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CHAPTER 22. POSTWAR AMERICA (1945-60). I: TRUMAN AND EISENHOWER A. PEACETIME : GI BILL : (Servicemen’s Readjustment Act), aided the economy by providing low-interest loans to veterans to establish businesses, buy homes, and attend college. B. INFLATION AND STRIKES :
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CHAPTER 22 POSTWAR AMERICA (1945-60)
I: TRUMAN AND EISENHOWER A.PEACETIME: GI BILL: (Servicemen’s Readjustment Act), aided the economy by providing low-interest loans to veterans to establish businesses, buy homes, and attend college. B.INFLATION AND STRIKES: 1. Following World War II, labor unrest was triggered by rising inflation. Truman found himself forced to take actions to prevent LABOR STRIKES. 2. Truman used force to end MINING AND RAILROADstrikes by ordering government seizure of the mines while pressuringowners to grant most union demands. 3. He also threatened to DRAFT striking workers to keep strikes from crippling the nation.
C.REPUBLICAN VICTORY 1. Congress passed the TAFT-HARTLEY ACT over President Truman’s veto because supporters of the act wanted to curb the power of organized labor. The Act outlawed CLOSED SHOP (practice of forcing business owners to hire only union members.) 2. Under the Taft-Hartley Act, states could pass laws outlawing union shops; laws known as RIGHT-TO-WORK LAWS 3. It also prevented the practice of limiting work output in order to create more jobs: known as FEATHERBEDDING
D. TRUMAN’S DOMESTIC PROGRAMS: • Congress was determined to restrict labor and defeat • many of Truman's domestic policyproposals: FAIR • DEAL. His Fair Deal brought: a. a raise in the MINIMUM WAGE, b. an extension of SOCIAL SECURITY c. JOBS PROGRAMS, d. LOW-INCOME HOUSING, e.RENT SUBSIDIES, AND f.CIVIL RIGHTS LEGISLATION
In 1946, Truman created a PRESIDENT’S • COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS. Following the • group’s recommendations, Truman asked Congress for • several measures including: a. a federal ANTILYNCHING LAW, b. a ban on the POLL TAXas a voting requirement, and c. a permanent CIVIL RIGHTS COMMISSION. a) Congress refused to pass these measures, or a measure to integrate the ARMED FORCES.
In July 1948, Truman issued an executive order for INTEGRATION OF THE ARMED FORCES, calling for “equality of treatment and • opportunity in the armed forces without regard to • race, color, religion, or national origin.” • He ordered an end to discrimination in the hiring • of GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES • The Supreme Court also ruled that the lower courts could not bar African Americans from RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS. • e) All these actions represented the beginnings of a federal commitment to dealing with racial issues.
E.ELECTION OF 1948: • Harry S Truman, Democratic Party: Opposed by • critics who denounced his DOMESTIC, • FOREIGN, AND CIVIL RIGHTS POLICIES • Composed of Southern Democrats who were • opposed to some of civil rights legislation: STROM • THURMOND:Dixiecrats • 3. THOMAS DEWEY: Republican • 4. HENRY A. WALLACE: Progressive Party – • dissatisfied with Truman’s ineffective domestic policies and his anti-Soviet foreign policy
5. Truman won the election in 1948 with strong support from LABORERS, FARMERS, AND AFRICAN AMERICANS.
F.ELECTION OF 1952: 1. Truman chose not to run again and Democrats nominated ADLAI STEVENSON 2. Republicans nominated World War II hero DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER a. Vice-President nominee was RICHARD M. NIXON b. Campaign slogan: “I LIKE IKE”
c. Campaign promise to GO TO KOREA AND END THE WAR d. Negative publicity was that Nixon had received on nationwide television, he made his famous “CHECKERS SPEECH” where he admitted receiving a DOGas a gift for his daughters after being accused of receiving $18,000.00 in gifts as a Senator. G.EISENHOWER 1. Described his political beliefs as "MIDDLE OF THE ROAD."
