POLITICS OF THE 1920’S Unit 6: The 1920’s and the Great Depression

BIG QUESTION Why did the U.S. experience so much political and social change during the 1920’s?

AMERICA AT THE START OF THE 20’S  Victorious in WWI  one of the world’s superpowers BUT it was unwilling to accept the role of world leader  Treaty of Versailles and League of Nations was defeated  U.S. now lacked credibility needed to maintain world peace  Entering a period of isolationism  Rise of Republican Party ( )

RETURN TO NORMALCY  Renewed isolationism  Resurgence of nativism  Trend towards political conservationism  America’s biggest new threat  COMMUNISM

THE FIGHT AGAINST COMMUNISM  Communist call for international revolution  70,000 radicals joined the Communist Party in the U.S.  This included members of the International Workers of the World, a union group  What communist ideals threatened traditional U.S. ideals?  Palmer believed communist values were undermining American values  went after the “Red Scare”