terrorist group. In return, bin Laden provided fighters to the Taliban.

The United States, led by President George W. Bush, built an international coalition, or alliance, to fight terrorism and the al-Qaeda network. Great Britain played a prominent role in this coalition. After the Taliban refused to turn over bin Laden, coalition forces led by the United States began military action in Afghanistan.

In October 2001, the United States launched Operation Enduring Freedom. The military began bombing Taliban air defenses, airfields, and command centers, as well as alQaeda training camps. Within two months, U.S. special forces and marines and fighters from the Northern Alliance, a coalition of anti-Taliban Afghan troops, drove the Taliban from power. However, the fight to destroy al-Qaeda continued. Bin Laden was not captured, and his fate remained unknown. Meanwhile, the United Nations worked with the Northern Alliance and other Afghan groups to establish an interim government to replace the Taliban. Later, in 2003, Afghan leaders adopted a constitution, and in 2004, Hamid Karzai was elected president of Afghanistan. Peace, however, was elusive. Since 2005, insurgent attacks by Taliban and alQaeda militants have posed a continuing threat.

In 2002, President Bush called for a commission to investigate whether the September attacks could have been prevented and how to prevent future attacks. In 2004, the 9/11 Commission issued a report that stressed the need for greater cooperation and coordination within the government. It also recommended the creation of a new Cabinet post—that of national intelligence director. On April 21, 2005, the U.S. Senate confirmed John Negroponte’s appointment to that position.

USA Patriot Act

To give the government the power to conduct search and surveillance of suspected terrorists, the USA Patriot Act was signed into law on October 26, 2001. This law allowed the government to:

• detain foreigners suspected of terrorism for seven days without charging them with a crime. In some cases, prisoners were held indefinitely.

• tap all phones used by suspects and monitor their e-mail and Internet use.

• make search warrants valid across states.

• order U.S. banks to investigate sources of large foreign accounts.

• prosecute terrorist crimes without any time restrictions or limitations.

photo: Tom Ridge stands by a chart labled Homeland Security Advisory System.

Tom Ridge, the first to hold the position of Secretary of Department of Homeland Security, introduces the color-coded threat advisory system. A timeline lists terrorist attacks from 1978 to 2001.

A timeline lists terrorist attacks from 1978 to 2001.

History of Terrorist Attacks Against the United States 1978 Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber, uses mail bombs to kill 3 people over 17 years. 1983 Shi’ites explode a truck near U.S. military barracks in Beirut, Lebanon, killing 241 Marines. 1988 Libyan terrorists explode a bomb in an airplane, causing it to crash in Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people. 1993 Suspected al-Qaeda terrorists explode bombs in the World Trade Center in New York City, killing 6 and injuring at least 1,040. 1995 Timothy McVeigh uses a truck to destroy the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, killing 168 people. (page 1068) Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1102 and page 1103 in the print version. 1103

People who opposed the law claimed that it violated the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Amendments. In 2005 it was revealed that President Bush had ordered the National Security Agency (NSA) to spy on American citizens’ international telephone calls and e-mails without obtaining warrants.

Antiterrorist Actions

To combat terrorism on the home front, the Bush administration created the Department of Homeland Security in 2002, initially headed by former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge. This executive department was designed to analyze threats, guard the nation’s borders, seaports, and airports, and coordinate the country’s response to attacks. To help share information about the risk of terrorist attacks with the American people, the department created the Homeland Security Advisory System. This system used a set of “Threat Conditions” to advise the public about the level of terrorist threats and provided guidelines for response during a period of heightened alert.

The Department of Homeland Security also searched for terrorists in the United States. The government soon discovered that the al-Qaeda network had used ”sleepers” to carry out its terrorist attacks. Sleepers are agents who enter a country, blend into a community, and when called upon, secretly prepare for and commit terrorist acts. An intensive search began for any al-Qaeda terrorists, including sleepers, that remained in the United States. U.S. officials detained and questioned Arabs and other Muslims who behaved suspiciously or who violated immigration regulations. Many suspects were held in a prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The United States faced mounting criticism both at home and abroad regarding its treatment of detainees. Critics claimed that detaining these people without charging them and without access to attorneys violated their civil rights. The government argued that limiting civil liberties in wartime to protect national security was not unusual. U.S. officials used the same argument to try some terrorist suspects in military tribunals rather than in criminal courts.

photo: at an airport, an inspector searches a shoe.

An airport security official inspects a traveler’s shoe at a security checkpoint.

Aviation Security

The federal government’s role in aviation security also increased. National Guard troops began patrolling airports, and sky marshals were assigned to airplanes. In addition, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had bars installed on cockpit doors to prevent hijackers from entering cockpits.

In November 2001, President Bush signed into law the Aviation and Transportation Security Act, which made airport security the responsibility of the federal government. Previously, individual airports had been responsible for their own security. Because of this new law, a agency called the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created to inspect airline passengers, baggage, and cargo, as well as non-citizens training to be pilots. The TSA is also responsible for safety on rail-roads, buses, and mass transit systems. Security operations at airports created several major concerns, including long delays and possible invasion of passengers’ privacy. As the United States fought terrorism and tried to balance national security with civil rights, the public debate over security measures continued.

1996 The Islamic militant group Hezbollah explodes a truck bomb in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 19 American servicemen. 1998 Al-Qaeda explodes bombs near two U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, killing 224. 2000 The bombing of the USS Cole in Aden, Yemen, is linked to Osama bin Laden and kills 17 American sailors. 2001 Arab terrorists crash planes into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvania field, killing about 3,000. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1102 and page 1103 in the print version. 1104

Iraq: Confronting a Dictatorship

How should the United States deal with dangerous dictators?

Since 1979, Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq had brutally repressed opposition. The Iraqi dictator had ruled without regard for the welfare of his people or for world opinion. During his State of the Union address in January 2003, President George W. Bush declared Hussein too great a threat to ignore in an age of increased terrorism. He promised to do everything possible to prevent Iraq from launching a terrorist attack on the United States.

Historical Perspective

In August 1990, the Iraqi army had invaded Kuwait, a small country that shares Iraq’s southwestern border. Saddam Hussein wanted Kuwait’s huge oil reserves. The United Nations (UN) condemned the occupation and approved the use of force to end it.

On January 16, 1991, the Persian Gulf War began. Coalition forces led by the United States drove Iraq’s army out of Kuwait within six weeks. A cease-fire agreement with the UN prohibited Iraq from producing chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons.

The United Nations periodically sent arms inspectors to Iraq to make sure Hussein was complying with the cease-fire agreement. However, the Iraqi dictator refused to cooperate fully with the inspectors. Because of this, the United States and Great Britain declared in 1998 that they supported the removal of Hussein from his office and the ending of his regime. In response, Hussein barred arms inspectors from entering his country.

“By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes pose a grave and growing danger.”
PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

Steps Toward War

After the attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States called for a renewal of the arms inspections in Iraq. In November 2002, the UN Security Council passed a resolution designed to force Iraq to give up all weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Arms inspections resumed, but Hussein again refused to cooperate fully. Soon, the United States and Great Britain cut off diplomatic relations with Iraq.

In early February 2003, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell gave a presentation to the UN Security Council, maintaining that Iraq was hiding WMD. Soon thereafter, the United States and Great Britain pressed the UN to pass a resolution that authorized the use of military force against Iraq. As an alternative, France, Germany, and Russia presented a plan that called for intensifying the inspections.

The United States and Great Britain countered by claiming that a new UN resolution was not necessary since Iraq was in violation of the old agreement. They also claimed that Iraq’s violation justified the use of military force to overturn Hussein’s regime.

Meanwhile, protests against a possible war in Iraq increased at home and abroad. Antiwar protesters participated in more than 600 rallies around the globe on a single day in February. An estimated 750,000 protesters turned out in London—the largest demonstration ever in the British capital. Most demonstrations were peaceful.

War in Iraq

In March 2003, the United States and Great Britain launched Operation Iraqi Freedom. The war began with massive air raids; sections

A timeline lists events in Iraq from 1979 to 2003.

History of Saddam Hussein’s Regime 1979 Saddam Hussein seizes power in Iraq. 1980 Iraq invades Iran’s oil fields, triggering the Iran-Iraq War, which continues until 1988. 1988 The Iraqi Air Force releases poisonous gases over the Kurdish town of Halabja, Iraq, killing about 5,000 people. 1990 Iraq invades Kuwait in an attempt to seize that nation’s oil revenues. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1104 and page 1105 in the print version. 1105 photo: men attach a rope to a statue of Saddam Hussein.

photo: men attach a rope to a statue of Saddam Hussein.

In Baghdad, Iraqis pull down a statue of Saddam Hussein after the dictator’s regime is overthrown.

of Baghdad were the primary targets. U.S. ground troops then raced toward the Iraqi capital. By April 2, U.S. forces had reached the outskirts of the city. Within a week, Baghdad had fallen to the U.S. military. Meanwhile, British troops seized the city of Basra. Coalition troops had taken control of most of Iraq by April 14. Hussein survived the attack and was finally captured on December 13, 2003. He was convicted of crimes against humanity and hanged in 2006. In 2004, reports about U.S. treatment of detainees in Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison generated widespread criticism.

After the fall of Hussein’s regime, the United States led in the establishment of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) to temporarily govern Iraq and oversee its reconstruction. On June 28, 2004, the CPA was replaced by a temporary government made up of Iraqis. And on January 30, 2005, Shiite Muslim parties won a majority of seats in Iraq’s election for a transitional National Assembly that would draft Iraq’s constitution. Shiites eventually agreed to allow members of the Sunni Muslim minority to participate in shaping the country’s constitution.

Despite the war’s end, violence continued. Objecting to the CPA—and later, to the Shiite government—insurgents, or rebels, engaged in acts of violence that killed thousands, including many Americans.

Search for WMD

The case for going to war against Iraq was based on assertions by the U.S. and British governments that Saddam Hussein had WMD. Once major combat ended on May 1, U.S. forces began an extensive search for these weapons. Movable biological laboratories containing sophisticated equipment were located, but by mid-2005, no WMD had been found. This led many in the United States and Great Britain to question the necessity for the war. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair responded by claiming that they had based their decision on intelligence later proved to have been faulty. In May 2005, a top-secret memo known as the Downing Street memo became public. It suggested that the Bush administration had planned to invade Iraq as early as July 2002. As a result, 560,000 Americans signed a letter by U.S, Representative Conyers to President Bush asking for the truth about the decision to invade Iraq. In June, as U.S. casualties continued to rise, a majority of polled Americans supported withdrawal from Iraq.

Iraq After Hussein

On October 15, 2005, Iraqi voters narrowly accepted a new constitution. In December, Iraq held elections to choose a permanent parliament. The Shiites captured a majority of seats, but not enough to control the government. Sunni and Kurdish legislators rejected the Shiites’ first candidate for prime minister. In April 2006, the National Assembly approved a compromise candidate, Nuri al-Maliki, as the new prime minister.

Despite this progress, violence between Sunnis and Shiites continued to plague Iraq. Militants also attacked U.S. troops. In response, President Bush announced a plan in January 2007 to send 20,000 more U.S. combat troops to Iraq. Many Americans opposed the plan, but it went into effect later that year.

1991 The Persian Gulf War begins in January and ends six weeks later. The UN prohibits Iraq from producing WMD. 1998 Iraq’s refusal to cooperate with UN arms inspectors leads to a four-day strike by the United States and Great Britain. 2003 In March, the United States and Great Britain launch Operation Iraqi Freedom. Major combat ends in May, and Hussein is overthrown. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1104 and page 1105 in the print version. 1106

The Debate over Immigration

Should new laws restrict or expand immigration?

For hundreds of years, immigrants working for their dreams have shaped the United States. Latino ranchers developed many of the tools and skills of the American cowboy. Chinese laborers laid the tracks of the transcontinental railroad. African Americans, though not voluntary immigrants, labored to develop the agriculture of the South and the industry of the North. Farmers and workers of every origin built the nation we know today.

Historical Perspective

But immigration has been argued throughout American history. In the 1700s, Benjamin Franklin worried about the number of Germans immigrating to Pennsylvania. Sharp antiimmigration sentiment spurred the nativist movement that developed in the 1830s and the “America First” campaign of the 1920s.

Americans today are divided on the issue. Some agree with former New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani that immigrants “challenge us with new ideas and new perspectives.” Others side with Dan Stein of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, who has said that “large-scale immigration is not serving the needs and interests of the country.”

Rising Numbers

From 1900 into the 1940s, economic troubles and rapid population growth spurred more than 16 million Europeans to move to the United States. The same pressures have recently hit Asia and Latin America, with the same effect on the United States. Between 1989 and 2004, more than 15 million new immigrants came to the United States.

“America’s immigration system is … unsuited to the needs of our economy and the values of our country.”
PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

Illegal Entry

Complicating the debate has been the issue of illegal immigrants. By 2005, the number of illegal immigrants living in the United States was estimated at about 10 million. A 2004 report by the Center for Immigration Studies stated that households headed by illegal immigrants received approximately $10 billion more in government services than they paid in taxes.

In 1994, California’s voters approved Proposition 187, denying illegal immigrants access to public education and state-funded health care. A federal court later ruled that law unconstitutional. In 1996, Congress passed a law that toughened measures to bar illegal entry into the United States.

In February 2005, President Bush proposed a new immigration policy. Stating that “America’s immigration system is … unsuited to the needs of our economy and the values of our country,” the president endorsed a guest worker program. The program would allow foreigners to work in the United States for up to six years, after which they would be required to return to their own countries. Alternate programs also were being considered.

Economic Debate

Those who favor limits claim that immigrants take jobs from Americans. However, data suggest that immigration has not hurt the economy and may have helped fuel its growth. At the same time that millions of immigrant workers—including some undocumented workers—were joining the work

A timeline lists events in the history of U.S. immigration from 1751 to 2005.

History of Immigration in the United States 1751 Benjamin Franklin denounces German immigrants. 1853 Nativists form Know-Nothing Party to protest increase in immigration (page 319). 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act severely restricts immigration from China (page 460). 1896 President Cleveland vetoes bill requiring immigrants to pass literacy test. 1921 Emergency Quota Act begins era of limits on immigration (page 621). Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1106 and page 1107 in the print version. 1107 photo: Latino people hold American flags and signs in Spanish.

Members of the Latin American community in Los Angeles raise their hands to bless fruit baskets as a sign of immigrants’ daily work in California’s fields. The sign reads “This fruit is the product of immigrants’ labor.”

force, unemployment fell from 7.1 percent in 1980 to 4.3 percent in March 2001, the lowest rate in 30 years. Although the rate had risen to 5.1 percent by May 2005, it was still relatively low.

Another argument focuses on wages. Economists agree that immigrants tend to work for lower wages than native-born workers. Harvard University economists estimated that one-third of the gap between low-paid and high-paid workers results from higher numbers of immigrants. But they also reported that other factors—foreign trade, declining union membership, and new technology—play a greater role in lowering wages.

Immigrants fill skilled, high-paying jobs as well. Current law limits the number of immigrants who may enter the United States within specific employment categories, or preferences. The 2004 limit was set at 204,422. However, only 155,330 immigrants entered under these categories during 2004.

Citizenship Responsibility

Some people are concerned that many immigrants never become citizens and so fail to completely participate in U.S. life. Statistics show that the percentage of immigrants gaining citizenship declined from 64 percent in 1970 to 38 percent in 2005, one of the lowest rates in a century. Experts attribute the drop to a variety of factors, including rising numbers of illegal immigrants, a backlog of applications, and a presumed lack of interest among many immigrants. The oath of U.S. citizenship carries with it such responsibilities as voting, serving on juries, and, in some cases, military service.

Cultural Concerns

The diversity of the U.S. population has raised concerns that America has no common culture. Some say that at 12 percent of the population, foreigners are too numerous in America. Historian David Kennedy points out that in 1910 the percentage was even higher—14.7 percent.

Those who favor limits claim that new immigrants do not mix with other groups, forming ethnic neighborhoods that divide society. Others believe that immigrants enrich American cultural life.

Moral Issues

The issue of asylum—providing a safe place for people fleeing oppresson—has been the toughest of all. While immigration is allowed for political asylum, those who flee famine or poverty are turned away. Are such choices fair?

Some rules allow relatives of immigrants to enter the country. Representative Lamar Smith of Texas believes that these rules admit immigrants who “have no marketable skills and end up on welfare.” Yet, social scientist Nathan Glazer says that concern about the number of immigrants conflicts with sympathy for those “trying to bring in wives, children, parents, brothers, and sisters.”

Alan Simpson, a former U.S. senator, believes that there are simply too many immigrants. Slow immigration for five years, he proposed. But in Gallup polls taken at the turn of this century, 43 percent of those polled favored Simpson’s idea, while 54 percent agreed that immigration should either be kept at its present level or increased.

1965 Immigration Act loosens restrictions in place since 1924 (page 897). 1994 California passes Proposition 187, excluding benefits to illegal immigrants (page 1092). 1996 Congress passes laws that limit benefits to illegal immigrants. 2005 Census Bureau estimates nation’s foreign-born at 34.8 million, or 1 in 10 residents. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1106 and page 1107 in the print version. 1108

Crime and Public Safety

Will tougher gun control laws reduce the incidence of crime?

On an early March day in 2001, Alicia Zimmer, a student at Santana High School outside San Diego, found herself in the middle of gunfire in the hallways. A 15-year-old boy had brought a gun to school and had begun firing at his fellow students. “I was probably about 10 feet away from some of the victims,” Zimmer said, adding that she saw “a boy laying on the floor with his face down,” and a girl with “blood all over her arm.” Before the shooter was apprehended, two people were killed and 13 were injured. School shootings have become more common in the United States and are just one reason why, despite an overall decrease in crime during the 1990s and into the 21st century, Americans continue to express concerns over public safety.

Historical Perspective

In 1968, opinion polls reported that for the first time, Americans called crime the nation’s single worst problem. Since then, crime has remained high on the list of national problems.

Crime rates generally increased during the 1970s, due in part to rising unemployment and inflation, increased drug use, civil unrest, and protests against the Vietnam War. But in the 1980s, the spread of crack cocaine abuse fueled a major jump in crime. From 1986 to the early 1990s, the rates of violent crimes and car thefts increased by more than 20 percent.

photo: a student walks through a metal detector in a school.

School students at John Bartram High School in Philadelphia go through metal detectors as they enter the school one day after a school shooting.

Beginning in 1992, however, these rates began to drop and continued declining throughout the decade. The FBI announced that in 2003 violent crime had dipped to a 20-year low and was a third lower than in 1994. In 2000 the murder rate also reached a 20-year low and was relatively stable for the next 6 years.

Recent Success

Experts have identified a few causes for falling crime rates:

• There are fewer males aged 15 to 29, the group most likely to commit crimes.

• The trade in crack cocaine slowed.

• The unemployment rate gradually decreased throughout the 1990s. Generally, when more people have jobs, crime rates fall.

Perhaps the biggest factor has been new policing efforts. Police departments have taken officers out of patrol cars and put them back on the streets. Police have also taken a more active role in their neighborhoods. Crime prevention methods now focus on an intense effort to

A timeline shows events in crime and public safety in the U.S. from 1791 to 2001.

History of Crime and Public Safety in the United States 1791 Second Amendment, protecting right to bear arms, is ratified (page 149). 1844 New York City organizes first full-time, salaried police force (page 471). 1920s Organized crime thrives during Prohibition (page 643). 1966 Miranda v. Arizona: police must inform suspects of their legal rights (pages 896, 900). 1980s Increased drug abuse contributes to rising crime. 1993 Brady Act aims to reduce the spread of handguns. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1108 and page 1109 in the print version. 1109

intervene with troubled youth before they commit a crime.

Continuing Efforts

Despite what appears to be a safer nation, however, many Americans continue to worry about crime. For one thing, gun violence is extremely high. According to the FBI, guns were used in nearly 67 percent of all homicides in 2003. In addition, some social scientists contend that with a slumping economy a new crime wave is just over the horizon. Even though the overall murder rate has declined since 1990, crime continues to command public attention. Experts are split over two issues related to reducing crime further: gun control and tougher sentencing.

Gun Control

In 1993, President Bill Clinton signed the Brady Act, which called for states to place a five-day waiting period on the sale of handguns. During that period, police check the potential buyer’s background. If they find a criminal record, a gun permit is denied. However, four years later, in June 1997, the Brady Act was substantially weakened when the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government could not force state or local officials to run background checks on potential buyers of handguns.

At the center of the gun-control issue lies a long-standing constitutional debate. The Second Amendment to the Constitution states this: “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” The National Rifle Association (NRA), which is opposed to tougher gun-control laws, argues that gun-control laws violate this right to bear arms. Others contend that the amendment was not intended to guarantee a right to personal weapons. Rather, its purpose is to protect the state’s right to maintain military units.

As the 21st century begins, Americans find themselves grappling with new forms of violent crime.

Tougher Sentences

In addition to looking at hand gun laws, Americans have sought to battle crime by putting more people in prison. The federal government and many states recently passed “three strikes” laws. Under these laws, any person found guilty of two previous crimes receives a stiff sentence of twenty to thirty years after conviction for a third.

While many applaud this get-tough policy, others claim that it suffers from a serious problem: racial bias. Blacks represent just 12 percent of the U.S. population and about 13 percent of those who reported using illegal drugs on a monthly basis. Yet three-quarters of all prison sentences for possession of drugs involve African Americans. Many civil rights groups say that such differential treatment must end.

New Challenges

As the 21st century begins, Americans face a number of new challenges. Deadly school shootings have brought attention to the issue of youth violence, and violent crime in America’s cities remains a national concern. But the greatest challenge to public safety may be the renewed threat of terrorism. During the mid-1990s, a series of bombings signaled a disturbing new era of terrorism in America. The bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993, the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, and the bombing at Atlanta’s Centennial Park in 1996 all contributed to a growing sense of public vulnerability.

Following the events of September 11, 2001, in October President Bush signed into law new anti-terrorism measures. These laws greatly increased the authority of local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to obtain and to share information about anyone living in the United States, but drew severe criticism for intruding on personal privacy.

It now appears that Americans will be struggling to balance the need for domestic security against its costs—in terms of privacy, convenience, and dollars—well into the 21st century.

1994 Republicans include tougher crime laws in their Contract with America (page 1070). 1997 Supreme Court rules that certain provisions of the Brady Act are unconstitutional. 1999 2 students kill 13 and then themselves at Columbine High School in Colorado (page 1068). 2001 On September 11, terrorist attacks in New York and at the Pentagon kill thousands. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1108 and page 1109 in the print version. 1110

Issues in Education

How can a country guarantee equal education for all?

In the winter of 2001, Paul Vallas, former head of the Chicago public school system, received some discouraging news. A three-year study found “little significant change” in the city’s ailing public high schools—despite six years of intense reform efforts. “The issue is that the problem is tougher than we thought it was,” the study reported, “and we have to find more intense ways of improving what we’ve been doing.” In response to the study, Vallas echoed those sentiments. “We still have a long way to go,” he said. The plight of Chicago’s public schools highlights the nation’s ongoing struggle to improve education.

Historical Perspective

From the earliest days of the nation, American leaders have stressed the importance of education. In the 19th century, reformers helped establish a system of government-supported public schools. By 1900, almost three-quarters of all eight- to fourteen-year-olds attended school. Even with these advances, some groups suffered. Public secondary education failed to reach most African Americans in the early 20th century. Not until 1954, with the Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, did federal court decisions call for an end to separate—and usually inferior—schools for African Americans.

By the 1960s, the nation’s schools wrestled with the problem of a rising discrepancy between suburban schools and inner-city schools. Many students in inner cities attended schools that were housed in decaying buildings and that had dated instructional materials. On the other hand, students in the suburbs enjoyed new facilities and equipment. In both the inner city and the suburbs, violence and drugs have raised issues of safety.

Key Issues

The debate over public education has focused on three key issues. First is the question of how to change schools to improve the quality of education. Second is the issue of school financing. Should different school systems in a state receive equal funding? The third issue has to do with affirmative action—programs intended to remedy past discrimination.

From the earliest days of the nation, American leaders have stressed the importance of education.

Improving Quality

People have offered many ideas on how to improve schools. Some critics say that lack of discipline is a major problem. Others point to the disparity in technology between wealthy and poor schools. During his presidency, Bill Clinton called for all schools in the country to be connected to the Internet and its vast supply of information.

Another reform receiving support is the creation of charter schools. In this plan, certain schools receive a charter, or contract, from a local school district, a state education department, or a university. Charter schools promise innovations in education. In return for freedom to operate as they choose, charter schools promise to increase students’ achievement levels. By April 2005, about 3,400 such schools were in place in approximately 40 states.

Some school reformers favor the voucher system, in which states issue a certificate to parents, who then use it to pay for their child’s education at a school of their choice. The school exchanges the voucher for payment from the government. Supporters of the voucher system believe that parents will seek schools that provide higher-quality education. Public schools will then be forced to compete with private and parochial schools, and with one another. The competition should increase the overall quality of education, supporters argue.

A timeline shows events in Education in the U.S. from 1821 to 2005.

History of Education in the United States 1821 Emma Willard opens Troy Female Seminary, an academic school for girls (page 256). 1837 Horace Mann begins the push to spread public education (page 488). 1865 African Americans who had been slaves begin to create and attend schools (pages 388, 490–491). 1954 Brown v. Board of Education finds segregated schools unconstitutional (pages 914–915). 1965 Federal government begins providing aid to public schools (page 895). Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1110 and page 1111 in the print version. 1111

During his run for office in 2000, President George W. Bush voiced support for vouchers. “I don’t know whether or not the voucher system is a panacea,” he said, “but I’m willing to give it a shot to determine whether it makes sense.”

Financing Education

In most states, school funding relies on local property taxes—taxes paid on the value of real estate in a town or city. When schools are funded primarily by property taxes, however, schools in poorer areas receive less money than those in wealthier communities. According to the magazine Washington Monthly, one New Jersey town spends $13,394 per pupil on schooling. Another town just five miles away spends only $7,889. Court cases have raised legal challenges to unequal school funding in more than 20 states.

In 1993, Michigan voters approved a plan that abandoned reliance on local property taxes as the basis of school funding. Now schools get their money from a smaller state-controlled property tax, an increased sales tax on consumer purchases, and increased taxes on purchases of such items as cigarettes and alcohol. Because the state sets property tax rates and monitors its school systems’ budgets, it can even out inequalities.

photo: a teacher helps a boy read a book.

Jessica Riley, a hearing-impaired volunteer teacher, helps a hearing-impaired second grader with his reading.

Affirmative Action

Many Americans support the idea of programs that give women and minorities greater educational and workplace opportunities. At the same time, a large majority disapprove of quotas, the setting aside of a certain number of jobs or college admissions for members of these groups.

This point became the focus of a court case challenging affirmative action. In the 1970s, Allan Bakke had twice been rejected by the medical school at the University of California, Davis, which instead admitted a number of minority students who had lower grades and test scores. Bakke argued that his rights had been denied. The Supreme Court, in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978), ruled that the school had to admit Bakke—but also said that institutions could use race as one factor among others in determining admission to a college.

On January 8, 2002, President Bush signed into law his education program, No Child Left Behind. A cornerstone of the program is accountability for student performance with national annual reading and math assessments in grades 3 through 8. The law required states to report how many students performed at each of four levels: failure, basic, proficient, and advanced. Schools that failed to show enough progress could lose students to other schools, be forced to change staff, or even be closed down.

In 2006, the Center for Education Policy studied the law’s effects. The study reported that achievement on state tests was rising. Critics claimed that schools were neglecting subjects other than math and reading and that teachers spent too much time on test preparation instead of fully teaching their subjects. Clearly, debate over education reform will continue.

1983 A federal commission report A Nation at Risk severely criticizes public education (page 1047). 1989 Education summit issues Goals 2000. 1996 California voters ban affirmative action in education and other areas. 2005 Number of charter schools in America reaches roughly 3,400. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1110 and page 1111 in the print version. 1112

The Communications Revolution

Can information on the Internet be both reliable and accessible?

On a spring day in 1997, 12-year-old Sean Redden had just logged onto the Internet in his home in Denton, Texas, when he encountered a startling message: “Would someone help me?” The plea turned out to be a distress call from an Internet user nearly 7,000 miles away in Finland. The person had suffered an asthmatic attack that left her barely able to breathe. After obtaining more information from the women, Redden contacted his local police. They in turn alerted Finnish authorities, who located the women and rushed her to medical care at a nearby hospital. This digital rescue is just one example of the power and reach of the Internet, which has dramatically changed American society like nothing else in recent history.

Historical Perspective

In the 1940s, when computers first came into use, they took up huge rooms and required fans or elaborate air-conditioning systems to cool the parts that provided them with power. In the years since, the parts that power computers have become miniaturized and have been made much more powerful. Today, not only can personal computers perform more operations more quickly than the first giant computers did, but they are also affordable for many people. The development of inexpensive personal computers has made it possible for ordinary families to use the latest technology.

Many observers credit computer technology with driving the nation’s astonishing economic growth during the 1990s.

The Internet

A very important component of computer use today is the Internet, a worldwide computer network. In the 1960s, the Department of Defense began to network its computers in order to protect its ability to launch nuclear missiles following a feared Soviet attack. Then in the late 1980s, the National Science Foundation created its own network, NSFNET, and allowed anyone to access it. However, only a small group of computer-science graduates and professors used the system.

At about this time a digital revolution arose as thousands of industries across the country began using computers to run their businesses, and millions of Americans bought personal computers for their homes. With so many computers suddenly in use, NSFNET steadily grew into the large and crowded Internet, which includes the World Wide Web.

The Computer Revolution

The numbers alone demonstrate the influence of computer technology on modern life. By 2007, nearly 70 percent of Americans were logging onto the Internet either at home or at work, and close to 66 percent of U.S. households owned at least one personal computer. What’s more, nearly every business in the nation, from hospitals to accounting firms and airports, has implemented computer systems to handle many of its daily operations.

Many observers credit computer technology with driving the nation’s astonishing economic growth during the 1990s. With computers allowing employees in nearly every field to perform their jobs more quickly and easily, worker productivity and output increased—a major reason for the decade-long boom.

A timeline shows advances in Communications in the U.S. from 1969 to 2006.

History of the Communications Revolution 1969 U.S. Department of Defense creates ARPANET. 1991 First browser, or software for accessing the World Wide Web, developed. 1994 Three million people worldwide use the Internet. 1996 Congress passes Telecommunications Act, allowing companies to engage in a variety of communications endeavors (page 1084). Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1112 and page 1113 in the print version. 1113

Everyday Uses

Computer technology not only has improved how Americans work, but also has dramatically altered how they live. Millions of citizens now buy everything from flowers to books to stock online. In 2005, the nation spent over $93 billion in electronic transactions, also known as e-commerce.

While Americans once communicated strictly by phone or letter, they now talk to each other more and more through their computers. Many teenagers spend several hours a day on “social networking” websites. Computers have also affected the way Americans learn. In 2002, 92 percent of public school classrooms had Internet access, up 15 percent from 2000. A growing number of universities offer classes and even complete degree programs wholly over the Internet.

High-Tech Challenges

For all the benefits and opportunities it has brought, computer technology also has created its own set of challenges. There are few laws and regulations governing the Internet. Thus, while it is a treasure trove of useful information, the World Wide Web also has become a center for the dissemination of pornographic and hate material.

The growth of computers also has led to the growth of “cyber-crime.” Computer vandals, known commonly as hackers, engage in everything from the theft of social security numbers and other vital personal information to the disabling of entire computer systems. The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that cybercrime costs Americans more than $10 billion a year. What concerns officials even more is the growing possibility of “cyberterrorism”—hackers stealing or altering vital military information such as nuclear missile codes.

photo: a teacher helps a boy use a computer.

College senior Demetress Roberts uses a computer program to teach Latino Outreach student Angel Leonardo about fractions.

Meanwhile, a large number of Americans worry about the growing “digital divide,” the notion that computer technology remains out of reach for many of the nation’s poor. According to recent statistics, nearly 92 percent of households earning $75,000 or more owned a computer, compared with only about 42 percent of households earning between $15,000 and $25,000. Many fear that poor families unable to purchase computers are falling even further behind in a country where computer skills are fast becoming a necessity.

Closing the Gap

Actually, the nation is working to close the gap. In San José, California, for example, officials were able to invest $90,000 in a program to teach computer skills to welfare recipients and homeless people. In LaGrange, Georgia, the mayor helped the local cable company by endorsing a deal to give free Internet access for one year to all the town’s residents who sign up for basic cable. Meanwhile, libraries, schools, and senior centers provide free access. A number of proposals to provide people with greater access to computers and training are working their way through the federal and various state governments.

The Future

As the 21st century begins, the computer revolution shows no sign of slowing. The digital technology that has so transformed the nation continues to improve. As the computer age rolls on, Americans and the rest of the world most likely will face exciting new opportunities.

1999 First full-service Internet-only bank opens 2001 Over 200 million people around the world use the Internet. 2006 Number of Internet domains surpasses 400 million. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1112 and page 1113 in the print version. 1114

Curing the Health Care System

How should medical coverage for the uninsured be funded?

To pay for the medicine she needs, 79-year-old Winifred Skinner walks the streets of Des Moines every day collecting cans. “I don’t want to ask for hand-outs. I want to earn it,” she insists. The soaring cost of prescription drugs—especially among the elderly—is just one of the key issues facing American health care today.

Historical Perspective

National health insurance for Americans was first proposed by President Harry S. Truman in 1949, but Congress failed to approve it. It took the legislative skill of President Lyndon B. Johnson to enact Medicare in 1965. The program covered most of the cost of medical care for people age 65 and above.

By the 1990s, Medicare was taking an increasing share of federal spending. In hopes of controlling costs and providing universal coverage, President Clinton proposed a complex plan. However, lobbying by doctors and private insurers and the public’s mistrust of big government caused Congress to defeat Clinton’s plan in 1994.

Meanwhile, many Americans were afraid they would be denied health insurance because of preexisting conditions—medical conditions that are present when a person applies for coverage. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, passed in 1996, removed that concern. It required insurers to provide coverage to all new employees who had had health insurance before changing jobs.

a technician takes a blood sample from a young boy.

Irene Holmes holds her son while technician Roberta Montoya takes a blood sample at the Sandia Health Center.

Health Care Reform

Health care continued to be a hot topic during the 2000 presidential campaign and beyond. One of the issues up for debate was the need for prescription-drug coverage for the elderly, a reform many thought should be addressed as part of an overhaul of the Medicare system. Also high on the agenda were the need to protect patients’ rights and the need to expand health coverage to the ranks of the uninsured.

Soaring Drug Costs

When Medicare began in 1965, the cost of prescription drugs was small compared with that of hospital stays and doctors’ visits. But with the development of new medicines and treatments for heart disease, arthritis, and other chronic conditions, drugs became the fastest-growing component of health-care spending. About 40 percent of people on Medicare were without

A timeline shows events in Health Care in the U.S. from 1949 to 2001.

History of Health Care in the United States 1949 Truman introduces a bill for national health insurance that is ultimately rejected by Congress (page 845). 1953 Department of Health, Education, and Welfare is established. 1965 President Johnson and Congress enact Medicare and Medicaid into law (page 896). 1970s President Nixon increases funding for Medicare and Medicaid (pages 1001–1002). 1981 AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is first identified (page 1046). Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1114 and page 1115 in the print version. 1115

prescription-drug coverage. Many elderly citizens were paying well over $1,000 a year out of pocket for medicine—or else did without.

During the 2000 campaign, the Democrats proposed a drug benefit through Medicare, while Republicans wanted to give seniors the option to choose their own insurance plans, subsidized by the federal government. Following President George W. Bush’s election, Congress passed the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA). The law provided access to drug coverage for elderly and disabled people on Medicare, beginning in 2006.

Meanwhile, looming large on the horizon was one of the toughest questions facing policymakers in the early 21st century: whether the government should reform Medicare as a whole.

The Fate of Medicare

If nothing changes, Medicare will start running out of money by 2010 and is expected to go bankrupt in 2025. The reasons are rising costs and demographic changes.

Americans are living longer now than they were in 1965—about seven years longer on average. As a result, seniors form a greater proportion of the population than before. While rising numbers of elderly drive up the cost of Medicare, the revenues targeted to pay for it are expected to go down. As the population ages, fewer people will work and pay the taxes that fund Medicare. Additionally, elderly persons as a group tend to have higher medical costs. For instance, the elderly make up 9% of Medicaid recipients but account for 26% of its medical costs.

“Health care is too important for any modern society to permit many of its citizens to go without it.”
HENRY J. AARON, FORMER DIRECTOR, BROOKINGS ECONOMIC STUDIES PROGRAM

Today, more than three workers pay taxes for every person who receives Medicare, while in 2035, only two workers will be available to do the job. Workers’ taxes will go up—especially if health costs rise. Meanwhile, according to one estimate, Medicare pays less than half of its beneficiaries’ medical expenses.

What is to be done? Among the approaches that have been proposed are placing more restrictions on Medicare benefits, raising the age of eligibility, or increasing the share to be paid by the elderly. Michael Tanner of the Cato Institute favors raising the age rather than the premium: “premiums already represent a significant burden for many elderly Americans.… Any major increase … risk[s] pushing many of the elderly into poverty.”

The Uninsured Millions

The number of people without health insurance continues to be extensive, totaling 15.7 percent of Americans in 2004.

Some 8 million of the uninsured are children. In 1997, the federal government developed the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). SCHIP provides funding to states so that they can offer health coverage to children of low-income people who earn too much to qualify for Medicaid (which covers the cost of medical care for the poor). By the end of 2003, more than 4 million children had benefited from the program. However, financial stress led a number of states to restrict Medicaid and SCHIP enrollment.

In 2003, Congress established Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) as part of the MMA legislation. HSAs were created to help Americans save for medical expenses. To be eligible, individuals were required to have a high-deductible health insurance plan.

In the first session of the 110th Congress, about a dozen health care reform bills were introduced. Proposals included plans to

• create a government-administered national health insurance

• provide government funding for universal health insurance through private companies

• reauthorize and expand SCHIP.

The legislation also proposed a variety of new or increased taxes to support these plans. Still unknown is whether Congress and the public will be willing to accept these costs.

1996 Congress passes Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). 1997 The State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) is enacted. 2001 Congress extends the Medical Savings Accounts pilot program through 2002 as ”Archer MSAs.” Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1114 and page 1115 in the print version. 1116

Breaking the Cycle of Poverty

Who has the responsibility for helping the poor?

Jim, a 55-year-old painter by trade, retreats each night to a Boston homeless shelter. He spends his days engaging in any work he can find—but it’s never enough to provide him with a roof over his head. Too many of the jobs available, he says, “pay only the minimum wage or a bit higher, and they cannot cover the rent and other bills.” Jim, who says his dream is to “get a steady job, find an apartment, and settle down,” insists that he never imagined he would find himself homeless. “I never thought it could happen to me,” he says. Jim is just one of more than 32 million citizens considered poor in a nation that continues to cope with the challenge of eradicating poverty.

Historical Perspective

Some part of the American population has faced poverty since the “starving time” at Jamestown during the winter of 1609–1610. In the 20th century, poverty was most widespread during the Great Depression of the 1930s. That economic disaster led to several new government programs such as the 1935 Social Security Act, which created a pension fund for retired people over age 65 and offered government aid to poor people for the first time.

Though the Depression ended with World War II, postwar prosperity did not last. In the 1960s, President Lyndon B. Johnson declared “unconditional war on poverty” as his administration expanded education, training, and financial aid for the poor. The proportion of people living below the poverty level—the minimum income necessary to provide basic living stan-dards—fell from 20 percent in 1962 to only 11 percent in 1973. However, economic hard times reappeared in the early 1980s and the poverty rate began to rise. In 2003, 35.9 million Americans lived below the poverty line—which that year was marked by an annual income of $18,810 or less for a family of four.

Many of those Americans who live in poverty are employed.

Americans in Poverty

Many Americans who live in poverty are employed. Known as the working poor, they hold low-wage jobs with few benefits and almost never any health insurance. Children also account for a major share of the poor, and their numbers are growing rapidly for many ethnic groups. The poverty rate among children in the United States is higher than that in any other Western industrialized nation.

Like Jim in Boston, many of the poor are homeless. During the 1980s, cuts in welfare and food stamp benefits brought the problem of homelessness to national attention. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH), about 750,000 Americans are without shelter on any given night.

Many experts on the homeless believe that the lack of housing is simply a symptom of larger problems. These include unemployment, low-wage jobs, and high housing costs, and in some cases, personal problems such as substance abuse or mental illness.

Some Causes of Poverty

Experts agree that there are numerous causes of poverty. Lack of skills keeps many welfare recipients from finding or keeping jobs. They need more than job training, many observers insist, they also need training in work habits.

Another factor that holds back increased employment is limited access to child care. Economist David Gordon related the results of a study of mothers who received

A timeline shows events in the cycle of poverty in the U.S. from 1894 to 2001.

History of the Cycle of Poverty in the United States 1894 High unemployment in the wake of the panic of 1893 leaves thousands homeless (pages 427–428). 1935 Social Security Act is passed; government gives aid to poor for first time (pages 698, 707). 1962 Michael Harrington’s The Other America shocks the nation by revealing extent of poverty (page 888). 1964 President Johnson announces War on Poverty (page 894). Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1116 and page 1117 in the print version. 1117

a study of mothers who received welfare. They could eke out a living, he found, by combining paid work and some outside support with welfare payments and food stamps. But, Gordon asked, suppose one of these mothers left welfare and took a full-time minimum-wage job. “[If] she cannot find free child care and has to pay the going rate, her standard of living … would decline by 20 percent.” To help meet the need for child care, a 1996 federal welfare law included $3.5 billion in funding for day care.

For millions of Americans, the U.S. public education system has failed to provide the tools necessary for climbing out of poverty. Anne Lewis, an education writer, points out that “three-fourths of all welfare/food stamp recipients perform at the lowest levels of literacy.” In turn, she notes, low levels of literacy generally lead to low employment rates and lower wages.

photo: students tend to crops in a field.

Amherst College freshmen in Massachusetts hoe a field for a farm run by a local food bank in a school outreach community-service project.

Another factor contributing to poverty has been discrimination against racial minorities. Current statistics highlight how much more prevalent poverty is among minorities. In 2003, the poverty rate among whites was 8.2 percent, while among Hispanics and African Americans it was 22.5 percent and 24.4 percent, respectively.

Federal Welfare Reform

As the nation continued to struggle with poverty and homelessness, the cry for welfare reform grew louder. Critics of the system argued that providing financial aid to the poor gave them little incentive to better their lives and thus helped to create a culture of poverty. In 1996, the Republican Congress and President Clinton signed a bill—the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act—that cut more than $55 billion in welfare spending over six years and put a five-year limit on how long people could receive welfare payments. In addition, the bill cut benefits to recipients who had not found a job within two years.

Supporters cheered the reforms, claiming that they transformed a system from one that fosters dependence to one that encourages self-reliance. Opponents of the law accused the federal government of turning its back on the poor—especially children.

Both proponents and critics of the bill agreed on one thing: the law’s success depended on putting welfare recipients to work. The federal government offered three incentives to encourage businesses to hire people from the welfare rolls: tax credits for employers who hire welfare recipients, wage subsidies, and establishment of enterprise zones, which provide tax breaks to companies that locate in economically depressed areas.

The 2002 welfare reauthorization bill enacted President Bush’s calls for funding religious and other volunteer organizations to assume more responsibility for the needy, time limits on welfare benefits, and increased work requirements. Five years later, it appeared that it would still be some years before anyone can say whether or not the president’s or other proposed welfare reforms break the cycle of poverty.

1970 Nixon’s welfare reform bill—the Family Assistance Plan—dies in the Senate (page 1001). 1980s Welfare benefits and food stamps are cut under President Reagan (page 1041). 1996 Congress passes Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (page 1068). 2001 President Bush pushes for Charitable Choice Act, passed in the House in July. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1116 and page 1117 in the print version. 1118

Tough Choices About Social Security

How can Social Security be reformed so that it will have enough money to pay retirees?

Economist Lester Thurow gives new meaning to the term generation gap. “In the years ahead, class warfare is apt to be redefined as the young against the old, rather than the poor against the rich,” he warns. Economics may become a major issue dividing generations, as young workers shoulder the costs of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid—the three major entitlement programs funded by the federal government.

Historical Perspective

In the 1935 Social Security Act, or FICA, the government promised to pay a pension to older Americans, funded by a tax on workers and employers. At that time, President Franklin D. Roosevelt said that Social Security was not intended to provide all of an individual’s retirement income, but it was a base on which workers would be able to build with private pension funds.

In 1965, new laws extended Social Security support. In addition, the government assumed most health care costs for the elderly through the Medicare program and for the poor through Medicaid. These programs are called entitlements because the recipients are entitled by law to the benefits.

Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have received a lot of attention because the United States population is aging. This aging population will put a severe financial strain on these programs.

Citizens in favor of protecting Social Security rally on the U.S. Capitol grounds.

Social Security Funding

Social Security’s problem can be attributed to a few important factors. First, when the baby boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) retire, their huge numbers—about 70 million by the year 2020—may overburden the entitlement programs. Second, Americans now live longer, so an individual’s share of benefits from the program is greater than in the past. Third, the number of workers paying into Social Security per beneficiary will drop when the boomers start retiring.

Currently, Social Security collects more in taxes than it pays in benefits. The extra goes into a “trust fund” that is invested. Around the year 2017 the program will begin paying out more to beneficiaries than it takes in from the payroll tax. The program will begin to rely on the Social Security trust fund to pay retirees. If that trend continues, after about the year 2052, the fund will

A timeline shows changes in Entitlements in the U.S. from 1935 to 2000.

History of Entitlements in the United States 1935 President Roosevelt signs Social Security Act (page 707). 1961 Changes to Social Security allow reduced benefits at early retirement—age 62. 1965 President Johnson signs Medicare and Medicaid into law (page 896). 1970s President Nixon increases Social Security payments (pages 901–902). 1975 Congress includes cost-of-living adjustments for Social Security benefits. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1118 and page 1119 in the print version. 1119

pay retirees only 75 percent of the benefits due to them.

Most experts recommend reform, and Americans have listened. One poll found that 81 percent of Americans under 40 believe that the Social Security program needs to be changed to guarantee its financial stability.

Options for Change

A number of plans for reforming Social Security have been proposed. These different views have become the main options being debated in Congress and around the country.

• Raise Social Security Taxes Some people have suggested small tax hikes, arguing that since people’s incomes are expected to rise, they will be able to afford an increase. As of 2005, only the first $90,000 of any individual’s income is subject to FICA tax. Some people have suggested that those with higher incomes are not paying their fair share.

• Cut Benefits Some argue that benefits should be reduced by ending automatic cost-of-living adjustments or lowering payments made to retirees who earn over a certain amount of money each year. These wealthier people, they say, do not need to receive higher payments.

• Raise the Retirement Age Because people can now work productively later in life than they used to, some propose raising the retirement age. That will reduce the payments made and increase tax receipts. Currently, the retirement age is set to increase to age 66 by 2009 and then to age 67 by 2027.

• Invest Funds in the Stock Market Some people suggest that the government should invest some of Social Security money in the stock market. They assume that stocks will rise, making the system healthier.

• Allow Individual Investing Others agree with allowing the funds to be invested but want individuals to control where their own funds are invested.

Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have received much attention because the U.S. population is aging.

The Future of The Funds

During the 2000 presidential election, exit polls found that some 57 percent of Americans supported the “privatization” approach out-lined by President Bush during his campaign: allow workers to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into individual stock-market accounts. During the 2004 election campaign and following the election, President Bush continued his attempts to persuade Americans to support his privatization plan.

Meanwhile, the proposal drew its share of critics. Among them were advocates for disabled workers and their families—a group that in 2003 made up 12 percent of all Social Security beneficiaries. According to a report from the General Accounting Office, under President Bush’s plan a worker who became disabled and retired at the age of 45, for example, would receive 4 percent to 18 percent less in benefits.

Some women’s groups also opposed privatization. They said that it would jeopardize the guarantee of lifetime, inflation-adjusted benefits that the current Social Security system provides. Because women earn less than men, they would have less to invest, and their returns would be lower.

Still others were concerned about the risk involved in relying on a volatile stock market. They questioned whether the funds in which people would invest their Social Security taxes would be secure.

In the end, Bush could not garner enough support for his plan: Congress did not want to take on the risk of changing something that so many people depended on and that had worked so well for so long. So the funding problem remains unsolved.

1983 Social Security is reformed to provide financial stability for many years. 1994 President Clinton appoints Advisory Council on Social Security to report on system’s financial health. 2000 President-Elect Bush proposes a plan to divert a portion of Social Security tax into individual stock-market accounts. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1118 and page 1119 in the print version. 1120

Women in the Work Force

Will the American workplace grant men and women equal opportunities?

Thirty-two years after entering a management training program at Boston’s Federal Reserve Bank, Cathy Minehan—now the bank’s president—is one of a select group of female executives who hold 3.3 percent of the nation’s highest-paying jobs. “A critical element in making it to the top is being in the pipeline to do so,…” says Minehan. “Aside from … [that,] they have to believe they can make it.… It is hard for women or minorities to believe they can progress if they cannot look up and see faces like their own at the top.”

Historical Perspective

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy named a commission to study the status of women in the workplace. Its report revealed that employers paid women less than men for equal work. The report also said that women were rarely promoted to top positions in their fields.

Almost 40 years later, the U.S. Census Bureau found that more women than ever before worked out-side the home—about 60 percent. Women made up 47 percent of the American work force. Yet in 2005 they held only 16.4 percent of the most senior jobs according to a sampling of the Fortune 500, the nation’s 500 largest companies.

Women are still making less than their male counterparts—averaging only 80 cents for every dollar.

Some women who pursue careers in business, government, or other organizations feel that a glass ceiling limits their progress. It is said to be glass because it is an invisible barrier that keeps women and minorities from attaining promotion above a certain level. Its invisibility makes it difficult to combat.

Positive Trends

Women have made great strides in recent decades. In 2002, they filled half of all jobs in managerial and professional specialty areas. Women have also been entering new fields, including construction work and equipment repair.

In the academic world, women are better represented than ever before. In 2002–2003, women received a record number—nearly 47 percent—of all doctorate degrees issued by universities. Women earned an even higher percentage—58—of all degrees.

For many women, job success involved getting the right credentials and targeting a growth industry. A 2000 survey by the women’s advocacy group Catalyst found that 91 percent of women with MBA degrees working in information technology reported high satisfaction with their current jobs, compared with only 82 percent of their male counterparts. “This translates into opportunity for women in this growing industry,” said Sheila Wellington, president of Catalyst.

Money and Upward Mobility

Despite these positive signs, the key issues of unequal pay and unequal representation remain. Women are still making less than their male counterparts—averaging only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. According to the National Committee on Pay Equity, there are a variety of reasons for this discrepancy: women are often socialized to aim toward lower-paying jobs, often have limited expectations about

A timeline shows events involving women in the workforce in the U.S. from 1834 to 2005.

History of Women at Work in the United States 1834 Women working in Lowell, Massachusetts, textile mills strike (pages 213, 450–451). 1860 1 out of 10 single white women works outside the home, earning half the pay of men (pages 442, 450). 1899 Average pay for women workers is $269 a year, compared with $498 for men. 1900 One out of five women works outside the home (pages 519–520). 1920s Women enter new professions but battle unequal wages (page 648). Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1120 and page 1121 in the print version. 1121 photo: judge Rosemary Barkett.

U.S. Appeals Court judge Rosemary Barkett (center) delivers the keynote address during a special session of Florida’s high court honoring the state’s first 150 female lawyers on June 15, 2000, in Tallahassee, Florida.

their leadership potential, and may have conflicts between the demands of work and family life.

In the nation’s most top-level jobs, men continue to vastly outnumber women. As of 2006, women headed only ten Fortune 500 companies. Very few women who became corporate officers held line positions, jobs with profit-and-loss responsibility. In 2005, women held only 10.6 percent of line positions, while in contrast, men held 89.4 percent of them.

Why are women underrepresented in the top jobs? In one Catalyst poll of women executives, blame was placed on three factors: male stereotyping and preconceptions of women, women’s exclusion from informal networks of communication, and women’s lack of significant management experience.

On the other hand, the respondents suggested some approaches that had helped them succeed in the corporate world: consistently exceed expectations, develop a style with which managers are comfortable, seek out difficult assignments, and have an influential mentor.

Striking Out on their Own

Many women who are frustrated by the corporate environment at their existing companies are choosing to start their own business. According to the center for Women’s Business Research, in 2004 10.6 million firms were at least 50 percent owned by women—and constituted the fastest-growing sector of all U.S. firms. Notes Dixie Junk, owner of Junk Architects in Kansas City, “It’s more than having a business—you get to create the culture you want.”

It Pays to be Flexible

Another area of change affecting women in the work force has been an increasing number of options for flexible work arrangements, such as part-time work and telecommuting opportunities. In 2004, 71 percent of companies surveyed had formal policies or guidelines for some type of flexible work arrangement.

A Catalyst study of 24 women who first used flexible work arrangements more than a decade ago found that all of them now held mid- and senior-level positions, and more than half had been promoted in the last 10 years. Says Marcia Brumit Kropf, vice-president of research and information services, “Findings from this report suggest that even though working mothers may reduce career involvement for a period of time—with the support of the right company—career advancement does not have to get sidelined.”

In general, women still have the primary responsibility for child care in U.S. society. Women without flexible work arrangements must find others to care for their children at least part of the day. About 65 percent of mothers with children under the age of 6 and 80 percent of mothers with children between the ages of 6 and 13 work. Many people believe that the government should subsidize child-care costs.

1961 Presidential Commission on the Status of Women reports: women are paid less than men (page 983). 1989 20 states begin adjusting pay scales to equalize pay (page 1049). 1998 Women earn 76 cents for every dollar a man earns. 2005 Women-owned businesses are the fastest-growing sector of the U.S. economy. Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1120 and page 1121 in the print version. 1122

The Conservation Controversy

Can the nation balance conservation with economic progress?

In 1990, Oregon logger Bill Haire hung a new ornament on the mirror of his truck: a tiny owl with an arrow through its head. The trinket represented the spotted owl as well as Haire’s feelings about the federal government’s decision to declare millions of acres of forest off limits to the logging industry in order to protect this endangered species of bird.

“If it comes down to my family or that bird,” said Haire, “that bird’s going to suffer.” The battle between loggers and environmentalists over the fate of the spotted owl is just one example of the nation’s ongoing struggle to balance conservation with industrial progress.

Historical Perspective

Conservation, the management and protection of the earth’s resources, began as a national movement in the United States during the early 1900s. In the wake of the country’s industrial revolution, the federal government enacted numerous measures to protect the nation’s natural surroundings. President Theodore Roosevelt expressed a particular interest in preserving America’s forestlands. “Like other men who had thought about the national future at all,” he once remarked, “I had been growing more and more concerned over the destruction of the forests.” Roosevelt established the first wildlife refuge in Florida and added more than 150 million acres to the nation’s forest preserves.

photo: a family hikes on a mountain trail.

Hikers on the Highline Trail in Glacier National Park, northwest Montana

The 1960s and 1970s witnessed a resurgence of the conservation movement. In 1962, marine biologist Rachel Carson published Silent Spring, which warned of the destructive effects of pesticides. The book awakened Americans to the damage they were inflicting on the environment. In the two decades that followed, Congress created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and enacted such measures as the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act—all in an effort to restore the health of the country’s natural resources. And, since 1970, the country nearly tripled the size of its national park space.

A timeline shows events involving Conservation in the U.S. from 1903 to 2001.

History of Conservation in the United States 1903 President Theodore Roosevelt establishes the first federal wildlife refuge (page 529). 1933 President Franklin Roosevelt creates the Civilian Conservation Corps (page 697). 1962 Rachel Carson publishes Silent Spring (page 897). 1970 Congress establishes the Environmental Protection Agency; Congress passes Clean Air Act (page 1028). 1973 Congress passes the Endangered Species Act (page 1028). Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1122 and page 1123 in the print version. 1123

The Movement Continues

By the 1990s, Americans had done much to improve the environment. Between 1970 and 2000, for example, the nation’s yearly production of carbon monoxide emissions into the air dropped from 197.3 million tons to 102.4 million.

A number of states have made independent efforts. California, for instance, has some of the nation’s strictest air-pollution control laws, and these have helped to provide the Golden State with much cleaner air. Other states are playing their part as well in the nation’s ongoing conservation effort.

However, there is still much to be done, especially about water pollution. One indicator is data collected by the Environmental Protection Agency for the year 2003, which showed that beach closings—mostly due to unsafe levels of water pollution—were on the rise.

Not all action has been through government. Private groups such as the Nature Conservancy and numerous local land trusts have raised money to purchase forest and watershed lands and keep them pristine. In Texas several entrepreneurs created the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, a 2,700-acre wildlife sanctuary for more than 30 animal species.

Ongoing Debates

Despite the strides Americans have made in protecting their natural resources over the past half century, environmental problems still exist, and the nation still struggles to strike a balance between conservation and economic growth. Such a struggle is clearly visible in the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is the rise in temperature that Earth experiences because certain gases in the atmosphere trap energy from the sun. Without these gases, heat would escape back into space and Earth’s average temperature would be about 60ºF colder.

As the 21st century begins, the nation faces the challenge of balancing energy needs with environmental concerns.

Some greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, occur naturally in the air. But the burning of fossil fuels and other human activities add to the levels of these gases, amplifying the greenhouse effect and causing an increase in global warming. Global warming could prompt a range of environmental calamities, from severe flooding in some parts of the world to drought in others.

In 2005, a treaty called the Kyoto Protocol took effect. It aims to reduce greenhouse gases overall by requiring developed countries to lower their emissions. The United States—the world’s largest producer of greenhouse gases—had refused to sign the treaty. President George W. Bush expressed doubt about global warming for several years. He also claimed that the Kyoto Protocol would harm the U.S. economy and is unfair because developing countries such as China are exempt.

Another issue of great concern to Americans today—and one that also is stirring debate between environmentalists and industrialists—is the nation’s growing appetite for energy. The United States consumes 25 percent of the world’s energy, nearly all of it in the form of fossil fuels such as oil, coal, and natural gas. Much of the fuel America uses comes from overseas—in places such as the oil-rich Middle East. The reliance on foreign sources has left the United States vulnerable to price increases and fuel shortages.

In 2005, President Bush outlined a plan to lessen U.S. dependence on oil imports. He proposed using more nuclear power, giving tax credits to buyers of energy-efficient cars and appliances, building new refineries, and drilling for more oil at home. Environmentalists blocked a bill to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. In addition, analysts judged that the Bush plan was unlikely to reduce U.S. energy usage or increase oil production notably.

In 2007, gasoline prices soared to record highs, causing new energy worries. The challenge of balancing energy needs with environmental concerns is an issue that Americans will grapple with for years.

1977 Congress passes Clean Water Act. 1990 Congress amends Clean Air Act to address new environ-mental problems, including acid rain and ozone depletion. 2001 Nations agree to a revised Kyoto Protocol, which requires industrial nations to preserve “environnmental integrity.” Production note: Captions with the class attribute value “label” correspond to content that appears in labels associated with this image. Production note: this image crosses the gutter to appear both on page 1122 and page 1123 in the print version.

The Americans: Reference Section

Skillbuilder Handbook
Skills for reading, thinking, and researching

Economics Handbook

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Facts About the States

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Presidents of the United States

Glossary

Spanish Glossary

Index

Skillbuilder Handbook

1. Understanding Historical Readings

1.1 Finding Main Ideas

1.2 Following Chronological Order

1.3 Clarifying; Summarizing

1.4 Identifying Problems

1.5 Analyzing Motives

1.6 Analyzing Causes and Effects

1.7 Comparing; Contrasting

1.8 Distinguishing Fact from Opinion

1.9 Making Inferences

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2. Using Critical Thinking

2.1 Developing Historical Perspective

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2.2 Formulating Historical Questions

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2.3 Hypothesizing

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2.4 Analyzing Issues

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2.5 Analyzing Assumptions and Biases

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2.6 Evaluating Decisions and Courses of Action

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2.7 Forming Opinions (Evaluating)

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2.8 Drawing Conclusions

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2.9 Synthesizing

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2.10 Making Predictions

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2.11 Forming Generalizations

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3. Print, Visual, and Technological Sources

3.1 Primary and Secondary Sources

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3.2 Visual, Audio, Multimedia Sources

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3.3 Analyzing Political Cartoons

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3.4 Interpreting Maps

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3.5 Interpreting Charts

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3.6 Interpreting Graphs

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3.7 Using the Internet

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4. Presenting Information

4.1 Creating Charts and Graphs

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4.2 Creating Models

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4.3 Creating Maps

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4.4 Creating Databases

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4.5 Creating Written Presentations

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4.6 Creating Oral Presentations

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4.7 Creating Visual Presentations

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Section 1: Understanding Historical Readings

1.1 Finding Main Ideas

Defining the Skill

Finding mainideas means identifying words that sum up the single most important thought in an entire paragraph or section. To find the main idea of a passage, identify the topic. Then, as you read, ask, What central idea do the many details explain or support?

Applying the Skill

This excerpt from President Richard M. Nixon’s memoirs is about wiretapping, or bugging—planting a concealed microphone to get information. The diagram that follows identifies and organizes information in the passage.

How to Find Main Ideas

Strategy 1 Identify the topic by looking at the title, or by looking for key words. This passage repeats the words bugged, bugging, tapped, and wiretap.

Strategy 2 Look for a topic sentence. Ask whether any one sentence sums up the point of the whole passage. In this passage, the second sentence states Nixon’s attitude toward bugging.

Strategy 3 Look for details or examples. The many examples support the attitude that wiretapping was a common practice.

Nixon on Wiretapping 1

I had been in politics too long, and seen everything from dirty tricks to vote fraud. 2 I could not muster much moral outrage over a political 1 bugging.

Larry O’Brien [director of the Democratic National Committee] might affect astonishment and horror, but he knew as well as I did that political bugging had been around nearly since the invention of the wiretap. 3 As recently as 1970 a former member of Adlai Stevenson’s [Democratic candidate for president in 1952 and 1956] campaign staff had publicly stated that he had tapped the [John F.] Kennedy organization’s phone lines at the 1960 Democratic convention. 3 Lyndon Johnson felt that the Kennedys had had him tapped; 3 Barry Goldwater said that his 1964 campaign had been bugged; 3 and Edgar Hoover [director of the FBI, 1924–1972] told me that in 1968 Johnson had ordered my campaign plane bugged.

Source: Richard Nixon, The Memoirs of Richard Nixon

(New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1978), pp. 628–629.

Make a Diagram

State the topic and list the supporting details in a chart. Use the information you record to help you state the main idea.

A chart on the topic of political wiretapping.

DESCRIPTION:

At the top of the chart, the topic Political Wiretapping is connected to four squares, one labled Opinion and three others titled Example. Opinon: Political bugging had been around since the wiretap. Examples: Kennedy had been tapped at the 1960 convention. Goldwater said his 1964 campaign was bugged. Hoover said Johnson ordered the bugging of Nixon's campaign plane. The four squares are connected to the Main Idea at the bottom of the chart: Nixon was not outraged over political wiretapping because it was common practice.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 34, Section 3, p. 1085 and read the passage headed “Space Exploration.” Make a diagram, like the one above, to identify the topic, the most important details, and the main idea of the passage.

1.2 Following Chronological Order

Defining the Skill

Chronological order is “time order”—the sequence of events in time. Chronology may be either relative or absolute. Relative chronology relates one event to another. This helps historians to see causes, effects, and other relationships between events. Absolute chronology ties events to an exact time or date, pinpointing dates in one universal framework—the passage of time.

Applying the Skill

The following paragraph is about several events leading up to the Watergate scandal that brought down the Nixon administration. The time line that follows puts the events of the passage in chronological order.

How to Follow Chronological Order

Strategy 1 Look for clue words about time. These are words like initial, first, next, then, before, after, finally, and by that time.

Strategy 2 Use specific dates provided in the text.

Strategy 3 Watch for references to previous historical events that are included in the background. Usually a change in verb tense will indicate a previous event.

The Pentagon Papers

The 1 initial event that many historians believe led to Watergate took place on 2 June 13, 1971, when the New York Times began publishing articles called the Pentagon Papers, which divulged government secrets about the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. The information had been leaked by a former Defense Department official, Daniel Ellsberg. The Justice Department asked the courts to suppress publication of the articles, but on 2 July 30, 1971, the Supreme Court ruled that the information could be published. 1 Two months later, in September, a group of special White House agents known as the plumbers burglarized the office of Ellsberg’s psychiatrist in a vain attempt to find evidence against Ellsberg. President Nixon 3 had authorized the creation of the plumbers in 1971, after the Pentagon Papers were published, to keep government secrets from leaking to the media and to help ensure his reelection in November 1972.

Make a Time Line

If the events in a passage are numerous and complex, make a time line to represent them. The time line here lists the events from the passage above in time order.

A timeline shows events from June 13, 1971 to November 1972 involving the Pentagon Papers.

Practicing the Skill

Skim, Chapter 29, Section 2, p. 916 “The Triumphs of a Crusade,” to find out how the civil rights movement helped end segregation in the South. Make a list of the important dates you find, starting with the freedom ride in May 1961 and ending with the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Use the model above to help you create your own time line, showing what happened on each date.

1.3 Clarifying; Summarizing

Defining the Skill

Clarifying means checking to be sure you clearly understand what you have read. One way to do this is by asking yourself questions. In your answers, you might restate in your own words what you have read.

When you summarize, you condense what you have read into fewer words, stating only the main idea and the most important supporting details. It is important to use your own words in a summary.

Applying the Skill

The excerpt below describes a major oil spill. Following the excerpt is a summary that condenses the key information in the passage into a few sentences.

How to Summarize

Strategy 1 Look for topic sentences stating the main ideas. These are often at the beginning of a section or paragraph. In a summary, rewrite the main ideas in your own words.

Strategy 2 Include only the most important facts and statistics. Pay attention to numbers, dates, quantities, and other data.

Strategy 3 Clarify understanding by asking questions. Also, look up any words you do not recognize.

The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

1 In March 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound along the coast of Alaska, dumping about 2 11 million gallons of crude oil into the sea. Within days, 1,800 miles of coastline were fouled with thick black oil that coated rocks and beaches At least 10 percent of the area’s birds, sea otters, and other animals were killed, and commercial fisheries estimated that they would lose at least 50 percent of the season’s catch.

The captain of the Exxon Valdez was found guilty of 3 negligence, and attempts were made to clean up the spill. 2 Ten years later, however, scientists found that pools of oil buried in coves were still poisoning shellfish, otters, and ducks, while several bird species failed to reproduce.

2 Between 1989 and 1994, Exxon spent about $2.1 billion in efforts to clean up Prince William Sound. In the meantime, some 34,000 commercial fishers and other Alaskans sued the company for damages, claiming that the oil spill had ruined their livelihoods.

Write a Summary

You can write your summary in a paragraph. The paragraph below summarizes the passage about the Exxon Valdez oil spill. After writing your summary, review it to see that you have included only the most important details.

Practicing the Skills

Turn to Chapter 22, Section 1, p. 670 and read the passage headed “Economic Troubles on the Horizon.” Make notes of the main ideas. Look up any words you don’t recognize. Then write a summary of the passage, using the model above as your guide.

1.4 Identifying Problems

Defining the Skill

Identifying problems means recognizing and understanding difficulties faced by particular people or groups at particular times. Being able to focus on specific problems helps historians understand the motives for actions and the forces underlying historical events.

Applying the Skill

The following passage tells about the experience of newcomers to Northern cities, like Boston and Philadelphia, in the late 1800s. Below the passage is a chart that organizes the information the passage contains.

How to Identify Problems

Strategy 1 Look for problems that are implied but not stated. Problems are sometimes stated indirectly. This sentence implies that many immigrants settled in the cities because of limited opportunities elsewhere.

Strategy 2 Look for difficulties people faced.

Strategy 3 Evaluate solutions to problems.

Strategy 4 Recognize that sometimes the solution to one problem may cause another problem.

Immigrant Life in the Cities

1 The lure that drew many immigrants to America and its cities often was the same one that had attracted settlers to the West—opportunity. In the nation’s industrialized centers people saw a chance to 2 escape poverty, find work, and carve out a better life.

Cities offered unskilled laborers steady jobs in mills and factories and provided the social support of neighborhoods of people with the same ethnic background. 3 Living among people who shared their background enabled the newcomers to speak their own language while learning about their new home. 4 Overcrowding soon became a problem, however—one that was intensified by the migration of people from America’s rural areas.

Make a Chart

The chart below summarizes the problems and solutions in the passage. The chart details what the problems were, what steps people took to solve the problems, and how those solutions affected them.

Problems	Solutions	Outcomes
poverty	coming to U.S. cities	jobs available
lack of opportunity	coming to U.S. cities	jobs, housing, communities
lack of work skills	factory and mill jobs requiring low level of training	enough jobs for the time being
unfamiliarity with language	living in ethnic communities	community but overcrowding

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 31, Section 2, p. 982 and read the passage headed “Women Fight for Equality.” Note the social and economic problems many women faced in the 1960s and 1970s. Then make a chart, like the one above, in which you summarize the information you found in the passage. Be sure to read to the end of the section so that you can evaluate the solutions attempted and their outcomes.

1.5 Analyzing Motives

Defining the Skill

Analyzing motives in history means examining the reasons why a person, group, or government took a particular action. These reasons often go back to the needs, emotions, and prior experiences of the person or group, as well as their plans, circumstances, and objectives.

Applying the Skill

The following paragraphs tell how the early Mormons were treated and why they moved west in the mid-1800s. The diagram below the passage summarizes the Mormons’ motives for that journey.

How to Analyze Motives

Strategy 1 Look for different kinds of motives. Some motives are negative, and others are positive.

Strategy 2 Look for the influence of important individuals or leaders in motivating others.

Strategy 3 Look for basic needs and human emotions as powerful motivators. Such needs and emotions include food and shelter, greed, ambition, compassion, and fear.

The Mormon Migration

Some of the Mormons’ beliefs alarmed and angered other Americans. 1 Plagued by persecution and violence and seeking to convert Native Americans, Mormon church founder Joseph Smith led his followers west to a small community in Illinois. Conflict soon developed again when Smith allowed male members to have more than one wife. This idea infuriated many of Smith’s neighbors, and he was eventually murdered by a mob.

2 The Mormons rallied around a new leader, Brigham Young, who urged them to move farther west. There they encountered a desert area near a salt lake, just beyond the moutains of what was then part of Mexico. The salty water was useless for crops and animals. Because the land was not desirable to others, 3 Young realized that his people might be safe there. The Mormons began to build Salt Lake City.

Make a Diagram

In the center of the diagram, list the important actions from the passage. Around it, list motives in different categories.

A diagram shows the Needs, Emotions, Actions, Prior Experiences and Goals of the Mormons.

DESCRIPTION:

Needs: safety, religious freedom. Emotions: Faith, fear, hope. Prior Experiences: insults, violence, persecution. Goals: to convert Native Americans; to practice religion freely. Arrows connect each of these to a space in the center of the diagram labled Action: Mormons move West, finally to the Great Salt Lake.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 25, Section 3, p. 789 and read the passage headed “The Atomic Bomb Ends the War.” Take notes about President Truman’s motives in dropping atomic bombs on Japan. Then create a diagram similar to the one shown here.

1.6 Analyzing Causes and Effects

Defining the Skill

A cause is an action in history that prompts something to happen. An effect is a historical event or condition that is the result of the cause. A single event may have several causes. It is also possible for one cause to result in several effects. Historians identify cause-and-effect relationships to help them understand why historical events took place.

Applying the Skill

The following paragraphs describe the early events leading to the Battle of Little Bighorn. The diagram that follows the passage summarizes the chain of causes and effects.

How to Identify Causes and Effects

Strategy 1 Look for reasons behind the events. Here the discovery of gold motivated white Americans to move into Sioux territory.

Strategy 2 Look for clue words indicating cause. These include because, due to, since, and therefore.

Strategy 3 Look for clue words indicating consequences. These include brought about, led to, as a result, thus, consequently, and responded. Remember that a cause may have several effects.

Broken Treaties

The Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868) had promised the Sioux that they could live forever in Paha Sapa, the Black Hills area of what is now South Dakota and Wyoming. The area was sacred to the Sioux. It was the center of their land and the place where warriors went to await visions from their guardian spirits.

Unfortunately for the Sioux, the Black Hills contained large deposits of gold. 1 As soon as white Americans learned that gold had been discovered, they poured into the Native Americans’ territory and began staking claims.

2 Because the Sioux valued their land so highly, they appealed to the government to enforce the treaty terms and remove the miners. The government 3 responded by offering to purchase the land from the Sioux. When the Sioux refused, the government sent in the Seventh Cavalry to remove the Native Americans.

Make a Cause-and-Effect Diagram

Starting with the first cause in a series, fill in the boxes until you reach the end result.

A cause-and-effect diagram shows a progression of causes leading to effects.

DESCRIPTION:

Cause: Gold was discovered in the Black Hills. Effect/Cause: White prospectors flocked to the area. Effect/Cause: The Sioux asked the government to enforce the treaty. Effect/Cause: The government sent a commission to buy lands. Effect/Cause: The Sioux refused the commission's offer. Effect: The government sent in the cavalry.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 19, Section 3, p. 598 and read the passage headed “African Americans and the War.” Take notes about the causes and effects of African-American migration. Make a diagram, like the one shown above, to organize the information you find.

1.7 Comparing; Contrasting

Defining The Skill

Comparing involves looking at the similarities and differences between two or more things. Contrasting means examining only the differences between them. Historians might compare and contrast events, personalities, beliefs, institutions, works of art, or many other types of things in order to give them a context for the period of history they are studying.

Applying the Skill

The following passage describes life in colonial America during the last half of the 1600s. The Venn diagram below shows the similarities and differences between the Northern and Southern colonies.

How to Compare and Contrast

Strategy 1 Look for clue words that show how two things differ. Clue words include different, differ, unlike, by contrast, however, and on the other hand.

Strategy 2 Look for clue words indicating that two things are alike. Clue words include both, all, like, as, likewise, and similarly.

Strategy 3 Look for features that two things have in common.

Life in the Early American Colonies

Not long after the English colonies were established, it became apparent that two 1 very different ways of life were developing in the Northern and Southern colonies. In the South, both 2 rich plantation owners and poorer frontier farmers sought land. Virginia and Maryland became known as the tobacco colonies. 3 Large farms, but few towns, appeared there.

Slavery existed in 3 all the colonies, but it became a vital source of labor in the South. 1 By contrast, the New England and middle colonies did not rely on slave labor or single staple crops, such as tobacco or rice. Most people were farmers, but they grew a wide variety of crops. The New England colonies traded actively with the islands of the West Indies. In addition to foods, they exported all kinds of other items, ranging from barrels to horses. In return, they imported sugar and molasses. 3 All this trade resulted in the growth of small towns and larger port cities.

Make a Venn Diagram

Use the two ovals to contrast the Northern and Southern colonies and the overlapping area to show what the two regions have in common.

A Venn Diagram with two overlapping ovals.

DESCRIPTION:

Northern Colonies: Farms: small, varied crops. Trade: variety of products. Slavery: not important. Cities: Small towns and larger ports. Southern Colonies: Farms: large farms and plantations; single cash crop. Trade: slave trade; transported by river. Slavery: essential. Cities: a few towns. Both: origins of people: most came from England. Type of government: representational. Slavery: existed.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 13, Section 1, pp. 408–409 and read the passages headed “The Culture of the Plains Indians” and “Settlers Push Westward.” Pay special attention to descriptions of the American settlers and Native Americans on the Great Plains. Make a Venn diagram showing what the two groups had in common and what made them different.

1.8 Distinguishing Fact from Opinion

Defining the Skill

Facts are dates, statistics, and accounts of events, or they are statements that are generally known to be true. Facts can be checked for accuracy.

Opinions are the judgments, beliefs, and feelings of a writer or speaker.

Applying the Skill

The following excerpt describes the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago. The chart summarizes the facts and opinions.

How to Distinguish Fact From Opinion

Strategy 1 Look for specific events, dates, and statistics that can be verified.

Strategy 2 Look for assertions, claims, hypotheses, and judgments. Here a speaker at the event is expressing an opinion.

Strategy 3 Look for judgments the historian makes about events. Here the writer states the opinion that the event was a disaster and then backs up this opinion by explaining the negative consequences of the event.

The Haymarket Affair

1 At ten o’clock another speaker stepped forward, the main burden of his address being that 2 there was no hope of improving the condition of workingmen through legislation; it must be through their own efforts.…

The speaker hurried to a conclusion, but at that point 180 police officers entered the square and headed for the wagon body that had served as a speakers’ platform. The captain in charge called on the meeting to disperse.…

1 At that moment someone threw a bomb into the ranks of the policemen gathered about the speakers. After the initial shock and horror, the police opened fire on the 300 or 400 people who remained. One policeman had been killed by the bomb, and more than 60 injured. One member of the crowd was killed by police fire, and at least 12 were wounded.…

3 In almost every … way Haymarket was a disaster. It vastly augmented [increased] the already considerable paranoia of most Americans in regard to anarchists, socialists, communists, and radicals in general. It increased hostility toward … foreigners.…It caused a serious impairment of freedom of speech in every part of the country.

Source: Page Smith, The Rise of Industrial America (New York: Penguin, 1990), pp. 244–256.

Make a Chart

List the facts you learn in a passage as well as the opinions that are expressed.

Facts	Opinions
Just after 10:00, as a speaker was finishing up, someone threw a bomb into the group of 180 policemen surrounding the speakers. More than 60 police were injured, and about 13 civilians were injured or killed when police fired into the crowd.	speaker: Workers must improve their own situations since legislation can’t do it for them. historian: Nothing good came of the Haymarket affair; and in fact it had many negative consequences: • increased paranoia about radicals • increased hostility toward foreigners • impaired freedom of speech

Practicing the Skill

Read Chapter 15, Section 3, p. 473, “The Emergence of Political Machines.” Make a chart in which you list some facts about political machines and some opinions on graft expressed in the passage.

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1.9 Making Inferences

Defining the Skill

Making inferences from a piece of historical writing means drawing conclusions based on facts, examples, opinions, and the author’s use of language. To make inferences, use clues in the text and your own personal experience, historical knowledge, and common sense.

Applying the Skill

The following passage is from a speech by President Ronald Reagan promoting his economic program. The chart below lists some inferences that can be drawn from the first paragraph.

How to Make Inferences

Strategy 1 From the facts in the text and historical knowledge, you can infer that Reagan is blaming the Democrats for the poor economy.

Strategy 2 Look for clues about the writer’s opinion. From Reagan’s language and the goals of his program, you can infer that he sees government spending and taxation as a major cause of the economic crisis.

Strategy 3 Note opinionated language. You can infer from words such as exaggerated and inaccurate that Reagan disagrees with criticism of his plan.

On the Program for Economic Recovery

1 All of us are aware of the punishing inflation which has for the first time in 60 years held to double-digit figures for 2 years in a row. Interest rates have reached absurd levels of more than 20 percent and over 15 percent for those who would borrow to buy a home.…Almost 8 million Americans are out of work…

2 I am proposing a comprehensive four-point program … aimed at reducing the growth in government spending and taxing, reforming and eliminating regulations which are unnecessary and unproductive or counterproductive, and encouraging a consistent monetary policy aimed at maintaining the value of the currency.

Now, I know that 3 exaggerated and inaccurate stories about these cuts have disturbed many people.…Those who, through no fault of their own, must depend on the rest of us—the poverty stricken, the disabled, the elderly, all those with true need—can rest assured that the social safety net of programs they depend on are exempt from any cuts.

Make a Chart

Record clues in the text as well as what you know about the topic on the basis of your own experience, knowledge, and common sense.

Clues in the Text: Facts, Examples, Language

• inflation in double digits

• Interest rates over 20%

• 8 milion unemployed

• Inflation is “punishing”

• Interest rates “absurd”

Personal Experience, Historical Knowledge, Common Sense

• Reagan defeated Democratic incumbent Jimmy Carter in the 1980 election.

Inference
Reagan blames the Democrats for the current economic problems.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 18, Section 3, p. 562 and read the passage headed “The Impact of U.S. Territorial Gains.” Create a chart like the one above, making inferences based on clues in the text and on your own personal experience, historical knowledge, and common sense.

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Section 2: Using Critical Thinking

2.1 Developing Historical Perspective

Defining the Skill

Historical perspective is an understanding of events and people in the context of their times. Using historical perspective can help you avoid judging the past solely in terms of present-day norms and values.

Applying the Skill

The following passage is the opening portion of an address by President Theodore Roosevelt. Below it is a chart that summarizes the information from a historical perspective.

How to Develop Historical Perspective

Strategy 1 Identify any historical figures, occasions, events, and dates.

Strategy 2 Notice words, phrases, and settings that reflect the period. Here the language used by the president reflects the optimism of the Progressive Era.

Strategy 3 Explain how people’s actions and words reflect attitudes, values, and passions of the era. Here Roosevelt equates a strong nation with “manly virtues.”

1 Inaugural Address, 1905 President Theodore Roosevelt

My fellow-citizens, no people on earth have more cause to be thankful than ours, and this is said … with gratitude to the Giver of Good who has blessed us with the conditions which have enabled us to achieve so large a measure of well-being and happiness. To us as a people it has been granted to lay the foundations of our national life in a 2 new continent. We are the 2 heirs of the ages, and yet we have had to pay few of the penalties which in old countries are exacted by the dead hand of a bygone civilization. We have not been obliged to fight for our existence against any alien race; and yet our life has called for the 3 vigor and effort without which the manlier and hardier virtues wither away.…[The] success which we confidently believe the future will bring, should cause in us no feeling of vainglory, but rather a deep and abiding realization of all which life has offered us; a full acknowledgment of the responsibility which is ours; and a fixed determination to show that under a free government a mighty people can thrive best, alike as regards the things of the body and the things of the soul.

