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Government agency responsible for coordinating pro-war propaganda
Distributed pamphlets, arranged public speakers, recorded songs, and made short patriotic films
Government assumed new role of manipulating public opinion, controlling what information about the war the public had access to
Prohibited any attempt to interfere with military operations, support America's enemies during wartime, to promote insubordination in the military, or interfere with military recruitment
Limited freedom of speech by making it illegal to publicly express any opposition to the war
Government could (and did) prosecute anyone who criticized the government
Charles Schenck, a socialist, had been sending pamphlets to men urging them not to report if drafted
Schenck was convicted of violating the Espionage Act
Supreme Court upheld Schenck’s conviction and ruled that an individual’s freedom of speech can be limited by the government when it presents a “clear and present danger,” such as during times of war
1855 – 1926 5-time Socialist
candidate for US President
Gave an anti-war speech in 1918 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison for violating the Sedition Act (only served 3 years)
Appealed to the Supreme Court; the result of Debs v. US was the same as Schenck v. US
Federal agency which acted to mediate and quickly settle labor disputes to avoid disrupting the war effort
Pressured industry to keep workers happy with increased wages, shorter workdays, and respect for unions
European immigration halted during the war
This created employment opportunities for minorities
Many blacks left the South for factory jobs in the North (The Great Migration)
Many Mexicans entered the US to fill the labor shortage on farms in the Southwest and in factories in the North
As regular factory production resumed, demand for consumer goods skyrocketed, driving up prices
Inflation in 1919 alone was over 15%
Rising cost-of-living led to increased wage demands by labor
Shipbuilders in Seattle went on strike for better wages, inspiring other workers in Seattle to follow suit
60,000 workers went on strike, but gained little before returning to work
Still, the size of the strike and its effect on the city were alarming
1919: 75% of police went on strike for higher pay, leading to rioting and looting due to lawlessness
Gov. Calvin Coolidge sent in the National Guard to restore order
When policemen tried to return to work, they were fired and replaced with new hires, with Coolidge’s approval
350,000 steel workers went on strike
US Steel blamed the strike on foreign immigrants, painted the strikers as un-American
Hired African-Americans and Mexican immigrants to replace the workers and keep the steel mills running
Despite several violent clashes, the striking workers gained nothing
Labor unrest led to fears that Communists were trying to create a revolt in the US similar to the one in Russia
April 1919: dozens of bombs were sent through the US Mail to important government officials and business leaders, further encouraging the belief that communists were plotting against the US
Federal agents raided the headquarters of various radical organizations, trying to identify the terror bombers
No evidence was ever found, but hundreds of immigrants were deported due to suspicion
Agents violated civil rights -entered homes without search warrants, jailed individuals without charges, and refused lawyers – all violations of basic civil rights
1872 – 1936 US Attorney General Became an
assassination target of anarchists, survived two bomb attacks
Organized a new branch of the Justice Department – the General Intelligence Unit (GIU) – to investigate “radical” organizations
1895 – 1972 Hand picked by
Palmer to head the GIU, remained in charge until his death in 1972 (the GIU became the FBI in 1935)
Well known for using extralegal methods
Ferdinando Nicola Sacco (1891–1927) and Bartolomeo Vanzetti (1888–1927)
Italian immigrants 1920: Convicted of armed
robbery and murder in a highly controversial trial, many believed they were blamed simply due to the fact that they were immigrants and associated with anarchists
Executed in 1927, despite a confession to the crime by another individual
Violent racism erupted in Northern cities as WWI veterans returned to work only to find themselves competing with blacks and Mexican immigrants for jobs
Worst was in Chicago where a two-week long riot killed 38 and injured hundreds
The KKK was reborn in 1915 as a much more formally structured organization
Preached on the purification of America, practiced racism, anti-Catholicism, anti-Communism, nativism, and antisemitism
Strongest in Midwestern cities like Detroit & Chicago
May have reached membership of 15 million
Sauerkraut became “liberty cabbage,” hamburger became “Salisbury steak”
Schools stopped teaching German
Orchestras refused to play works by German-born conductors like Beethoven
Private citizens’ group founded in 1917 (with the approval of the DOJ) to monitor German-Americans for signs of anti-war sentiments and to report draft dodgers
Officially disbanded in 1919, but local branches continued to operate in conjunction with other racist groups such as the KKK
The push to ban alcohol in the US was also motivated by discrimination
Vodka was a Russian drink, while beer was a German drink – both groups who were out of favor in the United States
Election of 1920 was won by Republican Warren G. Harding
Harding campaigned on a return to simpler times
Americans had tired of the reforms of Progressivism, the unrest of war and labor disputes
1922: Meeting in Washington DC between the US, Great Britain, Japan, and other nations with interests in the Pacific
Purpose of the conference was to defuse potential future conflicts in the Pacific
All parties agreed to limit the sizes of their navies, restrict certain types of armaments, and to not fortify islands in the Pacific
This agreement made it easier for Japan to expand its empire
1924: When Germany could not meet its reparation debts from the Treaty of Versailles, the US loaned Germany the money to refinance its debt
US wanted to avoid the possibility of a new conflict in Europe