The War at The War at Home:Home:

Post-WWII Post-WWII AmericaAmerica

Unions After the Unions After the WarWar

Labor unrest and Labor unrest and strikes became strikes became common immediately common immediately following the war, following the war, disrupting the post-disrupting the post-war economywar economy

Another coal strike Another coal strike was so serious that was so serious that President Truman President Truman ordered the mines ordered the mines seized by the seized by the governmentgovernment

Taft-Hartley ActTaft-Hartley Act In 1947, Congress In 1947, Congress

passed sweeping passed sweeping labor reform which labor reform which banned “closed banned “closed shops” (where all shops” (where all employees had to employees had to be union members) be union members) and allowed and allowed employers to sue employers to sue unions for unions for damages in some damages in some casescases

Automation Threatens Automation Threatens JobsJobs

As American As American factories factories increasingly increasingly modernized after modernized after the war, machines the war, machines began to take the began to take the place of unskilled place of unskilled labor, costing jobs labor, costing jobs and hurting union and hurting union membershipmembership

AFL-CIOAFL-CIO Eventually, powerful Eventually, powerful

new “super-unions” new “super-unions” arose, such as the arose, such as the AFL-CIO, a merger AFL-CIO, a merger between the American between the American Federation of Labor Federation of Labor and the Congress of and the Congress of Industrial Industrial Organizations in 1955, Organizations in 1955, which represented which represented over 15 million over 15 million workersworkers

Election of 1948Election of 1948 Democrats ran Democrats ran

President Harry Truman President Harry Truman while Republicans ran while Republicans ran NY Governor Thomas NY Governor Thomas DeweyDewey

Nearly everyone Nearly everyone expected Dewey to win expected Dewey to win easily, but were easily, but were surprised when Truman surprised when Truman pulled off a narrow pulled off a narrow victory, becoming victory, becoming President in his own President in his own right rather than by right rather than by default (death of FDR)default (death of FDR)

OOPS!OOPS!

Truman’s “Fair Truman’s “Fair Deal”Deal”

Truman began to Truman began to pursue a series of pursue a series of social reform social reform programs he called programs he called his “Fair Deal”his “Fair Deal”

Included expansion Included expansion of Social Security, of Social Security, increasing increasing minimum wage, minimum wage, and funding low-and funding low-income housing, income housing, among other thingsamong other things

The GI BillThe GI Bill Passed in 1944Passed in 1944 Designed to help GIs Designed to help GIs

transition back to transition back to civilian lifecivilian life

Helped veterans by Helped veterans by paying for college paying for college tuition, providing one tuition, providing one year’s unemployment year’s unemployment pay, and providing pay, and providing easy to get loans for easy to get loans for purchasing housing purchasing housing or starting businessesor starting businesses

Growth of Middle Growth of Middle ClassClass

As hundreds of As hundreds of thousands of GIs thousands of GIs became better became better educated and able to educated and able to acquire better jobs, the acquire better jobs, the middle-class in America middle-class in America grew significantly grew significantly during the 1950sduring the 1950s

This expanded middle-This expanded middle-class increased the class increased the demand for consumer demand for consumer goods and single-family goods and single-family housinghousing

““Baby Boom”Baby Boom” Returning GIs were Returning GIs were

also anxious to also anxious to marry and start marry and start families, leading to a families, leading to a dramatic surge in dramatic surge in the birth rate from the birth rate from 1946 to 19641946 to 1964

This generation of This generation of children, the largest children, the largest in US history, came in US history, came to be known as the to be known as the “baby boomers”“baby boomers”

Why is this a problem Why is this a problem TODAY?TODAY?

Growth of Growth of SuburbsSuburbs

Growth of middle-class Growth of middle-class families led to a families led to a dramatic spike in dramatic spike in demand for housingdemand for housing

Since space was Since space was limited (and therefore limited (and therefore expensive) in the expensive) in the cities, millions of cities, millions of Americans looked to Americans looked to the areas just outside the areas just outside of the cities to live and of the cities to live and raise their familiesraise their families

William J. LevittWilliam J. Levitt 1907 – 19941907 – 1994 Real estate developer who Real estate developer who

popularized building large popularized building large developments of cheap developments of cheap “assembly line” style “assembly line” style housing within commuting housing within commuting distance of major cities – distance of major cities – “suburbs”“suburbs”

Affordable housing allowed Affordable housing allowed many soldiers returning many soldiers returning from WWII to marry and from WWII to marry and start familiesstart families

First project was in First project was in Levittown, NY between 1947 Levittown, NY between 1947 -1951, where Levitt built -1951, where Levitt built over 17,000 single-family over 17,000 single-family homeshomes

LevittownLevittown