Write a Summary

In a chart, list key words, phrases, and details from the passage, and then write a short paragraph summarizing the basic values and attitudes it conveys.

Key Phrases	Attitudes	Roosevelt’s Inaugural Address
• Giver of Good • blessed us • heirs of the ages • bygone civilization • manlier and hardier virtues • mighty people • things of the body and things of the soul	• belief in God • optimistic about the future • grateful for past	Theodore Roosevelt reveals a strong and resilient optimism about the American nation. His confidence is grounded in deep religious faith in God (the “Giver of Good”) and God’s plan for the nation. Roosevelt clearly believes in the ability of the American people to solve whatever problems they face as the they move into a bright future. Roosevelt’s faith and appeal to the manly virtues reflects typical attitudes and values of the 19th- and early 20th-century Americans.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 16, Section 2, p. 488 and read the One American’s Story feature, which discusses ideas about educational reform in the late 19th century. Use historical perspective to summarize those ideas in a chart like the one above.

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2.2 Formulating Historical Questions

Defining the Skill

Formulating historical questions entails asking questions about events and trends—what caused them, what made them important, and so forth. The ability to formulate historical questions is an important step in doing research. Formulating questions will help you to guide and focus your research as well as to understand maps, graphs, and other historical sources.

Applying the Skill

At a women’s rights convention in the mid-1800s, the delegates adopted a “Declaration of Sentiments” that set forth a number of grievances. The following passage is a description of that event. Below is a web diagram that organizes historical questions about the event.

How to Formulate Historical Questions

Strategy 1 Ask about the basic facts of the event. Who were the leaders? What did they do? Where and when did the event take place?

Strategy 2 Ask about the cause of an event. Why did an event take place?

Strategy 3 Ask about historical influences on a speaker or event. What other historical events was it similar to? How was it different?

Strategy 4 Ask about the results produced by various causes. What were the results of the event?

Seneca Falls, 1848

1 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott decided to act on their resolution to hold a women’s rights convention. In 1848, more than 300 women and men convened at Seneca Falls, New York, the small town that gave the convention its name. Before the convention, Stanton and Mott spent a day composing an agenda and a 2 detailed statement of grievances. Stanton carefully modeled this “Declaration of Sentiments” on the 3 Declaration of Independence. 4 The participants approved all measures unanimously, except for one: women’s right to vote. This measure passed by a narow margin due to Stanton’s insistence. The franchise for women, though it passed, remained a controversial topic.

Make a Web Diagram

Using a web diagram, ask a broad question about the event described above. Then ask specific questions to help you explore the first.

A diagram shows five connected ovals, each containing a question.

DESCRIPTION:

What happened at Seneca Falls, New York in 1848? What was the subject of the convention agenda? Who were the key people? What important measure was narrowly passed? On which historical document was the convention agenda modeled?

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 30, Section 1, p. 940 and read the passage headed “The Tonkin Gulf Resolution.” Use a web diagram to write a historical question about the passage, as well as more specific questions that could guide your research into the topic.

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2.3 Hypothesizing

Defining The Skill

Hypothesizing means developing a possible explanation for historical events. A hypothesis is a tentative assumption about what happened in the past or what might happen in the future. A hypothesis takes available information, links it to previous experience and knowledge, and comes up with a possible explanation, conclusion, or prediction.

Applying the Skill

As the Cold War came to an end, people offered various hypotheses to explain why the Soviet Union broke up and to predict what would replace it. Read this passage and form your own hypothesis. Below the passage is a chart that presents a hypothesis and the facts used to support it.

How to Form a Hypothesis

Strategy 1 Identify the events, pattern, or trend you want to explain. Develop a hypothesis that might explain the event. You might hypothesize that Gorbachev’s new policies would deeply affect politics in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.

Strategy 2 Determine what facts you have about the situation.

The Cold War Ends

In March 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became the general secretary of the Communist Party in the Soviet Union. 1 He initiated a new policy of openness and reform within the USSR, putting an end to the collective ownership of resources, most government censorship, and controlled elections. 2 A dramatic increase in nationalism on the part of the non-Russian republics followed the open elections, and in December 1991, all republics except Russia declared independence. 2 The USSR was replaced by a loose federation of 12 republics called the Commonwealth of Independent States. 2 Gorbachev’s new policies led to massive changes in Eastern Europe, as the satellite states, with his encouragement, moved toward democracy.

Make a Chart

Use a chart to summarize your hypothesis about Gorbachev’s reforms and the facts that support it. Then you can see what you to help prove or disprove it.

Hypothesis	Facts that support the hypothesis	Additional information needed
Gorbachev’s new policies would help lead to Western victory in the Cold War.	• increase in nationalism in non-Russian republics • USSR replaced by a loose federation • Satellite states moved towards democracy	• Were democratic reforms put into effect? • Did free elections result in greater stability? • Did the end of collective ownership advance private enterprise?

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 32, Section 2, p. 1009 and read the passage headed “A Bungled Burglary.” Make a chart in which you hypothesize about the consequences of the burglary at the Democratic National Committee headquarters. Then list facts and indicate whether they support your hypothesis.

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2.4 Analyzing Issues

Defining the Skill

Analyzing issues in history means taking apart complicated issues to identify the different points of view in economic, social, political, or moral debates.

Applying the Skill

The following passage describes working conditions in U.S. factories in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Notice how the cluster diagram below it helps you to analyze the issue of child labor.

How to Analyze Issues

Strategy 1 Identify the central point of view and how it is defended.

Strategy 2 Look for facts and statistics.

Strategy 3 Look for the other side to an issue. You need to look at all sides of an issue before deciding what you think.

Children at Work

1 Wages for most factory workers were so low that many families could not survive unless all their members, including children, worked.

2 Between 1890 and 1910, 20 percent of boys and 10 percent of girls under age 15—some as young as five years old—held full-time jobs.

2 A typical work week was 12 hours a day, six days a week. Many of these children worked from dawn to dusk, wasted by hunger and exhaustion that made them prone to crippling accidents. With little time or energy left for school, child laborers gave up their futures to help their families make ends meet.

3 Nonetheless, factory owners and some parents praised child labor for keeping children out of mischief. They believed that idleness for children was bad and that work provided healthy occupation. Meanwhile, the reformer Jacob Riis and others worked for decent conditions, better wages, and laws that restricted child labor.

Make a Cluster Diagram

In order to better analyze an issue, make a diagram and distinguish the facts as well as the different points of view.

A diagram on the issue: should children under 15 have been allowed to work? The diagram lists Facts, then reasons in favor fo children working and reasons against.

DESCRIPTION:

Facts: Children as young as 5 years old worked. 20% of boys and 10% of girls under 15 held jobs. Workers typically put in 72 hours per week. Working conditions in many industries were strenuous, exhausting and dangerous. In Favor of Children working: Who: Business owners, some parents. Reasons: Idleness was bad. Working was good for children, and families needed income. Against Children working: Who: Jacob Riis and other reformers. Reasons: working meant giving up school. Conditions were inhumane.

Practicing the Skill

Read the passages headed “The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)” and “The New Right Emerges” in Chapter 31, Section 2, p. 985. Make a cluster diagram to analyze the central issue and the positions of the people involved.

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2.5 Analyzing Assumptions and Biases

Defining the Skill

An assumption is a belief or an idea that is taken for granted. Some assumptions are based on evidence; some are based on feelings. A bias is a prejudiced point of view.

Applying the Skill

The following passage is from The Americans at Home by the Scottish minister David Macrae, who wrote the book after visiting the United States in the 1860s. The chart below the excerpt helps to summarize information about the writer’s assumptions and biases.

How to Analyze Assumptions and Biases

Strategy 1 Identify the author and information about him or her. Does the author belong to a special-interest group, religious organization, political party, or social movement that might promote a one-sided or slanted viewpoint on the subject?

Strategy 2 Examine the evidence. Is what the author relates consistent with other accounts or supported by factual data?

Strategy 3 Look for words, phrases, statements, or images that might convey a positive or negative slant, and thus reveal the author’s bias.

The Americans at Home

1 by David Macrae

[T]he American girls are very delightful. 2 And in one point they fairly surpass the majority of English girls—they are all educated and well informed.… The admirable educational system … covering the whole area of society, has given them education whether they are rich or poor, has furnished them with a great deal of information, and has quickened their desire for more.… 3 Their tendency is perhaps to talk too much, and … it seemed to me sometimes to make no perceptible difference whether they knew anything of the subject they talked about or not. But they usually know a little of everything; and their general intelligence and vivacity make them very delightful companions.

Make a Chart

For each of the heads listed on the left-hand side of the chart, summarize what information you can find in the passage.

David Macrae’s Impression of American Girls
speaker	David Macrae
date	1860s
occasion	Macrae’s visit to the United States
tone	humorous,light-hearted
assumptions	The author assumes that girls are to be measured by companionship abilities.
bias	The author seems to have a prejudice that girls are inferior to boys or men.

Practicing the Skill

Look at the opinions expressed by A. Mitchell Palmer in the feature A Personal Voice in Chapter 20, Section 1, p. 619.

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2.6 Evaluating Decisions and Courses of Action

Defining the Skill

Evaluating decisions means making judgments about the decisions that historical figures made. Historians evaluate decisions on the basis of their moral implications and their costs and benefits from different points of view.

Evaluating alternative courses of action means carefully judging the choices that historical figures had in order to better understand why they made the decisions they did.

Applying the Skill

The following passage describes the decisions President John F. Kennedy had to make when he learned of Soviet missile bases in Cuba. Below the passage is a chart in which one possible alternative decision is analyzed.

How to Evaluate Decisions

Strategy 1 Look at decisions made by individuals or by groups. Notice the decisions Kennedy made in response to Soviet actions.

Strategy 2 Look at the outcome of the decisions.

Strategy 3 Analyze a decision in terms of the alternatives that were possible. Both Kennedy and Khrushchev faced the alternatives of either escalating or defusing the crisis.

The Cuban Missile Crisis

During the summer of 1962, the flow of Soviet weapons into Cuba—including nuclear missiles—greatly increased. 1 President Kennedy responded cautiously at first, issuing a warning that the United States would not tolerate the presence of offensive nuclear weapons in Cuba.

1 On the evening of October 22, after the president learned that the Soviets were building missile bases in Cuba, he delivered a public ultimatum: any missile attack from Cuba would trigger an all-out attack on the Soviet Union. Soviet ships continued to head toward the island, while the U.S. military prepared to invade Cuba. To avoid confrontation, 2 the Soviet premier, Khrushchev, offered to remove the missiles from Cuba in exchange for a pledge not to invade the island. Kennedy agreed, and the crisis ended.

3 Some people criticized Kennedy for practicing brinkmanship when private talks might have resolved the crisis without the threat of nuclear war. Others believed he had been too soft and had passed up an ideal chance to invade Cuba and to oust its communist leader, Fidel Castro.

Make a Chart

Make a chart evaluating an alternative course of action regarding the Cuban missile crisis based on its possible pros and cons.

alternative	pros	cons	evaluation
Negotiate a settlement quietly without threatening nuclear war.	1. Avoid the threat of nuclear war 2. Avoid frightening U.S. citizens	1. The U.S. would not look like a strong world leader. 2. The government would lose favor with Cuban exiles living in the U.S.	your answer: Would this have been a good choice? Why or why not?

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 25, Section 3, p. 789 and read the passage headed “The Atomic Bomb Ends the War.” Evaluate the U.S. decision to drop the bomb. Make a chart like the one shown to summarize the pros and cons of an alternative decision, and then write an evaluation of that decision.

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2.7 Forming Opinions (Evaluating)

Defining The Skill

Forming opinions, or evaluating, means deciding what your own thoughts or feelings are and making judgments about events and people in history. Opinions should be supported with facts and examples.

Applying the Skill

The following passage includes comments on the French Revolution by Gouverneur Morris, one of the participants in the Constitutional Convention, and by Thomas Jefferson.

How to Form an Opinion and Support it with Facts

Strategy 1 Decide what you think about a subject after reading all the information available to you. After reading this description, you might decide that political causes either do or do not sometimes justify violence.

Strategy 2 Support your opinion with facts, quotations, and examples, including references to similar events in other historical eras.

Strategy 3 Look for the opinions of historians and other experts. Consider their opinions when forming your own.

A Scene of Mob Violence

Gouverneur Morris was a visitor to Paris during the early days of the French Revolution. In the following journal entry he describes a scene of revolutionary mob violence: 1 “The head and body of Mr. de Foulon are introduced in triumph. … His crime [was] to have accepted a place in the Ministry. This mutilated form of an old man of seventy-five is shown to Bertier, his son-in-law, the intend’t. [another official] of Paris, and afterwards 2 he also is put to death and cut to pieces….” Such violence was common during the French Revolution and shocked a good many Americans. 3 However, Thomas Jefferson was a supporter of the Revolution, saying, “The liberty of the whole earth was depending on the issue of the contest, and … rather than it should have failed, I would have seen half the earth desolated.”

Make a Chart

Summarize your opinion and supporting information in a chart. List facts, quotations, and examples.

Opinion: The French Revolution was especially violent and cruel.
facts:	quotations:	examples:
• Violence escalated. • Jacobins launched Reign of Terror. • Moderates sent to guillotine. • Jacobins declared war on other countries.	“he also is put to death and cut to pieces”	Jacobins beheaded Louis XVI

Practicing the Skill

Read the Point/Counterpoint feature in Chapter 23, Section 5, p. 722. Form your own opinion about the success or failure of the New Deal. Record your opinion in a chart like the one shown, and provide supporting information to back it up.

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2.8 Drawing Conclusions

Defining the Skill

Drawing conclusions involves considering the implications of what you have read and forming a final statement about its meaning or consequences. To draw conclusions, you need to look closely at facts and then use your own experience and common sense to decide what those facts mean.

Applying the Skill

The following passage tells about employment trends in the 1990s. The highlighted text indicates information from which conclusions can be drawn. In the diagram below, the information and conclusions are organized in a clear way.

How to Draw Conclusions

Strategy 1 Use the facts to draw a conclusion. Conclusion: In general, the economy was good in the mid-1990s.

Strategy 2 Read carefully to understand all the facts. Conclusion: Income expectations were lower.

Strategy 3 Ask questions of the material. How did the use of temporary workers affect job security? (It reduced it.) What did employment statistics for young people indicate? (Jobs were harder for young people to find.)

Job Outlook in the Mid-1990s

Several trends emerged in the workplace of the 1990s. 1 Inflation was at its lowest level since the 1960s, and 10 million new jobs created between 1993 and 1996 helped lower the unemployment rate to 5.1 percent in 1996. 2 Median household income adjusted for inflation, however, declined from $33,585 to $31,241, even though there were many households in which both parents worked.

In addition, 3 many jobs once done by permanent employees of a company were done by temporary workers, who were paid only for the time they were needed and who typically received no benefits. Three out of four young Americans thought they would earn less in their lifetimes than their parents did. Unemployment in their age group continued at the same rate, while the unemployment rate for other adults had fallen. 3 In 1993, about one in seven workers between the ages of 16 and 25 was out of work, double the national average.

Make a Diagram

Summarize the data and your conclusion about the above passage in a diagram.

A diagram lists Facts, Conclusions, and then a General Conclusion about the entire passage.

DESCRIPTION:

Each Fact is followed by a Conclusion. Inflation and unemployment were low; the general economy was good. Median income was down; income expectations were lower. More temporary employees; job security was reduced. Unemployment for young people was twice the national average; jobs were harder for young people to find. All four conclusions lead to the General Conclusion: Although many young people would succeed despite the obstacles, the typical young worker had more reason to feel economically insecure.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 34, Section 4, p. 1090 and read the passage headed “The Aging of America.” Draw conclusions based on the facts in the passage. Using the model as a guide, create your own diagram, showing the facts and conclusions you have used to arrive at a general conclusion.

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2.9 Synthesizing

Defining The Skill

Synthesizing is the skill historians use in developing interpretations of the past. Like detective work, synthesizing involves putting together clues, information, and ideas to form an overall picture of a historical event.

Applying the Skill

The following passage describes the earliest inhabitants of the Americas. The highlighted text indicates how some information leads toward a synthesis—an overall picture.

How to Synthesize

Strategy 1 Read carefully to understand the facts.

Strategy 2 Look for explanations that link the facts together. This assertion is based on the evidence provided in the next couple of sentences.

Strategy 3 Consider what you already know in order to accept statements as reasonable.

Strategy 4 Bring together the information you have gathered to arrive at a new understanding of the subject.

The First Americans

From the 1 discovery of chiseled arrowheads and charred bones at ancient sites, it appears that the earliest Americans lived as big-game hunters. 2 People gradually shifted to hunting smaller game and gathering available plants. They collected nuts and wild rice. They invented snares, as well as bows and arrows, to hunt small animals, and they wove nets to catch fish.

Between 10,000 and 15,000 years ago, a revolution took place in what is now central Mexico. 3 People began to raise plants as food. Maize may have been the first domesticated plant. Agriculture eventually spread to other regions.

The rise of agriculture brought tremendous changes to the Americas. Agriculture made it possible for people to remain in one place. It also enabled them to accumulate and store surplus food. As their surplus increased, people had the time to develop skills and more complex ideas about the world. 4 From this agricultural base rose larger, more stable, and increasingly complex societies.

Make a Cluster

Use a cluster diagram to organize the facts, opinions, examples, and interpretations that you have brought together to form a synthesis.

A cluster diagram shows five ovals connected to a central oval labled Synthesis.

DESCRIPTION:

Each of the outer ovals contains a statement: Earliest Americans were big-game hunters. Shifted to hunting/gatehring. Agriculture began in Mexico. Agriculture spread to other regions. Agriculture allowed people to settle and to develop new skills and ideas. The central oval is titled Synthesis: The shift from hunting and gathering to agriculture allowed for the development of more complex societies in the Americas.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 21, Section 2, p. 647 and read “Women Shed Old Roles at Home and at Work.” Look for information to support a synthesis about the fundamental changes in the family brought about by women’s new opportunities.

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2.10 Making Predictions

Defining The Skill

Making predictions entails identifying situations that leaders or groups face or have faced in the past, and then suggesting what course of action they might take as well as what might happen as a result of that action. Making predictions about the effects of past events helps you to understand how events in the past shape the future. Making predictions about the effects of proposed actions, such as proposed legislation, helps you to evaluate possible courses of action.

Applying the Skill

The following passage discusses the central weaknesses of the Treaty of Versailles, which ended World War I. Below the passage is a chart that lists decisions made by those who framed the treaty, along with alternative decisions and predictions of possible outcomes.

How to Make Predictions

Strategy 1 Identify the decisions.

Strategy 2 Decide what other decisions might have been made.

Strategy 3 Predict the outcomes of the alternative decisions.

Weaknesses of the Treaty of Versailles

1 First, the treaty humiliated Germany. The war-guilt clause, which forced Germany to accept blame for the war and pay financial reparations, caused Germans of all political viewpoints to detest the treaty.

2 Second, Russia, which had fought with the Allies, was excluded from the peace conference. Russia had suffered almost the same number of casualties as Germany—the two countries had by far the highest casualty rates of the war. Russia lost more territory than Germany did. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, as Russia was called after 1922, grew determined to regain its lost territory.

3 Third, the treaty ignored the claims of colonized people for self-determination. For example, the Allies dismissed the claims of the Vietnamese, who wanted freedom from French colonial rule.

Make a Chart

Record decisions made as well as alternative decisions and possible outcomes.

Decision:	Decision:	Decision:
The treaty included a war-guilt clause.	Russia was excluded from the peace conference.	Treaty ignored the claims of colonized peoples.
Alternative decision:	Alternative decision:	Alternative decision:
The treaty had no war-guilt clause.	Russia was included in the peace negotiations.	The treaty respected the claims of colonized peoples.
Possible outcome:	Possible outcome:	Possible outcome:
Germany rebuilds. World War II does not occur.	Tension between the Soviet Union and the West decreases.	Tensions are reduced worldwide; Vietnam War is averted.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 34, Section 1, p. 1068 and read the passage “Reforming Welfare.” Make a chart like the one above in which you identify provisions of the welfare reform law, alternative provisions that might have been included, and their possible outcomes. Consider how the effects of each law might change depending on the health of the nation’s economy.

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2.11 Forming Generalizations

Defining The Skill

Forming generalizations means making broad judgments based on the information in texts. When you form generalizations, you need to be sure they are valid. They must be based on sufficient evidence, and they must be consistent with the information given.

Applying the Skill

The following three excerpts deal with Herbert Hoover and his relation to the Great Depression. Notice how the information in the web diagram below supports the generalization drawn.

How to Form Generalizations

Strategy 1 Determine what information the sources have in common. All the sources suggest that people blamed Hoover for the Great Depression.

Strategy 2 State your generalization in sentence form. A generalization often needs a qualifying word, such as most, many, or some, to make it valid.

On President Hoover and the Great Depression

1 “By 1930, people were calling the shantytowns in American cities Hoovervilles.… Homeless people called the newspapers in which they wrapped themselves ‘Hoover blankets.’ Empty pockets turned inside out were ‘Hoover flags.’”

—The Americans

“[My aunt] told me.… 1 People were starving because of Herbert Hoover. My mother was out of work because of Herbert Hoover. Men were killing themselves because of Herbert Hoover.”

—Russell Baker

1 “If someone bit an apple and found a worm in it, Hoover would get the blame.”

—Will Rogers

Make a Web Diagram

Use a web diagram to record relevant information and make a valid generalization.

In a diagram, thrww ovals surround a central oval labled Generalization.

DESCRIPTION:

Each exterior oval contains a statement: People named the visible signs of their poverty after Hoover. Will Rogers summed up the tendency to blame Hoover for every problem. One woman blamed economic and social disasters on Hoover. The exterior ovals lead to the central Generalization: Many people blamed Hoover for the Great Depression.

Practicing the Skill

Study the Daily Life feature “Signs of the Sixties” in Chapter 31, p. 992. Create a diagram like the one above to make a generalization about teenagers during the 1960s. Use information from textual and visual sources to support your generalization.

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Section 3: Print, Visual, and Technological Sources

3.1 Primary and Secondary Sources

Defining The Skill

Primary sources are accounts written or created by people who were present at historical events, either as participants or as observers. These include letters, diaries, journals, speeches, some news articles, eyewitness accounts, government data, statutes, court opinions, and autobiographies.

Secondary sources are based on primary sources and are produced by people who were not present at the original events. They often combine information from a number of different accounts. Secondary sources include history books, historical essays, some news articles, and biographies.

Applying the Skill

The following passage describes the explosion of the first atomic bomb in 1945. It is mainly a secondary source, but it quotes an eyewitness account that is a primary source.

How to Locate and Identify Primary and Secondary Sources

Strategy 1 Locating sources: The catalog in your school library or a local public library lists resources alphabetically by subject, title, and author. Most of these are secondary sources but may contain copies or excerpts of primary sources. Articles in a general encyclopedia such as World Book or Encyclopedia Americana can give you an overview of a topic and usually provide references to additional sources.

Strategy 2 Secondary source: Look for information collected from several sources.

Strategy 3 Primary source: Identify the title and author and evaluate his or her credentials. What qualifies the writer to report on the event? Here the writer actually worked on developing the bomb.

Strategy 4 Secondary source: Look for information collected after the event. A secondary source provides a perspective that is missing in a primary source.

The First Atomic Bomb

1 As the time to test the bomb drew near, the air around Los Alamos crackled with rumors and fears. 2 At one end of the scale were fears that the bomb wouldn’t work at all. At the other end was the prediction that the explosion would set fire to the atmosphere, which would mean the end of the earth.

On July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb was detonated in the desert near Alamogordo, New Mexico. 3 In his book What Little I Remember, Otto Frisch, a Manhattan Project scientist, described what happened next:

“[T]hat object on the horizon which looked like a small sun was still too bright to look at.…After another ten seconds or so it had grown and … was slowly rising into the sky from the ground, with which it remained connected by a lengthening grey stem of swirling dust.…”

4 That blinding flash was followed by a deafening roar as a tremendous shock wave rolled across the trembling desert. The bomb not only worked, but it was more powerful than most had dared hope.

Make a Chart

Summarize information from primary and secondary sources in a chart.

Primary Source	Secondary Source
Author: Otto Frisch	Author: unknown
Qualifications: scientist working on Manhattan Project	Qualifications; had access to multiple accounts of the time leading up to and following event
Information: detailed description, sensory observations, feeling of awe	Information: description of range of points of view and of information available only after event

Practicing the Skills

Turn to Chapter 33, Section 1, p. 1036, and read the One American’s Story feature, which includes a quotation. Use a chart like the one above to summarize information from the primary and secondary sources.

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3.2 Visual, Audio, Multimedia Sources

Defining The Skill

Visual sources can be paintings, illustrations, photographs, political cartoons, and advertisements. Audio sources include recorded speeches, interviews, press conferences, and radio programs. Movies, CD-ROMs, television, and computer software are the newest kind of historical sources, called multimedia sources. These sources are rich with historical details and sometimes convey the feelings and points of view of an era better than words do.

Applying the Skill

The following photograph shows a group of college students and civil rights activists joined in song as they protest unfair voting laws in 1964.

photo: young white people and African-Americans join hands and sing in front of a bus.

1 In the summer of 1964, college students volunteered to go to Mississippi to help register that state’s African-American voters.

How to Interpret Visual Sources

Strategy 1 Identify the subject and the source. A title or caption often gives a description of a photo or other visual source. This photograph shows volunteers who worked in the 1964 voting rights drive in Mississippi.

Strategy 2 Identify important visual details. In this photograph, white and black college students are holding hands and singing. Behind them is a bus.

Strategy 3 Make inferences from the visual details. Holding hands and singing together suggest fellowship and unity—the students are showing solidarity in the fight for civil rights.

Make a Chart

Summarize your interpretation of the photograph in a simple chart.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to the photograph in Chapter 29, Section 2, p. 918, showing police dogs in Birmingham, Alabama, attacking African Americans. Use a chart like the one at the right to analyze and interpret the photograph.

Subject	A diverse group of college students.
Details	Bus, joined hands, white and black Americans side by side, singing
Inferences	The subjects share a belief in racial equality, freedom, and solidarity. Some or all of the group may have traveled to Mississippi together on the bus.

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3.3 Analyzing Political Cartoons

Defining the Skill

Political cartoons use humor to make a serious point. Political cartoons often express a point of view on an issue better than words do. Understanding signs and symbols will help you to interpret political cartoons.

Like many text sources that express a point of view, cartoons are often biased, or unfairly weighted toward one point of view. To identify a cartoon’s bias, look for exaggerations and caricature. Try to restate the message of the cartoon in words, then identify overgeneralizations and opinions stated as facts.

Applying the Skill

The following political cartoon shows President Calvin Coolidge playing the saxophone while big business dances. The chart below it summarizes historical information gained from interpreting the visual source.

How to Interpret Visual Sources

Strategy 1 Identify the subject. This cartoon deals with President Calvin Coolidge’s relationship with big business.

Strategy 2 Identify important symbols and details. Big business is shown as a carefree flapper of the 1920s. The president’s saxophone is labeled “Praise,” suggesting his positive attitude toward the fun-loving flapper.

Strategy3 Interpret the message. The image implies that serving big business interests is important to the president.

Strategy 4 Analyze the point of view. The cartoonist suggests that the relationship between the president and big business is too cozy.

Strategy 5 Identify bias. The president is caricatured by being depicted engaging in frivolity and at the service of big business. The cartoon charges that the president does not take his responsibilities seriously.

A cartoon shows a woman labled Big Business smiling and dancing as Calvin Coolidge plays a saxophone.

Make a Chart

Summarize your interpretation of the cartoon in a simple chart.

Subject: Coolidge’s Relationship with big business
Point of View	Symbols/Details	Message
Satirical of the Coolidge administration and of big business	Flapper: big business, carefree and overgrown President: playing a tune for business	Big business and the president are too close. Business is having too good a time—with the president’s help.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to the political cartoon on p. 632, which presents an opinion about Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal programs. Use a chart like the one above to analyze and interpret the cartoon.

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3.4 Interpreting Maps

Defining The Skill

Maps are representations of features on the earth’s surface. Historians use maps to locate historical events, to demonstrate how geography has influenced history, and to illustrate patterns and distributions of human activity and its environmental effects.

Political maps show political units, from countries, states, and provinces to counties, districts, and towns. Physical maps show mountains, hills, plains, rivers, lakes, and oceans. They may include elevations of land and depths of water. Historical maps illustrate such things as economic activity, political alliances, migrations, battles, and population density. While reading maps, historians pose questions and use the following features to find answers:

a map shows battles and campaigns of the Revolutionary War.

Revolutionary War, 1775–1778 Distributions on a map are where certain symbols, such as those for cities, fall. Sometimes distributions show patterns, such as a cluster, a line, or a wide circle. On this map, for example, the battle symbols show a pattern of being fought near rivers or ports. A compass rose indicates the map’s orientation on the globe. It may show all four cardinal directions (N, S, E, W) or just one, north. Lines indicate boundaries between political areas, roads and highways, routes of exploration or migration, and rivers and other waterways. Lines may vary in width and color. Symbols or icons represent real objects or events. Cities, towns, and villages often appear as dots. A capital city is often shown as a star within a circle. An area’s products or resources may be indicated by symbols. Battles are often shown by starbursts, troop movements by arrows. Labels designate key places, such as cities, states, bodies of water, and events. Lines of longitude and latitude appear on maps to indicate the absolute location of the area shown. Lines of latitude show distance north or south of the equator, measured in degrees. Lines of longitude show distance in degrees east or west of the prime meridian, which runs through Greenwich, England. A legend or key is a small table in which the symbols, types of lines, and special colors that appear in the map are listed and explained. Sometimes colors are used to indicate areas under different political or cultural influence. Colors and shading are also used to show distributions, patterns, and such features as altitudes. A map’s scale shows the ratio between a unit of length on the map and a unit of distance on the earth. A typical scale shows a one-inch segment and indicates the number of miles that length represents on the map. A map on which an inch represents 500 miles has a scale of 1:31,680,000. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image. R26

Applying the Skill

The historical maps below show land claims in Europe in 1915 and after 1919. Together they show the political effects of World War I.

Two maps show Europe and the Middle East in 1915 and in 1918.

DESCRIPTION:

New countries formed by 1919 in Eastern Europe and the Middle East from the remnants of the Central Powers Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire include Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, East Prussia, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Trans-Jordan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Palestine.

How to Interpret a Historical Map

Strategy 1 Look at the map’s title to learn the subject and purpose of the map. Here the maps show Europe before and after World War I. Pose a historical question about the subject of the map, such as ”How were old empires divided and new countries formed?”

Strategy 2 Use the legend to interpret the map in order to answer your historical question. The legend tells you what the symbols and colors on the map mean.

Strategy 3 Look at the scale and compass rose. The scale shows you what distances are represented. On these maps, 1.4 cm represents 500 miles. The compass rose shows you which direction on the map is north.

Strategy 4 Find where the map area is located on the earth. These maps span a large area from the Arctic Circle to below latitude 30° N, and from 10° W to 40° E.

Make a Chart

Relate the map to the five geographic themes by making a chart. The five themes are described on p. xxx. In your chart, also analyze distributions and find patterns.

Location:	Place:	Region:	Movement:	Human-Environment Interaction:
Europe and the Middle East; from the Arctic Circle to below 30° North and from 10° West to 40° East	A continent that is a peninsula surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, as well as western-most Asia	The old empires of the Central Powers are distributed within Central Europe and the Middle East. The new nations are in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.	Political boundaries shifted after the war. The Treaty of Versailles established nine new nations.	The new boundaries fall along rivers, bodies of water, and mountain ranges. There is a pattern. The pattern shows that the new countries form a narrow strip from North to South.

Practicing the Skill

Study the maps titled “D-Day, June 6, 1944” on p. 781. Make a chart like the one shown above, in which you summarize what the maps show.

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3.5 Interpreting Charts

Defining the Skill

Charts are visual presentations of material. Historians use charts to organize, simplify, and summarize information in a way that makes it more meaningful or memorable.

Simple charts are used to consolidate or compare information. Tables are used to organize numbers, percentages, or other information into columns and rows for easy reference. Diagrams provide visual clues to the meaning of the information they contain. Illustrated diagrams are sometimes called infographics.

Applying the Skill

The following diagram gives a visual representation of how the economy functions. The paragraph below summarizes the information contained in the diagram.

How to Interpret Charts

Strategy 1 Identify the symbols. Here the symbols represent individuals, producers, government, and the product market.

Strategy 2 Look for the main idea. The arrows show the cycle of supply and demand in a free enterprise system of economy. Here individuals are at the top of the chart, indicating that they begin the cycle by creating a demand for goods and services.

Strategy 3 Follow the arrows to study the chart. Read the description of each image in the diagram. Together, the images show the flow of economic activity from producers to individuals and back. The government affects the cycle by regulating and stabilizing economic activity.

A chart shows the cycle of supply and demand in a free enterprise economy.

DESCRIPTION:at the top of the chart, Indivduals create demand and offer labor. An arrow labled Demand Goods leads from Indivduals to Producers. Producers create goods and hire labor. An arrow labled Send Goods to Market connects to Product Market. Product Market sells goods and services and hires labor. Another arrow titled Supplies Goods leads back to Individuals. Below the cycle, the Government collects taxes, offers services, regulates the economy, and equalizes distribution of wealth.

The Economy

Write a Summary

Write a paragraph to summarize what you learned from the diagram.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 14, Section 3, p. 448, and study the chart titled “Vertical and Horizontal Integration.” Write a paragraph in which you summarize what you learned from the chart. Tell how the process of vertical integration works, and describe how it is different from horizontal integration.

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3.6 Interpreting Graphs

Defining The Skill

Graphs show statistical information in a visual manner. Historians use graphs to visualize and compare amounts, ratios, economic trends, and changes over time.

Line graphs typically show quantities on the vertical axis (up the left side) and time in various units on the horizontal axis (across the bottom).

Pie graphs are useful for showing relative proportions. The circle represents the whole and the slices represent the parts belonging to various subgroups.

Bar graphs are commonly used to display information about quantities.

Applying the Skill

The image below shows a double line graph. The lines show the rate of inflation as compared with the rate of unemployment from 1970 to 1980.

How to Interpret a Graph

Strategy 1 Read the title to identify the main idea of the graph. When two subjects are shown, such as unemployment and inflation, the graph will probably show a relationship between them.

Strategy 2 Read the vertical and horizontal axes of the graph. The horizontal axis shows years, and the vertical axis gives percents.

Strategy 3 Look at the legend. Find out what each symbol in the graph represents. In this graph the gold line represents the inflation rate and the purple line represents the unemployment rate.

Strategy 4 Summarize the information shown in each part of the graph. What trends do you see in the line graph over certain years? When did unemployment rise and fall? What about inflation? What can you infer from the patterns?

a graph compares Unemployment and Inflation from 1970 to 1980.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the inflation rate dropping from 6% in 1970 to 3% in 1972. It then spikes up to 11% in 1974, before decreasing in 1975 and 1976 back down to 6%. The rate then rises steadily to 13% in 1980. The Unemployment rate stays between 5 and 6% from 1970 to 1974, before rising to a peak of 9% in 1975, then falling to 6% in 1979, and rising to almost 8% in 1980. Large increases in unemployment seem to follow large increases in inflation.

3 Unemployment Rate

Inflation Rate

Production note: captions associated with this image are legends that correspond to text within the image.

Write a Summary

Write a paragraph to summarize what you learned from the graph.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 27, Section 3, p. 859, and look at the two graphs titled “Glued to the Set.” Study the graphs and write a paragraph in which you summarize what you learned from them. Explain how the two line graphs work together.

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3.7 Using the Internet

Defining the Skill

The Internet is a network of computers associated with universities, libraries, news organizations, government agencies, businesses, and private individuals worldwide. Every page of information on the Internet has its own address, or URL.

The international collection of sites known as the World Wide Web is a source of information about current events as well as research on historical subjects. This textbook contains many suggestions for using the World Wide Web. You can begin by entering the URL for McDougal Littell’s site: www.classzone.com.

Applying the Skill

The computer screen below shows the home page of the Library of Congress.

How to Use the Internet

Strategy 1 Go directly to a Web page. If you know the address of a particular Web page, type the address in the strip at the top of the screen and press RETURN. After a few seconds, that page will appear on your screen.

If you want to research the Web for information on a topic, visit a general search site such as www.google.com or www.yahoo.com. The following sites have information that may be useful in your research:

Library of Congress—www.loc.gov

National Archives and Records Administration—www.nara.gov

Smithsonian Institution—www.si.org

PBS—www.pbs.org

National Geographic—www.nationalgeographic.com

Strategy 2 Learn about the page. Click on one of the topics across the top of the page to learn more about the Library of Congress and how to use its Web site.

Strategy 3 Explore the features of the page. Click on any one of the images or topics to find out more about a specific subject.

The Library of Congress website lists five links near the top: Greetings, About, News and Events, Publications, and Search.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 29, Section 2, p. 916, “The Triumphs of a Crusade.” Read the section, making a list of topics you would like to research. If you have a computer with Internet access, go to the McDougal Littell site, www.classzone.com. There you will be able to search the Chapter 21 Research Links and other features to explore a variety of historical topics.

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Section 4: Presenting Information

4.1 Creating Charts and Graphs

Defining the Skill

Charts and graphs are visual representations of information. (See Skillbuilders 3.5 and 3.6.) Three types of graphs are bar graphs, line graphs, and pie graphs. Use a bar graph to display information about quantities and to compare related quantities. Use a line graph to show a change in a single quantity over time. Use a pie graph to show relative proportions among parts of a single thing. Charts can be used to condense and organize written information or lists.

Applying the Skill

The following passage includes data about American commuting choices between 1960 and 1990. The bar graph below shows how the information in the passage might be represented.

How to Create a Bar Graph

Strategy 1 Use a title that sums up the information; include a time span.

Strategy 2 Note dates and the percentages. Dates will form the horizontal axis of your graph; percentages will form the vertical axis.

Strategy 3 Organize the data. Group numbers that provide information about the same year.

Strategy 4 Decide how best to represent the information. Sketch a graph and a legend, denoting the meanings of any colors and symbols.

Create a Bar Graph

Clearly label vertical and horizontal axes. Draw bars accurately. Include a legend.

A hand-drawn graph shows American Commuting Choices from 1960 to 1990.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows a large increase in the percentage of workers driving to work from 1960 to 1990.

1960: 62% traveled to work by car, truck or van.
1960: 10% took public transportation.
1960: 5% worked at home.
1960: 20% traveled by other means.
1990: 85% traveled to work by car, truck or van.
1990: 5% took public transportation.
1990: 3% worked at home.
1990: 5% traveled by other means.

Traveled to work by can, truck, van

Took public transportation

Worked at home

Traveled by other means Production note: captions associated with this image are legends that correspond to text within the image.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 34, Section 4, p. 1091, and read the passage headed “A Changing Immigrant Population.” Use a pie graph to show percentages of ethnic distribution of the American population in 1990.

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4.2 Creating Models

Defining the Skill

Models, like maps, are visual representations of information. Historians make models of geographical areas, villages, cities, inventions, buildings, and other physical objects of historical importance. A model can be a two-dimensional representation, such as a poster or a diagram that explains how something happened. It also can be a three-dimensional representation or even a computer-created image.

Applying the Skill

The following image is a two-dimensional model of the tunnel system used by the Vietcong during the Vietnam War. Examine the strategies used in making this model to learn how to create your own.

How to Create a Model

Strategy 1 Gather the information you need to understand the situation or event. Here the creator has gathered information about the tunnel system from various reference sources.

Strategy 2 Think about symbols you may want to use. Since the model should give information in a visual way, think about ways you can use color, pictures, or other visuals to tell the story.

Strategy 3 Gather the supplies you will need to create the model. For this model, the creator might have used computer software or colored markers or pencils.

Strategy 4 Visualize and sketch an idea for your model. Once you have created a picture in your mind from either written text or other images, make an actual sketch to plan how your model might look.

Tunnels of the Vietcong Remote smoke outlets Submerged entrance Kitchen Ventilation shaft Firing post Conference chamber Conical air raid shelter that also amplified sound of approaching aircraft Punji stake pit Sleeping chamber Blast, gas, and waterproof trap doors False tunnel Booby trap grenade First-aid station powered by bicycle Well Storage cache for weapons, explosives, and rice Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 14, Section 3, p. 450, and read the text under the heading “Labor Unions Emerge.” Use the information to create a model of a “sweatshop” factory during the turn of the century. Use the process described above as a guide.

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4.3 Creating Maps

Defining the Skill

Maps are scale representations, usually of land surfaces. (See Skillbuilder 3.4.) Creating a map involves representing geographical data visually. When you draw a map, it is easiest to use an existing map as a guide. You can include data on climate and population and on patterns or distributions of human activity.

Applying the Skill

The following chart shows the numbers of 1995 immigrants who planned to settle in the southwestern states of the United States. The map below depicts the data given in the chart.

Immigrants, by State of Intended Residence, 1995
Arizona	7,700	Nevada	4,306	Texas	49,963
California	166,482	New Mexico	2,758	Utah	2,831
Colorado	7,713

How to Create a Map

Strategy 1 Determine what map you should use as a guide. Find a map of the Southwest that you can re-create.

Strategy 2 Decide how best to show the data. These data can be grouped in three broad categories of numbers: more than 100,000; 10,000 to 100,000; and less than 10,000.

Strategy 3 Select a title that identifies the geographical area and the map’s purpose. Include a date or time span.

Strategy 4 Draw and label the lines of latitude and longitude. Use the guide map’s scale and a ruler to help you correctly space the lines of latitude and longitude.

Strategy 5 Draw the subject of your map, following your guide map carefully. Color or mark the map to show its purpose. Use each color or symbol to represent similar information.

Strategy 6 Include a key or legend explaining colors, symbols, or shading. Reproduce the scale and compass rose from the map you used as a guide.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to p. 812 and study the graph titled “The Marshall Plan.” Use the process described above to draw a map that depicts the data. (You can use the map on p. 811 as a guide.) After drawing the map, pose some historical questions about the Marshall Plan. How might your map convey answers to your questions? Write one of the questions and its answer below your map.

A hand-drawn map: Immigrants Intended Southwestern States of Residence, 1995.

DESCRIPTION:

The map shows Cailfornia with more than 100,000 immigrants; Texas with 10,000-100,000; and Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico with less than 10,000.

more than 100,000

10,000—100,000

less than 10,000 Production note: captions associated with this image are legends that correspond to text within the image. R33

4.4 Creating Databases

Defining the Skill

A database is a collection of data, or information, that is organized so that you can find and retrieve information on a specific topic quickly and easily. Once a computerized database is set up, you can search it to find specific information without going through the entire database. The database will provide a list of all stored information related to your topic. Learning how to use a database will help you learn how to create one.

Applying the Skill

The chart below is a database for some of the significant legislation passed during President Johnson’s Great Society program.

1 Significant Great Society Legislation
2 Legislation	Date	Significance
3 Economic Opportunity Act	1964	4 created Job Corps and other programs to help the poor
Civil Rights Act	1964	outlawed discrimination in public accomodations
Medical Care Act	1965	4 established Medicare and Medicaid programs to help the elderly and the poor
Higher Education Act	1965	provided low-interest loans for college students
Truth in Packaging Act	1966	set standards for labeling consumer products
Highway Safety Act	1966	required states to set up highway safety programs
Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Area Redevelopment Act	1966	4 provided funds to rebuild poor neighborhoods
Air Quality Act	1967	set federal air pollution guidelines

How to Create a Database

Strategy 1 Identify the topic of the database. The keywords, or most important words, in the title are “Great Society” and “Legislation.” These words were used to begin the research for this database.

Strategy 2 Identify the kind of data you need to enter in your database. These will be the column headings—or categories—of your database. The keywords “Legislation,” “Date,” and “Significance,” were chosen to categorize this research.

Strategy 3 Once you find the data you want to include, identify the entries under each heading.

Strategy 4 Use the database to help you find the information quickly. For example, in this database you could search by the word “poor” for programs related to anti-poverty measures.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 19, “The First World War,” and create a database of key battles of World War I. Use a format like the one above for your database and include the following column headings: “Battle,” “Date,” “Location,” and “Signficance.” You can create your database using computer software or by setting up a 4-column chart on paper.

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4.5 Creating Written Presentations

Defining the Skill

Written presentations are in-depth reports on a topic in history. Often, written presentations take a stand on an issue or try to support a specific conclusion. To successfully report on an event or make a point, your writing needs to be clear, concise, and supported by factual details.

Applying the Skill

The following is a written presentation about the main goals of progressivism. Use the strategies listed below to help you learn to create a written presentation.

How to Create a Written Presentation

Strategy 1 Identify a topic that you wish to research, focusing on one or more questions that you hope to answer about the topic. Then research the topic using library resources and the Internet.

Strategy 2 Formulate a hypothesis. This will serve as the main idea, or thesis, of your presentation. Analyze the information in your sources and develop a hypothesis that answers your questions about the topic.

Strategy 3 Organize the facts and supporting details around your main idea. These facts and examples should be presented in a way that helps you build a logical case to prove your point.

Strategy 4 To express your ideas clearly, use standard grammar, spelling, sentence structure, and punctuation. Proofread your work to make sure it is well-organized and grammatically correct.

For more on how to create a historical research paper and other written presentations, see the Writing for Social Studies handbook.

Make an Outline

Creating an outline like the one shown here will help you organize your ideas and produce an effective written presentation.

1 The Goals of Progressivism

I. 2 All progressive reforms had one of four goals.

A. Protecting Social Welfare

3 1. Social Gospel movement sought to help the poor.

2. Settlement houses provided aid to poor city dwellers.

B. Promoting Moral Improvement

1. Reformers sought to improve Americans’ personal behavior.

2. WCTU worked for prohibition.

C. Creating Economic Reform

1. Writers criticized capitalism.

2. American Socialist Party formed.

3. Muckrakers exposed corruption in business and government.

D. Fostering Efficiency

1. Emergence of scientific management in the workplace

2. Development of the assembly line

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Write a Draft

Editing corrections are marked in red ink on an essay titled The Goals of Progressivism.

4 Edit and Revise Use punctuation marks for their correct purposes. A colon precedes a list. Use the correct parts of speech. An adverb modifies a verb.
Check for common agreement errors. Subjects and verbs must agree in person and number. Use consistent verb tense. Use past tense for events in the past. Check spelling with both an electronic spell checker and a dictionary. Capitalize all proper nouns, including names of political parties. Use correct sentence structure. Every sentence needs a subject and a verb. Be sure sentence structure leads clearly from one phrase to the next. Correct misplaced modifiers. Production note: captions associated with this image are labels that correspond to text within the image.

Practicing the Skill

Create a two-page written presentation on a topic of historical importance that interests you. Use the strategies and sample outline and draft to help you create your presentation.

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4.6 Creating Oral Presentations

Defining the Skill

An oral presentation is a speech or talk given before an audience. Oral presentations can be given to inform an audience about a certain topic or persuade an audience to think or act in a certain way. You can learn how to give effective oral presentations by examining some of the more famous ones in history.

Applying the Skill

The following is an excerpt from a student’s speech supporting Southern secession. Use the strategies listed below to help you learn to create an oral presentation.

How to Create an Oral Presentation

Strategy 1 Choose one central idea or theme and organize your presentation to support it. Here, the writer calls for the United States government to allow the Southern states to secede.

Strategy 2 Use words or images to persuade your audience. In this speech, the writer has used a metaphor of family conflict to express the antagonism between North and South.

Strategy 3 Make sure your arguments support your central idea or theme. In this speech, the writer’s arguments all support the main theme.

1 The Southern states should be allowed to secede. 3 Since it was the states that helped create the national government, surely the states have the right to declare their independence from that government.

The industrial North will never understand the needs of the farmers and plantation owners of the South. 2 The South and the North are like two brothers whose lives and attitudes have become so different that they can no longer live under the same roof. Why should they be forced to remain together?

Giving an Oral Presentation

When you give an oral presentation, make sure to

• maintain eye contact with your audience.

• use gestures and body language to emphasize your main points and to help express your ideas.

• pace yourself. Do not rush to finish your presentation.

• vary your tone of voice to help bring out the meaning of your words.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 24, Section 4, p. 758, and study the Point/Counterpoint feature about U.S. involvement in WWII. Choose a side and create an outline for a speech that supports that side. Use the strategies to help you make an oral presentation.

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4.7 Creating Visual Presentations

Defining the Skill

A visual presentation of history uses visual sources to explain a particular historical event. Such sources could include paintings, maps, charts and graphs, costume drawings, photographs, political cartoons, and advertisements. Movies, CD-ROMs, television, and computer software are the newest kind of visual sources, called multimedia sources because they also include sound. (See Skillbuilder 3.2.) Visual sources can provide much insight into various eras and events of the past. Creating a visual presentation will help you to become more familiar with the many different sources of historical information available.

Applying the Skill

The image below shows a student using a computer to create a visual presentation. Use the strategies listed below to help you plan out the steps needed to compile a clear, engaging, and informative presentation.

How to Create a Visual Presentation

Strategy 1 Identify the topic of your presentation and decide which types of visuals will most effectively convey your information. For example, you might want to use slides and posters along with a map. If you want to include multimedia sources, you could use documentary film or television footage of an event.

Strategy 2 Conduct research to determine what visual sources are available. Some topics, such as wars, may have more visual source material than others. You can create your own visual sources, such as a graph or chart, to accompany what you find.

Strategy 3 Write a script for the presentation. A narration of events to accompany the visuals will tie the various sources together and aid you in telling the story.

Strategy 4 Videotape the presentation. Videotaping the presentation will preserve it for future viewing and allow you to show it to different groups of people.

photo: a teacher makes a graph on a computer.

Practicing the Skill

Turn to Chapter 13, Section 1, p. 416, and read “A Day in the Life of a Cowboy,” or choose another section in the chapter. Use the strategies above to create a visual presentation of the topic.

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Economics Handbook

NOTE: Boldfaced words are terms that appear in this handbook.

Boycott

A refusal to have economic dealings with a person, a business, an organization, or a country. The purpose of a boycott is to show disapproval of particular actions or to force changes in those actions. A boycott often involves an economic act, such as refusing to buy a company’s goods or services.

African Americans in Montgomery, Alabama (shown below), organized a bus boycott in 1955 to fight segregation on city buses. The boycotters kept many buses nearly empty for 381 days. The boycott ended when the Supreme Court outlawed bus segregation.

American labor unions have sometimes used boycotts to win concessions for their members. Consumer groups, too, have organized boycotts to win changes in business practices.

photo: African-Americans carry umbrellas as they walk down a rain-slicked street.

Business Cycle

A pattern of increases and decreases in economic activity. A business cycle generally consists of four distinct phases—expansion, peak, contraction, and trough, as shown in the graph in the next column.

An expansion is marked by increased business activity. The unemployment rate falls, businesses produce more, and consumers buy more goods and services. A peak is a transition period in which expansion slows. A contraction, or recession, occurs when business activity decreases. The unemployment rate rises, while both production and consumer spending fall. A deep and long-lasting contraction is called a depression. Business activity reaches its lowest point during a trough. After time, business activity starts to increase and a new cycle begins.

DESCRIPTION:

The chart shows changes in the Gross Domestic Product over time. Expansion leads to a peak, followed by a contraction, then a trough. Gross Domestic Product rises from the trough to an even higher Expansion.

The Business Cycle

Capitalism

An economic system in which there is private ownership of natural resources and capital goods. The basic idea of capitalism is that producers are driven by the desire to make a profit—the money left over after costs have been subtracted from revenues. This desire for profit motivates producers to provide consumers with the goods and services they desire. Prices and wages are determined by supply and demand.

Along with the opportunity to earn a profit there is a risk. Businesses tend to fail if they don’t produce goods people want at prices they are willing to pay. Because anyone is free to start a business or enterprise, a capitalist system is also known as a free enterprise system.

Capitalism contrasts with socialism, an economic system in which the government owns and controls capital and sets prices and production levels. Critics of capitalism argue that it allows decisions that ought to be made democratically to be made instead by powerful business owners and that it allows too-great disparities in wealth and well-being between the poor and the rich.

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Communism

An economic system based on one-party rule, government ownership of the means of production, and decision making by centralized authorities. Under communism there is little or no private ownership of property and little or no political freedom. Government planners make economic decisions, such as which and how many goods and services should be produced. Individuals have little say in a communist economy. Such a system, communists believe, would end inequality. For more information on the ideas on which communism is based, read the Economic Background on page 619.

During the 20th century, most communist economies failed to achieve their goals. Economic decisions frequently were made to benefit only Communist Party officials. Also, government economic planning was inefficient, often creating shortages of goods. Those goods that were available were often of poor quality.

People became discontented with the lack of prosperity and political freedom and began to call for change. These demands led in the late 1980s and early 1990s to the collapse of communist governments in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.

The cover of the National Review magazine shows a portrait of Nikolai Lenin with cracks in it. A headline: The Coming Crack-up of Communism.

Even governments that clung to communism introduced elements of free enterprise. Some communist countries—such as China—have experienced economic growth but have not granted more political freedom to their citizens.

Consumer Price Index (CPI)

A measure of the change in cost of the goods and services most commonly bought by consumers. The CPI notes the prices of over 200 goods and services bought by average urban consumers on a regular basis. Items on which consumers spend a good deal of their income—such as food and housing—are given more weight in the CPI than items on which consumers spend less.

Price changes are calculated by comparing current prices with prices at a set time in the past. In 2001, for example, the CPI used the period from 1982 to 1984 as this base. Prices for this period are given a base value of 100. The prices for subsequent years are expressed as percentages of the base. Therefore, a CPI of 160 means that prices have risen by 60 percent since 1982–1984. The graph below illustrates changes in the CPI from 1960 to 2000.

a graph traces changes in the Consumer Price Index from 1960 to 2000.

DESCRIPTION:

The CPI rises sharply from around 30 in 1960 to around 55 in 1975, to about 130 in 1990 to 175 in 2000.

Consumer Price Index, 1960–2000 Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Deficit Spending

A situation in which a government spends more money than it receives in revenues. For the most part, the government engages in deficit spending when the economy is in a contraction phase of the business cycle. The government borrows or issues money to finance deficit spending.

In theory, the extra funds should stimulate business activity, pushing the economy into an expansion phase. As the economy recovers, revenues should increase, providing the government with a budget surplus. The government then can use the surplus to pay back the money it borrowed. For more information on deficit spending, read the Economic Background on page 698.

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Depression

A very severe and prolonged contraction in economic activity. During a depression, consumer spending, production levels, wages, prices, and profits fall sharply. Many businesses fail, and many workers lose their jobs.

The United States has experienced several economic depressions in its history. The worst was the Great Depression, which started in 1929 and lasted throughout the 1930s. Between 1929 and 1932, business activity in the United States decreased by an average of 10 percent each year. During the same period, some 40 percent of the country’s banks failed, and prices for farm products dropped more than 50 percent. By 1933, the worst year of the Great Depression, 25 percent of American workers were unemployed—some, like the man shown below, were reduced to selling apples on the street.

For a personal account of life during the Great Depression, view the American Stories video “Broke, but Not Broken: Ann Marie Low Remembers the Dust Bowl.” For information about the effects of war on a depression, read the Economic Background on page 763.

photo: an unemployed man sells apples for 5 cents each.

E-Commerce

All forms of buying and selling goods and services electronically. Short for “electronic commerce,” e-commerce refers to business activity on the Internet and on private computer networks. There are two main types of e-commerce: business-to-consumer and business-to-business.

Consumer-related e-commerce includes sales to the public over the computer, usually through a seller’s Web site. Many business transactions can be completed wholly electronically, such as sales of computer software, which can be paid for with a credit card number and delivered over the Internet directly to the buyer’s computer. A growing proportion of financial transactions are also moving online, such as electronic banking and stock market trading, or e-trading. The convenience of online shopping has turned it into a booming enterprise. Between 1998 and 1999, for instance, U.S. consumer spending online grew from about $7.7 billion to more than $17 billion.

Business-to-business e-commerce is growing at an even greater rate, reaching nearly $177 billion in 1999. Much of that business includes Web site design and servicing and online advertising. Businesses also use networked computers to purchase supplies and merchandise and to access information from subscription services.

For many businesses, e-commerce is not only convenient but also cost-effective. On average, corporations spend $100 on paperwork alone each time they make a purchase. Moving those transactions online could save companies millions of dollars annually.

Embargo

A government ban on trade with another nation, commonly backed by military force. In a civil embargo the nation imposing an embargo prevents exports to or imports from the country against which it has declared the embargo. A hostile embargo involves seizing the goods of another nation.

The major purpose of an embargo is to show disapproval of a nation’s actions. For example, in 1980 the United States imposed a civil embargo on grain sales to the Soviet Union to protest the December 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

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Free Enterprise

An economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production, free markets, and the right of individuals to make most economic decisions. The free enterprise system is also called the free market system or capitalism. The United States has a free enterprise economic system.

In a free enterprise system, producers and consumers are motivated by self-interest. To maximize their profits, producers try to make goods and services that consumers want. Producers also engage in competition—through lowering prices, advertising their products, and improving product quality—to encourage consumers to buy their goods. Consumers serve their self-interest by purchasing the best goods and services for the lowest price.

Government plays a limited, but important, role in most free-enterprise economies:

• It regulates economic activity to ensure there is fair competition, such as by preventing and prosecuting fraud and barring monopolies.

• It produces certain necessary goods and services that private producers consider unprofitable, such as roadways.

• It protects the public health and safety, such as through building codes, environmental protection laws, and labor laws.

• It provides economic stability, such as by regulating banks, coining money, and supervising unemployment insurance programs.

DESCRIPTION: at the top of the chart, Indivduals create demand and offer labor. An arrow labled Demand Goods leads from Indivduals to Producers. Producers create goods and hire labor. An arrow labled Send Goods to Market connects to Product Market. Product Market sells goods and services and hires labor. Another arrow titled Supplies Goods leads back to Individuals. Below the cycle, the Government collects taxes, offers services, regulates the economy, and equalizes distribution of wealth.

The Economy

Gold Standard

A monetary system in which a country’s basic unit of currency is valued at, and can be exchanged for, a fixed amount of gold. The gold standard tends to curb inflation, since a government cannot put more currency into circulation than it can back with its gold supplies. This gives people confidence in the currency.

This advantage is also a weakness of the gold standard. During times of recession, a government may want to increase the amount of money in circulation to encourage economic growth. Economic disruption during the Great Depression of the 1930s caused most nations to abandon the gold standard. The United States moved to a modified gold standard in 1934 and abandoned the gold standard completely in 1971.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The market value of all the goods and services produced in a nation within a specific time period, such as a quarter (three months) or a year. It is the standard measure of how a nation’s economy is performing. If GDP is growing, the economy is probably in an expansion phase. If GDP is not increasing or is declining, the economy is probably in a contraction phase.

GDP is calculated by adding four components: spending by individual consumers on goods and services; investment in such items as new factories, new factory machinery, and houses; government spending on goods and services; and net exports—the value of exports less the value of imports. GDP figures are presented in two ways. Nominal GDP is reported in current dollars. Real GDP is reported in constant dollars, or dollars adjusted for inflation.

A chart shows Four factors leading to Gross Domestic Product (GDP): Net Exports; Government Spending; Investment; and Consumer Spending.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) R42

Inflation

A sustained rise in the average level of prices. Since more money is required to make purchases when prices rise, inflation is sometimes defined as a decrease in the purchasing value of money. Economists measure price changes with indexes. The most widely used index in the United States is the consumer price index (CPI).

Inflation may result if the demand for goods increases without an increase in the production of goods. Inflation may also take place if the cost of producing goods increases. Producers pass on increased costs, such as higher wages and more expensive raw materials, by charging consumers higher prices.

Interest Rate

The cost of borrowing money. Interest is calculated as a yearly percentage, or rate, of the money borrowed. A 10 percent interest rate, therefore, would require a borrower to pay $10 per year for every $100 borrowed.

When interest rates are low, people will borrow more, because the cost of borrowing is lower. However, they will save and invest less, because the return on their savings or investment is lower. With high interest rates, people save and invest more but borrow less. Because interest rates affect the economy, the government takes steps to control them through the Federal Reserve System, the nation’s central banking system. The graph below shows the relationship between the rate of inflation and interest rates over time.

A graph compares the inflation rate and the prime interest rate from 1980 to 2000.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the Prime Interest Rate and the Inflation rate both gradually falling from 1980 to 1992, then rising from 1992 to 2000.

1980, Inflation rate 13.5%, Prime Interest Rate 15%.
1984, Inflation rate 4.25%, Prime Interest Rate 12%.
1988, Inflation rate 4%, Prime Interest Rate 9.5%.
1992, Inflation rate 3%, Prime Interest Rate 6%.
1996, Inflation rate 3%, Prime Interest Rate 8%.
2000, Inflation rate 3.75%, Prime Interest Rate 9%.

Inflation and Interest Rates, 1980–2000 Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics; Federal Reserve System

Inflation Rate

Prime Interest Rate Production note: captions associated with this image are legends that correspond to text within the image.

Keynesian Economics

The use of government spending to encourage economic activity by increasing the demand for goods. This approach is based on the ideas of British economist John Maynard Keynes (shown below). In a 1936 study, Keynes pointed out that during economic downturns, more people are unemployed and have less income to spend. As a result, businesses cut production and lay off more workers.

Keynes’s answer to this problem was for government to increase spending and reduce taxes. This would stimulate demand for goods and services by replacing the decline in consumer demand. Government would want goods and services for its new programs. More people would be working and earning an income and, therefore, would want to buy more goods and services. Businesses would increase production to meet this new demand. As a result, the economy would soon recover.

Critics maintain, however, that Keynesian economics has led to the growth of government and to high taxes, inflation, high unemployment, and low economic growth. For an example of Keynesian economics at work, read the Economic Background on page 763.

Minimum Wage

The minimum amount of money that employers may legally pay their employees for each hour of work. The first federal minimum wage law, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, set the base wage at 25 cents an hour. Since then, amendments to the act have raised this hourly rate to $5.15, effective in 1997. The Fair Labor Standards Act applies to workers in most businesses involved in interstate commerce.

The original intent of the minimum wage law was to ensure that all workers earned enough to survive. Some economists maintain that the law may have reduced the chances for unskilled workers to get jobs. They argue that the minimum wage raises the unemployment rate because it increases labor costs for business. The graph on the next page shows changes in the minimum wage over a ten-year period.

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A graph shows the changes in the minimum wage from 1986 to 2000.

alt="A timeline of events from 1846 to 1860."/> DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the minimum wage from 1986 to 2000 in both current dollars and in constant 1998 dollars adjusted for inflation.

1986, $3.25 in current dollars, $5 in adjusted constant dollars.
1988, $3.25 in current dollars, $4.75 in adjusted constant dollars.
1990, $3.75 in current dollars, $4.85 in adjusted constant dollars.
1992, $4.25 in current dollars, $4.95 in adjusted constant dollars.
1994, $4.25 in current dollars, $4.70 in adjusted constant dollars.
1996, $4.75 in current dollars, $4.90 in adjusted constant dollars.
1998, $5.20 in current dollars, $5.20 in adjusted constant dollars.
2000, $5.20 in current dollars, $4.75 in adjusted constant dollars.

Minimum Wage, 1986–2000 Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2000

Monopoly

A situation in which only one seller controls the production, supply, or pricing of a product for which there are no close substitutes. In the United States, basic public services such as electrical power distributors and cable television suppliers operate as local monopolies. This way of providing utilities is economically more efficient than having several competing companies running electricity or cable lines in the same area.

Monopolies, however, can be harmful to the economy. Since it has no competition, a monopoly does not need to respond to the wants of consumers by improving product quality or by charging fair prices. The government counters the threat of monopoly either by breaking up or regulating the monopoly.

National Debt

The money owed by a national government. During wartime, during economic recession, or at other times, the government may employ deficit spending. However, the government may not pay back all the money it has borrowed to fund this policy. Each year’s federal budget deficit adds to the national debt. By 2000, the national debt of the United States stood at $5.67 trillion, or about $20,000 for each citizen.

The rapid growth of the U.S. national debt since 1980 has prompted many Americans to call for changes in government economic policies. Some suggest that the government raise taxes and cut spending to reduce the debt. Others recommend a constitutional amendment that would require the government to have a balanced budget, spending only as much as it takes in.

Poverty

The lack of adequate income to maintain a minimum standard of living. In the United States, this adequate income is referred to as the poverty line. In 1999, the poverty threshold for a family of four was $17,029. That year, the poverty rate dropped to 11.8 percent—the lowest rate since 1979, and more than 32 million Americans lived in poverty.

While poverty rates have remained relatively steady over the last 30 or so years, inequality in the distribution of income has grown. Between 1970 and 2000, the share of income received by the wealthiest 20 percent of families increased from 43.3 percent to 56.7 percent. In the same period, the poorest 20 percent of families’ share of income fell from 4.1 percent to 2.7 percent.

A graph shows the percentage of people below the poverty level from 1981 to 1999.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the percentage of people below the poverty level remaining between about 13% to 15% from 1981 to 1999.

1981: 14%
1983: 15%
1985: 14%
1987: 13.5%
1989: 13%
1991: 14.5%
1993: 15%
1995: 14%
1997: 13.5%
1999: 12.5%

Poverty, 1981–1999 Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census R44

Productivity

The relationship between the output of goods and services and the input of resources. Productivity is the amount of goods or services that a person can produce at a given time. It is closely linked to economic growth, which is defined as an increase in a nation’s real gross domestic product (GDP) from one year to the next. A substantial rise in productivity means the average worker is producing more, a key factor in spurring economic expansion. Between 1995 and 2000, for example, worker productivity in the United States increased about 3 percent each year. This increase, along with other economic factors, helped the nation’s real GDP grow an average of about 4 percent during those years.

A number of elements affect productivity, including available supplies of labor and raw materials, education and training, attitudes toward work, and technological innovations. Computer technology, for instance, is believed to have played a significant role in bolstering productivity during the 1990s by allowing workers to do their jobs more quickly and efficiently. Conversely, a lack of adequate training and fewer innovations were thought to be behind the meager productivity growth rates of the 1970s and 1980s—when productivity rose at an annual rate of less than 1 percent.

Recession

A period of declining economic activity. In economic terms, a recession takes place when the gross domestic product falls for two quarters, or six months, in a row. The United States has experienced several of these business-cycle contractions in its history. On average, they have lasted about a year. If a recession persists and economic activity plunges, it is called a depression. For more information on recessions, read the Economic Background on page 886.

Socialism

An economic system in which the government owns most of the means of production and distribution. Like communism, the goal of socialism is to use the power of government to reduce inequality and meet people’s needs. Under socialism, however, the government usually owns only major industries, such as coal, steel, and transportation. Other industries are privately owned but regulated by the government. Government and individuals, therefore, share economic decision-making. Also, under socialism, the government may provide such services as reasonably priced health care.

Some countries, such as Sweden, are called democratic socialist countries. These nations have less government ownership of property than communist governments. They also have democratically elected governments.

Critics of socialism maintain that this system leads to less efficiency and higher taxes than does the free enterprise system.

A chart shows an arrow. The words Socialism and Communism lead to the words More Government Control at the top of the arrow. Capitalism and Anarchism lead to the words Less Government Control at the bottom.

Economic Systems

Standard of Living

The overall economic situation in which people live. Economists differ on how best to measure the standard of living. Some suggest average personal income, while others propose per capita gross domestic product—the GDP divided by the population. Another possible measure is the value of the goods and services bought by consumers during a year. In general terms, the nation’s standard of living rises as these measures rise. Some people argue that measuring the quality of life also requires consideration of noneconomic factors such as pollution, health, work hours, and even political freedom.

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Stock Market or Stock Exchange

A place where stocks and bonds are bought and sold. Since stocks and bonds together are known as securities, a stock market is sometimes called a securities market.

Large companies often need extra money to fund expansion and to help cover operating costs. To raise money, they sell stocks, or shares of ownership, in their companies or borrow by issuing bonds, or certificates of debt, promising to repay the money borrowed, plus interest.

Individuals invest in securities to make a profit. Most stockholders receive dividends, or a share of the company’s profits. Bondholders receive interest. Investors may also make a profit by selling their securities. This sale of securities takes place in the stock exchange.

Stocks and bonds are traded on exchanges. The largest and most important exchange in the United States is the New York Stock Exchange (pictured below; for more information on the New York Stock Exchange, read the Now & Then on page 674). Activity on this and other exchanges often signals how well the economy is doing. A bull market—when stock prices rise—usually indicates economic expansion. A bear market—when stock prices fall—usually indicates economic contraction.

A rapid fall in stock prices is called a crash. The worst stock market crash in the United States came in October 1929. To help protect against another drastic stock market crash, the federal government set up the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which regulates the trading of securities.

Selected World Stock Exchanges
Exchange	Products
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)	stocks, bonds
American Stock Exchange (AMEX) (New York)	stocks, bonds
National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ)	over-the-counter stocks
London Stock Exchange	stocks
Tokyo Stock Exchange	stocks, bonds, futures, options
Stock Exchange of Hong Kong	stocks, bonds, commodity futures
German Stock Exchange (Frankfurt)	stocks

Strike

A work stoppage by employees to gain higher wages, better working conditions, or other benefits. Strikes are also sometimes used as political protests. A strike is usually preceded by a failure in collective bargaining—the negotiation of contracts between labor unions and employers. Union members may decide to call a strike if they believe negotiations with the employer are deadlocked. Collective bargaining and strikes are regulated by the NLRA, or Wagner Act, of 1935, administered by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). There are also wildcat strikes, which do not involve unions.

When strikes do occur, union representatives and employers try to negotiate a settlement. An outside party is sometimes asked to help work out an agreement.

For a personal account of a strike, view the American Stories video, “A Child on Strike: The Testimony of Camella Teoli, Mill Girl.”

photo: Airline pilots carry signs: Pilots on Strike.

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Supply and Demand

The forces that determine prices of goods and services in a market economy. Supply is the amount of a good or service that producers are willing and able to produce at a given price. Demand is the amount of a good or service consumers are willing and able to buy at a given price. In general, producers are willing to produce more of a good or service when prices are high; conversely, consumers are willing to buy more of a good or service when prices are low.

The table and graph below show supply and demand for a certain product. The line S shows the amount of the good that producers would be willing to make at various prices. The line D shows the amount that consumers would be willing to buy at various prices. Point E, where the two lines intersect, is called the equilibrium price. It is the price at which the amount produced and the amount demanded would be the same.

When the equilibrium price is the market price, the market operates efficiently. At prices above the equilibrium price, consumers will demand less than producers supply. Producers, therefore, will have to lower their prices to sell the surplus, or excess, products. At prices below equilibrium, consumers will demand more. Producers will be able to raise their prices because the product is scarce, or in short supply.

a graph compares price and quantity of goods and services. The line representing Supply goes up, while the line representing Demand goes down. The lines form an X with the Equilibrium price at theor intersection.

Supply and Demand

Supply and Demand Schedules
Supply	Price	Demand
50	10	300
100	20	250
150	30	200
200	40	150
250	50	100
300	60	50

Supply-Side Economics

Government policies designed to stimulate the production of goods and services, or the supply side of the economy. Supply-side economists developed these policies in opposition to Keynesian economics.

Supply-side policies call for low tax rates particularly in income from investments. Lower taxes mean that people keep more of each dollar they earn. Therefore, supply-side economists argue, people will work harder in order to earn more. They will then use their extra income to save and invest. This investment will fund the development of new businesses and, as a result, create more jobs. For more information on supply-side economics, read the Economic Background on page 1041.

Tariff

A fee charged for goods brought into a state or country from another state or country. Beginning in 1789, Congress created tariffs to raise revenue and to protect American products from foreign competition. Soon, however, special interest groups used tariffs to protect specific industries and increase profits.

Trade without tariffs is called free trade. In recent decades, a growing number of U.S. economists have favored free trade policies because they believe that such policies will help increase U.S. exports to other countries. In 1994, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) established a free-trade zone among the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

graphic: Uncle Sam holds a bag of money.

Taxation

The practice of requiring persons, groups, or businesses to contribute funds to the government under which they reside or transact business. All levels of government—federal, state, and local—collect many kinds of taxes. Income taxes are the chief source of revenue for the federal government and an important revenue source for many states. Both corporations and individuals pay income tax, or taxes on earnings. Since its inception in 1913, the federal income tax has been a progressive tax, one that is graduated, or scaled, such that those with greater incomes are taxed at a greater rate.

Sales taxes are another important source of income for state governments.

Property taxes are the main source of funds for local governments. Property tax is calculated as a percentage of the assessed value of real estate—land and improvements such as buildings.

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Trade

The exchange of goods and services between countries. Almost all nations produce goods that other countries need, and they sell (export) those goods to buyers in other countries. At the same time, they buy (import) goods from other countries as well. For example, Americans sell goods such as wheat to people in Japan and buy Japanese goods such as automobiles in return.

Nations that trade with one another often become dependent on one another’s products. Sometimes this brings nations closer together, as it did the United States, Great Britain, and France before World War I. Other times it causes tension among nations, such as that between the United States and Arab oil-producing countries in the 1970s. For an example of how trade influences foreign policy, read the Economic Background on page 583.

a graph compares import and export payments from 1960 to 2000.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows Imports and Exports following very similar increasing paths until 1990-2000, when Imports grow far above Exports.

1960: Imports $10 billion, Exports $10 billion
1970: Imports $70 billion, Exports $70 billion
1980: Imports $300 billion, Exports $280 billion
1990: Imports $625 billion, Exports $575 billion
2000: Imports $1500 billion, Exports $1100 billion

U.S. Foreign Trade, 1960–2000 Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis

Trust

A form of business merger in which the major stockholders in several corporations turn over their stock to a group of trustees. The trustees then run the separate corporations as one large company, or trust. In return for their stock, the stockholders of the separate corporations receive a share of the trust’s profits.

American business leaders of the late 1800s used trusts to stifle competition and take control of entire industries, as in a monopoly. Trusts were outlawed by the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890. However, business leaders eventually found other ways to merge corporations in an industry.

Unemployment Rate

The percentage of the labor force that is unemployed but actively looking for work. The labor force consists of all civilians 16 years of age and older who are employed or who are unemployed but actively looking and available for work. The size of the labor force and the unemployment rate are determined by surveys conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census.

The unemployment rate provides an indicator of economic health. Rising unemployment rates signal a contraction in the economy, while falling rates indicate an economic expansion. The graphs below show two different methods of portraying unemployment in the United States.

A graph shows the number of unemployed workers from 1980 to 2000.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows unemployment ranging from 11 million unemployed workers in 1982 to a low of 6 million in 2000.

1980: 8 million unemployed workers
1982: 11 million
1984: 9 million
1986: 9 million
1988: 7 million
1990: 8 million
1992: 10 million
1994: 8 million
1996: 8 million
1998: 7 million
2000: 6 million

Unemployment in the United States, 1980–2000 a graph line shows the unemployment rate from 1980 to 2000.

DESCRIPTION:

The graph shows the unemployment rate peaking in 1982, then steadily dropping.

1980, 7% unemployed
1982, 10% unemployed
1984, 7.5% unemployed
1986, 7% unemployed
1988, 5.5% unemployed
1990, 5.75% unemployed
1992, 7.5% unemployed
1994, 6% unemployed
1996, 5.5% unemployed
1998, 4.5% unemployed
2000, 4% unemployed

Unemployment Rate Sources: U.S. Department of Labor; Bureau of Economic Analysis R48

Facts about the States

Alabama
4,447,100 people
52,237 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 30
Entered Union in 1819 Alaska: capital, Juneau

Alaska
626,932 people
615,230 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 1
Entered Union in 1959 Arizona: capital, Phoenix.

Arizona
5,130,632 people
114,006 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 6
Entered Union in 1912 Arkansas: capital, Little Rock

Arkansas
2,673,400 people
53,182 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 28
Entered Union in 1836 California: capital, Sacramento

California
33,871,648 people
158,869 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 3
Entered Union in 1850 Colorado: capital, Denver

Colorado
4,301,261 people
104,100 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 8
Entered Union in 1876 Connecticut: capital, Hartford

Connecticut
3,405,565 people
5,544 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 48
Entered Union in 1788 Delaware: capital, Dover

Delaware
783,600 people
2,396 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 49
Entered Union in 1787 District of Columbia
572,059 people
68 sq. mi. Florida: capital, Tallahassee

Florida
15,982,378 people
59,928 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 23
Entered Union in 1845 Georgia: capital, Atlanta

Georgia
8,186,453 people
58,977 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 24
Entered Union in 1788 Hawaii: capital, Honolulu

Hawaii
1,211,537 people
6,459 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 47
Entered Union in 1959 Idaho: capital, Boise

Idaho
1,293,953 people
83,574 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 14
Entered Union in 1890 Illinois: capital, Springfield

Illinois
12,419,293 people
57,918 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 25
Entered Union in 1818 Indiana: capital, Indianapolis

Indiana
6,080,485 people
36,420 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 38
Entered Union in 1816 Iowa: capital, Des Moines

Iowa
2,926,324 people
56,276 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 26
Entered Union in 1846 Kansas: capital, Topeka

Kansas
2,688,418 people
82,282 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 15
Entered Union in 1861 Kentucky: capital, Frankfort

Kentucky
4,041,769 people
40,411 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 37
Entered Union in 1792 Louisiana: capital, Baton Rouge

Louisiana
4,468,976 people
49,651 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 31
Entered Union in 1812 Maine: capital, Augusta

Maine
1,274,923 people
33,741 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 39
Entered Union in 1820 Maryland: capital, Annapolis

Maryland
5,296,486 people
12,297 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 42
Entered Union in 1788 Massachusetts: capital, Boston

Massachusetts
6,349,097 people
9,241 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 45
Entered Union in 1788 Michigan: capital, Lansing

Michigan
9,938,444 people
96,705 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 11
Entered Union in 1837 Minnesota: capital, St. Paul

Minnesota
4,919,479 people
86,943 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 12
Entered Union in 1858 Mississippi: capital, Jackson

Mississippi
2,844,658 people
48,286 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 32
Entered Union in 1817 Missouri: capital, Jefferson City

Missouri
5,595,211 people
69,709 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 21
Entered Union in 1821 Montana: capital, Helena

Montana
902,195 people
147,046 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 4
Entered Union in 1889 R49 Nebraska: capital, Lincoln

Nebraska
1,711,263 people
77,538 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 16
Entered Union in 1867 Nevada: capital, Carson City

Nevada
1,998,257 people
110,567 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 7
Entered Union in 1864 New Hampshire: capital, Concord

New Hampshire
1,235,786 people
9,283 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 44
Entered Union in 1788 New Jersey: capital, Trenton

New Jersey
8,414,350 people
8,215 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 46
Entered Union in 1787 New Mexico: capital, Santa Fe

New Mexico
1,819,046 people
121,598 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 5
Entered Union in 1912 New York: capital, Albany

New York
18,976,457 people
53,989 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 27
Entered Union in 1788 North Carolina: capital, Raleigh

North Carolina
8,049,313 people
52,672 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 29
Entered Union in 1789 North Dakota: capital, Bismarck

North Dakota
642,200 people
70,704 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 18
Entered Union in 1889 Ohio: capital, Columbus

Ohio
11,353,140 people
44,828 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 34
Entered Union in 1803 Oklahoma: capital, Oklahoma City

Oklahoma
3,450,654 people
69,903 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 20
Entered Union in 1907 Oregon: capital, Salem

Oregon
3,421,399 people
97,132 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 10
Entered Union in 1859 Pennsylvania: capital, Harrisburg

Pennsylvania
12,281,054 people
46,058 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 33
Entered Union in 1787 Rhode Island: capital, Providence

Rhode Island
1,048,319 people
1,231 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 50
Entered Union in 1790 South Carolina: capital, Columbia

South Carolina
4,012,012 people
31,189 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 40
Entered Union in 1788 South Dakota: capital, Pierre

South Dakota
754,844 people
77,121 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 17
Entered Union in 1889 Tennessee: capital, Nashville

Tennessee
5,689,283 people
42,146 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 36
Entered Union in 1796 Texas: capital, Austin

Texas
20,851,820 people
267,277 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 2
Entered Union in 1845 Utah: capital, Salt Lake City

Utah
2,233,169 people
84,904 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 13
Entered Union in 1896 Vermont: capital, Montpelier

Vermont
608,827 people
9,615 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 43
Entered Union in 1791 Virginia: capital, Richmond

Virginia
7,078,515 people
42,326 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 35
Entered Union in 1788 Washington: capital, Olympia

Washington
5,894,121 people
70,637 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 19
Entered Union in 1889 West Virginia: capital, Charleston

West Virginia
1,808,344 people
24,231 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 41
Entered Union in 1863 Wisconsin: capital, Madison

Wisconsin
5,363,675 people
64,599 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 22
Entered Union in 1848 Wyoming: capital, Cheyenne

Wyoming
493,782 people
97,818 sq. mi.
Rank in area: 9
Entered Union in 1890 R50

Presidents of the United States

Dates given are for term in office.

