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Pros And Cons Of The 1920s

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After WWI, the United States entered an era of conservative values and a supposed “return to normalcy.” The 1920s were marked by a desire to return to the way of life before the left-leaning reforms of the Progressive Era and WWI. However, the nation was not unified during the decade. Many rifts began to form in American society and economy. The 1920s were marked by discord among many Americans in the areas of immigration, religion, and with the issue of socialism, marked especially by the Red Scare. When it came to the topic of immigration, nativists largely won during the 1920s. In response to nativist demands, the government introduced literacy tests in 1917. This measure to restrict immigration helped pave the way for even more strict regulations in the 1920s. Beginning in 1920, the government began to introduce quotas to further regulate immigration. While President Wilson was opposed to such regulations, newly elected President Harding was in favor of them. Under Harding, quotas became increasingly strict over the first half of the decade, culminating with the Immigration Act of 1924. The Act restricted anyone who was ineligible for becoming a citizen of the United States from even immigrating into the county. People of Asian descent, for instance, were previously restricted from becoming US citizens and were therefore unable to even immigrate into the country under the Act. Because of these restrictions, immigration rates plummeted. Nativism was rampant in

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