America Unit 3

• Post-war America prospered by:

  • Factories returned to producing peacetime goods efficiently after the war
  • Public eager to buy goods that were scarce during the war, like luxury refrigerators, cars, and ovens
  • Large shopping centres constructed on the edges of towns and cities for convenient shopping
  • 75 million cars on America's roads by 1956
  • Higher purchase (buy now, pay later) encouraged spending
  • By the end of the 1950s, 9/10 households owned a TV, 8/10 had a car and a telephone, and 7/10 had a washing machine
  • World supplying 65% of the world's manufactured goods by 1952
• Post-war America did not prosper in some areas:

  • Some areas suffered from poverty, poor housing, and schools, especially African Americans
  • People in the South were worse off than those in the North
  • Elderly did not benefit from the booming economy
  • No national health service, sick pay, or social security for job loss
  • Women returned to traditional roles, faced frustration, and societal pressure to be housewives
  • Wages fell to 53% of what they were earning in WW2
  • Women began to marry at an average age of 20, the lowest in decades
• Truman's Fair Deal focused on poverty and African American rights:

  • Raised minimum wage and cleared slums for affordable housing
  • Idea for national health insurance was blocked by Republicans
  • Southern politicians hindered improvements in African American rights
• President Eisenhower's presidency:

  • Brought businessmen into the government to boost the economy
  • Success in improving standards of living and wages
• American culture in the 1950s:

  • Teenagers had more leisure time and spending power
  • Rock and roll music disliked by older Americans but popular among the youth
  • Television became popular with 9/10 households owning one
  • Businesses targeted advertisements at teenagers
• The Second Red Scare:

  • Fear of communism spreading to the USA after WW2
  • HUAC searched for communists in government, businesses, and media
  • Joe McCarthy accused many of being communist without strong evidence
• Kennedy and Johnson's initiatives:

  • New Frontier focused on civil rights, economy, healthcare, and poverty
  • Achievements include civil rights acts, voting rights act, and economic opportunities
  • Limitations include high costs, rising unemployment, and focus on the Vietnam War
• Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s:

  • Fought for more rights for African Americans
  • Key events include Brown VS Board, Little Rock Nine, and Martin Luther King's leadership
• Civil rights movement achievements:

  • Civil Rights Act of 1964 banned discrimination
  • Voting Rights Act of 1965 aimed to reduce barriers to African American voting
  • Limitations include continued racism and inequality despite legal changes
• Black power movement:

  • Malcom X advocated for African American rights by any means necessary
  • Black Panther party rejected non-violence and believed in armed protection
  • Nation of Islam believed in separatism and rejected Christianity
• Women's movement:

  • NOW and Women's Lib groups fought for women's rights
  • Achievements include Equal Pay Act, contraceptive reform, divorce reform, and Roe VS Wade
  • Limitations include opposition from anti-feminists and religious groups
• What was consumerism like after WW2?

  • Peacetime goods were produced in the same, efficient way that goods were produced before the war
  • Luxury refrigerators, ovens, vacuum cleaners, cars and televisions were produced as prices that millions could afford
  • Massive shopping centres were built on the outskirts of large towns and cities
  • By 1956, there were 75 million vehicles on America's roads
  • By the end of the 1950s, 9/10 US households had a TV, 8/10 had a car and a telephone and 7/10 had a washing machine
• Why was America prospering again?

  • Public was keen to buy goods as they had been so rare during the war
  • Huge advertising industry: 'buy now, pay later' schemes persuaded people to spend money
  • By 1952, America was supplying 65% of the world's manufactured goods
  • Growing population was consuming 1/3 of the world's goods and services
• How did government actions help America to prosper?

  • Eisenhower brought lots of people into the government to keep the economy booming
  • They succeeded and throughout Eisenhower's presidency, the living standards of millions of Americans continued to improve as wages kept rising
  • Truman had plans called the 'Fair deal' which hoped to tackle poverty and the rights of African Americans
  • He raised the minimum hourly wage from 40 cents to 75 cents and cleared large slums to make way for affordable housing
• What happened to women after the war?