Here are some little-known facts about the presidents of the United States:

• First president born in the new United States: Martin Van Buren (8th president)

• Only president who was a bachelor: James Buchanan

• First left-handed president: James A. Garfield

• Largest president: William Howard Taft (6 feet, 2 inches; 332 pounds)

• Youngest president: Theodore Roosevelt (42 years old)

• Oldest president: Ronald Reagan (77 years old when he left of fice in 1989)

• First president born west of the Mississippi River: Herbert Hoover (born in West Branch, Iowa)

• First president born in the 20th centur y: John F. Kennedy (born May 29, 1917)

1 portrait: George Washington

George Washington

1789–1797

No Political Party

Birthplace: Virginia

Born: February 22, 1732

Died: December 14, 1799

2 Portrait: John Adams

John Adams

1797–1801

Federalist

Birthplace: Massachusetts

Born: October 30, 1735

Died: July 4, 1826

3 Portrait: Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson

1801–1809

Democratic-Republican

Birthplace: Virginia

Born: April 13, 1743

Died: July 4, 1826

4 Portrait: James Madison

James Madison

1809–1817

Democratic-Republican

Birthplace: Virginia

Born: March 16, 1751

Died: June 28, 1836

5 Portrait: James Monroe

James Monroe

1817–1825

Democratic-Republican

Birthplace: Virginia

Born: April 28, 1758

Died: July 4, 1831

6 portrait: John Quincy Adams

John Quincy Adams

1825–1829

Republican Birthplace: Massachusetts

Born: July 11, 1767

Died: February 23, 1848

7 Portrait: Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson

1829–1837

Democrat

Birthplace: South Carolina

Born: March 15, 1767

Died: June 8, 1845

8 Portrait: Martin Van Buren

Martin Van Buren

1837–1841

Democrat

Birthplace: New York

Born: December 5, 1782

Died: July 24, 1862

9 Portrait: William Henry Harrison

William H. Harrison

1841

Whig Birthplace: Virginia Born: February 9, 1773

Died: April 4, 1841

10 Portrait: John Tyler

John Tyler

1841–1845

Whig

Birthplace: Virginia

Born: March 29, 1790

Died: January 18, 1862

11 Portrait: James K. Polk

James K. Polk

1845–1849

Democrat

Birthplace: North Carolina

Born: November 2, 1795

Died: June 15, 1849

12 Portrait: Zachary Taylor

Zachary Taylor

1849–1850

Whig

Birthplace: Virginia

Born: November 24, 1784

Died: July 9, 1850

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13 Portrait: Millard Fillmore

Millard Fillmore

1850–1853

Whig

Birthplace: New York

Born: January 7, 1800

Died: March 8, 1874

14 Portrait: Franklin Pierce

Franklin Pierce

1853–1857

Democrat

Birthplace: New Hampshire

Born: November 23, 1804

Died: October 8, 1869

15 Portrait: James Buchanan

James Buchanan

1857–1861

Democrat

Birthplace: Pennsylvania

Born: April 23, 1791

Died: June 1, 1868

16 Portrait: Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

1861–1865

Republican

Birthplace: Kentucky

Born: February 12, 1809

Died: April 15, 1865

17 Portrait: Andrew Johnson

Andrew Johnson

1865–1869

Democrat

Birthplace: North Carolina

Born: December 29, 1808

Died: July 31, 1875

18 Portrait: Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant

1869–1877

Republican

Birthplace: Ohio

Born: April 27, 1822

Died: July 23, 1885

19 Rutherford B. Hayes

Rutherford B. Hayes

1877–1881

Republican

Birthplace: Ohio

Born: October 4, 1822

Died: January 17, 1893

20 James A. Garfield

James A. Garfield

1881

Republican

Birthplace: Ohio

Born: November 19, 1831

Died: September 19, 1881

21 Portrait: Chester A. Arthur

Chester A. Arthur

1881–1885

Republican

Birthplace: Vermont

Born: October 5, 1829

Died: November 18, 1886

22 24 Portrait: Grover Cleveland

Grover Cleveland

1885–1889, 1893–1897

Democrat

Birthplace: New Jersey

Born: March 18, 1837

Died: June 24, 1908

23 Portrait: Benjamin Harrison

Benjamin Harrison

1889–1893

Republican

Birthplace: Ohio

Born: August 20, 1833

Died: March 13, 1901

25 Portrait: William McKinley

William McKinley

1897–1901

Republican

Birthplace: Ohio

Born: January 29, 1843

Died: September 14, 1901

26 Portrait: Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt

1901–1909

Republican

Birthplace: New York

Born: October 27, 1858

Died: January 6, 1919

27 Portrait: William H. Taft

William H. Taft

1909–1913

Republican

Birthplace: Ohio

Born: September 15, 1857

Died: March 8, 1930

28 Portrait: Woodrow Wilson

Woodrow Wilson

1913–1921

Democrat

Birthplace: Virginia

Born: December 29, 1856

Died: February 3, 1924

29 Portrait: Warren G. Harding

Warren G. Harding

1921–1923

Republican

Birthplace: Ohio

Born: November 2, 1865

Died: August 2, 1923

R52

30 Portrait: Calvin Coolidge

Calvin Coolidge

1923–1929

Republican

Birthplace: Vermont

Born: July 4, 1872

Died: January 5, 1933

31 Portrait: Herbert Hoover

Herbert C. Hoover

1929–1933

Republican

Birthplace: Iowa

Born: August 10, 1874

Died: October 20, 1964

32 Portrait: Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

1933–1945

Democrat

Birthplace: New York

Born: January 30, 1882

Died: April 12, 1945

33 Portrait: Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman

1945–1953

Democrat

Birthplace: Missouri

Born: May 8, 1884

Died: December 26, 1972

34 Portrait: Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight D. Eisenhower

1953–1961

Republican

Birthplace: Texas

Born: October 14, 1890

Died: March 28, 1969

35 Portrait: John F. Kennedy

John F. Kennedy

1961–1963

Democrat

Birthplace: Massachusetts

Born: May 29, 1917

Died: November 22, 1963

36 Portrait: Lyndon B. Johnson

Lyndon B. Johnson

1963–1969

Democrat

Birthplace: Texas

Born: August 27, 1908

Died: January 22, 1973

37 Portrait: Richard M. Nixon

Richard M. Nixon

1969–1974

Republican

Birthplace: California

Born: January 9, 1913

Died: April 22, 1994

38 Portrait: Gerald R. Ford

Gerald R. Ford

1974–1977

Republican

Birthplace: Nebraska

Born: July, 14, 1913

Died: December 26, 2006

39 Portrait: James E. Carter

James E. Carter, Jr.

1977–1981

Democrat

Birthplace: Georgia

Born: October 1, 1924

40 Portrait: Ronald W. Reagan

Ronald W. Reagan

1981–1989

Republican

Birthplace: Illinois

Born: February 6, 1911

Died: June 4, 2004

41 Portrait: George H.W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

1989–1993

Republican

Birthplace: Massachusetts

Born: June 12, 1924

42 Portrait: William J. Clinton

William J. Clinton

1993–2001

Democrat

Birthplace: Arkansas

Born: August 19, 1946

43 Portrait: George W. Bush

George W. Bush

2001–

Republican

Birthplace: Connecticut

Born: July 6, 1946

R53

Glossary

The Glossary is an alphabetical listing of many of the key terms from the chapters, along with their meanings. The definitions listed in the Glossary are the ones that apply to the way the words are used in this textbook. The Glossary gives the part of speech of each word. The following abbreviations are used:

adj. = adjectiven. = nounv. = verb

Pronunciation Key
Symbol	Examples
ă	at, gas
ā	ape, day
ä	father, barn
âr	fair, dare
b	bell, table
ch	chin, lunch
d	dig, bored
ĕ	egg, ten
ë	evil, see, meal
f	fall, laugh, phrase
g	gold, big
h	hit, inhale
hw	white, everywhere
ĭ	inch, fit
ī	idle, my, tried
îr	dear, here
j	jar, gem, badge
k	keep, cat, luck
l	load, rattle
m	man, seem
n	night, mitten
ng	sing, anger
ŏ	odd, not
ō	open, road, grow
ô	awful, bought, horse
oi	coin, boy
	look, full
	root, glue, through
ou	out, cow
p	pig, cap
r	rose, star
s	sit, face
sh	she, mash
t	tap, hopped
th	thing, with
th	then, other
ŭ	up, nut
ûr	fur, earn, bird, worm
v	van, save
w	web, twice
y	yard, lawyer
z	zoo, reason
zh	treasure, garage
ə	awake, even, pencil, pilot, focus
ər	perform, letter
Sounds in Foreign Words
KH	German ich, auch; Scottish loch
N	French entre, bon, fin
œ	French feu, coeur; German schön
ü	French utile, rue; German grün

STRESS MARKS

′ This mark indicates that the preceding syllable receives the primary stress. For example, in the word lineage, the first syllable is stressed: [lĭn′ē-ĭj].

′ This mark is used only in words in which more than one syllable is stressed. It indicates that the preceding syllable is stressed, but somewhat more weakly than the syllable receiving the primary stress. In the word consumerism, for example, the second syllable receives the primary stress, and the fourth syllable receives a weaker stress: [kən-s′mə-rĭz′əm].

A

abolition: n. movement to end slavery. (p. 249)
Adams-Onís: [ăd′ əmz-ō-nēs′] Treaty n. an 1819 agreement in which Spain gave over control of the territory of Florida to the United States. (p. 221)
Adena: [ə-dē&# x2032;nə] n. a Mound Builder society that was centered in the Ohio River valley and flourished from about 700 b.c. to a.d. 100. (p. 7)
affirmative: [ə-fûr&# x2032;mə-tĭv] action n. a policy that seeks to correct the effects of past discrimination by favoring the groups who were previously disadvantaged. (pp. 929, 1037)
Agent Orange: n. a toxic leaf-killing chemical sprayed by U.S. planes in Vietnam to expose Vietcong hideouts. (p. 945)
Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA): n. a law enacted in 1933 to raise crop prices by paying farmers to leave a certain amount of their land unplanted, thus lowering production. (p. 697)
AIDS: [ādz] (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) n. a disease caused by a virus that weakens the immune system, making the body prone to infections and otherwise rare forms of cancer. (p. 1046) R54
Alamo, the: [ăl′ə-mō′] n. a mission and fort in San Antonio, Texas, where Mexican forces massacred rebellious Texans in 1836. (p. 291)
Alien and Sedition: [ā′lē-ən] [sĭ-dĭsh′ən] Acts n. a series of four laws enacted in 1798 to reduce the political power of recent immigrants to the United States. (p. 195)
Alliance: [ə-lī′ əns] for Progress n. a U.S. foreign-aid program of the 1960s, providing economic and technical assistance to Latin American countries. (p. 886)
Allies: [ăl′īz] n. 1. in World War I, the group of nations—originally consisting of Great Britain, France, and Russia and later joined by the United States, Italy, and others—that opposed the Central Powers (p. 579). 2. in World War II, the group of nations—including Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and the United States—that opposed the Axis powers. (p. 760)
American Expeditionary: [ĕk′spĭ-dĭsh′&# x0259;-nĕr′ē] Force (AEF) n. the U.S. forces, led by General John Pershing, who fought with the Allies in Europe during World War I. (p. 590)
American Federation of Labor (AFL): n. an alliance of trade and craft unions, formed in 1886. (p. 451)
American Indian Movement (AIM): n. a frequently militant organization that was formed in 1968 to work for Native American rights. (p. 977)
Americanization: [ə-mĕr′ ĭ-kə-nĭ-zā′shən] movement n. education program designed to help immigrants assimilate to American culture. (p. 469)
American System: n. a pre-Civil War set of measures designed to unify the nation and strengthen its economy by means of protective tariffs, a national bank, and such internal improvements as the development of a transportation system. (p. 216)
Anaconda: [ăn′ə-kŏ ;n′də] plan n. a three-part strategy by which the Union proposed to defeat the Confederacy in the Civil War. (p. 341)
anarchist: [ăn′ər-kĭst] n. a person who opposes all forms of government. (p. 619)
Anasazi: [ä′nə-s&# x00E4;′zē] n. a Native American group that lived on the mesa tops, cliff sides, and canyon bottoms of the Four Corners region (where the present-day states of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah meet) from about A.D. 100 to 1300. (p. 7)
annex: [ə-nĕks&# x2032;] v. to incorporate a territory into an existing political unit, such as a state or a nation. (p. 292)
antebellum: [ăn′tē- bĕl′əm] adj. belonging to the period before the Civil War. (p. 252)
Antifederalist: [ăn′t&# x0113;-fĕd′ər-ə-lĭst] n. an opponent of a strong central government. (p. 146)
appeasement: [ə-pēz′mənt] n. the granting of concessions to a hostile power in order to keep the peace. (p. 744)
Appomattox: [ăp′ə-m&# x0103;t′əks] Court House n. town near Appomatox, Virginia, where Lee surrendered to Grant on April 9, 1865, thus ending the Civil War. (37°N 79°W) (p. 356)
apprentice: [ə-prĕn′tĭs] n. a worker learning a trade or craft, usually under the supervision of a master. (p. 260)
arbitration: n. a method of settling disputes in which both sides submit their differences to a mutually approved judge. (p. 451)
armistice: [är′mĭ-stĭs] n. a truce, or agreement to end an armed conflict. (pp. 205, 593)
Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN): n. the southern Vietnamese soldiers with whom U.S. troops fought against communism and forces in the North during the Vietnam War. (p. 943)
Articles of Confederation: [kən-fĕd′ə-rā&# x2032;shən] n. a document, adopted by the Second Continental Congress in 1777 and finally approved by the states in 1781, that outlined the form of government of the new United States. (p. 135)
Ashcan school: n. a group of early 20th-century American artists who often painted realistic pictures of city life—such as tenements and homeless people—thus earning them their name. (p. 501)
assimilation: [ə-sĭm&# x2032;ə-lā′shən] n. a minority group’s adoption of the beliefs and way of life of the dominant culture. (p. 412)
Atlantic Charter: n. a 1941 declaration of principles in which the United States and Great Britain set forth their goals in opposing the Axis powers. (p. 760)
Axis: [ăk′s&# x012D;s] powers n. the group of nations—including Germany, Italy, and Japan—that opposed the Allies in World War II. (p. 757)
Aztec: [ăz′tĕk′] n. a Native American people that settled in the Valley of Mexico in the 1200s A.D. and later developed a powerful empire. (p. 6)

B

baby boom
n. the sharp increase in the U.S. birthrate following World War II. (p. 849)

Bank of the United States
n. either of the two national banks, funded by the federal government and private investors, established by Congress, the first in 1791 and the second in 1816. (pp. 185, 232)

Battle of the Bulge
n. a month-long battle of World War II, in which the Allies succeeded in turning back the last major German offensive of the war. (p. 782)

Battle of Midway
n. a World War II battle that took place in early June 1942. The Allies decimated the Japanese fleet at Midway, an island lying northwest of Hawaii. The Allies then took the offensive in the Pacific and began to move closer to Japan. (p. 795)

Battle of Wounded Knee
[wn′dĭd nē′] n. the massacre by U.S. soldiers of 300 unarmed Native Americans at Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota, in 1890. (p. 413)

Beatles, the
[bēt′lz] n. a British band that had an enormous influence on popular music in the 1960s. (p. 989)

beat movement
n. a social and artistic movement of the 1950s, stressing unrestrained literary self-expression and nonconformity with the mainstream culture. (p. 861)

Benin
[bə-nĭn&# x2032;] n. a West African kingdom that flourished in the Niger Delta region (in what is now Nigeria) from the 14th to the 17th century. (p. 17)

Berlin airlift
[bûr-lĭn′ âr′lĭft′] n. a 327-day operation in which U.S. and British planes flew food and supplies into West Berlin after the Soviets blockaded the city in 1948. (p. 813)

Berlin Wall
n. a concrete wall that separated East Berlin and West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, built by the Communist East German government to prevent its citizens from fleeing to the West. (p. 883)

Bessemer
[bĕs′ə-mər] process n. a cheap and efficient process for making steel, developed around 1850. (p. 437) R55

Bill of Rights
n. the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, added in 1791 and consisting of a formal list of citizens’ rights and freedoms. (p. 149)

bimetallism
[bī-mĕt′l-ĭz′əm] n. the use of both gold and silver as a basis for a national monetary system. (p. 428)

black codes
n. the discriminatory laws passed throughout the post-Civil-War South which severely restricted African Americans’ lives, prohibiting such activities as traveling without permits, carrying weapons, serving on juries, testifying against whites, and marrying whites. (p. 379)

blacklist
[blăk′lĭst′] n. a list of about 500 actors, writers, producers, and directors who were not allowed to work on Hollywood films because of their alleged Communist connections. (p. 824)

Black Panthers
n. a militant African-American political organization formed in 1966 by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale to fight police brutality and to provide services in the ghetto. (p. 926)

Black Power
n. a slogan used by Stokely Carmichael in the 1960s that encouraged African-American pride and political and social leadership. (p. 926)

Black Tuesday
n. a name given to October 29, 1929, when stock prices fell sharply. (p. 674)

Bleeding Kansas
n. a name applied to the Kansas Territory in the years before the Civil War, when the territory was a battleground between proslavery and antislavery forces. (p. 316)

blitzkrieg
[blĭts&# x2032;krēg′] n. from the German word meaning “lightning war,” a sudden, massive attack with combined air and ground forces, intended to achieve a quick victory. (p. 745)

blockade
[blŏ-kād ′] n. the use of ships or troops to prevent movement into and out of a port or region controlled by a hostile nation. (p. 202)

bonanza
[bə-năn′ ;zə] farm n. an enormous farm on which a single crop is grown. (p. 424)

Bonus
[bō′n&# x0259;s] Army n. a group of World War I veterans and their families who marched on Washington, D.C., in 1932 to demand the immediate payment of a bonus they had been promised for military service. (p. 688)

bootlegger
[bt′lĕg′ər] n. a person who smuggled alcoholic beverages into the United States during Prohibition. (p. 643)

Boston Massacre
[bô′stən măs′ə-kər] n. a clash between British soldiers and Boston colonists in 1770, in which five of the colonists were killed. (p. 98)

Boston Tea Party
n. the dumping of 18,000 pounds of tea into Boston Harbor by colonists in 1773 to protest the Tea Act. (p. 99)

Boulder
[bōl′ dər] Dam n. a dam on the Colorado River—now called Hoover Dam—that was built during the Great Depression as part of a public-works program intended to stimulate business and provide jobs. (p. 686)

Boxer Rebellion
n. a 1900 rebellion in which members of a Chinese secret society sought to free their country from Western influence. (p. 563)

bracero
[brə-sâr& #x2032;ō] n. a Mexican laborer allowed to enter the United States to work for a limited period of time during World War II. (p. 868)

bread line
n. a line of people waiting for free food. (p. 679)

brinkmanship
[brĭngk&# x2032;mən-shĭp′] n. the practice of threatening an enemy with massive military retaliation for any aggression. (p. 829)

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
n. a 1954 case in which the Supreme Court ruled that “separate but equal” education for black and white students was unconstitutional. (p. 908)

Bull Moose Party
n. a name given to the Progressive Party, formed to support Theodore Roosevelt’s candidacy for the presidency in 1912. (p. 536)

buying on margin
[mär′jĭn] n. the purchasing of stocks by paying only a small percentage of the price and borrowing the rest. (p. 673)

C

cabinet
[kăb′ə-nĭt] n. the group of department heads who serve as the president’s chief advisers. (p. 183)

Camp David Accords
[ə-kôrdz′] n. historic agreements between Israel and Egypt, reached in negotiations at Camp David in 1978. (p. 1022)

capitalism
[kăp′ĭ-tl-ĭz′əm] n. an economic system in which private individuals and corporations control the means of production and use them to earn profits. (p. 275)

carpetbagger
[kär′ ;pĭt-băg′ər] n. a Northerner who moved to the South after the Civil War. (p. 385)

cash crop
n. a crop grown by a farmer for sale rather than for personal use. (p. 72)

Central Powers
n. the group of nations—led by Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire—that opposed the Allies in World War I. (p. 580)

checks and balances
n. the provisions in the U.S. Constitution that prevent any branch of the U.S. government from dominating the other two branches. (p. 143)

Chinese Exclusion Act
n. a law, enacted in 1882, that prohibited all Chinese except students, teachers, merchants, tourists, and government officials from entering the United States. (p. 465)

Chisholm
[chĭz′əm] Trail n. the major cattle route from San Antonio, Texas, through Oklahoma to Kansas. (p. 415)

chlorination
n. a method of purifying water by mixing it with chemical chlorine. (p. 470)

CIA
n. the Central Intelligence Agency—a U.S. agency created to gather secret information about foreign governments. (p. 829)

Civilian Conservation Corps
[kôr] (CCC) n. an agency, established as part of the New Deal, that put young unemployed men to work building roads, developing parks, planting trees, and helping in erosion-control and flood-control projects. (p. 697)

civil disobedience
[dĭs′ə-bē′dē-əns] n. the refusal to obey those laws which are seen as unjust in an effort to bring about a change in governmental policy. Henry David Thoreau wrote about civil disobedience in the 19th century, and the tactic was promoted by Martin Luther King, Jr., during the Civil Rights Era. (p. 243)

Civil Rights Act of 1964
n. a law that banned discrimination on the basis of race, sex, national origin, or religion in public places and most workplaces. (p. 920)

Civil Rights Act of 1968
n. a law that banned discrimination in housing. (p. 928) R56

civil service
n. the nonmilitary branches of government administration. (p. 476)

Clayton Antitrust
[klāt′n ăn′tē-trŭst′] Act n. a law, enacted in 1914, that made certain monopolistic business practices illegal and protected the rights of labor unions and farm organizations. (p. 539)

Cold War
n. the state of hostility, without direct military conflict, that developed between the United States and the Soviet Union after World War II. (p. 812)

colonization
[kŏl′ə ;-nĭ-zā′shən] n. the establishment of outlying settlements by a parent country. (p. 28)

Columbian Exchange
[kə-lŭm′bē-ə n ĭks-chānj′] n. the transfer—beginning with Columbus’s first voyage—of plants, animals, and diseases between the Western Hemisphere and the Eastern Hemisphere. (p. 29)

committees of correspondence
[kôr′ĭ-spŏn′dəns] n. one of the groups set up by American colonists to exchange information about British threats to their liberties. (p. 99)

Committee to Reelect the President
n. an organization formed to run President Nixon’s 1972 reelection campaign, which was linked to the break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters that set off the Watergate scandal. (p. 1009)

Common Sense
n. a pamphlet by Thomas Paine, published in 1776, that called for separation of the colonies from Britain. (p. 105)

communism
[kŏm′yə-nĭz′əm] n. an economic and political system based on one-party government and state ownership of property. (p. 619)

Compromise
[kŏm′prə-mīz′] of 1850 n. a series of congressional measures intended to settle the major disagreements between free states and slave states. (p. 307)

Compromise of 1877
n. a series of congressional measures under which the Democrats agreed to accept the Republican candidate Rutherford B. Hayes as president, even though he had lost the popular vote. The measures included the withdrawal of federal troops from Southern states, federal money for improving Southern infrastructure, and the appointment of a conservative Southern cabinet member. (p. 399)

concentration
[kŏn′sən- trā′shən] camp n. a prison camp operated by Nazi Germany in which Jews and other groups considered to be enemies of Adolf Hitler were starved while doing slave labor or were murdered. (p. 752)

Confederacy
[kən-fĕd′ər-ə-sē] n. the Confederate States of America, a confederation formed in 1861 by the Southern states after their secession from the Union. (p. 330)

confederation
[kən-fĕd&# x2032;ə-rā′shən] n. an alliance permitting states or nations to act together on matters of mutual concern. (p. 135)

conglomerate
[kən-glŏm′ər-ĭt] n. a major corporation that owns a number of smaller companies in unrelated businesses. (p. 848)

Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)
n. a labor organization composed of industrial unions founded in 1938, it merged with the AFL in 1955. (p. 714)

Congress of Racial Equality
[rā′shəl ĭ-kwŏl′ĭ-tē] (CORE) n. an interracial group founded in 1942 by James Farmer to work against segregation in Northern cities. (p. 799)

conquistador
[kŏng-kē ′stə-dôr′] n. one of the Spaniards who traveled to the Americas as an explorer and conqueror in the 16th century. (p. 36)

conscientious objector
[kŏn′shē-ĕn′ shəs ŏb-jĕk′tər] n. a person who refuses, on moral grounds, to participate in warfare. (p. 592)

conscription
[kən-skrĭp′shən] n. the drafting of citizens for military service. (p. 349)

conservation
[kŏn′s&# x00FB;r-vā′shən] n. the planned management of natural resources, involving the protection of some wilderness areas and the development of others for the common good. (p. 529)

conservative coalition
[kən-sûr′və-t&# x012D;v kō′ə-lĭsh′ən] n. an alliance formed in the mid-1960s of right-wing groups opposed to big government. (p. 1037)

consolidation
[kən-sŏl′ĭ-dā′shən] n. the act of uniting or combining. (p. 446)

consumerism
[kən-s′mə-rĭz′əm] n. a preoccupation with the purchasing of material goods. (p. 854)

containment
[kən-tān′mənt] n. the blocking of another nation’s attempts to spread its influence—especially the efforts of the United States to block the spread of Soviet influence during the late 1940s and early 1950s. (p. 811)

Contract
[kŏn′trăkt′] with America n. a document that was drafted by Representative Newt Gingrich and signed by more than 300 Republican candidates in 1994, setting forth the Republicans’ conservative legislative agenda. (p. 1070)

Contras
[kŏn′ trəz] n. Nicaraguan rebels who received assistance from the Reagan administration in their efforts to overthrow the Sandinista government in the 1980s. (p. 1057)

convoy
[kŏn′ voi′] system n. the protection of merchant ships from U-boat—German submrine—attacks by having the ships travel in large groups escorted by warships. (p. 589)

Copperhead
[kŏp′ər-hĕd′] n. a Northern Democrat who advocated making peace with the Confederacy during the Civil War. (p. 349)

cottage industry
n. a system of production in which manufacturers provide the materials for goods to be produced in the home. (p. 260)

cotton gin
n. a machine for cleaning the seeds from cotton fibers, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793. (p. 215)

counterculture
[koun′tər-kŭl′chər] n. the culture of the young people who rejected mainstream American society in the 1960s, seeking to create an alternative society based on peace, love, and individual freedom. (p. 987)

credibility
[krĕd′ə-b&# x012D;l′ĭ-tē] gapn. a public distrust of statements made by the government. (p. 947)

credit
[krĕd′ĭt] n. an arrangement in which a buyer pays later for a purchase, often on an installment plan with interest charges. (p. 672)

Crédit Mobilier
[krĕd′ĭt mō-bēl′yər] n. a construction company formed in 1864 by owners of the Union Pacific Railroad, who used it to fraudulently skim off railroad profits for themselves. (p. 444)

Crusades
[kr-sādz′] n. a series of Christian military expeditions to the Middle East between a.d. 1096 and 1270, intended to drive the Muslims from the Holy Land. (p. 22)

cult of domesticity
[dō′mĕ-stĭs′ĭ-tē] n. a belief that married women should restrict their activities to their home and family. (p. 254)

R57
D

Dawes
[dôz] Act n. a law, enacted in 1887, that was intended to “Americanize” Native Americans by distributing reservation land to individual owners. (p. 412)

D-Day
n. a name given to June 6, 1944—the day on which the Allies launched an invasion of the European mainland during World War II. (p. 780)

debt peonage
[dĕt′ pē′ə-nĭj] n. a system in which workers are bound in servitude until their debts are paid. (p. 495)

Declaration
[dĕk′lə-r&# x0101;′shən] of Independence n. the document, written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, in which the delegates of the Continental Congress declared the colonies’ independence from Britain. (p. 106)

de facto segregation
[dĭ făk′tō sĕg′rĭ-gā′shən] n. racial separation established by practice and custom, not by law. (p. 924)

deficit
[dĕf′ ĭ-sĭt] spending n. a government’s spending of more money than it receives in revenue. (p. 698)

de jure segregation
[dē jr′ē sĕg′rĭ-gā′shən] n. racial separation established by law. (p. 924)

Democratic-Republican
n. political party known for its support of strong state governments, founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1792 in opposition to the Federalist Party. (pp. 186, 226)

deregulation
n. the cutting back of federal regulation of industry. (p. 1043)

détente
[dā-tänt′] n. the flexible policy, involving a willingness to negotiate and an easing of tensions, that was adopted by President Richard Nixon and his adviser Henry Kissinger in their dealings with communist nations. (p. 1005)

direct relief
[rĭ-lēf′] n. the giving of money or food by the government directly to needy people. (p. 681)

division of labor
n. the assignment of different tasks and responsibilities to different groups or individuals. (p. 13)

Dixiecrat
[dĭk′sē-krăt′] n. one of the Southern delegates who, to protest President Truman’s civil rights policy, walked out of the 1948 Democratic National Convention and formed the States’ Rights Democratic Party. (p. 844)

dollar diplomacy
[dĭ-plō′mə-s&# x0113;] n. the U.S. policy of using the nation’s economic power to exert influence over other countries. (p. 569)

domino theory
[dŏm′ə-nō′ thē′ə-rē] n. the idea that if a nation falls under communist control, nearby nations will also fall under communist control. (p. 937)

dotcom
n. a business related to or conducted on the Internet. (p. 1077)

double standard
n. a set of principles granting greater sexual freedom to men than to women. (p. 647)

dove
[dŭv] n. a person who opposed the Vietnam War and believed that the United States should withdraw from it. (p. 952)

Dow Jones
[dou′ jōnz′] Industrial Average n. a measure based on the prices of the stocks of 30 large companies, widely used as a barometer of the stock market’s health. (p. 673)

downsize
[doun′ sīz′] v. to dismiss numbers of permanent employees in an attempt to make operations more efficient and save money. (p. 1076)

draft
n. required enrollment in the armed services. (p. 948)

Dust Bowl
n. the region, including Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, and New Mexico, that was made worthless for farming by drought and dust storms during the 1930s. (p. 680)

E

Earth Day
n. a day set aside for environmental education, celebrated annually on April 22. (p. 1027)

Economic Opportunity Act
n. a law, enacted in 1964, that provided funds for youth programs, antipoverty measures, small-business loans, and job training. (p. 894)

egalitarianism
[ĭ-găl&# x2032;ĭ-târ′ē-ə-nĭz′əm] n. the belief that all people should have equal political, economic, social, and civil rights. (p. 122)

Eisenhower Doctrine
[ī′zən-hou′ə r dŏk′trĭn] n. a U.S. commitment to defend the Middle East against attack by any communist country, announced by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1957. (p. 831)

electoral
[ĭ-lĕk&# x2032;tər-əl] college n. a group selected by the states to elect the president and the vice-president, in which each state’s number of electors is equal to the number of its senators and representatives in Congress. (p. 144)

emancipation
n. the freeing of slaves. (p. 249)

Emancipation Proclamation
[prŏk′lə-mā′shən] n. an executive order issued by Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, freeing the slaves in all regions behind Confederate lines. (p. 347)

embargo
[ĕm-bär&# x2032;gō] n. a government ban on trade with one or more other nations. (p. 203)

encomienda
[ĕng-kô-my ĕn′dä] n. a system in which Spanish authorities granted colonial landlords the service of Native Americans as forced laborers. (p. 38)

Enlightenment
[ĕn-līt′n-mənt] n. an 18th-century intellectual movement that emphasized the use of reason and the scientific method as means of obtaining knowledge. (p. 82)

entitlement
[ĕn-tīt&# x2032;l-mənt] program n. a government program—such as Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid—that guarantees and provides benefits to a specific group. (p. 1037)

entrepreneur
[ŏn′tr&# x0259;-prə-nûr′] n. a person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture. (p. 275)

environmentalist
[ĕn-vī&# x2032;rən-mĕn′tl-ĭst] n. a person who works to protect the environment from destruction and pollution. (p. 1028)

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
n. a federal agency established in 1970 for the regulation of water and air pollution, toxic waste, pesticides, and radiation. (p. 1043)

Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)
n. a proposed and failed amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would have prohibited any government discrimination on the basis of sex. (p. 985)

Erie Canal
[îr′ē kə-năl′] n. a 363-mile-long artificial waterway connecting the Hudson River with Lake Erie, built between 1817 and 1825. (p. 217)

Espionage and Sedition
[ĕs′pē-ə-näzh′ ənd sĭ-dĭsh′ən] Acts n. two laws, enacted in 1917 and 1918, that imposed harsh penalties on anyone interfering with or speaking against U.S. participation in World War I. (p. 598)

excise
[ĕk′s& #x012B;z′] tax n. a tax on the production, sale, or consumption of goods produced within a country. (p. 186) R58

executive
[ĭg-zĕk&# x2032;yə-tĭv] branch n. the branch of government that administers and enforces the laws. (p. 143)

exoduster
[ĕk′sə-dŭs′tər] n. an African American who migrated from the South to Kansas in the post-Reconstruction years. (p. 421)

extortion
n. illegal use of one’s official position to obtain property or funds. (p. 475)

F

Fair Deal
n. President Harry S. Truman’s economic program—an extension of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal—which included measures to increase the minimum wage, to extend social security coverage, and to provide housing for low-income families. (p. 845)

Family Assistance Plan
n. a welfare-reform proposal, approved by the House of Representatives in 1970 but defeated in the Senate, that would have guaranteed an income to welfare recipients who agreed to undergo job training and to accept work. (p. 1001)

Farmers’ Alliances
n. groups of farmers, or those in sympathy with farming issues, who sent lecturers from town to town to educate people about agricultural and rural issues. (p. 427)

fascism
[făsh′ĭz′əm] n. a political philosophy that advocates a strong, centralized, nationalistic government headed by a powerful dictator. (p. 736)

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
n. an agency that regulates U.S. communications industries, including radio and television broadcasting. (p. 859)

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
n. an agency created in 1933 to insure individuals’ bank accounts, protecting people against losses due to bank failures. (p. 723)

Federal Home Loan Bank Act
n. a law, enacted in 1931, that lowered home mortgage rates and allowed farmers to refinance their loans and avoid foreclosure. (p. 687)

federalism
n. a political system in which a national government and constituent units, such as state governments, share power. (p. 143)

Federalists
[fĕd′ ər-ə-lĭst] n. supporters of the Constitution and of a strong national government. (p. 146)

Federalist, The
n. a series of essays defending and explaining the Constitution, written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. (p. 146)

Federal Reserve System
n. a national banking system, established in 1913, that controls the U.S. money supply and the availability of credit in the country. (p. 540)

Federal Securities
[sĭ-kyr′ĭ-tēz] Act n. a law, enacted in 1933, that required corporations to provide complete, accurate information on all stock offerings. (p. 696)

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
n. a federal agency established in 1914 to investigate and stop unfair business practices. (p. 539)

feminism
[fĕm′ə-nĭz′əm] n. the belief that women should have economic, political, and social equality with men. (p. 982)

Fifteenth Amendment
n. an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1870, that prohibits the denial of voting rights to people because of their race or color or because they have previously been slaves. (p. 382)

“Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!”
n. a slogan used in the 1844 presidential campaign as a call for the U.S. annexation of the entire Oregon Territory. (p. 285)

flapper
n. one of the free-thinking young women who embraced the new fashions and urban attitudes of the 1920s. (p. 647)

flexible response
[flĕk′sə-bəl rĭ-spŏns′] n. a policy, developed during the Kennedy administration, that involved preparing for a variety of military responses to international crises rather than focusing on the use of nuclear weapons. (p. 879)

Foraker
[fôr′ ə-kər] Act n. legislation passed by Congress in 1900, in which the U.S. ended military rule in Puerto Rico and set up a civil government. (p. 559)

Fordney-McCumber Tariff
[fôrd′nē mə-kŭm′bər tăr′ĭf] n. a set of regulations, enacted by Congress in 1922, that raised taxes on imports to record levels in order to protect American businesses against foreign competition. (p. 626)

forty-niner
n. one of the people who migrated to California in search of riches after gold was discovered there in 1848. (p. 298)

Fourteen Points
n. the principles making up President Woodrow Wilson’s plan for world peace following World War I. (p. 605)

Fourteenth Amendment
n. an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1868, that makes all persons born or naturalized in the United States—including former slaves—citizens of the country and guarantees equal protection of the laws. (p. 379)

franchise
[frăn′chīz′] n. a business that has bought the right to use a parent company’s name and methods, thus becoming one of a number of similar businesses in various locations. (p. 848)

Freedmen’s Bureau
[frēd-mĕnz byr′ō] n. a federal agency set up to help former slaves after the Civil War. (p. 379)

freedom rider
n. one of the civil rights activists who rode buses through the South in the early 1960s to challenge segregation. (p. 916)

Freedom Summer
n. a 1964 project to register African-American voters in Mississippi. (p. 921)

Freeport Doctrine
[frē′pôrt′ dŏk′trĭn] n. the idea, expressed by Stephen Douglas in 1858, that any territory could exclude slavery by simply refusing to pass laws supporting it. (p. 326)

Free-Soil Party
n. a political party formed in 1848 to oppose the extension of slavery into U.S. territories. (p. 319)

Free Speech Movement
n. an antiestablishment New Left organization that originated in a 1964 clash between students and administrators at the University of California at Berkeley. (p. 950)

French and Indian War
n. a conflict in North America, lasting from 1754 to 1763, that was a part of a worldwide struggle between France and Britain and that ended with the defeat of France and the transfer of French Canada to Britain. (p. 86)

Fugitive
[fy′jĭ-tĭv] Slave Act n. a law enacted as part of the Compromise of 1850, designed to ensure that escaped slaves would be returned into bondage. (p. 310)

Fundamentalism
[fŭn′d&# x0259;-mĕn′tl-ĭz′əm] n. a Protestant religious movement grounded in the belief that all the stories and details in the Bible are literally true. (p. 644)

G

Gadsden
[gădz′dən] Purchase n. an 1853 purchase by the United States of land from Mexico, establishing the present U.S.-Mexico boundary. (p. 297)

gag rule
n. a rule limiting or preventing debate on an issue. (p. 253) R59

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
[găt] n. an international agreement first signed in 1947. In 1994, the U.S. and other countries adopted a new version of GATT. This treaty lowered trade barriers, such as tariffs, and created the World Trade Organization, which resolves trade disputes. (p. 1078)

genetic engineering
[jə-nĕt′ĭk ĕn′jə-nîr′ĭng] n. the alteration of the molecular biology of organisms’ cells in order to create new varieties of bacteria, plants, and animals. (p. 1086)

Geneva Accords
[jə-nē′və ə-kôrdz′] n. a 1954 peace agreement that divided Vietnam into Communist-controlled North Vietnam and non-Communist South Vietnam until unification elections could be held in 1956. (p. 938)

genocide
[jĕn′ə-sīd′] n. the deliberate and systematic extermination of a particular racial, national, or religious group. (p. 750)

Gentlemen’s Agreement
n. a 1907–1908 agreement by the government of Japan to limit Japanese emigration to the United States. (p. 465)

gentrification
[jĕn′tr&# x0259;-fĭ-kā′shən] n. the process of restoring deteriorated urban property by middle-class people, which often results in the displacement of lower-income residents. (p. 1089)

Gettysburg Address
[gĕt′ēz-bûrg′ ə-drĕs′] n. a famous speech delivered by Abraham Lincoln in November 1863, at the dedication of a national cemetery on the site of the Battle of Gettysburg. (p. 361)

ghetto
[gĕt′ō] n. a city neighborhood in which a certain minority group is pressured or forced to live. (p. 751)

GI Bill of Rights
n. a name given to the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, a 1944 law that provided financial and educational benefits for World War II veterans. (pp. 798, 841)

glasnost
[gläs&# x2032;nəst] n. the open discussion of social problems that was permitted in the Soviet Union in the 1980s. (p. 1055)

Glass-Steagall
[glăs′ stē′gəl] Act n. the 1933 law that established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to protect individuals’ bank accounts. (p. 696)

Glorious Revolution
n. the transfer of the British monarchy from James II to William and Mary in 1688–1689. (p. 69)

gold rush
n. a movement of many people to a region in which gold has been discovered. (p. 298)

gold standard
n. a monetary system in which the basic unit of currency is defined in terms of a set amount of gold. (p. 428)

Gone with the Wind
n. a 1939 movie dealing with the life of Southern plantation owners during the Civil War—one of the most popular films of all time. (p. 717)

graft
n. the illegal use of political influence for personal gain. (p. 475)

grandfather clause
n. a provision that exempts certain people from a law on the basis of previously existing circumstances—especially a clause formerly in some Southern states’ constitutions that exempted whites from the strict voting requirements used to keep African Americans from the polls. (p. 495)

Grange
[grānj] n. the Patrons of Husbandry—a social and educational organization through which farmers attempted to combat the power of the railroads in the late 19th century. (p. 427)

Grapes of Wrath, The
n. a novel by John Steinbeck, published in 1939, that deals with a family of Oklahomans who leave the Dust Bowl for California. (p. 720)

Great Awakening
n. a revival of religious feeling in the American colonies during the 1730s and 1750s. (p. 83)

Great Compromise
[kŏm′prə-mīz&# x2032;] n. the Constitutional Convention’s agreement to establish a two-house national legislature, with all states having equal representation in one house and each state having representation based on its population in the other house. (p. 142)

Great Depression
n. a period, lasting from 1929 to 1940, in which the U.S. economy was in severe decline and millions of Americans were unemployed. (p. 675)

Great Migration
[mī-grā′shən] n. the large-scale movement of African Americans from the South to Northern cities in the early 20th century. (p. 598)

Great Plains
n. the vast grassland that extends through the central portion North America, from Texas northward to Canada, east of the Rocky Mountains. (p. 408)

Great Society
n. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s program to reduce poverty and racial injustice and to promote a better quality of life in the United States. (p. 895)

H

habeas corpus
[hā′bē-əs kôr′pəs] n. a court order requiring authorities to bring a prisoner before the court so that the court can determine whether the prisoner is being held legally. (p. 349)

Haight-Ashbury
[hāt&# x2032; ăsh′bĕr-ē] n. a San Francisco district that became the “capital” of the hippie counterculture during the 1960s. (p. 988)

Harlem Renaissance
[här′ləm rĕn′ĭ-säns′] n. a flowering of African-American artistic creativity during the 1920s, centered in the Harlem community of New York City. (p. 660)

hawk
n. a person who supported U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War and believed that the United States should use increased military force to win it. (p. 952)

Hawley-Smoot Tariff
[hô′lē smt′ tăr′ĭf] Act n. a law, enacted in 1930, that established the highest protective tariff in U.S. history, worsening the depression in America and abroad. (p. 677)

H-bomb
n. the hydrogen bomb—a thermonuclear weapon much more powerful than the atomic bomb. (p. 829)

headright
[hĕd′rīt′] system n. the Virginia Company’s policy of granting 50 acres of land to each settler and to each family member who accompanied him. (p. 45)

hierarchy
[hī′ə-rär′kē] n. a social ordering by rank or class. (p. 20)

Ho Chi Minh
[hō′ chē′ mĭn′] Trail n. a network of paths used by North Vietnam to transport supplies to the Vietcong in South Vietnam. (p. 938)

Hohokam
[hə-hō&# x2032;kəm] n. a Native American group that lived in the valleys of the Salt and Gila rivers (in what is now Arizona) from about 300 B.C. to A.D. 1400. (p. 7)

Hollywood Ten
n. ten witnesses from the film industry who refused to cooperate with the HUAC’s investigation of Communist influence in Hollywood. (p. 823)

Holocaust
[hŏl′ə-kôst′] n. the systematic murder—or genocide—of Jews and other groups in Europe by the Nazis before and during World War II. (p. 748)

home rule
n. a state’s powers of governing its citizens without federal government involvement. (p. 399) R60

Homestead
[hōm′stĕd′] Act n. a U.S. law enacted in 1862, that provided 160 acres in the West to any citizen or intended citizen who was head of household and would cultivate the land for five years; a law whose passage led to record numbers of U.S. settlers claiming private property which previously had been reserved by treaty and by tradition for Native American nomadic dwelling and use; the same law strengthened in 1889 to encourage individuals to exercise their private property rights and develop homesteads out of the vast government lands. (p. 421)

Hopewell
[hōp′wĕl′] n. a Mound Builder society that was centered in the Ohio River valley and flourished from about 200 B.C. to A.D. 400. (p. 7)

horizontal integration
[hôr′ĭ-zŏn′tl ĭn′tĭ-grā′shən] n. the merging of companies that make similar products. (p. 448)

hot line
n. a communication link established in 1963 to allow the leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union to contact each other in times of crisis. (p. 894)

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)
[hy′ăk′] n. a congressional committee that investigated Communist influence inside and outside the U.S. government in the years following World War II. (p. 823)

human rights
n. the rights and freedoms, such as those named in the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights, to which all people are entitled. (p. 1021)

I

Immigration Act of 1965
n. a law that increased the number of immigrants allowed to settle in the United States. (p. 897)

impeach
v. to formally charge an official with misconduct in office. The House of Representatives has the sole power to impeach federal officials. (p. 381)

impeachment
n. the process of accusing a public official of wrongdoing. (p. 1008)

imperialism
[ĭm-pîr′ē-ə-lĭz′əm] n. the policy of extending a nation’s authority over other countries by economic, political, or military means. (p. 548)

impressment
[ĭm-prĕs′mənt] n. the forcible seizure of men for military service. (p. 202)

Inca
[ĭng′kə] n. a Native American people that around A.D. 1400 created an empire reaching nearly 2,500 miles along the west coast of South America. (p. 6)

incandescent
[ĭn′kə ;n-dĕs′ənt] adj. giving off visible light as a result of being heated. (p. 438)

income tax
n. a tax on earnings. (p. 354)

indentured
[ĭn-dĕn&# x2032;chərd] servant n. a person who has contracted to work for another for a limited period, often in return for travel expenses, shelter, and sustenance. (p. 45)

Indian Removal Act
n. a law, enacted in 1830, that forced Native American peoples east of the Mississippi to move to lands in the West. (p. 226)

Industrial Revolution
n. the change in social and economic organization that resulted from the replacement of hand tools with machines and from the development of large-scale industrial production. (p. 212)

Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)
n. a labor organization for unskilled workers, formed by a group of radical unionists and socialists in 1905. (p. 452)

inflation
[ĭn-flā ′shən] n. an increase in prices or decline in purchasing power caused by an increase in the supply of money. (p. 116)

information superhighway
[s′pər-hī′wā] n. a computer communications network linking people and institutions throughout the world, providing individuals with services such as libraries, shopping, movies, and news. (p. 1083)

INF Treaty
n. the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty—a 1987 agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union that eliminated some weapons systems and allowed for on-site inspection of military installations. (p. 1055)

initiative
[ĭ-nĭsh′ə-tĭv] n. a procedure by which a legislative measure can be originated by the people rather than by lawmakers. (p. 518)

installment
[ĭn-stôl&# x2032;mənt] plan n. an arrangement in which a purchaser pays over an extended time, without having to put down much money at the time of purchase. (p. 632)

interchangeable
[ĭn′tər -chān′jə-bəl] parts n. standardized parts that can be used in place of one another. (p. 212)

Internet
[ĭn′tər-nĕt′] n. a worldwide network, originally developed by the U.S. Department of Defense, that links computers and allows almost immediate communication of texts, pictures, and sounds. (p. 1083)

internment
n. confinement or a restriction in movement, especially under wartime conditions. (p. 800)

Interstate
[ĭn′tər-stāt′] Commerce Act n. a law, enacted in 1887, that established the federal government’s right to supervise railroad activities and created a five-member Interstate Commerce Commission to do so. (p. 455)

Intolerable
[ĭn-tŏl&# x2032;ər-ə-bəl] Acts n. a series of laws enacted by Parliament in 1774 to punish Massachusetts colonists for the Boston Tea Party. (p. 99)

iron curtain
[ī′ərn kûr′tn] n. a phrase used by Winston Churchill in 1946 to describe an imaginary line that separated Communist countries in the Soviet bloc of Eastern Europe from countries in Western Europe. (p. 811)

Iroquois
[ĭr′ə-kwoi′] n. a group of Native American peoples inhabiting the woodlands of the Northeast. (p. 10)

Islam
[ĭs-läm&# x2032;] n. a religion founded in Arabia in A.D. 622 by the prophet Muhammad; its believers are called Muslims. (p. 15)

isolationism
[ī′sə -lā′shə-nĭzm] n. opposition to political and economic entanglements with other countries. (p. 618)

J

Japanese American Citizens League (JACL)
n. an organization that pushed the U.S. government to compensate Japanese Americans for property they had lost when they were interned during World War II. (p. 801)

jazz
n. a style of music characterized by the use of improvisation. (p. 863)

Jim Crow laws
n. laws enacted by Southern state and local governments to separate white and black people in public and private facilities. (p. 493)

joint-stock companies
n. businesses in which investors pool their wealth for a common purpose. (p. 42)

journeyman
[jûr′nē-mən] n. in the apprentice system, a skilled worker employed by a master. (p. 260) R61

judicial
[j-dĭsh′əl] branch n. the branch of government that interprets the laws and the Constitution. (p. 143)

judicial review
n. the Supreme Court’s power to declare an act of Congress unconstitutional. (p. 199)

Judiciary
[jōō-dĭ sh′ ē-ĕr′ē] Act of 1789 n. a law that established the federal court system and the number of Supreme Court justices and that provided for the appeal of certain state court decisions to the federal courts. (p. 183)

Judiciary
[j-dĭsh′ē-ĕr′ē] Act of 1801 n. a law that increased the number of federal judges, allowing President John Adams to fill most of the new posts with Federalists. (p. 199)

Jungle, The
n. a novel by Upton Sinclair, published in 1906, that portrays the dangerous and unhealthy conditions prevalent in the meatpacking industry at that time. (p. 523)

K

kamikaze
[kä′mĭ-k& #x00E4;′zē] adj. involving or engaging in the deliberate crashing of a bomb-filled airplane into a military target. (p. 787)

Kansas-Nebraska Act
n. a law, enacted in 1854, that established the territories of Kansas and Nebraska and gave their residents the right to decide whether to allow slavery. (p. 315)

Kashaya Pomo
[kə-shä′yə pō′mō] n. a Native American people that formerly inhabited the coastal marshlands of what is now California. (p. 8)

Kent State University
n. an Ohio university where National Guardsmen opened fire on students protesting the Vietnam War on May 4, 1970, wounding nine and killing four. (p. 962)

Kerner
[kûr′n ər] Commission n. a group that was appointed by President Johnson to study the causes of urban violence and that recommended the elimination of de facto segregation in American society. (p. 928)

King Philip’s War
n. a conflict, in the years 1675–1676, between New England colonists and Native American groups allied under the leadership of the Wampanoag chief Metacom. (p. 54)

kinship
[kĭn′shĭp′] n. the ties between members of a family. (p. 13)

Know-Nothing Party
n. a name given to the American Party, formed in the 1850s to curtail the political influence of immigrants. (p. 319)

Kongo
[kŏng′gō] n. a group of small kingdoms along the Zaire River in West-Central Africa, united under a single leader in the late 1400s. (p. 17)

Korean
[kə-rē′ən] War n. a conflict between North Korea and South Korea, lasting from 1950 to 1953, in which the United States, along with other UN countries, fought on the side of the South Koreans and China fought on the side of the North Koreans. (p. 817)

Kristallnacht
[krĭ-stä ;l′näKHt′] n. “night of broken glass,” a name given to the night of November 9, 1938, when gangs of Nazi storm troopers attacked Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues in Germany. (p. 749)

Ku Klux Klan
[k′ klŭks klăn′] (KKK) n. a secret organization that used terrorist tactics in an attempt to restore white supremacy in Southern states after the Civil War. (p. 394)

Kwakiutl
[kwä′kē-< img id="NIMAS0618916296-img-3648" src="./images/thruout/oobar_icon.jpg" alt=""/>t′l] n. a Native American people that formerly inhabited the northwestern coastal region of North America. (p. 9)

L

land grant
n. a gift of public land to an individual or organization. (p. 289)

Land Ordinance
[ôr′dn-əns] of 1785 n. a law that established a plan for surveying and selling the federally owned lands west of the Appalachian Mountains. (p. 135)

La Raza Unida
[lä rä′sä -nē′dä] n. a Latino political organization founded in 1970 by José Angel Gutiérrez. (p. 976)

League of Nations
n. an association of nations established in 1920 to promote international cooperation and peace. (p. 605)

legislative
[lĕj′ĭ-slā′tĭv] branch n. the branch of government that makes laws. (p. 143)

Lend-Lease Act
n. a law, passed in 1941, that allowed the United States to ship arms and other supplies, without immediate payment, to nations fighting the Axis powers. (p. 758)

Limited Test Ban Treaty
n. the 1963 treaty in which the United States and the Soviet Union agreed not to conduct nuclear-weapons tests in the atmosphere. (p. 884)

lineage
[lĭn′ē-ĭj] n. a group of people descended from a common ancestor. (p. 18)

long drive
n. the moving of cattle over trails to a shipping center. (p. 416)

longhorn
[lông′hôrn′] n. a breed of sturdy, long-horned cattle brought by the Spanish to Mexico and suited to the dry conditions of the Southwest. (p. 414)

Louisiana Purchase
n. the 1803 purchase by the United States of France’s Louisiana Territory—extending from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains—for $15 million. (p. 201)

Loyalists
[loi′ ə-lĭst] n. colonists who supported the British government during the American Revolution. (p. 106)

Lusitania
[l′sĭ-tā′nē-ə] n. a British passenger ship that was sunk by a German U-boat in 1915. (p. 584)

M

mandate
[măn′dāt′] n. the authority to act that an elected official receives from the voters who elected him or her. (p. 886)

Manhattan Project
[măn-hăt′n prŏj′ĕkt′] n. the U.S. program to develop an atomic bomb for use in World War II. (p. 773)

manifest destiny
[măn′ə-fĕst′ dĕs′tə-nē] n. the 19th-century belief that the United States would inevitably expand westward to the Pacific Ocean and into Mexican territory. (p. 281)

Marbury v. Madison
[mär′bûr-ē vûr′səs măd′ĭ-sən] n. an 1803 case in which the Supreme Court ruled that it had the power to abolish legislative acts by declaring them unconstitutional; this power came to be known as judicial review. (p. 199)

market revolution
n. the major change in the U.S. economy produced by people’s beginning to buy and sell goods rather than make them for themselves. (p. 275)

Marshall
[mär′shəl] Plan n. the program, proposed by Secretary of State George Marshall in 1947, under which the United States supplied economic aid to European nations to help them rebuild after World War II. (p. 812)

martial
[mär′ shəl] law n. temporary rule by military rather than civilian authority. (p. 99)

mass media
[mē′dē-ə] n. the means of communication—such as television, newspapers, and radio—that reach large audiences. (p. 858) R62

mass production
n. the production of goods in large quantities, made possible by the use of machinery and the division of labor. (p. 212)

mass transit
n. transportation systems designed to move large numbers of people along fixed routes. (p. 470)

master
n. a skilled artisan, usually one owning a business and employing others. (p. 260)

Maya
[mä′yə] n. a Native American people whose civilization flourished in Guatemala and the Yucatán Peninsula between about A.D. 250 and 900. (p. 6)

McCarthyism
[mə-kär′thē-ĭz′əm] n. the attacks, often unsubstantiated, by Senator Joseph McCarthy and others on people suspected of being Communists in the early 1950s. (826)

McCulloch v. Maryland
n. an 1819 case in which the Supreme Court ruled that Maryland had no right to tax the Bank of the United States, thereby strengthening the power of the federal government’s control over the economy. (p. 220)

Meat Inspection Act
n. a law, enacted in 1906, that established strict cleanliness requirements for meatpackers and created a federal meat-inspection program. (p. 526)

Medicaid
[mĕd′ĭ-kād′] n. a program, established in 1965, that provides health insurance for people on welfare. (p. 896)

Medicare
[mĕd′ĭ-kâr′] n. a federal program, established in 1965, that provides hospital insurance and low-cost medical insurance to Americans aged 65 and over. (p. 896)

melting pot
n. a mixture of people from different cultures and races who blend together by abandoning their native languages and cultures. (p. 464)

mercantilism
[mûr′ ;kən-tē-lĭz′əm] n. an economic system in which nations seek to increase their wealth and power by obtaining large amounts of gold and silver and by establishing a favorable balance of trade. (p. 66)

Merrimack
[mĕr′ə-măk′] n. an ironclad ship used by the South in the Civil War. (p. 343)

mestizo
[mĕs-tē′zō] adj. of mixed Spanish and Native American ancestry. (p. 38)

middle passage
n. the voyage that brought enslaved Africans to the West Indies and later to North America. (p. 76)

midnight judge
n. one of the judges appointed by John Adams in the last hours of his administration. (p. 199)

militarism
[mĭl′ĭ-tə-rĭz′əm] n. the policy of building up armed forces in aggressive preparedness for war and their use as a tool of diplomacy. (p. 579)

minutemen
[mĭn′ĭt-mĕn′] n. Patriot civilian soldiers just before and during the Revolutionary War, pledged to be ready to fight at a minute’s notice. (p. 100)

Mississippian
[mĭs′&# x012D;-sĭp′ē-ən] n. the last and most complex of the Mound Builder societies, inhabiting the Ohio and Mississippi valleys from about a.d. 700 into the 1500s. (p. 7)

Missouri Compromise
[kŏm′prə-mīz&# x2032;] n. a series of agreements passed by Congress in 1820–1821 to maintain the balance of power between slave states and free states. (p. 222)

Monitor
[mŏn′ ĭ-tər] n. an ironclad ship used by the North in the Civil War. (p. 343)

Monroe Doctrine
[mən-rō′ dŏk′trĭn] n. a policy of U.S. opposition to any European interference in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere, announced by President Monroe in 1823. (p. 221)

Moral Majority
[môr′əl mə-jôr′ĭ-tē] n. a political alliance of religious groups, consisting mainly of evangelical and fundamentalist Christians, that was active in the 1970s and 1980s, condemning liberal attitudes and behavior and raising money for conservative candidates. (p. 1037)

Mormons
[môr′mən] n. members of a church founded by Joseph Smith and his associates in 1830. (p. 284)

Morrill
[môr′ əl] Acts n. laws enacted in 1862 and 1890 to help create agricultural colleges by giving federal land to states. (p. 423)

muckraker
[mŭk′rā′kər] n. one of the magazine journalists who exposed the corrupt side of business and public life in the early 1900s. (p. 514)

Munn v. Illinois
[mŭn′ vûr′səs ĭl′ə-noi′] n. an 1877 case in which the Supreme Court upheld states’ regulation of railroads for the benefit of farmers and consumers, thus establishing the right of government to regulate private industry to serve the public interest. (p. 445)

My Lai
[mē′ lī′] n. a village in northern South Vietnam where more than 200 unarmed civilians, including women and children, were massacred by U.S. troops in May 1968. (p. 961)

N

NAACP
[ĕn′ dŭb′əl ā′ sē′ pē′] n. the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People—an organization founded in 1909 to promote full racial equality. (p. 531)

NACW
n. the National Association of Colored Women—a social service organization founded in 1896. (p. 521)

NAFTA
[năf′tə] n. the North American Free Trade Agreement—a 1993 treaty that lowered tariffs and brought Mexico into the free-trade zone established by the United States and Canada. (p. 1070)

napalm
[nā′päm′] n. a gasoline-based substance used in bombs that U.S. planes dropped in Vietnam in order to burn away jungle and expose Vietcong hideouts. (p. 945)

NASDAQ
[năz′dăk′] n. the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System—a stock exchange for over-the-counter sales, comprised largely of technology companies. (p. 1077)

National Bank Act
n. legislation passed in 1863 to make banking safer for investors. Its provisions included a system of federally chartered banks, new requirements for loans, and a system for the inspection of banks. (p. 367)

National Energy Act
n. a law, enacted during the Carter administration, that established a tax on “gas-guzzling” automobiles, removed price controls on U.S. oil and natural gas, and provided tax credits for the development of alternative energy sources. (p. 1019)

National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)
n. a law enacted in 1933 to establish codes of fair practice for industries and to promote industrial growth. (p. 697)

nationalism
n. a devotion to the interests and culture of one’s nation. (pp. 220, 579) R63

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
n. an agency created in 1935 to prevent unfair labor practices and to mediate disputes between workers and management. (p. 724)

National Organization for Women (NOW)
n. an organization founded in 1966 to pursue feminist goals, such as better child-care facilities, improved educational opportunities, and an end to job discrimination. (p. 984)

National Road
n. a federally funded road begun in 1811 and by 1838 extending from Cumberland, Maryland to Vandalia, Illinois. (p. 217)

National Trades’ Union
n. the first national association of trade unions, formed in 1834. (p. 265)

National Youth Administration
n. an agency that provided young Americans with aid and employment during the Great Depression. (p. 705)

Nation of Islam
[ĭs-läm′] n. a religious group, popularly known as the Black Muslims, founded by Elijah Muhammad to promote black separatism and the Islamic religion. (p. 925)

nativism
[nā′tĭ-vĭz′əm] n. favoring the interests of native-born people over foreign-born people. (pp. 319, 618)

Navigation
[năv′ĭ-g&# x0101;′shən] Acts n. a series of laws enacted by Parliament, beginning in 1651, to tighten England’s control of trade in its American colonies. (p. 68)

NAWSA
n. the National American Woman Suffrage Association—an organization founded in 1890 to gain voting rights for women. (p. 522)

Nazism
[nät′sĭz′əm] n. the political philosophy—based on extreme nationalism, racism, and militaristic expansionism—that Adolf Hitler put into practice in Germany from 1933 to 1945. (p. 737)

neutrality
n. a refusal to take part in a war between other nations. (p. 191)

Neutrality Acts
n. a series of laws enacted in 1935 and 1936 to prevent U.S. arms sales and loans to nations at war. (p. 741)

New Deal
n. President Franklin Roosevelt’s program to alleviate the problems of the Great Depression, focusing on relief for the needy, economic recovery, and financial reform. (p. 695)

New Deal Coalition
[kō′ə-lĭsh′ ən] n. an alliance of diverse groups—including Southern whites, African Americans, and unionized workers—who supported the policies of the Democratic Party in the 1930s and 1940s. (p. 713)

New Federalism
[fĕd′ər-ə-l&# x012D;z′əm] n. President Richard Nixon’s program to turn over part of the federal government’s power to state and local governments. (p. 1001)

New Frontier
n. President John F. Kennedy’s legislative program, which included proposals to provide medical care for the elderly, to rebuild blighted urban areas, to aid education, to bolster the national defense, to increase international aid, and to expand the space program. (p. 883)

New Left
n. a youth-dominated political movement of the 1960s, embodied in such organizations as Students for a Democratic Society and the Free Speech Movement. (p. 950)

New Right
n. a late-20th-century alliance of conservative special-interest groups concerned with cultural, social, and moral issues. (p. 1037)

Niagara Movement
n. founded by W. E. B. Du Bois in 1905 to promote the education of African Americans in the liberal arts. (p. 491)

Nineteenth Amendment
n. an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1920, that gives women the right to vote. (p. 541)

nomadic
adj. having no fixed home, moving from place to place according to seasons and availability of food and water. (p. 5)

“no man’s land”
n. an unoccupied region between opposing armies. (p. 582)

nonaggression
[nŏn′ə-gr ĕsh′ən] pact n. an agreement in which two nations promise not to go to war with each other. (p. 745)

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
n. a defensive military alliance formed in 1949 by ten Western European countries, the United States, and Canada. (p. 814)

Northwest Ordinance
[ôr′dn-əns] of 1787 n. a law that established a procedure for the admission of new states to the Union. (p. 135)

nuclear
[n′klē-ər] family n. a household made up of a mother, a father, and their children. (p. 21)

nullification
[nŭl′&# x0259;-fĭ-kā′shən] n. a state’s refusal to recognize an act of Congress that it considers unconstitutional. (p. 196)

Nuremberg
[nr′əm-bûrg′] trials n. the court proceedings held in Nuremberg, Germany, after World War II, in which Nazi leaders were tried for war crimes. (p. 792)

O

Office of Price Administration (OPA)
n. an agency established by Congress to control inflation during World War II. (p. 773)

Ohio gang
n. a group of close friends and political supporters whom President Warren G. Harding appointed to his cabinet. (p. 626)

Olive Branch Petition
[pə-tĭsh′ən] n. a document sent by the Second Continental Congress to King George III, proposing a reconciliation between the colonies and Britain. (p. 105)

Olmec
[ŏl′mĕk] n. a Native American people whose civilization flourished in what is now southern Mexico in the period 1200–400 B.C. (p. 6)

OPEC
[ō′ pĕk′] n. the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries—an economic association of oil-producing nations that is able to set oil prices. (p. 1005)

Open Door notes
n. messages sent by Secretary of State John Hay in 1899 to Germany, Russia, Great Britain, France, Italy, and Japan, asking the countries not to interfere with U.S. trading rights in China. (p. 562)

Operation Desert Storm
[dĕz′ərt stôrm′] n. a 1991 military operation in which UN forces, led by the United States, drove Iraqi invaders from Kuwait. (p. 1061)

Oregon Trail
n. a route from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City, Oregon, used by pioneers traveling to the Oregon Territory. (p. 284)

P

Panama Canal
[păn′ə-mä′ kə-năl′] n. an artificial waterway cut through the Isthmus of Panama to provide a shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, opened in 1914. (p. 566)

panic of 1837
n. a U.S. financial crisis in which banks closed and the credit system collapsed, resulting in many bankruptcies and high unemployment. (p. 234) R64

panic of 1873
n. a series of financial failures that triggered a five-year depression in the United States. (p. 397)

parity
[păr′ĭ-tē] n. a government-supported level for the prices of agricultural products, intended to keep farmers’ incomes steady. (p. 724)

Parliament
[pär′lə-mənt] n. the legislative body of England. (p. 68)

Patriots
[pā′trē-ət] n. colonists who supported American independence from Britain. (p. 106)

patronage
[pā′trə-nĭj] n. an officeholder’s power to appoint people—usually those who have helped him or her get elected—to positions in government. (p. 476)

pay equity
[ĕk′wĭ-tē] n. the basing of an employee’s salary on the requirements of his or her job rather than on the traditional pay scales that have frequently provided women with smaller incomes than men. (p. 1048)

Payne-Aldrich Tariff
[pān′ ôl′drĭch tăr′ĭf] n. a set of tax regulations, enacted by Congress in 1909, that failed to significantly reduce tariffs on manufactured goods. (p. 535)

Peace Corps
n. an agency established in 1961 to provide volunteer assistance to developing nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. (p. 886)

Pendleton
[pĕn′dl-tən] Civil Service Act n. a law, enacted in 1883, that established a bipartisan civil service commission to make appointments to government jobs by means of the merit system. (p. 476)

Pentagon
[pĕn′tə-gŏn′] Papers n. a 7,000-page document—leaked to the press in 1971 by the former Defense Department worker Daniel Ellsberg—revealing that the U.S. government had not been honest about its intentions in the Vietnam War. (p. 963)

Pequot
[pē′kw ŏt′] War n. a 1637 conflict in which the Pequot nation battled Connecticut colonists and their Narragansett allies. (p. 53)

perestroika
[pĕr′&# x012D;-stroi′kə] n. the restructuring of the economy and the government instituted in the Soviet Union in the 1980s. (p. 1055)

personal liberty laws
n. statutes, passed in nine Northern states in the 1850s, that forbade the imprisonment of runaway slaves and guaranteed jury trials for fugitive slaves. (p. 311)

planned obsolescence
[ŏb′sə-lĕs′əns] n. the designing of products to wear out or to become outdated quickly, so that people will feel a need to replace their possessions frequently. (p. 854)

plantation
[plăn-tā′shən] n. a large farm on which the labor of slaves or other workers is used to grow a single crop, such as sugar cane or cotton. (p. 16)

Platt
[plăt] Amendment n. a series of provisions that, in 1901, the United States insisted Cuba add to its new constitution, commanding Cuba to stay out of debt and giving the United States the right to intervene in the country and the right to buy or lease Cuban land for naval and fueling stations. (p. 560)

Plessy v. Ferguson
[plĕs′ē vûr′səs fûr′gə-sən] n. an 1896 case in which the Supreme Court ruled that separation of the races in public accommodations was legal, thus establishing the “separate but equal” doctrine. (p. 493)

political machine
n. an organized group that controls a political party in a city and offers services to voters and businesses in exchange for political and financial support. (p. 474)

poll
[pōl] tax n. an annual tax that formerly had to be paid in some Southern states by anyone wishing to vote. (p. 493)

popular sovereignty
[sŏv′ər-ĭn-t&# x0113;] n. a system in which the residents vote to decide an issue. (p. 307)

Populism
[pŏp′yə-lĭz′əm] n. a late-19th-century political movement demanding that people have a greater voice in government and seeking to advance the interests of farmers and laborers. (p. 427)

Powhatan
[pou′ə-tă n′] n. a group of Native American peoples that lived in eastern Virginia at the time of the first English settlements there. (p. 43)

price support
n. the maintenance of a price at a certain level through government intervention. (p. 671)

Proclamation
[prŏk′lə-m ā′shən] of 1763 n. an order in which Britain prohibited its American colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. (p. 88)

profiteering
[prŏf′&# x012D;-tîr′ĭng] n. the selling of goods in short supply at inflated prices. (p. 116)

progressive
[prə-grĕs′ĭv] movement n. an early-20th-century reform movement seeking to return control of the government to the people, to restore economic opportunities, and to correct injustices in American life. (p. 513)

prohibition
[prō′ə -bĭsh′ən] n. the banning of the manufacture, sale, and possession of alcoholic beverages. (p. 513)

Prohibition
[prō′ə -bĭsh′ən] n. The period from 1920–1933 during which the Eighteenth Amendment forbidding the manufacture and sale of alcohol was in force in the United States. (p. 642)

propaganda
[prŏp′ə -găn′də] n. a kind of biased communication designed to influence people’s thoughts and actions. (p. 596)

Proposition 187
n. a bill passed in California in 1994 that ended all education and nonemergency health benefits to illegal immigrants. (p. 1092)

proprietor
[prə-prī′ĭ-tər] n. an owner—particularly one of those granted ownership of, and full governing rights over, certain of the English colonies in North America. (p. 56)

protective tariff
[prə-tĕk′tĭv tăr′ĭf] n. a tax on imported goods that is intended to protect a nation’s businesses from foreign competition. (p. 186)

protectorate
[prə-tĕk′tə-rĭt] n. a country whose affairs are partially controlled by a stronger power. (p. 560)

Pueblo
[pwĕb′lō] n. a group of Native American peoples—descendants of the Anasazi—inhabiting the deserts of the Southwest. (p. 9)

Pure Food and Drug Act
n. a law enacted in 1906 to halt the sale of contaminated foods and drugs and to ensure truth in labeling. (p. 528)

Puritans
[pyr′ĭ-tnz] n. members of a group that wanted to eliminate all traces of Roman Catholic ritual and traditions in the Church of England. (p. 49)

Q

Quakers
[kwā′kərz] n. members of the Society of Friends, a religious group persecuted for its beliefs in 17th-century England. (p. 56)

quota
[kwō′t& #x0259;] system n. a system that sets limits on how many immigrants from various countries a nation will admit each year. (p. 621)

R65
R

Radical Republican
[răd′ĭ-kəl rĭ-pŭb′lĭ-kən] n. one of the congressional Republicans who, after the Civil War, wanted to destroy the political power of former slaveholders and to give African Americans full citizenship and the right to vote. (p. 377)

ratification
[răt′&# x0259;-fĭ-kā′shən] n. the official approval of the Constitution, or of an amendment, by the states. (p. 146)

rationing
[răsh′ ə-nĭng] n. a restriction of people’s right to buy unlimited amounts of particular foods and other goods, often implemented during wartime to ensure adequate supplies for the military. (p. 774)

Reaganomics
[rā′gə ;-nŏm′ĭks] n. the economic policies of President Ronald Reagan, which were focused on budget cuts and the granting of large tax cuts in order to increase private investment. (p. 1040)

realpolitik
[rā-äl′pō′lĭ-tēk′] n. a foreign policy advocated by Henry Kissinger in the Nixon administration, based on consideration of a nation’s power rather than its ideals or moral principles. (p. 1005)

reapportionment
[rē′&# x0259;-pôr′shən-mənt] n. the redrawing of election districts to reflect changes in population. (p. 897)

recall
[rĭ-kôl&# x2032;] n. a procedure for removing a public official from office by a vote of the people. (p. 518)

Reconstruction
[rē′k&# x0259;n-strŭk′shən] n. the period of rebuilding that followed the Civil War, during which the defeated Confederate states were readmitted to the Union. (p. 376)

Reconstruction Finance
[fə-năns′] Corporation (RFC) n. an agency established in 1932 to provide emergency financing to banks, life-insurance companies, railroads, and other large businesses. (p. 687)

Red Cross
n. an international organization that provides relief to people in times of war or natural disaster. Clara Barton founded the American branch in 1881. (p. 370)

redemption
[rĭ-dĕmp′shən] n. the Southern Democrats’ term for their return to power in the South in the 1870s. (p. 399)

referendum
[rĕf′ə -rĕn′dəm] n. a procedure by which a proposed legislative measure can be submitted to a vote of the people. (p. 518)

Reformation
[rĕf′ə ;r-mā′shən] n. a religious movement in 16th-century Europe, growing out of a desire for reform in the Roman Catholic Church and leading to the establishment of various Protestant churches. (p. 22)

Renaissance
[rĕn′ĭ ;-säns′] n. a period of European history, lasting from about 1400 to 1600, during which renewed interest in classical culture led to far-reaching changes in art, learning, and views of the world. (p. 20)

reparations
[rĕp′ə ;-rā′shənz] n. the compensation paid by a defeated nation for the damage or injury it inflicted during a war. (p. 606)

republic
[rĭ-pŭb ′lĭk] n. a government in which the citizens rule through elected representatives. (p. 133)

Republican Party
n. the modern political party that was formed in 1854 by opponents of slavery in the territories. (p. 320)

republicanism
[rĭ-pŭb′lĭ-kə-nĭz′əm] n. the belief that government should be based on the consent of the people. (p. 133)

Republic of California
n. the nation proclaimed by American settlers in California when they declared their independence from Mexico in 1846. (p. 295)

Republic of Texas
n. the nation established in 1836 when American settlers in the Mexican province of Tejas declared and fought for their independence, also commonly known at that time as the “Lone Star Republic.” (p. 292)

revenue
[rĕv′ ə-n] sharing n. the distribution of federal money to state and local governments with few or no restrictions on how it is spent. (p. 1001)

reverse discrimination
[dĭ-skrĭm′ə-nā& #x2032;shən] n. an unfair treatment of members of a majority group—for example, white men—resulting from efforts to correct discrimination against members of other groups. (p. 1037)

revival
[rĭ-vī&# x2032;vəl] n. a religious gathering designed to reawaken faith through impassioned preaching. (p. 241)

rock ’n’ roll
[rŏk′ən-rōl&# x2032;] n. a form of American popular music that evolved in the 1950s out of rhythm and blues, country, jazz, gospel, and pop; the American musical form characterized by heavy rhythms and simple melodies which has spread worldwide having significant impacts on social dancing, clothing fashions, and expressions of protest. (p. 861)

Roosevelt Corollary
[rō′zə-vĕlt′ ; kôr′ə-lĕr-ē] n. an extension of the Monroe Doctrine, announced by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, under which the United States claimed the right to protect its economic interests by means of military intervention in the affairs of Western Hemisphere nations. (p. 568)

Rough Riders
n. a volunteer cavalry regiment, commanded by Leonard Wood and Theodore Roosevelt, that served in the Spanish-American War. (p. 556)

royal colony
n. a colony under the direct control of the English monarch. (p. 47)

rural free delivery (RFD)
n. the free government delivery of mail and packages to homes in rural areas, begun in 1896. (p. 503)

S

SALT I
[sôlt′ wŭn′] Treaty n. a five-year agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union, signed in 1972, that limited the nations’ numbers of intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched missiles. (p. 1007)

salutary neglect
[săl′yə-tĕr′& #x0113; nĭ-glĕkt′] n. an English policy of relaxing the enforcement of regulations in its colonies in return for the colonies’ continued economic loyalty. (p. 70)

Sandinista
[săn′d&# x012D;-nēs′tə] adj. belonging to a leftist rebel group that overthrew the Nicaraguan government in 1979. (p. 1057)

Santa Fe
[săn′tə fā′] Trail n. a route from Independence, Missouri, to Santa Fe, New Mexico, used by traders in the early and mid-1800s. (p. 282)

satellite
[săt′l-īt′] nation n. a country that is dominated politically and economically by another nation. (p. 811)

Saturday Night Massacre
[măs′ə-kər] n. a name given to the resignation of the U.S. attorney general and the firing of his deputy in October 1973, after they refused to carry out President Nixon’s order to fire the special prosecutor investigating the Watergate affair. (p. 1011)

savanna
[sə-văn& #x2032;ə] n. a dry grassland dotted with trees and bushes, found in sub-Saharan Africa and other tropical or subtropical regions. (p. 17)

scalawag
[skăl′ə-wăg′] n. a white Southerner who joined the Republican Party after the Civil War. (p. 385) R66

scientific management
n. the application of scientific principles to increase efficiency in the workplace. (p. 514)

Scopes
[skōps] trial n. a sensational 1925 court case in which the biology teacher John T. Scopes was tried for challenging a Tennessee law that outlawed the teaching of evolution. (p. 644)

search-and-destroy mission
[sûrch′ ənd′ dĭ-stroi′ mĭsh′ən] n. a U.S. military raid on a South Vietnamese village, intended to root out villagers with ties to the Vietcong but often resulting in the destruction of the village and the displacement of its inhabitants. (p. 945)

secession
[sĭ-sĕsh′ən] n. the formal withdrawal of a state from the Union. (p. 307)

Second Continental Congress
n. the Continental Congress that convened in May 1775, approved the Declaration of Independence, and served as the only agency of national government during the Revolutionary War. (p. 103)

Second Great Awakening
n. a 19th-century religious movement in which individual responsibility for seeking salvation was emphasized, along with the need for personal and social improvement. (p. 240)

sectionalism
[sĕk&# x2032;shə-nə-lĭz′əm] n. the placing of the interests of one’s own region ahead of the interests of the nation as a whole. (p. 194)

Securities and Exchange
[sĭ-kyr′ĭ-tēz ənd ĭks-chānj′] Commission (SEC) n. an agency, created in 1934, that monitors the stock market and enforces laws regulating the sale of stocks and bonds. (p. 723)

segregation
[sĕg′r&# x012D;-gā′shən] n. the separation of people on the basis of race. (p. 493)

Selective
[sĭ-lĕk&# x2032;tĭv] Service Act n. a law, enacted in 1917, that required men to register for military service. (p. 588)

Seneca Falls
[sĕn′ĭ-kə fôlz′] Convention n. a women’s rights convention held in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. (p. 257)

Separatist
[sĕp′ ər-ə-tĭst] n. a member of one of the Puritan groups that, denying the possibility of reform within the Church of England, established their own independent congregations. (p. 50)

service sector
[sĕk′tər] n. the part of the economy that provides consumers with services rather than goods. (p. 1076)

settlement house
n. a community center providing assistance to residents—particularly immigrants—in a slum neighborhood. (p. 472)

Seventeenth Amendment
n. an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1913, that provides for the election of U.S. senators by the people rather than by state legislatures. (p. 518)

shantytown
[shăn′ ;tē-toun′] n. a neighborhood in which people live in makeshift shacks. (p. 679)

sharecropping
[shâr&# x2032;krŏp′ĭng] n. a system in which landowners give farm workers land, seed, and tools in return for a part of the crops they raise. (p. 391)

Shays’s
[shā′zəz] Rebellion n. an uprising of debt-ridden Massachusetts farmers protesting increased state taxes in 1787. (p. 140)

Sherman Antitrust
[shûr′mən ăn′tē-trŭst′] Act n. a law, enacted in 1890, that was intended to prevent the creation of monopolies by making it illegal to establish trusts that interfered with free trade. (p. 450)

silent majority
[mə-jôr′ĭ-tē ] n. a name given by President Richard Nixon to the moderate, mainstream Americans who quietly supported his Vietnam War policies. (p. 962)

sit-in
n. a form of demonstration used by African Americans to protest discrimination, in which the protesters sit down in a segregated business and refuse to leave until they are served. (p. 912)

slave
n. a person who becomes the property of others. (p. 75)

Social Darwinism
[sō′shəl där′wĭ-nĭz′əm] n. an economic and social philosophy—supposedly based on the biologist Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection—holding that a system of unrestrained competition will ensure the survival of the fittest. (p. 448)

Social Gospel
[gŏs′pəl] movement n. a 19th-century reform movement based on the belief that Christians have a responsibility to help improve working conditions and alleviate poverty. (p. 472)

Social Security Act
n. a law enacted in 1935 to provide aid to retirees, the unemployed, people with disabilities, and families with dependent children. (p. 707)

soddy
[sŏd′ē] n. a home built of blocks of turf. (p. 422)

Songhai
[sông′hī′] n. an empire that, at the height of its power in the 1500s, controlled much of West Africa. (p. 16)

soup kitchen
n. a place where free or low cost food is served to the needy. (p. 679)

Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
n. an organization formed in 1957 by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and other leaders to work for civil rights through nonviolent means. (p. 912)

Southern strategy
n. President Nixon’s attempt to attract the support of Southern conservative Democrats who were unhappy with federal desegregation policies and the liberal Supreme Court. (p. 1003)

speakeasy
[spēk′ ē′zē] n. a place where alcoholic drinks were sold and consumed illegally during Prohibition. (p. 642)

specialization
[spĕsh′&# x0259;-lĭ-zā′shən] n. in farming, the raising of one or two crops for sale rather than a variety of foods for personal use. (p. 275)

speculation
[spĕk′y&# x0259;-lā′shən] n. an involvement in risky business transactions in an effort to make a quick or large profit. (p. 673)

spoils system
n. the practice of winning candidates’ rewarding their supporters with government jobs. (p. 226)

Square Deal
n. President Theodore Roosevelt’s program of progressive reforms designed to protect the common people against big business. (p. 525)

stagflation
[stăg-flā′shən] n. an economic condition marked by both inflation and high unemployment. (p. 1004)

Stamp Act
n. a 1765 law in which Parliament established the first direct taxation of goods and services within the British colonies in North America. (p. 96)

Stono
[stō′n& #x014D;] Rebellion n. a 1739 uprising of slaves in South Carolina, leading to the tightening of already harsh slave laws. (p. 78)

Strategic Defense Initiative
[strə-tē′jĭk dĭ-fĕns′ ĭ-nĭsh′ə-tĭv] (SDI) n. a proposed defense system—popularly known as Star Wars—intended to protect the United States against missile attacks. (p. 1041) R67

strike
n. a work stoppage intended to force an employer to respond to demands. (p. 262)

Student Nonviolent Coordinating
[nŏn-vī′ə-lənt kō-ôr′dnā′tĭng] Committee (SNCC) [snĭk] n. an organization formed in 1960 to coordinate sit-ins and other protests and to give young blacks a larger role in the civil rights movement. (p. 912)

