USA

• when did ww1 break out

  1914
• why was there an economic boom in 1920s, the first world war -

  - it took the USA two years to join WW1, they joined in 1916.

  - they avoided the war due to a policy called isolationism, it allowed them to prosper fincancially
• why was there an economic boom in 1920s, the consumer societies -

  - in 1916, only 15% of American homes had electricity. But nearly 70% had it by 1927.

  - workers began to spend their money on electric devices such as vacuum cleaners, radios, toasters and refrigerators.

  - Huge demand for these products created jobs in factories that made them
• why was there an economic boom in 1920s, republic governmet policies -

  They endorsed laissez-faire policies, allowing big businesses to expand freely. Harding's Fordney-McCumber Tariff Act (1922) imposed taxes on foreign goods, promoting protectionism. Hoover, while supporting laissez-faire, also advocated rugged individualism, discouraging reliance on government aid.
• define the laissez-faire policy


  this approach allowed the government to step away from the people and businesses, businesses were free to expand and the government believed in the trickle down theory, if businesses were thriving so were the people. tax cuts for the wealthy, protective tariffs and limited government spending were also introduced.
• why was there an economic boom in 1920s, growing industries and mass production -

  - the growth of the motor industry was a massive boost for the US economy.

  - Car production used 20% of america's steel, 65% of its leather and over 75% of its rubber and glass.

  - More jobs were created
• why was there an economic boom in 1920s, new ways to buy and sell -

  - effective advertising campaigns were used to sell products, billboards, newspapers and magazines urges people to buy the latest gadget.

  - People took advantage of the 'buy now, pay later' schemes
• loosers of the boom: farmers

  - farmers produced too many crops to sell, prices fell and they ended up borrowing from the government. this put many in dept until they had to sell their land, many wondered america looking for work (called hobos)

  - by 1928 half of all USA farmers were living in poverty, 600,000 farmers lost their farms in 1924 alone.
• loosers of the boom

  - farmers

  - african americans

  - native americans

  - immigrants

  - traditional industrys (coal, cotton, ship building)

  - The richest 5% earned 33% of all money in america. Tax records from over $1 million in 1921, 75 in 1924 and 207 in 1926. There were an estimated 15,000 US millionaires by 1927. In contrast, a million families had an income of less that $100 a year
• loosers of the boom: traditional industrys

  - coal - coal prices fell and thousands had to be made redundant because the industry was producing too much coal and not enough people and countries wanted to buy it.

  - ship building - another major industry that had to make thousands redundant due to a reduction in the demand for new ships

  - cotton - new synthetic fibres were being developed. Such as rayon, this became a very popular substitute to cotton. It was possible to produce rayon in factories where fewer workers were needed
• loosers of the boom: african americans

  Segregation in the southern states (Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi) worsened conditions for Black people. Whites and Blacks lived separately with distinct education, transport, and housing facilities. They couldn't share toilets or water wells. Efforts to enhance African American rights faced challenges and threats from the Ku Klux Klan. Consequently, thousands of Black individuals migrated to northern cities like New York, Detroit, and Chicago in search of work, only to find themselves living in ghettos.
• loosers of the boom: native americans

  - much of their land had been seized by mining companies and their traditional way of life had disappeared when they had been forced to move to reservations. The soil on these reservations was often too poor thay it was nearly impossible to grow crops

  - Many immigrants had not been educated and were willing to work in any kind of job for very low wages. Because of this, they endured more and more prejudice
• what was the red scare

  an increase in xenophobia and racial persecution in the USA occuring in the 1920s due to the fear of communism spreading
• the palmer raids

  - Mitchell Palmer claimed there were around 150,000 communists living in the country (0.1% of the population).

  - He started rumours that they had infiltrated congress. He said they were working on behalf of the US government to spread communism

  - He used the red scare as an excuse to organise attacks against left-wing organisations
• concequenses of the palmer raids -

  - 6000 people, who were mostly not communist supporters, were arrested and held in prison without a trial

  - 556 of them were also deported on flimsy evidence under the 1918 alien act

  - People used the raids as an excuse to attack any group they disliked or distrusted

  - Trade unions were weakened by palmer's rumours and raids because they were branded un-american
• sacco and vanseti case

  Accused during the Red Scare, Sacco and Vanzetti faced trial in 1921 for a South Braintree robbery-murder. With biased Judge Thayer and public prejudice, despite a robust defense, 61 prosecution witnesses convinced many of their guilt amid the Red Scare era.
• what were the three laws congress passed to restrict immigrants and what did they consist of

  • Literacy Test, 1917: Immigrants required to pass reading and writing tests.
  • Emergency Quota Act, 1921: Limited annual immigrants to 357,000 and established a quota, allowing only 3% of each overseas group's 1910 U.S. population.
  • National Origins Act, 1924: Reduced maximum immigrants to 150,000 per year, with a quota of 2% based on the 1890 U.S. population.
• why did many americans disapprove of the governments open door policy

  by 1920, americans feared the economic, political and social impact of imigration

  - they were taking the jobs that americans thought should be theirs

  - they drove down wages bc there were so many of them competing for jobs

  - their overcrowded slums were linked to crime, violence and prostitution
• what was prohibition and when was it introduced

  In 1920, the 18th amendment was passed making the manufacture and sale of illegal alcohol, but many people in this time of 'prohibition' continued to drink and gangsters made enormous amounts of money from supplying illegal liquor
• why prohbition was introduced

  1. National mood - when America entered the war in 1917, the national mood also turned against drinking alcohol. The anti-saloon league argued that drinking alcohol was damaging american society

  2. Practical - a ban on alcohol would boost supplies of important grains such as barley

  3. Religious - the consumption of alcohol went against god's will

  4. Moral - many agreed that it was wrong for some americans to enjoy alcohol while the country's young men were at war
• what prohibition resulted in

  prohibition resulted in a high demand of illegal alcohol from the public. gang leaders such as Al Capone and Bugs Moran battled for control of chicagos illegal drinking dens (speakeasies)
• why prohibiton failed

  The 21st Amendment, introduced in February 1933, repealed Prohibition. Several factors contributed to Prohibition's challenges:

  - insufficient enforcement with only 1,500 agents in 1920.

