THE UNITED STATES IN WORLD WAR II

The U.S. helps lead the Allies to victory in World War II, but only after dropping atomic bombs on Japan. American veterans discover new economic opportunities, but also simmering social tensions.

Learning Objectives:Mobilizing for Defense

• 1. Explain how the United States expanded its armed forces in World War II.

• 2. Describe the wartime mobilization of industry, labor, scientists, and the media.

• 3. Trace the efforts of the U.S. government to control the economy and deal with alleged subversion.

Americans Join the War Effort

Selective Service and the GI• After Pearl Harbor, 5 million men volunteer for

military service• 10 million more drafted to meet needs of

two-front war

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Continued . . .

Expanding the Military• General George Marshall—Army Chief of Staff—

calls for women’s corps• Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC)—

women in noncombat positions• Thousands enlist; “auxiliary” dropped, get full

U. S. army benefits

SECTION 1: MOBILIZING FOR DEFENSE

• After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, they thought America would avoid further conflict with them

• The Japan Times newspaper said America was “trembling in their shoes”

• But if America was trembling, it was with rage, not fear

• “Remember Pearl Harbor” was the rallying cry as America entered WWII

Chapter 17 Section 1MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS

• A – How did the American response to the Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor differ from Japanese expectations?– The Japanese expected the United States

to act like a defeated nation. – Instead enraged Americans mobilized for

war.

AMERICANS RUSH TO ENLIST

• After Pearl Harbor five million Americans enlisted to fight in the war

• The Selective Service expanded the draft and eventually provided an additional 10 million soldiers

• B – What difficulties did women and minorities face in the wartime work force?– Women and minorities faced discrimination.

– Some defense plants refused to hire blacks.

– Women were not paid as much as men.

WOMEN JOIN THE FIGHT

• Army Chief of Staff General George Marshall pushed for the formation of the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC)

• Under this program women worked in non-combat roles such as nurses, ambulance drivers, radio operators, and pilots

Mobilization on the Home Front1. Selective Service SystemInstituted the draft, providing the

country with about 10 million soldiers

2. WomenThousands served in the WAAC and

other auxiliary branches; 6 million went to work in war industries.

• C – Why did President Roosevelt create the OSRD, and what did it do?– To bring scientists into the war effort;– It developed improvements in radar and

sonar, pesticides, and “miracle drugs.”– It also launched the Manhattan project to

create an atomic bomb.

Recruiting and Discrimination• Minority groups are denied basic citizenship rights• Question whether they should fight for democracy in

other countries

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continued Americans Join the War Effort

Dramatic Contributions• 300,000 Mexican Americans join armed forces• 1 million African Americans serve; live, work in

segregated units• 13,000 Chinese Americans and 33,000 Japanese

Americans serve• 25,000 Native Americans enlist

ALL AMERICANS FOUGHT

These “Golden 13” Great Lakes

officers scored the highest marks ever

on the Officers exam in 1944

Chinese American

• Francis Brown Wai (April 14, 1917 – October 20, 1944) was a captain in the United States Army and received the Medal of Honor for actions during the recapture of the Philippines from Japan in 1944.

Korean American• Colonel Young-Oak Kim (Korean:,

1919 – December 29, 2005), a highly-decorated U.S. Army combat veteran of World War II and the Korean War. He was a member of the U.S. 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team, and a combat leader in Italy and France during World War II. He was awarded 19 medals, including the Distinguished Service Cross, two Silver Stars, two Bronze Stars, three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Medal of Military Valor, a Légion d'honneur, a Croix de guerre, and (posthumously) the Korean Taeguk Cordon of the Order of Military Merit.

• PFC Guy Gabaldon• Private First Class

Guy Gabaldon was a young Marine who single-handedly persuaded more than 1,000 enemy civilians and troops to surrender.

• On August 13, 1945, 1st Lt. Oscar Perdomo – shot down four enemy

planes, the five confirmed victories made him an "Ace in a Day" and earned him the distinction of being the last "Ace" of World War II.

• Private Joseph Pantillion Martinez (July 27, 1920–May 26, 1943) born in Taos, New Mexico, was a United States Army soldier who posthumously received the Medal of Honor — the United States' highest military decoration —- for his actions on the Aleutian Islands during World War II. Private Joseph P. Martinez was the first Hispanic-American and first Coloradan[1] to receive the Medal of Honor during World War II. His posthumous award was the first act for combat heroism on American soil (other than the 15 at Pearl Harbor) since the Indian Wars.[2]

Tuskegee Airmen

• The Tuskegee Airmen is the popular name of a group of African-American pilots who fought in World War II.

The 92nd Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II.

