America in World War II

Chapter 351941-1945

Essential Questions

1. What were the impacts of the war in regards to American society?

2. What were the turning points of the war? 3. Was the dropping of the atomic bomb necessary for ending the war against Japan? Explain.

Vocabulary

 1. Korematsu Vs US2. War Production Board3. Office of Price Administration4. Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act5. Fair Employment Practices Commission6. General Douglas MacArthur7. Battle of Midway8. Battle of the Atlantic

 9. Dwight D. Eisenhower10. Wiston Churchill11. Harry S. Truman12. Ardennes Forest13. Leyte Island14. Manhattan Project15. Hiroshima

There are more than 15 words bolded, but these are the main ones! (:

The Allies Trade Spaces for TimeDue to the attack on Pearl Harbor, Americans inhabiting the Pacific Coast were thirsty for revenge against the Japanese.• However, the government adopted the ABC-1 agreement

with Britain and devised the strategy of "getting Germany first".

 US contained most of the world's population and mightiest military power, but timing was most crucial.• America had to prepare for an all-out war while keeping

Britain and the Soviet Union from falling into Germany's hands. Japan would have to wait.

America must feed, clothe, and arm itself while transporting necessary forces and supplies to its allies as well. • The only question remaining was: Was America ready for

this daunting task?

The Shock of WarNational unity rose as a result of Pearl Harbor.• Ethnic witch-hunting ended.• WWII actually sped up the assimilation of ethnic

groups into American society (exception of Japanese-Americans).

 Unfortunately, Japanese-Americans suffered.• 110,000 were sent by Washington to concentration

camps.o The government reasoning was to protect the

Japanese-Americans from brutal treatment of vengeful Americans, but in reality, the government did not trust the loyalty of the immigrants.

 

The Shock of War (Continued)In the Korematsu Vs U.S. case, the Supreme Court upheld that the relocation of Japanese-Americans to internment camps without due process of law was constitutional.• It wasn't until 1988 that the Washington

government officially apologized and gave $20,000 in reparations to survivors of the camps.

In addition, the war caused the end of many New Deal programs.• This event acknowledged the urgency of war efforts.

Jobs were now all war related.  WWII was no idealistic crusade. A majority of Americans had no clue what they were fighting for. All they knew was they had to fight and win.

Building the War MachineThe American economy was whipped back into shape by the high demands of war supplies. In 1942, there were over $100 billion in military orders.The War Production Board quickly took control of American industries by eliminating the production nonessential items and focused on raw materials and weaponry.• Henry J. Kaiser was dubbed "Sir Launchalot" for

his ability to build entire ships in 14 days.•  Due to the Japanese overtake of British Malaya

rubber supplies, the Board imposed speed limits and gasoline rations in order to conserve the necessity.

Farmers also contributed by increasing their agricultural supplies. As a result of new machinery and fertilizers, wheat harvests were record-breaking.

Building the War Machine (Continued)There were negative outcomes from the increase production.• Full employment and scarce consumer goods

provoked the Office of Price Administration to regulate the soaring prices and ration critical goods such as meat and butter. o Unfortunately, some "black marketeers" and

meatleggers" cheated the system. • The War Labor Board helped by imposing ceilings

on wage increases, aka keeping low wages for low prices.

Building the War Machine (Continued)Despite the resentment of low wages during the war, the major labor unions pledged for no strikes. Nonetheless, some strikes presumed. • Ex. United Mine Workers led by John L. Lewis.

In June 1943, Congress passed the Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act authorizing the federal government to seize and operate strike burdened industries.• This meant that future strikes towards these

government run industries were a criminal offense.Washington also temporarily took over the coal mines and railroads.Overall, the strikes only accounted for 1% of the total working hours. 

Manpower and WomanpowerDuring WWII, nearly 15 million men and 216,000 women were enlisted into the armed services. Best known women were the WAACs (army), WAVES (navy), and SPARs (Coast Guard).• Although many were enlisted, numerous were

exempted in order to keep production running smoothly.o Despite the efforts, there was still a shortage of

labor.In 1942, braceros (Mexican agricultural workers) were allowed across the border to harvest fruits and grain in the West.• The program continued 20 years after the war and

became a feature of the western agricultural economy.

