Essential Question

• Why is the Korean War known as the forgotten war and was the Korean War a success for the United States? Explain.

Domestic Problems After WWII

What You Will Learn:

• What new and old problems plagued America after WWII?

• How were they addressed?

• Could the solutions be characterized as progress or a failure to fulfill our values?

Topic / Area Problem (s) Solution

Fear of Spies and

Communists

We fear government workers, defense officials and entertainment producers are communists and are spying and trying to convert the public to communism

Loyalty Review Board: Truman required all gov’t. employees to swear they were not communists.

HUAC / Hollywood Ten: The House Un-American Activities Commission called for movie writers and directors to swear they were not communists. Ten refused and were jailed.

McCarran Act: a law making it illegal to plan to overthrow the gov’t.

Topic / Area Problem (s) Solution

Fear of Spies and

Communists

We fear government workers, defense officials and entertainment producers are communists and are spying and trying to convert the public to communism

Alger Hiss: he worked for the State Dept. Accused of being a spy – denied it. Nixon led investigation. Convicted of perjury and jailed.

The Rosenbergs: also accused of being spies. Both executed. She was innocent.

McCarthyism: Making unfounded charges despite lack of evidence. Senator Joseph McCarthy from Wisconsin accused 200+ gov’t employees / military officials of being communists. Never proven.

Returning WWII Veterans Returning

veterans needed schooling, housing, jobs, etc.

GI Bill: Gave vets low-cost loans for college, housing, starting businesses. They also were given one full year paid unemployment.

Housing There was a housing shortage.

Suburbs built. William Levitt founded Levittown in NY – built cookie cutter standard housing and instant neighborhoods.

Labor Strikes There are strikes in steel, coal, and railroads, causing shortages and higher prices.

Truman threatens to draft striking workers.He passes the Taft Hartley Act which gives the President authority to call off a strike for 80 days and a requirement that both sides participate in federal mediation to end the strike.

Black Civil RightsBlacks still suffer segregation in schools and public facilities, they cannot vote due to poll taxes and literacy tests, they are lynched, and discriminated against in hiring and housing.

President Truman wanted to help, but Congress prevented many reforms. He did desegregate the armed forces, Democrats who hated Truman’s pro-civil rights policies left the party and formed the Dixiecrats. They ran Strom Thurmond for President in 1948.

Jacki Robinson : integrated professional baseball.

      

Thurmond 'has mixed race child'

Strom Thurmond is said to have paid

money to his 'daughter'A 78-year-old mixed race woman in the US is claiming she is the love child of controversial senator Strom Thurmond, who died this year aged 100.

Source: BBC News, Dec. 2003.

Black Civil RightsBlacks still suffer segregation in schools and public facilities, they cannot vote due to poll taxes and literacy tests, they are lynched, and discriminated against in hiring and housing.

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Kansas NAACP lawyer Thurgood Marshall argued for public school desegregation.

Earl Warren (chief justice) and court ruled in their favor. Said separate is inherently unequal.

The Little Rock Crisis 9 black students integrate Little Rock High.

Gov. Faubus tried to block their entrance.

Pres. Eisenhower sends federal troops to protect them.

What Did You Learn:

• What new and old problems plagued America after WWII?

• How were they addressed?

• Could the solutions be characterized as: (a) progress or,

• (b) a failure to fulfill our values?