  - Geographical challenges for agents in controlling smuggling.

  - Low agent salaries facilitated bribery.

  - Lack of public support led many to drink in speakeasies.

  - Gangsters like Al Capone profited from organized crime. Prohibition saw increased protection rackets, organized crime, and gangland murders compared to the legal sale of alcohol.
• Al Capone

  Capone claimed that he was only a businessman, but between 1927 and 1930 more than 500 gangland murders took place. The most infamous incident was the St Valentine's day Massacre in 1929 when Capone's men killed seven members of his rival Moran's gang while Capone lay innocently on a beach in Florida.
• changing the role of women - impact of the first world war

  During World War I, women took on diverse roles in the workforce, filling in for men at war. The National American Woman Suffrage Association's efforts, coupled with women's contributions during the war, led to the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920, granting women the right to vote. The increased financial independence of middle and upper-class women became a focus for advertising campaigns promoting new products.
• changing the role of women - Changing attitudes towards social etiquette:

  In the 1920s, young women, known as flappers, were influenced by Hollywood films and icons like Joan Crawford. Jazz clubs were key for flappers to express themselves through smoking, dancing, and consuming illegal alcohol. Daring dances like the shimmy replaced traditional ones. "Petting Parties" with public kissing became popular. However, resistance to this lifestyle persisted in the Southern states and among older women, leading to the formation of the Anti-Flirt Club.
• when did the wall street crash occur

  1929
• How did Hoover respond to the Great Depression? action he took to help -

  • Hoover's Hawley-Smoot Act (1930) increased tariffs by 50% on imported goods to boost domestic industry.
  • The Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) was created in 1932, providing $1,500 million in loans to rescue businesses.
  • Hoover initially cut taxes by $130 million for investment but raised business taxes in 1932 for budget balance.
  • Hoover allocated $300 million for state unemployment relief, but only $30 million was distributed
• how did the action he took to help make it worse?

  the Howley-Smoot act meant foreign countries retaliated by taxing American goods coming into their areas, so trade fell even further. The loans did not save enough companies. The additional taxes on business did not help balance the budget, plus they made the survival of firms more difficult. Industrial production continued to drop. It decreased by 45% between 1929 and 1932. House-building fell by 92% between 1929 and 1932
• roosevelt and the 'new deal' - roosevelt had three basic aims which directed his actions:

  - Relief - help the victims of the depression, millions of ordinary americans faced unemployment, hunger and poverty. Roosevelt was demanded to help them

  - Recovery - encourage economic recovery. The depression was a disaster for america. Roosevelt knew that he had to take action to encourage recovery, to get the nation back to work.

  - Reform - reform the economic system. The whole economic system would have to be altered so that there would never again be a depression as bad as the 1930s
• roosevelt and the 'new deal' - three main changes he made

  1. FDR's Emergency Banking Act closed and inspected banks, allowing only well-run ones to reopen, restoring confidence and promoting lending to businesses.
  2. The Economy Act, implemented by FDR, cut government and armed forces pay by 15%, saving nearly $1 billion.
  3. FDR's Beer Act legalized alcohol production, ending gangster influence, and generated government revenue through alcohol taxation.
• alphabet agencies - Federal emergency relief administration (FERA)


  this helped the poor in a number of basic ways, such as giving clothing grants and setting up soup kitchens for the poor. $500 million was given to the homeless and starving
• alphabet agencies - National recovery administration (NRA)

  this tried to help industry and factory workers by increasing wages and improving hours and conditions. In total, 2.5 million firms, employing 22 million workers joined in the scheme
• alphabet agencies - Agricultural adjustment act (AAA)


  this tried to help farmers by controlling farm production and stabilising prices. It was an attempt to end the overproduction and falling agricultural prices that had crippled American farmers. Farmers were paid to destroy food.
• alphabet agencies - Public works administration (PWA)

  this created jobs by paying unemployed people to build schools, bridges and dams. This was replaced by the works progress administration in 1935
• alphabet agencies - Civilian conservation corps (CCC)

  similar to the PWA, this department provided jobs to large number of young men in conservation schemes in the countryside. The CCC created jobs for 2.5 million men
• alphabet agencies - Tennessee valley authority (TVA)


  this scheme brought hyro-electric power to seven states in the tennessee valley, one of the worst affected areas of the country, dams and power-plants were built. Creating many jobs
• faliures of the 'new deal' - Persistent Unemployment:

  - New Deal didn't end unemployment.

  - 1930s: 1 in 10 unemployed.
• faliures of the 'new deal' - increasing strikes

  - 1930: 3 million strike days

  - 1932: 15 million

  - 1934: 20 million

  - Indicates worker dissatisfaction; more strikes suggest unhappiness.
• faliures of the 'new deal' - Alphabet Agencies and Wagner Act:

  - Agencies set basic wages

  - Supreme Court challenges NRA (national recovery administrations) wage codes were illegal

  - Wagner Act grants union rights to workers
• faliures of the 'new deal' - Discrimination Against Women:

  - NRA (national recovery administrations) sets lower women's wages.

  - 1937: Women's avg. wage $525.

  - Gender discrimination highlighted.