World War ll Through the1970's - Essay Example

? World War II through the 1970s Harry R. DePollar Strayer (Camp Springs Campus) Mel Albin, PhD Contemporary U.S. History-105 August 24, 2012 World War II and the atomic bombing of Japan have put the United States in the seat of global power. From the 1940s to the 1970s, several other historical landmarks boosted the economic and political prowess of the U.S. in the international scene. These decades witnessed widespread economic and political changes, which shaped America’s gender dynamics and civil rights conditions. Though there are numerous major events during this time, this paper focuses on the dropping of the atomic bomb on Japan and Rosa Park’s refusal to give up her bus seat for a white man. This paper reviews several important historical landmarks and their effects on modern American society, economy, politics, and culture. It also explores America’s reluctance to join World War II, the role that women played to win World War II, changes in civil rights after World War II, the effect of the Vietnam War on the political awareness of American youth, and the impact of President Johnson’s “Great Society” program on modern times. These events demonstrated that World War II and other influential individuals helped promote social inequity, as well as economic and political development, in America. Joining World War II was not the first priority of the U.S because Americans mostly perceived the war as a European war and they were still recovering from the economic and psychological effects of the Great Depression and World War I. First, the U.S. government and society generally felt that World War II was European in nature, and it was not their business to intervene (Harrell et al., 2005, p.988). Americans mostly believed that they did not need to partake in a war that had no implications on their affairs. Second, America grappled with the trauma of World War I and the effects of the Great Depression (Harrell et al., 2005, p.988). The memories of World War I left American citizens with disastrous losses, and many did not want to experience those losses once more. They supported international peace, instead of participating in the war. In addition, the U.S. felt that it was not yet financially capable of entering the war after the Great Depression (Harrell et al., 2005, p.988). Wars cost millions to billions of dollars, not counting the lives lost in the process, so Americans thought it best not to engage in a new war, as it dabs on its economic and psychological post-World War I wounds. World War II depicted the military and technological skills of the U.S., specifically after it dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, because it not only ended this war, but sealed the fate of the U.S. as the new superpower of the world. On August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, and on August 9, another bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. On August 15, Japan surrendered to the Allies and signed the Instrument of Surrender on September 2, which officially ended World War II. The bombings resulted in post-war agreements that banned nuclear armament development. Scholars disagree on whether the atomic bombs truly forced Japan to hastily capitulate to the Allies, although the Office of the Historian (2012) and Freedman and Dockrill (2004) argued that these bombs shocked Japan into surrendering. The effects of the atomic bombing affected how Americans see nuclear weapons. For some Americans, the destruction of Japan through the atomic bombs sparked fear, not only against nuclear proliferation, but also against the media and the government, who have been increasingly charged of manipulating facts to support their political agenda (Jowett & O’Donnell, 2012, p.171). Despite the social pattern of distrust, it cannot be denied that World War II boosted the economy of the U.S. During the war, federal spending increased by $72 billion (Schug et al., 1993, p.192). Industries related to the war flourished, including steel, aluminum, copper, and rubber industries. Employment rates soared, especially because women entered the workforce to support the intense demand for armament products. Though the war ended, the economy continued to flourish because war veterans took advantage of educational opportunities and used their money and loans to buy consumer goods and real properties and to start businesses (Schug et al., 1993, p.194). Politics also changed since World War II because the U.S. used its newfound political and economic powers to reduce the influence of the Soviet Union in the West and Japan in Asia (Jones, 2010, p.12). Hence, the atomic bomb and World War II solidified the power of the U.S. that persists until present times. Another monumental historical landmark is the action that Rosa Parks took on the fateful day of December 1, 1955, because it stimulated the Montgomery Bus Boycott and launched the Civil Rights Movement era. Definitely, minority groups had been fighting for their civil rights and liberties, since Congress signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The action of Rosa Parks, however, ignited the much needed collective action that was indispensable in driving the Civil Rights Movement. Steffen (2001) argued that Rosa McCauley Parks should be considered as the mother of the modern civil rights movement (p.83). Her refusal to let a white man take her seat sent the ripples of organizing and mobilizing that intersected gender, race, and social class boundaries. After Parks was imprisoned, local civil rights activists started a boycott of the Montgomery bus system. Because African Americans composed around 75 percent of the riders in Montgomery, the boycott became a critical economic threat to the company and questioned white supremacy. Several civil rights leaders emerged soon after, including Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X. Among women, Ella Jospehine Baker, a leader of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in the 1940s, and female congresswomen, such as Martha W. Griffiths, Margaret Chase Smith, and Esther Peterson, fought for the expansion of the civil rights of women at the workplace. Clearly, Parks had been a spark for many men and women of all colors to fight against racial and gender discrimination and to change the systemic sources of social injustice for colored and female groups of society. Aside from these historical moments, World War II forced Americans to change their conservative positions regarding women at war and the workplace, and so women had the opportunity to support the war. Women entered supporting functions in the army that helped win the war. Around 200,000 women enlisted in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) and its naval contemporary, the WAVES (Harrell