Unit 5: World War II & The Home Front

Appeasement

• At the Munich Conference, Britain and France, hoping to prevent another war, agreed to Hitler's demands in a policy known as appeasement
• Afraid of Hitler's rising power, Britain and France were convinced that the annexation of Sudetenland would be Hitler's last territorial demand as he stated in a conference with them.
• The appeasement policy gave Hitler further motives to invade other territories for Germany's expansion. Ultimately, the invasion of the Soviet Union resulted in the violation of the Nonaggression Pact.

2nd Great Migration

• Thousands of African Americans left the South and headed North and West for jobs in the wartime factories
• The war triggered one of the greatest mass migrations—2nd Great Migration.
• African Americans left the South for cities in the North in order to find job opportunities

War Bond

• In order to help fund the war, the govt. encouraged US citizens to purchase war bonds, which loaned the government money. After the war, citizens would be repaid with interests.
• To support war efforts, citizens donated money known as war bonds. The purpose was to collect money and increase income tax rates to receive more funds for the war. In addition, higher taxes reduced consumer demand on scarce goods.

United Nations

• At the end of WWII, the League of Nations was replaced with a new world peacekeeping organizaiton that still exists today.
• After the Yalta Conference, Stalin, Churchill, and Roosevelt agreed to establish the United Nations after the war to maintain war peace by electing representatives from all nations around the world.

Four Freedoms

• Roosevelt proposed the Lend Lease Act in his Four Freedom speech, which he envisioned a world in which American ideals of individual libertieis were extended throughout the world.
• In his speech, he introduced those four freedoms: freedom to speech, freedom to religion, freedom from fear, freedom from want. The ideas encouraged the support of the Lend Lease Act that allowed for America to extend its support to allied nations to help promote democracy around the world.

Pearl Harbor

• The United States placed an embargo on Japan. After cutting off their oil and steel, the Japanese, in retaliation, bombed Pearl Harbor.
• On December 7, 1941, "a date that will live infamy," Japanese airforces bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The event killed over 2000 people, including civilians, militarymen, and more.

Rationing

• Americans at home were asked to conserve materials and to accept ration coupons or stamps that limited the purchase of certain products.
• Americans utilized coupon books and limited transportation and gas as a means of expressing their personal contribution to the war efforts.

Victory Gardens

• 30-40% of all the produce grown during the war years were grown in civilian private grounds to allow for more food for soldiers overseas.
• During the war, farm and agriculture business revived, as many civilians grew crops in private grounds to ship overseas to soldiers. The Allies were often shipped food and other materials to prevent starvation and other eating disorders.

Double V Campaign

• an African American crusade to end fascism overseas and racism at home
• During the war, African Americans and minorities faced discrimination and segregation. They were divided into different segregated units and could not work with their white counterparts. The campaign was created to promote efforts toward democracy for civilian workers and equality for African Americans in the military.

Zoot Suit Riot

• A series of riots that erupted in Los Angeles during WWII between sailors and soldiers and Mexican youth gangs.
• During the summer of 1943, anti-Mexican "zoot-suit" riots broke out in Los Angeles, as mobs poured out in Mexican neighborhoods and harrassed zoot-suiters by stripping and beating them before the public.

Bracero Program

• Due to a labor shortage, America created a guest worker program with Mexico. 4 million Mexican laborers came to work in our agricultural fields.
• Laborers were promised decent living conditions in labor camps, including shleter, food, and other necessities.

Doolittle Raid

• In response to the attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. organized a bombing mission on Tokyo, Japan to boost American morale and reveal Japanese vulnerability.
• Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle, 16 bombers were ordered to bomb Japan in the spring of 1942.

Island Hopping

• General Douglas MacArthur's troops captured light-defended islands throughout the Pacific, one by one, until they were within striking distance of Japan
• In order to contain Japan successfully, U.S. troops used a military strategy called "island hopping" that would allow for U.S. to reach Japan. The Battle of Midway was a turning point of the Pacific War as the U.S. Navy defeated Imperial Japanese Navy.

Manhattan Project

• The top secret assignment to build the atomic bomb was located in Los Alamos, New Mexico during WWII.
• The 1942 project involved as many as 130,000 scientists in developing a powerful, destructive bomb.

442nd Regimental

• The Japanese-American combat unit that was the most decorated in U.S. history
• The combat team consisted of Japanese Americans, most of which volunteered to serve the U.S. army in order to leave the internment camps.

Neutrality Acts

• Prior to WWII starting, the American anti-war sentiment was high which resulted in the government to pass a series of neutrality acts to preserve its isolationist stance.
• Between 1935-1939, a total of four neutrality acts were passed. The Neutrality Act of 1939 included the "cash and carry" provisions that allowed for the U.S. to aid the Allies by supplying war equipment.

Executive Order 9066

• The government claimed for national security purposes that those of Japanese ancestry were needed to be removed from parts of the West to vaguely identified military areas.
• The order, signed by Roosevelt in 1942, forced Japanese Americans to leave their homes and go to internment camps. Living conditions were often poor and insanitary, as many starved to death.

Fred Korematsu

• a Japanese-American citizen who sued the U.S. for being forcibly interned during WWII. He lost the case and did not received a formal White House apology until the 1990s.
• Acknowledging the government's unfair decision, Fred refused to comply with governmental orders in entering internment camps because he knew it violated his rights as a U.S. citizen.
• The camps were justified by the Supreme Court as a means to protect national security, even despite the fact that there was no evidence that Japanese Americans were committing acts of treasons against the government.

Allies

• United States, England and the Soviet Union were the main countries that belonged to the Allies.
• During WWII, the Allies were formed to fight against Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, known as the Axis Powers.
• In the beginning, the Soviet Union adopted neutrality similar to the U.S., until Germany invaded the Soviets and violated the Nonaggression Pact.
• The Allies leaders also met at the Yalta Conference of 1945 to discuss the fate of Germany and postwar plans.

Axis Powers

• Germany, Italy, Japan were referred to as the Axis Powers.
• The three nations known as the Tripartite Pact, had, in common, a dictatorship system, that embraced fascism and nationalism. They wanted to expand their territorial influence and did so by invading countries.
• Unfortunately, the Axis Powers lost the World War and victory was claimed by the Allies.