Social Impact of WWII: The African American Experience

IB History of the Americas

Mobilizing the Economy for War• Wartime production

officially ended the Depression

• War Production Board: Established to coordinate production of war materials– Halted production of

nonessential materials– Conservation of goods: Ex:

Imposed national speed limit to conserve rubber

Mobilizing the Economy for War ctnd.

• Office of Price Administration: To curb wartime inflation– Set price ceilings– Established rationing of

critical goods (meat, butter)• National War Labor Board:

To keep workers in factories– Imposed ceilings on wage

increases– Required 30 days notice

before strike• Many unhappy workers still

went on strike

Building up troops

• 15 million men and 250,000 women enlisted

• To keep production going, certain groups of workers eliminated from draft– Still, drain on agricultural

workers led government to create bracero program with Mexico. (we will get to this later)

EFFECTS ON THE HOMEFRONT: EFFECTS ON THE HOMEFRONT: IMPACT ON IMPACT ON SOCIETY: Demographic ShiftsSOCIETY: Demographic Shifts

• UrbanizationUrbanization• Migration to West, esp. CaliforniaMigration to West, esp. California– rapid industrialization of some western states rapid industrialization of some western states

(California)(California)

Population Shifts 1940-1950Population Shifts 1940-1950

African-Americans During War

• Double Victory campaign: Victory against dictators abroad, and racism at home

• Some victories: more job opportunities, increased migration to North and West (esp. CA)

• Still, much racism: African Americans paid less, discriminated in housing, in public facilities

The Double V Campaign V for Victory- V for equality at home

• African Americans started the Double V campaign

• They remained patriotic, yet pushed for civil rights for blacks.

• It was very important that the campaign show loyalty towards the war effort, since the black press had been criticized for pushing their own agenda ahead of the national agenda.

CORE The Congress of Racial Equality

• CORE was founded in 1942 by James Farmer and others– Precursor to Dr. King and movement in

1950s– Used non-violent means to force

equality– Used sit-ins to force change

• The group's inspiration the book War Without Violence which outlined Mahatma Gandhi's step-by-step procedures for organizing people and mounting a nonviolent campaign.

African-American Resistance• African Americans begin organizing:

– 1941: A. Philip Randolph, a black labor leader, threatened to march on Washington to protest prejudice against African-American workers

– In response to threat, Roosevelt banned discrimination in government agencies.

– Established the Fair Employment Practices Commission to insure equal treatment for African-Americans and other minorities in war industries.

– Still, results limited. When GIs returned, blacks still first to lose jobs.

– All of this is an important precedent to Civil Rights movement.

Segregated Segregated UnitsUnits

Segregated Segregated UnitsUnits

African Americans in the Armed Forces

• African-American soldiers played a significant role in World War II

• Nearly 700,000 served in Europe and accounted for 20% of the military forces

• Blacks were still forced to fight in all black units during WWII.

• The Tuskegee Airmen were black fighter pilots who destroyed 400 enemy aircraft by the end of the war.

Racial Discrimination abroad…

• Despite the numbers, they faced racial discrimination:– Racially segregated forces– African Americans were often classified

as unfit for combat and were not allowed on the front lines

– Mostly given support duties– No African Americans were given the

Medal of Honor during either world war

African Americans on the Homefront

• The Struggle for Justice continued on the home front as well as in the military

– In the South, segregation continued• Civil rights still a struggle

– Unemployment was high for all segments of the black community

• Black migration – over 2 million migrated to the northern industrial cities

• Forced to live in crowded urban areas called ghettos – Concentrated neighborhoods of minorities

Two Americas??

• Attitudes of Americans in 1942– 60% of whites thought blacks satisfied with

their condition– Most blacks disagreed» Detroit riots – 34 people killed (1943)» New York City riots (1943)

– FDR did not push Civil Rights as a priority» “I doubt we can bring about perfection

at this time.”