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Reasons For Imperialism
One reason for Imperialism was that American exceptionalism and Social Darwinism taught that white Protestant races deserved to rule, that they were the “fittest” and therefore had not only a right but a responsibility, to take over the world to help other cultures adopt democracy. Another reason for imperialism was The Influence of Sea Power the US needed to have a two-ocean navy, coaling stations around the world, and a canal across Central America to expand national power and gain market. -
The Spanish American War
Causes: The destruction of the U.S. battleship Maine in the Cuban harbor of Havana led to a declaration of war against Spain two months later. Growing U.S. economic, political, and military power, especially naval power, contrasted with waning Spanish power over its far-flung colonies, made the war a relatively short-lived conflict.
Effect: The United States emerged from the war as a world power, with control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Guam. -
Theodore Roosevelt’s Big Stick Diplomacy
Teddy Roosevelt as president initiated the Roosevelt Corollary, declaring that the US would be the policeman of the Western Hemisphere, backed up by the “big stick” of the Navy for the next thirty years the US military would invade different Latin American and Caribbean countries to impose “order". Roosevelt backed Panamanian independence to secure the Panama Canal zone. -
Theodore Roosevelt’s Square Deal
Theodore Roosevelt's Square Deal provided a lot of control over big businesses and helped protect consumers from mistreatment. Some acts that occurred around this time included the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act. -
Beliefs of the Progressives
Progressives believed in the government having an active role to regulate and restrain the ills of capitalism and modern society; they also believed in experts, who would research a social problem like a scientist in the lab: gather information about the problem, then propose a solution based on the real facts; by employing experts, the government could be made more efficient like in the replacement of political machines by the city manager system, to run government like a business. -
Causes of the War In WWI
Wilson first was neutral but was unable to ensure that neutral trading rights were acknowledged by the Allies and Central Powers. Both sides seized or even destroyed American ships claiming neutrality and set up blockades on one another. Germans' new submarines declared any ships entering the blockade would be destroyed on sight. Lusitania, a British passenger liner, that held 128 Americans, was sunk and destroyed for entering the German blockade of GB. -
African Americans in the Progressive Era
African Americans were faced with consistent racism in the form of segregation in public spaces and disenfranchisement from the political process. To counter these injustices, African American reformists also emerged to expose and then fight for equal rights in the United States. Washington argued that African Americans should learn trades that would offer them the opportunity to be progressive citizens. -
Effects of the War
As many as 8.5 million soldiers and some 13 million civilians died during World War I. The map of Europe changed forever as territories were divided among the victorious Allied powers. The United States emerged as a world power. The growth of nationalism in central and eastern Europe set the foundation for World War II. The Germans were considered the main losers of the war and were dealt with relatively heavy punishment. -
Consumerism
The twenties saw an enormous expansion of consumer culture, as buying on credit increased purchases of household goods: vacuum cleaners, refrigerators, and radios. washing machines, etc. Automobiles replaced the railroad as the preferred transportation, freeing Americans to travel where they wished cars led to the middle class moving outside cities to suburbs [exploded after WWII. -
African Americans
Marcus Garvey and UNIA (Universal Negro Improvement
Association) advocated black separatism, and created the Black Star steamship to return blacks to Africa; Garvey and Harlem Renaissance promoted pan- Africanism and celebration of black culture (opposed by KKK) -
American Society
Women's suffrage was achieved in the 19th amendment
the sexual revolution of the 20s challenged traditional images of women (thin became in for the very first time) and appropriate dress (legs and shoulders shown for the first time) as well as appropriate behavior (flappers challenged the status quo on drinking and sex and smoking. -
Immigration during the ‘20s
Immigrants, as most of the studio heads, were Jewish-Americans; many stars were immigrants, from Charlie Chaplin to Greta Garbo to Rudolph Valentino to Marlene Dietrich; Hollywood became a magnet for migrants looking to become movie stars or work in the movies. -
Effects Of The Great Depression
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insures deposits in banks. FDR pulled us off the gold standard, so the Federal government could not lower the interest rates. The commission regulates the stock market, sets rules for stock purchases, and investigates insider trading. National Industrial Recovery Act established the National Recovery Administration) set up private associations in hundreds of different kinds of industries to set prices and production rates. People slowly got employed. -
Causes of the Great Depression
As banks ran out of money the money supply stopped circulating. Federal Reserve did not supply"free/easy" low-interest loans to individuals or banks
Germans couldn't pay reparations to GB/Fr because of bank failures, and GB/Fr did not pay back the US. Countries began to put up protective tariffs, stopping world trade. People were unemplyment. -
The New Deal
Social Security Act proposed that old people should retire to give their jobs to younger workers; in exchange, the government would provide them with retirement. Revenue Act of 1935 called for the 100% taxation of all income over a million dollars. Wagner Act recognized the right of workers to organize into unions and strike. FDR’s loss in the court-packing scheme, and the Roosevelt Recession, led conservative southern Democrats to ally with republicans and corporations to block more New Deal. -
Critics of the New Deal
Supreme Court overturned a number of New Deal programs as unconstitutional because the federal government was not allowed to regulate matters within the states. -
Causes of the WWII
Following World War I, the victorious Allied Powers
met to decide Germany’s future. Germany was forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles. Germany had to pay for the reparation. The whole world was hit by an economic depression. In a depression, economies shrink, trade is reduced, businesses close, prices fall, banks fail, and unemployment rises. Japan felt that its expansion could be threatened by the United States military and attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. World War II had begun in Asia. -
The Home Front
Rosie the Riveter is a symbol of women taking jobs in the defense industry. African-Americans were put into segregated groups, led by white officers. Over 100 race riots broke out; the worst was in Detroit in 1943 and; Zoot Suit Riots in LA. Japanese-American internment camps authorized by FDR. -
Fighting the War
Japan was largely fought by Britain and the US formed the Atlantic Charter alliance, USSR was invited to the D-Day invasion opened up a second front, and helped turn the tide in the Allies' favor in Europe. The British development of radar, and refinement of WWI sonar, made early detection of air and submarine attacks possible. British cryptography, and the capture of the ULTRA machine, allowed the Allies to break Germany and the Japanese. -
Effects of the War
At the end of the war, only the US was untouched; the Depression was over, the population had large savings, and the economy was ready to boom; the US took over a far larger share of the world market as a result. The unconditional surrender of Japan and Germany allowed the US to remake defeated enemies into new allies; the Soviets controlled Eastern Europe. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade established the United States as the "policeman" of the seas to ensure access to free trade.