WW II on the Home Front

review

Key concept

• The mass mobilization of American society to supply troops for the war effort and a workforce on the home front ended the Great Depression and provided opportunities for women and minorities to improve their socioeconomic positions.

The Production Miracle

“To American production, without

which this war would have been lost!”

1940 to 1945

• 296,429 warplanes• 5,425 cargo ships• 102,351 tanks and self-

propelled guns• 40 billion bullets• 2.6 million machine

guns

Rosie the Riveter

More than 6 million (3 million who had never worked for wages) entered work

force during the war.

Key concept

• Wartime experiences, such as the internment of Japanese Americans, challenges to civil liberties, debates over race and segregation, and the decision to drop the atomic bomb raised questions about American values.

The African American Experience

A. Philip Randolph and the FEPC

The Native American Experience

About 44,000 served in the armed forces (10%)About 40,000 women worked in defense

industries

200 Navajo recruited into the Marine Corps as code talkers

The Zoot Suit Riots

About 3 million Mexican-Americans, mostly in LA

The Internment of Japanese Americans

About 110,000 people affected

FDR issues Executive Order 9066 on Feb 19,

1942

No specific charges ever filed, no evidence

of subversion ever found

Executive Order 9066 deprived Japanese Americans of life, liberty and property

without due process of law(Amendment ?)

Upheld as constitutional because of “the gravest imminent danger to the public

safety.”

Key concept

• The United States and its allies achieved victory over the Axis powers through a combination of factors, including allied political and military cooperation, industrial production, technological and scientific advances, and popular commitment to advancing democratic ideals

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