The Aftermath of WWI

Peace, Prosperity and Prohibition

The War causes Social Changes Many people flocked to the cities to be part of the war effort.

Jobs were plentiful and people hoped to start a new life. The large migration of African Americans from the South changed the face of many Northern cities like Detroit and Chicago.

Women joined the war effort and gained economic and political power.

Things in the post-war United States would be very different.

When the doughboys returned.. They brought back the

“Spanish Flu” from Europe.

In the fall of 1918 the epidemic spread through the U.S. killing 500,000. The flu wreaked havoc with communities, and then disappeared in 1919 as quickly as it had come.

Wilson’s Plan for Peace

President Wilson had a plan for peace after the war. He wanted to end secret treaties and bring all nations together in a League of Nations to settle disputes before they turned into war.

He also wanted to end tariffs, reduce armaments and guarantee access to the sea for all nations.

Wilson’s plan is rejected

The Congress did not like the idea of the League of Nations. They feared it would mean the U.S. would no longer control their own destiny and be dragged into foreign wars.

The victorious European nations preferred to punish the losers of the war, particularly Germany. They gathered together in Versailles to draw up the terms of the peace.

Treaty of Versailles

In the end the Treaty of Versailles created the nations of Poland, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia from territories previously held by Germany and Austria Hungary.

It also handed over much of the Middle East, formerly held by the Ottoman Empire, to France and Great Britain. These “protectorates” contained parts of modern Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon and Iraq.

The treaty set out to weaken Germany so it would no longer be a threat to the peace in Europe The war-guilt provisions of the treaty demanded that

Germany take full responsibility for the war. Stripped Germany of its colonies in the Pacific Demanded huge cash payments or “reparations”

from Germany for the Allies. Forbid Germany from keeping an army.

Not everyone agreed….

When Wilson returned to the U.S. with the treaty many economic experts predicted that the harsh reparations would wreck the world economy.

The treaty also contained Wilson’s League of Nations, a voluntary organization for nations to settle disputes. Congress balked, and Wilson refused to compromise. In the end the U.S. signed a separate treaty with Germany in 1921 and did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles.

The Legacy of WWI in the U.S. Increased the strength of the military and the

government in the U.S. Accelerated the pace of social change for

women and African Americans. Propaganda campaigns during the war

stirred up anger and distrust between ethnic groups which remained even after the war ended.

Legacy of WWI in Europe

Mass destruction and loss of life from the war caused political and social unrest for years to come. As predicted the reparations forced upon Germany caused economic disaster in Europe.

This unrest opened the door for the spread of Communism from Russia and the creation of militant fascist dictatorships in Italy, Spain and Germany.

A new role for the U.S.

The United States gained prestige and power in the international community through it’s participation in WWI. Instead of an isolated country it became in the eyes of the world a member of the world community.

At the same time the U.S. was exhausted and began to turn inward and away from the larger world. This trend toward isolationism was coupled with a new burst of nativism, and limits were placed on new immigrants from Europe for the first time.

Labor Woes, Return of the KKK Labor unrest – when wages did not keep pace with prices

workers fought for higher pay, and shorter working hours. The Great War had kept them from striking so now they made up for lost time with many strikes, some becoming very violent. By the end of the 1920’s the labor movement was losing power in the U.S. as more people (non-union labor) flocked to the cities to be part of the great prosperity there.

Return of the Ku Klux Klan – expands from just hating African Americans to hating immigrants, Catholics and Jews. Increases in membership until people realize the scope of criminal activities. By the end of the 1920’s lost membership and power.

Prosperity and the 1920’s

First the good news…

After the Great War U.S. industries flourish creating new consumer products and plenty of jobs.

The new auto and airplane industries created great excitement and new mobility.

Electric appliances of every type made day to day life easier for most Americans.

Dawn of the advertising age

Advertising becomes big business as companies compete for the customer’s attention.

Vibrant color and eyecatching artwork are everywhere.

The Business of America is Business After the scandal ridden presidency of

Warren Harding ends in 1923 the very pro-business Calvin Coolidge becomes president.

