The GI Bill of Rights - Term Paper Example

The World War II veterans had an inordinate impact on the society. The US economy benefitted immensely by their services. Civil labor went up on statistics charts as the returning veterans put down their guns and started working just like other civilians. The returning veterans not only served as laborers but a significant number also went to various educational institutes with the incentives provided by the GI Bill. The returning veterans probably realized the importance of education. This show of determination is worth praising because many soldiers were picked for war services while they were graduating and therefore could not continue their studies.

Their education was interrupted by the war and the G I Bill allowed them to return to school when the war was over. The GI Bill was different from other legal bills as it focused not on any tangible assets of the US citizens; instead, it focused on the intangible and the most important asset: the human brain. The bill liberated minds and pushed people to think freely and to pursue their thoughts. It was similar to teaching someone how to catch fish instead of hand feeding them. The GI Bill caused a silent revolution, not by forcing people out of their homes but by liberating their thoughts and suggesting to them to discover their own path.

The returning veterans benefitted from this bill and the institutions got the freedom to teach in the way they prefer. That was the right way to deal with the great potential of the returning veterans. The author Michael Bennett tries to highlight various aspects of the GI Bill. He shows that this bill had more meaning and significance than what it is normally credited for. Bennett argues that the GI Bill served the US society in many ways. It let the educational institutes conduct their teachings and research programs the way they wanted.

The bill never interfered in their business; instead, it gave them the freedom to enhance their strategies and make them more productive. It gave the colleges an expanded student body and more funding. The strategy was either you made it or you flunked out. Colleges and universities grew dramatically during this era.  As a result of the GI Bill, the educational institutes became more accommodating to students of all backgrounds. Race, gender, and religion were no longer the hurdles and education was available to all.

The beauty of the bill that the author highlights is when the war veterans returned from the battlefield, they had become accustomed to multicultural environment. And when Universities allowed students of all races to get educated, the veterans experienced a similar melting pot atmosphere they experienced during the war. The GI Bill had more impact on class than race. Before WWII college was mostly for the wealthy. The GI Bill allowed men who never thought they could afford college an opportunity and that include black men, but colleges in the South were segregated by race and in the North black students were very much in the minority.

The author argues that the returning veterans had to face financially challenging atmosphere upon their return home and the GI Bill helped them in more than one way to get them back on their feet. For instance, Les Faulk of Turtle Creek, a returning veteran