Chapter 17

Part 1Pages 562-568

Terms to Know

• George Marshall• Women’s Auxillary Army corp (WAAC)• Philip Randolph• Manhattan Project• Office of Public Administration• War Production Board• Rationing

Attack on Pearl Harbor

• Dissolved American Isolationism• Recruitment offices were flooded with

volunteers

• 5 million Americans ended up volunteering

Problem with Atlantic Charter

• Japan attacked us

• How would FDR explain that most of our troops would go after Hitler?

• Problem solved when Germany declared war agains the U.S>

A Two-Front WAr

• One front against Japan in the Pacific

• Another against Hitler in Europe

The Troops

• Eight weeks of basic training

• Physicals by army doctors

• Some turned away due to ill effects of the Depression

• The impact of many years of hunger

George Marshall

• The Army Chief of Staff• Later Truman’s Secretary of State

Women

• Wanted to contribute to the war efford• Many did move into the factories• Victory gardens, recycling, etc.

• WAAC’s: Women’s Auxillary Army Corp• At first women volunteered to serve overseas

(not incombat)• Freed up soldiers for combat duties

By 1942

• Salaries but no benefits• Ecentually the “Auxillary” was removed• WAC’s

• Were: Nurses• Ambulance Drivers• Radio operators• Pilots

Minorities in America

• African Americans 1,000,000• Mexican Americans 300,000• Native Americans 25,000• Chinese Americans 13,000• Japanese Americans 33,000

• Some were eager to serve• Many were torn…impact of racism and

discrimination

War time production

• The spped at which the U.S. flipped to war time production stunned everyone…even many of us

• We had to switch from producing consumer goods to war materials

• From toasters to machine guns

Labor

• There was a fear that as soldiers went overseas there would not be enough workers to man the factories

• Women filled part of the void and eventually, so did minority groups

Women

• Many believed that women were too frail to be welders, riveters…they were wrong

• Another plus…Women were generally paid only 60% of what men made per hour

Rosie the Riveter

Philip Randall

• Most respected Black labor leader in America

• Was President and founder of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters

• Wanted to end discrimination in the workplace, in unions, and in the armed forces

Organized a march on Washington D.C.

• To demand:• the right to work• The right to fight

• He expected 100,000 to join him

• FDR asked him to cancell the march• Was worried about violence

Randall refused to cancell

• Until…• FDR issued an executive order to Employers,

Unions, the Military to treat African Americans on an equal basis as Whites

• The Fair Employment Practices Commission

Hollywood’s Contribution

• Films, cartoons for propaganda purposes

Donald Duck de nazi

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzH1iaKVsBM

Other War PropagandaThe office of Public Administration

Federal Agencies to help run the war

• Office of Scientific Research

• Penicillin• DDT (no body lice!)• Radar• sonar

Office of Price Administration

• OPA• Instituted Price, wage, rent freezes

• The Revenue Act Taxes went way up for all but WAY up for the nation’s top earners

• The Treasury Department sold War Bonds

National War Labor Board

• Unions COULD negotiate about benefits, health care, sick or vacation days BUT NOT WAGES

• The Smith-Conally Anti-Strike Act: Strikes were illegal during war

War Production Board

• Determined the priorities of raw materials:

• Nylon• MetalsGas

Rationing: food, coffee, Sugar, shoes

The Manhattan Project

• The Work on the bomb and its fuel• Scientists led by Oppenheimer• Security officer: Groves

• SPIES• FDR• Truman• Einstein