CHAPTER 19.3 NOTES: The War At Home The needs of the war prompted the need to shift the U.S. economy to produce war supplies rather than consumer goods. WAR INDUDSTRIES BOARD (WIB): Headed by Bernard M. Baruch, this gov’t agency was created to regulate the economy. It encouraged companies to increase efficiency and eliminate waste. It applied price controls at wholesale levels, which caused retail prices to rise. Results of WIB actions: Inflation and changes in American lifestyles to conserve. For example, less women wore corsets, so that that the steel normally used for corset wires could be used to build battleships.

WAR ECONOMY Wages in industries dedicated to war supplies increased. But white collar wages did not. Made it difficult for Americans during time of inflation. National War Labor Board: created by Wilson to deal with rising disputes between management & labor. Also tried to improve working conditions. Food Administration: Set up to oversee conservation and production of food. U.S. would have “meatless,” “wheatless,” and “sweetless” days to conserve, and would grow Victory Gardens in their yards.

WOMEN & THE WAR Over a million women were brought into the workforce to replace the male workers who left for the war. They were paid less than men, and nearly all lost their jobs after the war. Women contributed greatly to the war effort at home, and this helped them to win suffrage through the 19th Amendment in 1919.

AFRICAN AMERICANS & THE WAR Though African Americans were split on whether or not to support the war, due to the issue of racial inequality, most did support it. Great Migration: large-scale movement of hundreds of thousands of Southern blacks to northern cities between 1910 and 1920. Many moved for different reasons: 1. Escape racial discrimination in South. 2. Cotton fields in South destroyed by boll weevil. 3. Job opportunities in Northern factories.

SELLING THE WAR The gov’t started a massive propaganda campaign to try to justify civilian sacrifices in the war. Gov’t bonds were sold to help finance the war: movie stars, like Charlie Chaplin came out to help sell these bonds. Committee on Public Information (CPI): headed by George Creel (muckraking journalist), it was the nation’s first propaganda agency. Enlisted U.S. artists and advertisers to create paintings, posters, cartoons, etc. to help sell the war.

ATTACKS ON CIVIL LIBERTIES Immigrants were targeted during the war, as suspicions of disloyalty to the U.S. grew. Discrimination, especially against those from Germany and Austria-Hungary, rose. Examples: German-Americans would be flogged or tarred and feathered. The name “hamburger” was changed to Salisbury Steak, since the hamburger was named after a German.

ESPIONAGE AND SEDITION ACTS Under this act, a person could be fined up to $10,000 and sentenced to 20 years in jail for even saying something disloyal about the gov’t or the war. This law was a clear violation of 1st Amendment rights, and was not something for Americans to be proud of.

FLU EPIDEMIC By the fall of 1918, an international flu epidemic hit the U.S. By the end of the epidemic in 1919, 500,000 Americans died.