2. Referred to notion of balancing economic conservatism with some activism:DYNAMIC CONSERVATISM 3. As a Conservative: a. cut FEDERAL SPENDING b. worked to limit the federal government's role in the NATION'S ECONOMY c. “CREEPING SOCIALISM”Eisenhower’s term for the federal government’s continuing aid to businesses:
d.extended the SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM AND UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION e. raised the MINIMUM WAGE f. Eisenhower ended government PRICE AND RENT CONTROLSthat many conservatives had viewed as unnecessary federal control over the business community. • two large projects — Congress passed the FEDERAL • HIGHWAY ACT(the Interstate Highway System) • (The construction of highways in the 1950s resulted • in an increase in popularity of shopping • centers and movement of industry from • centER cities)
and the GREAT LAKES-ST.LAWRENCESEAWAY (connected Great Lakes to Atlantic Ocean).
backed creation of the DEPARTMENT OF • HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND WELFARE. II. AFFLUENT SOCIETY • According to John Kenneth Galbraith, economist, postwar America had “ECONOMY OF ABUNDANCE” because of new business • techniques and improved technology. B. Turned the 1950s into decade of prosperity for many: 1. Average income of American families roughly TRIPLED
What Things Cost in 1950: What Things Cost in 1959: Car: $1,750 Car: $2,200Gasoline: 27 cents/gal Gasoline: 30 cents/gal 1950 FORD 1959 FORD 1950 Cadillac 1959 Cadillac 1950 Chevrolet 1959 Chevrolet
House: $14,500 House: $18,500 Average Annual Salary: Average Annual Salary: $3,800 $5,500 Minimum Wage: Minimum Wage: 75 cents per hour $1.00 per hour 2. GI BENEFITS AND TAX DEDUCTIONSmade home ownership affordable 3. SUBURBSgrew as families and their baby boom children moved away from cities. The AUTOMOBILE was the technology that helped in the growth of the suburbs. One of the earliest suburbs was LEVITTOWN, New York.
4. Changes in American businesses characterized by: a. increase in WHITE-COLLAR JOBS(those in sales and management), b. MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS(businesses that expanded overseas) c. franchises (businesses in which a person owns and runs one or several stores of a chain operation)
d. CONGLOMERATE: is a major corporation that includes a number of smaller companies in unrelated industries. (For example, one conglomerate, International Telephone and Telegraph (ITT), whose original business was communications, bought car-rental companies, insurance companies, and hotel and motel chains.) 5. CONSUMERISM, along with ADVERTISING (which became the fastest-growing industry in the U S during the ‘50s), created an increase in consumer spending. 6. PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE: manufacturers purposely designed products to become obsolete that is, to wear out or become outdated in a short period of time.
C. 1950s FAMILY 1. BABY BOOM: period of rapidly increasing birthrates between 1945 and 1961. 2. Increasing number of WOMENchose to work outside the home. Prior to this women’s role had been more that of stay-at-home wife and mother D. TECHNOLOGICAL BREAKTHROUGHS 1. Medical breakthroughs helped families lead healthier lives a. INFANTILE PARALYSIS (POLIO):epidemic spread in postwar America
1. JONAS SALKdeveloped an injectable vaccine for polio that became available in 1955 2. ALBERT SABINlater developed a vaccine for polio that became the most common form of treatment. • Many died or were paralyzed by • polio, while others were • confined to large metal tanks with • pumps that helped patients breathe: • IRON LUNGS.
2. TRANSISTORSrevolutionized the electronics industry. The development of the transistor by JOHN BARDEEN, WALTER H. BRATTAIN, AND WILLIAM SHOCKLEY in 1947 made possible the MINIATURIZATION OF RADIOS.
3. COMPUTERSmade their business debut. a. The nation's first computer developed in 1946, used to make military calculations, was called the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) b. UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer) was developed later, an early computer that handled business data launched the computer revolution.