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
n. an antiestablishment New Left group, founded in 1960, that called for greater individual freedom and responsibility. (p. 950)

suburb
[sŭb′ûrb′] n. a residential town or community near a city. (p. 841)

suffrage
[sŭf′rĭj] n. the right to vote. (p. 521)

Sugar Act
n. a trade law enacted by Parliament in 1764 in an attempt to reduce smuggling in the British colonies in North America. (p. 89)

supply-side economics
n. the idea that a reduction of tax rates will lead to increases in jobs, savings, and investments, and therefore to an increase in government revenue. (p. 1041)

T

Taino
[tī′nō] n. a Native American people of the Caribbean islands—the first group encountered by Columbus and his men when they reached the Americas. (p. 27)

Tariff of Abominations
[ə-bŏm′ə-nā&# x2032;shənz] n. John C. Calhoun’s name for an 1828 tariff increase that seemed to Southerners to be enriching the North at their expense. (p. 230)

Tariff of 1816
n. a protective tariff designed to aid American industries. (p. 218)

Teapot Dome scandal
[skăn′dl] n. Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall’s secret leasing of oil-rich public land to private companies in return for money and land. (p. 627)

Telecommunications
[tĕl&# x2032;ĭ-kə-my′nĭ-kā′shənz] Act of 1996 n. a law enacted in 1996 to remove barriers that had previously prevented communications companies from engaging in more than one type of communications business. (p. 1084)

telecommute
[tĕl′ ;ĭ-kə-myt′] v. to work at home for a company located elsewhere, by using such communications technologies as computers, the Internet, and fax machines. (p. 1084)

telegraph
[tĕl′ĭ-grăf′] n. a device for the electrical transmission of coded messages over wires. (p. 276)

temperance
[tĕm′pər-əns] movement n. an organized effort to prevent the drinking of alcoholic beverages. (p. 255)

tenant
[tĕn′& #x0259;nt] farming n. a system in which farm workers supply their own tools and rent farmland for cash. (p. 391)

tenement
[tĕn′ə-mənt] n. a multifamily urban dwelling, usually overcrowded and unsanitary. (p. 470)

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
n. a federal corporation established in 1933 to construct dams and power plants in the Tennessee Valley region to generate electricity as well as to prevent floods. (p. 725)

termination
[tûr′mə-n&# x0101;′shən] policy n. the U.S. government’s plan, announced in 1953, to give up responsibility for Native American tribes by eliminating federal economic support, discontinuing the reservation system, and redistributing tribal lands. (p. 869)

Tet offensive
[tĕt′ ə-fĕn′sĭv] n. a massive surprise attack by the Vietcong on South Vietnamese towns and cities early in 1968. (p. 955)

Texas Revolution
n. the 1836 rebellion in which Texas gained its independence from Mexico. (p. 291)

Thirteenth Amendment
n. an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1865, that has abolished slavery and involuntary servitude. (p. 368)

Three-Fifths Compromise
[kŏm′prə-mīz&# x2032;] n. the Constitutional Convention’s agreement to count three-fifths of a state’s slaves as population for purposes of representation and taxation. (p. 142)

Tiananmen
[tyän′än′mĕn′] Square n. the site of 1989 demonstrations in Beijing, China, in which Chinese students demanded freedom of speech and a greater voice in government. (p. 1056)

Tonkin Gulf
[tŏn′kĭn′ gŭlf′] Resolution n. a resolution adopted by Congress in 1964, giving the president broad powers to wage war in Vietnam. (p. 941)

totalitarian
[tō-tăl&# x2032;ĭ-târ′ē-ən] adj. characteristic of a political system in which the government exercises complete control over its citizens’ lives. (p. 735)

Townshend
[toun′z&# x0259;nd] Acts n. a series of laws enacted by Parliament in 1767, establishing indirect taxes on goods imported from Britain by the British colonies in North America. (p. 97)

Trail of Tears
[tîrz] n. the marches in which the Cherokee people were forcibly removed from Georgia to the Indian Territory in 1838–1840, with thousands of the Cherokee dying on the way. (p. 229)

transcendentalism
[trăn′ sĕn-dĕn′tl-ĭz′əm] n. a philosophical and literary movement of the 1800s that emphasized living a simple life and celebrated the truth found in nature and in personal emotion and imagination. (p. 242)

transcontinental
[trăns′k&# x014F;n-tə-nĕn′tl] railroad n. a railroad line linking the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States, completed in 1869. (p. 443)

Treaty of Fort Laramie
n. the treaty requiring the Sioux to live on a reservation along the Missouri River. (pp. 282, 410)

Treaty of Ghent
[gĕnt] n. the 1814 treaty that ended the War of 1812. (p. 205)

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
[gwäd′l-p′ hĭ-däl′gō] n. the 1848 treaty ending the U.S. war with Mexico, in which Mexico ceded California and New Mexico to the United States. (p. 297)

Treaty of Paris (1783)
n. the treaty that ended the Revolutionary War, confirming the independence of the United States and setting the boundaries of the new nation. (p. 122)

Treaty of Paris (1898)
n. the treaty ending the Spanish-American War, in which Spain freed Cuba, turned over the islands of Guam and Puerto Rico to the United States, and sold the Philippines to the United States for $20 million. (p. 556)

Treaty of Tordesillas
[tôr′də-sē′əs] n. the 1494 treaty in which Spain and Portugal agreed to divide the lands of the Western Hemisphere between them. (p. 30)

Treaty of Versailles
[vər-sī′] n. the 1919 peace treaty at the end of World War I which established new nations, borders, and war reparations. (p. 606) R68

trench warfare
n. military operations in which the opposing forces attack and counterattack from systems of fortified ditches rather than on an open battlefield. (p. 582)

triangular
[trī-ăng&# x2032;gyə-lər] trade n. the transatlantic system of trade in which goods and people, including slaves, were exchanged between Africa, England, Europe, the West Indies, and the colonies in North America. (p. 76)

Truman Doctrine
[tr′mən dŏk′trĭn] n. a U.S. policy, announced by President Harry S. Truman in 1947, of providing economic and military aid to free nations threatened by internal or external opponents. (p. 812)

Tuskegee
[tŭs-kē&# x2032;gē] Normal and Industrial Institute n. founded in 1881, and led by Booker T. Washington, to equip African Americans with teaching diplomas and useful skills in the trades and agriculture. (p. 491)

two-party system
n. a political system dominated by two major parties. (p. 186)

U

Uncle Tom’s Cabin
n. a best-selling novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, published in 1852, that portrayed slavery as a great moral evil. (p. 312)

Underground Railroad
n. a system of routes along which runaway slaves were helped to escape to Canada or to safe areas in the free states. (p. 311)

United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC)
n. a labor union formed in 1966 to seek higher wages and better working conditions for Mexican-American farm workers in California. (p. 976)

United Nations (UN)
n. an international peacekeeping organization to which most nations in the world belong, founded in 1945 to promote world peace, security, and economic development. (p. 809)

urban
[ûr′b&# x0259;n] flight n. a migration of people from cities to the surrounding suburbs. (p. 1088)

urbanization
[ûr′b&# x0259;-nĭ-zā′shən] n. the growth of cities. (p. 468)

urban renewal
[rĭ-n′əl] n. the tearing down and replacing of buildings in rundown inner-city neighborhoods. (p. 867)

urban sprawl
[sprôl′] n. the unplanned and uncontrolled spreading of cities into surrounding regions. (p. 630)

USS Maine
n. a U.S. warship that mysteriously exploded and sank in the harbor of Havana, Cuba, on February 15, 1898. (p. 554)

U-2 incident
n. the downing of a U.S. spy plane and capture of its pilot by the Soviet Union in 1960. (p. 833)

utopian
[y-tō′pē-ən] community n. an experimental community designed to be a perfect society, in which its members could live together in harmony. (p. 243)

V

V-E Day
n. a name given to May 8, 1945, “Victory in Europe Day” on which General Eisenhower’s acceptance of the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany marked the end of World War II in Europe. (p. 783)

vertical integration
[vûr′tĭ-kəl ĭn′tĭ-grā′shən] n. a company’s taking over its suppliers and distributors and transportation systems to gain total control over the quality and cost of its product. (p. 448)

Vietcong
[vē-ĕt′k ŏng′] n. the South Vietnamese Communists who, with North Vietnamese support, fought against the government of South Vietnam in the Vietnam War. (p. 938)

Vietminh
[vē-ĕt′m ĭn′] n. an organization of Vietnamese Communists and other nationalist groups that between 1946 and 1954 fought for Vietnamese independence from the French. (p. 937)

Vietnamization
[vē-ĕt&# x2032;nə-mĭ-zā′shən] n. ′resident Nixon’s strategy for ending U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, involving the gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops and their replacement with South Vietnamese forces. (p. 961)

Voting Rights Act of 1965
n. a law that made it easier for African Americans to register to vote by eliminating discriminatory literacy tests and authorizing federal examiners to enroll voters denied at the local level. (p. 922)

W

Wade-Davis
[wād′ dā′vəs] Bill n. a bill, passed in 1864 and vetoed by President Lincoln, that would have given Congress control of Reconstruction. (p. 377)

Wagner
[wăg′n ər] Act n. a law—also known as the National Labor Relations Act—enacted in 1935 to protect workers’ rights after the Supreme Court declared the National Industrial Recovery Act unconstitutional. (p. 705)

war-guilt
[wôr′ gĭlt′] clause n. a provision in the Treaty of Versailles by which Germany acknowledged that it alone was responsible for World War I. (p. 606)

war hawk
n. one of the members of Congress who favored war with Britain in the early years of the 19th century. (p. 203)

War Industries Board (WIB)
n. an agency established during World War I to increase efficiency and discourage waste in war-related industries. (p. 595)

War Powers Act (WPA)
n. a law enacted in 1973, limiting a president’s right to send troops into battle without consulting Congress. (p. 967)

War Production Board (WPB)
n. an agency established during World War II to coordinate the production of military supplies by U.S. industries. (p. 774)

Warren
[wôr′& #x0259;n] Commission n. a group, headed by Chief Justice Earl Warren, that investigated the assassination of President Kennedy and concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald was alone responsible for it. (p. 889)

Warren Court
n. the Supreme Court during the period when Earl Warren was chief justice, noted for its activism in the areas of civil rights and free speech. (p. 897)

Warsaw
[wôr′s ô′] Pact n. a military alliance formed in 1955 by the Soviet Union and its Eastern European satellites. (p. 830)

Watergate
[wô′tər-gāt′] n. a scandal arising from the Nixon administration’s attempt to cover up its involvement in the 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate apartment complex. (p. 1008)

Whig
[hwĭg] Party n. the political party formed in 1834 to oppose the policies of Andrew Jackson. (p. 234)

Wilmot Proviso
[wĭl′mət prə-vī′zō] n. an amendment to an 1846 military appropriations bill, proposing that none of the territory acquired in the war with Mexico would be open to slavery. (p. 306) R69

Women’s Auxiliary
[ôg-zĭl′yə-rē] Army Corps (WAAC) n. U.S. army unit created during World War II to enable women to serve in noncombat positions. (p. 769)

Woodstock
[wd′stŏk′] n. a free music festival that attracted more than 400,000 young people to a farm in upstate New York in August 1969. (p. 989)

Works Progress Administration (WPA)
n. an agency, established as part of the Second New Deal, that provided the unemployed with jobs in construction, garment making, teaching, the arts, and other fields. (p. 704)

X

XYZ Affair
n. a 1797 incident in which French officials demanded a bribe from U.S. diplomats. (p. 195)

Y

yellow journalism
[jûr′nə-lĭz&# x2032;əm] n. the use of sensationalized and exaggerated reporting by newspapers or magazines to attract readers. (p. 553)

Z

Zimmermann
[zĭm′ər-mən] note n. a message sent in 1917 by the German foreign minister to the German ambassador in Mexico, proposing a German-Mexican alliance and promising to help Mexico regain Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona if the United States entered World War I. (p. 585)

R70
Spanish Glossary

A

Aabolition
[abolición] s. movimiento para acabar con la esclavitud. (p. 249)

Adams-Onís Treaty
[Tratado de Adams-Onís] s. acuerdo de 1819 por el cual España le entregó el control del territorio de Florida a Estados Unidos (p. 221)

Adena
s. sociedad constructora de túmulos asentada en el valle del río Ohio entre los años 700 a.C. y 100 d.C., aproximadamente; se conoce por sus grandes tumbas cónicas. (p. 7)

affirmative action
[acción afirmativa] s. medidas para corregir los efectos de la discriminación anterior; favorecen a grupos que estaban en desventaja. (p. 929, 1037)

Agent Orange
[Agente Naranja] s. químico tóxico exfoliante que fumigaron las tropas estadounidenses en Vietnam para poner al descubierto refugios del Vietcong. (p. 945)

Agricultural Adjustment Act
[Ley de Ajustes Agrícolas] s. ley de 1933 que elevó el precio de las cosechas al pagarle a los granjeros para que no cultivaran cierta porción de sus tierras, reduciendo así la producción. (p. 697)

AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome)
[SIDA, síndrome de inmunodeficiencia adquirida] s. enfermedad causada por un virus que debilita el sistema inmunológico y hace que el cuerpo sea vulnerable a infecciones y formas poco comunes de cáncer. (p. 1046)

Alamo, the
[El Álamo] s. misión y fuerte situado en San Antonio, Texas, en donde fuerzas mexicanas masacraron a rebeldes texanos en 1836. (p. 291)

Alien and Sedition Acts
[Leyes de Extranjeros y de Sedición] s. cuatro leyes aprobadas en 1798 para reducir el poder político de los nuevos inmigrantes a EE.UU. (p. 195)

Alliance for Progress
[Alianza para el Progreso] s. programa de los sesenta para ofrecer ayuda económica a los países latinoamericanos. (p. 886)

Allies
[Aliados] s. 1. en la I Guerra Mundial, naciones aliadas en un tratado contra Alemania y las otras Potencias Centrales; originalmente Gran Bretaña, Francia y Rusia; más adelante se unieron Estados Unidos, Japón, Italia y otros. (p. 579) 2. en la II Guerra Mundial, naciones asociadas contra el Eje, en particular Gran Bretaña, la Unión Soviética y Estados Unidos. (p. 760)

American Expeditionary Force (AEF)
[Fuerza Americana de Expediciones] s. fuerzas dirigidas por el general John Pershing, quien luchó con los Aliados en Europa durante la Primera Guerra Mundial. (p. 590)

American Federation of Labor (AFL)
[Federación Norteamericana del Trabajo] s. sindicato de trabajadores calificados creado en 1886 y dirigido por Samuel Gompers. (p. 451)

American Indian Movement (AIM)
[Movimiento Indígena Americano] s. organización con frecuencia militante creada en 1968 con el fin de luchar por los derechos de los amerindios. (p. 977)

Americanization movement
[movimiento de americanización] s. programa educativo ideado para facilitar la asimilación de los inmigrantes a la cultura estadounidense. (p. 469)

American System
[Sistema Americano] s. programa económico previo a la Guerra Civil diseñado para fortalecer y unificar a Estados Unidos por medio de aranceles proteccionistas, un banco nacional y un sistema de transporte eficiente. (p. 216)

Anaconda plan
[plan Anaconda] s. estrategia de tres pasos durante la Guerra Civil, mediante la cual la Unión propuso derrotar a la Confederación; su nombre viene de una serpiente que aprieta a sus víctimas. (p. 341)

anarchist
[anarquista] s. persona que se opone a toda forma de gobierno. (p. 619)

Anasazi
s. grupo amerindio que vivió cerca de la región de Four Corners—donde Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado y Utah se unen—de los años 100 a 1400 d.C., aproximadamente. (p. 7)

annex
[anexar] v. incorporar un territorio a una unidad política existente tal como un estado o país. (p. 292)

antebellum
adj. previo a la Guerra Civil. (p. 252)

Antifederalist
[antifederalista] s. oponente de la Constitución y de un gobierno central fuerte. (p. 146)

appeasement
[apaciguamiento] s. política de ceder a las demandas de una potencia hostil con el fin de mantener la paz. (p. 744)

Appomattox Court House
s. pueblo cerca de Appomattox, Virginia, donde Lee se rindió a Grant el 9 de abril de 1865. (37°N 79°O) (p. 356)

apprentice
[aprendiz] s. trabajador que aprende un oficio, por lo general supervisado por un maestro. (p. 260)

arbitration
[arbitraje] s. método de resolver disputas en el cual ambos lados someten sus diferencias a un juez elegido por las dos partes. (p. 451)

armistice
[armisticio] s. tregua o acuerdo para terminar un conflicto armado. (p. 205, 593)

Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)
[Ejército de la República de Vietnam] s. soldados del sur de Vietnam que lucharon junto a soldados estadounidenses contra el comunismo y las fuerzas del norte de Vietnam durante la Guerra de Vietnam. (p. 943)

Articles of Confederation
[Artículos de la Confederación] s. documento aprobado por el Segundo Congreso Continental en 1777 y ratificado por los estados finalmente en 1781. Detallaba la forma del gobierno de los nuevos Estados Unidos. (p. 135)

Ashcan School
s. grupo de artistas estadounidenses de principios del siglo XX que a menudo pintaban escenas realistas de la vida urbana—como arrabales y gente sin hogar—ganándose así el nombre de la escuela del basurero. (p. 501)

assimilation
[asimilación] s. adopción, por parte de un grupo minoritario, de las creencias y estilo de vida de la cultura dominante. (p. 412)

Atlantic Charter
[Carta del Atlántico] s. declaración de principios de 1941 en que Estados Unidos y Gran Bretaña establecieron sus objetivos contra las Potencias del Eje. (p. 760) R71

Axis powers
[Potencias del Eje] s. países unidos contra los Aliados en la II Guerra Mundial, que incluyeron a Alemania, Italia y Japón. (p. 757)

Aztec
[azteca] s. pueblo amerindio que colonizó el Valle de México en 1200 d.C. y desarrolló un gran imperio. (p. 6)

B

baby boom
s. marcado aumento en el índice de natalidad en Estados Unidos después de la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 849)

Bank of the United States (BUS)
[Banco de Estados Unidos] s. cualquiera de los dos bancos nacionales establecidos por el Congreso, el primero en 1791 y el segundo en 1816. (p. 185, 232)

Battle of the Bulge
[Batalla del Bolsón] s. batalla de un mes de duración en la II Guerra Mundial durante la cual los Aliados rompieron la última gran ofensiva alemana de la guerra. (p. 782)

Battle of Midway
[Batalla de Midway] s. batalla de la Segunda Guerra Mundial que ocurrió a principios de junio en 1942. Los Aliados redujeron la flotilla japonesa en Midway, una isla al noreste de Hawai. A partir de esta batalla los Aliados tomaron la ofensiva y comenzaron a moverse a Japón. (p. 795)

Battle of Wounded Knee
[Batalla de Wounded Knee] s. masacre de 300 indígenas desarmados en Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota, en 1890. (p. 413)

Beatles, the
s. conjuntó inglés que tuvo gran influencia en la música popular en los años 60. (p. 989)

beat movement
[movimiento beat] s. movimiento social y literario de los años 50 que enfatizó la expresión literaria sin reglas y la disconformidad. (p. 861)

Benin
s. reino de África occidental que existió en la actual Nigeria; floreció en los bosques del delta del Níger del siglo 14 al 17. (p. 17)

Berlin airlift
[puente aéreo de Berlín] s. operación de 327 días de duración, en la que aviones estadounidenses y británicos llevaron alimentos y provisiones a Berlín Occidental después de que la Unión Soviética bloqueó la ciudad en 1948. (p. 813)

Berlin Wall
[Muro de Berlín] s. muro de concreto que separó Berlín Oriental y Occidental de 1961 a 1989; construido por Alemania Oriental para impedir que sus ciudadanos se escaparan al occidente. (p. 883)

Bessemer process
[método Bessemer] s. técnica más eficiente y barata de fabricar acero, desarrollada hacia 1850. (p. 437)

Bill of Rights
[Carta de Derechos] s. primeras diez enmiendas a la Constitución que identifican los derechos de los ciudadanos; se adoptaron en 1791. (p. 149)

bimetallism
[bimetalismo] s. sistema monetario nacional que utiliza el oro y la plata para respaldar la moneda. (p. 428)

Black Codes
[códigos negros] s. leyes discriminatorias aprobadas en el Sur después de la Guerra Civil, las cuales restringían severamente la vida de los afroamericanos, prohibiéndoles actividades como viajar sin permiso, llevar armas, participar como jurado, testificar contra los blancos y casarse con blancos. (p. 379)

blacklist
[lista negra] s. lista de unos 500 actores, escritores, productores y directores a quienes no se permitía trabajar en películas de Hollywood debido a sus supuestos vínculos comunistas. (p. 824)

Black Panthers
[Panteras Negras] s. organización política afroamericana militante formada por Huey Newton y Bobby Seale en 1966 para luchar contra la violencia de la policía y suministrar servicios en el ghetto. (p. 926)

Black Power
[Poder Negro] s. consigna usada por Stokely Carmichael en los años 60, que pedía poder político y social para los afroamericanos. (p. 926)

Black Tuesday
[Martes Negro] s. octubre 29 de 1929, día en que los precios de las acciones bajaron drásticamente. (p. 674)

Bleeding Kansas
[Kansas sangrante] s. nombre dado al Territorio de Kansas en los años previos a la Guerra Civil, cuando era un campo de batalla entre las fuerzas en pro y en contra de la esclavitud. (p. 316)

blitzkrieg
s. proveniente de la palabra alemana que significa “guerra relámpago”. Repentina ofensiva de fuerzas aéreas y terrestres a gran escala con el fin de obtener una victoria rápida. (p. 745)

blockade
[bloqueo] s. acto de sellar un puerto o región para prevenir la entrada o salida durante tiempos de guerra. (p. 202)

bonanza farm
[granja de bonanza] s. extensa granja dedicada a un solo cultivo. (p. 424)

Bonus Army
s. grupo de veteranos de la I Guerra Mundial que marcharon en Washington, D.C., en 1932 para exigir bonos prometidos a cambio de su servicio militar. (p. 688)

bootlegger
s. persona que contrabandeaba bebidas alcohólicas durante la época de Prohibición. (p. 643)

Boston Massacre
[Masacre de Boston] s. choque entre soldados británicos y colonos en Boston en 1770, durante el cual cinco colonos fueron asesinados. (p. 98)

Boston Tea Party
[Motín del Té de Boston] s. protesta en 1773 contra el impuesto británico sobre el té; los colonos arrojaron 18,000 libras de té al puerto de Boston. (p. 99)

Boulder Dam
[Presa de Boulder] s. presa del río Colorado construida durante la Depresión con fondos federales para estimular la economía; ahora llamada Presa Hoover. (p. 686)

Boxer Rebellion
[Rebelión de los Boxer] s. rebelión encabezada en 1900 por los Boxer, sociedad secreta de China, para detener la difusión de la influencia occidental. (p. 563)

bracero
s. trabajador mexicano que laboró temporalmente en Estados Unidos durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial. (p. 868)

bread line
[cola para comer] s. fila de personas que esperan comida gratis. (p. 679)

brinkmanship
s. práctica de amenazar al enemigo con represalias militares extremas ante cualquier agresión. (p. 829)

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
s. decisión de la Suprema Corte en 1954 que declaró que la segregación de estudiantes negros y blancos era inconstitucional. (p. 908) R72

Bull Moose Party
[Partido Bull Moose] s. apodo del Partido Progresista, bajo el que Theodore Roosevelt aspiró, sin éxito, a la presidencia en 1912. (p. 536)

buying on margin
[compra con margen] s. compra de acciones en la que se paga sólo una porción del valor de la acción al vendedor o corredor de bolsa, y se presta el resto. (p. 673)

C

cabinet
[gabinete] s. jefes de departamentos que son asesores directos del presidente. (p. 183)

Camp David Accords
[Acuerdos de Camp David] s. acuerdos de paz históricos entre Israel y Egipto, negociados en Camp David, Maryland, en 1978. (p. 1022)

capitalism
[capitalismo] s. sistema económico en el que individuos y corporaciones privadas controlan los medios de producción para obtener ganancias. (p. 275)

carpetbagger
s. norteños que se trasladaron al Sur después de la Guerra Civil. (p. 385)

cash crop
[cosecha comercial] s. cosecha que se cultiva para su venta más que para uso del granjero. (p. 72)

Central Powers
[Potencias Centrales] s. en la I Guerra Mundial, el grupo de naciones—Alemania, Austro-Hungría y el imperio otomano—que se opuso a los Aliados. (p. 580)

checks and balances
[control y compensación de poderes] s. sistema en el cual cada rama del gobierno controla o restringe a las demás ramas. (p. 143)

Chinese Exclusion Act
[Ley de Exclusión de Chinos] s. ley de 1882 que prohibía la inmigración de ciudadanos chinos, con la excepción de estudiantes, maestros, comerciantes, turistas y funcionarios gubernamentales. (p. 465)

Chisholm Trail
[Sendero Chisholm] s. la ruta principal de ganado que iba desde San Antonio, Texas, por Oklahoma hasta Kansas. (p. 416)

chlorination
[cloración] s. purificación del agua al mezclarla químicamente con cloro. (p. 470)

CIA
s. Central Intelligence Agency (Agencia Central de Inteligencia), agencia gubernamental establecida para espiar y realizar operaciones secretas en países extranjeros. (p. 829)

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
[Cuerpo Civil de Conservación] s. agencia establecida como parte del New Deal con el fin de ocupar a jóvenes desempleados en trabajos como la construcción de carreteras y el cuidado de parques nacionales y ayudar en situaciones de emergencia. (p. 697)

civil disobedience
[desobediencia civil] s. rechazo a cumplir leyes que parecían injustas, con el objeto de lograr un cambio en la política de gobierno. En el siglo 19, Henry David Thoreau escribió sobre la desobediencia civil, y dicha táctica fue promovida por Martin Luther King, Jr. durante la era de los Derechos civiles. (p. 243)

Civil Rights Act of 1964
[Ley de Derechos Civiles de 1964] s. ley que prohíbe la discriminación en lugares públicos, en la educación y en los empleos por cuestión de raza, color, sexo, nacionalidad o religión. (p. 920)

Civil Rights Act of 1968
[Ley de Derechos Civiles de 1968] s. ley que prohíbe la discriminación en la vivienda. (p. 928)

civil service
[servicio civil] s. cualquier servicio gubernamental en el que se obtiene un cargo mediante exámenes públicos. (p. 476)

Clayton Antitrust Act
[Ley Antitrust Clayton] s. ley de 1914 que declaraba ilegales ciertas prácticas empresariales injustas y protegía el derecho de los sindicatos y organizaciones agrícolas. (p. 539)

Cold War
[Guerra Fría] s. estado de hostilidad, sin llegar a conflictos armados, entre Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética tras la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 812)

colonization
[colonización] s. establecimiento de asentamientos remotos controlados por otro país. (p. 28)

Columbian Exchange
[Transferencia Colombina] s. transferencia—iniciada con el primer viaje de Colón a las Américas—de plantas, alimentos, animales y enfermedades entre el Hemisferio Occidental y el Hemisferio Oriental. (p. 29)

committees of correspondence
[comités de correspondencia] s. red de comunicación escrita entre colonos para mantenerse al tanto de las actividades británicas. (p. 99)

Committee to Reelect the President
[Comité de Reelección del Presidente] s. grupo que dirigió la campaña para la reelección del presidente Nixon en 1972, cuya conexión con el allanamiento de la Sede Nacional del Partido Demócrata hizo estallar el escándalo Watergate. (p. 1009)

Common Sense
[Sentido común] s. folleto escrito en 1776 por Thomas Paine que exhortaba la separación de las colonias británicas. (p. 105)

communism
[comunismo] s. sistema económico y político basado en un gobierno de un solo partido y en la propiedad estatal. (p. 619)

Compromise of 1850
[Compromiso de 1850] s. serie de medidas del Congreso para resolver los desacuerdos que surgieron a raíz de la esclavitud entre los estados libres y esclavistas. (p. 307)

Compromise of 1877
[Compromiso de 1877] s. serie de medidas tomadas por el Congreso por medio de las cuales los demócratas acordaban aceptar al candidato republicano Rutherford B. Hayes como presidente, aunque éste hubiera perdido el voto popular. Las medidas incluían el retiro de tropas federales de los estados del Sur, el uso de dinero federal para mejorar la infraestructura en el Sur y la designación de un miembro de gabinete que sea sureño y conservador. (p. 399)

concentration camp
[campo de concentración] s. campamento de presos operado por la Alemania nazi para judíos y otros grupos que consideraba enemigos de Adolfo Hitler; a los presos los mataban o los hacían morir de hambre y a causa de trabajos forzados. (p. 752)

Confederacy
[Estados Confederados de América] s. confederación formada en 1861 por los estados del Sur después de que se separaron de la unión. (p. 330)

confederation
[confederación] s. grupo de estados o naciones unidos para actuar en torno a asuntos de interés mutuo. (p. 135) R73

conglomerate
[conglomerado] s. corporación grande que posee compañías más pequeñas dedicadas a negocios diversos. (p. 848)

Congress of Industrial Organizations
[Congreso de Organizaciones Industriales] s. organización sindical expulsada de la Federación Norteamericana del Trabajo en 1938. (p. 714)

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)
[Congreso de Igualdad Racial] s. grupo interracial, fundado por James Farmer en 1942, que luchaba contra la segregación en ciudades del Norte. (p. 799)

conquistador
s. explorador y colonizador español de las Américas en el siglo 16. (p. 36)

conscientious objector
[objetor de conciencia] s. persona que se opone a toda guerra por principio de conciencia. (p. 592)

conscription
[conscripción] s. servicio militar obligatorio de ciertos miembros de la población. (p. 349)

conservation
[conservación] s. práctica de preservar algunas zonas naturales y desarrollar otras por el bien común. (p. 529)

conservative coalition
[coalición conservadora] s. alianza de grupos de ultraderecha opuestos a la ingerencia del gobierno formada a mediados de los años sesenta. (p. 1037)

consolidation
[consolidación] s. acto de unir o combinar. (p. 446)

consumerism
[consumismo] s. gran interés en la compra de bienes materiales. (p. 854)

containment
[contención] s. política estadounidense de formar alianzas con países más pequeños y débiles con el fin de bloquear la expansión de la infuencia soviética tras la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 811)

Contract with America
[Contrato con América] s. documento elaborado por el representante Newt Gingrich y firmado por 300 candidatos republicanos el 27 de septiembre de 1994, que presentaba sus planes legislativos conservadores. (p. 1070)

Contras
[la contra] s. fuerzas anticomunistas nicaragüenses que recibieron asistencia de la administración Reagan para derrocar al gobierno sandinista de Nicaragua. (p. 1057)

convoy system
[flotilla de escolta] s. medio de proteger los buques mercantes del ataque de submarinos alemanes al hacer que viajaran con una escorta de destructores. (p. 589)

Copperhead
s. nombre de una serpiente venenosa aplicado a los norteños que simpatizaban con el Sur durante la Guerra Civil. (p. 349)

Cottage industry
[industria doméstica] s. sistema de producción en el cual los fabricantes proveen materiales para ser producidos en las casas. (p. 260)

cotton gin
[desmotadora] s. máquina para quitar las semillas de las fibras del algodón, inventada por Eli Whitney en 1793. (p. 215)

counterculture
[contracultura] s. cultura de la juventud de los años 60 que rechazaba la sociedad tradicional y buscaba paz, amor y libertad individual. (p. 987)

credibility gap
[falta de credibilidad] s. desconfianza del público en las declaraciones oficiales del gobierno. (p. 947)

credit
[crédito] s. acuerdo en el que se compran artículos en el presente para ser pagados en el futuro mediante un plan de cuotas con intereses. (p. 672)

Crédit Mobilier
s. compañía constructora formada en 1864 por los dueños de la Union Pacific Railroad; quienes la usaron ilegalmente para obtener ganancias. (p. 444)

Crusades
[Cruzadas] s. serie de expediciones militares cristianas al Oriente Medio entre los años 1096 y 1270 d.C., con el fin de rescatar del dominio islámico la “Tierra Santa” alrededor de Jerusalén. (p. 22)

cult of domesticity
[culto a la domesticidad] s. creencia de que la mujer casada debe restringir sus actividades al hogar y la familia. (p. 254)

D

Dawes Act
[Ley Dawes] s. ley aprobada por el Congreso en 1887 para “americanizar” a los indígenas distribuyendo a individuos la tierra de las reservaciones. (p. 412)

D-Day
[Día D] s. junio 6 de 1944, día en que los Aliados emprendieron una invasión por tierra, mar y aire contra el Eje. (p. 780)

debt peonage
[deuda por peonaje] s. sistema de servidumbre en el que una persona es obligada a trabajar para pagar una deuda. (p. 495)

Declaration of Independence
[Declaración de Independencia] s. documento escrito por Thomas Jefferson en 1776 en el cual los delegados del Congreso Continental declaron la independencia de las colonias de Gran Bretaña. (p. 106)

de facto segregation
[segregación de facto] s. segregación racial impuesta por la práctica y la costumbre más que por las leyes. (p. 924)

deficit spending
[gasto deficitario] s. práctica por parte de un gobierno de gastar más de lo que recibe por concepto de rentas públicas. (p. 698)

de jure segregation
[segregación de jure] s. segregación racial impuesta por la ley. (p. 924)

Democratic-Republican
[Demócrata- Republicano] s. partido político conocido por su apoyo a un fuerte gobierno estatal. Fue fundado por Thomas Jefferson en 1792 en oposición al Federalist Party [Partido Federalista]. (p. 186, 226)

deregulation
[liberalización] s. acción de limitar el alcance de la regulación federal sobre la industria. (p. 1043)

détente
[distensión] s. política flexible con la intención de negociar y disminuir tensiones; fue adoptada por Richard Nixon y su consejero Henry Kissinger para tratar con países comunistas. (p. 1005)

direct relief
[ayuda directa] s. alimentos o dinero que el gobierno da directamente a los necesitados. (p. 681)

division of labor
[división del trabajo] s. práctica cultural de asignar diferentes tareas y responsabilidades a diferentes grupos o individuos. (p. 13) R74

Dixiecrat
s. delegado sureño que se retiró de la convención del Partido Demócrata en 1948 para protestar la plataforma del presidente Truman sobre derechos civiles y formó un grupo denominado States’ Rights Democratic Party. (p. 844)

dollar diplomacy
[diplomacia del dólar] s. política de usar el poder económico o la influencia económica de Estados Unidos para alcanzar sus objetivos de política exterior en otros países. (p. 569)

domino theory
[teoría del dominó] s. teoría que supone que si una nación se vuelve comunista, las naciones vecinas inevitablemente se volverán comunistas también. (p. 937)

dotcom
[puntocom] s. negocio relacionado con el Internet o conducido a través de éste. (p. 1077)

double standard
[doble moral] s. conjunto de principios que permite mayor libertad sexual al hombre que a la mujer. (p. 647)

dove
[paloma] s. persona que se oponía a la Guerra de Vietnam y creía que Estados Unidos debía retirarse. (p. 952)

Dow Jones Industrial Average
[Promedio Industrial Dow Jones] s. medida que computa el valor de las acciones de 30 compañías grandes; se usa como barómetro de los mercados bursátiles. (p. 673)

downsize
[recortar] v. despedir trabajadores de una organización con el fin de hacer las operaciones más eficientes y ahorrar dinero. (p. 1076)

draft
[reclutamiento] s. requisito de matrícula en las fuerzas armadas. (p. 948)

Dust Bowl
s. región que incluye Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado y New Mexico que quedó inservible para la agricultura debido a la sequía y a las tormentas de arena durante los años 30. (p. 680)

E

Earth Day
[Día de la Tierra] s. día dedicado a la educación ambiental que desde 1970 se celebra el 22 de abril de cada año. (p. 1027)

Economic Opportunity Act
[Ley de Oportunidades Económicas] s. ley promulgada en 1964, que adjudicó fondos a programas para la juventud, medidas para combatir la pobreza, préstamos para pequeños negocios y capacitación laboral. (p. 894)

egalitarianism
[igualitarismo] s. creencia de que todas las personas deben tener igualdad de derechos políticos, económicos, sociales y civiles. (p. 122)

Eisenhower Doctrine
[Doctrina Eisenhower] s. advertencia del presidente Eisenhower en 1957 de que Estados Unidos defendería el Oriente Medio contra el ataque de cualquier país comunista. (p. 831)

electoral college
[colegio electoral] s. asamblea elegida por votantes para elegir formalmente al presidente y vicepresidente. Cada estado tiene un número de electores equivalente a los miembros de sus senadores y representantes en el Congreso. (p. 144)

emancipation
[emancipación] s. proceso de liberarse de la esclavitud. (p. 249)

Emancipation Proclamation
[Proclama de Emancipación] s. orden ejecutiva de Abraham Lincoln el 1º de enero de 1863 que abolía la esclavitud en los estados confederados. (p. 347)

embargo
s. orden gubernamental que prohíbe el comercio con otra nación. (p. 203)

encomienda
s. institución colonial de España en las Américas que repartía indígenas a los conquistadores para hacer trabajos forzados. (p. 38)

Enlightenment
[Ilustración] s. movimiento intelectual del siglo 18 que enfatizaba la razón y los métodos científicos para obtener conocimientos. (p. 82)

entitlement program
[programa de subvención] s. programa gubernamental, como Social Security, Medicare y Medicaid, que brinda beneficios a grupos específicos. (p. 1037)

entrepreneur
[empresario] s. persona que organiza, opera y asume todo el riesgo de una ventura de negocios. (p. 275)

environmentalist
[ambientalista] s. persona que procura proteger el medio ambiente de la destrucción y de la contaminación. (p. 1028)

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
[Agencia de Protección Ambiental] s. agencia federal establecida en 1970 para la regulación de la contaminación del agua y el aire, los desperdicios tóxicos, los pesticidas y la radiación. (p. 1043)

Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)
[Enmienda de Igualdad de Derechos] s. enmienda propuesta pero rechazada que hubiese prohibido la discriminación del gobierno en razón del sexo de una persona. (p. 985)

Erie Canal
[canal del Erie] s. vía acuática artificial de 363 millas en New York, construida entre 1817 y 1825 para conectar el río Hudson y el lago Erie. (p. 217)

Espionage and Sedition Acts
[Leyes de Espionaje y Sedición] s. dos leyes aprobadas en 1917 y 1918, que castigaban fuertemente a quienes criticaran o bloquearan la participación de Estados Unidos en la I Guerra Mundial. (p. 598)

excise tax
[impuesto al consumo] s. impuesto a la producción, venta o consumo de artículos producidos en el país. (p. 186)

executive branch
[rama ejecutiva] s. rama gubernamental cuya función es administrar y aplicar las leyes (presidente o gobernador). (p. 143)

exoduster
s. afroamericano que emigró del Sur a Kansas después de la Reconstrucción. (p. 421)

extortion
[extorsión] s. uso ilegal de un cargo público para obtener dinero o propiedad. (p. 475)

F

Fair Deal
s. plan económico del presidente Truman que expandió el New Deal de Roosevelt; aumentó el salario mínimo, amplió el seguro social y le dio vivienda a familias de bajos recursos, entre otras medidas. (p. 845)

Family Assistance Plan
[Plan de Asistencia Familiar] s. propuesta de reforma a los programas de beneficencia, aprobada por la Cámara de Representantes en 1970 pero rechazada por el Senado, que garantizaba un ingreso a los beneficiarios de ayuda pública que aceptaran capacitarse y emplearse en un oficio. (p. 1001) R75

Farmers’ Alliances
[Alianzas de granjeros] s. grupos de granjeros o simpatizantes de éstos, que enviaban a oradores a viajar de pueblo a pueblo para educar a la gente sobre cuestiones agrarias y rurales. (p. 427)

fascism
[fascismo] s. filosofía política que propone un gobierno fuerte, centralizado, nacionalista, caracterizado por una rígida dictadura unipartidista. (p. 736)

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
[Comisión Federal de Comunicaciones] s. agencia del gobierno que regula la industria de comunicaciones en EE.UU., incluso la transmisión de radio y televisión. (p. 859)

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
[Corporación Federal de Seguros de Depósitos] s. agencia creada en 1933 para garantizar depósitos bancarios individuales cuando un banco quiebra. (p. 723)

Federal Home Loan Bank Act
[Ley Federal para Préstamos de Vivienda] s. ley aprobada en 1931 que redujo las cuotas hipotecarias y permitió a los agricultores refinanciar sus préstamos para prevenir juicios hipotecarios. (p. 687)

federalism
[federalismo] s. sistema político gubernamental en el cual el poder se comparte entre un gobierno nacional y las entidades que lo constituyen, como los gobiernos estatales. (p. 143)

Federalists
[federalistas] s. partidarios de la Constitución y de un gobierno nacional fuerte. (p. 146)

Federalist, The
[El Federalista] s. ensayos escritos por Madison, Hamilton y Jay que apoyan y explican la Constitución. (p. 146)

Federal Reserve System
[Sistema de la Reserva Federal] s. sistema bancario nacional establecido por Woodrow Wilson en 1913 que controla el dinero circulante del país. (p. 540)

Federal Securities Act
[Ley Federal de Valores] s. ley de 1933 que obliga a las corporaciones a suministrar información completa y fidedigna sobre sus ofertas de acciones. (p. 696)

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
[Comisión Federal de Comercio] s. agencia federal establecida en 1914 para investigar y parar prácticas empresariales injustas. (p. 539)

feminism
[feminismo] s. creencia de que la mujer debe tener igualdad económica, política y social con respecto al hombre. (p. 982)

Fifteenth Amendment
[Enmienda 15] s. enmienda a la Constitución, adoptada en 1870, que establece que a nadie puede negársele el derecho al voto por motivos de raza, color o por haber sido esclavo. (p. 382)

“Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!”
s. consigna de la campaña presidencial de 1844 en pro de la anexión del Territorio de Oregon; se refería a la latitud del límite norte del territorio. (p. 285)

flapper
s. jovencita típica de los años 20 que actuaba y se vestía de manera atrevida y nada convencional. (p. 647)

flexible response
[respuesta flexible] s. doctrina, desarrollada durante la administración Kennedy, de prepararse para una variedad de respuestas militares, en vez de concentrarse en las armas nucleares. (p. 879)

Foraker Act
[Ley Foraker] s. legislación que el Congreso aprobó en 1900 para acabar con el gobierno militar en Puerto Rico y autorizar un gobierno civil. (p. 559)

Fordney-McCumber Tariff
[Arancel Fordney-McCumber] s. serie de reglas, aprobada por el Congreso en 1922, que elevó a niveles sin precedentes los impuestos a las importaciones en 1922 para proteger las compañías estadounidenses de la competencia extranjera. (p. 626)

forty-niner
[viajero del 49] s. buscador de oro que llegó a California después de 1848 atraído por el oro. (p. 298)

Fourteen Points
[los catorce puntos] s. plan del presidente Wilson en pro de la paz mundial tras la I Guerra Mundial. (p. 605)

Fourteenth Amendment
[Enmienda 14] s. enmienda a la constitución adoptada en 1868 que hace ciudadano a toda persona nacida o naturalizada en Estados Unidos, incluso a antiguos esclavos, y garantiza igualdad de protección bajo la ley. (p. 379)

franchise
[franquicia] s. forma de negocio en la que individuos compran el derecho a usar el nombre y los métodos de una compañía matriz, con lo que la compañía se multiplica. (p. 848)

Freedmen’s Bureau
[Oficina de libertos] s. agencia federal formada después de la Guerra Civil para ayudar a personas que habían sido esclavos antes. (p. 379)

freedom rider
s. activista de derechos civiles que viajó en autobús a través del Sur a comienzos de los años 60 para protestar contra la segregación. (p. 916)

Freedom Summer
s. campaña de registro de votantes afroamericanos en el verano de 1964 en Mississippi. (p. 921)

Freeport Doctrine
[Doctrina Freeport] s. posición que tomó en 1858 Stephen Douglas de que cualquier territorio podría excluir la esclavitud con sólo negarse a promulgar leyes en su favor. (p. 326)

Free-Soil Party
[Partido de las Tierras Libres] s. partido político formado en 1848 que se oponía a la extensión de la esclavitud a los territorios. (p. 319)

Free Speech Movement
[Movimiento de Libre Expresión] s. movimiento activista de los años 60 que surgió a raíz de un enfrentamiento entre los estudiantes y la administración de la Universidad de California en Berkeley en 1964. (p. 950)

French and Indian War
[Guerra contra Franceses e Indígenas] s. guerra librada en Norteamérica (1757-1763) como parte de un conflicto mundial entre Francia y Gran Bretaña; finalizó con la derrota de Francia y el traspaso del Canadá francés a Gran Bretaña. (p. 86)

Fugitive Slave Act
[Ley de los Esclavos Fugitivos] s. ley aprobada como parte del Compromiso de 1850 que imponía duras sanciones a quien ayudara a escapar de la esclavitud. (p. 310)

Fundamentalism
[fundamentalismo] s. movimiento religioso protestante basado en la interpretación textual, o palabra por palabra, de las escrituras. (p. 644)

G

Gadsden Purchase
[Compra de Gadsden] s. compra de tierras de México en 1853 por parte de Estados Unidos que estableció la frontera actual entre los dos países. (p. 297) R76

gag rule
[ley de la mordaza] s. orden que limita o previene el debate sobre un determinado asunto. (p. 253)

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
[Acuerdo General de Aranceles y Comercio] s. acuerdo internacional firmado inicialmente en 1947. En 1994, EE.UU. y otros países del mundo adoptaron una nueva versión de GATT. Este tratado redujo las barreras de comercio y los aranceles, como las tarifas, y creó la Organización Mundial de Comercio. (p. 1078)

genetic engineering
[ingeniería genética] s. alteración de la biología molecular de las células de un organismo para crear nuevas variedades de bacterias, plantas o animales. (p. 1086)

Geneva Accords
[Acuerdos de Ginebra] s. plan de paz de Indochina en 1954 en el que Vietnam fue dividido temporalmente en Vietnam del Norte y Vietnam del Sur, mientras se celebraban las elecciones de 1956. (p. 938)

genocide
[genocidio] s. exterminio deliberado y sistemático de un grupo de personas por su raza, nacionalidad o religión. (p. 750)

Gentlemen’s Agreement
[Acuerdo de Caballeros] s. acuerdo concertado durante 1907 y 1908, mediante el cual el gobierno de Japón limitó la emigración a Estados Unidos. (p. 465)

gentrification
[aburguesamiento] s. restauración de propiedades urbanas por personas de la clase media que a menudo resulta en la pérdida de vivienda para personas de medios escasos. (p. 1089)

Gettysburg Address
[Discurso de Gettysburg] s. famoso discurso de Abraham Lincoln durante la Guerra Civil al inaugurar un cementerio nacional en el campo de batalla de Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, el 19 de noviembre de 1863. (p. 361)

ghetto
s. tipo de vecindario urbano donde cierto grupo minoritario es obligado o forzado a vivir. (p. 751)

GI Bill of Rights
[Carta de Derechos de los Veteranos] s. nombre dado a la Ley de Reajuste de Militares de 1944, que ofrecía beneficios financieros y educativos a los veteranos de la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 798, 841)

glasnost
s. la discusión abierta de problemas sociales que se dio en la Unión Soviética durante los años 80. (p. 1055)

Glass-Steagall Banking Act
[Ley Bancaria Glass-Steagall] s. ley de 1933 que aseguró los depósitos bancarios mediante la Corporación Federal de Seguros de Depósitos. (p. 1055)

Glorious Revolution
[Revolución Gloriosa] s. revolución incruenta en 1688-89 en la que William y Mary le quitaron el trono de Inglaterra a James II. (p. 69)

gold rush
[fiebre del oro] s. llegada de gente a una región donde se ha descubierto oro. (p. 298)

gold standard
[patrón de oro] s. sistema monetario en el cual la unidad básica de moneda se define en relación a una cantidad fija de oro. (p. 428)

Gone with the Wind
[Lo que el viento se llevó] s. película de 1939 sobre la vida de los dueños de plantaciones del Sur durante la Guerra Civil; una de las más populares de todos los tiempos. (p. 717)

graft
[corrupción] s. uso ilegal de un cargo político con el fin de ganancia personal. (p. 475)

grandfather clause
[cláusula del abuelo] s. estipulación que exime de cumplir una ley a ciertas personas por circunstancias previas; específicamente, cláusula de la constitución de algunos estados sureños que eximía a los blancos de los estrictos requisitos que impedían que los afroamericanos votaran. (p. 495)

Grange
[la Granja] s. The Patrons of Husbandry—organización de granjeros que intentaron, a partir de la década de 1870, combatir el poder de los ferrocarriles. (p. 427)

Grapes of Wrath, The
[Las uvas de la ira] s. novela de John Steinbeck, publicada en 1939, sobre una familia de Oklahoma que se va de la región del Dust Bowl a California. (p. 720)

Great Awakening
[Gran Despertar] s. serie de grandes asambleas religiosas en las décadas de 1730 y 1750. (p. 83)

Great Compromise
[Gran Compromiso] s. plan constitucional para una legislatura de dos cámaras: una que da igual representación a todos los estados y una que basa la representación en la población. (p. 142)

Great Depression
[Gran Depresión] s. período de 1929 a 1940 en el que la economía estadounidense quebró y millones quedaron sin empleo. (p. 675)

Great Migration
[Gran Migración] s. movimiento de cientos de miles de afroamericanos sureños a ciudades del Norte a principios del siglo 20. (p. 598)

Great Plains
[Grandes Praderas] s. vasta pradera que se extiende a través de Norteamérica, de Texas a Canadá en dirección norte y hacia el este de las Montañas Rocosas. (p. 408)

Great Society
[Gran Sociedad] s. ambicioso programa legislativo del presidente Lyndon B. Johnson para reducir la pobreza y la injusticia racial, y mejorar el nivel de vida. (p. 895)

H

habeas corpus
s. orden judicial que manda comparecer a las autoridades ante un juez u otro funcionario de un tribunal para explicar que un preso está detenido legalmente. (p. 349)

Haight-Ashbury
s. distrito de San Francisco, “capital” de la contracultura hippie durante los años 60. (p. 988)

Harlem Renaissance
[Renacimiento de Harlem] s. período de sobresaliente creatividad afroamericana durante los años 20 y 30, en la zona de Harlem en New York City. (p. 660)

hawk
[halcón] s. persona que respaldaba la Guerra de Vietnam y creía que Estados Unidos debía incrementar su fuerza militar para ganarla. (p. 952)

Hawley–Smoot Tariff Act
[Ley de Aranceles Hawley-Smoot] s. ley de 1930 que estableció los más altos aranceles proteccionistas en la historia estadounidense, afectando negativamente el comercio internacional y empeorando le depresión mundial y doméstica. (p. 677)

H-bomb
[bomba de hidrógeno] s. bomba de hidrógeno, o termonuclear, mucho más poderosa que la bomba atómica. (p. 829)

headright system
[sistema de reparto de tierras por cabeza] s. sistema empleado en Virginia que otorgaba cincuenta acres de tierra a cada colono y otro tanto por cada acompañante. (p. 45) R77

hierarchy
[jerarquía] s. orden social determinado por rango o clase. (p. 20)

Ho Chi Minh Trail
[Sendero de Ho Chi Minh] s. red de caminos por la que Vietnam del Norte abastecía al Vietcong en Vietnam del Sur. (p. 938)

Hohokam
s. grupo amerindio que vivió en los valles de los ríos Salt y Gila (hoy Arizona) entre los años 300 a.C. y 1400 d.C., aproximadamente. (p. 7)

Hollywood Ten
[los Diez de Hollywood] s. diez testigos de la industria cinematográfica que se negaron a cooperar con la investigación de influencia comunista en Hollywood. (p. 823)

Holocaust
[Holocausto] s. asesinato sistemático o genocidio de judíos y de otros grupos en Europa por los nazis antes y durante la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 748)

home rule
[gobierno local] s. poder de los estados de gobernar a sus ciudadanos sin intervención federal. (p. 399)

Homestead Act
[Ley de la Heredad] s. ley aprobada en 1862 que otorgaba 160 acres de tierra en el Oeste a cualquier ciudadano or ciudadano futuro que fuera cabeza de familia y que cultivara la tierra por cinco años; ley cuya aprobación llevó a un gran número de colonos estadounidenses a reclamar como propiedad privada tierra que había sido reservada por tratados y tradiciones para la vivienda de indígenas americanos; la misma ley, reforzada en 1889, dio incentivas para que los individuos ejercieran su derecho de propiedad privada y desarrollaran viviendas. (p. 421)

Hopewell
s. sociedad constructora de túmulos asentada en el valle del río Ohio entre los años 200 a.C. y 400 d.C., aproximadamente; se conoce por sus grandes tumbas cónicas. (p. 7)

horizontal integration
[integración horizontal] s. proceso mediante el cual compañías que fabrican productos similares se unen y reducen la competencia. (p. 448)

hot line
[línea de emergencia] s. línea directa de comunicación establecida en 1963 para que los líderes de Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética pudieran hablarse durante una crisis. (p. 894)

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)
[Comité de la Cámara de Representantes sobre Actividades Antiamericanas] s. comité del Congreso creado en 1938 que investigó la influencia comunista dentro y fuera del gobierno durante los años que siguieron la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 823)

human rights
[derechos humanos] s. derechos y libertades considerados básicos, como los que establece la Declaración de Independencia y la Carta de Derechos. (p. 1021)

I

Immigration Act of 1965
[Ley de Inmigración de 1965] s. ley que abrió las puertas a más inmigrantes. (p. 897)

impeach
[acusar] v. culpar oficialmente a un funcionario por su conducta inapropiada como tal. La Cámara de Representantes tiene el poder exclusivo de acusar a funcionarios federales. (p. 381)

impeachment
[acusación] s. proceso por el cual se acusa a un funcionario público de delitos. (p. 1008)

imperialism
[imperialismo] s. política de controlar países por medios económicos, políticos o militares. (p. 548)

impressment
[leva] s. práctica de reclutar hombres a la fuerza para prestar servicio militar. (p. 202)

Inca
s. pueblo amerindio creador de un imperio que abarcó casi 2,500 millas a lo largo de la costa occidental de Suramérica, a partir del año 1400 d.C., aproximadamente. (p. 6)

incandescent
[incandescente] adj. que emite luz visible como resultado de haber sido calentado (p. 438)

income tax
[impuesto sobre la renta] s. impuesto que retiene un porcentaje específico de ingresos. (p. 354)

indentured servant
[sirviente por contrato] s. inmigrante que, a cambio de un pasaje para las Américas, era contratado a trabajar por un periodo límite. (p. 45)

Indian Removal Act
[Ley de Traslado de los Indígenas] s. ley aprobada por el Congreso en 1830 que ordenaba el traslado obligatorio de todas las tribus indígenas del este del Mississippi a tierras del oeste. (p. 226)

Industrial Revolution
[Revolución Industrial] s. cambios en la organización social y económica como resultado del remplazo del trabajo manual por máquinas y el desarrollo de fábricas de producción a gran escala. (p. 212)

Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)
s. sindicato de trabajadores de mano de obra no calificada creado en 1905. (p. 452)

inflation
[inflación] s. fenómeno económico en el que hay un aumento constante en los precios por el incremento del dinero circulante; reduce el poder adquisitivo. (p. 116)

information superhighway
[supercarretera de información] s. red de comunicación por computadoras para unir a personas e instituciones por todo el mundo y suministrar a individuos servicios de bibliotecas, compras, cines y noticias. (p. 1083)

INF Treaty
[Tratado sobre Fuerzas Nucleares Intermedias] s. tratado entre Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética firmado en 1987, que eliminó algunas armas y permitió la inspección directa de emplazamientos de misiles. (p. 1055)

initiative
[iniciativa] s. reforma gubernamental que permite a los ciudadanos presentar proyectos de ley en el Congreso o en cuerpos legislativos estatales. (p. 518)

installment plan
[pago a plazos] s. práctica de comprar a crédito mediante pagos regulares durante determinado período de tiempo. (p. 632)

interchangeable parts
[piezas uniformes] s. piezas que se pueden usar de manera intercambiable y que se producen en masa. (p. 212)

Internet
s. red mundial, originalmente diseñada por el Departamento de Defensa, que une computadores y permite una comunicación casi instantánea de textos, ilustraciones y sonidos. (p. 1083)

internment
[confinamiento] s. restricción de movimiento, en especial durante condiciones de guerra. (p. 800)

Interstate Commerce Act
[Ley de Comercio Interestatal] s. ley de 1887 que restablecía el derecho del gobierno federal a supervisar los ferrocarriles; creó una Comisión de Comercio Interestatal de cinco miembros. (p. 455) R78

Intolerable Acts
[Leyes Intolerables] s. cuatro leyes aprobadas por el Parlamento en 1774 con el fin de castigar a Boston por el Motín del Té de Boston. (p. 99)

iron curtain
[cortina de hierro] s. frase usada por Winston Churchill en 1946 para describir una línea imaginaria que separaba los países comunistas que estaban en la parte soviética al este de Europa de los países en Europa occidental. (p. 811)

Iroquois
[iroqueses] s. grupo de pueblos amerindios que vivían en los bosques del Noreste. (p. 10)

Islam
[islamismo] s. religión fundada en Arabia por el profeta Mahoma en el año 622; a sus seguidores se les llama musulmanes. (p. 15)

isolationism
[aislacionismo] s. política que se opone a participar en conflictos políticos y económicos con otros países. (p. 618)

J

Japanese Americans Citizens League (JACL)
[Sociedad de Ciudadanos Americano-Japoneses] s. organización que presionó al gobierno a compensar a los estadounidenses de origen japonés por las propiedades que perdieron al ser internados durante la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 801)

jazz
s. estilo de música caracterizado por la improvisación. (p. 863)

Jim Crow laws
[leyes Jim Crow] s. leyes impuestas por los gobiernos estatales y municipales del Sur con el fin de separar a blancos y afroamericanos en instalaciones públicas y privadas. (p. 493)

joint-stock company
[sociedad de capitales] s. institución empresarial tipo corporación en la que inversionistas unen riquezas con un fin común; se usaron para financiar la exploración de las Américas. (p. 42)

journeyman
[oficial] s. artesano que trabaja al servicio de un maestro. (p. 260)

judicial branch
[rama judicial] s. rama gubernamental cuya función es interpretar las leyes y la Constitución (Suprema Corte). (p. 143)

judicial review
[revisión judicial] s. poder de la Suprema Corte de declarar inconstitucional una ley del Congreso. (p. 199)

Judiciary Act of 1789
[Ley Judicial de 1789] s. ley que estableció el sistema de tribunales federales y la Suprema Corte que permitió la apelación a cortes federales de ciertas decisiones tomadas por cortes estatales. (p. 183)

Judiciary Act of 1801
[Ley Judicial de 1801] s. ley aprobada con el fin de incrementar el número de jueces federalistas. (p. 199)

Jungle, The
[La jungla] s. novela publicada en 1906 por el periodista Upton Sinclair que denunciaba la insalubridad de la industria de carne en aquella época; llevó a reformas nacionales. (p. 523)

K

kamikaze
adj. que estrellaba deliberadamente un avión bombardero contra un blanco militar. (p. 787)

Kansas-Nebraska Act
[Ley Kansas y Nebraska] s. ley aprobada en 1854 que buscaba un acuerdo sobre la extensión de la esclavitud a los territorios de Kansas y Nebraska. (p. 315)

Kashaya Pomo
s. pueblo amerindio que floreció hace 500 años en lo que hoy es California; vivía en las tierras pantanosas de la costa. (p. 8)

Kent State University
[Universidad Estatal de Kent] s. universidad de Ohio donde guardias militares abrieron fuego contra estudiantes durante una protesta contra la Guerra de Vietnam el 4 de mayo de 1970, hiriendo a nueve de ellos y matando a cuatro. (p. 962)

Kerner Commission
[Comisión Kerner] s. grupo designado por el presidente Lyndon B. Johnson para estudiar las causas de la violencia urbana; recomendó eliminar la segregación de facto en la sociedad estadounidense. (p. 928)

King Philip’s War
[Guerra del Rey Felipe] s. conflicto, en los años 1675 y 1676, entre los colonos de Nueva Inglaterra y grupos amerindios aliados bajo la dirección del cacique Metacom de los wampanoagas. (p. 54)

kinship
[parentesco] s. lazos indisolubles entre los miembros de una misma familia o tribu. (p. 13)

Know-Nothing Party
s. nombre dado en la década de 1850 al Partido Americano, un grupo que quería reducir la influencia política de los inmigrantes. (p. 319)

Kongo
s. serie de pequeños reinos unidos bajo un líder a finales del siglo 15 en las selvas tropicales a lo largo del río Zaire (Congo) en África Central-Occidental. (p. 17)

Korean War
[Guerra de Corea] s. guerra de 1950 a 1953 entre Corea del Norte y Corea del Sur; China respaldó a Corea del Norte y las tropas de las Naciones Unidas, integradas en su mayoría por soldados estadounidenses, apoyaron a Corea del Sur. (p. 817)

Kristallnacht
s. “noche del cristal quebrado”, noviembre 9 de 1938, noche en que milicianos nazis atacaron viviendas, negocios y sinagogas judías en Alemania. (p. 749)

Ku Klux Klan
s. sociedad secreta de hombres blancos en los estados sureños después de la Guerra Civil que desató terror para restaurar la supremacía blanca. (p. 394)

Kwakiutl
s. pueblo amerindio que vivía en la región costera del Noroeste. (p. 9)

L

land grant
[concesión de tierras] s. lote grande de tierras dado por el gobierno a un agente para su reventa, por lo general con el fin de estimular el desarrollo. (p. 289)

Land Ordinance of 1785
[Ordenanza de Tierras de 1785] s. ley que estableció un plan para la agrimensura y venta de las tierras públicas al oeste de los montes Apalaches. (p. 135)

La Raza Unida
s. organización política latina establecida en 1969 por José Ángel Gutiérrez. (p. 976)

League of Nations
[Liga de las Naciones] s. organización internacional establecida en 1920 para promover la cooperación y la paz internacional. (p. 605)

legislative branch
[rama legislativa] s. rama gubernamental compuesta por representantes elegidos que promulgan leyes (Congreso). (p. 143) R79

Lend-Lease Act
[Ley de Préstamo y Alquiler] s. ley aprobada en 1941, que autorizó al gobierno a mandar armas y otros productos, sin pago inmediato, a las naciones que luchaban contra el Eje. (p. 758)

Limited Test Ban Treaty
[Tratado de Limitación de Pruebas Nucleares] s. tratado de 1963 en que Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética acordaron no realizar pruebas de armas nucleares en la atmósfera. (p. 884)

lineage
[linaje] s. línea de descendencia de una generación a otra—de abuelo, a hija, a nieto, por ejemplo—con un antepasado común. (p. 18)

long drive
[arreo de ganado] s. proceso mediante el cual los vaqueros llevaban por tierra ganado hacia el mercado. (p. 416)

longhorn
s. resistente raza de ganado vacuno de cuernos largos llevada por los españoles a México, muy apta para las condiciones de esa región. (p. 414)

Louisiana Purchase
[Compra de Louisiana] s. compra de terrenos a Francia por 15 millones de dólares en 1803 de las tierras desde el río Mississippi hasta las montañas Rocosas. (p. 201)

Loyalists
[realistas] s. colonos que apoyaban al gobierno británico durante la Revolución Norteamericana. (p. 106)

Lusitania
s. barco británico de pasajeros que se hundió cerca de costas irlandesas el 7 de mayo de 1915, tras ser atacado por un submarino alemán. (p. 584)

M

mandate
[mandato] s. conquista de una porción suficientemente grande del voto, que indica que un líder elegido tiene apoyo popular para sus programas. (p. 886)

Manhattan Project
[Proyecto Manhattan] s. programa estadounidense que se inició en 1942 con el fin de diseñar una bomba atómica para la II Guerra Mundial. La primera detonación atómica completa ocurrió en Alamogordo, New Mexico, el 16 de julio de 1945. (p. 773)

manifest destiny
[destino manifiesto] s. término usado en la década de 1840 para describir la creencia de que Estados Unidos estaba inexorablemente destinado a adquirir más territorio, especialmente mediante su expansión hacia el oeste. (p. 281)

Marbury v. Madison
s. caso de 1803 en que la Suprema Corte decidió que tenía el poder de abolir decretos legislativos declarándolos inconstitucionales; ese poder se conoce como revisión judicial. (p. 199)

market revolution
[revolución mercantil] s. gran cambio económico que llevó a comprar y vender productos en lugar de hacerlos en el hogar. (p. 275)

Marshall Plan
[Plan Marshall] s. plan formulado por el Secretario de Estado George Marshall en 1947, mediante el que se ofreció ayuda a países europeos con el fin de reparar los daños de la II Guerra Mundial. (p. 812)

martial law
[ley marcial] s. gobierno impuesto por fuerzas militares. (p. 99)

mass media
[medios informativos] s. medios de comunicación—tales como televisión, prensa y radio—que llegan a grandes audiencias. (p. 858)

mass production
[producción en masa] s. producción de artículos en grandes cantidades, con máquinas y división del trabajo. (p. 212)

mass transit
[transporte público] s. sistemas de transporte diseñados para llevar grandes números de personas por rutas fijas. (p. 470)

master
[maestro] s. experto artesano; por lo general era dueño de un negocio y empleaba a otros. (p. 260)

Maya
s. pueblo amerindio que desarrolló una rica cultura en Guatemala y la península de Yucatán entre los años 250 y 900 d.C. (p. 6)

McCarthyism
[macartismo] s. ataques, a menudo sin respaldo, del senador Joseph McCarthy y otros contra presuntos comunistas en los años 50. (p. 826)

McCulloch v. Maryland
[McCulloch vs. Maryland] s. caso realizado en 1819, en el cual la Corte Suprema de Justicia estableció que Maryland no tenía derecho a cobrarle impuestos al Banco de los Estados Unidos, y consecuentemente fortaleció el poder de control que tenía el gobierno federal sobre la economía. (p. 220)

Meat Inspection Act
[Ley de Inspección de la Carne] s. ley de 1906 que establecía estrictos requisitos sanitarios en las empacadoras de carne, así como un programa federal de inspección de carnes. (p. 526)

Medicaid
s. programa federal que se inició en 1965 para brindar atención médica a las personas que reciben ayuda pública. (p. 896)

Medicare
s. programa federal que se inició en 1965 para brindar seguros médicos y de hospitalización a bajo costo a los mayores de 65 años. (p. 896)

melting pot
[crisol de culturas] s. mezcla de personas de diferentes culturas y razas que se amalgaman y abandonan su idioma y cultura natal. (p. 464)

mercantilism
[mercantilismo] s. sistema económico en que un país aumenta su riqueza y poder al incrementar su posesión de oro y plata, y al exportar más productos de los que importa. (p. 66)

Merrimack
s. buque blindado que usó el Sur durante la Guerra Civil. (p. 343)

mestizo
adj. con mezcla de español e indígena. (p. 38)

middle passage
[travesía intermedia] s. tramo de África a las Antillas; parte del triángulo comercial de esclavos. (p. 76)

midnight judge
[juez de media noche] s. uno de los jueces designados por John Adams en las últimas horas de su gobierno. (p. 199)

militarism
[militarismo] s. política de mantener una sólida organización militar como preparación agresiva para la guerra y su empleo como herramienta diplomática. (p. 579)

minutemen
[civil armado] s. soldados civiles patriotas que lucharon justo antes y durante la Revolución, quienes prometían estar listos para luchar al primer llamado. (p. 100)

Mississippian
[misisipiense] s. última sociedad constructora de túmulos, que se extendió al este del río Mississippi del siglo 8 al 16. (p. 7) R80

Missouri Compromise
[Acuerdo de Missouri] s. serie de acuerdos aprobados por el Congreso en 1820–1821 para mantener un equilibrio seccional entre los estados esclavistas y los estados libres. (p. 222)

Monitor
s. buque blindado que usó el Norte durante la Guerra Civil. (p. 343)

Monroe Doctrine
[Doctrina Monroe] s. declaración del presidente Monroe en 1823 que establecía que Estados Unidos no permitiría la interferencia europea en los asuntos del Hemisferio Occidental. (p. 221)

Moral Majority
[Mayoría Moral] s. coalición política de organizaciones religiosas conservadoras en los años 70 y 80 que recaudó dinero para respaldar agendas y candidatos conservadores, y condenó actitudes y comportamientos liberales. (p. 1037)

Mormons
[mormones] s. miembros de una comunidad religiosa fundada por Joseph Smith, que terminó estableciéndose en Utah. (p. 284)

Morrill Acts
[Leyes Morrill] s. leyes aprobadas en 1862 y 1890 que otorgaban tierras federales a los estados para financiar universidades agrícolas. (p. 423)

muckraker
s. uno de los reporteros de revistas que desenmascaraban el lado corrupto de las empresas y de la vida pública a principios del siglo 20. (p. 514)

Munn v. Illinois
s. caso de la Suprema Corte en 1877; estableció el derecho del gobierno federal a regular la industria privada en beneficio del interés público. (p. 445)

My Lai
s. pueblo del norte de Vietnam del Sur, donde más de 200 civiles desarmados, incluso mujeres y niños, fueron masacrados por las tropas de EE.UU. en mayo de 1968. (p. 961)

N

NAACP
s. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (Asociación Nacional para el Avance de la Gente de Color), organización fundada en 1909 y dedicada a la igualdad racial. (p. 531)

NACW
s. National Association of Colored Women (Asociación Nacional de Mujeres de Color), organización de servicio social fundada en 1896. (p. 521)

NAFTA
s. North American Free Trade Agreement (Tratado de Libre Comercio, TLC), tratado de 1993 que redujo aranceles e incorporó a México en la zona de libre comercio ya vigente entre Estados Unidos y Canadá. (p. 1070)

napalm
s. sustancia incendiaria de gasolina que lanzaban los aviones estadounidenses en Vietnam, con el fin de incendiar la selva y revelar los escondites del Vietcong. (p. 945)

NASDAQ
s. sigla de National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System, una bolsa de valores de venta directa dominada por compañías tecnológicas. (p. 1077)

National Bank Act
[Ley del Banco Nacional] s. ley aprobada en 1863 para garantizarles a los inversionistas la seguridad de las actividades bancarias. Entre sus medidas establecía un sistema de bancos federales, nuevos requisitos para préstamos y un sistema de inspección de bancos. (p. 367)

National Energy Act
[Ley Nacional de Energía] s. ley promulgada durante la administración Carter para aliviar la crisis energética; aplicó impuestos a los autos que usan gasolina de manera ineficiente y suspendió el control de precios del petróleo y el gas natural estadounidenses. (p. 1019)

National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)
[Ley Nacional de Recuperación Industrial] s. ley aprobada en 1933 que establecía agencias para supervisar industrias y suministrar empleos. (p. 697)

nationalism
[nacionalismo] s. devoción a los intereses y la cultura de la nación propia. (p. 220, 579)

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
[Junta Nacional de Relaciones Laborales] s. agencia creada en 1935 con el fin de prevenir prácticas laborales injustas y mediar en disputas laborales. (p. 574)

National Organization for Women (NOW)
[Organización Nacional de la Mujer] s. organización fundada en 1966 con el fin de impulsar metas feministas, tales como mejores guarderías, mayores oportunidades educativas y el fin de la discriminación laboral. (p. 984)

National Road
[Carretera Nacional] s. carretera financiada por el gobierno cuya construcción se inició en 1811; iba desde Cumberland, Maryland, hasta Vandalia, Illinois. (p. 217)

National Trades’ Union
[Unión Nacional de Sindicatos] s. primera asociación nacional de sindicatos, creada en 1834. (p. 265)

National Youth Administration
[Administración Nacional de Recursos para la Juventud] s. programa que suministraba ayuda y empleos a jóvenes durante la Depresión. (p. 705)

Nation of Islam
[Nación del Islam] s. grupo religioso, popularmente conocido como musulmanes negros, fundado por Elijah Muhammad para promover el separatismo negro y la religión islámica. (p. 925)

nativism
[patriotería] s. favoritismo de los intereses de las personas nacidas en un lugar sobre los de las personas extranjeras. (p. 319, 618)

Navigation Acts
[Leyes de Navegación] s. serie de leyes aprobadas a partir de 1651 que imponían un control más rígido del comercio en las colonias inglesas. (p. 68)

NAWSA
s. National American Woman Suffrage Association (Asociación Nacional Americana del Sufragio Femenino), creada en 1890 para obtener derechos electorales para la mujer. (p. 522)

Nazism
[nazismo] s. movimiento político basado en un extremo nacionalismo, racismo y expansionismo militar; instituido en Alemania como sistema de gobierno por Adolfo Hitler en 1933. (p. 737)

neutrality
[neutralidad] s. política de una nación de no participar directa ni indirectamente en una guerra entre otras naciones. (p. 191)

Neutrality Acts
[Leyes de Neutralidad] s. serie de leyes aprobadas por el Congreso en 1935 y 1936 que prohibieron la venta y el alquiler de armas a naciones en guerra. (p. 741) R81

New Deal
s. medidas económicas y políticas adoptadas por el presidente Franklin Roosevelt en los años 30 para promover recuperación económica, ayuda a los necesitados y reforma financiera. (p. 695)

New Deal Coalition
[Coalición del New Deal] s. alianza temporal de distintos grupos, tales como blancos sureños, afroamericanos y sindicalistas, que apoyaban al Partido Demócrata en los años 30 y 40. (p. 713)

New Federalism
[Nuevo Federalismo] s. programa del presidente Richard Nixon para distribuir una porción del poder del gobierno federal a gobiernos estatales y locales. (p. 1001)

New Frontier
[Nueva Frontera] s. agenda legislativa del presidente John F. Kennedy; tenía medidas de atención médica para ancianos, renovación urbana y apoyo a la educación, que fueron rechazadas por el Congreso, así como medidas que sí se aprobaron de defensa nacional, ayuda internacional y programas espaciales. (p. 883)

New Left
[Nueva Izquierda] s. movimiento político juvenil de los años 60 con organizaciones como Students for a Democratic Society (Estudiantes por una Sociedad Democrática) y el Free Speech Movement (Movimiento de Libre Expresión). (p. 950)

New Right
[Nueva Derecha] s. alianza política de grupos conservadores de fines del siglo 20, con énfasis en asuntos culturales, sociales y morales. (p. 1037)

Niagara Movement
[Movimiento Niágara] s. fundado en 1905 por W. E. B. Du Bois para promover la enseñanza de humanidades entre los afroamericanos. (p. 491)

Nineteenth Amendment
[Enmienda 19] s. enmienda a la Constitución adoptada en 1920 que le otorga a la mujer el derecho de votar. (p. 541)

“no man’s land”
[tierra de nadie] s. en la I Guerra Mundial, extensión baldía de tierra entre trincheras de ejércitos enemigos. (p. 582)

nomadic
[nómade] adj. que no tiene hogar fijo, que se muda de un lugar a otro según las estaciones y la disponibilidad de comida y agua. (p. 5)

nonaggression pact
[pacto de no agresión] s. acuerdo entre dos naciones de no luchar entre sí. (p. 745)

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
[Organización del Tratado del Atlántico Norte] s. alianza militar defensiva formada en 1949 por diez países de Europa del oeste, Estados Unidos y Canadá. (p. 814)

Northwest Ordinance of 1787
[Ordenanza del Noroeste de 1787] s. procedimiento para la admisión de nuevos estados a la Unión. (p. 135)

nuclear family
[familia nuclear] s. unidad formada por padre, madre e hijos. (p. 21)

nullification
[anulación] s. rechazo de un estado a reconocer cualquier ley del Congreso que considere inconstitucional. (p. 196)

Nuremberg trials
[juicios de Nuremberg] s. juicios llevados a cabo en Nuremberg, Alemania, inmediatamente después de la II Guerra Mundial, a líderes nazis por sus crímenes de guerra. (p. 792)

O

Office of Price Administration (OPA)
[Oficina de Administración de Precios] s. agencia establecida por el Congreso durante la II Guerra Mundial con facultad para combatir la inflación al congelar los precios de la mayoría de los artículos. (p. 773)

Ohio gang
[pandilla de Ohio] s. amigos y partidarios políticos del presidente Warren G. Harding, a quienes éste nombró a su gabinete. (p. 626)

Olive Branch Petition
[Petición del Ramo de Olivo] s. documento enviado por el Segundo Congreso Continental al rey George III; proponía una reconciliación entre las colonias y Gran Bretaña. (p. 105)

Olmec
[olmeca] s. pueblo amerindio que creó una próspera civilización a lo largo de la costa del golfo de México, entre los años 1200 y 400 a.C. (p. 6)

OPEC
s. Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Organización de Países Exportadores de Petróleo, OPEP), alianza económica para ejercer influencia sobre los precios del petróleo. (p. 1005)

Open Door notes
[notas de Puertas Abiertas] s. notas que el Secretario de Estado John Hay envió a Gran Bretaña, Francia, Alemania, Italia, Japón y Rusia, instándolos a no interponerse entre el comercio de Estados Unidos y China. (p. 562)

Operation Desert Storm
[Operación Tormenta del Desierto] s. operación militar en la que fuerzas de las Naciones Unidas, encabezadas por Estados Unidos, liberaron a Kuwait y derrotaron al ejército iraquí. (p. 1061)

Oregon Trail
[Sendero de Oregon] s. camino que va de Independence, Missouri, a la ciudad de Oregon, Oregon. (p. 284)

P

Panama Canal
[canal de Panamá] s. canal artificial construido a través del istmo de Panamá para abrir paso entre los océanos Atlántico y Pacífico; se abrió en 1914. (p. 566)

panic of 1837
[pánico de 1837] s. serie de clausuras de bancos y colapso del sistema crediticio; causó muchas quiebras y desempleo. (p. 234)

panic of 1873
[pánico de 1873] s. serie de fracasos económicos que provocaron una depresión de cinco años en Estados Unidos. (p. 397)

parity
[paridad] s. regulación de precios de ciertos productos agrícolas, apoyada por el gobierno, con el fin de mantener estables los ingresos agrícolas. (p. 724)

Parliament
[Parlamento] s. cuerpo legislativo de Inglaterra. (p. 68)

Patriots
[patriotas] s. colonos que apoyaban la independencia norteamericana de Gran Bretaña. (p. 106)

patronage
[clientelismo] s. sistema de otorgar empleos a personas que ayudan a la elección de un candidato. (p. 476)

pay equity
[equidad salarial] s. sistema que basa el salario de un empleado en los requisitos del trabajo y no en escalas salariales tradicionales, que normalmente pagan menos a la mujer. (p. 1048) R82

Payne-Aldrich Tariff
[Arancel Payne-Aldrich] s. serie de reglamentos de impuestos, aprobados por el Congreso en 1909, que no logró reducir mucho los aranceles de productos manufacturados. (p. 535)

Peace Corps
[Cuerpo de Paz] s. programa fundado en 1965 bajo iniciativa del presidente Kennedy, que envía voluntarios a las naciones en desarrollo de Asia, África y Latinoamérica para ayudar en escuelas, clínicas y otros proyectos. (p. 886)

Pendleton Civil Service Act
[Ley Pendleton] s. ley de 1883 que autorizaba nombrar empleados del servicio civil por mérito. (p. 476)

Pentagon Papers
[Documentos del Pentágono] s. documento de 7,000 páginas que dejó filtrar a la prensa en 1971 el antiguo funcionario del Departamento de Defensa Daniel Ellsberg, donde se revela que el gobierno mintió sobre sus planes en la Guerra de Vietnam. (p. 963)

Pequot War
[Guerra de los Pequot] s. conflicto librado en 1637 entre la tribu pequot y colonos asentados en Connecticut, que se aliaron con la tribu narrangansett. (p. 53)

perestroika
s. palabra rusa para designar la reestructuración económica y burocrática de la Unión Soviética que ocurrió en los años 80. (p. 1055)

personal liberty laws
[leyes de libertad personal] s. estatutos aprobados en los estados del Norte que prohibían encarcelar a esclavos fugitivos y les permitían ser juzgados por un jurado. (p. 311)

planned obsolescence
[obsolencia planeada] s. diseño de artículos que se desgastan o pasan de moda muy pronto, para crear la necesidad de remplazarlos con frecuencia. (p. 854)

plantation
[plantación] s. finca grande en la que se cultiva una sola cosecha, como caña de azúcar o algodón, usando esclavos u otros trabajadores. (p. 16)

Platt Amendment
[Enmienda Platt] s. serie de medidas implantadas por Estados Unidos en 1901, las cuales debieron ser incluidas por Cuba en su nueva constitución para quedar libre de su deuda y por las que Estados Unidos obtenía el derecho a intervenir en el país y a comprar o alquilar el territorio cubano para establecer estaciones navales y de combustible. (p. 560)

Plessy v. Ferguson
s. caso de 1896 en que la Suprema Corte declaró legal la separación de razas en instalaciones públicas y estableció la doctrina de “separados aunque iguales”. (p. 493)

political machine
[maquinaria política] s. grupo organizado que controla un partido político en una ciudad y ofrece servicios a los votantes y negocios a cambio de apoyo político y financiero. (p. 474)

poll tax
[impuesto para votar] s. impuesto anual que los ciudadanos debían pagar en algunos estados sureños para poder votar. (p. 493)

popular sovereignty
[soberanía popular] s. sistema en el cual los ciudadanos votan para decidir sobre un tema. (p. 307)

Populism
[populismo] s. movimiento político de finales del siglo 19 que exigía la voz popular en el gobierno y que representaba los intereses de los granjeros y promovía una reforma del sistema monetario. (p. 427)

Powhatan
s. grupo de pueblos amerindios que vivía en el este de Virginia cuando se establecieron las primeras colonias inglesas. (p. 43)

price support
[apoyo de precios] s. apoyo de los precios de ciertos artículos al valor del mercado o por encima, algunas veces mediante la compra de excedentes por parte del gobierno. (p. 671)

