03.06 War at Home

03.06

War at Home

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"The war at home was a bit different than the war abroad. Think about both, did the treatment of the "hyphenated Americans" change from the time of the Civil War until the end of World War I in America? Why or why not. Please use details from the lessons."

​​Think about this question as we go through this lesson. You will have to answer it in an audio recording. No less than 5 seconds and no longer than 2 mins.

How Did a War Abroad Affect People at Home?

It was Super Bowl season and your favorite team is playing, a friend comes by and is cheering for the opposite team. Apply that thought process to WWI.

Think about the diverse groups for and against America going to war. They were no different than you and your friend.

Posters were used to get the public to support the idea of America joining the war.

Objectives

​In this lesson, you will learn how some Americans at home rose to the challenge, while others were mistreated by those who questioned their loyalty or effort. You will use this to discuss the treatment and impact of the war on groups of Americans.

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

• analyze and explain how World War I impacted various groups on the home front

Open Ended

What do you expect to learn from this lesson?

As you have learned, in order to quickly mobilize for war, U.S. leaders passed a law requiring that all men between the ages of 21 and 30 register for the armed forces. These "draftees" joined those who enlisted to form a large but inexperienced fighting force.

​Home Front Support

​While laws required men to register for the draft, not everyone complied. In fact, some Americans were uncertain whether they supported the war at all. In 1917, about one of every three Americans was either an immigrant or a child of an immigrant. About 10 million Americans traced their roots back to countries of the Central Powers. The largest immigrant group was German Americans. Another large immigrant group, Irish Americans, disliked Great Britain and did not support them in the war.

In order to make sure that all persons required to register did so, the government turned to private agencies. The Justice Department hired the American Protective League (APL) to find draft evaders, or "slackers" as they were called at that time. In 1917, "slacker raids" by APL detectives resulted in more than 50,000 people being arrested for draft evasion. However, most of the people arrested had simply forgotten to carry their draft registration cards. Nevertheless, the actions of the APL under government approval foreshadowed actions against immigrant groups, labor movements, and dissidents during the war.

​ German and Irish Americans were not the only ones who opposed the war. Other people, including pacifists and some religious officials, dissented against the majority of Americans who strongly supported the war effort, and spoke out about their displeasure with the war. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the "Five Freedoms. They are the freedoms of speech, press, religion, assembly, and right to petition the government.

Laws were passed that supported the government sending undercover federal agents to spy on Americans. Members of political parties, such as the Socialists, were watched closely. Radical labor unions were also monitored. Newspapers that published anti-war material could be prosecuted. Hundreds of people were arrested.

Open Ended

What or who is a dissident?

Multiple Choice

The largest immigrant group was _____ ______. Another large immigrant group, _____ ______, disliked Great Britain and did not support them in the war.

• German Americans and Irish Americans

• German Americans and African Americans

• Irish Americans and German Americans

• Irish Americans and African Americans

Fill in the Blanks

The Justice Department hired the American Protective League (APL) to find draft evaders, or

as they were called at that time.

Open Ended

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the "Five Freedoms." U.S. government actions during World War I made some people question whether those principles were being upheld. What were the "Five Freedoms?"

​Patriotism

The US Government had to think of ways to pay for the war. One way was taxes. Everyone was taxed; however, it did not raise enough money. The government used an emotional appeal to get men to enlist, patriotism.

Attached to this patriotism were Liberty bonds. Americans would buy the bonds to support the distanced war. The bonds were a loan to the government. The bond's purchaser was entitled to interest on the loan when the bond matured years later. The government issued four rounds of bonds during the war.

Again, the average American was not investing the way the government wanted.

In order to get the average American to invest, the US Government started a campaign by using posters and celebrities to appeal to the emotions of the public. Even the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts were selling bonds for the war. There was a new invention that help sell the bonds - airplanes. This was new to Americans and this tactic worked. Americans were buying war bonds.

As the war progressed, bond sales increased. By the end of the war, the U.S. government had raised more than $17 billion, over half of the money needed to fund the war. On average, each American had spent about $200, a relatively large sum at a time when the average yearly salary was about $1,300. However, some of the patriotic emotions that were unleashed were anger and violence.

