Imagine you are a soldier who is returning home from war:

What are some things that you might want to do when you get home?

Why might a returning soldier want to return to school?

What are some obstacles that might prevent that soldier from returning to school?

1945: Millions of soldiers return home from the war seeking a

chance at the “American Dream”…How did America

respond?

Photo courtesy of http://gi.grolier.com/wwii/photos/wwii_photos.html

http://papergreat.blogspot.com/2011/06/rev-rickards-complimentary-copy-of-good.html

May 8, 1945: Allies declare victory in Europe

August 15, 1945: Japan announces its surrender

The War is Over!!!

Millions of American soldiers return…

But how would America integrate them back into society?

Serviceman’s Readjustment Act of 1944(G.I. Bill)

Background

Some asked if it was right to pay returning soldiers

Should military service entitle one to government benefits or should it be an obligation to one’s country?

Congress hoped to avoid a repeat of the “Bonus Army” standoff that gripped Washington D.C. in 1932

President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs G.I. Bill into law June 1944

Benefits for Returning G.I.’s

Eligible for money to further one’s education at any college, university, trade school or vocational school

Eligible for low interest home loans with zero money down

52-20 Clause: Enabled all former servicemen to receive $20 a week in unemployment benefits for 52 weeks

Were G.I. Bill benefits open to African Americans?

--Yes…in theory. Although there was nothing in the bill that specifically barred African Americans from receiving benefits, far fewer African Americans actually received them…

Why???

Political Climate: Some of the biggest supporters of the G.I. Bill were avid segregationists

Poverty: Many African Americans were impoverished before the war and came back to the same circumstances. Many could not afford to go college because they had to find work

Discrimination: Many colleges and universities were segregated and/or had quota systems that restricted the number of African Americans who could be admitted

Lack of resources: Black colleges and universities were usually among the poorest schools and often found themselves unable to make room for all the returning G.I.’s who wanted to attend

Results of the G.I. Bill

50% of World War II veterans used G.I. Bill benefits to further education and/or buy a house

Only 20% of African American veterans who applied for education benefits were able to use them

What is their name? Where are they from? What branch of the service? (Army,

Navy) What theater of war? (Europe, Pacific) Did they go to college? What was their major? Did they take advantage of the GI Bill? What career path did they choose?