1. A look into the Political and Societal Changes in America
The Post-War Era
A look into the Political and Societal Changes in America

2. GI Bill of Rights- Legislation providing aide to returning vets
GI Bill of Rights- Legislation providing aide to returning vets. It assisted them in gaining tuition for school, a year’s worth of unemployment, and federally guaranteed loans.
Suburbs- Small residential communities surrounding cities
Dixiecrats- Southern Democrats against Civil Rights
Fair Deal- Truman’s extension of FDR’s New Deal
Academic Language

3. Students will be able to evaluate the impact of the political shifts in policy and party control in relation to social happenings during the Post-War Era
Objective

4. How does President Harry S
How does President Harry S. Truman compare to other American President’s when is comes to social advocacy? How does the American public respond?
Essential Question

5. Many soldiers returned home to families they barely knew
Many returning vets had either married, or had been dating, when they left for war
They now looked to find a new life for themselves back in the US
Life After War

6. Readjustment and Recovery
After the war, over 10 million people left the armed forces and headed home
It was not just the vets who needed to readjust to the war being over
Businesses and society had to adapt too
In 1944 Congress Passes the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (Or the GI Bill)
Readjustment and Recovery

7. The Veteran Student

8. Also known as the GI Bill of Rights, the GI Bill is set up to assist veterans get aid when returning to civilian life
Was passed in 1944, gave opportunities for military personnel to go to school, buy homes, and gain financial security while looking for work.
By 1956, 2.2 million veterans had used the bill for education
In that same time, 5.6 million had used funding from the bill for other professional training.
What is the GI Bill?

9. When the soldiers returned they found that there were not enough houses!
What we see is the development of rapidly growing communities called, suburbs
Take a min and answer these questions with a partner:
Do you live in a suburb? If so, of which city?
How have suburbs changed over time?
What would we call early suburbs now?
The Repercussions

10. To help facilitate the rapid expansion of families and their needs, entrepreneur and developer William Levitt, created an assembly line way to create the homes that were in such high demand.
Levittown: Develeoped by William Levitt in four major locations
They could produce 150 house s per week
They made a total of 17,447 houses
Their first house cost $60 a month and had two bedrooms one bathroom and was 6,000 square ft house.
Levittowns

11. Economic Crash The US Economy boomed due to war time needs
After Japan surrenders, the United States laid off more than a million defense workers and cancelled over 35 million dollars worth of defense contracts
Height of post-war unemployment reached 3 million
Due to inflation and low wages, Congress had to intervene and set wage and price standards
Economic Crash

12. Truman takes responsibility for the economic issues and follows the footsteps of his predecessor, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
He faced the threat of nation-wide strikes (Threatened to draft the strikers into the military and make them work)
Due to his aggressive nature, the widely Republican Congress passed the Hartley Act (even over Truman’s Veto) to over turn much of the New Deal
“The Buck Stops Here”

13. Truman and Civil Rights
Truman widely supported the Civil Rights movement, which gained him many political rivals
Truman worked to try and pass an antilynching law, stop to poll taxing, and a permanent Civil Rights Commission
Congress will block his efforts
“I am asking for equality of opportunity for all human beings… and if that ends up in my failure to be reelected, that failure will be in good cause.”
-Harry S Truman
Truman and Civil Rights

14. 1948 Presidential Election
Southern Democrats, Dixiecrats, wanted to deny the Presidential nomination to Truman by putting in S.C. Govenour J. Strom Thurmond
The far left wanted to put up Henry Wallace as a Progressive candidate.
Truman ends up gaining his party’s nomination and goes up against the Republican candidate Thomas E. Dewey and J. Strom Thurmond. Almost every poll showed Dewey as an easy victor…
1948 Presidential Election

17. After his reelection, Truman pushed tried to push through his Fair Deal
As an extension of FDR’s New Deal, Truman looked to create a compulsory health insurance and crop subsidy for farmers
Many part of Congress (Northern Democrats, Dixicrats, and Republicans) rejected much of the Fair Deal
Fair Deal Points that Passed
Raise in minimum wage
Expansion in Social Security
Development to infrastructure (Irrigation systems)
Money to build up public housing projects
Truman’s Fair Deal

19. *This is the election where Eisenhower and Nixon win the Presidency by 55%
*First Election where television is a major factor in the election (Checkers Speech)
*Eisenhower coined the catchphrase “I Like Ike”
*While Eisenhower was a Republican, he was so moderate both parties had wanted him to run on their platform
1952 Election

20. How does President Harry S
How does President Harry S. Truman compare to other American President’s when is comes to social advocacy? How does the American public respond?
Essential Question