Open Ended

What were Liberty bonds used for?

Open Ended

What emotional appeal did the US Government use to encourage men to enlist?

​Patriotism Too Far?

At the beginning of World War I, the two largest immigration populations in the United States were German Americans and Irish Americans. Both of these groups wanted the United States to remain neutral in the war. Their lack of support for the war went against the strong tide of patriotism that was rising in the country.

Some Americans, especially nativists, also mistrusted other immigrant groups. Mexican Americans and Asian Americans were not trusted and resented by the Americans who established the country's laws.

One of the most admired men in the United States, former president Theodore Roosevelt spoke out against groups who lived in the country but did not support the war. He publicly questioned their loyalty with statements such as, "Those hyphenated Americans who terrorize American politicians by threats of the foreign vote are engaged in treason to the American Republic."

While suspicion trailed many so-called "hyphenated Americans," the treatment of German Americans ranged from foolish to ferocious.

Open Ended

Why were German Americans targeted by the "nativist" American?

​Marginalized Populations & Women

You would think that the United States would have any problems with the different groups of immigrants in the country. However, that was far from the truth. This group of people was marginalized because again skin color and gender, Asian Americans, Mexican Americans, Filipino Americans, Native Americans, and women.

Jewish Americans also frequently faced discrimination. Thousands of Native Americans served in the war effort abroad. Following the passage of a federal law in 1919, Native Americans who fought in the war and were honorably discharged could apply for citizenship. It was not until the Synder Act passed in 1924 that all Native Americans were considered U.S. citizens. Even then, some states denied Native Americans rights until the late 1040s.

Women also joined in the war effort. Not only did women serve overseas, their roles on the home front began to evolve. Before the war, women were relegated to the home. They primarily served as wives and mothers and worked in the domestic sphere, maintaining the home and caring for the children.

Fill in the Blanks

All American Indians born in the United States become U.S. citizens when the

is passed. However, many states later bar American Indians from voting. The last states to allow American Indians to vote are Arizona and New Mexico in 1948.

Fill in the Blanks

Women's contributions during World War I convince most Americans that women should be given the right to vote. On August 26, 1920, ___ ________ _________to U.S. Constitution is officially announced, granting women the right to vote.

​Wartime Production & Workforce

Wartime production increased a lot during the war. The increase in production for major industries meant greater profit for companies. Workers also earned more, but the cost of housing, food, and other supplies was high due to wartime rationing. In addition, they worked long hours to keep up with the fast pace of production.

The workforce changed as well. Women had to start working doing manual labor jobs. While at the same time, others continued in the traditional jobs that were for women prior to the war.

Hispanic Americans and African Americans were drawn to the new manufacturing jobs. These jobs had become available when white workers went to war. Hispanic Americans moved from the western United States east to cities such as Chicago for factory jobs.

African Americans had already begun migrating in large numbers from the southern United States to the North. As war approached, factory owners sent recruiters to the South to encourage African Americans to move North. More than 500,000 African Americans left the segregated South by 1920.

The population of Northern cities grew rapidly. This movement became known as the Great Migration. To explain this Great Migration, one African American wrote that African Americans were "compelled to go where there is better wages and sociable conditions, believe me...many places here in [Alabama] the only thing that a black man gets is a peck of a meal and from 3 to 4 lbs. of bacon per week, and he is treated as a slave."

Despite some of the harsh treatment and rioting in the North as a result of the Great Migration, most African Americans agreed that life in the North was much better than life in the South.

Multiple Choice

Compare how the war impacted German Americans, Asian Americans, African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Jewish Americans, Native Americans, women, and dissenters in the United States

Moderate Complexity

How did the role of women change during World War I?

• Women were granted the right to vote.

• Women served in combat units.

• Women were encouraged to captain merchant ships.

• Women were encouraged to work in industrial factories.

Audio Response

The war at home was a bit different than the war abroad. Think about both, did the treatment of the "hyphenated Americans" change from the time of the Civil War until the end of World War I in America? Why or why not. Please use details from the lessons.

Open Audio Recorder