The Postwar Boom in AmericaEssential Question:

In what ways did the Cold War contribute to postwar prosperity in

the US?

First, some review Following WWII, the United States established long-term

military presence in West Germany in an effort to do what? Stop communist expansion

What was the Berlin Airlift? The Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, Berlin Airlift, and

Korean War were all attempts by US to do what foreign policy term that means to stop communism from spreading? Containment

When Sec. of State Dulles suggested that the US massively retaliate against the Soviets or China if either invaded was called what? Brinkmanship

More Review What does the term McCarthyism mean?

Reckless accusation with little or no evidence Government officials resorted to conformity during

the Red Scare because they were afraid to be accused of being a what? Communist

The successful launch of Sputnik in 1957 by the Soviets was the beginning of the what? Space Race

What was the intent of the Truman Doctrine? To rebuild European Cities

What caused so many Americans to believe communists were infiltrating the government? FEAR

Readjustment & Recovery By summer 1946, 10 million men and women were

released from armed services – they were ready to settle

The GI Bill (1944) – was created to help ease the veterans back into society and provide them with economic aidEncouraged veterans to get higher education by paying

part of their tuitionGuaranteed a years worth of unemployment benefits

while job huntingOffered low-interest, federally granted loans – which

many young couples used to buy homes and farms

Housing Crisis Veterans returning home faced a severe housing

shortageMany lived with relatives or in cramped apartments

William Levitt produced houses in an assembly line style. He boasted that he could build a house in 16 minutesHe offered his homes in small residential communities

called suburbs, for less than $7,000 His first group of standardized homes built on a

treeless lot was located on Long Island which he called Levittown

Redefining the Family• Tension created by changes in men’s and

women’s roles after the war lead to a higher divorce rate

• Traditionally, men were the bread winners, while the women were Susie-home-makers

• During the War, 75% of married women joined the workforce– Many were reluctant to go back because they liked

the independence the change had brought them• Many did return home, but by 1950 more than 1

million war marriages had ended in divorce

The Feminine Mystique• Betty Frieden was an influential woman who wrote a

book entitled The Feminine Mystique– Read through the excerpt to determine what you think the

purpose of this book was

• It energized a new type of women’s rights movement that empowered women to be more independent and seek a live that was what they wanted, not what was expected of them

Economic Readjustment

• US converted from a wartime economy to a peacetime economy

• Because the war ended, jobs were cut that involved military equipment production– Result: By March 1946, 3 million people were without

jobs– Also prices of goods increased by 25% due to the

ending of OPA’s inflation control• Americans were also getting paid less than they

had before

Truman’s Sudden Presidency

• Franklin D. Roosevelt died in 1945, launching Harry S. Truman into immediate presidency

• Truman asked Eleanor if there was anything he could do for her– She replied “Is there anything we can do for you?

For you are the one in trouble now.”– What did she mean???

Harry S. TrumanI don’t know whether you fellows ever had a load of hay fall on you, but when they told me yesterday what had happened (Roosevelt’s death), I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me.

Meeting Economic Challenges• President Truman’s Inheritance– When President Truman inherited the presidency,

not only did he inherit the Cold War . . .– He also inherited the responsibility in restoring

the American economy to a strong footing after the war’s end

• Truman Faces Strikes– Because of lower wages following the war, 4.5

million men went on strike in 1946– Truman threatens to draft all strikers in the

military, and take control of the RR and mines• The Unions gave in

Remarkable Recovery Most economists predicted a post-war

depression Why didn’t it happen? Remember the war bonds the gov’t urged

Americans to get? And the rationing? People finally had money and had been without

certain goods for so long, they were ready to spend their money on goods, regardless of the price.

The demands for goods forced production to increase, which created jobs – and the cycle continues

Social Unrest Persists A wave of racial violence erupts in the south Truman Supports Civil Rights

Asks for a federal anti-lynching lawA ban on the poll tax as a voting requirementAnd a permanent civil rights commission

Congress refuses to pass any of theses, nor do they agree to integration in the military

To rebut, he issues an executive order for military integration, an end to racial discrimination in hiring, and permission of African Americans in neighborhoods

The 1948 Election

• Despite the fact that Americans blamed Truman for increased inflation, the democrats nominated him for re-election

• Dixiecrats:– Southern Democrats who were opposed to Truman’s

pro-civil rights stance– Sought to nominate their own democratic candidate

who was anti-civil rights– Governor J. Strom Thurmond of North Carolina

• The Republicans nominated Governor Thomas E. Dewey

Scandalous History

• Strom Thurmond had an illegitimate biracial daughter who he kept a secret!!!!– Essie Mae Washington-Williams

• He represented a political party that did not want civil rights for blacks!!!!

• SCANDALOUS!

The 1948 Election• Truman’s “Give ‘em Hell, Harry” campaign

worked• He won in a political upset (Dixiecrats)

The Fair Deal

• Truman’s extension of FDR’s New Deal– Included proposals for a nationwide system of

compulsory health insurance and a crop-subsidy system to provide a steady income for farmers

• But the Republicans and Dixiecrats in Congress refused both of these

• But. . . Congress did raise the minimum wage from 40 c to 75 c, extended Social Security to 10 million more people, and built 810,000 housing units for low-income areas

Republicans Take the Middle Road

• Truman’s approval rating sank, what with all the radical racial and equality ideas

• In addition, the Korean War was a bust (as we saw), and McCarthyism was priming Americans with fear

• President Eisenhower takes the next election– Won 55% of the popular vote and majority of the

electoral college– Nixon was his running mate and became VP

Walking the Middle Road

• Eisenhower asks congress to be conservative when it comes to money and liberal when it comes to human beings

• He took a middle-of-the-road course avoiding many controversial issues

• But he had a hard time side-stepping civil rights• In 1945, the Supreme Court ruled in Brown v.

Board of Education that public schools must be racially integrated – this lead to more civil rights actions

Early Civil Rights Movement• A year after the Supreme Court ruled that public

schools must be racially integrated, a seamstress named Rosa Barks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man– Her arrest sparked major

news and a boycott on the Montgomery, AL bus system

The Postwar Boom in AmericaAnswer the Essential Question:In what ways did the Cold War

contribute to postwar prosperity in the US?

The Story of Us: Boom