Manpower and Womanpower (Cont.)Women played a huge role in society as men were busy away fighting. Over 6 million women ventured outside of their home life and took on their first jobs.The government set up day-cares for "Rosie the Riveter's" children. (symbol of the working women)The position of women during WWII foreshadowed the role of women in the latter years.• However, 2/3 of women workers left the labor force

after the war.As the men returned from war, babies were born by the tens of millions ("baby boom" post-war period) and many women went back to their traditional duties.

Wartime MigrationsWar exposed men and women to new horizons making them not want to return to the country.• There was a population increase in the boomtowns of Los

Angeles, Detroit, Seattle, and Baton Rouge. The South's economy was improved by Franklin Roosevelt.• He poured $6 million of defense contracts into the

Confederacy planting the seeds of the post-war "Sunbelt".Blacks left the South to search for jobs in the West and North and caused race relations to become a national issue. • A. Philip Randolph head of the Brotherhood of Sleeping

Car Porters threatened a "Negro March on Washington".o FDR responded by forbidding discrimination in defense

industries and established the Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC) to monitor relations.

Wartime Migrations (Continued)Blacks were drafted into the armed forces, but kept out of direct combat. They usually were assigned to degrading service units.Overall, the war aided in the black struggle for equality.• Blacks rallied the slogan "Double V" victory over

dictators abroad and racism at home.o Membership in the NAACP increase to almost half

a million and the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) was founded.

The migration of blacks northward was also caused by the invention of the cotton picker 1944. This invention did the work of 50 people at 1/8 of the cost; therefore, cheap labor was no longer needed.• By 1970, half of all blacks lived outside the South.

Wartime Migrations (Continued)The war paved the way for the release of Native Americans from reservations. As a result, thousands Indians moved to find work in cities and joined the armed forces.• Comanches and Navajos were valuable as "code

talkers" who transmitted radio messages in their native tongue. The codes were incomprehensible to the Germans and Japanese.

The sudden movement of races produced violent reactions.• In 1943, Mexicans and Mexican-Americans in Los

Angeles were attacked by white sailors.Despite the plead of the Mexican ambassador, 25 blacks and 9 whites were later killed in a Detroit race riot.

Holding the Home FrontAmerica left the war more prosperous than before (the only nation to do so). The war lifted the US out of the depression.• Gross national product, corporate profit, and

disposable personal income doubled.• On the 3rd year anniversary of Pearl Harbor, US's

economy was doing so well that the price controls were lifted and prices rose 33%.

Overall, war production helped boost the economy more than the New Deals. • During the war, government intervention aided with

rationing systems, personal needs, and it channeled millions of dollars into universities based on scientific research.o The postwar era became known as "warfare-welfare

state" due to the dependency on military spending for its health.

Holding the Home (Continued)The war was going to be hard to pay off, despite the prosperous incomes.• The bill amounted to more than $330 billion dollars.

The government expanded the income-tax net to contain more than 4 times as many people and the maximum tax rate rose to as high as 90%.Even though these drastic measures were taken, the revenue only paid off 2/5 of the costs and the rest of it had to be borrowed.• The national debt rose from $49 billion in 1941 to

$259 billion in 1945.

The Rising Sun in the PacificJapan's forces proved to be very efficient. They overtook numerous islands including Guam, Wake, the Philippines, Hong Kong, British Malaya, Burma, and the Dutch East Indies.In the Philippines, the US at first were slowing down Japanese forces, but soon suffered a terrible loss as US General Douglas MacArthur had to be secretly deported to Australia.• MacArthur promised to return.

Unfortunately, the US raised the white flag and the battered army was forced to walk the 85 mile Bataan Death March.Soon after, the US also had to surrender the fortress of Corregidor in Manila after holding off until May 6, 1942.• Japan was now in complete control of the Philippines

archipelago.

Japan's High Tide at MidwayJapan pushed southward invading New Guinea landing on the Solomon Islands.• They were defeated by a naval battle fought in the Coral

Sea.o It was the first battle that was done by carrier-based

aircraft. The US and Japan never saw each others ships.