et al., 2005, p.975). The Marines and Coast Guard enlisted women too, although in small numbers (Harrell et al., 2005, p.975). Women also entered the manufacturing industry, since their men had to serve in the army. The federal government promoted women’s entry as “sheet metal workers, millers, welders, lumberjacks, machinists, and stevedores” (Harrell et al., 2005, p.975; Thomas, 1978, p.626). The number of working women swelled from 14 million in 1940 to 19 million in 1945 (Harrell et al., 2005, p.975). By 1944, around one-third of all women worked outside their homes, which supported industrial expansion (Harrell et al., 2005, p.975). Women played a major role in World War II, since they provided support functions for the army, boosted economic expansion through their employment in the manufacturing industries, and kept their families together. After World War II, several key events promoted the welfare of African Americans. In 1947, leaders of civil rights movement A.P Randolph and Reynolds established the Committee, against Jim Crow. They requested for Truman to end segregation in the military and threatened that without any policy on this matter, African Americans in the army would start boycotting the military draft (Wynn, 2010, p.134). On the 26th of July 1948, President Truman issued Order 9981 that stated that all persons would be treated equally in the armed forces, and that religious and racial differences would not affect the treatment of the military personnel (Wynn, 2010, p.138). In 1964, the Civil Rights Act was passed. Another key event for the promotion of African American welfare is Brown vs Board. In Brown vs Board, the Supreme Court held that it was unconstitutional to practice segregation in public schools because it violated the 14th amendment (Wynn, 2010, p.142). This case ended the Jim Crow laws that enforced racial segregation in public places. These laws and case rulings enshrined the civil rights and freedoms of African Americans. During the 1960s and as the Vietnam War extended, the youth developed a counterculture attitude that embedded anti-establishment sentiments and opposed traditional social norms (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1052). College students from different universities, such as the University of California-Berkeley, launched the era of student political activism (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1052). Students demanded their right to participate in and to shape political discussion and policy making (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1052). The youth revolt expressed its interests in anti-Vietnam war demonstrations and greater environmental consciousness (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). Furthermore, they rejected social norms that they believed stifled their ability to express their political and social opinions (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1052). They believed that the American society is inherently unjust and law and order were euphemisms for tyrannical control over the masses (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). Hence, the Vietnam War aroused political and social criticism among the youth, which drove their impetus for Leftist ideals. President Johnson’s “Great Society” agenda promoted anti-poverty programs that are still in effect until today. Under Johnson's leadership, Congress ratified Medicare, a health insurance program for the elderly, and Medicaid, a program that gave healthcare assistance for the poor (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). Moreover, Johnson was able to provide aid for elementary and secondary schooling (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). The federal government gave money to the states, according to the number of children from low-income families (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). These funds helped both public and private schools (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). Johnson’s administration also formed the Department of Housing and Urban Development and a housing act that gave rent supplements for the poor (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). An immigration measures also repealed discriminatory quotas set in 1924 (Harrell et al., 2005, p.1063). Hence, Johnson’s “Great Society” shaped “Modern Society” too. World War II and subsequent events and personalities transformed the economic, social, political, and cultural landscape of America. This war injected life into the dwindling American economy and supported its industrial growth. Women played significant roles in expanding the economy and strengthening family ties. The atomic bombing of Japan and the defiance of Parks further influenced the socioeconomic development of the country. The American youth, however, felt disillusioned during the Vietnam War, which developed student political activism. This activism supported the Civil Rights Movement that improved the civil rights and freedoms of African Americans and women. The decades of the 1940s to the 1970s culminated with the Johnson’s “Great Society” program, which in the long run, significantly helped America to be one of the greatest countries, in terms of equal rights and freedoms for all. References Freedman, L., & Dockrill, S. (2004). Hiroshima: A strategy of shock. In G. Martel (Ed.), The World War Two reader (pp.65-84). New York: Routledge. Jones, M. (2010). After Hiroshima: The United States, race and nuclear weapons in Asia, 1945-1965. New York: Cambridge University Press. Jowett, G.S., & O’Donnell, V. (2012). Propaganda & persuasion (5th ed.). California: SAGE. Harrell, D.E., Gaustad, E.S., Boles, J.B., Griffith, S.F., Miller, R.M., & Woods, R.B. (2005). Unto a good land: A history of the American people. Michigan: William B. Eerdmans. Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of States. (2012). Atomic diplomacy. Milestones: 1945-1952. Retrieved from http://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/Atomic Schug, M.C., Caldwell, J., Wentworth, D.R., Kraig, B., & Highsmith, R.J. (1993). United States history: Eyes on the economy: Through the 20th century. New York: The National Council on Economic Education. Steffen, T.F. (2001). Introduction: Turbulent times: gender, documentation, and poetic revision in the movement era and beyond. In P.B. Miller, T.F. Steffen, & E. Schafer-Wunsche (Eds), The civil rights movement revisited: Critical perspectives on the struggle for racial equality in the United States (pp.83-86). Berlin: Berlin-Hamburg-Munster, 2001. Thomas, P.J. (1978). Women in the military; America and the British Commonwealth. Armed Forces & Society, 4 (4), 623-646. Wynn, N. A. (2010). The African American experience during World War II. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Read More