How did the war change American society at home? 11.3 The War at Home How did the war change American society at home?

Congress Gives Power to Wilson The U.S. needed the help of industry to fight the war; the economy had to change from making consumer goods to making weapons and war supplies Congress gave direct control over much of the economy to President Wilson He had the power to fix prices and regulate war-related industries

Continued Wilson created the War Industries Board (WIB), an agency run by Bernard M. Baruch, which helped boost industrial production by 20 percent Other federal agencies regulated the economy for the war effort, controlling railroads, coal, gasoline, and heating oil Many workers joined unions due to losing money from inflation; because of this, Wilson established the National War Labor Board to help improve working conditions and settle disputes between management and labor

Selling the War The government needed to raise money for the war, and did so by increasing several kinds of taxes and selling war bonds; volunteers, celebrities, and newspapers all promoted the bonds for free To popularize the war, the government created the Committee on Public Information (CPI), the nation’s first propaganda agency, headed by George Creel, a former muckraking journalist He used artists and advertising people to create thousands of posters, paintings, and cartoons to promote the war

Attacks on Civil Liberties Increase The war brought out many anti-immigrant feelings, especially against Germans; Americans with German sounding names lost jobs, orchestras refused to play German music, and some towns with German names changed them Congress passed the Espionage and Sedition Acts to punish people who did not support the war effort in any way These laws violated the First Amendment, and led to 6000 arrests and 1500 convictions for antiwar activities, especially against socialists and union leaders

The War Encourages Social Change The war sped up the Great Migration, which was the movement of thousands of African Americans from the South to cities of the North; they wanted to escape racial discrimination and find jobs in Northern industries American women did jobs that had previously been done only by men; their activities made them more visible and soon after the war, women were finally granted the right to vote