Coolidge’s goal was to keep taxes down and profits up by keeping government interference to a minimum and credit easily available.

Superficial Prosperity

Parts of the economy thrived during this period. Producers of consumer goods like appliances, houses and cars did very well.

Coolidge’s love of easy credit meant that ordinary people could buy goods on an installment plan, and consumer demand soared. Formally frugal Americans went deeply into credit debt.

Not everyone was thriving…

The income gap between managers and workers continued to grow.

Farmers lost money when they grew more food than was needed and food prices dived.

With the automobile and the airplane growing in use and popularity, railroads were not doing well in the new economy.

Social Change gone wrong

The 18th Amendment took effect in January, 1920. Reformers had great hopes for this law but it proved unenforceable, causing an increase in associated crimes.

“Yes, it’s a noble experiment.”

Social Change gone wrong

Speakeasies and bootleggers stepped up to fill the void left by legal providers of alcohol.

Organized crime groups soon stepped up to profit from the illegal manufacture and sale of alcohol.

The experiment ends…..

The bloody wars that resulted made most Americans believe that the cure of prohibition was far worse than the disease of alcohol.

Toward the end only 19% of Americans supported prohibition.

Prohibition was finally

repealed by the 21st Amendment in 1933.

What about the transformation of women during the 1920’s?

Women get the franchise when the 19th Amendment is ratified on August 26, 1920

Women joined the work force in record numbers

In the cities the old social constraints were gone, and most city girls were free to pursue whatever kind of lives they chose to….

However, ladies in small towns and rural areas did not see change happen as fast

It was a whole new world for the “modern woman….”

Women were active in the fight to end the prohibition movement

No need for a lady to go thirsty when she’s away from home…….even with all those silly prohibition laws.

Ladies in the 80’s never showed their ankles….

Women of the twenties took a more open approach to both their wardrobes and their social activities…

And those wild women….flappers!!

Wicked women playing mahjongg

Ladies bobbed their hair, shortened their skirts, and starting wearing rouge!

They smoked in public! They showed their knees!

They went on dates, with men, without a chaperone!!!

Some women even pursued careers in traditionally male jobs.

City life

City life was all about competition and change. Small town immigrants moving to the big cities often felt overwhelmed by the fast pace and the “loose” morals of city dwellers.

Theaters, speakeasies, movie houses and entertainments of every sort were widely available and affordable to most people.

Education in the 20’s

In 1914 1 million students were enrolled in high school.

By 1926 that number had risen to 4 million as prosperity and rising educational requirements for jobs had also risen.

Pre-1920 high school was basically for the college bound, in the 20’s a wider range of classes meant vocational training was available for workers as well.

Mass media is born

Newspapers, and mass-circulation magazines like “Time” and it’s more lighthearted cousin “Life” spread news to an ever more literate population anxious for information.

Radio broadcasts news and information coast to coast. For the first time most Americans can hear their president speak live or listen to the World Series.

Heroes

This wild decade was renowned for the men and women who defied convention and dared to do more.

The exploits of sports heroes like Babe Ruth and Gertrude Ederle (first woman to swim the English Channel) were glorified by newspapers and radio.

Aviators like Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart broke solo flight records to the acclaim of millions.

New ways to look at the world were being presented by artists, authors and musicians.

Paintings like this one by Wisconsinborn Georgia O’Keefe (Radiator Building-night) –and “Chop Suey” by Edward Hoppercaused a sensation. (next slide)

New stories catch the public imagination F. Scott Fitzgerald and

Ernest Hemingway set the literary world on its ear with novels like “The Great Gatsby” and “The Sun Also Rises.”

A new appreciation for the culture of African Americans The Harlem Renaissance

flowered in the African American community.

This movement gave the world jazz from Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, poetry of Langston Hughes, and amazing performers like blues singer Bessie Smith and the great actor Paul Robeson.

Langston Hughes

That’s all folks

Next time – The 1929 Stock Market Crash and the Great Depression