Midterm #2
Part A: #2) The 1920s was a time of dramatic change that swept quickly over the nation. This was a decade in which there was extreme economic growth along with a rise in consumer spending and a scared political atmosphere. During 1919 there was a drastic shift in fear from Germany to a fear of Communism which culminated in the Red Scare of 1919. This was a continuation of Woodrow Wilsons wartime campaign against anti-American movements, most frequently anarchists and communists. During World War I congress passed two sets of legislation that supported this: The Espionage Act and the Sedition act. The Espionage Act of 1917 was aimed at promoting patriotism and stopping people from speaking out against the U.S. involvement, while The Sedition Act amended the Espionage to more broadly cover speech, restricting Freedom of Speech. These laws were frequently used to imprison members of the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World), most notably Eugene V. Debbs. Another source of the Red Scare was the Russian Revolution, which transformed Russia into a communist state. The revolution scared Americans into believing one would happen in the U.S. These events start the 20s off at a bad time economically with high unemployment, socially with an anti-immigration stance and politically with the persecution of Anti-American opinions. At the start of the 20s unemployment in the U.S. was around 12 percent with bad times for farmers and those in poverty. This economic slump ended
The Red Scare in the 1950’s was actually America’s second red scare. The 1920’s red scare was what helped start suspicion over Communists, but was put off during World War 2. It was no coincidence that what many people called the second red scare ignited after World War 2, during the Cold War, in the 1950’s. The 1920’s red scare started because Americans were paranoid over the fact that Russia may seek revenge after they had overthrown a royal Russian family in 1917. What started Communist ideas in the U.S at the time was the fact that since the war was over many of people were out of jobs which
It was a time when federal and state officials were still developing work programs for the unemployed. This great industrial slump continued throughout the 1930's, shaking the foundations of Western capitalism.
The Red scare was a series of witch hunts for suspected communist sympathetic members of congress and public office holding Citizens who were supposedly “Red” this lasted from (1919-1920) started by the Bolshevik revolution in Russia. During the first war the Red Scared was represented the widespread concern that Americans had developed over the fear of communist subversion within society. The American people went into a mass hysteric frenzy over the news and many
The 1920’s were a booming time for the United States. Massive change was occurring and this led to a lot of new types of conflict about different reasons than ever before. The war had just ended and with that started a new era of people who unlike before had different morals. This was one of the biggest conflicts of the time. During the 1920’s the biggest cause of conflict were the old generations vs. the new generations because of the rapidly changing morals and the new ideas being accepted by society. This also led to a lot of changes in the United States as a whole with the result of us being more open to new ideas and new freedoms. There were some major reasons for some conflict in the United States during this time and they all were connected to the idea of old vs. new.
Red Scare – Period of anticommunist hysteria that swept the United States after World War I
On April 2nd 1917, President Woodrow Wilson of the United States of America, ??went before Congress and called for a declaration of war. Both the House and the Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of going to war with Germany.?# This was an act that led to much resistance among the American people. Not four months earlier the American people re-elected President Wilson, partly because of his success in keeping the United States out of this European war. However, a series of events, such as the Germans continuing submarine warfare and the attacks on five American ships, led President Wilson to sever diplomatic relations with Germany and send the United States into what
In the middle of the 20th Century, the threat of Soviet Union attacks left the United States in constant fear. The American people were anxious at the thought of another war, seeing as though the second world war had ended only a little over a decade earlier. The government leaders were determined to eliminate the spread of communism in the United States. By attempting to do so, the government undermined the the American people’s trust by creating unnecessary terror and mild disruption of the economy. NewsELA says, “The Red Scares were fears when government officials and other groups promoted a fear of communism in the United States, which would overthrow capitalism and democracy” (NewsELA). The Red Scares spread fear throughout the United States which led to the prosecution of prominent members of society based on unproven rumors and caused many honest politicians and members of middle-class society to lose their positions at their places of business and in their
The Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918 were both federal acts of “protecting America.”
After the First World War America was a completely different country. The twenties was a very unusual time period in American History. The twenties were a time of fun and partying. There are many reasons why it was called the Roaring Twenties.
With the power of the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918 Palmer began to arrest and deport aliens based on their political beliefs because no one was allowed to speak against the government especially during times of war. Over 6,000 suspected communist were arrested due to suspected rebellious movements. This was known as the “Palmer Raids”. Mitchell Palmer accused and identified immigrants who were communist because he wanted to keep democracy safe; raids were meant to determine suspected communists to deport them. Immediately after World War 1, the first Red Scare erupted. The American public was scared that communism would enter the United States. Left-wing supporters were suspected. During the Red Scare, two Italian men Sacco and Vanzetti were arrested for murder and were suspected to be anarchists, even though there was no evidence to support this. Many struggles came along with the Palmer Raids and the Red Scare such as trying to contain communism and dealing with
1) Constitutional Question: Does the Free Speech Clause, of the First Amendment, protect Schenck from the Espionage Act of 1917?
In the 1920s America was under severe restraints that has caused division in the country socially and culturally (Tindall et al, P.86). There was a time when law and order has no place in the American society, people were deprived from their basic rights and no transparency was provided by the state. The government of that time was reluctant to show any kind of progress that could help the people. Crime rate was increasing and people were no more secure in their houses. Feudal lords and Mafias were controlling the internal part of United States. People were forced to work as a forced labor in factories or highway projects and they were paid less amount of money that can be hardly cover their expenses. It has badly impacted the US economy many people were deprived of basic necessities. The inflation rate was
The years preceding the Great Depression have extensive prosperity associated with them due to the inflation staying below 1%, and industrial wages increasing by 14%. While the 1920s appeared prosperous, they actually lacked true and uniform prosperity as a result of inequality, infractions by corporations, and unsustainable growth. Racial minorities and women lacked prosperity, the growth of corporations furthered wealth inequality and influenced the federal government, and the diminished regulation by the government allowed for collusion between corporations and monopolization. Easy credit allowed people to spend money they did not actually have which was unsustainable in the long-term.
Pidgeon and Berman reveal their differing interpretations of 1920s America. As mentioned, Pidgeon elaborates on his criticism of 1920s America by explaining the positive impact of wealth on the society, and stating that “striving for wealth has become a way for Americans to ease their consciousness”. (Pidgeon, 2007). Berman’s view of 1920s America talks about the “new and improved” (Berman, 1994) society after the flourish of money flowing through, as the increased wealth had changed America into a more developed environment by influencing the society to live in more rich and polished houses. It appears that Pidgeon’s viewpoint is impacted by the norm of society use money for their pleasure, unlike that of Berman’s which is influenced by the fact that money has given the society a new lifestyle. However, both critics seem to disagree with my own research of 1920s America – despite Pidgeon’s belief that wealth had the ability to solve any uneasy emotions and life problems, I personally feel that his interpretation lacks sufficient analysis regarding the historical context after the first world war. I discovered that during that time, money provided by the government had negatively affected the American society by causing discomfort to those who were not used to such sudden generosity. This also questions the “new and improved” society stated by Berman.
The first look at the New Deal was to seek for an economic improvement of multiple working efforts towards relief aid, and towards recovery. The second look at the New Deal was focused towards many depression hit farmers, industrial workers of all races and trade unionist. In the 1920s there was many issues that were in need of resolution. Issues that were pressing such as effected individuals from The Great Depression.