Adjusting to Peacetime – Americans Between the WarsGuided Reading Activity Answers

Wilson and the Democrats fell out of favor when recession followed World War I.

The Treaty of Versailles was unpopular after Senator Lodge halted ratification.

Striking Workers, 1919In 1919, over four million workers – close to 20% of the work force in the United States – walked out on strike in the year following World War I’s end. Membership in the Socialist Party of the United States grew dramatically as well, and many Americans feared uprisings similar to the Russian Revolution in 1917. Major labor unions, seeking higher wages and better conditions after having made sacrifices throughout the war effort, lashed out at employers and attempted to make gains for workers. In Seattle, a general strike paralyzed the city in 1919.

Fears of Socialism, Unrest, and Revolution.

The “Wobblies”: I.W.W. The Socialist Party

Warren G. Harding

“The Return to Normalcy”

Charles Forbes, Chairman of the Veteran BureauDuring the Presidency of Warren G. Harding, corruption was rampant. Charles Forbes, of the Veteran’s Bureau, accepted bribes and embezzled close to $200 Million intended for WW I veterans.

The Teapot Dome Scandal

During the Teapot Dome Scandal, Secretary of the Interior Albert T. Fall was convicted of leasing out the United States Oil Reserves located at Teapot Dome, WY and Elk Hills, CA to major oil companies – and pocketing the money for himself. He stole $400,000.

The Passing of Warren G. HardingSadly, Warren G. Harding died in 1923 of a sudden and unexpected heart attack. When he passed away, the record of his administration was poor: scandals and corruption left many Americans disillusioned. He was succeeded by “Silent” Calvin Coolidge.

Disarmament

The United States foreign policy “between the wars” is often considered isolationist. However, there were several attempts made at international agreements to reduce the size of World Powers’ armies and navies.

Disarmament, or the deduction or limitation of military armaments, was pursued by the United States and other nations in the 1920s. Unfortunately, the trend did not catch on in Europe. When Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Francisco Franco – fascist dictators all – began rebuilding their militaries and lashing out at weaker nations in African and the Europe, the military arms race started again.

The Washington Naval Arms ConferenceAlso known as the Five Power Treaty, this agreement between the United States, England, France, Italy, and Japan resulted in limitations on the size of all of the countries’ naval forces.

The Kellogg-Briand Pact

CommunismCommunism is an economic and political system in which the government (or the state) owns all of the means of production (land, labor, and capital) and a single party, (the Communist Party, the People’s Party, etc…) rules without any opposition.

The USSR crushed all political opposition. It is believed that Joseph Stalin murdered close to 10 Million of his own people, paranoid that they would rebel against him.

The USSR was not recognized by the USA diplomatically during the 1920s. Communism and totalitarian rule were anathema.

Famine Struck the USSR in the 1920s due to their brutal five year agricultural plans. Americans sent wheat to the Soviet Union.

Anarchists

Anarchists, Communists, “Reds,” Socialists, and Union Leaders were hunted down and deported during the Palmer Raids.

Nicola Sacco & Bartolomeo Vanzetti

Sacco and Vanzetti were executed. So little evidence was presented against them at trial that it was assumed the men were condemned to die simply because they were immigrants and radicals.

Restrictions on Immigration

Immigration Act of 1924

These laws restricted immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe, and practically ended all immigration from Asia – China, Japan, and Indian immigration in particular.

Immigration Act of 1929