Japan attempted to seize Midway Island. If they could weaken the forces at Pearl Harbor, they could push the US into negotiating a cease-fire in the Pacific.• On June 3-6, 1942, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz directed

a carrier force under Admiral Raymond A. Spruance and defeated Japan in the Battle of Midway.o This was a pivotal battle as it halted Japanese

expansion.However, Japan claimed some US islands (Attu and Kiska) and touched upon Alaska causing fear to spread in the US. They were afraid of a Japanese invasion.

American Leapfrogging Toward TokyoAfter Midway, America continued with a streak of

successes. • Despite the shortage of supplies caused by Japanese

naval forces, the US eventually pushed Japan out of Guadalcanal.

• US forces under Gen. MacArthur inflicted losses on Japanese supply ships and conquered the north coast of New Guinea.

American forces then began "island hopping" where they would avoid heavily fortified posts and capture nearby islands, setting airfields on them. Then they would attack the stronger areas with heavy bombings.• Under Admiral Nimitz, the US reclaimed Attu and Kiska. • Tarawa and Makin of the Gilbert Islands were captured.• The key posts of Marshall Islands were also won.

American Leapfrogging Toward Tokyo (Cont.)The US prized the Marianas. It could provide a base from which the US B-29 superbombers could bomb Japan and return back.• The "Great Marianas Turkey Shoot" began on June

19, 1944, where newly developed "Hellcat" fighter planes destroyed 250 Japanese aircrafts with little loss to the US.o Later, in the Battle of the Philippines Sea, US

sank several Japanese carriers (Japan never recovered from this loss).

In July and August 1944, the US won the islands of the Marianas (after the mass suicide of surviving Japanese solders) and in November, US began bombing Japan round-the-clock.

The Allied Halting of HitlerHitler's submarines at first intimidated the US. However, as technology improved, the British code-breakers cracked the German "Enigma" codes and could determine the location of the German U-boats, saving numerous US lives.The Battle of the Atlantic 1943, a battle for control of the sea, was won by the Allies. • The battle proved to be close however, since a loss

would have allowed Hitler to unleash his new submarine that could remain underneath the water indefinitely and travel at 17 knots.

The Allied Halting of Hitler (Cont.)The turning point in Europe came in 1942 where Britain launched a thousand-plane raid on Cologne and the US bombed German cities.The Germans, under Marshal Erwin Rommel went to North Africa, almost reaching the Suez Canal (if they got there, it would be trouble for the Allies).• Luckily, he was stopped by British Bernard

Montgomery at El Alamein.Russia stalled the Germans at Stalingrad, destroying all of Hitler's hopes. A year later, Stalin regained 2/3 of the land taken away from him by the Germans.

A Second Front From North Africa to RomeRussia was suffering huge losses (20 million). They

wanted a second front to be created to divert Germans Westward.• FDR and Britain both feared that too much pressure on

the USSR would drive Russia to make a separate treaty, so they agreed to another front. However, they disagreed on where to do it.

America wanted to open a front in France, but Britain urged for an attack on German's "soft underbelly" of the Mediterranean.• The compromise was the French-held North Africa.

Led by Dwight D. Eisenhower, the German-Italian army was trapped in Tunisia and surrendered in May 1943.FDR met Winston Churchill at Casablanca and the two set agreed to increase pressure on Italy and to the "unconditional surrender" of Germany.• This proved to hearten the Soviets.

A Second Front from North Africa to RomeThe Allies began to turn to Sicily. Mussolini was killed and Italy surrendered 1943. • German forces in Italy, however, were not willing to give

up.Allied forces poured into the toe of the Italian boot, but were faced with a stubborn German defense at Monte Cassino.• Rome was finally taken on June 4, 1944 after an assault

on Anzio.Still the Allied forces kept pushing slowly northward into Italy, but only 5 days before the German official surrender, the Allies laid down their arms and became prisoners of war in Italy.The opening of the second front in Italy diverted German focus from the Soviets and French, but it delayed the Allied invasion of Europe and allowed the Soviets to advance into Eastern Europe.

D-Day: June 6, 1944FDR, Stalin, and Churchill met at Tehran to discuss the plan of attack on Germany.• They agreed to an invasion of France across the

English Channel (D-Day invasion) led by Gen. Eisenhower.

The D-Day invasion began June 6, 1944. The Germans were misled to believe that the attack would be further north.• After desperate fighting, the Allies broke through the

German defenses and quickly began spreading out.Led by Gen. George S. Patton, the Allies swept across France and defeated German forces.• August 1944, Paris was liberated raising Allies spirits.