  • Millions of the women who had done such valuable work just returned to their traditional roles as housewives
  • Women's wages had risen to 2/3 of those earned by men, but now fell to 53% of that during the 1950s
  • By 1950, the average age of a woman to get married was 20, the lowest it had been since 1890
  • Often employed in 'female' jobs such as nursing and teaching
  • A growing number were becoming extremely frustrated with their limited lives (particularly middle class women)
• How did society change in the 1950s?

  • Children had a lot less responsibility
  • They were expected to go to school until at least 18 and to go o college because they don't have to work or go to war
  • Parents viewed long-term success as important and had more money
  • 'Teenagers' became a new idea
  • Their spending power increased from $10 billion in 1950 to $25 billon in 1959
  • Got a reputation for being rebellious and a 'generation gap' formed
  • Figures such as James Dean and Marlon Brando were famous
  • Advertising aimed at teenagers, who spent $10-$15 a week
• How was rock and roll popular in the 1950s?

  • Older Americans disliked it, causing younger Americans to really like it
  • In 1956, a TV performance by Elvis Presley was watched by 82% of Americans
  • This music was linked to gangs and teenage crime
  • Radios and TV shows rushed to book popular performers like Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly and Little Richard
• What television was popular in the 1950s?

  • From 1948-1958, the number of people who owned a TV sprang from 0.4% to 83.2%
  • TV replaced reading, listening to music on the radio and going to the cinema (but viewing was reduced after the initial novelty)
  • Commercial sponsors encouraged spending
  • Most programmes were sitcoms, soap operas, game shows or the news
• What was the HUAC?

  The House of representatives of un-American activities committee which began searching for communists in the government, workplaces and the media and film industry
• What was the loyalty programme?

  Allowed the FBI to investigate all government employees and fire any 'security risks' - none were found guilty but many were forced out of jobs and had their reputations ruined
• Who was investigated by the HUAC in 1947?

  10 famous Hollywood filmmakers - they refused to say whether they were communist or not as they claimed that America was a free country. Most had to serve a one year jail sentence and never found work in the film industry again
• Who was Joseph McCarthy and what did he do?

  • In 1950, he claimed that there were 200 communists working for the government
  • For the next five years, he led a campaign of investigations, with Edgar Hoover (director of the FBI)
  • Kept millions of files on suspected communist sympathisers
  • Many were put on trial and found guilty with little to no proof
  • People who spoke out against him risked looking like a communist
  • Charlie Chaplin was accused and later forced to leave America to look for work!
  • When he accused 45 army officers, he quickly lost popularity
• What was the impact of McCarthyism?

  • People lost jobs, were jailed and had their reputations destroyed
  • America's reputation across the world was damaged as stories of hearings spread
  • People viewed the American government as hunting its own citizens out of fear
  • Many liberal Americans lost faith in the government as it cared more about fighting communism than protecting their rights
• What was Brown vs Board?

  • In 1954, the NAACP and Oliver Brown brought a case to the Board of education in Kansas
  • Linda Brown had to walk a long way across a dangerous railway to get to her school when there was an all-white one much nearer
  • He lost the case but appealed and it went to the Supreme Court
  • In May 1954, the Judge declared that every education board had to end segregation in schools
  • Some states refused, and in 1956, six Southern states still segregated their schools
  • May 1956 - 300,000 black children went to formally white schools
• What was the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-56)?

  • In 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger
  • She was arrested
  • The MIA organised a boycott of the buses and 10-15,000 people came to hear a speech from Martin Luther King
  • The bus company lost 65% of its income
  • The boycott lasted 382 days
  • In December 1956, the Supreme Court declared Montgomery's bus laws illegal
  • MIA leaders were subject to intimidation throughout the movement e.g. churches and homes set on fire
• What was Little Rock, Arkansas (1957)?

  • Nine students tried to attend Central High in Little Rock, Arkansas
  • The governor of Arkansas sent National Guard soldiers to prevent them from entering and the students were racially abused
  • President Eisenhower sent 1,000 troops to escort the nine students to school
  • Little Rock was finally desegregated and students completed their senior year
  • Troops only helped them enter the school, couldn't stop bullying or racial abuse
  • Case caused a rise in KKK membership
  • Received huge media coverage and raised the profile of the civil rights movement in America