Proclamation of 1763
[Proclama de 1763] s. decreto británico que prohibía que los colonos se instalaran al oeste de los montes Apalaches. (p. 88)

profiteering
[acaparamiento] s. retención de un producto para provocar su escasez y venderlo más caro. (p. 116)

progressive
[progresista] s. que favorece el avance hacia mejores condiciones o nuevas ideas. (p. 513)

progressive movement
[movimiento progresista] s. movimiento reformista de comienzos del siglo 20 cuyos objetivos eran mejorar el bienestar social, promover la moralidad, incrementar la justicia económica y devolver a la ciudadanía el control del gobierno. (p. 513)

prohibition
[prohibición] s. prohibición de bebidas alcohólicas. (p. 513)

Prohibition
[Ley Seca] s. período entre 1920 y 1933 durante el cual, por medio de la decimoctava enmienda, se prohibió la producción y la venta de alcohol en Estados Unidos. (p. 642)

propaganda
s. comunicación prejuiciada diseñada para influir los pensamientos y actos de la gente. (p. 596)

Proposition 187
[Propuesta 187] s. proyecto de ley aprobado en California en 1994, el cual canceló todos los beneficios educativos y de salud que no fueran emergencias a los inmigrantes ilegales. (p. 1092)

proprietor
[propietario] s. dueño y gobernante de una colonia. (p. 56)

protective tariff
[arancel proteccionista] s. impuesto aplicado a productos importados para proteger las empresas nacionales de la competencia extranjera. (p. 186)

protectorate
[protectorado] s. nación cuyo gobierno y asuntos son controlados por una potencia más fuerte. (p. 560)

Pueblo
s. amerindios descendientes de los anasazi; viven en los desiertos del Suroeste. (p. 9)

Pure Food and Drug Act
[Ley de Pureza de Alimentos y Drogas] s. ley de 1906 que paró la venta de alimentos y drogas contaminadas y demandó etiquetas fidedignas. (p. 528)

Puritans
[puritanos] s. miembros de la Iglesia Anglicana que deseaban eliminar las tradiciones católicas y simplificar los servicios religiosos. (p. 49)

Q

Quakers
[cuáqueros] s. miembros de una secta religiosa considerada radical en el siglo 17, también conocida como Sociedad de Amigos. (p. 56) R83

quota system
[sistema de cuotas] s. sistema que limita el número de inmigrantes de varios países que pueden ser admitidos a Estados Unidos cada año. (p. 621)

R

Radical Republican
[republicano radical] s. uno de los republicanos del Congreso después de la Guerra Civil que querían destruir el poder político de los antiguos dueños de esclavos y darles a los afroamericanos total ciudadanía y derecho a votar. (p. 377)

ratification
[ratificación] s. aprobación oficial de la Constitución, o de una enmienda, por parte de los estados. (p. 146)

rationing
[racionamiento] s. medida tomada durante tiempos de guerra para limitar la cantidad de ciertos alimentos y otros productos que cada persona puede comprar. (p. 774)

Reaganomics
[reaganomía] s. nombre dado a la política económica del presidente Reagan, que abogaba por recortes presupuestarios y por una gran reducción en los impuestos con el fin de incrementar la inversión privada y por consiguiente expandir el suministro de productos y servicios. (p. 1040)

realpolitik
s. enfoque de política exterior, identificado con Henry Kissinger y Richard Nixon, que propone hacer lo que resulte realista y práctico en lugar de seguir una política al pie de la letra. (p. 1005)

reapportionment
[nueva repartición] s. redistribución de distritos electorales cuando cambia el número de personas en un distrito. (p. 897)

recall
[destitución] s. reforma gubernamental que permite a los votantes deponer a funcionarios públicos elegidos. (p. 518)

Reconstruction
[Reconstrucción] s. período de reconstrucción después de la Guerra Civil y readmisión a la Unión de los estados de la Confederación que habían sido derrotados; de 1865 a 1877. (p. 376)

Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)
[Corporación Financiera de la Reconstrucción] s. organización establecida en 1932 para dar financiación de emergencia a bancos, aseguradoras de vida, compañías ferroviarias y otras empresas grandes. (p. 687)

Red Cross
[Cruz Roja] s. organización internacional que provee ayuda a la gente en tiempos de guerra o de desastres naturales. En 1881, Clara Barton fundó la sede estadounidense. (p. 370)

redemption
[redención] s. término usado por los demócratas sureños para referirse a su recuperación del poder en el Sur en la década de 1870. (p. 399)

referendum
[referendo] s. procedimiento que permite someter al voto popular propuestas legislativas. (p. 518)

Reformation
[Reforma] s. movimiento religioso en la Europa de comienzos del siglo 16, encaminado a reformar la Iglesia Católica Romana; condujo a la formación del protestantismo. (p. 22)

Renaissance
[Renacimiento] s. período de la historia europea, que se extendió aproximadamente desde 1400 a 1600, durante el cual un renovado interés en la cultura clásica originó cambios trascendentales en las artes, el aprendizaje y la visión del mundo. (p. 20)

reparations
[reparación] s. compensación que paga una nación derrotada en una guerra por las pérdidas económicas del vencedor o por crímenes cometidos contra individuos. (p. 606)

republic
[república] s. gobierno en el que los ciudadanos mandan por medio de sus representantes elegidos. (p. 133)

republicanism
[republicanismo] s. creencia de que los gobiernos deben basarse en el consentimiento del pueblo. (p. 133)

Republican Party
[Partido Republicano] s. partido actual, formado en 1854 por oponentes de la esclavitud en los territorios. (p. 320)

Republic of California
[República de California] s. nación proclamada por los colonos estadounidenses en California, al declarar éstos su independencia de México en 1846. (p. 295)

Republic of Texas
[república de Texas] s. nación fundada en 1836, cuando los colonos estadounidenses de la provincia mexicana de Tejas lucharon y declararon su independencia. En esa época se la conocía también como la “República de la Estrella Solitaria”. (p. 292)

revenue sharing
[distribución de rentas] s. plan puesto en práctica en 1972 que faculta a los gobiernos estatales y locales a invertir el dinero federal a su conveniencia. (p. 1001)

reverse discrimination
[discriminación a la inversa] s. tratamiento injusto de los miembros de un grupo mayoritario, típicamente hombres blancos, como resultado de los esfuerzos por remediar la discriminación contra otros grupos. (p. 1037)

revival
[renovación religiosa] s. emotivas reuniones religiosas para revivir la fe, con apasionados sermones. (p. 241)

rock ’n’ roll
s. forma de música popular estadounidense que evolucionó a finales de los 40 y durante los 50, a partir del rhythm and blues, el country, el jazz, el gospel y el pop; forma musical estadounidense caracterizada por ritmos fuertes y melodías simples, la cual se ha expandido por todo el mundo y ha tenido impactos significantes en el baile social, la moda de la vestimenta y las expresiones de protesta. (p. 861)

Roosevelt Corollary
[Corolario de Roosevelt] s. declaración de 1904 del presidente Theodore Roosevelt en que advertía que Estados Unidos intervendría militarmente en los asuntos de cualquier nación del Hemisferio Occidental para proteger sus intereses económicos si fuera necesario. (p. 568)

Rough Riders
s. regimiento de caballería voluntario comandado por Leonard Wood y Theodore Roosevelt en la Guerra EspañolaNorteamericana-Cubana. (p. 556)

royal colony
[colonia real] s. colonia sujeta al control directo de la corona británica. (p. 47)

rural free delivery (RFD)
[correo rural gratuito] s. entrega gubernamental gratis de correo y paquetes a zonas rurales; se inició en 1896. (p. 503)

S

SALT I Treaty
[Tratado Salt I] s. acuerdo de cinco años entre Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética que surgió de las Conversaciones sobre Limitación de Armas Estratégicas de 1972; limitó el número de misiles balísticos intercontinentales y de misiles de submarinos. (p. 1007) R84

salutary neglect
[indiferencia saludable] s. aplicación poco estricta de las leyes comerciales por parte del gobierno británico a cambio de lealtad comercial de las colonias. (p. 70)

Sandinista
adj. relativo a las fuerzas izquierdistas rebeldes que derrocaron al gobierno nicaragüense en 1979; el presidente Reagan, quien respaldaba a la contra anticomunista, se les opuso. (p. 1057)

Santa Fe Trail
[Sendero de Santa Fe] s. camino que va de Independence, Missouri, a Santa Fe, New Mexico. (p. 282)

satellite nation
[nación satélite] s. país dominado política y económicamente por otro. (p. 811)

Saturday Night Massacre
[Masacre de Sábado en la Noche] s. nombre dado a la renuncia del procurador general y al despido de su comisionado el 20 de octubre de 1973, después de haberse negado a acatar la orden del presidente Nixon de despedir al fiscal especial en el caso Watergate. (p. 1011)

savanna
[sabana] s. pastizal plano y seco con árboles y arbustos espaciados; común en África central y otras regiones tropicales y subtropicales. (p. 17)

scalawag
s. término despectivo para referirse a los sureños blancos que se unieron al Partido Republicano y apoyaron la Reconstrucción después de la Guerra Civil. (p. 385)

scientific management
[administración científica] s. aplicación de principios científicos para simplificar y facilitar las tareas laborales. (p. 514)

Scopes trial
[juicio de Scopes] s. sensacional juicio de 1925 en el que el maestro de biología John T. Scopes fue juzgado por desafiar una ley de Tennessee que prohibía la enseñanza de la evolución. (p. 644)

search-and-destroy mission
[misión de búsqueda y destrucción] s. ataque militar estadounidense a aldeas de Vietnam del Sur con el fin de erradicar al Vietcong, que solía resultar en la destrucción de la aldea y el desplazamiento de sus habitantes. (p. 945)

secession
[secesión] s. retiro formal de un estado de la Unión federal. (p. 307)

Second Continental Congress
[Segundo Congreso Continental] s. nueva convocatoria del Congreso Continental que se inició en 1775 y redactó la Declaración de Independencia. (p. 103)

Second Great Awakening
[Segundo Gran Despertar] s. movimiento religioso del siglo 19 que ponía énfasis en la responsabilidad individual para lograr la salvación y la superación personal y social. (p. 240)

sectionalism
[regionalismo] s. preocupación por los intereses de una región por encima de los de la nación como un todo. (p. 194)

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
[Comisión de Valores y Cambios] s. agencia creada en 1934 para controlar el mercado bursátil y hacer cumplir las leyes que rigen la venta de acciones y bonos. (p. 723)

segregation
[segregación] s. separación de la gente según su raza. (p. 493)

Selective Service Act
[Ley de Servicio Selectivo] s. ley aprobada por el Congreso en mayo de 1917 que ordena que todos los hombres se inscriban para el servicio militar obligatorio. (p. 588)

Seneca Falls Convention
[convención de Seneca Falls] s. convención de derechos femeninos celebrada en 1848 en Seneca Falls, New York. (p. 257)

Separatist
[separatista] s. miembro de la Iglesia Anglicana que rechazó su reforma y formó una congregación independiente. (p. 50)

service sector
[sector de servicios] s. renglón de la economía que ofrece servicios en vez de productos. (p. 1076)

settlement house
[casa de beneficencia] s. centro comunitario en un barrio pobre que ayudaba a los residentes, particularmente a los inmigrantes. (p. 472)

Seventeenth Amendment
[Enmienda 17] s. enmienda a la Constitución adoptada en 1913; dispone que los senadores federales sean elegidos por los votantes y no por cuerpos legislativos estatales. (p. 518)

shantytown
[tugurio] s. vecindario en donde la gente vivía en chozas temporales. (p. 679)

sharecropping
[aparcería] s. sistema en el cual se da a los agricultores tierra, semillas, herramientas y alimentos para vivir, así como una parte de la cosecha, por cultivar la tierra. (p. 391)

Shays’s Rebellion
[Rebelión de Shays] s. sublevación de granjeros endeudados de Massachusetts en 1787, en protesta por los impuestos estatales. (p. 140)

Sherman Antitrust Act
[Ley Antitrust Sherman] s. ley contra los monopolios de 1890 que declaró ilegal la formación de consorcios que obstruyeran el libre comercio. (p. 450)

silent majority
[mayoría silenciosa] s. nombre dado por el presidente Richard Nixon a los estadounidenses moderados que apoyaban silenciosamente su involucramiento en la Guerra de Vietnam. (p. 962)

sit-in
s. forma de protesta—iniciada por el Congreso de Igualdad Racial en los años 40 y empleada con frecuencia en los años 60—en la que afroamericanos ingresaban a un lugar segregado, tal como el mostrador de un restaurante, y se negaban a salir hasta que se les sirviera. (p. 912)

slave
[esclavo] s. persona que se convierte en propiedad de otra. (p. 75)

Social Darwinism
[darvinismo social] s. conjunto de creencias políticas y económicas basadas en la teoría del biólogo Charles Darwin sobre la selección natural o supervivencia del más apto; favorecía una competencia libre, no regulada, y creía que los individuos o grupos triunfaban porque eran genéticamente superiores. (p. 448)

Social Gospel movement
[movimiento del Evangelio Social] s. movimiento de reforma del siglo 19 basado en la noción de que los cristianos tenían la responsabilidad social de mejorar las condiciones laborales y aliviar la pobreza urbana. (p. 472)

Social Security Act
[Ley de Seguro Social] s. ley aprobada en 1935 para ayudar a los jubilados, desempleados, incapacitados y familias con niños dependientes. (p. 707)

soddy
[choza de tepe] s. casa provisional hecha de césped, muy común en las llanuras, donde la madera era escasa. (p. 422)

Songhai
s. imperio que, en la cúspide de su poderío durante el siglo 16, controlaba gran parte de África occidental. (p. 16) R85

soup kitchen
[comedor de beneficencia] s. lugar donde se sirven alimentos gratis o a bajo costo a los necesitados, muy común durante la Depresión. (p. 679)

Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
[Conferencia de Líderes Cristianos del Sur] s. organización formada en 1957 por el doctor Martin Luther King, Jr., y otros líderes para promover los derechos civiles sin violencia. (p. 912)

Southern strategy
[estrategia sureña] s. estrategia del presidente Nixon de apelar a los demócratas conservadores sureños que estaban descontentos con la integración y con una Suprema Corte liberal. (p. 1003)

speakeasy
s. lugar donde se vendían bebidas alcohólicas ilegalmente, como ocurrió durante la Prohibición. (p. 642)

specialization
[especialización] s. producción de un número limitado de productos agrícolas para venta nacional o internacional. (p. 275)

speculation
[especulación] s. transacciones de alto riesgo con el fin de obtener ganancias rápidas o grandes. (p. 673)

spoils system
[sistema de prebendas] s. práctica de los candidatos ganadores de dar empleos u otras recompensas a sus simpatizantes. (p. 226)

Square Deal
s. programa de reformas progresistas del presidente Theodore Roosevelt para proteger a la gente común y corriente de las grandes empresas. (p. 525)

stagflation
[estanflación] s. situación económica en la que hay niveles altos de inflación y desempleo simultáneamente. (p. 1004)

Stamp Act
[Ley del Timbre] s. primer impuesto directo aplicado en 1765 por Gran Bretaña a una variedad de artículos y servicios, tales como documentos legales y periódicos. (p. 96)

Stono Rebellion
[Rebelión de Stono] s. rebelión de esclavos en la colonia de South Carolina en 1739; en consecuencia se hicieron más estrictas las leyes pertinentes a los esclavos. (p. 78)

Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)
[Iniciativa para la Defensa Estratégica] s. sistema de defensa propuesto en los años 80, popularmente conocido como la Guerra de las Galaxias, cuyo fin era proteger a Estados Unidos de ataques de misiles. (p. 1041)

strike
[huelga] s. interrupción del trabajo para presionar a un patrono a responder a ciertas demandas. (p. 262)

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
[Comité Coordinador de Estudiantes no Violentos] s. organización fundada en 1961, conocida como SNCC, para coordinar sit-ins y otras protestas, y para darles a los jóvenes negros mayor participación en el movimiento de derechos civiles. (p. 912)

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
[Estudiantes por una Sociedad Democrática] s. grupo activista de los años 60, conocido como SDS, que urgía una mayor libertad y responsabilidad individual. (p. 950)

suburb
[suburbio] s. pueblo o comunidad residencial cerca de una ciudad. (p. 841)

suffrage
[sufragio] s. derecho a votar. (p. 521)

Sugar Act
[Ley del Azúcar] s. ley británica de 1764 que aplicó un impuesto comercial a la melaza, el azúcar y otras importaciones para reducir el contrabando en las colonias. (p. 89)

supply-side economics
[economía de oferta] s. teoría económica, practicada por el presidente Ronald Reagan, que sostiene que recortar los impuestos de los ricos beneficia a todos pues aumenta empleos, ahorros e inversiones. (p. 1041)

T

Taino
[taíno] s. pueblo amerindio que Colón y su tripulación vieron al arribar a la isla hoy conocida como San Salvador, el 12 de octubre de 1492. (p. 27)

Tariff of Abominations
[Arancel Abominable] s. nombre que le dio Henry Clay a un aumento de aranceles estipulado en 1828, debido al cual los sureños creían que el norte se estaba enriqueciendo a sus expensas. (p. 230)

Tariff of 1816
[Arancel de 1816] s. arancel proteccionista para proteger las jóvenes industrias estadounidenses. (p. 218)

Teapot Dome scandal
[escándalo de Teapot Dome] s. escándalo generado cuando Albert Fall, Secretario del Interior del presidente Warren G. Harding, concedió en secreto valiosas reservas de petróleo en Wyoming y California a compañías privadas a cambio de dinero y tierras. (p. 627)

Telecommunications Act of 1996
[Ley de Telecomunicaciones] s. ley de 1996 que retiró las barreras que impedían que un tipo de compañía de comunicaciones ingresara a otro tipo de negocio en el mismo campo. (p. 1084)

telecommute
v. trabajar desde la casa para una compañía ubicada en otra parte, mediante la nueva tecnología de comunicaciones, como computadoras, Internet y máquinas de fax. (p. 1084)

telegraph
[telégrafo] s. aparato que convierte un mensaje codificado en impulsos eléctricos que viajan por un hilo metálico. (p. 276)

temperance movement
[movimiento de templanza] s. campaña para prohibir el consumo y la venta de alcohol. (p. 255)

tenant farming
[agricultura de arrendatarios] s. sistema en el que los agricultores, llamados arrendatarios, ponen sus propias herramientas y animales, y pagan dinero por el arriendo de tierra para cultivar. (p. 391)

tenement
[casa de pisos] s. vivienda urbana de varias familias, usualmente sobrepoblada y poco sanitaria. (p. 470)

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
[Autoridad del Valle de Tennessee] s. corporación federal creada en 1933 para construir presas y centrales eléctricas en la región del valle de Tennessee con el objeto de generar electricidad así como prevenir inundaciones. (p. 725)

termination policy
[política de terminación] s. programa del gobierno federal en 1953 de cesar su responsabilidad hacia las naciones amerindias y eliminar el apoyo económico federal, suspender el sistema de reservaciones y redistribuir las tierras tribales. (p. 869)

Tet offensive
[ofensiva de Tet] s. sorpresivo ataque masivo del Vietcong a pueblos y ciudades de Vietnam del Sur a comienzos de 1968; la batalla, de un mes de duración, convenció a muchos estadounidenses de que no era posible ganar la guerra. (p. 955)

Texas Revolution
[Revolución de Texas] s. rebelión de 1836 con la que Texas se independizó de México. (p. 291) R86

Thirteenth Amendment
[Enmienda 13] s. enmienda a la Constitución, ratificada en 1865, que ha abolido la esclavitud y la servidumbre involuntaria. (p. 368)

Three-Fifths Compromise
[Acuerdo de los Tres Quintos] s. acuerdo constitucional de considerar como población las tres quintas partes de los esclavos de un estado para efectos de representación y cobro de impuestos. (p. 142)

Tiananmen Square
[plaza Tianamen] s. lugar de protestas estudiantiles en 1989 en Beijing, China, por la falta de libertades democráticas, donde el gobierno atacó a los estudiantes. (p. 1056)

Tonkin Gulf Resolution
[Resolución del Golfo de Tonkin] s. resolución aprobada por el Congreso en 1964 que le otorgaba al presidente Johnson amplios poderes para la Guerra de Vietnam. (p. 941)

totalitarian
[totalitario] adj. característico de un sistema político en que el gobierno ejerce completo control sobre la vida de los ciudadanos. (p. 735)

Townshend Acts
[Leyes Townshend] s. serie de leyes promulgadas por el Parlamento en 1767 que establecían impuestos indirectos a los artículos de Gran Bretaña importados a las colonias. (p. 97)

Trail of Tears
[Sendero de las Lágrimas] s. marcha obligada del pueblo cherokee desde Georgia hasta el Territorio Indio entre 1838 y 1840, durante la cual murieron miles de ellos. (p. 229)

transcendentalism
[trascendentalismo] s. movimiento filosófico y literario que proponía llevar una vida sencilla y celebrar la verdad implícita de la naturaleza, la emoción personal y la imaginación. (p. 242)

transcontinental railroad
[ferrocarril transcontinental] s. línea férrea finalizada en 1869 que unía la costa Atlántica y la costa Pacífica. (p. 443)

Treaty of Fort Laramie
[Tratado del Fuerte Laramie] s. tratado que requería que los sioux vivieran en una reservación a lo largo del río Missouri. (p. 282, 410)

Treaty of Ghent
[Tratado de Gante] s. tratado firmado en 1814 que puso fin a la Guerra de 1812. (p. 205)

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
[Tratado de Guadalupe Hidalgo] s. tratado de 1848 que puso fin a la guerra entre Estados Unidos y México, mediante el cual Estados Unidos obtuvo enormes tierras en el Oeste y el Suroeste. (p. 297)

Treaty of Paris (1783)
[Tratado de París] s. tratado que puso fin a la Guerra Revolucionaria Norteamericana y estableció las fronteras de la nueva nación. (p. 122)

Treaty of Paris (1898)
[Tratado de París] s. tratado el cual puso fin a la guerra entre España y Estados Unidos. Por medio de este tratado España liberó a Cuba, cedió las islas de Guam y Puerto Rico a Estados Unidos y vendió las Filipinas a este país por 20 millones de dólares. (p. 556)

Treaty of Tordesillas
[Tratado de Tordesillas] s. tratado de 1494 que dividió las Américas entre España y Portugal mediante una línea vertical imaginaria en el Atlántico; cada país tenía poder sobre un lado de la línea. (p. 30)

Treaty of Versailles
[Tratado de Versalles] s. tratado de paz firmado en 1919 al finalizar la I Guerra Mundial, el cual establecía nuevas naciones, fronteras y reparaciones de guerra. (p. 606)

trench warfare
[guerra de trincheras] s. guerra en que los combatientes atacan desde un sistema de zanjas fortificadas y no en un campo abierto de batalla. (p. 582)

triangular trade
[triángulo comercial de esclavos] s. sistema transatlántico de comercio en el cual la mercancía, incluidos los esclavos, se intercambiaba entre África, Inglaterra, Europa, las Indias Occidentales y las colonias de Norteamérica. (p. 76)

Truman Doctrine
[Doctrina Truman] s. declaración del presidente Truman en 1947, que establecía que Estados Unidos debía dar apoyo económico y militar para liberar a naciones amenazadas por fuerzas internas o externas. (p. 812)

Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute
[Instituto Normal e Industrial Tuskegee] s. fundado en 1881 y dirigido por Booker T. Washington para otorgar diplomas de magisterio y enseñar destrezas comerciales y agrícolas a los afroamericanos. (p. 491)

two-party system
[bipartidismo] s. sistema político dominado por dos partidos. (p. 186)

U

Uncle Tom’s Cabin
[La cabaña del tío Tom] s. novela famosa U(1852) escrita por Harriet Beecher Stowe, que causó intenso furor al retratar la esclavitud como una gran perversión moral. (p. 312)

Underground Railroad
[Ferrocarril Subterráneo] s. red secreta de personas que ayudaban a los esclavos fugitivos a escapar a lo largo de diversas rutas hacia Canadá o hacia zonas seguras en los estados libres. (p. 311)

United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC)
[Comité Organizador de Trabajadores Agrícolas Unidos] s. sindicato establecido en 1966 por César Chávez para mejorar los salarios y las condiciones laborales de los trabajadores agrícolas. (p. 976)

United Nations (UN)
[Naciones Unidas] s. organización internacional promotora de la paz a la que pertenecen la mayoría de naciones, fundada en 1945 para fomentar la paz, la seguridad y el desarrollo económico del mundo. (p. 809)

urban flight
[huida urbana] s. migración de las ciudades a los suburbios aledaños. (p. 1088)

urbanization
[urbanización] s. movimiento de personas a una ciudad. (p. 468)

urban renewal
[renovación urbana] s. práctica que se inició con la Ley Nacional de Vivienda de 1949, de remplazar vecindarios urbanos decaídos por viviendas nuevas para gente de bajos recursos. (p. 867)

urban sprawl
[explosión urbana] s. expansión desordenada y desmedida de las ciudades a las áreas contiguas. (p. 630)

U.S.S. Maine
s. buque de guerra estadounidense que explotó y naufragó misteriosamente el 15 de febrero de 1898 en el puerto de La Habana, Cuba. (p. 554) R87

U-2 incident
[incidente del U-2] s. derribo en 1960 de un avión espía estadounidense U-2 en suelo soviético; complicó las conversaciones de paz entre Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética. (p. 833)

utopian community
[comunidad utópica] s. comunidad formada por un grupo experimental que vivía unido y buscaba crear un lugar perfecto. (p. 243)

V

V-E Day
[Día V-E] s. mayo 8 de 1945, día de la victoria europea, cuando el general Eisenhower aceptó la rendición incondicional de Alemania; puso fin a la II Guerra Mundial en Europa. (p. 783)

vertical integration
[integración vertical] s. proceso mediante el cual una compañía se adueña de sus proveedores y distribuidores así como de los sistemas de transporte, con lo que obtiene control total sobre la calidad y el costo de su producción. (p. 448)

Vietcong
s. rebeldes comunistas de Vietnam del Sur apoyados por Vietnam del Norte a partir de 1959. (p. 938)

Vietminh
[Vietmin] s. organización de comunistas vietnamitas y otros grupos nacionalistas que luchó contra los franceses por la independencia de Vietnam de 1946 a 1954. (p. 937)

Vietnamization
[vietnamización] s. plan del presidente Nixon de retiro gradual de las tropas estadounidenses de Vietnam y su remplazo por el ejército vietnamita. (p. 961)

Voting Rights Act of 1965
[Ley de Derechos Electorales de 1965] s. ley para facilitarles a los afroamericanos inscribirse para votar; eliminó las pruebas discriminatorias de lectura y escritura, y autorizó a los examinadores federales inscribir votantes rechazados a nivel local. (p. 922)

W

Wade-Davis Bill
[proyecto de ley Wade-Davis] s. proyecto de ley, aprobado en 1864 y vetado por el presidente Lincoln, que daba al Congreso control de la Reconstrucción. (p. 377)

Wagner Act
[Ley Wagner] s. ley—también conocida como Ley Nacional de Relaciones Laborales—promulgada en 1935 para proteger los derechos de los trabajadores después de que la Corte Suprema consideró que la Ley Nacional de Recuperación Industrial (NIRA) era inconstitucional. (p. 705)

war-guilt clause
[cláusula de culpabilidad] s. cláusula del Tratado de Versalles que obligaba a Alemania a reconocer que había sido totalmente responsable por la I Guerra Mundial. (p. 606)

war hawk
[halcón de guerra] s. uno de los miembros del Congreso que apoyó la guerra con Gran Bretaña a comienzos del siglo 19. (p. 203)

War Industries Board (WIB)
[Junta de Industrias Bélicas] s. junta establecida en 1917 que animaba a las compañías a usar técnicas de producción en masa para mejorar la eficiencia durante la I Guerra Mundial. (p. 595)

War Powers Act (WPA)
[Ley de Poderes de Guerra] s. ley aprobada en 1973 tras la Guerra de Vietnam que limitaba el derecho de un presidente a enviar tropas a combatir sin consultar con el Congreso. (p. 967)

War Production Board (WPB)
[Junta de Producción Bélica] s. agencia establecida durante la II Guerra Mundial para coordinar la producción de suministros militares por la industria nacional. (p. 774)

Warren Commission
[Comisión Warren] s. grupo encabezado por Earl Warren, presidente de la Suprema Corte, que realizó la investigación oficial del asesinato del presidente Kennedy y concluyó que Lee Harvey Oswald había actuado por su cuenta. (p. 889)

Warren Court
[la Corte Warren] s. la Suprema Corte de la que fue presidente Earl Warren, que se destacó por sus actividades en torno a los derechos civiles y la libre expresión. (p. 897)

Warsaw Pact
[Pacto de Varsovia] s. alianza militar formada en 1955 por la Unión Soviética y las naciones satélite de Europa del este. (p. 830)

Watergate
s. serie de escándalos en que el presidente Nixon trató de encubrir la participación de su comité de reelección en el allanamiento de la sede del Partido Demócrata en los apartamentos Watergate en 1972. (p. 1008)

Whig Party
[Partido Liberal] s. miembro de un partido político establecido en 1834 en oposición a Andrew Jackson. (p. 234)

Wilmot Proviso
[Cláusula Wilmot] s. enmienda a un proyecto de ley de fondos militares de 1846; proponía que ninguna porción del territorio adquirido en la guerra con México debía abrirse a la esclavitud. (p. 306)

Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC)
[Unidad Auxiliar de Mujeres (WAAC)] s. unidad del Ejército de EE.UU. creada durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial para permitir que las mujeres colaboraran en puestos que no fueran de combate. (p. 769)

Woodstock
s. festival gratuito de música que atrajo a más de 400,000 jóvenes a una granja del estado de New York en agosto de 1969. (p. 989)

Works Progress Administration (WPA)
[Administración para el Progreso de Obras] s. agencia gubernamental del New Deal que empleó a personal desocupado en construcción de escuelas y hospitales, reparación de carreteras, enseñanza, escritura y artes. (p. 704)

X

XYZ Affair
[Asunto XYZ] s. incidente diplomático de 1797 en el que funcionarios franceses trataron de sobornar a funcionarios estadounidenses para entrevistarse con un alto ministro francés. (p. 195)

Y

yellow journalism
[prensa amarillista] s. uso de métodos sensacionalistas en periódicos o revistas para atraer o influenciar lectores. (p. 553)

Z

Zimmermann note
[nota Zimmermann] s. mensaje enviado por el canciller alemán en 1917 al canciller mexicano en el que prometía a México los estados de Texas, New Mexico y Arizona si se aliaba a Alemania en contra de Estados Unidos en la I Guerra Mundial. (p. 585)

R88
Index

An i in italics preceding a page number refers to an illustration on the page. An m or a c in italics preceding a page number refers to a map or chart on the page.

A

AAA. See Agricultural Adjustment Act.

Abilene, Kansas, 415–416, 444

Ableman v. Booth, 332

abolitionists. See antislavery movement.

abortion rights, 985, 1046

Abrams v. United States, 602–603

ACLU. See American Civil Liberties Union.

Acoma people, 9

acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), 1046, 1086, R53

Adams, Abigail, 111, i 111

Adams, John, 79, i 79, 194–195, i 194, 224, i 224, R50

death of, 224

in election of 1796, 194

in election of 1800, 197

foreign policy under, 194–195

midnight judges and, 199

presidency of, 194–195

at Second Continental Congress, 103–104

XYZ Affair and, 195

Adams, John Quincy, 290, R50

election of 1824 and, 225

presidency of, 224–225

as secretary of state, 220

selection of, by House, 224–225

Adams, Samuel, 97, i 97, 98, 146

Adams-Onís Treaty (1819), 221, m 221, R53

Adarand Constructors v. Pena, 1024, 1025

Addams, Jane, 472, i 472, 543, 564, 600

Adena people, m 6, 7, R53

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The (Twain), 502

advertising, 503, 631–632, 854–855

political, i 329

AEF. See American Expeditionary Force.

affirmative action, 635, 1024–1025, 1049, 1050, 1111, R53

reverse discrimination and, 1037

Afghanistan, 1021, R40

elections in, 1073

Muslim terrorists and, 1073, 1102

U.S. military action in, 1073, 1102

AFL. See American Federation of Labor.

Africa, 25, 250, 549. See also North Africa; West Africa.

slave trade and, 16, 29, 75–77

Africana, 662

African Americans, 466, 530–531, 658–60, 679, 711–712, 1049. See also antislavery movement; civil rights; Civil War; exodusters; Reconstruction; segregation; slavery; slaves; slave trade; voting rights; names of specific individuals.

black codes and, 379

churches of, 241–242, 388

in cities, 469, 472, 494, 599–600, 641, 658–659, 660, 661, i 661, 924

in Civil War, 351–352

in Congress, 389, 928

as cowboys, 416

discrimination against, 149, 352, 492–494, 770, 771–772, 1109, 1117

education of, 256, i 379, 388, i 388, 489, 490–491, i 491, 907, c 907, 908–909, 928, c 928, 929, 1110

Emancipation Proclamation and, 348, 368

Farmers’ Alliances and, 426–427

female, 256, 258, 520, 521

Fifteenth Amendment and, 382

Fourteenth Amendment and, 379–380, 398

Freedmen’s Bureau and, 379

Harlem Renaissance and, 660, 661, i 661, 662

in labor force, 421, 520, 771–772

in labor movement, 451, 624, 771–772

migrations of, 410, 421, i 421, 599–600, 658–659, 797, m 797, 907, 1095

music of, 504, 505, 861–863, 992

in Philippine-American War, 561

in politics, 389

popular culture and, 861–862, i 862

population of, in U.S., c 216

race riots and, 494, 600, 659, 1047

Reconstruction and, 383, 386–392

in Revolutionary War, 117

in South, c 251

in Spanish-American War, 556, i 556

Supreme Court and, 398

as U.S. citizens, 332–333

in Vietnam War, 949

violence toward, 394

voting rights of, 133, 149, 174, 252, 386, i 386, 492–493, 521, 843, 921–922

in World War I, 588, 598–600

in World War II, 769, i 769, 770, 779, i 779, 908, 1095

African Methodist Episcopal Church, 242

Africans. See also Africa; slavery; slave trade; West Africa.

in American colonies, 29, 45, 56, 75–78

Afrika Korps, 778

Agee, James, 720

Agent Orange, 945, R53

Age of Innocence, The (Wharton), 657

Agnew, Spiro T., 1002, 1011, 1017

Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA), 697, 702, R53

agriculture. See also Columbian Exchange; cotton; farmers and farming.

education in, 423

in English colonies, 43, 45, 72, 73

farm worker movement and, 976

inventions for, 215, 216, i 216, 279, i 279, 423, c 423, 437, 469

in Midwest, 278

migrant workers and, 215, i 215, 890–891, i 890, i 891, m 891

of Native Americans, 5, 7, i 12, 53

New Deal and, 724

in the North, 215

plantations, 16, 28, 72–73, i 72, i 73, 215, 250, i 251, 390, R64

sharecropping and, 390

in South, 215, 278, 367, 390, 392

in Soviet Union, 735

tenant farming and, 390–391

water projects and, 462, 495, 530

in West Africa, 16, 19

Aguinaldo, Emilio, 555, 561

AIDS. See acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

AIM. See American Indian Movement.

airline industry. See industry, airline.

airlines, deregulation of, 1043

airplane(s)

airmail and, 486, i 486, 487

commercial use of, 630, i 630, 794, i 794

famous flights of, 655, m 655

first flight of, 485, 486, i 486

hijackings, 1069, 1100

security on, 1103

as terrorist weapons, 1100, 1101

in World War I, 587, 590–591, i 590, 794

in World War II, 745, 746–747

airports, security at, 1103, i 1103

Akan people, 17, 18

Alabama, 222, 330, 910–911, 922, 980

facts about, R48

Alamo, 291–292, i 291, R54

Alaska, 4, 9, 418, 979, c 979, 1028

early settlement of, 5

facts about, R48

Russian claims in, 221

U.S. purchase of, 550

Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, 979, 1028

Alaskan Pipeline, 1028, i 1028

Albany, New York, 115, 277

Albany Plan of Union, 97

Alexander, Harold, 778

Alexander VI (pope), 30

Alien and Sedition Acts, 194–195, 598, R54

Allen, Ethan, 115

Allen, Frederick Lewis, 675, 681
R89

Allen, Gracie, 717, i 718

Allen, Richard, 241–242

Alliance for Progress, 886–887, R54

Allies

in World War I, 579–580, 582, 583, 584, i 592, R54

in World War II, 760, R54

al-Qaeda, 1073, 1100–1101, 1102

Amendments to Constitution. See specific number.

American Anti-Slavery Society, 249

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), 644

American Expeditionary Force (AEF), 590, R54

American Federation of Labor (AFL), 451–452, 539, 623, 714, R54

American Gothic (Wood), 719, i 719

American Independent Party, 959

American Indian Movement (AIM), 977–978, R54

American Indians. See Native Americans.

Americanization movement, 469, R54

American Liberty League, 699

American Party, 319

American Protective Association, 464

American Railway Union (ARU), 452, 454

American Revolution. See Revolutionary War.

American Socialist Party, 515

American System, 216–217, R54

American Temperance Society, 255

America Online (AOL), 1077

Ameringer, Oscar, 684

Amnesty Act, 395

amusement parks, 498–499

Anaconda plan, 341, R54

analyzing causes, 19, 38, 40, 41, 47, 59, 74, 75, 78, 82, 89, 123, 215, 234, 235, 262, 275, 278, 295, 316, 339, 353, 379, 392, 414, 417, 421, 426, 428, 453, 462, 476, 477, 483, 502, 516, 520, 562, 579, 645, 657, 663, 681, 718, 736, 740, 741, 760, 776, 797, 799, 809, 810, 816, 818, 824, 825, 829, 842, 852, 854, 861, 909, 921, 922, 925, 946, 984, 1005, 1015, 1018, 1020, 1021, 1031, 1039, 1044, 1061, 1067, 1070, 1071, 1089, R7

analyzing distributions, 727, 1053, R25, R32

analyzing effects, 5, 7, 19, 28, 31, 54, 80, 92, 93, 114, 123, 218, 241, 252, 260, 276, 278, 279, 282, 289, 294, 300, 306, 309, 311, 317, 321, 325, 328, 330, 342, 348, 356, 359, 360, 362, 367, 380, 398, 401, 412, 421, 439, 443, 465, 471, 472, 477, 493, 521, 526, 543, 549, 557, 566, 580, 585, 591, 598, 600, 627, 629, 630, 643, 648, 654, 659, 675, 682, 683, 697, 714, 720, 725, 750, 757, 779, 782, 798, 801, 813, 831, 849, 850, 852, 855, 859, 863, 867, 880, 883, 887, 897, 899, 907, 947, 967, 976, 983, 1006, 1007, 1027, 1031, 1039, 1042, 1068, 1076, 1079, 1084, R7

analyzing events, 45, 48, 68, 229, 284, 317, 321, 365, 401, 541, 551, 555, 620, 673, 774, 817, 821, 827, 836, 908, 920, 929, 959, 1013, 1023, 1032, 1056, R13

analyzing issues, 25, 48, 51, 53, 71, 105, 121, 123, 134, 137, 142, 144, 146, 185, 187, 193, 194, 196, 201, 203, 228, 235, 245, 258, 265, 314, 317, 321, 365, 371, 392, 398, 400, 402, 410, 426, 429, 445, 451, 522, 531, 535, 559, 564, 586, 621, 624, 633, 645, 689, 705, 720, 749, 761, 804, 868, 869, 898, 909, 910, 917, 929, 931, 955, 957, 963, 1002, 1023, 1037, 1049, 1072, 1079, 1087, R14

analyzing motives, 37, 50, 99, 141, 149, 176, 183, 191, 203, 233, 285, 289, 295, 306, 320, 325, 358, 364, 365, 387, 394, 432, 446, 467, 469, 472, 474, 513, 543, 553, 569, 583, 611, 619, 738, 744, 746, 747, 755, 791, 801, 811, 814, 827, 884, 889, 893, 926, 938, 956, 977, 985, 1003, 1009, 1039, 1044, 1074, R6

analyzing patterns, 287, 441, 573, 622, c 622, 857, 891, R25, R32

analyzing political cartoons, 89, 108, 127, 167, 177, 195, 209, 233, 298, 329, 373, 385, 396, 426, 429, 446, 449, 475, 479, 518, 525, 557, 560, 568, 575, 597, 627, 632, 637, 645, 673, 687, 699, 725, 740, 757, 765, 814, 826, 827, 837, 884, 899, 971, 1001, 1012, 1042, 1083, R24

analyzing primary sources. See primary sources, analyzing.

analyzing relationships, 292, 441, m 555, m 562, 564, 632, c 723, 891, 902, 959, 1006, 1063, R28

analyzing visual sources. See visual sources, analyzing.

anarchists, 598, 619, 621, c R44, R54

Anasazi people, m 6, 7, 9, R54

Anaya, Toney, 1050

Anderson, Marian, 712, i 712, 878

Anderson, Robert, 338

Andersonville prison, 356, i 356

Andrews, Eliza Frances, 364

Andrews, John, 99

Andros, Sir Edmund, 69

Angel Island, 463, i 464, i 1092

Angelou, Maya, 796, 1066, i 1066

Anglican Church. See Church of England.

Anthony, Susan B., 521, 522, i 522, 541

anthrax, 1102

effects of, 1102

September 11 terrorist attack and, 1102

Antietam, Battle of, 344–345

Antifederalists, 145–148, R54

Anti-Imperialist League, 564

Anti-Saloon League, 514, 642

antislavery movement, 241–242, 305–306, 347

free blacks and, 249

John Brown and, 327

leaders of, 248–249

opposition to, 249, 252–253

political parties and, 319–320

women and, 254, 255–256

antiterrorism bill, 1072

antiterrorism coalition, 1073, 1102

Great Britain and, 1102, 1105

AOL. See America Online.

apartheid, 148, 907

Appalachian Mountains, 88, 201

Appeal to Christian Women of the South, An (Angelina Grimké), 255

Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World (Walker), 249

Appomattox Court House, Virginia, 365, i 365, 370, R54

Arapaho people, 282, 412

Arbella, 49, 50

archaeologists, 4

architecture, 57, i 57, 484, i 484, 542, i 542, 1089, i 1089

Greek Revival style of, 305, i 305

Arizona, 40, 297, 894, 1053

facts about, R48

as Mexican province, 284

Native Americans in, 7

Arkansas, 339, 377, 909, 915, 922, 1066, 1067

facts about, R48

Armistead, James, 107

armistice, 205, 593, R54

Armstrong, Louis, i 661, 662, i 662, 663

Armstrong, Neil, 1002

Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), 943, R54

Arnold, Benedict, 121

art, 21, i 21, 51, i 51, 98, i 98, 242, i 242, 328, i 328, 359, i 359, 416, i 416, 501, i 501, 570, i 570, 599, i 599, 620, i 620, 641, i 641, 656, 718–719, i 719, 851, i 851. See also specific works, artists, and movements.

Arthur, Chester A., 476, i 476, R51

Articles of Confederation, 135, c 137, R54

artificial intelligence, 1084–1085

ARU. See American Railway Union.

Asante (Ashanti) people, 19

Asbury, Herbert, 643

Ashcan School of American art, 501, R54

Asia, 4, 25, 26, 27

Asian Americans, 1050, 1090, 1092, 1095. See also Chinese immigrants; Japanese Americans; Japanese immigrants.

in World War II, 770

Askia Muhammad, 14, 15, 17

assembly line, 515, i 515

assimilation, 411, 412–413, 490, 868–869, 977, R54

assumptions and biases, analyzing, R15

Athens

as birthplace of democracy, 134

Atlanta, Georgia, 1049

in Civil War, 363–364

Atlantic, Battle of the, 776

Atlantic Charter (1941), 760, R54

Atlee, Clement, 810

atomic bomb, 773, 789–790, 791, 795, i 795, 828. See also nuclear weapons.
R90

attorney general, 183

Attucks, Crispus, 96, i 96, 98

Austin, Stephen F., 288, i 288, 289–291

Australian ballot, 518

Austria

German annexation of, 742–743

Austria-Hungary, 461, 579–580, 597

automobile, 437, 632

industry, 628–630, i 628, 671, 1020

in 1950s, 852, 853, i 853

pollution and, 1028, 1087

safety and, 897

urban sprawl and, 629–630, 849

Aviation and Transportation Security Act, 1103

Axis powers, 757, i 757, 760, R54

Aycock, Charles B., 516

Aztec people, 6, m 6, 36, 37, R54

B

Babbitt (Lewis), 656

Babcock, Orville E., 396

baby boom, 849–850, c 849, i 849, 1090, 1118, R54

Bache, Sarah Franklin, 117

Bacon, Nathaniel, 47–48

Bacon’s Rebellion, 47–48

Bahamas, 27

Baker, Ella, 912

Baker, Howard, 1011

Baker, James A., 1072

Baker, Josephine, 662

Baker, Newton, 594

Baker v. Carr, 898, 980–981

Bakke, Allan Paul, 1024, i 1024, 1111

Bakongo people, 17, 18

Baldwin, James, 866, i 866

Balkan Peninsula

in World War I, 579, 580

Ball, George, 943

Ballinger, Richard A., 535

Baltimore, Maryland, 474

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, 453

Bank of the United States, 185, R54. See also Second Bank of the United States.

Banks, Dennis, 978, i 978

banks and banking, 184–185, 216, 218, 232, 233–234, 392, 427, 631–632

Federal Reserve System and, 540, R42

Great Depression and, 675, c 676, 687

New Deal and, 696, 724

Banneker, Benjamin, 186

Baptists, 84

Barbados, 75

barbed wire, 417, 423, c 423, 437

Barkett, Rosemary, i 1121

Barnett, Ida Wells. See Wells, Ida B.

Barnett, Ross, 917

Barnum, P. T., 504

Barrett, Janie Porter, 472

Barton, Clara, 355, i 355, 370

Baruch, Bernard M., 595

baseball, 500, i 500, 654

Batista, Fulgencio, 879

Battle of … See distinctive part of battle’s name.

Baumfree, Isabella. See Truth, Sojourner.

Bay of Pigs, 880

Beach Boys, 992

Beatles, 989, R54

beat movement, 861, R54

Beaudoin, Ethel, 1075

Beaumont, Texas, 436

Beckwourth, Jim, 222, i 222

Beecher, Catharine, 256–257

Beecher, Lyman, 255

Begin, Menachem, 1022, i 1022

Belgium, 580, 581, 582, 583, 746, 780

Belknap, William W., 396

Bell, Alexander Graham, 276, 438

Bell, John, 329, i 329, c 330

Bell, Philip A., 378

Benin, m 15, 17, R54

Benny, Jack, 717

Benton, Thomas Hart, 719

Beringia, 4

Bering Strait, m 5

Berkeley, William, 47, 48

Berlin, Germany

airlift to, i 811, i 812, R54

division of, 813, 883–884, m 883

Berlin Wall, 883–884, i 883, 1055–1056, i 1056, R54

Bernstein, Carl, 1010, i 1010

Berry, Chuck, 862, i 862

Bessemer, Henry, 437–438

Bessemer process, 437–438, 447, R54

Bethel African Church, 241–242

Bethune, Mary McLeod, 711, i 711

bias, identifying, 456, 545, R15

bicameral legislature, 142

bicycles, 499, i 499

Biddle, Nicholas, 233–234

Big Four, 605, 606

Bilingual Education Act, 1050

Bill of Rights

in U.S. Constitution, 149, 166–167, 930, R55

bimetallism, 428, R55

bin Laden, Osama, 1073, 1102

as head of al-Qaeda, 1073, 1102

biological weapons. See weapons of mass destruction.

biotechnology, 1085–1086

Birmingham riots, 918, i 918, 931

Bishop, Joseph Bucklin, 565

Black Americans. See African Americans.

black codes, 379, 497, R55

Black Hawk, Chief, 281, i 281

Black Hawk War, 281

Black Hills, 412, 418

blacklist, 824, R55

Black Panthers, 926–927, R55

Black Power, 926, R55

Black Tuesday, 674, R55

Blackwell, Elizabeth, 256

Bland-Allison Act, 426

Blatch, Harriet Stanton, 594, i 594

Bleeding Kansas, 316, R55

blitzkrieg, 745, R55

blockade, 202, R55

Bloomer, Amelia, 257, i 257

Board of Trade (colonial), 70

Body Snatchers, The (Finney), 834

Boland Amendment, 1059

Bolsheviks, 619

bonanza farms, 424, i 424, R55

Bonaparte, Napoleon, 194, 196, 201

Bonus Army, 688–689, i 689, R55

Boone, Daniel, 201

Booth, John Wilkes, 370

bootleggers, 643, R55

Bork, Robert, 1011

Bosnia, 580, 1056, 1069–1070

Boston, Massachusetts, 470, 474, 484, 623, 715, 1003

colonial, 50, i 64–65, 80, 96, 97, 98–99, 114

Boston Massacre, 98, i 98, c 100, R55

Boston Port Act, 110

Boston Tea Party, 99, i 101, c 101, i 108, R55

Boulder Dam, 686, i 686, 687, R55

boundary settlements, m 221. See also Monroe Doctrine.

with France, 192

with Great Britain, 220–221, m 221, 285

with Mexico, m 296, 297

with Spain, 192, 220–221, m 221

after World War I, 605, 606–607, m 606

after World War II, 791–792

Bowie, Jim, 291

Boxer Protocol, 563

Boxer Rebellion, 563, i 563, R55

boxing, 500

boycott, 97, 906, 910–911, R38

Bozeman Trail, 410, m 408

braceros, 868, R55

Braddock, Edward, i 85, 86

Bradley, Omar, 780

Bradstreet, Anne, 49, i 49

Brady, Mathew, 369

Brady Act, 1109

Brandeis, Louis D., 517

brand names, 499

Brandywine Creek, 114

Brant, Joseph, 107, i 107

Brazil, 30

Breck, Samuel, 278

Breckinridge, John C., 321, 329, i 329, c 330

Breed’s Hill, 104

Brennan, William, 1042

Breyer, Stephen, 163

Brezhnev, Leonid, 1006, 1017, 1021

brinkmanship, 828–829, 882, R55

Britain, Battle of, 746–747, i 746

British East India Company, 99

Brook Farm, 283

Brooklyn Bridge, 437, 482, i 482, 483

Brooks, Preston S., 316–317, i 317

Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, 617, 772

Brown, John, i 302–303, 316, i 316, 327–328, i 328

Brown, Linda, 908, 914, i 914

Brown, William J., 249

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, i 169, 323, 497, 846, 897, 908–909, 914–915, 1003, 1110, R55
R91

Bryan, William Jennings, 428, i 428, 534, 564, 583, 644–645, i 645

Buchanan, James, 321, R51

presidency of, 324, 325, 330

Buckley, William F., Jr., 1037

Buddhism, 938

Budget, Bureau of the, 626

buffalo, i 413, 414

Native Americans and, 409, 413

whites’ hunting of, 413

Buford, John, 358–359

Bulge, Battle of the, 782, R54

Bullard, Florence, 591

Bull Moose Party, 536, R55

Bull Run

First Battle of, 341–342

Second Battle of, 344

Bunau-Varilla, Philippe, 566

Bunker Hill, Battle of, 104–105, i 104

Bunting v. Oregon, 517

Burger, Warren, 1004

Burgoyne, John, 115

Burnham, Daniel H., 483, 484–485

Burns, George, 717, i 718

Burns, Lucy, 538, 541

Burr, Aaron, 194, 198

BUS. See Second Bank of the United States.

Bush, George, H. W., 801, 1038, 1043, 1044, i 1044, 1050, 1061, 1067, R52

education and, 1047

end of Cold War and, 1055

Iran-Contra scandal and, 1059

Supreme Court and, 1042

Bush, George W., 144, 825, 1065, 1071–1074, i 1072, R52

antiterrorism bill and, 1072

economy and, 1073

education and, 1073, 1111

social security and, 1119

Supreme Court and, 1072

tax cuts and, 1072, 1073

terrorism and, 1072–1073, 1102–1103, 1104, 1105

welfare reform and, 1117

business. See also corporations; economy; entrepreneurs; free enterprise, industry; trade.

Andrew Carnegie and, 447–448

conglomerates, 848

consolidation of, 449–450

Cuba and, 560–561

downsizing and, 1076

franchises and, i 848, 849

Great Depression and, 675, c 676, 698

growth of, in 1920s, 628–629

horizontal integration and, 448, c 448

layoffs in, 1043

on the Internet, 1077, R40

regulation of, 445–446, 450

scientific management and, 514

Social Darwinism and, 448–449

in South, 450

temporary workers in, 1076

vertical integration and, 448, c 448

business cycle, R38, c R38, R40

Cold War and, 810, 812, 817

busing, 929, 1003–1004, i 1003, 1037

Butler, Andrew P., 316

Butterfield, Alexander, 1011

Byrd, William, 75

C

cabinet, 183, R55

Bush’s (George H. W.), 1050, 1051

FDR’s, 711

Harding’s, 626–627

Kennedy’s, 878

Nixon’s, 1009

Reagan’s, 1042, 1043

Washington’s, 183, i 183, 186

Cabrillo, Juan Rodriguez, m 39

Cagney, James, 717

Cahokia, Illinois, i 6, m 6, 7

Calamity Jane. See Cannary, Martha Jane.

Calhoun, John C., 203, 216, 218, 230, 231–232, i 231, 294, 304, i 304, 305, i 307, 308–309, i 308, 322, i 322

California, 99, 221, 294, 630

admission to Union of, 304, 306, i 306, 307

air pollution in, 1030

facts about, R48

farm workers in, 976

gold rush in, 297–299, 306, 415, 430, 461

immigration and migration and, 298, 299, 464–465, 680, 1053, c 1053, 1094

Native Americans in, 8, 9, m 11, 295

recall election, 1074

Republic of, 295, R65

settlement of, 295

Spanish missions in, 40, i 40, 295

statehood, 306, 307

in War with Mexico, 295–296

Calloway, Cab, 663

Cambodia, 962, 963, 966, 1017

Camino Real, 40

Campbell, Ben Nighthorse, 977, i 977

Camp David Accords, 1022–1023, R55

Canada, 115, 122, 311, 1070

British claims in, 87

United States and, 220–221, 285

War of 1812 and, 205

canals, 217, m 217, 277

Canary Islands, 28

Canby, Thomas, 4

Cane (Toomer), 660

Cannary, Martha Jane (Calamity Jane), 417, i 417

Cannon, Joseph, 535

Canticle for Leibowitz, A (Miller), 835

Cape Cod, 50

capitalism, 275, 489, R41, R55. See also free enterprise.

Capitol, 205

Capone, Al, 643, i 643

Capra, Frank, 717

Caputo, Philip, 969

caravel, i 24

Caribbean region, 27, 28, 30, 37, 250, 1057–1058, m 1057. See also Cuba; Dominican Republic; Puerto Rico; West Indies.

Carmichael, Stokely, 926, i 926

Carnegie, Andrew, 447–448, i 447, 450, 489, 561, 564

philanthropy of, 450

Carnegie Steel Company, 447–448, 449, 453

carpetbagger, 385, i 385, R55

Carranza, Venustiano, 569, 570–571

Carson, Rachel, 897, 1027

Carter, Jimmy, 1018, i 1018, 1038–1039, 1057, R52

Camp David Accords and, 1022–1023

civil rights and, 1020

domestic agenda of, 1018–1019

early life, 1018

energy crisis and, 1018–1019

human rights and, 931, 1021

inflation under, 1019, c 1019

Iran hostage crisis and, 1023, 1038

unemployment under, c 1019

Carter, Robert, III, 72

Carter, Rosalyn, 931

Cartier, Jacques, m 39, 86

Casablanca conference, 779

cash crop, 72, 77, 215, R55

Cass, Lewis, 297

Castro, Fidel, 879–880, i 880, 883, 889, 975

categorizing, R6

Cather, Willa, 502, 657

Catholic Church. See Roman Catholicism and Roman Catholics.

Catt, Carrie Chapman, 538, i 538, 540–541

cattle drive, 415–417, m 415

cattle ranching, 414–417, 529

cattle trails, 624–625, m 624, 626

causes, analyzing. See analyzing causes.

Cavazos, Lauro, 1050

Cayuse people, 12

CCC. See Civilian Conservation Corps.

CD-ROMs, 1083

“Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, The” (Twain), 224

Celera

human genome research and, 1085

Cemetery Ridge, 359

census, 1088

Central America, 566, 1057–1058, m 851. See also Guatemala; Nicaragua; Panama; Panama Canal.

Spanish and, 37

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 829–830, 832, 880, 1002, 1009, 1010, R55

Central Pacific Railroad, 421, 443

Central Park, 483–484

Central Powers, 580, 583, 584, 592, R55

Century of Dishonor, A (Jackson), 412

chain stores, 502–503

Challenger, 1047

Chamberlain, Joshua, 359

Chamberlain, Neville, 743

Chambers, Whittaker, 824

Chamorro, Violeta de, 1058

Champlain, Samuel de, 86

Champlain Lake, 115

Chancellorsville, Battle of, 358
R92

Charles I (king of England), 48, 59, 134, i 134

Charles II (king of England), 55, 56, 68, i 70

Charleston or Charles Town, South Carolina, 73, 80, 119, 339

Charleston (dance), i 632, i 650–651, 651

charter, 42

charter schools, 1110

charts

creating, 19, 71, 126, 176, 201, 208, 236, 299, 300, 309, 323, 345, 506, 507, 537, 613, 635, 707, 837, 863, 915, 947, R5, R9, R10, R13, R15, R16, R17, R20, R22, R23, R24, R26, R30

interpreting, 80, 101, 137, 157, 185, 306, 308, 320, 382, 391, 432, 653, 751, 810, 827, 887, 896, 920, 959, 1048, 1077, 1090, R27

using, 7, 25, 32, 41, 54, 59, 62, 78, 92, 93, 117, 144, 149, 150, 175, 187, 205, 218, 235, 245, 253, 265, 285, 321, 330, 334, 335, 356, 371, 372, 380, 382, 392, 398, 402, 417, 428, 433, 439, 446, 448, 456, 477, 486, 487, 491, 522, 537, 571, 586, 601, 612, 624, 700, 764, 793, 801, 804, 814, 855, 871, 899, 941, 1007, 1032, 1051, 1052, 1061, 1087, 1093, R11, R23, R24, R32, R33

Chavez, Cesar, 974, 976, i 976

Chechnya, 1069

checks and balances, 143–144, c 143, 146, 195, R55

chemical weapons. See weapons of mass destruction.

Cherokee Nation, 226

in Civil War, 349

Trail of Tears and, m 227, i 227, 229

Chesapeake Bay, 59, 72, 74, 121, 114

Chesapeake incident, 203

Chesnut, Mary, 351, i 351

Cheyenne people, 282, 409, 410, 412

Chiang Kai-shek, 815–816, i 816, 817

Chicago, Illinois, 415, 437, 453, 469, 502, 523, 641, 643, 714, 715, 928, 1047, 1049

Great Fire in, c 471, i 471

1968 Democratic convention in, 957–958, i 958

railroads and, 444

urban planning and, 484–485, m 484

Chicago, University of, 449

Chicanos(as). See Mexican Americans.

Chickasaw people, 226, 228

child labor, 259–260, 266, 512, 516–517, i 517, 527, i 527

Chiles, Lawton, 1092

China, 25

Boxer Protocol and, 563

Boxer Rebellion in, 563, i 563

civil war in, 816

Clinton administration and, 1069

communism in, 815–816, c 816, 822, 1005–1006, 1056

explorations of, 25

human rights abuses in, 1069

Japan and, 738, 741

Korean War and, 818

Nationalist government in, 815–816, c 816, 817

Open Door policy and, 562

Soviet Union and, 1006

Tiananmen Square demonstrations, 1056, i 1056

trade with, 117, 562

Chinese Exclusion Act, 465, R55

Chinese immigrants, 299, 452, 460, 463, i 464, 466, i 1092

exclusion of, 464–465, i 465

as railroad workers, 421, 435, 443, i 443, 461

Chippewa, 1093

Chisholm, Shirley, 928, i 928

Chisholm Trail, 415–416, m 415, R55

Chivington, John M., 410

chlorination, 470, R55

Choctaw people, 226, m 227, 228

Christianity, 15, 18–19, 40, 644–645. See also Church of England; Europe and Europeans; Great Awakening; Roman Catholicism and Roman Catholics; Second Great Awakening; names of specific denominations.

Reformation and, 22, 50

chronological order, 505, 964, 1010, R3

absolute, 1062, R3. See also time lines.

relative, R3

Churchill, Winston, 744, 747, i 747, 757, 760, i 811

“Iron Curtain” speech of, 811

in World War II, 766, 767, 776, 778, 789, 791–792

Church of England, 49, 50, 69, 84

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. See Mormons.

CIA. See Central Intelligence Agency.

Cigar Makers’ International Union, 451

CIO. See Congress of Industrial Organizations.

circus, 504

CIS. See Commonwealth of Independent States.

Cisneros, Sandra, 1081

cities. See also suburbs.

African Americans in, 469, 472, 494, 599–600, 641, 658–659, 660, 661, i 661, 924

automobile and, 629–630

colonial, 73, 80, i 80

governments of, 515–516

housing in, 468, 470, 1089

immigrants in, 468–469, 472, 641

industry and, 440

merchants in, 502–503

migration to, 469, 599–600, 640, 658–659, 660, 661, 924

in 1920s, 640–642

in 1950s, 866–867

opportunities in, 468–469

political machines and, 473–474

poverty in, 472, 866–867, 1047, 1089

problems in, 470–471, 1089

railroads and, 444

reformers and, 472, 513, 515–516

settlement houses in, 472

transportation in, 470, 483

urban planning and, 483–484

urban renewal and, 867

“white flight” from, 866–867, 924, 929, 1047

civil disobedience, 243, 911, R55

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), i 692–693, 697, i 697, c 706, 711, 725, R55

civil rights, 1049–1051. See also domestic policy; Fifteenth Amendment; Fourteenth Amendment; slavery; Thirteenth Amendment; Twenty-fourth Amendment; Voting Rights Act; specific rights.

Birmingham march and, 918, i 918

Black Muslims and, 925–926

Black Power movement, 926

Carter (Jimmy) and, 1020

Eisenhower and, 846

election of 1960 and, 877

freedom riders and, 916–917, i 917

Freedom Summer and, 921

homosexuals and, 1051

Jim Crow laws and, 493, 497, 907, 914–915

Johnson (Lyndon) and, 893–894

Malcolm X and, 925, i 925, 926

march on Washington and, 920

Montgomery bus boycott and, 906, 910–911, R38

movement in 18th century, 50–52, i 94–95, 97, 99, 105–108, 145–147, 240–245, 305, 306, 307, 311, m 313, 319–320, 347, 348, 930

movement in 19th century, 379, 492–494, 496–497, 906–907, 930

movement in 20th century, 497, 530–531, 712, 843–844, 846, 877, 888, 893–894, 904–929, 930–931, 1003, 1020, 1037, 1049–1051

NAACP and, 497, 908

in 1970s, 928–929

Nixon and, 1002–1003

Reconstruction and, 379, 492

Roosevelt (Franklin) and, 712

Roosevelt (Theodore) and, 530–531

Selma campaign and, 922

“separate but equal” doctrine and, 493, 497

sit-ins and, 912–913, i 913

Supreme Court and, 496–497, 802–803, 897–898, 914–915

Truman and, 843–844

Wilson and, 541–542

Civil Rights Act

of 1866, 379, c 380, 930

of 1875, 906

of 1957, 893, c 920

of 1964, 635, 894, 920, c 920, 1037, R55

of 1968, 920, c 920, 928, R55

civil service, 476–477, R56

Civil War, i 343, 1094

African Americans in, 348, 351–352, i 352, 384
R93

Army of the Potomac in, 342, 360, i 369

attack on Fort Sumter, 338–339, i 338

battlefields of, i 384

battles in, 340–345, m 340, m 341, 357–360, 363–364, m 363, 365

boys in, 344, i 344

casualties in, 343, 368

conscription and, 349

costs of, c 367, 368

dissent in, 349

economies and, 353–354, 367–368

effects of, 366–368, 370–371, 450

free blacks in, 348

medical care in, 355, i 355

neutrality of Great Britain in, 346–347

Northern and Southern strengths in, c 339

photographs of, 369, i 369

political changes in, 366–367

prisons, 356

raising money for, 353

resources of North and South, c 339

secession of Southern states, 330

soldiers in, i 339, 354–355, i 367

Southern surrender in, 365, i 365

Union strategies, 340

weapons in, 343, i 343

women and, 355

Civil Works Administration (CWA), 694, i 694, 697, c 706

Clapp, Louisa, 299

clarifying, R4. See also summarizing.

Clark, William, 201

Clay, Henry, 203, 218, 225, 229, 233, i 307, 319

American system of, 216–217

Compromise of 1850 and, 307–308

Missouri Compromise and, 222

Clayton Antitrust Act, 539, R56

Clean Air Act, 1028

Clemenceau, Georges, 605, i 605

Clemens, Samuel (Mark Twain), 473, 500, 502, 564, i 564

Clermont, 277

Cleveland, Grover, 454, 464, 477, 536, 551, 564, R51

Cleveland, Ohio, 437, 440–441, 470, 513, 516

Clifford, Clark, 955

Clinton, Bill, i 803, 1050, 1066–1074, i 1067, 1110, 1117, R52

Bosnia and, 1069–1070

Congress and, 1068, 1070–1071

foreign policy of, 1069–1070

GATT and, 1078

health-care reform and, 1067, 1114

impeachment and, i 162, 1071

NAFTA and, 1070, 1078

Russia and, 1069

welfare reform and, 1068

Clinton, Henry, 119

Clinton, Hillary Rodham, 1067, i 1067

cloning, 1086

CNLU. See Colored National Labor Union.

coal, 437, m 437, 443, 671

mining of, 527

Coca-Cola, 499

Cody, William F. “Buffalo Bill”

Wild West Show of, 412, 417

Coit, Stanton, 472

Cold Harbor, Battle of, 363

Cold War, 611, 795, 812, R56. See also Soviet Union.

arms race and, 828–829, 876, 1055

Berlin and, 883–884

communism in China and, 815–816

communism in U.S. and, 822–827

covert actions in, 829–830

Cuba and, 879–880, 882

defense spending in, c 832

development of, 808–811

effects of end of, 1054–1056

end of, 1054–1055

in Europe, 812

flexible response in, 879, R58

Geneva summit and, 830

hot line in, 878, R60

impact on business cycle, 810, 812, 817

Kennedy and, 877–880, 882–884

Korean War and, 817–818, 820–821

McCarthyism and, 826–827

Nixon and, 1005–1006

reasons for Western victory in, 1055–1056

science fiction and, 834–835

Truman Doctrine and, 812

U-2 incident in, 832, i 627, 876

U.S. foreign policy and, 828–829

Cole, Thomas, i 242

Colfax, Schuyler, 395, 444

collective bargaining, 452

Collier, John, 713, i 713

Colombia, 566

colonial America, m 53. See also England, American colonies of; Revolutionary War; Spain, American colonies of; names of specific colonies.

church and state in, 51–52

economy of, 66–67, 70, 71, 72–73, 74, 75, 78

family in, 52

governments in, 70–71

labor in, 45–46

life in, 73–75, 80

literacy in, 82

meetinghouses, i 57, i 71

relations with Great Britain in, 66, 68–71, 88–89, 96–102, c 100–101, 105, 106, 107, i 107, 108, 113

relations with Native Americans in, 43, 46–48, 51, 53–54, 86–87, 88, 106, 108

settlement of, 42–43, 45–48, 49–51, 53–54

slaves in, 45–46, 59, 75–78, 81–82, 106, 108

women in, 74–75, 82, 97, 106

Colorado, 297, 410

facts about, R48

Colored Farmers’ National Alliance, 427

Colored National Labor Union (CNLU), 451

Colton, Walter, 298

Columbian Exchange, 29, m 29, R56

Columbian Exposition, i 480–481, 485

Columbus, Christopher, 22, 25, 26–31, i 26, m 29, m 39

Committee on Public Information, 596

committees of correspondence, 99, R56

Committee to Reelect the President (CRP), 1009–1010, R56

Common Sense (Paine), 105, i 105, R56

Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), 1055

Commonwealth v. Hunt, 265

communications, 305. See also telegraph; telephone; television.

advances in, 274, i 275–276, 276–277, 485, 795, 1082–1084, 1112–1113

Communications Decency Act, 1084

communism, 452, 618, R39, c R44, R56. See also Cold War.

in China, 815–816, c 816, 822, 1005–1006, 1056, R39

in Eastern Europe, 811, 883–884, 1055–1056, R39

Hollywood and, 822, 823–824, i 823

roots of, 619

in Soviet Union, 619, 735, 809, 1006, 1054–1055, R39

in United States, 618, 619, 623, 662, 822–827

in Vietnam, 894, 936, 937, 938

Communist Manifesto (Marx and Engels), 619

Community Action Program, 894

comparing, 13, 17, 51, 56, 84, 97, 215, 216, 235, 245, 253, 285, 291, 292, 298, 307, 327, 385, 417, 478, 491, 495, 528, 564, 603, 623, 632, 651, 665, 674, 764, 785, 801, 820, 832, 848, 896, 922, 969, 1023, 1033, 1051, 1058, 1081, 1092, 1095, R8. See also comparing and contrasting; contrasting.

comparing and contrasting, 13, 57, 59, 247, 279, 292, 431, 533, 571, 647, 683, 722, 863, 865, 929, 1059, 1093, R8. See also comparing; contrasting.

compass, 25

Compromise of 1850, 307, c 308, 309, 310, m 314, 319, R56

Compromise of 1877, 399, R56

computers, 277, i 277, 635, 1077, 1078, 1082–1084, 1112–1113. See also communications.

using, 3, 35, 65, 95, 151, 177, 247, 575, 903, R29, R33, R37. See also Internet, using for research.

concentration camps, i 754, R56

in Cuba, 553

in World War II, 752–755, i 752–753, 782

conclusions, drawing. See drawing conclusions.

Concord, Battle of, 100–101, c 101, 105

Coney Island, 498–499, i 498

Confederate States of America or

Confederacy, R56. See also Civil War.

capital of, 340

formation of, 330–331, 339
R94

life in, 362

morale in, 362

Conflict in Korea. See Korean War.

Conflict in Vietnam. See Vietnam War.

Congdon, Don, 716

congregaciones, 40

Congress, 183, 559, 897, 1068, 1070–1071, 1073. See also House of Representatives; Senate; names of specific acts.

adjournment, 156

African Americans in, 389, 928

under Articles of Confederation, 142

bills in, 156, c 157

under Constitution, 143–144, 154–160

plans for, in Constitutional

Convention, 141, 142, c 142

role of, in New Deal, 695–696, 698, 699, 702, 703, 704–705, 708, 709

powers of, 143–144, 332–333, 708–709

role of, in Reconstruction, 376–377, 378, 379–381

record keeping, 156

restrictions, 156

rules and procedures in, 156

salaries, 156

Supreme Court and, 199

tax bills, 156

women in, 578, 928

Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), 714, R56

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), 799, 912, 916–917, 921, R56

Conkling, Roscoe, 474, 476

Connally, John, 888

Connecticut

colonial, c 67, m 67

facts about, R48

settlement of, 53

Connor, Bull, 918

conquistadors, 36, R56

conscientious objector, 592, R56

conscription. See draft.

consequences. See analyzing effects; evaluating effects.

conservation. See environment, protection of.

Conservative Coalition, 1037, R56

conservatives, 1000, 1036–1039, 1044. See also Contract with America; Reagan, Ronald.

Constitution, 152–153, i 152, 172, 196, 198, 231, 232, 322

amending, 164

amendments to, 145–149. See also specific amendments by number.

Bill of Rights in, 149, 166–167, 930

changing, 144

checks and balances, in, 146

controversies over, 146

division of powers and, 143

drafting of, 140–144

limits of powers and, 153

new states and, 164

powers denied the states under, 159

purposes of, 152–153

ratification of, 147–149, 165

relations among states under, 164

relevance of, 149

rights of citizens under, 164

separation of powers and, 143–144

Constitutional Convention, 322, 930, i 930. See also Constitution.

beginning of, 141–142

conflicts in, c 142

delegates to, 141

New Jersey Plan, 142

purpose of, 152

slavery-related issues at, 142–143

Three-Fifths Compromise, 142–143

Virginia Plan, 142

Constitutional Union Party, 329

consumerism, 854, R56

consumer price index, c 595, R39, c R39, R42

consumers, 438, 854–855, R38, R40, R41, R46

protection of, 897

containment, 811, 943, R56

Continental Army, 104, 113, 115, 116. See also Revolutionary War.

Continental Congress. See First Continental Congress; Second Continental Congress.

Continentals (currency), 116

Contract with America, 1070, R56

Contras, 1057–1058, R56. See also Iran-Contra scandal.

contrasting, 10, 19, 45, 50, 52, 58, 84, 86, 106, 135, 184, 186, 195, 208, 232, 243, 250, 258, 290, 292, 305, 309, 321, 340, 344, 378, 452, 494, 495, 515, 536, 542, 561, 641, 683, 699, 770, 846, 851, 889, 898, 913, 924, 926, 943, 947, 967, 1046, R8. See also comparing; comparing and contrasting.

Convention of 1818, 221, m 221

convoy system

in World War II, 589, i 589, 776, i 776, R56

Conyers, John, 390

Cooke, Jay, 397

Coolidge, Calvin, 623, 627, 628–629, 630, 632, R52

Copernicus, Nicolaus, 82

Copperheads, 349, R56

Coral Sea, Battle of the, 785

Corbin, Margaret, 117

CORE. See Congress of Racial Equality.

Cornwallis, Charles, 119–121

Coronado, Francisco Vásquez de, m 39, 40

corporations, 513, 848, 1073. See also business.

role of, 728

scandals involving, 1073

corridos, 431

Cortés, Hernando, 36, 37, i 37, m 39

Cortez, Gregorio, 431

cottage industry, 260, R56

cotton, 230, 231, 278, 340

Britain and, 346

slavery and, 215, 305

in South, 390, 392

Cotton Club, i 661, 663

cotton gin, 215, 216, i 422, R56

Coughlin, Charles, 699, 700

counterculture, 992, R56

court system, 96, 143, 455, 644–645. See also judicial branch; Supreme Court.

creation of, 183

cowboys, 414–417, i 416, 466

Cowpens, Battle of, 120, i 120

Cox, Archibald, 1011

craft unions, 451

Crane, Stephen, 502

Crandall, Prudence, 256

Crazy Horse, 410, 412

creating charts. See charts, creating.

creating databases. See databases, creating.

creating diagrams. See diagrams, creating.

creating graphs. See graphs, creating.

creating maps. See maps, creating.

creating models. See models, creating.

creating presentations. See presentations, creating.

creating time lines. See time lines, creating.

credibility gap, 947, R56

Crédit Mobilier affair, 395, 444, R56

Creek people, 226, m 227

Creel, George, 596–597

Creelman, James, 552, 553

crime, 471, 1089, 1108–1109, c 1108–1109

Cripple Creek, Colorado, 418, 419

critical thinking, xxviii–xxix, xxx, 7, 19, 25, 31, 32, 41, 54, 59, 62, 70, 78, 84, 89, 92, 108, 117, 123, 126, 137, 144, 149, 150, 158, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163, 164, 165, 166, 167, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173, 175, 176, 187, 196, 201, 205, 208, 218, 223, 229, 235, 236, 253, 258, 265, 267, 268, 279, 285, 287, 292, 299, 300, 309, 317, 321, 323, 331, 333, 334, 345, 350, 356, 365, 371, 372, 382, 392, 400, 401, 417, 419, 424, 429, 431, 432, 439, 441, 446, 455, 456, 465, 467, 472, 477, 478, 487, 491, 495, 497, 503, 506, 518, 522, 531, 533, 537, 543, 544, 551, 557, 564, 571, 586, 593, 601, 603, 607, 608, 611, 612, 624, 627, 633, 635, 636, 645, 649, 651, 657, 663, 665, 677, 683, 689, 700, 707, 709, 715, 720, 722, 725, 727, 728, 741, 747, 755, 758, 763, 764, 774, 783, 791, 793, 795, 801, 804, 814, 821, 827, 833, 836, 846, 855, 857, 863, 869, 870, 884, 889, 899, 901, 902, 913, 915, 922, 929, 931, 941, 947, 953, 959, 967, 969, 970, 979, 981, 986, 993, 1007, 1013, 1015, 1023, 1025, 1031, 1032, 1039, 1044, 1053, 1059, 1061, 1062, 1074, 1079, 1081, 1087, 1093, 1095, 1096

Croatia, 1056

Crockett, Davy, 291

Cromwell, Oliver and Richard, 134

Cronkite, Walter, 955–956

“Cross of Gold” speech, 428–429

Crow people, 282
R95

CRP. See Committee to Reelect the President.

Crusades, 22, 23, 24, R56. See also Roman Catholic Church.

Cuba, 27, 37, 462, 660, 974, 975

aid to Nicaragua by, 1057

American interest in, 552–553, 557, 560–561, i 575

Bay of Pigs invasion and, 880

communism in, 879

de Lôme letter and, 553–554

first war for independence of, 553

missile crisis and, 880, m 881, 882

second war for independence of, i 552, 553–554

Soviet Union and, 876

Spain and, 553–554

in Spanish-American-Cuban War, 553, 554–556

as U.S. protectorate, 557, 559–560

Cubans, 975, 1050

cult of domesticity, 254, R56

Cumberland Gap, 201

Cumming v. Board of Education of

Richmond County, 496

currency, 136, 353, 367, 397

Curtis, S. R., 410

Custer, George Armstrong, 412, i 412, 417

CWA. See Civil Works Administration.

Czechoslovakia, 606

World War II and, 742–744, m 744

D

da Gama, Vasco, 25

Daladier, Edouard, 743

Daley, Richard J., 958

dams, 686, 725

dance marathons, i 650–651, 651

Daniels, Josephus, 542

Darrow, Clarence, 644–645, i 645

Dartmouth College v. Woodward, 220

Darwin, Charles, 448–449, 644

data

interpreting, 175, 505, 865, 981

databases

creating, 857, 891, R33

using, R33

Davis, Gray, 1074

Davis, Jefferson, 331, i 331, 339, 348, i 348, 349, 353, 362

Davis, Richard Harding, 580

Davis, Thulani, 863

Dawes, Charles G., 626

Dawes, William, 100

Dawes Act, 412–413, 519, 713, 868, R57

Dawes Plan, 626

Dayton, Ohio, 515

D-Day, 780, m 781, R57

DDT, 1027

Dean, James, 860, i 860

Dean, John, i 1009, 1010, 1011

debates

Bush-Gore, 327, i 327

Kennedy-Nixon, 327, 824, i 824, 877, i 877

Lincoln-Douglas, 325–326, 327

Debs, Eugene V., 452, 454, i 454, 514, 536–537, 602, i 603

Debs v. United States, 602

debt, national, 184

debt peonage, 495, R57

decisions and courses of action, evaluating, R16

decisions, making. See making decisions.

Declaration of Independence, 106, 184, 466, 557, 930, R57

African Americans and, 106

Native Americans and, 106

text of, 109–112

Declaration of Rights and Grievances, 97

Declaration of Sentiments, 257

Declaratory Act, 97

Deere, John, 279, 423, 437

de facto segregation, 924, R57

deficit spending, 698, 721, c 723, R39, R43, R57

de Gaulle, Charles, 746

de jure segregation, 924, R57

De La Beckwith, Byron, 920

Delaware (Native American people), 58, 88

Delaware (state), 331, 339, 915

colonial, c 67, m 67

facts about, R48

settlement of, 58

Delaware Bay, 58

Delaware River, 56, 114

de Lôme, Enrique Dupuy, 554

Deloria, Vine, Jr., 977

democracy, 51

Democratic National Committee (DNC), 1008, 1009

Democratic Party, 233, 318–319, 320, c 320, 321, 386, 394, 427, 428–429, 534, 686, 713, 844, 957–958. See also election, presidential.

in elections of 1866, 380

end of Reconstruction and, 399

Democratic-Republican Party, 186, 191, i 191, 194, 195–196, 197–199, 225, 329, R57

Dempsey, Jack, 652

Denmark, 751

Denney, James D., 1016

Department of Homeland Security, 1072, 1102–1103

department stores, 502

depression, 428, 446, R38, R40, i R40, R44. See also Great Depression.

of 1873, 397

deregulation, 539, 1043, R57

Deseret, 285

Desert Storm, Operation. See Persian Gulf War.

détente, 1005, R57

collapse of, 1021

de Tocqueville, Alexis, 244

Detroit, Michigan, 469, 629, 630, 1047, 1049

developing historical perspective. See historical perspective, developing.

Dewey, A. Peter, i 730, 936

Dewey, George, 555

Dewey, Thomas E., 844

diagrams, creating, 432, 465, 503, 531, 544, 575, 609, 633, 636, 645, 666, 720, 774, 827, 836, 889, 902, 932, 953, 970, 979, 994, 1031, R2, R6, R7, R8, R12, R14, R18, R19, R21

diagrams, using, 84, 108, 137, 223, 258, 268, 292, 350, 518, 551, 557, 593, 649, 663, 677, 683, 689, 715, 725, 728, 741, 855, 869, 870, 884, 902, 913, 922, 953, 967, 1039, 1044, 1079

Dias, Bartolomeu, 25

Díaz, Adolfo, 568–569

Díaz, Porfirio, 569

Díaz del Castillo, Bernal, 36, 37

Dickinson, John, 104, 132, 135

dictatorships

Hitler, 609, 722, i 733, 737, i 737, 742, i 743, 809

Hussein, Saddam, 1073, 1104–1105, i 1105

Pol Pot, 966

Mao, 816, i 816, 927

Mussolini, 736, 737, i 737, 779

Stalin, 735, i 737, 745, 746, 791–792, 809, i 809, 810

Diem, Ngo Dinh, 938, 940

Dien Bien Phu, 937

Dietrich, Marlene, 717

Dillon, C. Douglas, 882

diplomacy. See foreign affairs and foreign policy.

direct primary, 518

direct relief, 681, 698, R57

diseases. See also health care.

