Pump-Up What do you believe will be the effects of WWII on America? What do you believe will become our new enemy?
Postwar America
Today’s Vocabulary Baby Boomers McCarthyism The large population born between 1945 and 1961 are known as this generation. McCarthyism The 2nd Red Scare “witch” hunt for communist within America.
Return to Peacetime The GI Bill helped veterans make a smooth entry into civilian life. Provided money for college and to buy homes. B/c of a booming economy, Americans also began having large families. Baby boomers- a child was born every 7 seconds.
Fair Deal Harry Truman won the Election of 1948. Fair Deal Raised minimum wage. Increased social security benefits. National Housing Act for low income housing. Ended segregation in the armed forces. Congress would not pass national health insurance.
Second Red Scare China became communist and learned that the Soviet Union possessed an atomic bomb. Loyalty review program screened all federal employees. House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) Investigated radical groups. Investigated the Hollywood Ten and found 10 guilty. Those who refused to answer questions were placed on a blacklist. A list from which all Hollywood employers refused to hire.
Spy Cases Alger Hiss was charged with plotting to overthrow the gov’t. Sentenced to prison. Klaus Fuchs was charged with giving atomic secrets to the Soviets. Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were charged with giving atomic secrets to the Soviets. Convicted and executed.
Stop! Based on what we have already talked about in class and on your hand out, write a paragraph to explain why America was afraid of Communism after WWII. Predict what the fear of Communism may lead America to do.
McCarthyism Senator Joseph McCarthy said there were 205 known Communists working for the gov’t. Made up charges without any evidence. Investigated the gov’t, university professors, labor unions, private businesses, and even fellow Republicans. Thousands of people were fired. McCarthy’s downfall: Televised public hearings of the U.S. Army.
STOP! Based on what we have already talked about in class and on your hand out, write a paragraph to explain what results McCarthyism had on America. Predict how Americans will view Communism after the McCarthy “witch hunts.”
Election of 1952 Republican General Dwight D. Eisenhower (Ike) becomes president. Promised to end the Korean War. 22nd Amendment President can serve a maximum of 10 years. Conservative president except for extending social security benefits and raising the minimum wage.
Growth of Suburbia Federal Highway Act Sunbelt Levittown Adds 40,000 miles of interstate. Americans buy 2nd family car. Sunbelt People settled in warmer southern and western portions of the U.S. Levittown Suburbs. Affordable.
American Abundance Average American income triples. Many white-collar jobs. Franchises develop. After WWII, millions bought televisions. Impacted politics and advertising. Color T.V. in 1960s. UNIVAC—Universal Automatic Computer 1st computer weighed 30,000 pounds.
Medical Advancements Vaccines created for: Polio Tuberculosis Heart patients benefited from: CPR Pacemakers Cancer patients benefited from: Chemotherapy Radiation
Honors Homework Write a one page paper and decide whether or not was Senator McCarthy a power-hungry politician who deliberately misled and manipulated people, or was he a product of the time, working like other officials to defend the American people against the threat of communism. Support you beliefs with at least two facts that we learned in class from the 1950s and 1960s.
Reflection Explain how America returns to “normal” after WWII and the effects of the 2nd Red Scare.