War on the Home Front - Production + Financing

1. War on the Home Front- Production + Financing • Within weeks of Pearl Harbor, the US redirected production of many products. • Production of bicycles, soda cans, refrigerators, toothpaste tubes and 300+ other items was cut back or banned. • Auto manufacturers converted production to tanks and war supplies. • New industries were created… Our supply of natural rubber (from SE Asia) was cut off, so new companies were created to design synthetic rubber. • America’s production of war materials matched the total output of Germany, Italy and Japan combined. • Because of increasing demand, the government started rationing a number of products including sugar, butter, gasoline, shoes and coffee. • The US also had to find new and innovative ways to finance the war: • The government increased taxes and extended the income tax to include middle and lower income families. • The government sold war bonds.

2. War on the Home Front– Women in the Workforce • With men oversees, more women than ever before entered the labor force. • “Rosie the Riveter” became a national symbol of the contribution women were making to the war effort. • Rosie the Riveter: a cultural icon and advertising success which symbolized feminism and women’s economic power as part of the effort to mobilize America for war • Many of the female laborers had children at home. The government offered training courses, funded child-care centers and ideas about equal pay for equal work started to spread. • Although at first most women considered their new employment temporary, by war’s end 80% said they wanted to keep their jobs.

3. War on the Home Front– Social Change • To support the growing labor and production needs, society started to change. • Between 1941-1945, one of every five American relocated to another part of the country. • Prejudice increased towards African Americans, Okies and other re-locating families. • People were loyal to President Roosevelt. He was elected 4 times as our President (the only President ever elected 4 times): • 1932 • 1936 • 1940 • 1944… • Unfortunately, FDR did not see the end of WWII. He died April 12, 1945, less than one month before VE Day. Vice President Truman became our 33rd President and learned about a secret weapon the US was building… the a-bomb.