AIDS, 1046, 1051

in colonies, 42

influenza epidemic of 1918, 601

in Jamestown settlement, 43

Native Americans and, 28, 37, 54, 58, 88

polio, 850

slaves and, 76

small pox, 28, 37, 88

trench foot and trench mouth, 591

tuberculosis, 256

yellow fever, 559

Disney, Walt, 656

distinguishing fact from opinion, R9

distributions, analyzing. See analyzing distributions.

distributions, geographic. See geographic distributions.

District of Columbia, 915. See also Washington, D.C.

facts about, R48

Dix, Dorothea, 244, i 244, 355

Dixiecrats, 844, R57

DNA, 1085–1086

DNC. See Democratic National Committee.

Dobbin, George, 721

Doeg people, 47

Doenitz, Karl, 776

Dole, Elizabeth, 1048

Dole, Robert, 1071

Dole, Sanford B., 551

dollar diplomacy, 568–569, R57

domestic policy, 216, 306–307, 326, 347, 376, 528–529, 541–543, 635, R96642–643, 685, 687–688, 695, 702, 704–705, 707, 712, 843–846, 877, 886, 887, 888, 899, 918, 920–922, 1002–1005, 1017, 1018–1020, 1040–1042, 1043, 1047, 1067–1068, 1073. See also antislavery movement; civil rights; crime; economy; education; environment, protection of; health care; housing; inflation; poverty; Prohibition; unemployment.

Dominican Republic, 27, 395, 974

Dominion of New England, 69

domino theory, 937, R57

Doña Marina. See Malinche.

Doolittle, James, 785

Dos Passos, John, 657

dotcom, 1077, R57

double standard, 647, R57

Douglas, Stephen A., 309, i 309, 312, 313–314, 324, 325, i 326, 329, i 329, c 330

debates with Lincoln, 325–327

Freeport Doctrine and, 326

Douglass, Frederick, 249–250, i 249, 251, 311

doves, 952, R57

Dowd, C. F., 443

Dow Jones Industrial Average, 673, 1077, R57

draft

in Civil War, 349

in Vietnam War, 948–949, 951–952

in World War I, 588–589, i 588

in World War II, 760, 769

Drake, Edwin L., 437

drawing conclusions, 7, 24, 25, 54, 59, 78, 198, 258, 267, 268, 279, 329, 334, 345, 415, 417, 424, 455, 489, 500, 501, 506, 551, 557, 582, 592, 593, 601, 624, 663, 677, 683, 689, 707, 720, 741, 747, 759, 787, 789, 793, 823, 846, 869, 884, 901, 913, 945, 947, 993, 1007, 1011, 1048, 1061, 1079, 1093, R18. See also making inferences.

drawing inferences. See making inferences.

Dred Scott v. Sandford, 332–333

Dreiser, Theodore, 502

drug abuse, 1047

Dubinsky, David, 714

Du Bois, W. E. B., 491, 494, 531, i 531, 598–599, i 598, 659, 660

Dudley, Anne. See Bradstreet, Anne.

Dukakis, Michael, 1044

Dulles, John Foster, 829, 1006

Dust Bowl, 680, i 680, m 680, R57

Dutch, 81, c 81. See also Netherlands, the.

colonization by, 30, 52, 55–56

New Netherland and, 55–56

Dutch West India Company, 55

E

Eakins, Thomas, i 295, 501

Earhart, Amelia, i 449, 630, 655

Earth Day, i 821, 1027, 1028, 1031, R57

Eastern woodlands, Native Americans of, 10, m 11

East Germany, 814, 883–884, 1055–1056. See also Berlin; Berlin Wall.

Eastman, George, 487, i 487

Easy Rider, 993

e-commerce, 635, 1077, R40

Economic Opportunity Act (EOA), 894, R57

economics, R39–R47

Keynesian, 698, R42, R46

laissez-faire, 448

supply-side, 1041, R46

trickle-down theory of, 1041

economy, 276–277. See also business; depression; domestic policy; economics; Great Depression; tariffs; trade. See also September 11 terrorist attack, effect on economy of.

American System and, 216

Bush (George W.) and, 1073

capitalism and, 275

Carter and, 1019–1020

Civil War and, 353–354, 384, 450

Clinton and, 1067–1068, 1070

cycles in, R38, R44

effect of corporate scandals on, 1073

effect of entertainment industry on, 500, 654, 851

effect of science and technology on, 1076, 1077, 1112

in English colonies, 66, c 67, 68, 70–71, 72–73, 74, 79–80

entrepreneurs and, 275

farmers and, 424, 428, 677

federal government and, 220

Ford and, 1016–1017

free enterprise and, R41, R44

global, 1078–1079

Great Depression and, 675, 676, c 676, i 676

Hamilton and, 184–185

of Hawaii, 550

Hoover and, 684–686, 687–688

household, 276

Kennedy and, 886

Madison and, 216

in 1920s, 631, 670–671

Nixon and, 1004–1005

panic of 1873 and, 397

poverty and, 1116–1117

Reagan and, 1040–1042

reform and, 244, 514–515

Roosevelt (Franklin) and, 695–696, 705

service sector in, 1076

of the South, 389–390, 392

Van Buren and, 234–235

in World War I, 594–596, c 595

in World War II, 773–774, c 773, 797

after World War II, 841–842, c 842

Ecotopia, 1052

Edo people, 17

Ederle, Gertrude, 654, i 654

Edison, Thomas Alva, 437

education, c 447, 652–653, 1047, 1110–1111, c 1110–1111

of African Americans, 256, i 379, 383, 388, i 388, 489, 490–491, i 491, 907, m 907, 908–909, 917, 928, 929, c 929, 1110

agricultural, 423

bilingual, 1050

culture and, 652–653

expansion of, 488–491, c 489

Great Society programs and, 895–897, i 895, c 896

of immigrants, 490, 653

of Native Americans, 978–979

and poverty, 1111, 1117

reform of, 244–245

technology and, 490

of women, 256, 520–521

Edwards, Jonathan, 83, i 83

EEOC. See Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

effects, analyzing. See analyzing effects.

effects, predicting. See predicting effects. See also causes, analyzing.

egalitarianism, 122, R57

Egypt, 831, 1005, 1022

Ehrlichman, John, 1009, i 1009, 1010

1868, Treaty of, 410, 412

Eighteenth Amendment, 170, 640, 642, 643

Eighth Amendment, 167

Einstein, Albert, 773

Eisenhower, Dwight D., 791, 821, i 844, 845–846, 876, R52

Bonus Army and, 689

civil rights and, 846

Cold War and, 829–830, 832–833

farewell address of, 879

at Geneva summit, 830

U-2 incident and, 832–833

Vietnam and, 894, 937

as World War II general, 778, 780, i 780

Eisenhower Doctrine, 831, R57

Elastic Clause, 185

election, presidential

of 1796, 194

of 1800, 198

of 1824, 224, 225

of 1828, 225

of 1836, 234

of 1840, 235

of 1844, 292

of 1848, 297

of 1852, 319

of 1856, 320–321

of 1860, 329–330, c 330

of 1864, 364–365

of 1868, 382

of 1876, 399

of 1880, 476

of 1884, 477

of 1888, 477

of 1892, 477, 536

of 1896, 428

of 1908, 534

of 1912, 536–537, c 537

of 1916, 585

of 1920, 625

of 1928, 672

of 1932, 694–695

of 1936, 702

of 1940, 757
R97

of 1948, 844, c 844

of 1952, 846

of 1960, 876–877

of 1964, 894

of 1968, 957–958, c 959

of 1972, 1010

of 1976, 1018

of 1980, 1038–1039, c 1039

of 1984, 1043

of 1988, 1044

of 1992, 1067

of 1996, 1071

of 2000, 825, i 825, 1071–1072

of 2004, 1074

Electoral College, 144, 224, 1072, R57

in Constitution, 160, 168

election of 1876 and, 399

electoral reform, 168

electricity, 82, 437–438

conveniences and, 631, c 631, i 631

transportation and, 483

electronic commerce. See e-commerce.

Elementary and Secondary Education Act, 895

Eleventh Amendment, 168

Elijah Muhammad, 925–926

Eliot, T. S., 657

Elizabeth I (queen of England), 43, 50

Elkins Act, 526

Ellicott, Andrew, 186

Ellington, Edward Kennedy “Duke,” 663, i 663

Ellis Island, 462–463

Ellsberg, Daniel, 963

e-mail, 277, 1083

emancipation, 249, 252, 347–348, 466, R57

Emancipation Proclamation, 347–348, i 347, 368, 466, i 466, R57

embargo, 761, R40, R57

War of 1812 and, 203

Embargo Act of 1807, 203, 213

Emergency Banking Relief Act, 696, c 706

Emergency Quota Act, 621, 622

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 242–243, 246, 247, i 247

encomienda, 38, R57

Enforcement Acts, c 380, 382, 395

Engels, Friedrich, 619

England, 23–24. See also Great Britain.

American colonies of, 30, 41, 43, 44–48, 49–51, 53–54, m 53, 66, c 67, m 67, 68–71

Ireland and, 46

English Commonwealth, 134

Enlightenment, R57

influence of, on colonial America, 82–84

Enola Gay, 790

Enron, 1073, 1077

entitlement programs, 1037, 1071, 1118–1119, c 1118–1119, R57

entertainment. See leisure activities; motion pictures; music; radio; sports; television.

entrepreneurs, 275, 449, 450, 635, R57

environment, protection of, 422, 528–530, 534, 535, 725, 897, 1026–1028, 1030, 1043, 1087. See also pollution.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 1028, 1043, R57

EOA. See Economic Opportunity Act.

EPA. See Environmental Protection Agency.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), 984, 985

Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), 985, 986, 1048, R57

Equiano, Olaudah, 76, i 76

ERA. See Equal Rights Amendment.

eras

Cold War, 611, 812

Colonial Era, 42–43, 44–48, m 44, 66, 68–71, m 67, i 80

globalization, 1078–1079

Good Feelings, Era of, 218

Great Depression, i 668–669, 670–675, c 676, 677, 678–683, 684–689, i 684, 694

Great Society, 895–897, c 896, 925, 947

Industrial Age, 436–438, 440–441, 442–444, 447–449

New Deal, 694–700, 712–713

post–Cold War, 1054–1058

Progressive Era, 512–518, 519–522, 523–526, 528–531, 532–533, 534–537, 538–543, 625

Roaring Twenties, 640–645, 646–649, 650–651, i 650–651, 652–657, 658–660, 661–663

Vietnam War era, 825, i 825, 936–938, m 939, 940–947, i 942, 948–953, c 949, i 950, 954–959, m 955, i 956, 960–961, 1007

Watergate era, 825, i 825, 964, 1008–1013, i 1011, i 1013

World War I, 580, 581–586, m 581, 587–593, 594–597, 794, i 794

World War II, 742–747, m 744, 748–755, 756–761, m 762, 763, 768–774, 775–780, 778, m 781, 782–783, 784–785, m 786, 787, 789–791, 796–801, i 808

Ericson, Leif, 27

Erie, Lake, 204, 440

Erie Canal, 217, 277, R57

Erie Railroad, 427

Ervin, Sam J., Jr., 1011, i 1011

Escobedo v. Illinois, 898, 900

Eskimos. See Inuit.

Espionage and Sedition Acts, 598, 602, 603, R57

Ethiopia, 739

ethnic groups. See specific groups.

Europe and Europeans, 4 13, 15, m 23. See also World War I; World War II; names of specific countries.

Christianity and, 22

disasters in, 23

migration from, 29, c 31, 73, 81

national rivalries in, 30

nations in, 23–24

population of, 23

social order, 20–21

societies of 1400s, 20–21, 23

evaluating, 7, 30, 41, 98, 104, 105, 108, 117, 123, 126, 149, 176, 201, 205, 223, 229, 258, 268, 285, 299, 309, 331, 343, 365, 392, 400, 401, 402, 424, 429, 450, 465, 472, 478, 487, 514, 531, 537, 540, 551, 564, 601, 624, 635, 645, 647, 649, 657, 666, 698, 700, 705, 712, 715, 722, 745, 780, 795, 833, 855, 860, 863, 869, 887, 898, 912, 928, 941, 952, 953, 979, 1013, 1025, 1044, 1062, 1074, 1087, R17, R20

decisions, 59, 144, 187, 196, 263, 265, 299, 345, 382, 571, 688, 707, 747, 755, 763, 783, 791, 793, 821, 884, 965, 1007, 1023, 1074, R16

effects, 429, 444, 475, 564, 627, 703, 715, 725, 798, 827, 846, 910, 967, 1044, 1087, 1095. See also analyzing effects.

leadership, 281, 290, 349, 350, 401, 455, 477, 626, 696, 700, 725, 814, 845, 846, 889, 899, 1039, 1055, 1073

evangelism, 240

Evans, Walker, 720

events, analyzing. See analyzing events.

Everett, Edward, 361

Evers, Medgar, 920

Ewald, Johann, 121

Ewuare, 17

examining issues. See issues, examining.

excise tax, 186, R57

executive branch, 349, 1009, R58. See also president.

in Constitution, 143, c 143

Washington and, 183

Executive Order 9066, 802–803

exodusters, 421, i 421, R58

expansionism, 549–550, 552–553, 556–557, 559, i 560, m 562

exploration by Europeans

of Africa, 20, 23–25

of Americas, 26–27, 36–38, m 39, 40, 59

F

fact from opinion, distinguishing. See distinguishing fact from opinion.

factories, 275, 1076. See also manufacturing.

conditions in, 262, 438, 450–451, 454–455, 512, 515

early, 260

textile, 213, 260

Fair Deal, 845, 886, R58

Fair Labor Standards Act, 705, c 706, 724, R42

Fajans, Irving, 618, i 618

Fall, Albert B., 627

Fallen Angels (Myers), 969

Fallen Timbers, Battle of, 193–194

Fall of New Orleans, m 340, 343

Falwell, Jerry, 1037–1038

families

African American, 387–388, i 387

colonial, 52

early-20th-century, 519

in Europe, 21
R98

Great Depression and, 680–681

Native American, 9, 13, 409

in 1920s, 648–649

poverty among, 867, c 929, 975

Puritan, 52

slaves and, 77

Stop-ERA movement and, 985

in West Africa, 18

after World War II, 840, 841, 847, 849–850, 864

Family Assistance Plan, 1001, R58

Farewell to Arms, A (Hemingway), 657

Farmer, James, 799, 917

Farmers’ Alliances, 426–427, R58

farmers and farming, 72–73, 74, 187, 215, i 267, 1076. See also agriculture.

African-American, 427

alliances of, 426–427

in early 19th century, 274–275

financial problems of, 424, 425, 426, i 426, 428, 469, 671, i 671

Great Depression and, 675, 686, 687

on Great Plains, 423, 425

inventions for, 279, i 279

New Deal and, 697, 702, 704, 724

Populism and, 427

problems of, following Revolutionary War, 140

railroads and, 424, 425, 426, 444–446

Southern, 384

women and, 420, 423, 425, 519

World War I and, 671

World War II and, 797

Farm Security Administration, 704

Farragut, David G., 343, 364

Farrell, James T., 720

fascism, 736, R58

Faubus, Orval, 909

FBI. See Federal Bureau of Investigation.

FCC. See Federal Communications Commission.

FDA. See U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

FDIC. See Fedral Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Federal Art Project, 718

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 1103

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), 1002, 1013, 1109, 1113

Federal Communications Commission (FCC), 859, 1084, R58

Federal Conservation Lands, 1872–1996, m 529

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), 696, c 706, 723, 724, R58

Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), 698, 704, c 706

Federal Farm Board, 687

federal government

aviation security and, 1103

changes in, 182–183, 198, 199, 220, 695–696, 699, 708–709, 895–897, i 895, c 896, 1001–1002, 1040–1043

checks and balances, 143, c 143, 146

in Constitution, 145–149, 322

and economy, 220

and New Deal, 695–696, 698, 699, 701, 705, 709

powers of, 134–135, 140, 143, 198, 199, 220, 231, 232, 233–234, 330, 347, 367, 398, 699, 709, 898, 980, 1025

separation of, 143

and Supreme Court, 144, 199, 220, 322–333, 496, 709, 898, 980, 1025

Federal Home Loan Bank Act, 687, R58

Federal Housing Administration (FHA), 698, c 706

federalism, 143, R58

Federalist, The, 146, R58

Federalist Party, 186, 191, 194, 195

Federalists, 145–149, 191, i 191, 197, 198, 199, R58

Federal Reserve Act, 540

Federal Reserve Board, 1017

Federal Reserve System, 540, 1076, R42, R58

Federal Securities Act, 696, R58

Federal Theater Project, 719

Federal Trade Commission (FTC), 539, R58

Federal Writers’ Project (FWP), 720

Felt, W. Mark, 1010

Feminine Mystique, The (Friedan), 850, 982, 984

feminism, 982, R58

FERA. See Federal Emergency Relief Administration.

Ferdinand (king of Spain), 22, 30

Ferraro, Geraldine, 1043, 1048, i 1048

Ferrell, Trevor, 1045

Fetterman, William J., 410

Fetterman Massacre, m 408, 410

FHA. See Federal Housing Administration.

Field, Cyrus W., i 446

Field, Marshall, 502

Fifteenth Amendment, 170, c 380, 382, 386, 401, 521, 931, R58

Fifth Amendment, 166, 325, 333, 396, 398, 802, 900

“Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!” 285, R58

Fillmore, Millard, 320, 321, R51

presidency of, 309

finding main ideas. See main ideas, finding.

fine arts, 501. See also art; literature; music.

Finney, Charles Grandison, 240, i 240, 241, 249

fireside chats, 696

First Amendment, 149, 166, 195, 196, 598, 602–603

First Continental Congress, 99, 100

Fithian, Philip Vickers, 72

Fitzgerald, F. Scott, 646, 655, 656, 657, i 657, 664

Fitzgerald, Robert G., 383, i 383, 388

Fitzgerald, Zelda Sayre, 646, i 646, 657

Fitzhugh, George, 253

flagpole sitting, 650, i 650

flappers, 647, i 647, R58

Flatiron Building (New York), 483, i 483

Fletcher. v. Peck, 220

Florida, 38, 78, 87, 192, 330, 1050, 1053, 1071, 1072

cession of, 220

facts about, R48

Foch, Ferdinand, 592

Fong See, 460, i 460, 461

Fontaine, William, 118

Food Administration, 595–596

Foraker Act, 559, R58

Forbes, Charles R., 627

Force Bill, 232

Ford, Gerald, 803, 964–965, 1012, 1013, 1016–1017, i 1017, 1021, R52

Ford, Henry, 599, 630

Ford Motor Company, 628

Fordney-McCumber Tariff, 626, R58

Ford’s Theatre, 370

foreign affairs and foreign policy, i 557, 931. See also Cold War; imperialism; Vietnam War; World War I; World War II.

under Adams (John), 194–195

under Carter, 1021

under Clinton, 1069–1070

under Ford, 1017

under Harding, 625–626

under Nixon, 1005–1007, 1021

under Polk, 293–294

under Reagan and Bush, 1054–1059

under Roosevelt (Theodore), 564, 565–566, 568, 740–741

under Washington, 191

under Wilson, 569–571, 585–586

foreign trade. See trade.

forming generalizations, 10, 21, 29, 41, 75, 80, 82, 235, 392, 518, 531, 590, 631, 663, 672, 741, 771, 833, 940, 947, 1003, 1051, 1061, 1095, R21

forming opinions, 62, 196, 223, 228, 229, 446, 537, 551, 571, 574, 627, 633, 715, 720, 729, 821, 902, 913, 929, 967, 1044, R17

Formosa. See Taiwan.

formulating questions. See questions, formulating.

Fort Boisée or Fort Boise, 284, 287, i 287

Fort Donelson, 342

Fort Duquesne, 86

Forten, Charlotte, 310, i 310

Forten, James, 248, i 248

Fort Henry, 342

Fort James, 44, i 44

Fort Laramie, Treaty of (1851), 282, R67

Fort Pillow, 352

Fort Sumter, 338, i 338, 339

forty-niners, 298, R58

Foster, Andrew “Rube,” 654, i 654

Fourteen Points, 605, R58

Fourteenth Amendment, 169, 333, 379–381, c 380, 396, 398, 401, 493, 496–497, 521–522, 907, 914, 930, 931, 980, 1024, R58

Fourth Amendment, 149, 166

frames of reference. See developing historical perspective.

France, 23–24. See also French Revolution.

alliance with, 194

American colonies of, 30, 86

British relations with, 70, 85, 86, 116, 121, 191, 194, 579

forces of, in Revolutionary War, 116, 118, 119, 121
R99

Louisiana Purchase and, 201

North American claims of, m 87

U.S. relations with, 116, 190–191, 194–195

Vietnam and, 936, 937

war debts and, 625, 626, 675

in World War I, 579, 580, 582, 583, 588

in World War II, 743, 744, 745, 746, 756, 757, 780

Franco, Francisco, 739

Franco-Prussian War, 370

Frankfurter, Felix, 689

Franklin, Benjamin, 81, 82, 83, i 83, i 89, 103, 122, 141, 158

Albany Plan of Union, 97

inventions of, 83

Franklin, William, 103, i 103

Franz Ferdinand, Archduke, 580

Frazier, Garrison, 389

Fredericksburg, Battle of, 363

Freedmen’s Bureau, 379, c 380, 383, 385, 388, 391, 395, 490, R58

freedom riders, 916–917, i 917, R58

Freedom Summer, 921, R58

free enterprise, R41, c R41, R44. See also capitalism.

Freeport Doctrine, 326–327, R58

Free-Soil Party, 319–320, c 320, R58

Free Speech Movement (FSM), 950, R58

Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), 1070, i 1079

Frémont, John C., 286–287, 294, 320–321, i 320, 364

French and Indian War, 85–87, i 85, 96, 104, 116, 123, 114, R58

French Revolution, 190–191, i 190

reactions to, 190–191

Frick, Henry Clay, 453–454

Friedan, Betty, 850, 982, i 982, 984

Frisch, Otto, 789

Frohwerk v. United States, 602

FSM. See Free Speech Movement.

FTAA. See Free Trade Area of the Americas.

FTC. See Federal Trade Commission.

Fugitive Slave Act

of 1793, 307

of 1850, 310–311, 319, 320, R58

Fulbright, J. William, 947

Fuller, Margaret, 246

Fulton, Robert, 219–220, 277

fundamentalism, 644, R58

fur trade, 55–56, 86

FWP. See Federal Writers’ Project.

G

Gable, Clark, 717, i 717

Gadsden, James, 297

Gadsden Purchase, m 296, 297, R58

Gagarin, Yuri A., 887

Gage, Thomas, 99, 100, 104

Galbraith, John Kenneth, 842

Galilei, Galileo, 82

Galveston, Texas, 515

Gama, Vasco da, 25

Gambia River, 19

Gandhi, Mohandas K., 669, 911

Garcia-Tolson, Rudy, 1082, i 1082

Garfield, James, 444, 476, i 476, R51

garment workers, 454–455

Garrison, William Lloyd, 249–250, 255, 319

Garvey, Marcus, 659–660, i 660

gasoline, 437. See also oil.

Gass, Patrick, 197, i 197

Gates, Bill, 1077

Gates, Horatio, 115

GATT. See General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

Gaye, Marvin, 992

gays and lesbians, 1051, i 1051

Gellhorn, Martha, 734, i 734, 739

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), 1078, R59

generalizations, forming. See forming generalizations.

Genêt, Edmond, 191

genetic engineering, 1086, R59

Geneva Accords, 938, R59

Geneva summit, 830

genocide, 750, R59

Gentlemen’s Agreement, 465, 621, R59

gentrification, 1089, R59

geographic distributions, xxx, m 119, m 217, m 261, m 411, m 529, m 551, m 555, m 562, m 606, m 680, m 727, m 738, m 811, m 830, c 871, m 1022, m 1039, m 1053

geographic factors

human, m 15, m 29, m 53, m 192, m 204, m 223, m 227, m 313, m 381, m 411, m 461, m 469, m 622, m 680, m 797, m 800, m 844, m 1039, m 1091, R25. See also human-environment interaction.

physical, xxx, m 115, m 291, m 358, m 484, m 555, m 581, m 592, m 736, m 744, m 762, m 786, m 800, m 819, m 939, m 1060, R25

geographic patterns, xxx, m 192, m 261, m 287, m 415, m 441, m 445, m 461, m 469, m 572–573, m 622, m 797, m 891, m 1091, 1093

geography, themes in, xxx. See also human-environment interaction; location; movement; place; region.

George, Walter L., 641

George II (king of Great Britain), 87

George III (king of Great Britain), 88, 96–97, 99, 103, 105, 109

Georgia, 106, 228, 330, 362, 1018

Cherokee Nation and, 228–229

in Civil War, 363–364

colonial, 59, c 67, m 67, 72

facts about, R48

in Revolutionary War, 119

German immigrants, 73, 81, c 81, 264, 410, c 461

World War I and, 597–598

Germany. See also East Germany; West Germany.

colonies of, 606

Holocaust and, 748–755

inflation in, i 626

Nazism and, 737

Nuremberg trials and, 792

occupation of, 791, 813–814

postwar division of, m 605, 813

reparations and, 606, 626, 675

reunification of, 1056

Treaty of Versailles and, 606

war debts and, i 735

World War I and, 579–580, 582, 584–585, 589

World War II and, 742–747, i 745, 757–760, 777, 778

Gerry, Elbridge, 194, i 195

Gershwin, George, 656

Gesner, Abraham, 437

Gettysburg, Battle of, 357–360, i 357, m 358, i 359

Gettysburg Address, 361, R59

Ghana, 16

Ghent, Treaty of, 205, R67

ghetto, 751, 926, R59

Ghost Dance, 413

Gibbons, Thomas, 220

Gibbons v. Ogden, 220

Gibbs, Lois, 1026, i 1026

GI Bill of Rights, 798, 841, R59

Gideon v. Wainwright, 898, 900

Gilded Age, The (Twain and Warner), 473

Gilder, George, 1041

Gingrich, Newt, 1070

Ginsberg, Allen, 861

Ginsburg, Ruth Bader, i 163

Giovanni, Nikki, 1080

glasnost, 1055, R59

Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, 696, R59

Glidden, Joseph, 417, 437

Glorious Revolution, 69, R59

Going After Cacciato (O’Brien), 969

gold, 27, 116, 428

in Black Hills, 412, 418

in California, 297–299, i 298, 461, 1094

in Colorado, 410, 418, 419

in English colonies, 43

in Spanish colonies, 36–37, 38

gold bugs, 428, c 428, 429

Goldman, Emma, 598

Goldmark, Josephine, 517

gold rush. See gold.

gold standard, 396, 428, R41, R59

Goldwater, Barry, 894, 1038

Goliad, Battle of, 291

Gompers, Samuel, 451–452, 539, 557

Gone with the Wind (Mitchell), 530, 717, R59

González, Pedro J., 710, i 710

Good Neighbor policy, 740

Goodyear, Charles, 276

Gorbachev, Mikhail, 1054–1055

Gore, Albert, 144, 825, 1071–1072, i 1072, 1083

Gould, Jay, i 446

Graham, Michael, 114

grandfather clause, 493, R59

Grange, 426–427, 444–445, R59

Granger laws, 445

Grant, Madison, 621

Grant, Ulysses S., 295, 362, i 362, 380, R51

as Civil War general, 342, i 342, 360, i 360, 362–363, 365, i 365
R100

corruption under, 395–396, i 396

in election of 1868, 382

presidency of, 395–396

Grapes of Wrath (Steinbeck), i 702, 720, R59

graphs

bar, 339, 367, 388, 507, 613, 622, 812, 1097, R28, R30

circle, 251, 339, 461, 648, 672, 832, 887, 929, 1020, R28, R30

creating, 419, 637, 993, 1015, 1053, R30

interpreting, 31, 216, 251, 339, 367, 388, 453, 489, 506, 507, 537, 540, 550, 583, 595, 622, 633, 676, 723, 770, 812, 832, 842, 849, 859, 865, 867, 887, 903, 929, 949, 961, 983, 1015, 1019, 1020, 1032, R28

line, 216, 453, 540, 550, 583, 595, 633, 676, 714, 723, 770, 842, 849, 859, 865, 867, 887, 903, 949, 1015, 1019, 1033, 1052, 1063, R28, R30

using, 461, 613, 648, 672, 714, 903, 1015, 1033, 1052, 1063, 1097, R30

Gray, Elizabeth, 264

Gray v. Sanders, 980–981

Great Awakening, 83–84

Great Britain. See also Declaration of Independence; England; Revolutionary War.

American colonies’ relations with, 66, 68–71, 88–89, 96–102, c 100–101, 103–104

antiterrorism coalition and, 1102, 1105

Civil War and, 346–347

Emancipation Proclamation and, 347

England becomes, 69

French relations with, 70, 85, 86, 116, 121, 191, 194, 320, 579

Industrial Revolution and, 213

mercantilism and, 66–67

North American claims of, m 87, 285

U.S. relations with, 191, 192, 285, 346

Rush-Bagot Treaty and, 220–221

war debts and, 625, 626, 675

War of 1812 and, 202–205

in World War I, 579, 580, 583, 584–585, 589, 590

in World War II, 743, 744, 745, 746, 756, 757–760, 776, 779, 780

Great Compromise, 141, 142, R59

Great Depression, i 668–669, 670, c 676, i 684, 1009, 1116, R40, R41, R59. See also New Deal; stock market.

bread line and, 679, R55

causes of, 677

cities and, 678–679, i 679

Dust Bowl and, 680

end of, 723

families and, 680–683

as global event, 675, i 675, 677

Nazis and, 737

New Deal and, 694–700

psychological impact of, 683

in rural areas, 679, 680, i 683, 684

shantytowns in, 679, R66

social impact of, 683

soup kitchens in, 679, R66

stock market crash and, 673, i 673, 674–675

women and, 681–682

work projects and, 697–698

worldwide trade and, 677

Great Gatsby, The (Fitzgerald), 656, 664

Great Lakes, 10, 217

Great Migration (of African Americans), 599–600, i 599, 658–659, 1095, R59

Great Plains, 408, m 408, 415, 529, R59. See also cattle ranching.

Dust Bowl in, 681

farming on, 423

Native Americans of, 408–409, 410, 412–413

white settlers on, 409–410, 412, 413, 420

Great Potato Famine, 264

Great Salt Lake, 285

Great Society, 895–897, c 896, 925, 947, 1001, R59

impact of, 899

Great Strike of 1877, 453, 454

“Great White Fleet” (U.S. Navy), i 549

Greeley, Horace, 318, i 318, 320, 347, 396

Greene, Nathanael, 107, i 107, 120

Greenspan, Alan, 1076, i 1076

Greenville, Treaty of, 194

Gregg, David, 360

Grenada, 1058

Grenville, George, 88–89, 96

Grew, Nehemiah, 71

Grimes, Harry, 312

Grimké, Angelina, 255

Grimké, Sarah, 255, i 256

gross domestic product (GDP), R41, c R41, R44

“ground zero,” 1101, i 1101. See also September 11 terrorist attack; war on terrorism.

group, working with a. See working with a group.

Guadalcanal, Battle of, 787

Guadalupe Hidalgo, Treaty of, m 296, 297, R67

Guam, 552, 556

facts about, R48

Guatemala, 6, 830

Gubar, Stephan, 948, i 948

Guilford Court House, North Carolina, 120

Guiteau, Charles, 476

Gulf of Mexico, 6, 7, 38

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. See Tonkin Gulf Resolution.

Gulf War. See Persian Gulf War.

gun control, 1109

Gwathmey, Robert, 719

H

habeas corpus, writ of, 349, R59

Haber, Al, 950

Haida people, 9

Haight-Ashbury, 988, R59

Haile Selassie, 739, i 739

Haiti, 27, 201

U.S. troops in, 1069

Haldeman, H. R., 1009, i 1009, 1010, 1013

Hamer, Fanny Lou, 921–922

Hamilton, Alexander, 141, 146, i 146, 148, 183, i 183, 184, i 184, 191

Constitutional Convention and, 141

duel with Burr, 198

economic plan of, 184–185, 198

and election of 1800, 198

The Federalist and, 146

views of federal government, c 185

Hancock, John, 98, 100

Harding, Warren G., 623, 625, i 625, R51

death of, 627

foreign policy of, 625–626

scandals and, 626–627

Harlan, John Marshall, 496, i 496

Harlem Renaissance, 660, 661, i 661, 662, 664, 665, R59

Harmar, Josiah, 193

Harpers Ferry, Virginia, i 302–303

John Brown’s raid on, 327–328

Harrington, Michael, 888

Harris, William Torrey, 488, 489

Harrison, Benjamin, 477, R51

Harrison, William Henry, 203, 234, 235, i 235, 477, R50

Harte, Bret, 430

Harvard College, 97

Haskell, Frank Aretas, 357

Hastie, William H., 711

Hatch Act (1887), 423

Hawaii, 461, 548, c 550, 551–552

1898, m 551

facts about, R48

Hawaiian Islands. See Hawaii.

hawks, 952, R59

Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act (1930), 677, R59

Hawthorne, Nathaniel, 243

Hay, John, 556, 562, 563

Hayden, Tom, 950, 957

Hayes, Roland, 662

Hayes, Rutherford B., 399, i 399, 453, 476, i 476, R51

in election of 1876, 399

Haymarket affair, 453

Hayne, Robert, 231–232

Haynes, Lemuel, i 241

Hay-Pauncefote Treaty, 566

Hays, Mary Ludwig (Molly Pitcher), 117, i 117

Haywood, William “Big Bill,” 452, 598

H-bomb, 829, R59

headright system, 45, R59

health care, c 1114–1115. See also diseases.

in Civil War, 354–355, i 355

Medicare and Medicaid and, 896, 1002, 1071, 1090, 1114–1115, 1118

reform of, 1067, 1114

vaccinations, 850

women and, 256–257

in World War I, 591

Health, Education, and Welfare, Department of (HEW), 1003

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, 1114

health maintenance organization (HMO), 1115
R101

Hearst, William Randolph, 501, 553

Heckler, Margaret, 1048

Helena, Montana, 410

Helsinki Accords, 1017

Hemingway, Ernest, 657

Henri, Robert, 501

Henry, Patrick, 97, 146, i 146, 147

Henry VIII (king of England), 50

Henry the Navigator, Prince, 20, i 20, 25

Hepburn Act, 526

Hernandez, Antonia, 1088

Hessians, 114

HEW. See Health, Education, and Welfare, Department of.

Hickock, James Butler “Wild Bill,” 417

Higgins, Pattillo, 436, i 436

Higher Education Act, 985

hijacking. See airplane(s), hijackings.

Hill, A. P., 358

Hill, Anita, 1042, i 1042

Hill, Esther Clark, 420

Hindenburg disaster, 718

Hine, Lewis, 517

Hirabayashi v. United States, 802

Hirohito (emperor of Japan), 790

Hiroshima, Japan, i 584, 790

Hispanic Americans. See Latinos; Mexican Americans; Puerto Ricans.

Hispaniola, 27, 28

Hiss, Alger, 824

historical context. See historical perspective, developing.

historical perspective, developing, 19, 23, 30, 31, 32, 54, 69, 76, 92, 133, 150, 176, 333, 402, 544, 550, 597, 605, 609, 612, 623, 636, 643, 709, 717, 724, 728, 755, 793, 801, 862, 878, 932, 941, 953, 970, 994

historical questions, formulating, R12

History of the Standard Oil Company, The (Tarbell), 514, 532

history, interacting with, 3, 33, 63, 65, 93, 95, 127, 131, 151, 177, 181, 209, 211, 237, 239, 269, 273, 301, 303, 335, 337, 373, 403, 407, 433, 435, 457, 459, 479, 481, 507, 511, 545, 547, 575, 577, 613, 617, 639, 667, 669, 693, 729, 733, 765, 767, 805, 807, 837, 839, 871, 875, 903, 905, 933, 935, 971, 973, 995, 999, 1033, 1035, 1063, 1065, 1097

history through architecture, 57, 305, 484, 542, 1089

history through art, 21, 51, 98, 242, 328, 359, 416, 501, 570, 599, 620, 641, 719, 851

history through film, 608, 772, 1030

history through music, 862

history through photojournalism, 369, 384, 517, 703, 788, 919, 963

Hitler, Adolf, 609, 722, 737, i 737, 742, 743, i 743, 809

death of, 783

Final Solution, the, 750–752

rise to power of, 737–739

in World War II, 744, 745, 746, 749, 756, 759, 776, 777, 778, 779, 780, 782

HMO. See health maintenance organization.

Hobby, Oveta Culp, 769

Ho Chi Minh, 937, i 937, 938

Ho Chi Minh Trail, 938, R59

Hogg, James S., 516, i 516

Hohokam people, m 6, 7, 9, R59

HOLC. See Home Owners Loan Corporation.

holding company, 449

Holland Tunnel, 629

Holley, Mary Austin, 290

Hollywood Ten, 823, R59

Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 602–603, i 602

Holocaust, 748–755, c 751, i 752–753, R59

Home Insurance Building (Chicago), 437

Homeland Security Advisory System, 1102–1103, i 1102

homelessness, 1116

Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC), 698, c 706

home rule, 399, R59

Homer, Winslow, i 267

Homestead Act, 421, 634, R60

homesteaders, 421, 634

Homestead strike, 453–454

Hooker, Joseph, 358

Hoover, Herbert, 628, 672, i 672, 684–686, i 684, 687, 695, R52

Bonus Army and, 688–689

early life, 890

Food Administration and, 595–596

Great Depression and, 677, 684–686

philosophy of government of, 685

as secretary of commerce, 626

Hoover Dam. See Boulder Dam.

Hope, Bob, 717

Hopewell people, m 6, 7, R60

Hopi people, 9, 10, 13

Hopkins, Harry, 698, 704, 718

Hopper, Edward, 656

Hopwood v. Texas, 1111

horizontal integration, 448, R60

horses

Native Americans and, 409

Spanish and, 409, 414

House, Edward M., 604, i 604

House Judiciary Committee, 1008, 1011, 1012

House of Burgesses, 48

House of Representatives, 536, 1052, 1053, 1071. See also Congress.

in Constitution, 154–155

Constitutional Convention and, 142

in 1800s, c 306

election of 1800 and, 198

election of 1824 and, 224

election of members, 154, 155

impeachment power, 381

number of members, 154

qualifications of members, 154

vacancies in, 154

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), 823, R60

housing, 671

in cities, 470, 1089

Great Society and, 896

New Deal and, 698

after World War II, 841

Housing and Urban Development, Department of (HUD), 896

Houston, Sam, 292, i 292

Howard, Ebenezer, 485

Howe, Elias, 275

Howe, Julia Ward, 522

Howe, Richard, 114

Howe, William, 114, 115

HUAC. See House Un-American Activities Committee.

Hubble Space Telescope, 1085

HUD. See Housing and Urban Development, Department of.

Hudson, Henry, m 39, 55

Hudson River, 55, 85, 277

Huerta, Dolores, 976

Huerta, Victoriano, 569

Hughes, Charles Evans, 585, 625

Hughes, Langston, 660, 662, 665, i 665

Hull, Cordell, 758

Hull House, 472

human-environment interaction, xxx, 192, 204, 381, 437, 445, 529, 551, 562, 781, 786, 811, 881, 1022. See also geographic factors, human.

Human Genome Project, 1085

human rights, 931, 1021, R60

in China, 1069

Humphrey, Hubert, 957–958, 959

Humphrey, R. M., 427

Hundred Days, 695, 701

Hundred Years’ War, 23

Hungary, 831–832

hunting and gathering, 5, 9, 10

Hupa people, 9

Huron people, 86

Hurston, Zora Neale, 658, i 658, 659, 662, 720

Hussein, Saddam, 1059, 1073, 1104–1105, i 1105

capture of, 1073

history of regime of, c 1104–1105

Hutchinson, Anne, 52

hypothesizing, 13, 18, 89, 108, 117, 137, 149, 208, 223, 236, 309, 345, 371, 382, 439, 455, 477, 487, 491, 537, 574, 609, 674, 700, 720, 795, 803, 821, 827, 833, 870, 979, 1013, 1059, 1061, 1093, R13, R34

I

Iberian Peninsula, 22

Ibo people, 17, 18

ICC. See Interstate Commerce Commission.

Ice Age, 4–5

Idaho, 522

facts about, R48

identifying bias. See bias, identifying.

identifying problems. See problems, identifying.

Ife, kingdom of, 18

Ifi people, 17

ILGWU. See International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union.

Illinois, 192, 215, 222, 284, 324, 325, 332, 437
R102
facts about, R48

I Love Lucy, 859, i 860

immigrants, 195, 1091–1092, 1094, 1106–1107, i 1107. See also immigration.

at Angel Island, 463, i 464

Chinese, 299, 410, 421, i 443, 460, 461, c 461, 463, 464–465, i 464, i 465, 495

in cities, 468–469, 472, 641

Cuban, 1050

difficulties of, 462–464

education of, 490

at Ellis Island, 462–463

European, 73, 81, c 81, 461, 621, i 622, 634

female, 520

German, 73, 81, c 81, 245, 264, 410, c 461, 597–598

illegal, 975, 1092, 1107

Irish, 264, 421, 443, c 461, 469

Italian, c 461, 621

Japanese, 461, c 461, 465, 621

Jewish, 81, 461, 464, 490

Mexican, 462, c 462, i 622, 975, 1092

nativism and, 319, 464–465, 620–621, 1106

origins of, 461–462, c 461, c 622, 1091–1092

political machines and, 474

Scandinavian, 81, c 461

Scottish and Scots-Irish, 73, 81, c 81

Vietnamese, 1095, i 1095

West Indian, 462

World War I and, 597–598, 599

immigration, 460–465, 466, i 466, 634, 897, 1091–1092, m 1091, 1106–1107, c 1106–1107. See also immigrants.

economic implications, 1106–1107

in 1840s, 263

to the North, 304–305

patterns of, c 461, c 622

restrictions on, 464–465, 620–621, 623, 1106–1107

U.S. citizenship and, 1107

westward expansion and, 299, 410, 421, 1094, i 1094

Immigration Acts of 1924 and 1965, 897

Immigration Restriction League, 464

impeachment, 92, i 92, 381–382, 806, 1012, 1013, 1071, R60

imperialism, R60. See also Hawaii.

Asian, 549

European, 548, 549, 579

U.S., 548, 549, 552–553, 556–557, 559, i 560, m 562

imperial presidency, 1009

Imperial Presidency, The (Schlesinger), 1009

impressment, 202–203, R60

inalienable rights, 106

Inca, 6, R60

income

difference between men’s and women’s, c 1048

uneven distribution of, c 672, 677, c 867

income tax, 367, 427, 596, 540, c 540, 629, 773, R60

Civil War and, 354

indentured servants, 45, 47, 75, R60

Independence, Missouri, 282, 284

India, 25

Indiana, 192, 215, 437

facts about, R48

Indian Affairs, Bureau of, 978

Indian Education Act (1972), 978

Indian Ocean, 25

Indian Removal Act of 1830, 226, m 227, 228, R60

Indian Reorganization Act (1934), 868–869

Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (1975), 978–979

Indians, 27. See also Native Americans; Plains Indians.

Indian Territory, 349

indigo, i 66

Indochina, 785, 937, m 939. See also

Cambodia; Laos; Vietnam.

Industrial Revolution, 212–213, R60

Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), 452, i 452, 598, i 598, 619, R60

industry, 80, i 213, 259–260, 274, c 1020, 1076–1077. See also business; factories; inventions; railroads; steel industry; textile industry.

effect on, of Civil War, 367

effect on, of September 11 terrorist attack, 1077

electricity and, 437–438

expansion of, in late 19th century, 437–437, 447–450

in Great Britain, 213

natural resources and, 436–437, m 437

in 1920s, 670, 671

in the North, m 261, 274, 304–305

pollution and, 440–441, 1026

railroads and, 443–444

in the South, 392, i 392

in World War II, 770–771, c 770

inferences, making. See making inferences.

inflation, 116, 353, 773–774, 1004, 1017, 1019, c 1019, R41, R42, R60

Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660–1783, The (Mahan), 550

information superhighway, 1083, R60

INF Treaty. See Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.

Inglis, Charles, 107, i 107

Ingram, David, 10

initiative, 518, R60

installment plan, 631–632, R60

interacting with history. See history, interacting with.

interchangeable parts, 212, R60

interest rate, 1017, R42, c R42

Interior, Department of the, 422, 627

Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty), 1055, R60

Internal Revenue Service, 1002

International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU), 454–455, 714

international relations. See foreign affairs and foreign policy.

International Space Station (ISS), 1085

Internet, 276, 277, 635, 1083, 1112, R60. See also computers, using; researching.

using for research, 3, 35, 65, 95, 131, 177, 181, 211, 237, 239, 247, 269, 273, 301, 303, 333, 335, 337, 375, 407, 431, 436, 459, 481, 497, 507, 508, 511, 533, 547, 577, 603, 611, 617, 637, 639, 665, 669, 693, 709, 733, 767, 803, 805, 807, 839, 871, 875, 901, 905, 915, 935, 969, 973, 981, 995, 999, 1015, 1025, 1035, 1063, 1081, 1097, 1103, 1105, 1107, 1109, 1111, 1113, 1115, 1117, 1119, 1121, 1123, R29, R34

internment, 800–803, R60

interpreting charts. See charts, interpreting.

interpreting data. See data, interpreting.

interpreting graphs. See graphs, interpreting.

interpreting maps. See maps, interpreting.

interpreting time lines. See time lines, interpreting.

interstate commerce, 219–220, 445, 455, 516–517, 708–709

Interstate Commerce Act, 445, 526, R60

Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), 445–446, 526, 917

Intolerable Acts, 99, c 101, 110, R60

Inuit, 5

Invasion of the Body Snatchers, 834, i 834

inventions, 212, 215, 275–276, i 276–277, 437–438, c 438, 483, 485–486, i 486, 1084–1087, i 1087. See also

technology.

Iowa (Native American people), 409

Iowa (state), 421

facts about, R48

Iran, 829–830, 1105. See also Iran-Contra scandal.

revolution in, 1023

U.S. hostages in, 1023, 1038

war with Iraq, 1059

Iran-Contra scandal, 1058–1059

Iraq

Persian Gulf War and, 1059, m 1060, 1061, 1067, 1073, 1104

U.S.-led war against, 1073, 1104–1105

war with Iran, 1059

Irish immigrants, 195, 264, c 461, 469

as railroad workers, 421, 443

iron, 80, 437, m 437, 443

ironclad ship, 343

Iron Curtain, 811, m 811, R60

Iroquois nation, 10, 13, 86, 87, R60

Isabella (queen of Spain), 22, i 22, 25, 30

Islam, 14, 15, m 23, 1023, 1102, R60. See also Muslims.

Crusades and, 22

reconquista and, 22

isolationism, 568, i 568, 610, i 610, 618, 740–741, i 740, 758, R60

Israel, 831, 1022

Camp David Accords, 1022

Yom Kippur War and, 1005

ISS. See International Space Station.

issues, analyzing. See analyzing issues.

Italy, 24, 461
R103
Ethiopia and, m 738, 739

fascism in, 736

World War I and, 579

World War II and, 757, 779

Iwo Jima, 788, i 788, 789

IWW. See Industrial Workers of the World.

J

Jackson, Andrew, i 226, 232, 233, i 233, 290, R50

appeal of, to common citizen, 225, i 225

election of 1824 and, 224–225

Native Americans and, 226, 228

spoils system and, 226

states’ rights and, 232

in War of 1812, 205

Jackson, Helen Hunt, 412

Jackson, Jesse, 928, 1049, i 1049

Jackson, Robert, 792

Jackson State University, 962

Jackson, Thomas J. “Stonewall,” 341, 345, 358

Jacksonians, 225

JACL. See Japanese American Citizens League.

Jacksonville, Florida, 38

Jamaica, 75, 462

James I (king of England), 43, 47

James II (king of England), 56, 69, i 70

James, Henry, 502

James River, 45, 121

Jamestown, Virginia, 43, i 44, m 44, 45, 49

Japan, 549, 738, 1020

in Russo-Japanese War, 565–566

trade with U.S., 281

in World War II, 757, 760–763, 768, 776, 784, 785, m 786, 787, 788, 789–792, 793

Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), 801, R60

Japanese Americans, 452

internment of, during World War II, 800–801, i 800, i 801, m 801, 802–803

as soldiers in World War II, 770, 779, 801

Japanese immigrants, 461, c 461, 465, 621

Jaworski, Leon, 1011

Jay, John, 122, 145, i 145, 146, 147, 148

Jay’s Treaty (1794), 194

jazz, 662–663, 664, 863, i 863, R60

Jazz Singer, The, 656

Jefferson, Thomas, 109–111, 183–185, i 183, 184, i 184, 186, 191, 194–196, 197–199, 222, i 224, 930, R50

Alien and Sedition Acts and, 195

as author of Declaration, 105–106, 224

Constitution and, 147

in election of 1796, 194

in election of 1800, 198

embargo and, 203

Enlightenment thought and, 83

Hamilton and, 184

Lewis and Clark expedition and, 201

presidency of, 198–199, 202

views of federal government, c 185

Jeffords, Jim, 1074

Jenney, William LeBaron, 437

Jewett, Sarah Orne, 502

Jews, 117, 715, 737

in American colonies, 81

in Holocaust, 748, 749, 750–755, c 751, i 754

as immigrants, 461, 464, 490

in pre–World War II Germany, 748–750, i 749, i 750

Jim Crow laws, 493, 497, 907, 914–915, R60

Job Corps, 894, 1002

Johnson, Andrew, 364, 376, i 376, 380, R51

impeachment of, 162, i 162, 381

Reconstruction and, 376, 377–379, 380, 381

Johnson, Henry, 588

Johnson, James Weldon, 659, i 659, 660

Johnson, Lyndon B., 887, 889, R52

affirmative action and, 635, 1025

civil rights and, 893–894, 920, 921, 922

containment policy and, 943

Great Society, 895–899, 925

tax reduction and, 893–894

Tet offensive and, 956

Tonkin Gulf Resolution and, 941

Vietnam and, 940–941, 942–943, 946–947, 951, 953

War on Poverty of, 894, 899, 925

Johnson, Tom, 516

Johnston, Joseph E., 344

joint-stock company, 42–43, R60

Jones, Eva B., 386–387

Jones, Len, 747

Jones, Mary Harris “Mother,” 454, i 454

Jordan, Barbara, 1008, i 1008

Jordan, Vernon, 928

journalism. See magazines; newspapers; photography.

Joy Luck Club, The (Tan), 1081

Judaism, 15

judicial branch, 143, 199, R61. See also court system; Supreme Court; Supreme Court cases.

authority of, 163

in Constitution, 143, 163, 183

federal courts, 162

treason and, 163

judicial review, 199, R61

Judiciary Act of 1789, 183, R61

Judiciary Act of 1801, 199, R61

Jungle, The (Sinclair), 523, 526, 533, R61

K

Kahn, Gordon, 822

Kahn, Tony, 822, i 822

Kaiser, Henry J., 771

Kalakaua (king of Hawaii), 551

kamikaze pilots, 787, i 787, R61

Kansas, 40, 312, 313–316, 414, 421, 914–915

conflict over slavery in, 314–316, 325

facts about, R48

Kansas City, Missouri, 474

Kansas-Nebraska Act, 314–315, m 314, 317, 319, 320, 321, R61

Karzai, Hamid, 1073, i 1073

Katrina, i 1074

Kashaya Pomo people, 8, 9, R61

Kearney, Denis, 465

Kearny, Stephen, 295, i 295

Keating, Charles, 1013

Keating-Owen Act (1916), 517

Kelley, Florence, 513, i 513, 517

Kelley, Oliver Hudson, 426–427

Kellogg-Briand Pact, 625–626, 740

Kelly, William, 437

Kennan, George F., 811

Kennedy, Anthony M., i 163, 1042

Kennedy, Jacqueline, 878, i 878, i 888

Kennedy, John F., 675, 876–877, i 876, 880, 882–884, 983, 1120, R52

Alliance for Progress and, 886–887

arms race and, 879

assassination of, 888–889, i 888, 920

Bay of Pigs invasion and, 880

Berlin crisis and, 883–884

civil rights and, 877, 888, 917, 918, 920

Cuban missile crisis and, 880, 882

economy and, 886

election of, 876–877

environment and, 1027

New Frontier program of, 885–886

Peace Corps and, 886

space exploration and, 887

Kennedy, Joseph P., 675

Kennedy, Robert F., 878, 888, 917, 927, i 927, 928, 956–957, i 957, 976

kente cloth, 19, i 19

Kent State University, 962–963, i 963, R61

Kentucky, 195–196, 201, 331, 339, 437

facts about, R48

Kentucky Resolutions, 195–196

Kerner Commission, 928, R61

kerosene, 437

Kerouac, Jack, 861, i 861

Kerry, John, 1074

Keynes, John Maynard, 698, i 698, R42

Khmer Rouge, 966

Khomeini, Ayatollah Ruhollah, 1023, i 1023

Khrushchev, Nikita, 880, 882, i 882

Kim Il Sung, 817

Kim Jong Il, 1105

King, Martin Luther, Jr., 877, i 904–905, 911–912, i 912, 918, 920, 922, 925, 926, 927, 928, 949, 956

King, Rodney, 1047

King Cotton, 340, 346

King Philip. See Metacom.

King Philip’s War, 54, R61

Kiowa people, 412, 431

Kissinger, Henry, 964, i 964, 1000, i 1000, 1005, 1017

Klein, Gerda Weissmann, 748, i 748, 755

Knight, Amelia Stewart, 280, i 280, 282

Knights of Labor, 451, 452

Know-Nothing Party, 319, i 319, 320, c 320, R61

Knox, Henry, 183, i 183

Kodak camera, 487, i 487
R104

Kongo, 17, R61

Kopecki, Lilli, 754

Koran. See Qur’an.

Korea, 566, 817. See also Korean War.

Korean War, 815, i 815, 817–821, m 819, 937, R61

domestic effects of, 817, 823

international effects of, 818, 823

Korematsu, Fred, 802, i 803

Korematsu v. United States, 801, 802–803

Kramer, Alyce Mano, 771

Kristallnacht, i 749, 749, R61

Ku Klux Klan, 394, i 394, 621, i 621, R61

Kuwait, 1059, i 1060, 1061

Kwakiutl people, 9, 13, R61

L

labor force, 452, 848–849, c 1020, 1048–1049, 1075–1077, c 1077. See also economy; industry; labor movement; unions; working conditions.

children in, i 450, 451, 454, 512, 516–517, i 517, 527, i 527

in factories, 260, 438, 450–451, 512, 515

immigration and, 263–264

Industrial Revolution and, 213

New Deal and, 705, 709, 724

unemployment and, 234, 428, 446, 675, c 676, c 723, c 1019, R40, R47

women in, 259, 260, 262–263, 438, 450–451, 513, 517, 519–520, 594, 647–648, c 648, i 648, 771, i 771, 797, i 797, 983, c 983, i 1075, 1075, 1120–1121, c 1120–1121

World War II, 771–772

labor movement, 450–455, 595, 618, 623, 624. See also labor force; strikes; unions.

African Americans in, 451, 624, 771–772

agricultural workers and, 452, 974, 976

women in, 454–455, i 623, 983, 1048–1049

labor unions. See unions.

Ladies Industrial Association, 264

Lafayette, Marquis de, 119, 121

Laffer, Arthur, 1041

La Flesche, Susette, 519, i 519

La Follette, Robert M., 516

laissez faire doctrine, 448

land mines, 343, 945

Landon, Alfred, 702

Land Ordinance of 1785, 135, R61

Lange, Dorothea, 701, i 702, 703

Laos, 938, m 939, 961

La Raza Unida, 976, R61

La Salle, Sieur de (Robert Cavelier), m 39, 86

Las Casas, Bartolomé de, 28

Latin America, 568, 974–975. See also Panama Canal; names of specific nations.

and Alliance for Progress, 886–887

Good Neighbor Policy in, 740

Monroe Doctrine and, 221

Latinos, 679, 974–977, 1050, 1088, 1090, 1092. See also Mexican Americans; Puerto Ricans.

Lawrence, Joseph D., 589, i 589

Laws of Conquest, 46

Lazarus, Emma, 467

League of Nations, 604, 605, 607, 608, 618, 737–739, R61

Lease, Mary Elizabeth, 425, i 425, 427

Lecompton Constitution, 325

Le Duc Tho, 964

Lee, Ann, 244

Lee, Dorothy, 12

Lee, Richard Henry, 105, 146, 147–148

Lee, Robert E., 293, i 293, 295

in Civil War, 344–345, 357–360, 362, i 362, 363, 365, i 365, 370

legislative branch, 143, R61. See also Congress.

Leigh, Vivian, i 717

leisure activities, 499–500, 504–505, 851. See also entertainment; sports.

Lend-Lease Act, 758, 759, R61

L’Enfant, Pierre, 186

Lenin, Vladimir I., i 611, 617, 619, 735

Leo Africanus, 14, 15

“Letter from a Birmingham Jail” (King), 918

Letters on the Equality of the Sexes and the Condition of Woman (Sarah Grimké), 256

Letters from the Federal Farmer (Lee), 146

Let Us Now Praise Famous Men (Agee and Evans), 720, i 720

Lewis, John, 954, i 954

Lewis, John L., 624, i 624, 714

Lewis, Meriwether, 201

Lewis, Sinclair, 656

Lewis and Clark expedition, 197, m 200

Lexington, Battle of, 100–101, c 101, i 101, 105

Leyte Gulf, Battle of, 787

Liberal Republican Party, 396

Liberator, The, 249, i 249

Liberty League. See American Liberty League.

Liberty Party, 319

light bulb, 437, 438

Liliuokalani (queen of Hawaii), 548, i 548, 551

Limited Test Ban Treaty, 884, R61

Lin, Maya, 966, i 966

Lincoln, Abraham, 294, 324, i 324, 326, i 326, i 329, 331, 347, i 347, i 348, i 371, R51

assassination of, 370, i 371

in Civil War, 330, 339, 340, 341, i 345, 361, 364–365, 466

in Congress, 294

debates with Douglas, 325–327

early life of, 348

in election of 1860, 328–330, m 330

in election of 1864, 364–365

emancipation and, 347–348

Gettysburg Address and, 361

nomination of, 329

Reconstruction and, 376, 377

slavery, view of, 347

Lindbergh, Charles, 630, 655, i 655, 758

Li Peng, 1056

literacy test, 174, 464, 493

literature

beat movement and, 861

Harlem Renaissance and, 660, 662, 664, 665

in 1920s, 656–657, 664–665

in 1930s, 720

science fiction, 834–835

of Transcendentalists, 246–247

at turn of century, 502

of Vietnam War, 968–969

of West, 430–431

women and, 665, 1080–1081

Little Bighorn, Battle of, m 408, 410, 412

Little Rock, Arkansas, 909–910, i 909

Little Round Top, 359

Little Turtle, 193, i 193

Livingston, Robert, 201, 219–220

Lloyd George, David, 605, i 605

lobbying, 872

location, xxx, 11, 15, 23, 67, 115, 192, 204, 283, 296, 313, 358, 361, 411, 551, 555, 562, 581, 592, 606, 736, 738, 744, 800, 811, 939, 955, 1022, 1039, 1057, 1078

Locke, Alain, 660, 663

Locke, John, 106

Locust Street Social Settlement, 472

Lodge, Henry Cabot, Sr., 607

London, Jack, 471, 502

Long, Huey, 700, i 700

long drive. See cattle drive.

longhorn cattle, 414, 416, R61

longhouse, i 11, 13

Longoria, Felix, 868

Longstreet, James, 359–360

Looking Glass, Chief, i 286

Lopez de la Cruz, Jessie, 974

Los Angeles, California, 925, 1047, 1049

Los Niños Héroes, 297, i 297

Lost Generation, 657

Louis XIV (king of France), 86

Louis XVI (king of France), 191

Louisiana, 86, 330, 377, 700, 907

facts about, R48

French, Spanish, and U.S. territory of, 192, 201

Missouri Compromise and, 222

Louisiana Purchase, m 200, 201, m 221, R61

Love Canal, 1026

Low, Ann Marie, 678, i 678

Lowell Offering, 259

Lowell, Massachusetts, 260, i 261, i 263

Loyalists, in Revolutionary War, 106, 107, i 107, 108, R61

Loyalty Review Board, 823

Lucas, Anthony F., 436

Lucas, Eliza, 66

Lucid, Shannon, 1050, i 1050

Luftwaffe, 745, 746–747

Lusitania, m 581, 584, i 584, R61

Lyon, Mary, 256

M

MacArthur, Douglas, 689, 785, 787, 789, i 789, 793, 818, 820–821, i 820
R105

Madero, Francisco, 569

Madison, James, i 141, 143, 183, 191, 198, R50

Constitutional Convention and, 141, 142

early life, 141

on Hamilton’s economic plan, 185

presidency of, 204–205, 216, 218

and ratification of Constitution, 148

Virginia Resolutions and, 195–196

War of 1812 and, 204–205

magazines, 485, 647, 653

Maginot Line, 746, i 746

magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), 1086

Mahan, Alfred T., 549, i 549

mahjong, 654

Mahpiua Luta. See Red Cloud.

mail-order catalogs, 503, i 503

Maine (state), 222, 285, 887, c 979

facts about, R48

Maine, U.S.S., 546, 554, i 554, 610

main ideas, finding, 533, 1035, 1041, R2, R27

making decisions, 535, 792

Making Do (Westin), 681

making generalizations. See forming generalizations.

making inferences, 9, 15, 30, 41, 73, 77, 84, 88, 150, 417, 429, 439, 446, 499, 522, 557, 585, 595, 599, 601, 608, 627, 656, 677, 687, 758, 814, 862, 888, 889, 910, 927, 941, 945, 950, 959, 967, 985, 986, 1017, 1081, 1087, R10, R23. See also drawing conclusions.

making predictions. See predicting effects.

Malcolm X, 925, i 925, 926

MALDEF. See Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Mali, 15, 16

Malinche, 36, i 36

Manchester, William, 784, 789

Manchuria, 566, 738, m 738, 760

mandate, 886, R61

Mandela, Nelson, 148, i 148, 907

Manhattan Project, 773, 789–790, R61

manifest destiny, 280–281, R61

Manikongo, 17

Mann, Horace, 245

manufacturing, 278. See industry; factories.

Mao Zedong, 816, i 816, 927

MAPA. See Mexican American Political

Association.

Mapp v. Ohio, 898, 900

maps

creating, 287, 441, 472, R32

interpreting, 268, 300, 334, 372, 574, 612, 636, 764, 804, 836, 932, 981, 1062, 1096, R25–26

using, 5, 11, 15, 23, 29, 39, 44, 53, 56, 63, 67, 86, 115, 119, 192, 200, 204, 217, 221, 223, 227, 261, 283, 291, 296, 301, 313, 340–341, 358, 361, 363, 381, 411, 415, 437, 445, 461, 469, 484, 529, 537, 551, 555, 562, 573, 575, 580, 592, 606, 613, 622, 629, 655, 680, 726–727, 736, 738, 744, 762, 778, 781, 786, 797, 800, 805, 811, 819, 830, 844, 881, 883, 891, 907, 939, 955, 959, 1022, 1039, 1052, 1053, 1057, 1060, 1078, 1091

Marbury, William, 199

Marbury v. Madison, 199, 206–207, R61

Marconi, Guglielmo, 276

Marcy, Moses, i 68

Marines, U.S., 788, 789

market revolution, 275, R61

Marquette, Jacques, m 39

Marshall, George, 769, 780, 812. See also Marshall Plan.

Marshall, James, 297

Marshall, John, 194, i 195, 199, 220, i 220, 228

Marshall, Thurgood, i 169, 875, 908, i 908, 914, 1042

Marshall Plan, 812, c 812, 842, R61

Martí, José, 553, i 553, 559

martial law, 99, R61

Martian Chronicles, The (Bradbury), 835

Marx, Karl, 452, 619

Mary II (queen of England), 69, i 70

Maryland, 331, 339, 517

in Civil War, 344, 349, 358

colonial, 59, c 67, m 67, 72

facts about, R48

settlement of, 59, 73

Mason, James, 346–347

Massachusetts, 79, 83, 140

charter of, 68–69

colonial, c 67, m 67, 68–69, 83, 88

facts about, R48

Massachusetts Bay Colony, 50

Massachusetts Bay Company, 50, 51

mass media. See communications; radio; television.

mass production, 212, R62

mass transit, 470, R62

Mather, Increase, 69

Maya, 6, m 6, R62

Mayagüez incident, 1017

Mayflower, 50

Mayflower Compact, 50

McCarran Internal Security Act, 824

McCarthy, Eugene, 956

McCarthy, Joseph, 824, i 824, 826–827

McCarthyism, 826–827, c 827, R62

McClellan, George, 342, 344–345, i 345, 364

McCord, James, 1009

McCormick, Cyrus, 279, 423, 437

McCoy, Joseph, 415

McCulloch v. Maryland, 220, R62

McDowell, Irvin, 341

McGrath, John Patrick, 775

McGuffey’s Readers, 245, i 245

McLaurin v. Oklahoma State, 914

McKay, Claude, 660

McKinley, William, 428, 429, 522–523, 551, 553–554, 556–557, 564, 565, R51

McKinley Tariff Act (1890), 477, 550

McNamara, Robert, 878, 879, 943, 945, 947, 953, 955

McNary-Haugen bill, 671

McPherson, Aimee Semple, 644, i 644

McVeigh, Timothy, 1068

Meade, George, 359

Means, Gardiner C., 698

Means, Russell, 978

Meat Inspection Act (1906), 526, 528, i 528, 533, R62

Medicaid, 896, 1002, 1071, 1114, R62

Medicare, 896, 897, 1002, 1071, 1090, 1114–1115, 1118, R62

medicine. See health care.

Mein Kampf (Hitler), 737

Mellon, Andrew, 626

Melville, Herman, 444

melting pot, 464, R62

Mencken, H. L., 643

Menendez de Aviles, Pedro, 38, 39

Mennonites, 81

mercantilism, 66, 68, R62

Mercer, Mabel, 662

merchandising, 502–503

advertising and, 503, 631–632, 854–855

Meredith, James, 917

merit system, 476, 477

Merrimack, 343, i 343, R62

Mesabi Range, 437

mestizos, 38, R62

Metacom, 54

Methodists, 84

Mexica. See Aztec people.

Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), 1088

Mexican American Political Association (MAPA), 976

Mexican Americans, 452, 975, 1050

as cowboys, 416

deportation of, 712

discrimination against, 494–495

Longoria incident and, 868

New Deal and, 710, 712–713

in 1950s, 868

as railroad workers, 421, 494–495, i 495

World War II and, 770, 779, i 799

Mexican War. See Mexico, U.S. war with.

Mexico, 10, 36, 37–38, 571, 585, 974, 975. See also Latinos; Mexican Americans.

ancient cultures of, 5, 6–7

early settlement of, 5

immigrants from, 462, 466, 1092

independence of, 289

NAFTA and, 1070, 1079

revolution in, 569–571

in Southwest, 288–292

Spanish conquest of, 37–38

Texas and, 288–292

U.S. war with, 293–297, m 296

Mexico City, 38, 289, 569

Meyers, Isaac, 451

MFDP. See Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.

Miami Confederacy, 193, 194

Miantonomo, 54

Michigan, 192, 215, 630, 1071

facts about, R48

Michigan, Lake, 485

middle colonies, 55–56, m 56, 58–59, c 67, m 67, 79. See also colonial America.
R106
economy of, 79–80

slavery in, 80

Middle East, 15, 22, 1005, 1022–1023, m 1022, 1058–1059. See also Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

middle passage, 76, R62

midnight judges, 199, R62

Midway, Battle of, 785, R54

migrant workers, 215, i 215, 703, i 703, 890–891, i 890, i 891, m 891

migration, 298, 410, 421, 469, 599–600, 640, 658–659, 680, 797, m 797, 907, 924, 1052–1053, 1094–1095

Miles, Nelson A., 559

militarism, R62

in European nations, 579

in Japan, 738

military technology. See technology, warfare and.

Millay, Edna St. Vincent, 657, 665, i 665

Miller, Thomas W., 627

Mills, Florence, 662

minié ball, 343

minimum wage, 705, R42, c R43

mining, 527, 671. See also coal; gold; iron; silver.

labor movement and, 452, 454, 624, 843

in Spanish colonies, 37

in West, 410, 418–419

Minneapolis, Minnesota, 444

Minnesota, 285, 421, 437, 1043, 1093

facts about, R48

minorities. See African Americans; Asian Americans; Latinos; Native Americans; Jews.

minstrel shows, 504

minutemen, 100, 102, R62

Miranda, Ernesto, 900

Miranda rights, 901, i 901

Miranda v. Arizona, 898, 900–901

missionary diplomacy, 569

Mission San Miguel California, i 40

Mississippi, 330, 360, 917, 921, 926, 1003

facts about, R48

Mississippian people, m 6, 7, R62

Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), 921–922

Mississippi River, 136, 192

Civil War and, 340, 342, 343, 360

steamboats and, 277

Missouri, 222, 314, 325, 331, 332, 339

facts about, R48

Missouri Compromise, 222, m 223, 314–315, m 314, 320, 325, R62

Missouri River, 409, 410

Mitchell, John, 1009, i 1009, 1010

Mitchell, Margaret, 530

Mitchell, Mary Bedinger, 344

Mobile Bay, 364

modeling, 1085

models

creating, 573, 727, R31

using, R18

molasses, 76

Molly Pitcher. See Hays, Mary Ludwig.

Mondale, Walter, 1038, 1043

money supply, 427–428

Monitor, 343, i 343, R62

Monmouth, Battle of, 117, i 117

monopoly, 449, 536–537, 539, 562, R43

Monroe, James, 147, 198, 201, 218, 569, R50. See also Monroe Doctrine.

Missouri Compromise and, 223

presidency of, 221

Monroe, Sylvester, 1049

Monroe Doctrine, 221, i 557, 568, 569, 610, R62

Montana

facts about, R48

Montauk people, 54

Montcalm, Marquis de, 87

Montesinos, Antonio de, 38

Montezuma, 37

Montgomery, Alabama, 330

bus boycott in, i 705, 906, 910–911, R38

as capital of Confederacy, 330

Montgomery Ward, 503

moon landing, 1002, i 1002

Moral Majority, 1037–1038, 1044, R62

Morgan, Daniel, 120

Morgan, J. P., 446, 449

Morgan v. Virginia, 908

Mormons, R62

migration of, 284–285

Morrill Acts, 423, R62

Morris, Gouverneur, 190

Morris, Robert, 116–117

Morse Code, 274, 276

Morse, Samuel F. B., 274, i 274, 276

motion pictures, 500, 505, i 505, 608, 656, 716–717, i 716, 772, i 772, 860–861, 993, 1030

motives, analyzing. See analyzing motives.

Mott, Lucretia, 254, 255, i 255, 257

mound builders, 7

Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, 256

Mount Vernon, 182

movement (geographic theme), xxx, 39, 119, 200, 217, 227, 283, 313, 358, 361, 363, 411, 445, 461, 469, 629, 680, 738, 762, 778, 786, 797, 819, 881, 939, 1060, 1091

movies. See motion pictures.

MRI. See magnetic resonance imaging.

muckrakers, 514, 532–533, R62

Muhammad, 15

Muir, John, 529, 535

Muller v. Oregon, 517

multiculturalism, 31

Muncie, Indiana, 415

Munn v. Illinois, 445, R62

Muñoz Rivera, Luis, 558, i 558

Murphy, Audie, 782, i 782

Murrow, Edward R., 859

music

jazz, 662–663, 863

popular, 858

ragtime, 505

rock ’n’ roll, 861–862, i 862, 992

soul, 992

surf, 992

Muslims, 15, 18–19, 22, 1056, 1102, 1103. See also Islam.

Mussolini, Benito, 736, m 736, 737, i 737, 779

My Ántonia (Cather), 657

Myers, Deb, 769

Myers, Walter Dean, 969

My Lai massacre, 962, R62

Mystic River, 53

N

NAACP. See National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

NACW. See National Association of Colored Women.

Nader, Ralph, 897

Green Party and, 1071

NAFTA. See North American Free Trade Agreement.

Nagasaki, Japan, 790

Nahua peoples, 37

napalm, 945, R62

Napoleon. See Bonaparte, Napoleon.

Narragansett Bay, 52

Narragansett people, 52, 53–54

NASA. See National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

NASDAQ. See National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System.

Nasser, Gamal Abdel, 831

Nast, Thomas, i 385, 475

Nation, Carry, i 513

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), 887, 1085

National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), 522, 538, 541, R63

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), 494, 497, 531, 541–542, 659, R62

National Association of Colored Women (NACW), 521, R62

National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System (NASDAQ), 1077, R62

national bank. See Bank of the United States; Second Bank of the United States.

National Bank Act of 1863, 367, R62

National Child Labor Committee, 516

National Council of Indian Opportunity, 977

national debt, 184, c 185, 1041–1042, 1068, R43

National Energy Act, 1019, R62

National Farm Workers Association, 976

National Housing Act, 698

National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA), 697–698, 705, R62

nationalism, 116, 219–221, 579, 734, m 736, R62

National Labor Relations Act (Wagner Act), 705, c 706, 708–709, 713, R68

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), 705, 706, 708, 723, R63

National Labor Union (NLU), 451

National Liberation Front, 938. See also Vietcong.

National Organization for Women (NOW), 984, R63

National Origins Act, 897
R107

National Park System. See also Yellowstone National Park; Yosemite National Park.

establishment of, 529

National Reclamation Act, 462, 495, 529–530

National Recovery Administration (NRA), 698, c 706

National Rifle Association, 1109

National Road, 217, 278, R63

National Security Council, 1059

National Trades’ Union, 265, R63

National Union Party, 364

National War Labor Board, 595

National Youth Administration (NYA), 705, i 705, c 706, 711, R63

Nation at Risk, A, 1047

Nation of Islam, 925–926, R63

Native Americans, 4–5, 422, 437, 466, 494, 519, 1050, 1092–1093. See also French and Indian War; Plains Indians; westward expansion; names of specific individuals and peoples.

ancient cultures of, 4–5, i 6, c 6, 466

assimilation of, 412–413, 868–869, 977

buffalo and, 409, 413

Civil War and, 349

colonial Americans and, 43, 46–47, 52, 86–87, 88, 106, 108, 122, 634

Constitution and, 149

diseases and, 28, i 28, 37, 58, 88

Eastern Woodlands, 10

education of, 978–979, 1093

in 1400s, i 2–3, m 11, 14–17, m 15

French and, 86

horses and, 409

Indian Removal Act (1830) and, 226, m 227, 228–229

land claims of, 67, 193–194, m 410, 713, 978–979, 1093

land use of, 12, 53, 409, 634

middle ground and, 282

New Deal and, 713

in the 1400s, 8–13, m 11

Northwest Territory and, 192–193

population of, c 31

religious beliefs of, 10, 12, 409

removal of, 226, m 227, 228–229, 634

in Revolutionary War, 108, 117

as slaves, 29, 75

social organization of, 13

Spanish and, 27, 36, 37–38, 40–41

struggle for rights of, 868–869, 977–979, 1092–1093

trading networks of, 10, m 11

Trail of Tears and, m 227, i 227, 229

westward expansion and, 88, 193–194, 281–282, m 283, 409–410, 634

World War II and, 770, 785, i 785

nativism, 319, 464–465, 618, 620–621, R63

NATO. See North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Nauvoo, Illinois, 284

Navajo, i 283, 785, i 785

Navigation Acts, 68, 70, R63

Navy, U.S., 549, 554, 589, 776, 785, 941

NAWSA. See National American Woman Suffrage Association.

Nazism and Nazis, i 732–733, 736, 749, 751, R63. See also Germany; Nuremberg trials; World War II.

Nebraska, 314, 421

facts about, R49

Nebraska Territory, 314

Nehru, Jawaharlal, 820, i 820

Netherlands, the, 746

neutrality, 191, R63

Neutrality Acts, 741, 756, R63

Nevada, 297, 1053

facts about, R49

New Amsterdam, 56

New Deal, 694–700, 712–713, R63. See also Great Depression.

agencies of, c 706

banking relief, 696

Civilian Conservation Corps in, 697, i 697, 711, 725

Civil Works Administration in, 694, i 694, 697

effects of, 694–699, 701–702, 704–705, c 706, 707, 709, 710–715, 724

effects on state governments, 697, 698, 699, 705, 708–709, 724

Fair Labor Standards Act and, 705, 724

farmers under, 697, 702, 704, 724

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 696, 723, 724

Hundred Days, 695

labor unions and, 708–709, 713–715

National Labor Relations Act and, 705, 724

National Recovery Administration and, 698, 705

opposition to, 699–700, 722

Public Utilities Holding Company Act and, 707

Public Works Administration and, 697

Second, 701–707

Securities and Exchange Commission, 696, 724, R45

Social Security system and, 707, 724

Supreme Court and, 699, 702, 705

Tennessee Valley Authority and, 725, m 726–727

women and, 710–711

Works Progress Administration and, 704–705, 718–719

New Deal Coalition, 713, R63

“New Democrats,” 1067

New Echota, Treaty of, 229

New England, 114

colonies in, 50–53, m 53, c 67, m 67, 69, 79–80, 100

New England Anti-Slavery Society, 249

New Federalism, 1001, R63

Newfoundland, 27

New France, 86

New Frontier, 885, R63

New Hampshire, 147, 148

colonial, 53, c 67, m 67

facts about, R49

settlement of, 53

New Harmony, Indiana, 243

New Jersey, 56, 629

colonial, c 67, m 67

facts about, R49

settlement of, 56

New Jersey Plan, 142

Newlands Act. See National Reclamation Act.

New Left, 950, R63

Newman, Pauline, 454–455

New Mexico, 40–41, 297, 306

facts about, R49

Mexican province of, 284, 294

Native Americans in, 289–290

Spanish settlement of, 40–41, 409

as territory, 307

United States and, 284

in war with Mexico, 295

New Negro, The (Locke), 660

New Netherland, 52, 55–56, m 56

English takeover of, 56

New Orleans, Battle of, 205

New Orleans, Louisiana, 87, i 210–211, 343

New Right, 985, 986, 1037, R63

New South, 1003

New Spain, 37

newspapers, 485, 500–501, 552, 553, 653

New Sweden, 56

Newton, Huey, 926

Newton, Isaac, 82

New York, 114, 116, 147, 455, 1053

colonial, 56, c 67, m 67, 79

settlement of, 55–56, 81

New York City, 277, 278, 415, 437, 455, 471, 482, 494, 524, 641, 715

colonial, 80, 97

draft riots in, 350, i 350

facts about, R49

immigrants in, 468, 469, m 469

political machines and, 474, 475

in Revolutionary War, 114–115

tenements in, 468, 470

terrorism in, 1068, 1069, 1100, i 1100

urban planning and, 483–484

New York Stock Exchange, 673, 674, i 674, R45

Nez Perce people, 286, m 286, 414

Ngo Dinh Diem, 938, 940

Niagara Falls Conference, i 530, 531

Niagara Movement, 491, R63

Nicaragua, 566, 568–569, 1057–1058

Nicholas II (czar of Russia), 566

Nichols, Joseph, 85

Niger River, 17, 19

Nimitz, Chester, 785

Niña, 26

9-11 terrorist attack. See September 11 terrorist attack.

Nineteenth Amendment, 171, 541, R63

Ninth Amendment, 149, 167

NIRA. See National Industrial Recovery Act.

Nixon, Richard M., 845–846, i 846, 952, 959, i 998–999, i 1000, 1006, 1009–1010, R52

“Checkers speech” of, 845–846

civil rights and, 1002–1003

détente and, 1005, 1021
R108

environment and, 1027–1028

foreign policy of, 1005–1007, 1021

impeachment and, 1012, 1013

New Federalism and, 1001

pardon of, 1016, 1017

resignation of, 1012–1013, i 1013

SALT I Treaty and, 1006–1007

Saturday Night Massacre and, 1011–1012

Southern strategy of, 1002–1003

stagflation and, 1004–1005

Vietnam War and, 960–964, 1000, 1002

visit to China of, 1006–1007, i 1006

Watergate scandal and, 829, i 829, 1008–1013

welfare reform and, 1001

NLRB. See National Labor Relations Board.

NLRB v. Jones and Laughlin Steel Corp., 708–709

NLU. See National Labor Union.

Nobel Peace Prize, 566

No Child Left Behind, 1073

“no man’s land,” 582, R63

nonaggression pact, 745, R63

Noonan, Peggy, 1036, i 1036

Nootka people, 9, 10

Noriega, Manuel, 1058

Normandy invasion, 780

North, Lord Frederick, 99

North, Oliver, 1059

North Africa, 15

in World War II, 778, m 778

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), 1070, i 1070, 1079, R63

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), 814, i 814, 830, m 830, 1069, R46, R63

North Carolina, 72, m 74, 105, 339, 912

colonial, c 67, m 67

facts about, R49

in Revolutionary War, 120

settlement of, 73

tobacco and economy, 74

North Dakota, 680

Northern Alliance, 1102

Northern colonies, 69, 79–84. See also middle colonies; New England, colonies in.

Industrial Revolution and, 213

settlement of, 49–54

slavery in, 81–82

Northern Pacific Railroad, 427

Northern Securities Company, 525

North Korea, 1105

Northup, Solomon, 250

North Star, The, 250

Northwest Coast, Native Americans of, 9, m 11

Northwest Ordinance of 1787, 135, 333, R63

Northwest Territory, 192–194

Britain and, 192, m 192

notes, using, 32, 62, 92, 126, 150, 208, 236, 268, 300, 334, 372, 402, 432, 456, 478, 506, 544, 575, 612, 636, 666, 728, 764, 804, 836, 870, 902, 932, 970, 994, 1032, 1062, 1096

note-taking. See taking notes.