4. In the United States, the launching of Sputnik contributed to REFORMS IN PUBLIC EDUCATION. III. CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT ENTERED A NEW ERA: A. Most significant judicial action occurred in 1954, when the Supreme Court ruled that public schools must be racially integrated: BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION OF TOPEKA. It overrode the previous Supreme Court decision of Plessy v. Ferguson. • In 1955, a black seamstress refused to give up her • seat on a bus to a white man. Her arrest sparked a • boycott of the entire Montgomery, Alabama, bus • system: ROSA PARKS
IV. POPULAR CULTURE OF THE 1950s A. MASS MEDIA 1. 40 MILLIONtelevision sets were in use in the United States: became means of information, athletic events, and entertainment. This period of rapid expansion was the “golden age” of television. 2.Many of the early television comedy shows were adapted from popularRADIO SHOWS 3. Millions of television viewers tuned in each week to watch varied programs as: a. westerns such as Gunsmoke
b. many quiz shows left the air when FRAUD WAS DISCOVERED IN ONE OF THEM(Twenty-One) (Charles Van Doren was guilty person) • variety shows such as Toast of the Townstarring • ED SULLIVAN • Television promoted the IMAGE OF A SUBURBAN FAMILYwith programs such as I Love Lucy, Howdy Doody, Leave It To Beaver, etc. • The FILM INDUSTRYsuffered after the war due to the • popularity of television. Moviemakers tried to attract • customers with 3-D EFFECTS AND CINEMASCOPE • (movies shown on large, panoramic screens) 5. Radio stations adopted MUSIC AND NEWS FORMATS
B. NEW YOUTH CULTURE 1. ROCK'N'ROLL expressed youthful restlessness a.GENERATION GAP:cultural separation between children and their parents b. Rock’n’roll developed from the sounds of AFRICAN AMERICAN RHYTHM AND BLUES c. ROCK ‘N’ ROLLhad a loud and heavy beat that made it ideal for dancing d.ELVIS PRESLEY eventually claimed the title of King of Rock ‘n’ Roll e. AFRICAN AMERICANrock 'n' roll singers that recorded hit songs in the fifties included Fats Domino, Chuck Berry, Ray Charles, Little Richard, and the Drifters.
Teen Culture In the 1950s the word “teenager”entered the American language. 1951 “ROCK ‘N ROLL” Elvis Presley “The King”
f. ALAN FREED-disc jockey who helped launch rock ‘n’ roll by playing the music on the air. 2. The BEAT MOVEMENT used art and poetry to criticize modern society. a. BEATS:A group of mostly white poets, writers, and artists critical of 1950s American society and culture and who sought to live unconventional lives. “Clean” Teen “Beatnik”
b. a beat poet who blasted modern American life ALLEN GINSBERG • beat member who published • On the Road in 1957 • JACK KEROUAC • OTHER SIDE OF AMERICAN • LIFE A. 30 million still lived below the POVERTY LINE (a figure the government set to reflect the minimum income required to support a family). In 1959, the poverty line for a family of four was $2,973. In 2000, it was $17,601. B. In his book The Other America,MICHAEL HARRINGTONwrote about poverty.
C. The poor included IMMIGRANTS, BLACKS, WHITES, AND NATIVE AMERICANS D. POOREST GROUP IN THE NATIONwere Native Americans who found their conditions worsened following the federal government employed a TERMINATION POLICYdesigned to integrate Native Americans into mainstream society. However, they were unprepared for living in cities, and their standard of living often deteriorated. E. JUVENILE DELINQUENCY(antisocial or criminal behavior of young people.) Topping the list of juvenile crimes in the 1950s was CAR THEFT. Most car thieves had grown up inMIDDLE-CLASS FAMILIES.
Teen Culture Behavioral Rules of the 1950s: • Obey Authority. • Control Your Emotions. Don’t Make Waves • Don’t Even Think About Sex!!!
F. URBAN RENEWALprograms tried to eliminate poverty by tearing down slums and erecting new high-rise buildings for poor residents. The government unwittingly encouraged residents of public housing to remain poor by EVICTING THEM AS SOON AS THEY BEGAN TO EARN ANY MONEY. G. In numerous cities the inner-cities deteriorated as middle-class flight deprived urban areas of TAX DOLLARS. At the same time, the rural poor migrated to the inner cities. The urban crisis prompted by the “WHITE FLIGHT”had a direct impact on poor whites and nonwhites.
Contemporary pop-artist who defined the pop-culture movement was ANDY WARHOL, best known for multiple illustrations.