Allied forces pushed towards Germany and the first German city of Aachen was taken in October 1944. 

FDR: The Fourth-Termite of 1944The Election of 1944 came around despite the ongoing war.The candidate for the Republicans was Thomas E. Dewey governor of New York.• He was young, liberal, popular, and known as a

persecutor of grafters and racketeers.• He ran with VP Senator John W. Bricker of Ohio.

The Republican platform called for an unstinted prosecution of the war and for the creation of a new international organization to maintain peace. The Democratic party nominated FDR again for no one else was available during the war.• The question was who would be the VP. 

o Henry A. Wallace desired a renomination (4 year VP) but people distrusted him and nominated Harry S. Truman. 

Roosevelt Defeats DeweyDewey campaigned more due to Roosevelt's focus on the war. He condemned the "12 long years" of Roosevelt's term and insisted that it was "time for a change".• He also professed his fear of 5th and 6th terms by

FDR.Roosevelt was assisted in his campaign by the new political action committee of the CIO, organized to work around the previous law banning the direct use of union funds for political purposes. Even though Republicans harshly attacked FDR, he rose as the victor of the election 432-99 in the Electoral College and >25 mil-about 22 mil popular votes.• With the victory, FDR proclaimed "the first 12 years

are the hardest".The election was won by FDR due to the war's condition. Since it was going well, people felt secure keeping an experienced man in charge.

The Last Days of HitlerOn the edge of defeat, Hitler attempted one last big push on December 16, 1944 at the Ardennes Forest.• The goal was to get the Belgian port of Antwerp--

America's supplies.• The US was caught off guard and the attack left the

Allied line with a deep "bulge".Germany was finally stopped at Bastogne where Gen. A. C. McAuliffe refused to surrender.• Reinforcements were called upon and the US won at

the Battle of the Bulge.American troops kept advancing past Germany's Rhine River and soon reached the Elbe River in April 1945 where they witnessed the tragic concentration camps.

The Last Days of Hitler (Continued)Hitler sent about 6 million Jews to concentration camps to get rid of the "undesirables." (Holocaust)The Washington government knew about Hitler's actions, but did not proceed to do anything about it. They thought the rumors to be untrue and turned their heads the other way.• After the war, Roosevelt forced the German civilians to

march through the camps to witness their government's actions. They were bewildered, as was the rest of the world.

The Soviets reached and captured the fallen town of Berlin just as Hitler committed suicide with his wife in an underground bunker on April 30, 1945.FDR suddenly died on April 12, 1945 from a massive cerebral hemorrhage, leaving the country to Truman.On May 7, 1945, the Germany government surrendered unconditionally and May 8 became V-E Day (Victory in Europe).

Japan Dies HardJapan was about to fall. Suffering from US submarine attacks, they lost 1,042 or 50% of their ships. They also fell under the multiple bombings, leaving Japan's cities crumbled.• The fire-bombing of Tokyo destroyed over 250,000

buildings, 1/4 of the city, and left 83,000 dead.Gen. MacArthur was now on the move to return to the Philippines. He ventured with 600 ships and 250,000 men.• MacArthur and the Japanese force clashed at Leyte

Island on Oct. 20, 1944. o Turning out to be 3 battles, American won them all

despite Admiral William F. Halsey being decoyed away.

o The battle destroyed the Japanese navy.Continuing, MacArthur landed on the island of Luzon in Jan. 1945 and took over the city of Manila.

Japan Dies Hard (Continued)The Philippines was not recaptured until July 1945.The US then went about taking over the small island of Iwo Jima for an American bomber safe haven.• The overtake took 25 days and cost the US >4,000

lives.Okinawa was next and proved to be very difficult to obtain. However, obtaining it would provide a closer base for blasts and burns to the enemy cities.• After 50,000 lives, US conquered Okinawa.

o Kamikazes, or suicide pilots imposed serious damage and loss to the US navy force at Okinawa.

The Atomic BombsThe Washington government began strategically planing an all-out invasion of Japan.• Intercepting a Japanese radio code to Moscow, the US

overheard Japan's peace negotiations. However, the Japanese showed no signs of unconditionally surrendering.