Novello, Antonia Coello, 1050, i 1050

NOW. See National Organization for Women.

NRA. See National Recovery Administration.

nuclear energy, 1028, 1030–1031

nuclear family, 21, R63

Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, 1105

Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 1030

nuclear weapons, 828, 829–830, 876, 884, 1055

Limited Test Ban Treaty and, 884

nullification, 196, 230–232, 322, R63

Nuremberg Laws, 749

Nuremberg trials, 792–793, i 792, R63

NYA. See National Youth Administration.

Nye, Gerald, 740

O

Oakley, Annie, 417

oba, 17

Obregón, Alvaro, 571

O’Brien, Tim, 942, 969

Ochoa, Ellen, 1085

O’Connor, Sandra Day, i 163, 1042

Oettinger, Hank, 694

Office of Alien Property, 627

Office of Economic Opportunity, 1002

Office of Price Administration (OPA), 773, 841, R63

Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD), 773

Ogden, Aaron, 220

Oglala Sioux, 282, i 282

Oglethorpe, James, 59

O’Hara, Charles, 121

Ohio (state), 192, 193–194, 199, 201, 437

facts about, R49

Ohio gang, 215, 626, R63

Ohio River, 86

Ohio River valley, 85, 88

oil, m 437, 449. See also environment, protection of.

in Alaska, 1028

energy crisis and, 1018–1019

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and, 1005, 1017

Persian Gulf War and, 1059–1060, 1104

in Texas, 436, 437, 1019

Ojibwa people, 10, 86

O’Keeffe, Georgia, 656

Okinawa, 789

Oklahoma, 40, 421

facts about, R49

“Old Hickory,” 225

Olive Branch Petition, 105, R63

Oliver, Joe “King,” 662

Olmec people, 6, i 6, m 6, R63

Olmsted, Frederick Law, 483

Omaha, Nebraska, 421, 427

Omaha Beach, 780, i 781

On the Road (Kerouac), 861

OPA. See Office of Price Administration.

OPEC. See Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Opechancanough, Chief, 47

Open Door notes, 562, 563, 565, R63

Open Door policy, 562, 563

open-hearth process, 437

Operation Desert Storm, 1061, R63

Operation Enduring Freedom, 1102

Operation Iraqi Freedom, 1105

Operation Overlord, 780

Operation Rolling Thunder, 941

Operation Torch, 778

opinions, forming. See forming opinions.

Oppenheimer, J. Robert, 789

oral presentations, creating, R36

Order of the Star-Spangled Banner, 319

Oregon, 284, 414

facts about, R49

Oregon Territory, 221, 284, 285

Oregon Trail, m 283, 284, 286–287, m 286–287, R63

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), 1005, 1017, 1019, R63, US8

Organization Man, The (Whyte), 849

Origin of Species, On The (Darwin), 448

Orlando, Vittorio, 605

Ortega, Daniel, 1058

Oswald, Lee Harvey, 889

Osage, 409

Osama bin Laden. See bin Laden, Osama.

OSRD. See Office of Scientific Research and Development.

Other America, The (Harrington), 887

Ottawa people, 86

Ottoman Empire, 580, m 581

outline, creating a, R35, R36

Oyo people, 17

P

Paine, Thomas, 105

painting. See art.

Palestinians, 1022

Palmer, A. Mitchell, 619

Palmer raids, 619

Palmieri, Matteo, 24

Panama, 566–567, 573, 1021, 1058

Panama Canal, 559, 565, i 565, 566–567, i 567, 572–573, m 572–573, 1021, R63

panic of 1837, 234, 281, R63

panic of 1873, 397, R64

panic of 1893, 427–428, 446, 454

Pankhurst, Emmeline, 541, i 541

Paris, Treaty of

of 1763, 87

of 1783, 122, 192, R67

of 1898, 556–557, 559, 561, R67

parity, 724, R64

Parker, Dorothy, 656

Parks, Gordon, 670, i 670

Parks, Rosa, 497, i 497, 910, i 910

Parliament (British), 96, 105, 110, R64

colonies and, 68, 69, 97, 99

taxation and, 89

Parrish, Essie, 8, i 8

participation, political, 950–952, 962–963. See also lobbying; Vietnam War, protests against; voting rights.

of minorities, 255–258, 492–494, R109520–522, 538, 540–541, 843, 921–922

Supreme Court and, 981, 1050

Paterson, William, 142

Pathfinder, 1085

Patman, Wright, 688

Patman Bill, 688

Patriots, in Revolutionary War, 106, 107, i 107, 108, R64

patronage, 476, R64

Patrons of Husbandry. See Grange.

patterns, analyzing. See analyzing patterns.

patterns, geographic. See geographic patterns.

Patton, George S., 780

Paul, Alice, 538, 541

Paul, Mary, 262

pay equity, 777, 1048, R64

Payne-Aldrich Tariff, 535, 536, R64

Peace Corps, 886, i 886, R64

Pearl Harbor, 550, 761–763, i 761, i 762, m 762, i 766–767, 768, 784, 785

Peck, James, 916, i 916

Pendergast, James “Big Jim,” 474

Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883), 476–477, R64

peninsulares, 38

Penn, William, 55, 56, 58–59, i 58

Pennsylvania, 358, 1028, 1071

facts about, R49

in Revolutionary War, 113, 114

settlement of, 55, 56, 58–59, c 67, m 67, 79

Pentagon

September 11 terrorist attack on, 1069, 1100

Pentagon Papers, 963, R64

People’s Party. See Populist Party.

Pequot nation, 53

Pequot War, 53–54, i 54, R64

Peralta, Pedro de, 40

perestroika, 1055, R64

Perkins, Frances, 707, 710–711, i 711

Perot, H. Ross, 1067, 1071

Perry, Oliver Hazard, 204

Pershing, John J., 570–571, 590, i 590, 592

Persian Gulf War, 1059, m 1060, 1061, 1067, 1073, 1104

personal liberty laws, 311, R64

Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, 1117

perspective, developing historical. See historical perspective, developing.

Pétain, Philippe, 746

Petersburg, Battle of, i 336–337, 363

petroleum-based products, 437. See also gasoline; oil.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 113, 114, 115, 141, 641, 715, 1045, 1049

colonial, 58, 80, i 80, 97, 99

Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, 427

Phillip II (king of Spain), 41

Philippine-American War, 561, i 561

Philippines

independence of, 561

rebellion in, 561

in Spanish-American War, 555

as Spanish colony, 552, 555

U.S. annexation of, 556–557, 561

war with U.S., 561, i 561

World War II and, i 784, 785, 787

photography

inventions in, 487

journalism and, 369, 517, 703, 788, 919, 963

Pickett, George, 360

Pickett’s charge, 360

Pierce, Franklin, 297, R51

presidency of, 315, 319

Pilgrims, 50

Pima people, 9

Pinchot, Gifford, 529, 534, i 534, 535

Pinckney, Charles, 194, i 195, 204

Pinckney, Thomas, 192, 194

Pinckney’s Treaty, 192

Pingree, Hazen, 516

Pinkerton Detective Agency, 453–454

Pinta, 26

Pitt, William, 87

Pitcher, Molly. See Hays, Mary Ludwig.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 86, 437, m 437

Pizarro, Francisco, m 39

place, xxx, 6, 39, 53, 86, 115, 119, 221, 223, 227, 261, 291, 313, 314, 340, 381, 415, 469, 581, 592, 629, 778, 781, 800, 819

Plains Indians, m 11

battles with, m 408, 410, 412, 413–414

culture of, 408–409

restriction of, 410, 413–414

Plains of Abraham, 87

planned obsolescence, 854, R64

plantation. See agriculture.

Platt Amendment, 560, R64

Plessy, Homer A., 496

Plessy v. Ferguson, 493, 496–497, 907, 908–909, 914–915, R64

Plymouth Colony, 50

Pocahontas, 47, i 47

pocket veto, 377

points of view. See developing historical perspective.

Poland, 810–811, 1055

in World War II, 744, 745, i 745, 748, 757, 782

political cartoons, analyzing. See analyzing political cartoons.

political machines, 473–474, R64

political parties. See specific parties.

Polk, James K., 285, 319, R50

Mexican War and, 293–296

presidency of, 292, 293, 294, 295

westward expansion under, 294

poll tax, 493, 843, 922, R64

pollution

of air, 1030

automobiles and, 1087

DDT and, 1027

industrial, 440–441, 1026

Love Canal and, 1026

Polo, Marco, 25

Pol Pot, 966

Ponca, 519

Ponce de León, Juan, 38, m 39

Pontiac, 88, i 88

Popé, 41

popular American culture, 504–505, 650–651, 864–865, 992–993, 1014–1015. See also art; literature; motion pictures; music; radio; television.

popular sovereignty, 307, 314, 315, R64

population. See also migration.

changes, effects of, 640, 797, 1052–1053

growth, 797

shifts in, 797, 1052–1053

Populism, 427, R64

Populist Party, 427, 428, 429

Port Hudson, Louisiana, 343, 360

Portsmouth, Treaty of, 566

Portugal, 22, 23–24, m 23, 25

Africa and, 15–16, 19

colonies, of, 221

explorations of, 19, 20, 25

slave trade and, 16

posing questions. See questions, posing.

Post Office, U.S., 503

Potomac, Army of the, 342, 360, i 369

Potomac River, 186, 344, 358

Potsdam conference, 810

Pottawatomie massacre, 316

Pound, Ezra, 657

poverty, 472, 866–867, 887, 894, c 929, 1048, 1116–1117, c 1116–1117, R43, c R43

Powell, Colin, 1054, i 1054

Powers, Francis Gary, 832–833, i 833

Powhatan, Chief, 43, 46–47

Powhatan people, 43, 46–47, R64

predicting effects, 71, 218, 225, 299, 397, 467, 537, 633, 763, 877, 1051, 1091, 1096, 1103, 1105, 1107, 1109, 1111, 1113, 1115, 1117, 1119, 1121, 1123, R20

predictions, making, R20

Prescott, Samuel, 100

presentations, creating, 237, 403, 419, 479, 545, 603, 614, 729, 758, 871, 933, 1063, 1097

oral, 151, 209, 269, 301, 333, 400, 404, 575, 915, 1063, R36

visual, 403, 431, R37

written, 373, 931, R34–35

president, 143–144, 195, 377. See also executive branch; names of specific presidents.

duties of, 162

impeachment and, 162

legislation and, 157

military powers of, 161

oath of office, 161

qualifications, 161

salary, 161

succession, 161

term of office, 160

treaty powers of, 161

Presidential Commission on the Status of Women, 983

Presley, Elvis, 862, i 862

Preuss, Charles, 286

price controls
R110
under New Deal, 698

under Nixon, 1005

price supports, 671, R64

primary sources, analyzing, 12, 48, 78, 201, 228, 236, 285, 309, 331, 350, 372, 497, 543, 551, 593, 603, 649, 763, 783, 870, 899, 915, 922, 979, 986, 994, 1044, R21. See also sources, primary.

Princip, Gavrilo, 580

printing, 485

prisons, reform of, 244

private property, 140, 174

problems, identifying, 116, 136, 137, 189, 255, 384, 390, 395, 424, 456, 463, 465, 470, 495, 567, 607, 635, 671, 713, 735, 774, 841, 886, 894, 899, 975, 1021, 1047, 1050, R5

problem solving, 265, 392, 531, 700, 763

Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, 377

Proclamation of 1763, 88, R64

productivity, R44

profiteering, 116, R64

progressive movement or progressivism, 512–518, 541–543, 625, R64. See also Roosevelt, Theodore; Taft, William Howard; Wilson, Woodrow.

women and, 520–522

Progressive Party, 536

Prohibition, 513–514, 642–643, R64

Project Head Start, 894

Promontory, Utah, 443

propaganda, 583, i 584, 596–597, i 597, R64

in motion pictures, 772, i 772

property

private, 140, 174

Proposition Thirteen, 99

Proposition 187, 1092, 1106, R64

prosperity, economic

in 1920s, 631–633, 670–671

in 1950s, 847, 849, 850, 851, 854

Prosser, Gabriel, 252

protective tariff. See tariffs.

protectorate, 560

Providence, settlement of, 52

Pryor, Mrs. Roger A., 353

Public Utilities Holding Company Act, 707

Public Works Administration (PWA), 697, c 706

pueblo (housing), i 6, i 11

Pueblo people, 9, 41, R64

Puerto Ricans, 975, 1050

Puerto Rico, 462, 552, 556, 558, 559, 660, 974, 975

facts about, R49

Pulitzer, Joseph, 500–501, 553

Pullman, George M., 442, 444

Pullman, Illinois, 442, i 442, 444

Pullman cars, i 444

Pullman strike, 444, 454

Pure Food and Drug Act, 528, R64

Puritans, 49, 56, 82, 83, R64

dissent among, 52

settlement by, 49–52, 57

PWA. See Public Works Administration.

Pyle, Ernie, 778, i 778

pyramids, 7

Q

Quakers, 55, 56, 58–59, R64

Revolutionary War and, 108, 116–117

Quartering Act, 99, 110

Quebec, 86, 87

Quebec Act, 110

questions

formulating, R4, R12

posing, 287, 441, 857, 891, 1053

quotas, immigration, 621, R64

Qur’an, i 14, 15, 1023

R

race riots, 494, 600, 659, 824–825, 1047

racial groups. See specific groups.

Radical Republicans, 364, 377, 378–379, 380, 396, 397, 398, 400–401, R65

radicals, 619

radio, 276, i 276, 653–654, i 653, 717–718, 860

ragtime, 505, i 505

railroads, 217, m 217, 304–305, 397, 437, m 445, 450, 671

cattle ranching and, 415, m 415

consolidation of, 446, i 446

emergence of, 277–278

farmers and, 424, 425, 426, 444–446

industry and, 443–444

land grants to, 420–421, 422

regulation of, 445–446, 516, 526

time zones and, 443

transcontinental, 443

in West, 415, 420–421

workers on, 421, i 434–435, i 443, i 495

urban growth and, 443–444

Rainey, Gertrude “Ma,” i 638–639

Raleigh, Sir Walter, 43

Randolph, A. Philip, 624, 772, i 772, 911, 920

Randolph, Edmund, 183, i 183

Rankin, Jeannette, 578, i 578

ratification, 146–149, R65

rationing, 774, R65

Ray, James Earl, 927

REA. See Rural Electrification Administration.

Reagan, Nancy, 1047

Reagan, Ronald, 801, 1018, i 1034–1035, 1038–1039, i 1038, 1040, 1041, i 1042, 1048, 1050, 1054, 1055, 1057–1058, R52

assassination attempt on, 1043, i 1043

deregulation and, 1043

drug abuse and, 1047

economic policy and, 1040–1042, 1043

Grenada and, 1058

Iran-Contra affair and, 1058–1059

national debt and, 1041–1042

Panama and, 1058

space exploration, 1047

Strategic Defense Initiative and, 1041

Supreme Court and, 1042

Reaganomics, 1040–1041, R65

realpolitik, 1005, R65

reaper, 279, i 279, 423, c 423, 469

reapportionment, 691–692, 980–981, R65

recall, 518, 1074, R65

recession, 886, R38, R41, R43, R44

Reciprocal Trade Agreement Act, 740

recognizing effects. See effects, recognizing.

Reconstruction, 492, R65

African Americans and, 377, 378, 379–381, 382, 383, 386, 387–392

assessment of, 400

black codes and, 379

congressional, 379–380

Freedmen’s Bureau and, 379, 383, 388, 391

Johnson’s Plan, 377–379

legacy of, 400

legislation for, c 380

Lincoln’s plan, 376–377

military districts and, m 381

opposition to, 393–395, 398

presidential, 376–379

public works programs and, 384

Radical Republicans and, 377

Reconstruction Act of 1867, c 380, 380–381

Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC), 687–688, R65

Red Cloud (Mahpiua Luta), 410, 412

Red Cross, 370, 591, 600, 950, R65

redemption, 399, R65

Reder, Rudolph, 752, 754

Red River War, 412

Red Scare, 619

referendum, 518, R65

Reformation, 22, R65

reform movements, 240–245, 512–518, 520–522

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 1024, 1111

region, xxx, 6, 11, 23, 56, 67, 86, 217, 221, 223, 261, 291, 296, 314, 340, 415, 437, 529, 606, 680, 736, 744, 762, 830, 844, 907, 1039, 1057, 1060

Rehnquist, William H., i 163, 1042

relationships, analyzing. See analyzing relationships.

religion. See Christianity; Great Awakening; Islam; Judaism; Native Americans; Second Great Awakening; West Africa; specific denominations.

Remington, Frederic, 553

Renaissance, 20, 24, 82, R65

reparations, 606, R65

Report on the Public Credit (Hamilton), 184

republicanism, 132–133, R65

Republican Party, 318, 321, 324, 328, 428, 444, 535–536, 686, 1068, 1070–1071, 1073–1074, R65. See also election, presidential.

election of 1866 and, 380

election of 1872 and, 396

forerunners of, 319–320

organization of, in 1850s, 320, c 320
R111

Reconstruction and, 377, 378–379, 380

scandals and, 395–396

in the South, 383, 385, 386, 396

researching, 3, 30, 35, 63, 65, 93, 95, 131, 153, 177, 181, 189, 211, 228, 237, 239, 247, 267, 273, 287, 303, 323, 333, 337, 375, 400, 431, 435, 441, 459, 467, 481, 497, 505, 508, 511, 531, 547, 575, 577, 603, 611, 617, 635, 637, 639, 651, 665, 669, 693, 722, 733, 758, 767, 803, 805, 807, 839, 871, 875, 891, 901, 905, 915, 931, 935, 969, 971, 973, 981, 993, 999, 1025, 1035, 1059, 1065, 1095, 1097, 1103, 1105, 1107, 1109, 1111, 1113, 1115, 1117, 1119, 1121, 1123, R12, R29, R34. See also Internet, using for research; primary sources; sources, secondary.

Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), 950–951

Resettlement Administration, 704

Revels, Hiram, 389, i 389

revenue sharing, 1001, R65

Revere, Paul, 98, 100–101

reverse discrimination, 1037, R65. See also affirmative action.

revivalism, 241

Revolutionary War, 96–102

battles of, 102, 104–105, 114–115, m 115, 119–120

British Surrender at Yorktown, i 118, 121

continental currency and, 116

debt from, 136

financing for, 116–117

French support in, 116, 118, 121

impact of, on American society, 122–123

Loyalists in, 106, 107, i 107, 108, 114, 122

military strengths and weaknesses in, c 115

Patriots in, 106, 107, i 107, 108

peace treaty after, 121–122

women and, 117, 122

Reynolds v. Sims, 898, 980–981

RFC. See Reconstruction Finance Corporation.

RFD. See rural free delivery.

Rhee, Syngman, 817

Rhode Island, 52

colonial, c 67, m 67, 98

acts about, R49

Richardson, Elliot, 1011

Richmond, Virginia, 366, 483

in Civil War, 340, 344, 365

Richmond v. J. A. Croson Company, 1049

Richthofen, Manfred von, 587

Rickenbacker, Eddie, 587, i 587, 590

Ridge, Tom, 1102, i 1102

Riis, Jacob, 451, 468, 470

Rio Grande, 40, 294, 290, 295

Rivera, Diego, 718

roads

in 1800s, m 217

Roanoke Island, 43

Roaring Twenties, 650–651, i 650–651

robber barons, 449–450

Roberts, Needham, 588

Robertson, Pat, 1037

Robeson, Paul, 662, 823

Robinson, Bill “Bojangles,” i 504

Robinson, Jackie, 843, i 843

Robinson, Jo Ann Gibson, 906, i 906

robotics, 1084–1085

Rockefeller, John D., 449, i 449, 514, 532

Rockefeller Foundation, 449

rock ’n’ roll, 861–862, i 862, 992, R65

Roe v. Wade, 985, 1046

Rogers, Will, 630

Rolfe, John, 45, 47

Roman Catholicism and Roman Catholics, 22, m 23, 40, 50, 490

Crusades and, 22

missions of, 288–89

in New Spain, 40–41

opposition to, 319

prejudice against, 264, 464

Spain and, 22

romanticism, 246

Rome-Berlin Axis Pact, 739

Rommel, Erwin, 778

Roosevelt, Eleanor, 695, i 695, 702, i 702, 711–712, 763, 774, 842

Roosevelt, Franklin Delano, 689, 694–696, i 695, i 696, 702, 721–722, 756, i 756, 799, R52

Atlantic Charter and, 760

“Day of Infamy” speech of, 763

death of, 783, 842

fireside chats of, 696, 717, 758

Good Neighbor policy of, 740

lend-lease and, 758, 759

New Deal and, 694–700, 701–707, 711–715, 721–722, 802

physical problems of, 695, 850

Supreme Court and, 699

wartime conferences and, 775–776, 791–792

World War II and, 756–761, 763, 772, 773, 775, 776, 779, 792–792

Roosevelt, Theodore, 446, 454, 522, 523–524, i 524, 532, 534, 536–537, 564, 566, i 566, i 568, R51

civil rights and, 530–531

coal strike of 1902 and, 526

conservation and, 528–530

Gentleman’s Agreement and, 465, 621

health protection and, 526, 528

Japan and, 566

Latin America and, 568

Panama Canal and, 566–567

railroads and, 526

Rough Riders and, 524, 556

Treaty of Portsmouth and, 566

trusts and, 525

Roosevelt Corollary, 568, 569, R65

Roots, i 809, 1015

Rosenberg, Ethel and Julius, 825–826, i 825

Ross, John, 228

ROTC. See Reserve Officer Training Corps.

Rough Riders, 524, 556, R65

Route 66, 629, m 629, 680

row house, 470

royal colony, 47, R65

rubber, 275

Ruffin, Edmund, 330

Rumor of War, A (Caputo), 969

Rural Electrification Administration (REA), c 706, 707

rural free delivery (RFD), 503, R65

Rush-Bagot agreement, 205

Rusk, Dean, 878, 882, 943

Russia, 461, 607, 1055, 1069. See also Soviet Union.

Alaska and, 221

revolution in, 586, 619

war with Japan, 565–566

World War I and, 579, 580, 592

Russo-Japanese War, 565–566

Rustbelt, 1052

Ruth, Babe, 654, i 654

S

Sacajawea, i 200, m 200, 201

Sacco and Vanzetti, 619–620, i 620

Sacco, Nicola, 619–620, i 620

Sacramento, California, 421

Sadat, Anwar, 1022, i 1022

Sahara, 15, 16

sailing technology, 25

St. Augustine, Florida, 40

St. Clair, Arthur, 193

St. Croix, 28

St. Lawrence River, 86

St. Louis, Missouri, 484

Sakhalin Island, 566

Salem, witchcraft in, 82

Salk, Jonas, 850, i 850

Salomon, Haym, 116–117

Salt Lake City, Utah, 285

SALT. See Strategic Arms Limitation Talks.

salutary neglect, 70, R65

Salvation Army, 513

Sampson, William T., 555

San Antonio, Texas, 291, 415

Sand Creek Massacre, m 408, 410

Sandinistas (Nicaragua), 1057, 1058, R65

San Francisco, California, xxx, 297, 298, 463, 465, 470, 474

earthquake in, 471, c 471, i 471

San Jacinto, Battle of, 292

San Juan Hill, Battle of, 524, 556

San Salvador, 27

Santa Anna, Antonio López de, 290–292, i 290, 296

Santa Fe, New Mexico, 40, 282, 284, 289

Santa Fe Railroad, 427

Santa Fe Trail, 282, m 282, R65

Santa María, 26

Sarajevo, 580, m 581

Saratoga, Battle of, 113–115, m 115

Sarbanes-Oxley Act, 1073

Satanta, Chief, 431, i 431

Saturday Night Massacre, 1011–1012, R65

Saudi Arabia, 1059, 1061

Sauk and Fox people, 228, 281

savanna, 17, R65

Savannah, Georgia, 119

savings and loan industry, 1043
R112

scabs, 454, 714

scalawags, 385, R65

Scalia, Antonin, i 163, 1042

Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States, 708

Schemitzun, 13

Schenck, Charles, 602, 603

Schenck v. United States, 602–603

Schlafly, Phyllis, 985, i 985

Schlesinger, Arthur M., Jr., 1009

Schlieffen Plan, 580

Schurz, Carl, i 385

Schwarzenegger, Arnold, 1074

Schwarzkopf, Norman, 1061, i 1061

schools. See education.

scientific management, 514–515, R66

SCLC. See Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Scopes, John T., 644, 645

Scopes trial, 428, 644–645, i 645, R66

Scotland, 69, i 69

Scott, Bev, 818, i 818

Scott, Dred, 325, i 325, 332–333, i 333

Scott, Winfield, 229, 318–319, 296–297

Scottish and Scots-Irish immigrants, 73, 81, c 81

SDI. See Strategic Defense Initiative.

SDS. See Students for a Democratic Society.

Sears Roebuck, 503

SEC. See Securities and Exchange Commission.

secession, 232, 307, 323, 328, 330, 331, 367, R66

Second Amendment, 149, 166, 1105

Second Bank of the United States (BUS), 218, 232–234

Second Continental Congress, 103–104, 105, 112, 114, 115, 122, 123, i 130–131, 134, 466, R66

Articles of Confederation and, 135

foreign relations and, 136–137

western lands and, 135

Second Great Awakening, 240–241, R66

Second Hundred Days, 701–702

Secotan people, i 12

sectionalism, 194, R66

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), 696, c 706, 724, R45, R66

Sedalia, Missouri, 415

Sedition Act

of 1798, 195

of 1918, 598, 603

See, Fong, 460, i 460, 461

segregation, 493, R66

Birmingham march and, 918, i 918

de facto and de jure, 924

freedom riders and, 916–917, i 917

Freedom Summer and, 921

Jim Crow laws and, 493, i 493, 497, 907, 914–915

laws against, 323

legalized, 497, 906–907, m 907

march on Washington and, 920

Montgomery bus boycott and, 906, 910–911, R38

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and, 497, 908

Nixon and, 1003–1004

in North, 924

Selma campaign and, i 904–905, 922

“separate but equal” doctrine and, 493, 496–497

sit-ins against, 912–913, i 913

in Washington, D.C., 541

Selective Service Act, 588, R66

Selective Service System, 769, 771. See also draft.

Selma, Alabama, 922

Seminary Ridge, 359

Seminole people, 226

Senate, 314, 381, 1010–1011. See also Congress.

in Constitution, 143, 155

control of, 1074

direct election of, 518

election of members, 154–155

impeachment trials and, 155

number in, 155

officers of, 155

qualifications, 155

role of Vice-President in, 155

terms in, 155

violence in, 316–317, i 317

Seneca Falls convention, 257–258, 521, 541, R66

separation of powers, 143–144, c 143

Separatists, 50, R66

September 11 terrorist attack, 1069, 1072, 1100, i 1100, 1101, i 1101

effect on air travel of, 1103, i 1103

anthrax and, 1102

effect on economy of, 1077

impact of, 1069, 1102

rescue and rebuilding efforts and, 1101–1102

sequencing. See chronological order.

Sequoya. See Guess, George.

Serbia and Serbs, 579, 580, 1069

serfdom, 75

Servicemen’s Readjustment Act. See GI Bill of Rights.

service organizations, 631–632

settlement-house movement, 472, 513, R66

Seven Days’ Battles, 344

Seventeenth Amendment, 170, 518, R66

Seventh Amendment, 167

Seventh Cavalry, 412, 414

Sewall, Arthur, 429

Seward, William H., 328, 329, 550

sewing machine, 275–276, i 275

sex discrimination, 983

sexual harassment, 1042

Seymour, Horatio, 382

Shakers, 244

Shakespeare, William, 21

Shame of the Cities, The (Steffens), 533

shantytown, 679, R66

sharecropping, 391, i 391, c 391, R66

Shaw, Lemuel, 265

Shays, Daniel, 140

Shays’s Rebellion, 140, i 140, R66

sheepherders, 420–421

Shenandoah Valley, 365

Shepard, Alan, 885, i 885

Sheridan, Philip, 364–365, 412, 413

Sherman, Roger, 141, i 141, 142

Sherman, William Tecumseh, 330, 363–365, i 364, 370, 384, 390

Sherman Antitrust Act, 450, 455, 525, 539, R47, R66

Shiloh, Battle of, 342

shipbuilding

in English colonies, 68, 80

in World War I, 588–589

in World War II, 771, 776

shipping, 277, 278

Shirer, William, 742, i 742, 746

Sholes, Christopher, 438

Shuffle Along, 662

Shumlin, Herman, 679

Siberia, 5, m 5

silent majority, 962, R66

Silent Spring (Carson), 897, 1027

silver, 116, 410, 426, 428, 429

silverites, 428, c 428

Since Yesterday (Allen), 681

Sinclair, Upton, 523, i 523, 526, 532, 533

Singer, I. M., 275

Sioux people, 282, 408, i 409, 410, 412–413

Sirica, John, 1010

sit-down strike, 714, i 714

sit-in, 912, R66

Sitting Bull (Tatanka Yotanka), 410, i 410, 412, 413

Sixteenth Amendment, 170, 540

Sixth Amendment, 167

skyscrapers, 437, 483

Slater, Samuel, 213

slave markets, i 366

slavery, i 250. See also antislavery movement; civil rights; slaves.

abolition of, by Thirteenth Amendment, 333, 368

in Africa, 19

in American colonies, 29, 45–46, i 46, 59, 75–78, 81–82

in Americas, m 253

Compromise of 1850 and, 307–309

Constitutional Convention and, 142–143

cotton and, 216

Cuban abolition of, 553

Missouri Compromise and, 222

in North, 215

opposition to, 123, 241–242, 258, 294, 305, 306, 307, 310, 311–312, 319–320, 325–326, 327, 328, 329

Portuguese and, 16

secession and, 324–331

Senate debates over, 307–308

in South, 215–216, 290, 305–306, 366, 368

Spanish and, 38

Thirteenth Amendment and, 368

in U.S. territories, 215–216, 290, 304–305, 306–308, 314–315, 316, 325, 330, 332–333

women and, 251

slaves, 108, 241–242, 306, R66. See also slavery.
R113
in Civil War, 352, 466

Constitution and, 149

emancipation of, 332–333, 347–348, 466

family and, 77

fugitive, 117, 310–311

immigrant workers and, 305

lives of, 77, 81, 250

rebellions of, 78, 81–82, 252

Three-Fifths Compromise and, 142–143

trade in, 16, 29, 75–76, i 76, 106

treatment of, i 266

slave ship, i 76

slave trade

African, 29, 75–76

Constitutional Convention and, 142–143

Slidell, John, 294, 346–347

Sloat, John D., 295

Smith, Alfred E., 672

Smith, Bessie, 650, i 650, 663

Smith, John, 42, i 42, 43

Smith, Joseph, 284–285

Smith, Margaret Chase, 826

Smith, Sophia, 522

Smithwick, Noah, 290

Smythe, John Ferdinand, 77

snack foods, 499

SNCC. See Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.

Social Darwinism, 448–449, 550, R66

Social Gospel movement, 472, 513, R66

socialism, 452, 514, R44, c R44

Socialist Party of America, 454, 536

Social Security, 707, 724, i 724, 896, 1001–1002, 1071, 1090–1091, 1118–1119

Social Security Act, 707, 724, 1116, 1118, R66

Society of Friends. See Quakers.

soddy, 422–423, i 422, R66

Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act, 702

Soil Conservation Service, 725

Solomon Islands, 787

Sojourner, 1085

Somme, Battle of the, 590

Somoza, Anastasio, 1057

Songhai, 14, 15, m 15, 16, 17, R66

Sons of Liberty, i 94–95, 97

Souls of Black Folk, The (Du Bois), 531

sources. See also political cartoons, analyzing.

audio, R23

evaluating, R21, R22, R23

locating, 33, 63, 93, 153, 333, 611, 613, 1015, 1025, R22

multimedia, 33, 63, 93, 127, 151, 209, 373, 403, 433, 457, 479, 545, 575, 613, 614, 729, 765, 837, 903, 933, 971, 1033, R23, R37

primary, 12, 48, 78, 108, 323, 331, 350, 372, 543, 709, R22. See also primary sources, analyzing.

secondary, 323, R22

visual, 9, 21, 51, 57, 98, 108, 305, 328, 369, 416, 484, 501, 503, 517, 518, 542, 570, 593, 599, 608, 620, 641, 703, 707, 719, 725, 772, 774, 788, 827, 846, 851, 855, 884, 919, 953, 963, 1030, 1031, 1089, R23

Souter, David H., i 163, 1042

South, 230–231, 278, 304–305, 307, 319, 321. See also Confederate States of America or Confederacy; Southern colonies.

agriculture in, 215, 367, 390

effects of Civil War on, 367–368, 383–392, 450

home rule in, 399

plantations, i 251

politics in, after Civil War, 385

Reconstruction and, 383–392

redemption and, 399

Revolutionary War in, 119–120

South Africa, 148, i 148, m 148, 907

South America

early settlement of, 5, 6–7

Spanish and, 36, 37, 38

South Carolina, 72, 106, 231, 232, 323, i 323, 330, 1003

colonial, c 67, m 67, 72

facts about, R49

in Revolutionary War, 119–120

secession of, 330

settlement of, 73

South Dakota, 413, c 979, 1010

facts about, R49

Southeast Asia, 607. See also Vietnam; Vietnam War.

Southern Alliance, 427

Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), 912, 926, R66

Southern colonies, c 67, m 67, 72–78

Southern Homestead Act (1866), 390

Southern strategy (Nixon), 1003, R66

Southwest

agriculture in, 495

Americans in, 288–290

corridos of, 431

Mexican workers in, 494–495, 868

Native Americans of, 7, 9–10, m 11

Spanish settlement of, 40–41

Soviet Union, 607, 619, i 801. See also

Cold War.

aid to Nicaragua, 1057

arms race and, 828–829, 1055

Carter and, 1021

China and, 1006

Cuban missile crisis and, 880, 882

development of Cold War and, 808–811

dissolution of, 1055, R39

division of Germany and, 813–814

domination of Eastern Europe by, 810–811, 831

Five-Year Plans and, 735

industrialization of, 735

installation of hot line, 884

invasion of Afghanistan, 1021, R40

Nixon and, 1006–1007

nuclear testing and, 884

reforms of Gorbachev in, 1055

space exploration and, 795, i 795, 832

Stalin and, 735

U.S. containment policy and, 811

Warsaw Pact and, 830

in World War II, 745, 759, 777, 778, 782, 791

space exploration, i 874–875, 885–886, i 885

Challenger disaster and, 1047

communications satellites and, 795, 887

Kennedy and, 887, c 887

of moon, 887, 1002

Reagan and, 1047

Soviet Union and, 795, i 795, 832, 876, 887

technology and, 1085

Spain, 22, 23–24, m 23, 25, 26, 30, 87, 288

American colonies of, 28, 36–38, 40–41, 221, 552

civil war in, 739, i 739

Florida and, 221

Louisiana Territory and, 192

North American claims of, 28, m 87

reconquista in, 22

in Spanish-American-Cuban War, 554–555, 610

U.S. relations with, 117, 192, 552–553, 556, 610

Spanish

cattle ranching, 414

explorations, 26–27, 36–38, m 39, 40

missions, 40–41, i 40, 295, 466, i 466

Spanish-American War, m 349, 554–555. See also Cuba.

Spanish Armada, 41

Spanish Civil War, 739, i 739

speakeasies, 642, R66

spear point, i 5

Specie Resumption Act, 397

Spencer, Herbert, 448

Spindletop, 436

Spock, Benjamin, 850

spoils system, 476, R66

under Andrew Jackson, 226

sports, 499, 500, 652, 654, 843

Spotsylvania, Battle of, 363

Spotted Tail, 412

Sputnik I, 795, i 795, 832, 876

Square Deal, 525, R66

stagflation, 1004–1005, R66

Stalin, Joseph, 735, i 737, 745, 746, 791–792, 809, i 809, 810

Stalingrad, Battle of, 777, 778

Stalwarts, 476

Stamp Act, 96–97, c 100, R66

Stamp Act Congress, 97

standard of living, R43, R45

Standard Oil Company, 440, 449, 450, 525, 532

Stanton, Edwin, 381

Stanton, Elizabeth Cady, 254, i 254, 257, i 257, 521

Starr, Ellen Gates, 472

START II pact, 1055

starving time, 43

State, Department of, 183

states’ rights, 143, 147, 219–220, 322–323, 330, 367

Civil War and, 330
R114

issue of, 230–232

nullification theory and, 231

statistics. See data, interpreting.

Statue of Liberty, 467

steamboat, 277

Steamboat Willie, 656

steel industry, 437, 443, 449, 450, 632, 671

Andrew Carnegie and, 447–448

decline of, 1020

strikes in, 453–454, 623, 843

steel plow, 279

Steffens, Lincoln, 533, i 533

Stein, Gertrude, 657

Steinbeck, John, 702, 720, 851

Steinem, Gloria, 984, i 984

Stephens, Alexander H., 306

Stephens, John, 394

Stephens, Uriah, 451

Steuben, Friedrich von, 118

Stevens, John L., 551

Stevens, John Paul, i 163

Stevens, Thaddeus, 377, i 377, 378, 390

Stevenson, Adlai, 845

Stimson, Henry, 791

stock market, 427, 672–675, 1077, R45, i, c R45. See also September 11 terrorist attack, effect on economy of.

buying on margin and, 673, 674, R55

crash, 670, 673–675, i 673

speculation and, 673

Stone, Lucy, 522

Stono Rebellion, 78, R66

Stover, Charles, 472

Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 312, i 312

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT), 1006, 1021

SALT I Treaty, 1006–1007, R65

SALT II agreement, 1021

Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), 1041, R66

strikes, R45, i R45, R67. See also labor movement.

federal arbitration and, 526

by garment workers, 454–455

at Homestead, Pennsylvania, 453–454

at Lawrence, Massachusetts, 512, i 512

at Lowell, Massachusetts, 262

by mill workers, i 616–617

in mining industry, 452, 454, 526, 624, 843

in New York City, 264

by police, 623

at Pullman Company, 444, 454

railroad, 452, 453, 843

sit-down, 714, i 714

in steel industry, 453–454, 623, 843

violence and, 453–454, 714–715

Stuart, James E. B. (Jeb), 360

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), 912–913, 917, 921–922, 926, R67

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), 950, 951, R67

Stuyvesant, Peter, 56

submarines, 584–585, 589, 759, i 759, 760, 776

suburbs, 1088–1090, R67

automobile and, 629–630, 849, 852

commuters and, 483

growth of, after World War II, 841, i 841

lifestyle in, 849–850

in 1970s, 1047

urban flight and, 1088–1089

Sudetenland, 743

Suez Canal, 831

suffrage, i 510–511, 521–522, R67. See also voting rights.

sugar, 80, 550, 553

Sugar Act, 89, R67

Sugar Beet and Farm Laborers’ Union of Oxnard, 452

Sullivan, Louis, 483

summarizing, 7, 16, 25, 27, 28, 31, 37, 43, 46, 56, 62, 71, 86, 100, 106, 115, 116, 117, 120, 122, 123, 135, 143, 144, 147, 149, 199, 213, 217, 220, 226, 231, 242, 245, 250, 253, 255, 256, 281, 297, 312, 317, 342, 347, 352, 355, 361, 370, 399, 377, 380, 389, 396, 409, 415, 422, 423, 427, 438, 444, 448, 449, 455, 464, 474, 483, 485, 487, 490, 494, 503, 505, 516, 518, 530, 533, 539, 554, 556, 557, 586, 588, 589, 596, 606, 607, 609, 626, 635, 644, 649, 653, 657, 660, 663, 677, 679, 685, 688, 695, 702, 709, 713, 715, 719, 722, 735, 737, 739, 743, 753, 755, 760, 773, 778, 791, 792, 803, 830, 833, 843, 844, 861, 863, 879, 899, 911, 951, 958, 964, 978, 1001, 1004, 1005, 1009, 1011, 1019, 1022, 1028, 1038, 1041, 1048, 1070, 1076, 1081, 1084, 1086, 1093, 1097, R4, R11, R13, R15, R16, R17, R18, R22, R23, R24, R27, R28. See also clarifying.

summary, writing a, R4, R11, R27, R28

Sumner, Charles, 294, 316, i 316, 377

Sumner, William Graham, 448

Sun Also Rises, The (Hemingway), 657

Sunbelt, 1052

Sunday, Billy, 640, i 640, 644

Sunni Ali, 16

supply and demand, R46, c R46

supply-side economics, 1041, R46, R67

Supreme Court, 144, i 163, 395, 517. See also Supreme Court cases.

civil rights and, 802–803, 843–844, 846, 906–907, 908–909

creation of, 183

Dred Scott decision of, 325, 326–327, 332–333

gun control and, 1109

interstate commerce and, 219–220, 445–446, 708–709

judicial review and, 199

landmark cases, 199, 332–333, 398, 496–497, 602–603, 708–709, 802–803, 900–901, 914–915, 980–981, 1024–1025

Marshall and, 199, 220

New Deal and, 699, 702, 705

Nixon and, 1003–1004

presidential election of 2000 and, 1072

Reagan and, 1042

social issues and, 1042

state powers and, 220

trusts and, 450, 525

voting rights and, 493, 522

Supreme Court cases Ableman v. Booth (1858), 332

Adarand Constructors v. Pena (1995), 1024, 1025

Baker v. Carr (1962), 898, 980–981

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954), i 169, 323, 497, 846, 897, 908–909, 914–915, 1003, 1110, R55

Bunting v. Oregon (1917), 517

Commonwealth v. Hunt (1842), 265

Cumming v. Board of Education of Richmond County (1899), 496

Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1810), 220

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), 332–333

Escobedo v. Illinois (1964), 898, 900

Fletcher v. Peck (1810), 220

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824), 220

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963), 898, 900

Gray v. Sanders (1963), 980–981

Hirabayashi v. United States (1943), 802

Korematsu v. United States (1944), 801, 802–803

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), 220

Mapp v. Ohio (1961), 898, 900

Marbury v. Madison (1803), 113, 199

McLaurin v. Oklahoma State (1950), 914

Miranda v. Arizona (1966), 898, 900–901

Morgan v. Virginia (1946), 908

Muller v. Oregon (1908), 517

Munn v. Illinois (1877), 445

NLRB v. Jones and Laughlin Steel Corp. (1937), 708–709

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), 493, 496–497, 907, 908, 914–915

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978), 1024, 1097

Reynolds v. Sims (1964), 898, 980–981

Richmond v. J. A. Croson Company (1989), 1049

Roe v. Wade (1973), 985, 1046

Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States (1935), 708

Schenck v. United States (1919), 602–603

Slaughterhouse cases, 398

Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education (1971), 1003

Sweatt v. Painter (1950), 908, 914–915

Texas v. Johnson (1989), 603

Tinker v. Des Moines School District (1969), 603

U.S. v. Cruikshank (1876), 398

U.S. v. Lopez (1995), 709

U.S. v. Reese (1876), 398

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber (1979), 1024

Webster v. Reproductive Health Care Services (1989), 1046
R115

Wesberry v. Sanders (1964), 980–981

Williams v. Mississippi (1898), 496

Worcester v. Georgia (1832), 228

Supremes, 992, i 992

Susquehannock people, 47

Sutter, John, 297

Sutter’s Mill, 297

Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, 1003

Swanson, Mrs. Charles, 768, i 768

Sweatt v. Painter, 908, 914–915

Swiss Confederation, 134

Sylvis, William H., 451

synthesizing, 13, 70, 218, 221, 223, 243, 245, 249, 253, 268, 292, 317, 321, 356, 371, 446, 450, 491, 522, 525, 586, 657, 662, 711, 777, 922, 937, 941, 949, 961, 967, R11, R19

Szilard, Leo, 791

T

Tabasco, 36

Taft, William Howard, 534–535, i 535, 568–569, R51

Taft-Hartley Act, 843

Taino people, 27, 28, R67

Taiwan (Formosa), 816, 817

taking notes, 7, 13, 19, 25, 31, 41, 48, 54, 59, 70, 78, 84, 89, 108, 117, 137, 144, 149, 176, 187, 196, 205, 218, 223, 229, 235, 245, 253, 258, 265, 279, 285, 292, 299, 309, 317, 321, 331, 345, 350, 356, 365, 371, 382, 392, 401, 417, 424, 429, 439, 446, 455, 465, 472, 477, 487, 491, 495, 503, 518, 522, 531, 537, 543, 551, 557, 564, 571, 586, 593, 601, 608, 624, 627, 633, 645, 649, 657, 663, 677, 683, 689, 700, 707, 715, 720, 725, 741, 747, 755, 763, 774, 783, 793, 801, 814, 821, 827, 833, 846, 855, 863, 869, 884, 889, 913, 922, 929, 941, 947, 953, 959, 967, 979, 986, 1007, 1013, 1023, 1031, 1039, 1044, 1051, 1061, 1074, 1079, 1087, 1093, R4, R6, R7

Taliban, 1073, 1102

Talleyrand-Périgord, Charles Maurice de, 194–195

Tallmadge, James, 222

Tammany Hall, 475, i 475

Tan, Amy, 1080, 1081

Taney, Chief Justice Roger, 325, 332–333, i 332

Taos people, 10

Tarbell, Ida M., 514, 532, i 532

Tariff of Abominations, 230, R67

Tariff of 1816, 218, 230, 231, R67

tariffs, 186–187, 218, 230–232, 234, 477, 535, 539–540, 550, 626, 628–629, 677, R46, R64. See also taxation.

Tarleton, Banastre, 120

Tatanka Yotanka. See Sitting Bull.

taxation, 23, 99, 186–187, 894, R46. See also tariffs.

of colonies by Britain, 96–97

of income, 354, 427, c 538, 540, 596, 773

under Woodrow Wilson, 539–540

World War I and, 596

Taylor, Frederick Winslow, 515

Taylor, Zachary, R50

presidency of, 306

in war with Mexico, 294, 296

Taylor Grazing Act, 725

Tea Act, 99, c 101

Teapot Dome scandal, 627, i 627, R67

technology. See also inventions.

communications and, 274, 276–277, i 276, 485, 1082–1084, 1112–1113, c 1112–1113. See also radio; telegraph; telephone; television.

economy and, 1077, 1112

education and, 490

entertainment and. See motion pictures; radio; television.

genetic engineering and, 1086

health care and, 1086

of sailing, 25

space exploration and, 1085

transportation and, 482, 483, 487, 1087. See also airplanes; automobile; canals; railroads; steamboat.

warfare and, 343–344, 590–591, c 590–591, 773, 794–795, c 795

Tecumseh, 203, i 203

Tejano culture, 289

telecommunications. See communications, advances in.

Telecommunications Act of 1996, 1084, R67

telecommuting, 1084, 1090, R67

telegraph, 274, 276–277, i 276, R67

telephone, 276, i 276, 438, 520, i 520

televangelists, 1037–1038

television, 277, i 277

elections and, 877, i 877

news and, 824–825

in 1950s, 850, 858–860, c 859, i 859

in 1970s, 1014–1015

Vietnam War and, 825, i 825, 947, 955

Teller Amendment, 559

temperance movement, 255–256, i 256, 513–514, R67

tenant farming, 391–392, R67

tenements, 468, 470, R67

Tennessee, 201, 339, 377, 644–645

in Civil War, 342

facts about, R49

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), c 706, 725, 726–727, i 726, m 726–727, R67

Tenochtitlán, i 6, 37

Ten-Percent Plan, 377

Tenth Amendment, 149, 167

Tenure of Office Act, 381

Teoli, Camella, 512

tepee, i 11

termination policy, 869, R67

terrorism, against United States, 1068–1069, 1072, 1100, i 1100, 1101, i 1101, c 1102–1103, 1109

antiterrorism and, 1102–1103

coalition against. See antiterrorism coalition.

definition of, 1100

domestic, 1068, 1109

effects of, 1100, 1101

reasons for, 1101

tactics of, 1100–1101

war on, 1073, 1100–1103

weapons of, 1101

terrorist attacks. See also September 11 terrorist attack.

casualties of, 1069, 1100

in Oklahoma City, 1069, 1109

terrorist groups

in Africa, 1100–1101

in Asia, 1101, 1102

Aum Shinrikyo, 1101

in Europe, 1100

in Latin America, 1100

Shining Path, 1100

in United States, 1100, 1103

Tet offensive, 954–955, m 955, R67

Texas, 307, 330, 888, 915, 922, 1053, 1071

facts about, R49

independence of, 290–291

as Lone Star Republic, 291–292

Mexico and, 288–292

Native Americans in, 289

oil in, 436, 437, 630, 1019

settlement of, 288–290

Spanish missions in, 40, i 40, 288–289

U.S. annexation of, 281, 292, 293, m 296

war for independence of, 290–292, m 291

Texas Revolution, 291, R67

Texas v. Johnson (1989), 503

textile industry, 213, i 214, 259, 260, i 260, m 261, 262, 274, 450, 512, 632, 671

theater, 504, 662, 719

Their Eyes Were Watching God (Hurston), 720

themes

in geography, xxx. See also geographhuman-environment interaction; location; movement; place; region.

in history, xxviii–xxix. See also United States history, themes of.

thinking skills

analyzing assumptions and biases, R15

analyzing issues, R14

developing historical perspective, R11

drawing conclusions, R18

evaluating decisions and courses of action, R16

forming opinions, R17

formulating historical questions, R12

hypothesizing, R13

synthesizing, R19

Third Amendment, 149, 166

Third Reich, 737, 744. See also Germany; Hitler, Adolf.

third parties, 429
R116

Thirteenth Amendment, 168–169, 333, 368, 401, 495, R67

This Side of Paradise (Fitzgerald), 656, 657

Thomas, Clarence, i 93, 1042, i 1042

Thoreau, Henry David, 243, 246, 247, i 247, 911

Three-Fifths Compromise, 142–143, R67

Three Mile Island, 1028–1031, i 1029

Three Soldiers (Dos Passos), 657

Thurmond, J. Strom, 844

Tiananmen Square, 1056, i 1056, R67

Ticknor, George, 366

Tilden, Samuel J., 399, i 399

Timbuktu, 14, 15, i 16, 17

time lines. See also chronological order, absolute.

creating, 31, 48, 89, 229, 279, 317, 365, 401, 424, 455, 543, 564, 657, 763, 783, 846, 915, 929, 959, 986, 1023, 1074, 1096, R3

interpreting, 2–3, 6, 34–35, 64–65, 94–95, 100–101, 130–131, 180–181, 210–211, 238–239, 272–273, 302–303, 336–337, 374–375, 406–407, 434–435, 438, 458–459, 480–481, 510–511, 546–547, 576–577, 616–617, 638–639, 668–669, 692–693, 732–733, 766–767, 806–807, 838–839, 874–875, 904–905, 934–935, 972–973, 998–999, 1034–1035, 1064–1065, 1102–1103, 1104–1105, 1106–1107, 1108–1109, 1110–1111, 1112–1113, 1114–1115, 1116–1117, 1118–1119, 1120–1121, 1122–1123

using, 495, 505, 729, 747, 786–787, 821, 881, 932, 970, 993, 1013, 1062

time zones, 443, m 445

Tinker v. Des Moines School District (1969), 603

Tippecanoe, Battle of, 203

Titusville, Pennsylvania, 437

tobacco, 45, 46, 68, 72, 73, 81, 278, 450

Tocqueville, Alexis de, 244

Tojo, Hideki, 760, i 760, 761, 793

Tompkins, Sally, 355

Tonkin, Gulf of, 940

Tonkin Gulf Resolution, 940–941, 943, R67

Toomer, Jean, 660

Tordesillas, Treaty of, 30, R67

totalitarianism, 735, R67

Townsend, Francis, 699, 700

Townshend, Charles, 97

Townshend Acts, 97, c 100, R67

trade, 221, 539, 583, 1078–1079, c 1078, m 1078, R47, c R47

with China, 562

in colonial America, 45, 56, 68, 74, 80, 86, 97, 99

Crusades and, 22, 23

depression and, 675, R38, R40

in Middle Ages, 23–24

among Native Americans, 10, m 11

North American Free Trade Agreement and, 1070

Panama Canal and, 572–573

in slaves, 16, 29, 75–76, i 76, 106

between states, 445–446, 455, 517

transportation and, 277

triangular, 76, R68

in West Africa, 14, 15, 16, 17

Trail of Tears, m 227, i 227, 229, R67

trails, to west, m 283

transcendentalism, 242–243, 246, R67

transcontinental railroad, 443, R67

transportation. See also automobile; canals; railroads; steamboat.

bridges and, 482, 483

in cities, 470, 483

improvements in, 277–278

Treasury, Department of the, 183, 642, 696

Treaty of … See distinctive part of treaty’s name.

Trent incident, 346–347

Trenton, Battle of, 114

Très Riches Heures, 21

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, 454, i 454, 520

triangular trade, 76, R68

trickle-down theory, 1041

Tripartite Pact, 757

Triple Entente, 580

Trotter, William Monroe, 543

Troy Female Seminary, 256

Truman, Harry S., 780, 783, 789–791, 809–810, 842–845, 937, 1114, R52

atomic bomb and, 790, 791

civil rights and, 843–844

communism and, 823

Fair Deal and, 845, 886

Korean War and, 817, 820

at Potsdam conference, 810

Truman Doctrine, 812, R68

trusts, 449, 450, 525, 535, 539, R47

Truth, Sojourner, 259, i 259

Tubman, Harriet, 311, i 311

Tunney, Gene, 652, i 652

Turner, Frederick Jackson, 422

Turner, Henry M., 348, 393, i 393

Turner, Nat, 252, i 252

Tuskegee Airmen, 779, i 779

Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute, 491, R68

Tutankhamen, tomb of, 654

TVA. See Tennessee Valley Authority.

Twain, Mark. See Clemens, Samuel.

Tweed, William M. “Boss,” 475, i 475

Tweed Ring, 399, 475

Twelfth Amendment, 168, 198

Twentieth Amendment, 171, 695

Twenty-first Amendment, 171–172, 643, 696

Twenty-second Amendment, 172

Twenty-third Amendment, 172

Twenty-fourth Amendment, 172, c 896, 922

Twenty-fifth Amendment, 172–173, 1011–1012

Twenty-sixth Amendment, 173, 1004

Twenty-seventh Amendment, 173

two-party system, 186, R68

2001: A Space Odyssey, 993

Tyler, John, 235, R50

typewriter, 438, i 439

U

U-boats, 584–585, i 584, 589, 759, i 759, 776

UFWOC. See United Farm Workers Organizing Committee.

UMW. See United Mine Workers of America.

UN. See United Nations.

Uncle Sam, i 202

Uncle Tom’s Cabin (Stowe), 312, R68

Underground Railroad, 310–311, m 313, R68

Underwood Act, 539

unemployment, 234, 397, 428, 446, 675, c 676, c 723, c 1019, 1116–1117, R40, R47, c R47

UNIA. See Universal Negro Improvement Association.

Union Pacific Railroad, 421, 427, 443, 444

unions, 264–265, 450–455, c 453, 618, 705, 708–709, 713–715, c 714, R38. See also strikes; names of specific unions.

Union Stock Yards, 415

Unitarians, 243

United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC), 976, R68

United Mine Workers of America (UMW), 454, 714

United Nations (UN), 809, 831, R68

arms inspections in Iraq and, 1073, 1104–1105

founding of, 792

Korean War and, 817, 818

Persian Gulf War and, 1104

U.S.-led war against Iraq and, 1104–1105

United Services Organization (USO), 950

U.S. Chamber of Commerce, 589

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), 1086

U.S. Forest Bureau, 528

U.S. Forest Service, 529, 535

United States history, themes of, xxviii–xxix

America in world affairs, 610–611. See also foreign affairs and foreign policy.

civil rights, 930–931. See also civil rights; voting rights.

constitutional concerns. See Constitution; Supreme Court decisions.

diversity and the national identity, 466–467

economic opportunity, 634–635. See also economy; free enterprise; labor force.

immigration and migration, 1094–1095. See also African Americans, migrations of; immigration; migration; westward expansion.

science and technology, 794–795. See also communications; inventions; technology.

states’ rights, 322–333. See also federalism; states’ rights.

voting rights, 174–175. See also voting rights.
R117

women and political power, 124–125. See also women.

United States Sanitary Commission, 355

United States Steel, 449, 623

U.S. v. Cruikshank, 398

U.S. Virgin Islands, R42

U.S. v. Reese, 398

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber, 1024

Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), 659–660

unrestricted submarine warfare, 585

Unsafe at Any Speed (Nader), 897

urbanization. See cities.

urban renewal, 867, R68

urban sprawl, 630, R68

U’Ren, William S., 518

USA Patriot Act, 1103

using charts. See charts, using.

using computers. See computers, using.

using databases. See databases, using.

using diagrams. See diagrams, using.

using graphs. See graphs, using.

using the Internet for research. See Internet, using for research.

using maps. See maps, using.

using models. See models, using.

using notes. See notes, using.

using time lines. See time lines, using.

USO. United Services Organization.

U.S.S. Maine, 554

Utah, 297, 522. See also Deseret.

facts about, R49

Native Americans in, 7

Mormons in, 285

as territory, 307

utilities

as monopolies, R43

public ownership of, 516

regulation of, 707

utopian communities, 243, R68

U-2 incident, 832–833, R68

V

vaccinations, 850

Vallandigham, Clement, 349

Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, 113, i 113, 116

Van Buren, Martin, 319, R50

Indian removal and, 229

presidency of, 234–235

Vanderbilt, William, i 446

Vanzetti, Bartolomeo, 619–620, i 620

vaqueros, 414–415, i 414, i 431

vaudeville, 504, i 504

Vaughan, Mary C., 255

Vaux, Calvert, 483

V-E Day, 783, i 783, R68

Velasco, Treaty of, 292

Velázquez, Diego, 37

Veracruz, 296

Vermont

facts about, R49

Versailles, Treaty of, 606–607, 735, R67

vertical integration, 448, R68

Vesey, Denmark, 252

Veterans Bureau, 627

veto, 156

vice-president, 183

Vicksburg, Mississippi, 343, 360, m 361

victory garden, 596, i 596

Vietcong, 938, 940, 941, 942, 944–945, 947, 954–955, 961, 962, R68

Vietminh, 937, 938, R68

Vietnam. See also Vietnam War.

France and, 936, 937

U.S. recognition of, 967

Vietnamization, 961, R68

Vietnam Veterans Memorial, 966, i 966

Vietnam War, 894, 925, 1007, 1095

costs of, 947

draft and, 948–949, 951–952

Johnson (Lyndon) and, 940–941, 942–944, 946–947, 951, 953

Kennedy and, 938, 940

literature of, 968–969

My Lai massacre in, 962

Nixon and, 960–965

Pentagon Papers and, 963

protests against, 950–952, 962–963

search-and-destroy missions in, 945, R66

television and, 825, i 825, 947, 955

Tet offensive in, 954–955, m 955

Tonkin Gulf Resolution and, 941, 943, 963

U.S. containment policy and, 943

U.S. involvement in, 936, 938, 940, 942–947

veterans of, 965–966

Vikings, 27

Villa, Francisco “Pancho,” 570–571, i 571

Villard, Oswald Garrison, 542

Vinland, 27

Virginia, 119, 123, 147, 195–196, 201, 358, 363, 377, 922. See also Civil War.

colonial, 43, c 67, m 67, 72, 73, 86, 99, 121

facts about, R49

House of Burgesses, 48

in Revolutionary War, 121

secession of, 339

Virginia City, Nevada, 410

Virginia Company, 42, 43, 45

Virginia Plan, 141, 142

Virginia Resolutions, 195–196

virtual reality, 1084

VISTA. See Volunteers in Service to America.

visual sources, analyzing, 9, 21, 51, 57, 98, 108, 305, 328, 369, 503, 593, 641, 827, 884, 953, 963, 1031

Volstead Act, 642

Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA), 892, i 892, 894

Von Steuben, Friedrich, 118

voting rights, 225. See also participation, political. of African Americans, 133, 148, 174, 252, 386, 492–494, 843, 921–922

extension of, to 18-year-olds, 175, 1004

Fifteenth Amendment and, 174, 382, 386

Fourteenth Amendment and, 379–380, 381

of women, 74, 82, 133, 257–258, 521–522, 538, 540–541

Voting Rights Act

of 1965, 174, c 920, 922, 981, R68

of 1975, 1050

W

WAAC. See Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps.

Wade-Davis Bill, 377, R68

wage and price controls. See price controls.

Wagner, Robert F., 705, i 714

Wagner Act. See National Labor Relations Act.

Wainwright Building (St. Louis), 483

Walden (Thoreau), 243, 247

Waldo, Albigense, 113

Wales, 69, m 69

Walker, Alice, 923, i 923

Walker, David, 249

Wallace, George, 918, 959, 1003

Wallace, Henry A., 844

Wampanoag people, 54

War, Department of, 183

war hawks, 203, R68

War Industries Board (WIB), 595, R68

War of 1812, 204–205, m 204, 213

War of the Worlds, The, 717

War on Poverty, 892, 894, 899, 925

war on terrorism, 1073, 1100–1103

War Powers Act, 967, R68

War Production Board (WPB), 774, i 774, R68

Warren, Earl, i 691, 897, 900–901, 980, 1003

Warren, Mercy Otis, 97, 107, i 107

Warren Commission, 889, R68

Warren Court, 897–898, 901, 981, R68

Warsaw Pact, 830, m 830, R68

Washburn, Henry D., 422

Washington (state)

facts about, R49

Washington, Booker T., 491, 494, 530–531, 557

Washington, George, i 131, 141, 144, 195, 196, R50

cabinet of, 183

as commander of Continental Army, 104

at Constitutional Convention, 141

farewell address, 194

foreign policy under, 191

in French and Indian War, 86–87

presidency of, 140–141, 182–183, i 182, 186

and ratification of Constitution, 146

in Revolutionary War, 113, 114, 115, 116, i 116

shaping of executive branch by, 183

Washington, D.C., 185, 198, 205, 307, 341, 484, 1047, 1049

burning of, in War of 1812, 205

civil rights march on, 920

in Civil War, 331

Congress and, 158

facts about, R48

Washington Naval Conference, 625
R118

Waste Land, The (Eliot), 657

Watergate scandal, 825, 964, 1008–1013, R68

Water Quality Act, 897

Waters, Ethel, 662

Watson, Thomas, 438

Watson, Thomas E., 429

Watt, James, 1043

Watts riots, i 718, 925

Wayne, “Mad Anthony,” 193, i 193

WCTU. See Women’s Christian Temperance Union.

weapons of mass destruction (WMD), 1073, 1074, 1104, 1105

Weaver, Robert C., 711, 896

web-perfecting press, 485

Webster, Daniel, 230, i 230, 231–232, i 231, 233, 307–309, i 307, i 308

Webster-Ashburton Treaty, 285

Webster v. Reproductive Health Care

Services, 1046

welfare reform, 1001, 1068, 1117

Welles, Orson, 717, i 717

Wells, Ida B., 492, i 492, 494, 659

Wesberry v. Sanders, 980–981

West, literature of, 430–431

West Africa, 14–19, m 15. See also Africa.

culture of, 18–19

empires in, 16

kingdoms of, 17

religion in, 18–19, i 18

slave trade and, 29, 75–76

West Germany, 814, 1020

Westinghouse, George, 437

Westin, Jeane, 681

West Indies, 45, 75, 76, 660

Westmoreland, William, 943, i 943, 945, 947, 955

West Point, 295

West Virginia

facts about, R49

statehood for, 339

westward expansion, 1094. See also Great Plains.

British attempt to slow, 88

claims following Revolutionary War, 135

on Great Plains, 409–410, 420–421

Indian Territory and, 203

under Jefferson, 199, m 200, 201

Louisiana Purchase and, 201

manifest destiny and, 280–281

in mid-19th century, 280–282, m 283, 284–285

Missouri Compromise and, 222

Native Americans and, 88, 193–194, 281–282, m 283, 409–410, 412–413, 634

Northwest Territory and, 192–193, 222

reasons for, c 285

after Revolutionary War, 123, 135, 192–194

Weyler, Valeriano, 553

Wharton, Edith, 502, 657

Wheeler, Burton, 763

Wheeler, Edward, 502

Whig Party, 234, 235, c 320, R68

slavery and, 318–319

Whiskey Rebellion, 186–187, i 187

Whiskey Ring, 395–396

White, Garland, 366

White, John, 43

White, Richard, 282

White, Walter, 712

Whitefield, George, i 84

White House, 205

Whitewater Development Company, 1071

Whitman, Marcus and Narcissa, 284

Whitney, Eli, 212, i 212, 215, 216, i 216

Wholesome Meat Act, 897

Why We Fight (Capra), 772, i 772

WIB. See War Industries Board.

Wiesel, Elie, 755, i 755

Wilder, L. Douglas, 1049

Wilderness, Battle of the, 363

Wilderness Road, 201

Wiley, Harvey Washington, 528

Wilhelm II (kaiser of Germany), 579, i 579

Wilkins, Isaac, 107, i 107

Willard, Emma, 256

Willard, Frances, 513

William III (king of England), 69, i 70

Williams, Roger, 52–53

Williams v. Mississippi, 496

Willkie, Wendell, 757

Wills, Helen, 654, i 654

Wilmot, David, 306

Wilmot Proviso, 294, 306, 317, R68

Wilson, Woodrow, 428, 536–537, 564, 569, 585, i 585, 586, 604–605, i 605, 623, 624, R51

banking system under, 540

civil rights and, 541–542

foreign policy of, 569–571, 585–586

Fourteen Points of, 605

League of Nations and, 605, 607, 608

Mexican revolution and, 569–571

presidency of, 539–540, 594–595

propaganda campaign of, 596–597

tariffs and, 539–540

taxation and, 540

war economy and, 594–595

woman suffrage and, 540–541

World War I and, 585–586, 597, 600

Wilson-Gorman Tariff, 477

Winthrop, John, 49, 50, 51

Wintu people, 12

Wisconsin, 192, 215, 325, 421

facts about, R49

witch trials, 82

Withers, Ernest, 919, i 919

Wobblies. See Industrial Workers of the World.

Wolfe, James, 87

Womack, Bob, 419

Woman in the Nineteenth Century (Fuller), 246

woman suffrage. See women, voting rights of.

Woman Suffrage Party, 541

women. See also progressive movement or progressivism; women’s rights movement; names of individual women.

African American, 256, 257, 520, 522

bicycling and, 499

in Civil War, 354, 355

in colonial America, 74–75, 82, 97, 106

in Congress, 578, 928

Constitution and, 149

Declaration of Independence and, 111

education of, 256, 520–521

in Europe, 21

on farms, 420, 423, 425, 519

Great Depression and, 681–682

health reform and, 256–257

in labor force, 259, 260, 262–263, 438, 450–451, 513, 517, 519–520, 594, 647, 648, c 648, i 648, 771, 797, i 797, 983, c 983, 1075, i 1075, 1120–1121, c 1120–1121

in labor movement, 454–455, i 623, 983, 1048–1049

literature by, 657, 665, 1080–1081

in mining camps, 410

Native American, 13

New Deal and, 710–711

in 1920s, 646–649

in 1950s, 850–851

in Northern colonies, 82

pay equity for, 1048, 1120, 1121

political power and, 122, 148, 225, 1048

as reformers, 254–258, 520–522, 983

in Revolutionary War, 117

role of, 133, 254–255

in Southern colonies, 74–75

in Vietnam War, 950

voting rights of, 74, 133, 175, 257–258, 521–522, 538, 540–541

in World War I, 588, 594, 600, i 600

in World War II, 769, i 769, 797, i 797

Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC), 769, R69

Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), 513–514, 642

Women’s Peace Party, 600

women’s rights movement, 257–258, 982–986

Wonder, Stevie, 992

Woodbridge, Cloverleaf, 629

Wood, Grant, 719

Woodstock, 989, R69

Woodward, Bob, 1010, i 1010

Woolworth, F. W., 502–503

Worcester v. Georgia, 228

workers’ compensation, 517

work force. See labor force.

working conditions, 516–517, 527, i 527. See also labor force; labor movement.

before the Civil War, 266–267, c 267

in factories, 438, 450–451, 454, 455, 512, 515

improving, 263

on railroads, 443

working with a group, 63, 93, 127, 209, 373, 403, 433, 479, 507, 545, 603, 651, 667, 730, 795, 837, 871, 933, 971, 993, 1033

Workingmen’s Party, 465
R119

Works Progress Administration (WPA), 704–705, c 706, 718–719, R69

WorldCom, 1073, 1077

World Trade Center (New York), 1068–1069, 1100, i 1100, 1101, i 1101. See also September 11 terrorist attack; terrorism.

World Trade Organization (WTO), 1070, 1078

World War I, m 581, m 592

African Americans in, 588

alliances in, 579–580

Allies in, 579–580

American neutrality in, 583

battles of, i 576–577, 580, 582, 589–591

blockade and, 584–585

causes of, 578–580

Central Powers in, 580

civil liberties and, 597–598

debts from, 625

draft in, 588–589, i 588

economy and, 594–596, c 595

end of, 592–593

Europe after, m 606

financing of, 596–597

home front in, 594–596

legacy of, 609

medical care in, 591

naval arms race and, 579

“no man’s land” in, 582, R63

peace settlement for, 606, 735

selling of, 596–597

social changes and, 598–599

trench warfare in, 582, i 582, R68

U-boats in, 584–585, 589

U.S. involvement in, 584–585, 794

war guilt clause and, 606, R68

war resolution and, 586

weapons in, 590–591, i 590–591, 795

woman suffrage and, 541

women in, 588, 594, 600, i 600

World War II, m 778, c 786–787, 1009

African Americans in, 769, i 769, 770, 779, i 779, 908, 1095

Allied plans for, 775, 776

blitzkrieg tactics in, 745, i 745

bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 790, i 790, 791, 792

conferences during, 779, 791–792

D-Day and, 780, m 781

economy and, 773–774, c 773, 797

end of, i 808

end of Great Depression and, 763, 796–797

events leading to, 735–741, 742–743

German advances in, m 744

horrors of, 777, i 777

industry in, 770–771

internment of Japanese Americans in, 800–801, i 800, m 800, 802–803

lend-lease plan and, 758, 759

Normandy invasions in, 780, m 781

in North Africa, 778, m 778

in Pacific, 784–785, m 786, 787, 788, 789, 790

phony war in, 746

population shifts and, 797

Potsdam conference after, 810

rationing in, 774

scientists in, 773, 789, 791

social adjustments and, 798

submarines in, 759, i 759, 760, 776

surrender of Japan in, 790

technological developments and, i 745, 794–795, c 795

two-front war, 763

U.S. involvement in, 758–763, 768–769

women in, 769, i 769, 797, i 797

Wounded Knee, South Dakota, m 408, 413, 978

battle of, 413, R54

WPA. See Works Progress Administration.

WPB. See War Production Board.

Wright, Frank Lloyd, 483, 542

Wright, Orville and Wilbur, 485, i 485, 486, 487

Wright, Richard, 720

written presentations, creating, R34–35

WTO. See World Trade Organization.

Wyoming, 282, 422, 522

facts about, R49

X

XYZ Affair, 195, i 195, R69

Y

Yalta Conference, 791–792

Yancey, William, 346, i 346

yellow fever, 449, 559

yellow journalism, 553, R69

Yellowstone National Park, 413

Yeltsin, Boris, 1055

YMCA. See Young Men’s Christian Association.

Yom Kippur War, 1005

York, Alvin, 592, i 592

Yorktown, Battle of, 121

Yorktown, Virginia, 118, m 119, 121

Yoruba people, 17, i 17

Yosemite National Park, 530, i 530

Young, Andrew, 928, 1020, i 1020

Young, Brigham, 285

Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), 513

Yucatán Peninsula, 6

Yugoslavia, 580, 606, 1056, 1069

Yurok, 9

Z

Zaire (Congo) River, 17

Zapata, Emiliano, 570

Zapatistas, i 570

Zhou Enlai, 818

Zimmermann note, 585, R69

Zitkala-S̆a, 408, i 408
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Acknowledgments

Text Acknowledgments

CHAPTER 13, page 431: Excerpt from “El Corrido de Gregorio Cortez,” from With His Pistol in His Hands: A Border Ballad and Its Hero by Américo Paredes. Copyright © 1958, renewed 1986. Reprinted by permission of the author and the University of Texas Press. CHAPTER 15, page 463: Excerpt from “The Reminiscences of Edward Ferro,” from I Was Dreaming to Come to America: Memories from the Ellis Island Oral History Project, page 24. Selected and illustrated by Veronica Lawlor; forward by Rudolph W. Giuliani. Copyright © 1995 by Viking.

CHAPTER 21, page 665: “First Fig,” from Collected Poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay, published by HarperCollins. Copyright © 1922, 1950 by Edna St. Vincent Millay. Reprinted by permission of Elizabeth Barnett, literary executor. “Dream Variations,” from The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes by Langston Hughes. Copyright © 1994 by the Estate of Langston Hughes. Used be permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc.

CHAPTER 22, pages 679, 689: Excerpts from “A. Everette McIntyre” and “Herman Shumlin,” from Hard Times by Studs Terkel. Copyright © 1970. Reprinted by permission of Donadio & Olson, Inc.

CHAPTER 23, page 719: Excerpt from “Dust Bowl Refugee,” words and music by Woody Guthrie. Copyright © 1960 (renewed) and 1963 (renewed) by Ludlow Music, Inc., New York, New York. Used by permission.

CHAPTER 24, page 748: Excerpt from Gerda Weissmann Klein’s interview in the film One Survivor Remembers, a production of Home Box Office and the United States Holocaust Museum. By permission of Gary Greenberg for Gerda Weissmann Klein.

CHAPTER 25, page 768: Excerpts from “Wife’s Recorded Message Made Many Long for Home,” from We Pulled Together … and Won! by Charles Swanson (Reminisce Books). Reprinted by permission of the Estate of Charles Swanson.

CHAPTER 26, page 834: Excerpt from The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney. Copyright © 1955 by Jack Finney. Copyright © renewed 1983 by Jack Finney. Reprinted by permission of Don Congdon Associates.

page 835: Excerpt from The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. Copyright © 1945 by Street and Smith. Copyright © renewed 1972 by Ray Bradbury. Reprinted by permission of Don Congdon Associates.

CHAPTER 30, page 945: Excerpt from Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam, edited by Bernard Edelman for the New York Vietnam Veterans Memorial Commission. Published in 1985 by W. W. Norton & Company. Copyright © 1985 by the New York Vietnam Veterans Memorial Commission. Reprinted by permission of Bernard Edelman.

page 951: Excerpt from “Eve of Destruction,” words and music by P. F. Sloan. Copyright © 1965 by Duchess Music Corporation. Sole selling agent MCA Music Publishing, a division of MCA Inc. International copyright secured. All rights reserved.

Excerpt from “Ballad of the Green Berets” by Barry Sadler. Reprinted by permission of Estaboga Music.

Page 968: Excerpt from Going After Cacciato by Tim O’Brien. Copyright © 1978 by Tim O’Brien. Reprinted by permission of Dell Publishing, a division of Random House, Inc.

Page 969: Excerpt from A Rumor of War by Philip Caputo. Copyright © 1977 by Philip Caputo. Reprinted by permission of Henry Holt and Company, L.L.C.

Excerpt from Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers. Copyright © 1988 by Walter Dean Myers. Used by permission of Scholastic. Hardcover, a trademark of Scholastic, Inc.

CHAPTER 33, page 1052: “Migration Patterns: Where Americans Are Going,” from Regional Growth and Decline in the United States. Copyright © 1985 by Bernard L. Weinstein, Harold T. Gross, and John Rees. Reprinted by permission of Bernard L. Weinstein, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas.

CHAPTER 34, page 1066: Excerpt from “On the Pulse of the Morning” by Maya Angelou. Copyright © 1993 by Maya Angelou. Used by permission of Random House, Inc.

page 1080: “Choices,” from Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day by Nikki Giovanni. Copyright © 1978 by Nikki Giovanni. Used by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

page 1081: Excerpt from The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. Copyright © 1989 by Amy Tan. Used by permission of G. P. Putnam’s Sons, a division of Penguin Putnam, Inc.

“Four Skinny Trees,” from The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. Copyright © 1984 by Sandra Cisneros. Published by Vintage Books, a division of Random House, Inc., and in hardcover by Alfred A. Knopf. Reprinted by permission of Susan Bergholz Literary Services, New York. All rights reserved.

McDougal Littell Inc. has made every effort to locate the copyright holders for selections used in this book and to make full acknowledgment for their use. Omissions brought to our attention will be corrected in a subsequent edition.

Art Credits

Cover, Back Cover, and Frontispiece

Abigail Adams: © Bettmann/Corbis

American Flag: © Izzy Schwartz/PhotoDisc/Getty Images

Dwight D. Eisenhower: © STF/AP Images

Pedro Gonzáles: Espinosa Productions

Thomas Jefferson: Thomas Jefferson (1791), Charles Wilson Peale. Oil on canvas, 248 x 208 (61 x 50.8 cm). Independence National Historical Park, Philadelphia. © Bettmann/Corbis

Martin Luther King, Jr.: © Howard Sochurek/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images

Maya Lin: © 1993 Richard Howard/Black Star

Abraham Lincoln: Ambrotype (1858), Abraham Byers. © Bettmann/Corbis
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migrant mother: Migrant Mother, Nipomo, California (1936), Dorothea Lange/Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-95653]

Luis Muñoz Rivera: Puerto Rican Cultural Institute/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

Eleanor Roosevelt: © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Zitkala Sa: Courtesy of Harold Lee Library, Brigham Young University

Statue of Liberty: © David Buffington/PhotoDisc/Getty Images

Harriet Tubman: © National Geographic Image Collection

George Washington: © Christie’s Images/Corbis

Maps

Atlas maps by Rand McNally A2–A39 Unless otherwise indicated below, all other maps, locators, and globe locators by GeoNova LLC.

Master Elements

American flag photo used in Section Opener banners throughout book © Izzy Schwartz/PhotoDisc/Getty Images.

Supreme Court Facade used in “Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court” feature © PhotoDisc/Getty Images.

The presidential seal is used throughout by permission of The Office of the Counsel to the President, The White House, Washington, D.C. Unless otherwise indicated, photograph provided by The Granger Collection, New York.

Table of Contents

vi top, Nova Britannia (1609), Robert Johnson, London, title page (*KC 1609). Rare Books and Manuscripts Division, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations; center, William Franklin (date unknown) attributed to Mather Brown. Collection of Mrs. Jackson C. Boswell, Arlington, Virginia. Courtesy of the Frick Art Reference Library; bottom, Molly Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth (1854), Dennis Malone Carter. Oil on canvas, 42” x 56”. Gift of Herbert P. Whitlock, 1913. Courtesy of Fraunces Tavern® Museum, New York City; vii top The Granger Collection, New York; center © Christie’s Images/Corbis; bottom Tray depicting Reverend Lemuel Haynes in the pulpit (ca. 1835-1840), English. Oil on molded papier mache, 25-11/16” x 20-15/16”. Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, bequest of Lucy Truman Aldrich; viii top Private Collection/Picture Research Consultants & Archives center, Abraham Lincoln (ca. 1858), Fetter’s Picture Gallery Photograph. Ambrotype, Copy Plate, 21/2” x 2” (6.3 x 5.1 cm). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; bottom Photograph by Rudolph Eickmeyer/Photographic History Collection, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (86-11374); ix top, Portrait of Sioux Man and Woman (date unknown), Gertrude Käsebier. Photographic History Collection, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (86-2205); center National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Electrical Collections (79-1641); bottom Culver Pictures; x top © Bettmann/Corbis; center © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; xi top Culver Pictures; center Courtesy of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University; bottom Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York; xii top Courtesy of Gerda Weissman Klein; center © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © Allied Artists/The Kobal Collection; xiii top © Blank Archives/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; center Courtesy of Arthur L. Freeman; bottom © Paul Fusco/Magnum Photos; xiv top AUTH © 1973 The Philadelphia Inquirer. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All rights reserved; bottom © Scott Nelson/Getty Images; xv center © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); xvii top Matthew Pippin/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; center During the World War There Was a Great Migration North by Southern Negroes (Panel no. 1 from The Migration of the Negro mural series) (1940-1941), Jacob Lawrence. Casein tempera on hardboard, 12” x 18”. The Phillips Collection; acquired 1942/© Estate of Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. The multimedia product and its contents are protected under copyright law. Any theatrical, televised, or public display or performance, including transmission of any image over a network, excepting a local area network, is prohibited by law, as is the preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction in whole or in part, of any Images without the permission of ARS. Reproduction, including downloading of artist works is prohibited by copyright laws and international conventions without the express written permission of Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; bottom © Joe Rosenthal/AP Images; xviii top Stock Montage; bottom © Mark Wilson/AP Images; xx The Granger Collection, New York; xxii © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; xxviii top National Aeronautics and Space Administraton (NASA); bottom © Reuters/Corbis; xxix top The Granger Collection, New York; center © Robertstock.com; bottom © Howard Sochrek/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images xxx © Thinkstock/Corbis.

Strategies for Taking Standardized Tests

S1 McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; S12 The Granger Collection, New York; S13 Fred O. Seibel Collection, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library (MSS 2531); S27 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); S31 © Roger Ressmeyer/Corbis; S33 C.D. Batchelor/© New York Daily News, L.P. Reprinted with permission.