• For his "gallant and courageous actions, at the supreme sacrifice of his own life,“ Fox was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. His widow, the former Arlene Marrow of Brockton, Massachusetts, received his medal from President Bill Clinton in a White House ceremony on January 13, 1997. On that day, Clinton also awarded the medal to six other previously neglected African American World War II veterans, including Vernon Baker, who was the only one living when awarded.

442nd InfantryGo For Broke!

• The 442nd Regimental Combat Team was the most decorated unit for its size and length of service in the history of American warfare. The 4,000 men who initially came in April 1943 had to be replaced nearly 2.5 times. In total, about 14,000 men served, ultimately earning 9,486 Purple Hearts. The unit was awarded an unprecedented eight Presidential Unit Citations.[53] Twenty-one of its members were awarded Medals of Honor.[54] Members of the 442nd received 18,143 awards,

Barney Fushimi Hajiro (September 16, 1916 – January 21, 2011)

• D – What basic problems were the OPA and WPB created to solve?– Controlling inflation, managing

shortages, and making sure that the armed forces and war industries got the resources they needed.

Mobilization on the Home Front3. Minorities More than 300,000 Mexican Americans, more than a million Africans Americans, tens of thousands of Asian Americans and Native Americans enlisted in the armed

forces.

A Production Miracle

The Industrial Response• Factories convert from civilian to war production• Shipyards, defense plants expand, new ones built• Produce ships, arms rapidly

- use prefabricated parts- people work at record speeds

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Continued . . .

A PRODUCTION MIRACLE

• Americans converted their auto industry into a war industry

• The nation’s automobile plants began to produce tanks, planes, boats, and command cars

• Many other industries also converted to war-related supplies

continued A Production Miracle

Labor’s Contribution• Nearly 18 million workers in war industries;

6 million are women• Over 2 million minorities hired; face strong

discrimination at first• A. Philip Randolph, head of Brotherhood of

Sleeping Car Porters• Organizes march on D.C.; FDR executive order

forbids discrimination

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Mobilization of Scientists• Office of Scientific Research and Development—

technology, medicine• Manhattan Project develops atomic bomb

LABOR’S CONTRIBUTION

• By 1944, nearly 18 million workers were laboring in war industries (3x the # in 1941)

• More than 6 million of these were women and nearly 2 million were minority

Mobilization on the Home Front4. ManufacturersConverted factories to production of war

goods; built and expanded shipyards and defense plants

5. A. Phillip RandolphOrganized a march on Washington that forced President Roosevelt to issue an executive order calling on employers and labor unions in defense industries to stop discriminating against workers

MOBILIZATION OF SCIENTISTS

• In 1941, FDR created the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD) to bring scientists into the war effort

• Focus was on radar and sonar to locate submarines

• Also the scientists worked on penicillin and pesticides like DDT

MANHATTAN PROJECT• The most important

achievement of the OSRD was the secret development of the atomic bomb

• Einstein wrote to FDR warning him that the Germans were attempting to develop such a weapon

• The code used to describe American efforts to build the bomb was the “Manhattan Project”

Mobilization on the Home Front6. OSRD Spurred improvements in radar and sonar;Encouraged the use of pesticides;Miracle drugs, penicillin Developed the atomic bomb

The Federal Government Takes Control

Economic Controls• Office of Price Administration (OPA) freezes

prices, fights inflation• Higher taxes, purchase of war bonds lower

demand for scarce goods• War Production Board (WPB) says which

companies convert production - allocates raw materials- organizes collection of recyclable materials

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Rationing• Rationing—fixed allotments of goods needed

by military

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TAKES CONTROL OF

INFLATION• With prices of goods

threatening to rise out of control, FDR responded by creating the Office of Price Administration (OPA)

• The OPA froze prices on most goods and encouraged the purchase of war bonds to fight inflation

WAR PRODUCTION BOARD

• To ensure the troops had ample resources, FDR created the WPB

• The WPB decided which companies would convert to wartime production and how to best allocate raw materials to those industries

COLLECTION DRIVES• The WPB also

organized nationwide drives to collect scrap iron, tin cans, paper, rags and cooking fat for recycling

• Additionally, the OPA set up a system of rationing

• Households had set allocations of scarce goods – gas, meat, shoes, sugar, coffee

Hollywood Enters WWII

Mobilization on the Home Front

7. Entertainment IndustryChurned out war-oriented propaganda films; created opportunities to escape from the grim realities of war for a few hours

8. Office of Price Administration (OPA)Fought inflation by freezing prices on most

goods; set up a system for rationing scarce goods

WWII Poster encouraging conservation

Mobilization on the Home Front

9. War Production Board (WPB)Oversaw the conversion from peacetime to

wartime production; allocated raw materials to key industries; organized nationwide scrap drives

10. Rationing Reduced consumption of energy, goods, and supplies deemed essential for the military