At the Potsdam conference, held in Berlin, Pres. Truman, Stalin, and British leaders met and devised to issue an ultimatum to Japan: surrender or be destroyed.• Japan did not respond.

Americans then began playing with the idea of the atomic bomb, started by FDR for an attack on Germany.• Many German scientist fled to the US during the war,

notably Albert Einstein.• FDR got Congress's permission and the secret

Manhattan Project began( initially meant for Germany).

The Atomic Bombs (Continued)On July 16, 1945, in Alamogordo, New Mexico, the first atomic bomb was completed and successfully tested.• On Aug. 6, 1945, the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima,

Japan and instantaneously took >70,000 lives with tens of thousands more suffering from burns and radiation.

Two days later, Stalin declared war on Japan and quickly depleted the Japanese defenses in Manchuria and Korea.Japan still did not surrender and the US dropped another bomb on Nagasaki on Aug. 9--80,000 people were killed.• On Aug. 10, Tokyo finally surrendered under one

condition: that the emperor Hirohito would remain on throne.o America accepted this condition on Aug. 19, 1945.

The formal end came Sept. 2, 1945 and the war with Japan was officially over. • Gen. MacArthur sailed on the battleship Missouri while

the Americans at home cheered over V-J Day (Victory in Japan).

The Allies TriumphantCompared to the rest of the world, the US left the war with mere scratches and bruises. • The US loss roughly 1 mil casualties compared to the

Soviet 20 mil (thanks to new medicines like penicillin).

• War avoided American soil, leaving the US standing strong amidst the ruins of the other nations.

Although unprepared at first, America proved to the the strongest force due to their brilliant war heroes (Eisenhower, MacArthur, Marshall, Nimitz, and Spruance).• Industry and resources also contributed to the

success of the nation during war.Democracy once again, shined through the times of war.

Review Time! (:The Battle of Coral Sea and Midway were significant because....

a. They prevented Japanese forces from expanding. b. They saved the Philippines from being invaded. c. Ended the war with Germany. d. Allowed US to control the seas. 

Review Time! (:African Americans during the war... a. Fought alongside the other soldiers. b. Were not allowed anywhere near the war.c. Moved from the North to the South to find jobs. d. Contributed to the war by providing assistance in degrading services.

Review Time! (:The Mexican American population increased in the US due to... a. Border jumping! b. Wartime labor shortages.c. Americans became more tolerant towards discrimination. d. The annexation of Mexico.

Review Time! (:World War II brought all of these changes in America EXCEPT...

a. The flow of people from the country to the city. b. The social position of women in society.c. A contrast between wealthy and poor. d. The beginnings of black equality.

Review Time! (:At the start of the war, the Allied strategy was to... a. Attack Japan first, then concentrate on Germany. b. Divide and conquer. c. Focus on Germany before attacking Japan. d. Bomb all the German and Japan cities.

Review Time! (:When fighting against Japan the US... a. Wanted to negotiate peace. b. Used "island hopping" to slowly overtake Japanese forces. c. Destroy the strongholds of Japan with one crushing blow. d. Made a secret treaty with Japan to turn against Germany. 

Review Time! (:Japanese-Americans during the war... a. Were forced to move back to Japan. b. Were sent to Japan as spies for the US government. c. Were sent to internment camps due to suspicious citizens. d. Had no part in the war.

Review Time! (:President Truman dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima for all of the following reasons EXCEPT...  a. He felt it necessary to get revenge for Pearl Harbor. 

b. Japan did not surrender after the ultimatum was given. c. He wanted to end the war to save more American lives from being lost.d. He wanted to show the Soviets and the rest of the world US'sstrength.

Review Time! (:At the end of World War II, the United States...  a. Fell back into a depression.b. Abused its victory and tried to conquer new lands. c. Joined a multinational organization to preserve peace.d. Came out of the war without many damages.

Review Time! (:The Soviet Union wanted a second front to be opened because... a. They wanted to build up an army to attack Germany at a later date.b. They wanted the Allied forces to join in on the fun!

c. They were suffering from too many damages and casualties.

d. The US promised that they would intervene at this time.

Answers! (:1. A 2. D3. B 4. C5. C 

6. B  7. C 8. A9. D 10. C