Chapter 1

S34–1 The Landing of the Pilgrims (1825), Bartoll, Samuel (1765-1835) oil on panel /© Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts, USA, / The Bridgeman Art Library; 2–3 The Granger Collection, New York; 2 bottom left Anthropology Museum, Veracruz University, Jalapa, Mexico/Art Resource, New York; bottom right © Richard A. Cooke/Corbis; 3 bottom right, Portrait of a Man, said to be Christopher Columbus (born about 1446, died 1506) (1519), Sebastiano del Piombo. Oil on canvas, 42” x 34 3/4”. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1900 (00.18.2). Photograph copyright © 1979 The Metropolitan Museum of Art; bottom left © Leonard de Selva/Corbis; 4 top right © Corbis; center © Roy Andersen/National Geographic Image Collection; 5 top © Warren Morgan/Corbis; 6 top left © Macduff Everton/Corbis; top center © T. Linck/SuperStock, Inc.; top right Michael Hampshire/Courtesy of Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site; bottom left © Charles & Josette Lenars/Corbis bottom center Anthropology Museum, Veracruz University, Jalapa, Mexico/Art Resource, New York; bottom right © Danny Lehman/Corbis; 8 center Courtesy of the Phoebe Apperson Hearst Museum of Anthropology and the Regents of the University of California [Catalog number 15-25500]; top right © Corbis; 9 all Forensic reconstruction by Sharon A. Long, Wyoming, artist/anthropologist. Photography by Terri Brayton, New York. Courtesy of the Monacan Indian Nation; 10 KC Publications, Inc. Copyright © Southwestern Indian Arts and Crafts; 11 center Edward S. Curtis, from Volume XII of The North American Indian,1922 © Corbis; top © Henry Guttmann/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; right © Nathan Benn/Corbis; 12 The Granger Collection, New York; 13 © Mike Zens/Corbis; 14 center © The Trustees of the British Museum; top right © Corbis; 16 Stock Montage; 17 Head of an Oni (11-15th Century), unknown Yoruba artist. Zinc and brass, height 31 cm. Museum of Ife Antiquities, Ife, Nigeria, Photo © Held Collection/The Bridgeman Art Library; 18 © 1993 Chester Higgins, Jr.; 19 © Peter Turnley/Corbis; 20 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right © Corbis; 21 June, Haymaking. Calendar miniature from Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry (1416). Musée Condé, Chantilly, France [Ms.65, f.6v]. Photograph by R.G. Ojeda/Réunion des Musées Nationaux / Art Resource, New York; 22 The Granger Collection, New York; 24 Matthew Pippin/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 26 center, Portrait of a Man, said to be Christopher Columbus (born about 1446, died 1506) (1519), Sebastiano del Piombo. Oil on canvas, 42” x 34 3/4”. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1900 (00.18.2). Photograph © 1979 The Metropolitan Museum of Art; top right © Corbis; 28 The Granger Collection, New York; 32 background © Charles & Josette Lenars/Corbis bottom center, Portrait of a Man, said to be Christopher Columbus (born about 1446, died 1506) (1519), Sebastiano del Piombo. Oil on canvas, 42” x 34 3/4”. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1900 (00.18.2). Photograph copyright © 1979 The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
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Chapter 2

34 bottom left, Mask, Quetzalcoatl or Tonatiuh, the Sun God (early 16th century), Aztec. Turquoise and pearl shell. British Museum, London/Photograph © Werner Forman/Art Resource, New York; bottom right © Gianni Dagli Orti/Corbis; 34–35 © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 35 bottom right The Granger Collection, New York; bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; 36 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right Musée de la Marine Paris /Gianni Dagli Orti/The Art Archive; 37 top The Granger Collection, New York; bottom Courtesy of the Department of Library Services, American Museum of Natural History, New York; 39 inset The New York Public Library; 40 left © Ted Streshinsky/Corbis; right Illustration by Lawrence Ormsby. Reprinted by permission from Spanish Colonial Missions by Gloria Giffords. Published by Western National Parks Association. © 1988; 42 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right Musée de la Marine Paris/Gianni Dagli Orti/The Art Archive; 43 The Granger Collection, New York; 44 bottom © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top right, top center Courtesy of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities; 45 Nova Britannia (1609), Robert Johnson, London, title page (*KC 1609). Rare Books and Manuscripts Division, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations; 46 The Granger Collection, New York; 47 © Bettmann/Corbis; 49 center By kind permission of the Vicar and Churchwardens of St. Botolph’s Church, Boston, Lincolnshire, England; top right Musée de la Marine Paris/Gianni Dagli Orti/The Art Archive; 50 top Pilgrim Society, Plymouth, Massachusetts; center left © Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 51 bottom right Sho W. Negami; left © Ann Parker & Avon Neal 52 © 2008 Kindra Clineff; 53 inset, center The Granger Collection, New York; 55 top right Musée de la Marine Paris/Gianni Dagli Orti/The Art Archive; center The Granger Collection, New York; 57 all Matthew Pippin/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 58 William Penn’s Treaty with the Indians (ca. 1840), Edwards Hicks. Bridgeman-Giraudon/Art Resource, New York; 59 Courtesy of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania Collection, Atwater Kent Museum of Philadelphia; 60 © Ira Block/National Geographic Image Collection; 61 top © Nick Caloyianis/National Geographic Image Collection; bottom © Michael P. Gadomski/ Superstock; top inset © Hal Horwitz/Corbis; 62 bottom left Courtesy of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania Collection, Atwater Kent Museum of Philadelphia; center left The Granger Collection, New York; center right Pilgrim Society, Plymouth, Massachusetts; top left, Mask, Quetzalcoatl or Tonatiuh, the Sun God (early 16th century), Aztec. Turquoise and pearl shell. British Museum, London/Photograph © Werner Forman/Art Resource, New York.

Chapter 3

64 bottom right Courtesy of the Special Collections Research Center, Earl Gregg Swem Library, The College of William and Mary; bottom center © Bettmann/Corbis; 64–65 View of the Long Wharf and the Harbor of Boston (1764), J. Byron. © Burstein Collection/Corbis; 65 bottom left The Granger Collection, New York; bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; 66 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right, SE Prospect of the City of Philadelphia (Detail) (1720), Peter Cooper, The Library Company of Philadelphia; 68 Overmantle (mid 18th century), unknown artist. Oil on wood panel from the Moses Marcy House, Old Sturbridge Village, Southbridge MA, www.osv.org. [Accession no. 20.19.1]. Photo by Henry E. Peach; 70 left, Charles II (mid-17th century), Pieter Nason. Oil on canvas. Private collection, © Philip Mould Ltd, London/The Bridgeman Art Library; center left The Granger Collection, New York; center right, Portrait of King William III (date unknown), Sir Godfrey Kneller. Oil on canvas. The Crown Estate/The Bridgeman Art Library, New York; right Mary II (mid-17th Century), William Wissing. Oil on canvas. Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland/The Bridgeman Art Library; 71 The Meetinghouse Drawing, Courtesy of the Pilgrim Society, Plymouth, Massachusetts; 72 center © Lee Snider/Photo Images/Corbis; top right, SE Prospect of the City of Philadelphia (Detail) (1720), Peter Cooper, The Library Company of Philadelphia; 73 The Granger Collection, New York; 74 © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 76 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-44000]; 77 top Collection of the Blue Ridge Institute and Museums/Blue Ridge Heritage Archive of Ferrum College, Ferrum, Virginia; bottom © The Trustees of the British Museum; 78 Tom Costa, University of Virginia’s College at Wise; 79 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right, SE Prospect of the City of Philadelphia (Detail) (1720), Peter Cooper, The Library Company of Philadelphia; 80 right © Lee Snider/Photo Images/Corbis; left Photo by John Chew/Courtesy of Cliveden of the National Trust; 83 left Benjamin Franklin (1783), Joseph Siffred Duplessis. Pastel on paper. The Granger Collection, New York; right The Granger Collection, New York; 84 The Granger Collection, New York; 85 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right, SE Prospect of the City of Philadelphia (Detail) (1720), Peter Cooper, The Library Company of Philadelphia; 88 The Granger Collection, New York; 89 Benjamin Franklin, 1774. Library of Congress/Corbis; 90 bottom left, Celebrating Couple: General Jackson and His Lady (about 1831), Reverend H. Young, American, active 1823-1831. Pen and Watercolor on brown paper, Karolik cat. 1341, fig. 360 (Folk artists),10 3/16” x 7 9/16”. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, gift of Maxim Karolik for the M. and M. Karolik Collection of American Watercolors and Drawings, 1800-1875 (56.751); 90–91 Landscape with Figures (1790), Isaac Heston. Oil on wood panel. Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, Virginia (1939.101.1); 91 top, The Old Plantation (ca. 1795), artist unknown. Watercolor on laid paper. Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, Virginia (1935.301.3); bottom Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-33939].

Chapter 4

94 bottom right © Getty Images; bottom left Rare Books and Manuscripts Division of the New York Public Library. Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations; 94–95 The Granger Collection, New York; 95 bottom left © Leif Skoogfors/Corbis; bottom right The Granger Collection, New York; bottom center © Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 96 top right, Washington Crossing The Delaware (Detail) (1851), Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze. Photograph © Bettmann/Corbis; center right Patrick Faricy/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 97 © Bettmann/Corbis; 98 The Granger Collection, New York; 100 Rare Books and Manuscript Division of the New York Public Library. Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations; 101 top American Antiquarian Society; bottom, Battle of Lexington (ca. 1850), Alonzo Chappel. Photograph © Bettmann/Corbis; 102 top left The Granger Collection, New York; 103 center right, William Franklin (date unknown) attributed to Mather Brown. Collection of Mrs. Jackson C. Boswell, Arlington, Virginia. Courtesy of the Frick Art Reference Library; top right, Washington Crossing The Delaware (Detail) (1851), Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze. Photograph © Bettmann/Corbis; 104 The Granger Collection, New York; 105 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-106S8]; 107 top right, top left Culver Pictures; center right, center left, bottom left, U.S. flag The Granger Collection, New York; British flag © Ken Biggs/Stone/Getty Images; bottom right Westchester County Historical Society; 108 The Granger Collection, New York; 109 The Granger Collection, New York; signature National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 111 top Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 112 all National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 113 bottom, March to Valley Forge (1883), William B. Trego. Courtesy of the Valley Forge Historical Society; top right, Washington Crossing The Delaware (Detail) (1851), Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze. Photograph © Bettmann/Corbis; 115 center right © David Kamerman; bottom right © David Kamerman; 116 The Granger Collection, New York; 117 Molly Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth (1854), Dennis Malone Carter. Oil on canvas, 42” x 56”. Gift of Herbert P. Whitlock, 1913. Courtesy of Fraunces Tavern® Museum, New York City; 118 center left The Granger Collection, New York; top right, Washington Crossing The Delaware (Detail) (1851), Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze. Photograph © Bettmann/Corbis; 120 Battle of Cowpens (about 1855), William Ranney. Oil on canvas. From the Collection of the State of South Carolina; 122 A New and Correct Map of the United States (1783), Abel Buel. From the Collections of the New Jersey Historical Society, Newark; 123 Image by courtesy of the Trustees of the Wedgwood Museum, Barlaston, Staffordshire, England; 124 top right, Portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Mifflin (Sarah Morris) (1773), John Singleton Copley. Oil on ticking, 61” x 48” (156.5 x 121.9 cm). Philadelphia Museum of Art; center left Courtesy of the Seneca Falls (New York) Historical Society; 124–125 The Granger Collection, New York; 125 top Photo by Sharon
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Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; top right © Reuters/Corbis; 126 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top © Ken Biggs/Stone/Getty Images; 127 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-9487].

Chapter 5

128–129 Signing of the Constitution, Howard Chandler Christy. Private collection/Art Resource, New York; 130–131 Washington as Statesman at the Constitutional Convention (1856), Junius Brutus Stearns. Oil on canvas, 37 1/2” H x 54” W. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Virginia; gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch. Photograph by Ron Jennings; 130 bottom center © Kevin R. Morris/Corbis; bottom right © Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images center left © Corbis; 131 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 132 center right, John Dickinson (Detail) (about 1835), James Barton Longacre, after Charles Wilson Peale. Sepia watercolor on artist board, 11 5/8” x 8 7/8” (29.5 x 20 cm). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 133 Republican Motherhood (Detail), date and artist unknown. Silk embroidery. National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (81-5200); 134 right Mary Evans Picture Library; left © Dutch School/The Bridgeman Art Library/Getty Images; 136 The Granger Collection, New York; 138 top © David R. Frazier/Stone/Getty Images; 139 Township VII, Range XIV, Ohio Company (1787), Rufus Putnam. Clements Library, University of Michigan; 140 top right © Bettmann/Corbis; center © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 141 left The Granger Collection, New York; right, Roger Sherman (Detail) (ca.1777), anonymous artist, after Ralph Earl. Oil on canvas, 26 3/8” x 22 3/16” (67 x 56.3 cm). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. Gift of Mr. Bradley B. Gilman/Art Resource, New York; 144 top left © Reuters/Corbis; 145 center right, John Jay (Detail) (ca. 1785), begun by Gilbert Stuart and completed by John Trumbull. Oil on canvas, 128.5 x 101.5 cm. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 146 bottom, Patrick Henry (Detail) (ca. 1835), James Barton Longacre, after Lawrence Sully. Watercolor. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; top Alexander Hamilton (Detail) (1806), John Trumbull. Oil on canvas, 76.2 cm x 61 cm (30” x 24”). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. Gift of Henry Cabot Lodge/Art Resource, New York; 147 The Granger Collection, New York; 148 top © Sasa Krajl/NewsCom/Agence France Presse; bottom © Denis Farrell/AP Images; 152 The Granger Collection, New York; 153 © Bettmann/Corbis; 162 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top © APTN/AP Images; 163 Photograph by Steve Petteway. Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States; 167 The Federal Edifice: On the Erection of the Eleventh Pillar (August 2, 1788). Caricature from The Massachusetts Centinel. Collection of The New-York Historical Society. [Negative no. 33959]; 169 © AP Images; 170 © Bettmann/Corbis; 173 © Bettmann/Corbis; 174 left © Bettmann/Corbis; right, Daniel Boardman (Detail) (1789), Ralph Earl. Oil on canvas, 81 5/8” x 55 1/4”. © 1996, Board of Trustees, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. Gift of Mrs. W. Murray Crane; 175 top © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom © AP Images; 176 The Granger Collection, New York; 177 A 1968 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by The Herb Block Foundation; 178 bottom © David Young-Wolff/PhotoEdit; top Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 179 © Mark Richards/PhotoEdit.

Chapter 6

180 bottom left © Corbis; bottom right © Paul Almasy/Corbis; 180–181 Carter’s Tavern at the Head of Lake George (1817-18), Francis Guy. Oil on canvas, 101cm x 168cm. The Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders’ Society Purchase, R.H. Tannahill Foundation Fund/The Bridgeman Art Library; 181 bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-116232]; 182 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right, Pioneers Travelling in a Flatboat (ca. 1842-1888), Felix Octavius Carr Darley. Colored woodcut. © Bettmann/Corbis; 183 © Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 184 right, Alexander Hamilton (ca.1796), James Sharples, the Elder. Pastel on paper, 13 x 12.4 cm. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; left, Thomas Jefferson (1791), Charles Wilson Peale. Oil on canvas, 248 x 208 (61 x 50.8 cm). Independence National Historical Park, Philadelphia. © Bettmann/Corbis; 186 The Granger Collection, New York; 187 Stock Montage; 188 The Granger Collection, New York; 189 center The Granger Collection, New York; top The Granger Collection, New York; bottom inset, Cotillion Dance (1771), James Caldwell after John Collet. Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, Virginia (1954-484); 190 center, The Taking of the Bastille, July 14, 1789 (late 1700s), Anonymous. Chateaux de Versailles et deTrianon, Versailles, France. Photograph © Erich Lessing/Art Resource, New York; top right, Pioneers Travelling in a Flatboat (ca. 1842-1888), Felix Octavius Carr Darley. Colored woodcut. © Bettmann/Corbis; 191 © 1969 by Edwin Tunis. First appeared in Young United States, published by Thomas Y. Crowell. Reprinted by permission of Curtis Brown, Ltd.; 193 Treaty of Greenville (1795) artist unknown. Chicago History Museum (Negative number P&S-1914.0001) 194 © Bettmann/Corbis; 195 The Granger Collection, New York; 197 center file photo; top right, Pioneers Travelling in a Flatboat (ca. 1842-1888), Felix Octavius Carr Darley. Colored woodcut. © Bettmann/Corbis; 198 © Bettmann/Corbis; 199 barrell Courtesy of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial/National Park Service; 200 bottom left The Granger Collection, New York; top right, Mih-Tutta-Hangkusch, a Mandan Village after a Painting by Karl Bodmer © Philip de Bay/Historical Picture Archive/Corbis; bottom right National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (75-2348); top left © US Mint/AP Images; 201 Bear Pursuing his Assailant (1810), Mathew Carey. Wood engraving added to the 1812 publication of the journal of Sergeant Patrick Gass, A Journal of the Voyages and Travels of a Corps of Discovery/Library of Congress, Rare Book and Special Collections Division (72A); 202 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right, Pioneers Travelling in a Flatboat (ca. 1842-1888), Felix Octavius Carr Darley. Colored woodcut. © Bettmann/Corbis; 203 © Bettmann/Corbis; 206 bottom, Portrait of Chief Justice John Marshall, Rembrandt Peale (1835). Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States; 207 Portrait of William Marbury, attributed to Rembrandt Peale (ca. 1820-1830). Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States; 208 © Bettmann/Corbis; 209 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division (LC-USZC4-3115).

Chapter 7

210 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 210–211 Library of Congress Department of Prints and Photographs [LC-USZC4-994]; 211 bottom left, Andrew Jackson (Detail) (1845), Thomas Sully. Oil on canvas, 20 3/8” x 17 1/4”. © 1996 Board of Trustees, National Gallery of Art, Washington DC, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; bottom right, The Trail of Tears, Troy Anderson/Marilyn Angel Wynn/Nativestock.com; bottom center The Granger Collection, New York; 212 center, Eli Whitney (Detail) (1822), Samuel F.B. Morse. Oil on canvas. 35 7/8” x 27 3/4 x 1” (91.1 x 70.5 x 2.5 cm). Yale University Art Gallery. Gift of George Hoadley, BA 1801. Accession # 1827.1/Art Resource, New York; top right, Erie Canal at Little Falls, New York (1884), William Rickaby Miller. Oil on canvas, 24 1/8” x 36”. Collection of The New-York Historical Society. [Negative no. 575c]; 213 The first cotton mill in America, established by Samuel Slater on the Blackstone River at Pawtucket, Rhode Island (ca.1790), American School. Oil on canvas. Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC/The Bridgeman Art Library; 214 background Steven N. Patricia/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; top right, bottom right American Textile History Museum, Lowell, MA; center right North Wind Picture Archives; 215 © Pat Sullivan/AP Images; 216 National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (73-11287); 219 center, The Telegraph (1837) James Bard. Watercolor. The Mariners’ Museum, Newport News, VA; top right, Erie Canal at Little Falls, New York (1884), William Rickaby Miller. Oil on canvas, 24 1/8” x 36”. Collection of The New-York Historical Society. [Negative no. 575c]; 220 John Marshall, Chief Justice of the United States (Detail) (ca.1832), William James Hubard. Oil on canvas, 24 1/4” x 15 1/8” (61.6 x 38.9 cm). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; 222 The Granger Collection, New York; 224 center, John Adams, Second President of the United States (1798 and1828), begun by Gilbert Stuart and completed by Jane Stuart. Oil on canvas. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; top right Erie Canal at Little Falls, New York (1884), William Rickaby Miller.
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Oil on canvas, 24 1/8” x 36”. Collection of The New-York Historical Society. [Negative no. 575c]; 225 The Granger Collection, New York; 226 Andrew Jackson, 1767-1845, Seventh President of the United States (Detail) (1820), James Barton Longacre. Hand-colored stipple engraving after Thomas Sully, 37.2 cm x 30 cm. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; 227 top right, bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top left National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution (NAA-1025); 229 © Kamenko Pajic/AP Images; 230 center, Webster’s Reply to Hayne (date unknown), G.P.A. Healy. Courtesy of the Boston Art Commission 2007; top right, Erie Canal at Little Falls, New York (1884), William Rickaby Miller. Oil on canvas, 24 1/8” x 36”. Collection of The New-York Historical Society. [Negative no. 575c]; 231 left, John Caldwell Calhoun (ca. 1820), Charles Bird King. Oil on canvas, 76.2 x 63.5 cm. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; right, Daniel Webster (1782-1852), Statesman (ca. 1828), Chester Harding. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; 232 The Granger Collection, New York; bottom inset The Museum of the Confederacy, Richmond, Virginia; 233 Library of Congress Department of Prints and Photographs [LCUSZ62-1562]; 235 The Granger Collection, New York; 236 © Joseph Sohm/Visions of America/Corbis.

Chapter 8

238 bottom Courtesy of the Lowell Historical Society; 238–239 The Granger Collection, New York; 239 camera © Paul Almasy/Corbis; potato famine The Granger Collection, New York; Douglass © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; Walden The Granger Collection, New York; 240 center right, top right The Granger Collection, New York; 241 bottom, Tray depicting Reverend Lemuel Haynes in the pulpit (ca. 1835-1840), English. Oil on molded papier mache, 25-11/16” x 20-15/16”. Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, bequest of Lucy Truman Aldrich; top © Steve Rayman/Corbis; 242 A View of the Mountain Pass called The Notch of the White Mountains (Crawford Notch), (1839), Thomas Cole. Oil on canvas, 102 x 155.8 cm (40 3/16”x 61 5/16”). Andrew W. Mellon Fund. © 1996 Board of Trustees, National Gallery of Art, Washington DC; 244 right, Dorothea Lynde Dix, American Reformer (ca.1849), anonymous photographer. Daguerreotype, 5 1/2” x 4 1/4” (14.0 x 10.8 cm ). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC/Art Resource, New York; left Suzanne Courcier/Robert W. Wilkins; 245 Picture Research Consultants & Archives 246 The Granger Collection, New York; 247 both The Granger Collection, New York; 248 center Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Leon Gardiner Collection; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 249 top North Wind Picture Archives; bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 250 Charlotte Helen Middleton and Her Nurse Lydia (1857), George Cook. Ambrotype. Gibbes Museum of Art/Carolina Art Association Collection, Charleston South Carolina; 251 background Matthew Pippin/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; inset, Negro Quarters on an Old South Carolina Plantation (ca. 1865), G.N. Barnard. Collection of The New-York Historical Society, Bagoe Collection. [Negative number 48169]; 252 The Granger Collection, New York; 254 both The Granger Collection, New York; 255 The Granger Collection, New York; 256 top Culver Pictures; center The Granger Collection, New York; 257 top Courtesy of the Seneca Falls (New York) Historical Society; bottom Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; 258 The Granger Collection, New York; 259 center Jack Naylor Collection/Picture Research Consultants & Archives top right The Granger Collection, New York; 260 American Textile History Museum, Lowell, MA; 261 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 262 © Matt York/AP Images; 263 National Park Service, Lowell National Historical Park; 264 The Granger Collection, New York; 265 National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (88-10631); 266 left Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; 266–267 GEH NEG 14250/Courtesy George Eastman House; 267 top, Haymaking (1864), Winslow Homer. Oil on canvas, 16” x11”. Columbus Museum of Art, Ohio. Museum purchase, Howald Fund (1942.083); 268 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; center, Dorothea Lynde Dix, American Reformer (ca.1849), anonymous photographer. Daguerreotype, 5 1/2” x 4 1/4” (14.0 x 10.8 cm ). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC/Art Resource, New York.

Chapter 9

270–271 The Battle of Fredericksburg, December 13, 1862 (Detail) (19th century), Carl Röchling. Oil on canvas, 32 1/8 “ x 59” (81.6 x 149.9 cm). Gift of the estate of C.H.T. Collis, 1929, Philadelphia Museum of Art; 272 bottom right The Granger Collection, New York; 272–273 Advice on the Prairie (1853), William Tylee Ranney. Oil on canvas, 38 3/4” x 55 1/4”. Private collection/The Bridgeman Art Library; 273 all others The Granger Collection, New York; 274 both The Granger Collection, New York; 275 Courtesy of the Singer Sewing Machine Co.; 276 left National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Electrical Collections (74-2491); right © Bettmann/Corbis; center © Robertstock.com; 277 left © Bettmann/Corbis; center © Charles E. Rotkin/Corbis; bottom center School Division, Houghton Mifflin Co.; 279 both The Granger Collection, New York; 280 center Oregon Historical Society, #; OrHi 59564; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 281 Black Hawk and His Son, Whirling Thunder (1833) John Wesley Jarvis. Oil on canvas. The Granger Collection, New York; 282 © Kevin Lamarque/Reuters/Corbis; 283 top National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); bottom right, bottom left Edward S. Curtis (ca. 1904). Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-103498]; 284 © Bettmann/Corbis; 286 bottom left National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution (2953-A); 286–287 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 287 top Idaho State Historical Society Photo number 1254-D-1; bottom © Ric Ergenbright Photography; 288 both The Granger Collection, New York; 289 © Gary Conner/PhotoEdit; 290 The Granger Collection, New York; 291 inset The Granger Collection, New York; 292 © Bettmann/Corbis; 293 center Washington/Custis/Lee Collection, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Virginia; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 294 James K. Polk (1846), George Peter Alexander Healy. © Corcoran Gallery of Art/Corbis; 295 The Granger Collection, New York; 297 © Macduff Everton/Corbis; 298 The Granger Collection, New York; 299 Courtesy of the California History Room, California State Library. Sacramento, California.

Chapter 10

302 flag Society of California Pioneers; ship © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; book Private Collection/Picture Research Consultants & Archives 302–303 © Corbis; 303 Lincoln © Stock Montage/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; Big Ben © Corbis; 304 center Daguerrotype (1848–1849), Mathew Brady Studio. The Granger Collection, New York; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 305 Courtesy of Oak Alley Plantation; 306 © Richard Cummins/Corbis; 307 The Granger Collection, New York; 308 both file photo; 309 The Granger Collection, New York; 310 center Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, Howard University; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 311 Brown Brothers; 312 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top The Granger Collection, New York; 315 Kansas State Historical Society; 316 The Granger Collection New York; 317 The Granger Collection, New York; 318 center Daguerrotype (ca. 1850), Mathew Brady Studio. The Granger Collection, New York; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 319 Courtesy of the Milwaukee Historical Society; 320 Ontario County (New York) Historical Society; 322 center right Edward Williams Clay (1831). The Library Company of Philadelphia; bottom left The Granger Collection, New York; 323 center © Burt Glinn/Magnum Photos; top © Bettmann/Corbis; 324 center, Abraham Lincoln (ca. 1858), Fetter’s Picture Gallery Photograph. Ambrotype, Copy Plate, 21/2” x 2” (6.3 x 5.1 cm). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 325 The Granger Collection, New York; 326 left, Stephen Douglas (ca. 1860), Mathew Brady Studio. Photograph, albumen silver print, 3 1/8” x 2 1/8” (8.6 x 5.4 cm). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; right Unknown photographer (ca. 1860), Springfield, Illinois. The Granger Collection, New York; 327 © Jeff Mitchell/Reuters; 328 John Brown Going to His Hanging (1942), Horace Pippin. Oil on canvas, 24 1/8” x 30 1/4”. Courtesy of the Museum of American Art of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. John Lambert Fund [1943.11]; 329 top The Granger Collection, New York; bottom Courtesy of Lloyd Ostendorf Collection; 331 © Jefferson Davis Playing Card Printed by W.A. Walker,1864. MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 332 bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 333 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [US-0989-46].
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Chapter 11

336 Lincoln The Granger Collection, New York; cannon © Heeb Christian/age fotostock; 336–337 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC6-48]; 337 Hunley The Museum of the Confederacy, Richmond, Virginia. Photography by Katherine Wetzel; Lister © Bettmann/Corbis; Tolstoy © Archivo Iconografico, S.A./Corbis; 338 center Beverley R. Robinson Collection, U.S. Naval Academy Museum; top right © Battle of Gettysburg, color illustration, 1884. Stock Montage/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 339 left GEH NEG 36748/Courtesy George Eastman House; right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-B8184-10374]; 342 United States Army Military History Institute; 343 The Granger Collection, New York; 344 The Granger Collection, New York; 345 Alexander Gardner/The Granger Collection, New York; 346 center Alabama Department of Archives and History, Montgomery, Alabama; top right © Stock Montage/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 347 both The Granger Collection, New York; 348 left, Abraham Lincoln, Sixteenth President of the United States (Detail) (1864), William Willard. Oil on canvas, 24” x 17 15/16” (61 x 45.5 cm). National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; right © Bettmann/Corbis; 349 © Oklahoma Historical Society/Marilyn Angel Wynn/Nativestock.com; 350 right The Granger Collection, New York; left file photo; 351 center right, Mary Boykin Chesnut (1856), Samuel S. Osgood. Oil on canvas adhered to masonite, 48” x 30”. Private collection/Art Resource, New York; top right © Stock Montage/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 352 top Chicago History Museum (Negative number CHi-07774); center Courtesy of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Art Commission; 353 The Granger Collection, New York; 354 The Granger Collection, New York; 355 top right The Granger Collection, New York; bottom right © Tria Giovan/Corbis; left © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 356 © Corbis; 357 center © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top right © Stock Montage/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 359 © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 360 © Corbis; 362 left Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-115549]; right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC U5260-20244]; 364 inset Chicago History Museum (Negative number CHi-22146); top © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 365 © Tom Lovell/National Geographic Image Collection; 366 center © Medford Historical Society Collection/Corbis; top right © Stock Montage/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 367 left The Granger Collection, New York; 368 Cook Collection/Valentine Richmond History Center; 369 top © Mathew Brady/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom Mathew Brady Studio (1862). Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-B8171-1214]; 370 © David Gray/Reuters/Corbis; 371 Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library; 372 left GEH NEG 36748/Courtesy George Eastman House; right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-B8184-10374]; 373 right John Tenniel/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Chapter 12

374 bottom right, bottom left The Granger Collection, New York; 374–375 © Mathew B. Brady/Corbis; 375 Greeley © Corbis; Wilhelm © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 376 center Culver Pictures; top right © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 377 Culver Pictures; 378 © Mathew B. Brady/Medford Historical Society Collection/Corbis; 379 William Gladstone Collection/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; 381 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 382 © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 383 center Copyright © 1956, 1978 by Pauli Murray. Reprinted by permission of Frances Collin, literary agent; top right © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 384 top, A Burial Party, Civil War, Cold Harbor, Virginia (1865), Alexander Gardner. Chicago History Museum (Negative number CHi-07868); bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 385 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top © 2006 The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, Inc. Photograph by Wendy Kaveney; 386 The Granger Collection, New York; 387 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-1733]; 388 Photograph by Rudolph Eickmeyer/Photographic History Collection, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (86-11374); 389 The Granger Collection, New York; 390 © Dennis Cook/AP Images; 391 © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 392 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; 393 center © Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images top right © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 394 The Granger Collection, New York; 396 Culver Pictures; 397 The Granger Collection, New York; 399 file photo; 401 © Corbis; 402 © Mathew B. Brady/Corbis.

Chapter 13

404–405 Champions of the Mississippi (1866), Currier & Ives. Lithograph. Museum of the City of New York/Scala/Art Resource, New York 406 Red Cloud The Granger Collection, New York; Canal © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis; bottom right © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 406–407 National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution (4703); 407 Cleveland © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right © Blank Archives/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 408 center Courtesy of Harold Lee Library, Brigham Young University; top right, And So, Unemotionally, There Began One of the Wildest and Strangest Journeys Ever Made in any Land (date unknown), William Henry David Koerner. Oil on Canvas, 22 1/4 “ x 72 1/4”. Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody, Wyoming (7.69); 409 top, Portrait of Sioux Man and Woman (date unknown), Gertrude Käsebier. Photographic History Collection, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (86-2205); bottom The Detroit Institute of Arts. Founders Society Purchase with funds from Flint Ink Corporation; 410 The Granger Collection, New York; 411 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 412 top right Gift of Olin Corporation, Winchester Arms Collection. Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody Wyoming (1988.8.1310); left The Granger Collection, New York; 412 center right American Museum of Natural History, New York. Photo by Lee Boltin; 413 skull © Steven Fuller/Animals Animals; hide, bones, horns © Marilyn Angel Wynn/Nativestock.com; buffalo © T. Ulrich/Robertstock.com; 414 top © Marilyn Angel Wynn/Nativestock.com; bottom, Vaqueros in a Horse Corral (1887), James Walker. Oil on canvas, 24-1/4” x 40”. From the collection of the Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma; 416 The Stampede (1908), Frederic Remington. Oil on canvas, 27” x 40.” From the collection of the Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma; 417 The Granger Collection, New York; 418 left University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections [Hegg 1312]; right The Granger Collection, New York; 419 bottom Photo by J.G Wilson. Denver Public Library, Western History Department Collection, call # F8607.; center, Miners Underground (1897), unknown photographer. Glass plate negative. Colorado Historical Society, Mazzulla Collection.; top right © Galen Rowell/Corbis; 420 center, Pioneer Woman (1909), Harvey Dunn. Oil on canvas, 24-1/4” h x 30-1/4” w. Hazel L. Meyer Memorial Library, De Smet, South Dakota; top right, And So, Unemotionally, There Began One of the Wildest and Strangest Journeys Ever Made in any Land (date unknown), William Henry David Koerner. Oil on Canvas, 22 1/4 “ x 72 1/4”. Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody, Wyoming (7.69); 421 right inset The Granger Collection, New York; bottom Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; 422 The Granger Collection, New York; 423 barbed wire, plow The Granger Collection, New York; reaper, windmill North Wind Pictures; background © James Schwabel/Panoramic Images; 424 State Historical Society of North Dakota (0355-09); 425 center © Corbis; top right, And So, Unemotionally, There Began One of the Wildest and Strangest Journeys Ever Made in any Land (date unknown), William Henry David Koerner. Oil on Canvas, 22 1/4 “ x 72 1/4”. Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody, Wyoming (7.69); 426 Culver Pictures; 428 © Corbis; 429 The Granger Collection, New York; 430 The Granger Collection, New York; 431 left Photograph by William Stinson Soule, Archives & Manuscripts Division of the Oklahoma Historical Society. Courtesy of Oklahoma Historical Society [Negative no. 3969] right Vaquero (modeled 1980, cast 1990), Luis Jimenez. Acrylic urethane, fiberglass, steel armature, 199” x 114” x 67” (505.5 x 289.6 x 170.2 cm). Gift of Judith and Wilbur L. Ross, Jr., Anne and Ronald Abramson, Thelma and Melvin Lenkin, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC/Art Resource, New York/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Multimedia product associated with this text program and its contents are protected under copyright law. Any theatrical, televised, or public display or performance, including transmission of any image over a network, excepting a local area network, is prohibited by law, as is the preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction in whole or in part, of any Images without the permission of ARS. Reproduction, including downloading of artist works is prohibited by
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copyright laws and international conventions without the express written permission of Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; 432 top left American Museum of Natural History, New York. Photo by Lee Boltin; top right, bottom center The Granger Collection, New York; bottom left © Steven Fuller/Animals Animals; bottom right North Wind Pictures.

Chapter 14

434 bottom right National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Electrical Collections (79-1641); bottom left Underwood Photo Archives; 434–435 Courtesy California State Railroad Museum; 435 both The Granger Collection, New York; 436 center Reproduced from Prospectus: The True History of the Beaumont Oil Fields by Pattillo Higgins. 1902 Pattillo Higgins. Courtesy of the estate of Pattillo Higgins; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 438 The Granger Collection, New York; 439 © Bettmann/Corbis; 440 top From The Atlas of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Titus, Simmons and Titus, The Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio; bottom The Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio; 440–441 From The Atlas of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Titus, Simmons and Titus, The Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio; 441 top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 442 center Historic Pullman Foundation Archives, Chicago; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 443 The Granger Collection, New York; 444 The Granger Collection, New York; 446 The Granger Collection, New York; 447 both The Granger Collection, New York; 448 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 449 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom Horace Taylor, January 22, 1900 edition of Verdict/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-61409]; 450 Boy Carrying Homework from NY Sweatshop (1912) Lewis Wickes Hine. Gelatin silver print, 16.7 x 11.7 cm. Gift of the Photo League, New York. GEH NEG 3748/ Courtesy of George Eastman House; 452 © Bettmann/Corbis; 454 left Eugene Debs Collection/Tamiment Institute Library, New York University; right The Granger Collection, New York; 455 © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis 456 The Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio.

Chapter 15

458 Hayes © Bettmann/Corbis; 458 Díaz, Africa The Granger Collection, New York; 458–459 The Granger Collection, New York; 459 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 460 both © Corbis; 462 Courtesy of Ellis Island Immigration Museum; 463 left Culver Pictures; right New York Academy of Medicine Library; 464 The Granger Collection, New York; 465 © Bettmann/Corbis; 466 left, Mission Francisco Solano de Sonoma 1877-1884. Oriana Weatherbee Day (American), (1838-1886). Oil on canvas, 20” x 30”. Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco (California), gift of Mrs. Eleanor Martin, 37573; center Culver Pictures; right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; 467 left © Reuters/Corbis; right The Granger Collection, New York; 468 center Jacob Riis (ca. 1890). The Granger Collection, New York; top right © Corbis; 470 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-D4-13645]; 471 left The Granger Collection, New York; right © Bettmann/Corbis; 472 University of Illinois at Chicago Library, The Jane Addams Memorial Collection (JAMC494); 473 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right © Corbis; 474 © Bettmann/Corbis; 475 both The Granger Collection, New York; 476 top The Granger Collection, New York; center The Granger Collection, New York; bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 479 Harper’s Weekly, August 19, 1871/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-13085].

Chapter 16

480 bottom left, bottom right The Granger Collection, New York; 480–481 Stock Montage; 481 bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right © Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom center © Charles & Josette Lenars/Corbis 482 center Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 483 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LCD401-14278]; 484 top, Plan of Chicago (1909), Daniel Hudson Burnham and Edward Herbert Bennett. On permanent loan to The Art Institute of Chicago from the City of Chicago, 1-30.148.1966, The Art Institute of Chicago. Photography © The Art Institute of Chicago.; bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 485 © Bettmann/Corbis; 486 center Brown Brothers; top John Batchelor/Print Solutions; bottom National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 487 right © Bettmann/Corbis; left Copyright © Eastman Kodak Company; 488 center Culver Pictures; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 490 © Stephen Frisch/Stock Boston; 491 Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, Howard University; 492 both The Granger Collection, New York; 493 © Marion Post Wolcott/Library of Congress/Getty Images; 495 Sacramento Archives and Museum Collection Center; 496 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 497 top © Elliott Erwitt/Magnum Photos; bottom © Reuters/Corbis; 498 center Culver Pictures; top right The Granger Collection, New York; 499 file photo; 500 National Baseball Hall of Fame Library, Cooperstown, New York; 501 The Champion Single Sculls (Max Schmitt in a Single Scull), (1871), Thomas Eakins. Oil on canvas, 32-1/4” x 46-1/4 ”. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Purchase, The Alfred N. Punnett Endowment Fund and George D. Pratt Gift, 1934 (34.92). Photograph © 1974 The Metropolitan Museum of Art; 502 The Granger Collection, New York; 503 top Courtesy of Sears Roebuck and Company; bottom file photo; 504 left © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis right The Granger Collection, New York; 505 top left © American Stock/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top right © Photodisc/Getty Images; 506 The Granger Collection, New York.

Chapter 17

508–509 The Statue of Liberty (date unknown), Francis Hopkinson Smith. Oil on canvas, 11” x 15” (27.9 cm x 38.1 cm). Christie’s Images Ltd.; 510 bottom center © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom left © Michael Maslin Historic Photographs/Corbis; 510–511 © Bettmann/Corbis; 511 bottom right The Granger Collection, New York; bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom center © Peter Ruhe/Gandhiserve Foundation; 512 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 513 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © American Stock/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 515 © Bettmann/Corbis; 516 Texas State Library & Archives Commission 517 left © Lewis Hine/Corbis; right © Lewis Hine/Corbis; 518 © American Stock/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 519 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 520 © Bettmann/Corbis; 521 © Corbis; 522 © Bettmann/Corbis; 523 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 524 top National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (93-7206); bottom © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis © Bettmann/Corbis; 527 background, inset illustration Matthew Pippin/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; top right © Lewis W. Hine/George Eastman House/Getty Images; center © James G. Welgos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 528 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 530 top © Bill Ross/Corbis; bottom The Granger Collection, New York; 531 © C. M. Battey/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 532 The Granger Collection, New York; 533 top The Granger Collection, New York; bottom, The Butchers (1917), Joesph Pennell. Chicago History Museum (Negative number CHi-4109); 534 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 535 © Bettmann/Corbis; 536 The Granger Collection, New York; 538 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 541 © Bettmann/Corbis; 542 left Ezra Stoller © Esto/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Multimedia product associated with this text program and its contents are protected under copyright law. Any theatrical, televised, or public display or performance, including transmission of any image over a network, excepting a local area network, is prohibited by law, as is the preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction in whole or in part, of any Images without the permission of ARS. Reproduction, including downloading of artist works is prohibited by copyright laws and international conventions without the express written permission of Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; right © Michael T. Sedam/Corbis.

Chapter 18

546 bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 546–547 © Corbis; 547 Canal © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis Poster © Corbis; 548 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LCUSZC4-5232]; 549 bottom The Granger Collection, New York; top Culver Pictures; 552 center © Bettmann/Corbis; 552 top right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-5232 ]; 553 The Granger Collection, New York; 554 © Bettmann/Corbis; 556 © Strohmeyer and Wyman/Corbis; 557 © Bettmann/Corbis; 558 center
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Puerto Rican Cultural Institute/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; top right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-5232 ]; 559 © AFP/Getty Images; 560 The Granger Collection, New York; 561 Keystone-Mast Collection, UCR/California Museum of Photography, University of California, Riverside (24039); 563 © The Trustees of the British Museum; 564 © Bettmann/Corbis; 565 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LCUSZC4-5232 ]; 566 The Granger Collection, New York; 567 inset © Corbis; 568 top The Granger Collection, New York; bottom Theodore Roosevelt Collection, Harvard College Library; 570 Zapatistas Marching - Led by Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa during the Mexican Revolution of 1911 (1931), Jose Clemente Orozco. Oil on canvas, 45” x 55” (114.3 x 139.7 cm). Private Collection/SOMAAP, Mexico/The Bridgeman Art Library/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Multimedia product associated with this text program and its contents are protected under copyright law. Any theatrical, televised, or public display or performance, including transmission of any image over a network, excepting a local area network, is prohibited by law, as is the preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction in whole or in part, of any Images without the permission of ARS. Reproduction, including downloading of artist works is prohibited by copyright laws and international conventions without the express written permission of Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; 571 The Granger Collection, New York; 572 top © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis bottom left © Will & Deni McIntyre/Stone/Getty Images 573 left © The Mariners’ Museum/Corbis; right Courtesy of The Historic New Orleans Collection, accession number 1979.325.3533; 574 © Corbis; 575 right Michelle Hlubinka/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; left Culver Pictures.

Chapter 19

576 camera © Bettmann/Corbis; phone © Dorling Kindersley; Einstein © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis 576–577 © Bettmann/Corbis; 577 flu sign San Francisco Chronicle; statuette The Granger Collection, New York; 578 center © Corbis; top right Ian Bellinger/Fotolibra; 579 © Corbis; 580 © Rikard Larma/AP Images; 582 inset © Corbis; background illustration Chris Costello/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 584 top © Three Lions Hulton Archive/Getty Images; center The Granger Collection, New York; 585 Culver Pictures; 587 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right Ian Bellinger/Fotolibra; 588 top © Corbis; center The Granger Collection, New York; 589 bottom file photo; 590 top The Granger Collection, New York; bottom center Air Team Images; 590–591 © General Photographic Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 591 bottom center © Dorling Kindersley; bottom right © Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 592 © Bettmann/Corbis; 593 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-7709]; 594 center Brown Brothers; top right Ian Bellinger/Fotolibra; 596 right © Bettmann/Corbis; left The Granger Collection, New York; 597 © Corbis; 598 center Courtesy of The Industrial Workers of the World; www.iww.org; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 599 bottom, During the World War There Was a Great Migration North by Southern Negroes (Panel no. 1 from The Migration of the Negro mural series) (1940–1941), Jacob Lawrence. Casein tempera on hardboard, 12” x 18”. The Phillips Collection; acquired 1942/© Estate of Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Multimedia product associated with this text program and its contents are protected under copyright law. Any theatrical, televised, or public display or performance, including transmission of any image over a network, excepting a local area network, is prohibited by law, as is the preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction in whole or in part, of any Images without the permission of ARS. Reproduction, including downloading of artist works is prohibited by copyright laws and international conventions without the express written permission of Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; 600 © Bettmann/Corbis; 601 © Bettmann/Corbis; 602 © Bettmann/Corbis; 603 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 604 left © Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top right Ian Bellinger/Fotolibra; 605 top, Woodrow Wilson (detail), F. Graham Cootes. White House Historical Association (White House Collection) (63); bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 608 top right © Universal Pictures/Photofest; left, center Photofest; bottom right © from Frankenstein (1931), Universal Pictures/The Kobal Collection; 610 both The Granger Collection, New York; 611 top right © Philip Jones Griffiths/Magnum Photos; top left © Reuters/Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © George Rodger/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 613 Michelle Hlubinka/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.

Chapter 20

614–615 Street Scene (1933), Joe Jones. Oil on Canvas, 25 1/8” x 36 1/8” (63.7 x 91.1 cm). Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC/Art Resource, New York; 616 flag Photograph by Martin Plomer, © Dorling Kindersley; button © David J. & Janice L. Frent Collection/Corbis 616–617 © Bettmann/Corbis; 617 Randolph, Stalin © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom left © P. Otsup/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 618 center file photo; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 620 Sacco and Vanzetti (1932), Ben Shahn. Tempera on canvas 21” x 48”. Private Collection. Photograph courtesy of Kennedy Galleries, New York. Copyright © Estate of Ben Shahn/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY; 621 © Bettmann/Corbis; 622 Underwood and Underwood/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-5584]; 623 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-B2-956-14]; 624 © Bettmann/Corbis; 625 center, Warren Gamaliel Harding (Detail) (ca.1923), Margaret Lindsay William. Oil on canvas, 135.9 x 99.7 cm. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 626 © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 627 Stock Montage; 628 center © Robertstock.com; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 629 both Brown Brothers; 630 top left, Calvin Coolidge (detail), Charles S. Hopkins. White House Historical Association (White House Collection) (8); bottom Courtesy of United Airlines; 631 © Camerique/Robertstock.com; 632 Culver Pictures; 634 center Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LCUSZC4-2635]; bottom Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [ LC-B2-3982]; 635 bottom © Stephen Simpson/Taxi/Getty Images; top © Harold M. Lambert/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 636 bottom © Dan McCoy/Rainbow; center © American Stock/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 637 Daniel Fitzpatrick, courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri.

Chapter 21

638 Tut © Bettmann/Corbis; Time Time Life Pictures/Time Magazine, © Time Inc./Time Life Pictures/Getty Images; Armstrong © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 638–639 © Frank Driggs/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 639 Lindbergh, Hirohito © Bettmann/Corbis; 640 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 641 Aspects of Negro Life: Song of the Towers (1934), Aaron Douglas. Oil on canvas, 9’ x 9’. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Art & Artifacts Division, the New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations 642 both © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis 643 © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis 644 © Bettmann/Corbis; 645 The Granger Collection, New York; 646 center © Hulton Archive/GettyImages; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 647 © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 648 Lewis Wickes Hine (1920) GEH NEG 16682/Courtesy George Eastman House; 650 bottom left Brown Brothers; bottom right © Frank Driggs Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 650–651 © Minnesota Historical Society/Corbis; 651 top file photo; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 652 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 653 center, left © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis right © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis; 654 top right © New York Times Co./Hulton Archive/Getty Images; center © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom left National Baseball Hall of Fame Library, Cooperstown, New York; bottom right © Central Press/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 655 top, bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right © Corbis; 656 Night Windows (1928), Edward Hopper. Oil on canvas, 29” x 34”. Museum of Modern Art, New York. Gift of John Hay Whitney [248.1940]. Digital Image © The Musuem of Modern Art/Licensed by SCALA/Art Resource, New York; 657 © Hulton Archive/GettyImages; 658 center Brown Brothers; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 659 Fisk University, Nashville, Tennessee; 660 © Bettmann/Corbis; 661 top right © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis; top left © Redferns/Redferns; bottom © Frank Driggs Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; background illustration Karen Minot/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin; 662 © Frank Driggs Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 663 © Frank Driggs Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 664 © Bettmann/Corbis;
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665 right, Langston Hughes (ca.1920), Winold Reiss. Pastel on artist board, 76.3 x 54.9 cm. Gift of W. Tjark Reiss in memory of his father, Winold Reiss. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Wahsington, DC/Art Resource, New York; left, Edna St. Vincent Millay, American Writer (1930), anonymous photographer. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource; 666 Chaplin Photofest; fashion © Bettmann/Corbis; band © Frank Driggs Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; Capone © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis 667 Culver Pictures.

Chapter 22

668 apple seller, Manchuria © Bettmann/Corbis; Vanity Fair © 1933 Condé Nast Publications; 668–669 © American Stock/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 669 World’s Fair Chicago History Museum (Negative number CHi-39026); Gandhi © Bettmann/Corbis; 670 center right © AP Images; top right © Photo Collection Alexander Alland, Sr./Corbis; 671 © Arthur Rothstein/Corbis; 672 © Blank Archives/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 673 Dies Irae (October 29, 1929), James Naumburg Rosenberg. Lithograph on paper, 13 5/8” x 10 1/2”. National Museum of American Art, Washington, DC/Art Resource, New York; 674 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © Reuters/Corbis; 675 Conservative Party Archives, Bodleian Library, University of Oxford; 676 background Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USF34-028362-D]; right inset Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York; left inset Underwood Photo Archives; 678 center Reproduced from Dust Bowl Diary by Ann Marie Low, by permission of the University of Nebraska Press. Copyright © 1984 by the University of Nebraska Press; top right © Photo Collection Alexander Alland, Sr./Corbis; 679 © Franklin D. Roosevelt Library/Bettmann/Corbis; 680 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-4840; 682 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 683 Farm Security Administration/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USF33-006068-M5]; 684 center Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-DIG-ppmsc-00241]; top right © Photo Collection Alexander Alland, Sr./Corbis; 685 Herbert Clark Hoover (Detail ) (1931), Douglas Chandor. Oil on Canvas. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; 686 © Lake County Museum/Corbis; 687 “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society; 688 © Bettmann/Corbis; 691 file photo.

Chapter 23

692 bottom right © 1934 Condé Nast Publications; bottom left © Corbis; bottom center © Bettmann/Corbis; 692–693 Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York; 693 bottom left The Granger Collection, New York; bottom right © MGM/The Kobal Collection; 694 center University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections [UW20896z]; top right © Thomas D. McAvoy/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 695 left, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Detail) (1935), Henry Salem Hubbell. Oil on masonite panel, 121.9 x 116.2 cm. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; right White House Historical Association (White House Collection); 696 Franklin D. Roosevelt at Hilltop Cottage with Ruthie Bie and Fala (1941), Margaret Suckley. Photograph, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library; 697 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 698 © AP Images; 699 top Jay N. “Ding” Darling. © 1937 by the Des Moines Register and Tribune Company. Reprinted with permission/Stock Montage; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 700 © Bettmann/Corbis; 701 center, Dorothea Lange at Work, Texas (Detail) (1934), Paul Taylor. © The Dorothea Lange Collection, Oakland Museum of California, City of Oakland. Gift of Paul S. Taylor; top right © Thomas D. McAvoy/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 702 bottom Photofest; top © Underwood & Underwood/Corbis 703 top, Migrant Mother, Nipomo, California (1936), Dorothea Lange/Library of Congress [Prints & Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-95653] bottom Dorothea Lange (1936). Library of Congress [LC-USZ62-58355]; 704 © Margaret Bourke-White/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images; 705 © Bettmann/Corbis; 706 top right The Granger Collection, New York; left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 707 Light (1937), Lester Beall. From the series ”Rural Electrification Administration.” Lithograph, 101.6 x 76.2 cm (40 x 30 in./Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [U.S. B415.3]; 708 bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 709 © Bettmann/Corbis; 710 center Espinosa Productions; top right © Thomas D. McAvoy/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 711 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom, Mary McLeod Bethune (1875-1955), Educator (Detail) (1943-1944), Betsy Graves Reyneau. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Art Resource, New York; 712 © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 713 © Bettmann/Corbis; 714 right, left © Bettmann/Corbis; top right Poster, chromolithograph (mid-1930s), Ben Shahn. The Granger Collection, New York/© Estate of Ben Shahn/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY; 715 Carl Linde/Courtesy of the Illinois Labor History Society; 716 center Russell Lee (1941). Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [USF34-38814-D]; top right © Thomas D. McAvoy/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 717 top © MGM/Fred Parrish/Photofest; bottom © CBS Radio/Photofest; 718 top Photofest; bottom, Industries of California (1934), Ralph Stackpole. Collection of the City and County of San Francisco, Calif. Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Arts Commission. Photo by Malcolm Kimberlin; 719 top, American Gothic (1930), Grant Wood. Oil on beaver board, 30 11/16” x 25 11/16” (78 cm x 65.3 cm) unframed. The Art Institute of Chicago, Friends of American Art Collection [1930.934]. Photography © The Art Institute of Chicago/All rights reserved by the Estate of Nan Wood Graham/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY; bottom Courtesy of the Woody Guthrie Foundation and Archives; 720 Walker Evans/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USF342-008138-A]; 721 center right © Franklin D. Roosevelt Library/AP Images; top right © Thomas D. McAvoy/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 723 Dorothea Lange (1936). Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USF34- 009669-E]; 724 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-4890]; 725 The Granger Collection, New York; 726 illustration Chris Costello/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 727 bottom Lewis W. Hine (1933)/Courtesy of the Tennessee Valley Authority; top Courtesy of the Tennessee Valley Authority; 728 left The Granger Collection, New York; right National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

Chapter 24

730–731 Dawn Patrol of Launching (1942), Paul Sample. Army Art Collection, Washington DC; 732 bottom right Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USE622- D-OA-000067]; bottom left © M. Howell/Camerique/Robertstock.com; 732–733 © Corbis; 733 bottom left Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-45002]; bottom right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 734 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 735 left © Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; right © Archivo Iconografico, S.A./Corbis; 737 left © Bettmann/Corbis; center © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis; right © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 739 top © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 739 bottom © Horace Abrahams/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 740 The Granger Collection, New York; 742 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 743 all © Heinrich Hoffmann/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 745 right inset © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom left © AP Images; 746 bottom © John Topham/Black Star; top March of Time/Life Magazine. © Time, Inc.; 747 © Bettmann/Corbis; 748 center Courtesy of Gerda Weissman Klein; top right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 749 left © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; right Yad Vashem; 750 Albert Einstein Among Other Immigrants, (Detail, Jersey Homesteads Mural) (1937-1938), Ben Shahn. Community Center, Jersey Homestead, Roosevelt, New Jersey. Scala/Art Resource, New York/© Estate of Ben Shahn/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY; 752 bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 752–753 United States Army Military History Institute; 753 bottom KZ Gedenkstaette Dachau, courtesy of USHMM Photo Archives. The views expressed in this book, and the context in which the image is used, do not necessarily reflect the views or policy of, nor imply approval or endorsement by, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; 754 Main Commission for the Prosecution of the Crimes against the Polish Nation, courtesy of USHMM Photo Archives. The views expressed in this book, and the context in which the image is used, do not necessarily reflect the views or policy of, nor imply approval or endorsement by, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.; 755 © Erich Hartmann/Magnum Photos; 756 center © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 757 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 759 center National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 760 © AP Images; 761 right The Granger Collection, New York; left
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Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USF34-71206-D]; 762 © Bettmann/Corbis; 765 Vaughn Shoemaker (1935), Chicago Daily News/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC2-6281].

Chapter 25

766 bottom right © Corbis; 766–767 © Corbis; 767 Zoot Suit © Martha Swope; Rommel © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; surrender, tank © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 768 center Courtesy of Charles Swanson; top right © StockTrek/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 769 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom AL Aumuller/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-118263]; 771 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USW361-295]; 772 top Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USW3-11696-C]; bottom left US War Department/Photofest; bottom right Photofest; 774 top © AP Images; bottom Printed by the Government Printing Office for the Office of Price Administration NARA Still Picture Branch (NWDNS-188-PP-42); 775 center right, inset Courtesy of Adrienne McGrath; top right © StockTrek/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 776 © Corbis; 777 © Bettmann/Corbis; 778 © Bettmann/Corbis; 779 bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; inset Courtesy of The Red Tail Project; 780 © AP Images; 781 top left Robert F. Sargent/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-4731]; 782 © Bettmann/Corbis; 783 New York Daily News Photo; 784 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © StockTrek/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 785 © Corbis; 787 © AP Images; 788 top © Louis R. Lowery/AP Images; bottom © Joe Rosenthal/AP Images; 789 © Bettmann/Corbis; 790 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © Bernard Hoffman/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 792 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 794 top left © Dan McCoy/Rainbow; bottom left © 1999 Russell Munson/The Stock Market/Corbis; 794 center © Hank Morgan/Rainbow; 795 top © AP Images; center © Sovfoto/Eastfoto; bottom © Larry Mulvehill/Rainbow; 796 center, Twice a Patriot (1943), unknown artist. Lithograph, 44” x 32-1/4”. The Amistad Center for Art & Culture: Simpson Collection, at the Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, Connecticut (AF 1987.1.401) top right © StockTrek/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 797 Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, New York; 798 © Bettmann/Corbis; 799 Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-48275 ]; 800 © Seattle Post-Intelligencer Collection; Museum of History and Industry/Corbis; 803 inset © Dennis Cook/AP Images; top © Eliot Elisofon/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 804 © AP Images; 805 Michelle Hlubinka/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.

Chapter 26

806 bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom left © Jules Frazier/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 806–807 © AP Images; 807 bottom center © Aereo Graphics, Inc./Corbis; 808 center © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom, Destroyed Bridge Stamp Design © 1995 United States Postal Service. All rights reserved; top right © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 809 left © Bettmann/Corbis; right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 811 © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 812 © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis; 813 © AP Images; 814 Another Pyramid Party (1949), Edwin Marcus. By Permission of the Marcus Family/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LCUSZ62-53089]; 815 center right © Pfc. James Cox/Corbis; top right © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 816 right © Hsinhua News Agency/AP Images; left © AP Images; 818 Courtesy of Beverly Scott; 819 © Max Desfor/AP Images; 820 bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; top © Bettmann/Corbis; 821 © Yonhap/Pool/AP Images; 822 center Courtesy of Tony Kahn; top right © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 823 top © Gordon Parks/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USF34-013363-C]; bottom Photofest; 824 right Photofest; left © Bettmann/Corbis; 825 center © AFP/Getty Images; left © AP Images; right © Koji Sashara/AP Images; top Photofest; 826 A 1947 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by The Herb Block Foundation; 827 A 1954 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by The Herb Block Foundation; 828 center © Corbis; top right © Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 829 The American Civil Defense Association, photo courtesy of Eric Green; 831 © Bettmann/Corbis; 833 top © Sovfoto/Eastfoto; center © AP Images; 834 © Allied Artists/The Kobal Collection; 835 top © AP Images; 837 © Corbis.

Chapter 27

838 bottom center © Dorling Kindersley; bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right © George D. Lepp/Corbis; 838–839 Spring Yardwork (1957), T. Utz. © 1957 SEPS: Licensed by Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN. All rights reserved. www.curtispublishing.com; 839 bottom center National Aeronautics and Space Administraton (NASA); bottom right © SuperStock, Inc.; 840 center © Harold M. Lambert/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top right © Ken Whitmore/Stone/Getty Images; 841 © J.R. Eyerman/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 843 Culver Pictures; 844 top left, Wipe Out Discrimination (1949), Milton Ackoff. Offset lithograph, printed in color, 43 7/8” x 32 3/4”. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Gift of the Congress of Industrial Organizations. Digital Image © The Museum of Modern Art/Licensed by SCALA/Art Resource, New York; bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; 845 tees Courtesy of The Ohio Historical Society; button ’I like Ike’ election badge (20th century), American School. Plastic. Private Collection, Peter Newark American Pictures/The Bridgeman Art Library; glasses © David J. & Janice L. Frent Collection/Corbis 846 © George Silk/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 847 center © SuperStock, Inc.; top right © Ken Whitmore/Stone/Getty Images; 848 © Bettmann/Corbis; 849 top © Lambert/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom © Petrified Collection/The Image Bank/Getty Images; 850 © Bettmann/Corbis; 851 bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; top, After the Prom (1957), Norman Rockwell. Printed by permission of the Norman Rockwell Family Agency. © 1957, Norman Rockwell Family Entities. Photo courtesy of The Norman Rockwell Museum at Stockbridge; 852 © Aldo Torelli/Riser/Getty Images; 853 background © PhotoDisc/Getty Images; top left © Francis Miller/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images bottom left © Carl Iwasaki/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images top right © Alfred Eisenstaedt/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images bottom right The Granger Collection, New York; 854 both The Granger Collection, New York; 855 The Granger Collection, New York; 856 all Courtesy of Park Forest Historical Society, Park Forest, Illinois; 857 bottom, center Courtesy of Park Forest Historical Society, Park Forest, Illinois; top right Dan Weiner: Courtesy Sandra Weiner; 858 center © Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images; top right © 2001 Ken Whitmore/Stone/Getty Images; 859 © Photo by William Vandivert/Life Magazine/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 860 top © CBS Photo Archive/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom © Warner Bros. Pictures/Photofest; 861 © Bettmann/Corbis; 862 top left, center © Frank Driggs Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; 863 © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 864 bottom right © Paul Schutzer /Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images left Image courtesy of The Advertising Archives; center 7 UP® is a registered trademark of Dr Pepper/Seven Up, Inc. © 2000 Dr Pepper/Seven Up, Inc.; bottom center Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 865 bottom © Paul Schutzer/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images top Photofest; 866 center The Granger Collection, New York; top right © 2001 Ken Whitmore/Stone/Getty Images; 868 © William C. Shrout/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 869 Milwaukee (Wisconsin) Journal/Milwaukee Sentinel,1955 © 2007 Journal Sentinel Inc., reproduced with permission.

Chapter 28

872–873 © James Karales; 874 bottom right © Keystone/HultonArchive/Getty Images; bottom left © Blank Archives/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 874–875 National Aeronautics and Space Administraton (NASA); 875 bottom left © Marilyn Silverstone/Magnum Photos; bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; 876 center © 1961 Black Star; 877 © Corbis; 878 Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Library; 880 center, Kennedy’s Exploding Cuban Cigar (Apr. 21, 1961), Leslie Gilbert Illingsworth. Ink on scraper board; 28.2 x 22.4 cm. By permission of Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru/The National Library of Wales/© Solo Syndication, London; top © Burt Glinn/Magnum Photos; 881 center © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 882 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 883 background © Leonard Freed/Magnum Photos; inset © Kreusch/AP Images; 884 bottom, Cuban Missle Showdown (1962 ), Leslie Gilbert Illingworth/© Solo Syndication, London/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LCUSZ62-70194]; top Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Library; 885 both National Aeronautics and Space Administraton (NASA); 886 bottom ©
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Bettmann/Corbis; inset Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 888 right © Dan Farrell/New York Daily News Photo; 890 left © Roberto Gerometta/Lonely Planet Images/Getty Images; right © Bruce Forster/Getty Images; 891 © Tony Savino/Corbis; 892 center © AP Images; 893 © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 894 both Museum of American Political Life, University of Hartford Library, West Hartford, Connecticut. Photograph by Sally Andersen-Bruce; 895 © Paul Conklin/PhotoEdit; 897 © Bettmann/Corbis; 899 Sunrise (1967), John Fischetti. John Fischetti Papers, Midwest Manuscript Collection, The Newberry Library, Chicago. Courtesy of the Estate of Karen Fischetti; 900 © Bettmann/Corbis; 901 right © Bob Daemmrich/Stock Boston; left Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 902 bottom right © Paul Conklin/PhotoEdit; top right, bottom left © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top left © 1961 Black Star.

Chapter 29

904 bottom left © Joseph Schwartz/Corbis; bottom center © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis; bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; 904–905 © Ivan Massar/Black Star; 905 bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom left © Express Newspapers/Hulton Archive/Getty Images/NewsCom; 906 center Courtesy Arthur L. Freeman; top right © Francis Miller/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 907 top Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-99293]; bottom Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-35344]; 908 © Consolidated News Pictures/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 909 © Bettmann/Corbis; 910 © Gene Herrick/AP Images; 911 Dan Weiner: Courtesy Sandra Weiner; 912 © Flip Schulke/Corbis; 913 © Fred Blackwell; 914 center © Carl Iwasaki/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 915 left © Bettmann/Corbis; right The Granger Collection,New York; 916 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © Francis Miller/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 917 © Bettmann/Corbis; 918 © Bill Hudson/AP Images; 919 all © Ernest C. Withers/Courtesy Panopticon Gallery, Boston MA; 921 © 1964 Steve Schapiro/Black Star; 923 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © Francis Miller/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 924 both © Bettmann/Corbis; 925 © 1964 John Launois/Black Star; 926 inset Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; bottom © Ken Regan/Camera 5; 927 top © Black Star; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 928 © Leif Skoogfors/Corbis; 930 both The Granger Collection, New York; 931 top © 1963 Charles Moore/Black Star; center © Larry Downing/Bettmann/Corbis; 932 top left © Carl Iwasaki/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images top right Dan Weiner: Courtesy Sandra Weiner; center © 1964 Steve Schapiro/Black Star.

Chapter 30

934 bottom left © Louis Fabian Bachrach/Corbis; bottom right © SuperStock, Inc.; 934–935 © Tim Page/Corbis; 935 bottom © Bob Peterson/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 936 center right © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © Photomondo/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 937 © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 938 The Granger Collection, New York; 939 bottom right © Jean-Marie Leroy/Sygma/Corbis; bottom left © Corbis; top right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 940 © AP Images; 941 © Department of Defense/AP Images; 942 center © James Pardue/US Army/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top right © Photomondo/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 943 © Bettmann/Corbis; 946 The Granger Collection, New York; 947 Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 948 top right © Photomondo/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 949 top © Mark Kauffman/Life Magazine/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images bottom © 1967 James Pickerell/Black Star; 950 © AP Images; 952 © Burt Glinn/Magnum Photos; 953 I Want Out (20th Century). Color lithograph. Private Collection/Peter Newark American Pictures/The Bridgeman Art Library; 954 center © Danny Lyon/Magnum Photos; top right © Photomondo/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 956 © Jack Kightlinger/Corbis; 957 © Bill Eppridge/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 958 © Jeffrey Blankfort/Jeroboam; 960 center Donald J. Weber; top right © Photomondo/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 962 © David Kennerly/Bettmann/Corbis; 963 © John Filo/Getty Images; 964 © Bettmann/Corbis; 965 © AP Images; 966 center left © 1993 Richard Howard/Black Star; top right © Wolfgang Kaehler/Corbis; top left © Mark Wilson/AP Images; 968 bottom left © Peter Power/NewsCom/Toronto Star; 968–969 © Bettmann/Corbis; 969 center right Cover illustration © 1988 by Jim Dietz from Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers. Reprinted by permission of Scholastic, Inc.; top left © Henri Huet/AP Images; 970 top right © Mark Kauffman/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images center left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom right, I Want Out (20th Century). Color lithograph. Private Collection/Peter Newark American Pictures/The Bridgeman Art Library; 971 A 1972 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by The Herb Block Foundation.

Chapter 31

972 bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom center © AFP/Getty Images; bottom right © 1980 Arnold Zann/Black Star; 972–973 © Lisa Law/The Image Works; 973 bottom left © Sahm Doherty/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images bottom right © Bettmann/Corbis; 974 center right © Paul Fusco/Magnum Photos; 975 Underwood Photo Archives; 976 © Arthur Schatz/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 977 © John Duricka/AP Images; 978 © Rick Smolan; 980 bottom Photograph by Harris (and) Ewing. Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States; 981 left, right Information provided by Alabama Department of Archives and History, Montgomery, Alabama; 982 center left © Bettmann/Corbis; 984 © Mark Klamkin/Black Star; 985 top © Werner Wolff/Black Star; bottom © AP Images; 986 left Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZC4-2905]; right Reprinted by permission of Ms. magazine, © 1972; 987 center right © Bob Fitch/Black Star; 988 top Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 989 © 1967 Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis; 990 bottom © AFP/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; top left © Danny Lyon/Magnum Photos; top right © Bettmann/Corbis; 991 © Bettmann/Corbis; 992 bottom right © Joel Axelrad/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images; top right © AP Images; bottom left © Wes Wilson; center left Photofest; 993 top Photofest; bottom, Marilyn Monroe (1967), Andy Warhol. Screenprint on white paper, 36” x 36”. © The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts/Corbis.

Chapter 32

996–997 Statue of Liberty National Monument/National Park Service/Photograph © Norman McGrath; 998 bottom center © Bettmann/Corbis; 998 bottom left Photo by Sharon Hoogstraten/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; 998–999 © AP Images; 999 fireworks © Charles E. Rotkin/Corbis; disco © Bettmann/Corbis; Camp David Courtesy of the Jimmy Carter Library; 1000 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © C. Lee/PhotoLink/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1001 Courtesy of Paul Szep; 1002 National Aeronautics and Space Administraton (NASA); 1003 © Ira Wyman/Sygma/Corbis; 1004 top © Bettmann/Corbis; bottom © Bettmann/Corbis; 1005 © AP Images; 1006 © Bettmann/Corbis; 1007 © Central Press/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 1008 center © AP Images; top right © C. Lee/PhotoLink/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1009 top right, bottom right © AP Images; bottom left © Bettmann/Corbis; top left © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; background © Robertstock.com; 1010 © 1973 Dennis Brack/Black Star; 1011 top © Wally McNamee/Corbis; bottom © AP Images; 1012 bottom AUTH © 1973 The Philadelphia Inquirer. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All rights reserved; top © National Archives/AP Images; 1013 top © 1974 Harry Benson; center National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); 1014 center © NBC/Photofest; bottom © CBS/Photofest; 1015 top Photofest; bottom © 1977 ABC/Warner TV/MPTV; 1016 center © Bill Pierce/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images top right © C. Lee/PhotoLink/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1017 © Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 1018 top © Owen Franken/Sygma/Corbis; bottom Museum of American Political Life, University of Hartford Library, West Hartford, Connecticut. Photograph by Sally Andersen-Bruce; 1019 © Bill Ross/Corbis; 1020 © Alex Webb/Magnum Photos; 1022 Courtesy of the Jimmy Carter Library; 1023 © Alain Mingam/Gamma-Presse; 1024 center © Walt Zaboski/AP Images; 1025 © Bettmann/Corbis; 1026 center © Bettmann/Corbis; top right © C. Lee/PhotoLink/PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1027 top © Erich Hartmann/Magnum Photos; bottom © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 1028 © Leonard Lee Rue III/Stock Boston; 1029 bottom © 1994 John McGrail; 1030 right © Columbia/The Kobal Collection; left © 20th Century Fox/The Kobal Collection; 1031 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-USZ62-102359]; 1032 left © Bettmann/Corbis; center © Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images right Courtesy of the Jimmy Carter Library.
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Chapter 33

1034 bottom center © Wally McNamee/Corbis; bottom right © Hulton Archive/Getty Images; bottom left © MPI/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 1034–1035 © Robert Maass/Corbis; 1035 wall © Owen Franken/Corbis; tank © Giles Bassignac/Gamma-Presse; 1036 center © 1988 Dennis Brack/Black Star; top right © Scott Allen/Corbis; 1037 © Bettmann/Corbis; 1038 © 1991 Dennis Brack/Black Star; 1040 center © Wally NcNamee/Corbis; top right © Scott Allen/Corbis; 1042 top Oliphant © Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All rights reserved; center, bottom © 1991 Dennis Brack/Black Star; 1043 © Ron Edmonds/AP Images; 1044 © 1987 Dennis Brack/Black Star; 1045 center © Peter Morgan/AP Images; top right © Scott Allen/Corbis; 1046 © Susan Steinkamp/Corbis; 1047 National Aeronautics and Space Administraton (NASA); 1048 © Wally McNamee/Corbis; 1049 © Christopher Morris/Black Star; 1050 © 1991 Dennis Brack/Black Star; 1051 © Lee Snider/Photo Images/Corbis; 1052–1053 © Bob Rowan/Progressive Image/Corbis; 1054 center right © Stephen Jaffe/Reuters/Corbis; top right © Scott Allen/Corbis; 1055 © 1989 by National Review, Inc., 215 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10016. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION; 1056 top © Reuters/Corbis; bottom © Jeff Widener/AP Images; 1058 A 1986 Herblock Cartoon, copyright by The Herb Block Foundation; 1060 bottom left © John Gaps III/AP Images; center © David Turnley/Corbis; 1061 © AP Images; 1062 left © 1991 Dennis Brack/Black Star; right © 1987 Dennis Brack/Black Star.rack/Black Star; right Copyright © 1987 Dennis Brack/Black Star.

Chapter 34

1064 bottom right © Steve Helber/AP Images; bottom left © Time Life Pictures/Us Air Force/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images; 1064–1065 © Nancy Sheehan/PhotoEdit; 1065 Albright © Robert Maass/Corbis; Bush © Kevin Lamarque/Reuters; 1065 Dolly © John Chadwick/AP Images; 1066 center © 1993 Jim Stratford/Black Star; top right © PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1067 top © Reuters/Corbis; bottom © John Duricka/AP Images; 1068 bottom © AP Images; inset © David Longstreath/AP Images; 1069 © Steve Ludlum/The New York Times/Redux; 1070 © Reuters/Corbis; 1071 © Ken Lambert/Washington Times via Newsmakers/Getty Images; 1072 left © Larry Downing/Reuters; right Photo courtesy of the White House/Newsmakers/Getty Images; 1073 © AP Images; 1074 © Michael Ainsworth/Dallas Morning News/Corbis; 1075 center Courtesy of Mike Cavanaugh/UNITE HERE!; top right © PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1076 © Ronald Thomas/Bettmann/Corbis; 1077 © Lou Dematteis/Reuters; 1079 © Shaun Best/Reuters/TimePix; 1080 © Barron Claiborne/Outline/Corbis; 1081 top Copyright © 1989 by Gretchen Schields. Jacket art of The Joy Luck Club. Reproduced with permission of the artist and the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency; bottom © Greg Smith/SABA/Corbis; 1082 center Courtesy of Challenged Athletes Foundation/Photograph by Tim Mantoani; top right © PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1083 Courtesy of Gary Brookins/Richmond Times-Dispatch; 1084 © Daily Press/Adrin Snider/AP Images; 1085 © Corbis; 1086 © James Sugar/Corbis; 1087 left © Toby Talbot/AP Images; right © Dale Atkins/AP Images; 1088 center © Amy Sussman/AP Images; top right © PhotoDisc/Getty Images; 1089 left Courtesy of Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc., and Ann Hamilton; right Ed Massery; 1090 © Joseph Sohm/Visions of America/Corbis; 1092 © Paul Sakuma/AP Images; 1094 center Library of Congress Division of Prints and Photographs [LC-USZC4-4580]; bottom © Henry Guttmann/Hulton Archive/Getty Images; 1095 top © Sam Shere/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images bottom National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

Epilogue

1098 inset © Wally McNamee/Corbis; 1098–1099 © Steve Kaufman/Corbis; 1099 top © Stephen Morton/AP Images; bottom © Damian Dovarganes/AP Images; 1100 © AP Images; 1101 © Beth A. Keiser/AP Images; 1102 © Joshua Roberts/AFP/Getty; 1103 © AP Images; 1105 © Scott Nelson/Getty Images; 1107 © Damian Dovarganes/AP Images; 1108 © Dan Loh/Pool/AP Images; 1111 © Jack Sauer/The Day/AP Images; 1113 © Stephen Morton/AP Images; 1114 © Miguel Gandert/Corbis; 1117 © Steve Liss/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images 1118 © Wally McNamee/Corbis; 1121 © Mark Foley/AP Images; 1122 © Steve Kaufman/Corbis.

Atlas, Skillbuilder Handbook, and Economics Handbook

1124–A1 NASA; R23 © 1964 Steve Schapiro/Black Star; R24 Culver Pictures; R37 © 2008 Kindra Clineff; R38 © Grey Villet/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images R39 bottom left © 1989 by National Review, Inc., 215 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10016. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION; R40 left © Bettmann/Corbis; R40 right © Luc Beziat/Riser/Getty Images; R42 © AP Images; R44 © H. David Seawell/Corbis; R45 left © Reuters/Corbis; R45 right © John Sommers II/Reuters/Corbis.

PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES; William J. Clinton and George W. Bush Patrick Faricy/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.; all others Painted exclusively for Main Street Studios/EPCO, ”The Oval Office Collection”/McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.

All unlisted photos and illustrations by McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin Co.

The editors have made every effort to trace the ownership of all copyrighted material found in this book and to make full acknowledgment for its use. Omissions brought to our attention will be corrected in a subsequent edition.
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Reviewers (continued)

Manuscript Reviewers continued from page v)

Marci Smith Deal

Hurst-Euless-Bedford Independent School District Bedford, Texas

Eric DeMeulanaere

Burton Academic High School San Francisco, California

Gail Dent

Lincoln High School San Francisco, California

Dr. Simone Dorman

Burton Academic High School San Francisco, California

Kenward Goode

Robert E. Lee High School Tyler, Texas

Gary Gregus

Shakopee High School Shakopee, Minnesota

Patti Harrlod

Edmond Memorial High School Edmond, Oklahoma

Terry Holt

South Rowan High School China Grove, North Carolina

Al Juengling

Lamar High School Chicago, Illinois

James Lee

Lamar High School Arlington, Texas

Judith Mahnke

Wallenberg High School San Francisco, California

Gary Marksbury

Lakewood High School Lakewood, California

Terry McRae

Robert E. Lee High School Tyler, Texas

Peyton Mullins

Robert E. Lee High School Tyler, Texas

Brenda Sims Palmer

Lehigh High School Lehigh Acres, Florida

David Pasternak

Edison Technical High School Rochester, New York

Dean Pedersen

North Fayette High School West Union, Iowa

Lindy Poling

Millbrook High School Raleigh, North Carolina

Kent Rettig

Pensacola High School Pensacola, Florida

Diane Ring

St. Charles High School St. Charles, Illinois

Susan Roe

C. E. Jordan High School Durham, North Carolina

Tom Sewell

Inglemoor High School Bothell, Washington

Mary Smith

Secondary Social Studies Coordinator Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District Houston, Texas

Clara Spence

Millikan High School Long Beach, California

Wayne Sylvester

Pentucket High School Westbury, Massachusetts

Bill Von Vihl

Conifer High School Conifer, Colorado

Pattie Willbanks

Robert E. Lee High School Tyler, Texas

Nancy Williams

Jersey Village High School Houston, Texas

Student Board (continuted from page v)

Tonya Gieseking

Broad Ripple High School Indianapolis, Indiana

Yolande Godfrey

Ocean Township High School Ocean Township, New Jersey

Norma Jaquez

Odessa High School Ector County, Texas

Mary McCarthy

Penfield High School Penfield, New York

Dan McKinley

Bulkeley High School Hartford, Connecticut

Kris Miller

Midland High School Cabell County, West Virginia

Brandi Nicholas

Meadowdale High School Dayton, Ohio

Michael Pancherz

Clark Lake High School Houston, Texas

Elizabeth Porter

Burnsville High School Burnsville, Minnesota

Edwin Reyes

Miami Palmetto High School Dade County, Florida

Misty Sisk

Jackson High School Jacksonville, Florida

Christopher Sizemore

Community High School Ann Arbor, Michigan

Jennifer Vasquez

Gilbert High School Gilbert, Arizona

Everett Wheeler-Bell

East High School Denver, Colorado

LuKisha Williams

Mackenzie High School Detroit, Michigan

	Mexico	Settlers
Goals
Actions
Outcomes

1861
Month	Headline
• April
• July
1862
Month	Headline
• February
• April
• September

**Nathanael Greene**
PATRIOTS	LOYALISTS

Event	Headline

	Federalists	Antifederalists
Beliefs
Goals

Federalists	Democratic-Republicans

McDougal Littell The Americans

The Americans

Authors and Consultants

Consultants and Reviewers

Unit 1 American Beginnings to 1783

Unit 2 1781-1850 A New Nation

Unit 3 1825-1877 An Era of Growth and Disunion

Unit 4 1877-1917 Migration and Industrialization

Unit 5 1890-1920 Modern America Emerges

Unit 6 1919-1940 The 1920s and the Great Depression

Unit 7 1931-1960 World War II and Its Aftermath

Unit 8 1954-1975 Living with Great Turmoil

Unit 9 1968-2004 Passage to a New Century

Special Features

Key Player

Now & Then

History Through...

Analyzing: Political Cartoons

Historical Spotlight

Economic Background

Difficult Decisions

World Stage

Another Perspective

Point Counterpoint

Science Technology

Primary Sources and Personal Voices

Historical and Political Maps

Graphs, Tables, and Charts

Time Lines and Infographics

Skillbuilder Handbook / American Stories Videos

Skill builder Handbook

American Stories Video Series

Themes in History

Diversity and the National Identity

America in World Affairs

Economic Opportunity

Science and Technology

Women and Political Power

Immigration and Migration

States' Rights

Voting Rights

Civil Rights

Themes in Geography

Location

Region

Human-Environment Interaction

Place

Movement

Strategies for Taking Standardized Tests

Part 1: Strategies for Studying History

Preview Chapters Before You Read

Preview Sections Before You Read

Use Active Reading Strategies As You Read

Review and Summarize What You Have Read

Part 2: Test-Taking Strategies and Practice

Multiple Choice

Primary Sources

Secondary Sources

Political Cartoons

Charts

Line and Bar Graphs

Pie Graphs

Political Maps

Thematic Maps

Time Lines

Constructed Response

Extended Response

Document-Based Questions

Introduction

Part 1: Short Answer

Document 3: Clean Water

Part 2: Essay

Introduction

Part 1: Short Answer

Document 2: The Civilian Conservation Corps

Document 3: A Policy for Labor (1936)

Part 2: Essay

Rand M nally World Atlas

Unit 1: American Beginnings to 1783

Chapter 1: Three Worlds Meet