m

What was the outcomeof World War II?

On "D-Day," June 6,1944, the Allied army launched the massive inva-sion in France to retake Europe from the Axis powers.

Looking at Key Terms.Axis powers. Allied powers. Pearl Harbor.D-Day. Holocaust

Looking at Key Words.isolationism: a policy of

staying out of world affairs.fascism: a system of gov-

ernment ruled by a dictatorwho uses the military andracism to stay in power

.anti-Semitism: hatred ofthe Jewish people

.neutral: not taking sidesin a dispute

.draft: to require a personto enter the military

~~E3 }=

During the 1930s, most Americanswere not interested in foreign affairs.Americans

were more concerned withending the Great Depression. In 1941, allthat changed. The United States enteredWorld War II. It took four years of fight-ing before the world was again at peace.

1939. Other countries also allowed someJews to enter. However, most of the Jewsfleeing Nazi persecution had no place togo. Anti-Semitism prevented many Jewsfrom coming to the United States.

The llnite~ ~tates Joins the Fight IWhy did the United Statesjoin the Allies?

A feeling of isolationism grew in theUnited States during the 1930s.Isolationism is the belief that a countryshould stay out of world affairs. However,events in Europe and Asia would soonchange the way Americans felt.

The Axis powers By the mid-1930s, Hitler was carrying out his planof expansion. He sent soldiers into thewestern part of Germany called theRhineland. This went against the treatythat had ended World War I. ButEurope's democratic countries did noth-ing to stop Hitler.

In 1936, Germany signed a treatywith Italy. Italy also had a fascist gov-ernment. Together Germany and Italycalled themselves the Axis powers. Ashort while later, Japan joined them.

In 1938, Germany turned against twoof its neighbors. First, it took overAustria. Then, Hitler demanded thewestern part of Czechoslovakia (chek-eh-sloh- V AH-key-ah). Czechoslovakianeeded help from Britain and France todefend itself. But Britain and Francesimply gave in to Hitler.

While Germany upset peace inEurope, Japan did the same in Asia.Japan's goal was to conquer territoryand become the most powerful countryin Asia. In 1937, Japan invaded China.No country helped China.

The beginning of war The failureto stop German and Japanese invasionsfinally led to war. In September 1939,Germany invaded Poland. Britain andFrance finally declared war onGermany. World War II had begun.

Britain and France were called theAllied powers. The United States wasofficially neutral, or not on any side, atthe start of the war. However, PresidentRoosevelt supplied the Allies with warmaterial. He believed a German victorywould threaten the United States.Despite U.S. help, Germany defeated

The rise of Adolph Hitler Likemuch of the rest of the world, Germanywas hit by a depression during the1930s. Many people in Germany becamedesperate. They began to trust leaderswho promised to lift Germany out of thedepression at any price.

Adolph Hitler was just such a leader.He and the Nazi party came to power in1933. The Nazis believed in fascism.Fascism is a system of governmentruled by a dictator. Fascists use nation-alism, or excessive patriotism, to gainpower. They also use racism.

Hitler was a racist. He believed theGermans were a superior, or better,group of people. Everybody else wasinferior. Most of all, Hitler hated theJewish people. Hatred of Jews is calledanti-Semitism. Hitler blamed the Jewsfor all of Germany's problems.

Hitler's government issued laws thatdiscriminated against Jews. The Nazisarrested many Jews and put them inprisons called concentration camps.

Many Jews fled Germany. The UnitedStates allowed about 63,000 Jewishrefugees to enter between 1938 and

bna~ter 1~ 1~1

1937Japan invades China.

1944D-Day is launched.

1939WWII begins in Europe and Asia.

1945Germany surrenders. The U.S.

drops the A-bomb. Japan surrenders.

1938Germany invades Austria

and part of Czechoslovakia.

1941Japan bombs Pearl Harbor.The U.S. enters the war.

L- \!

Reading A Timeline Compare this timeline and the one in Chapter 14. WhileJapan and Germany were acting aggressively, what was happening in the U.S.?

---

destroyed most of the base and its ships.Over 2,400 Americans died.

The following day, the U.S. Congressdeclared war on Japan. Three dayslater, Germany declared war on theUnited States. The United States hadentered World War II.

France in 1940. Britain now stood aloneagainst Germany.

The German army seemed unstop-pable. It had conquered most of WesternEurope by June 1940. (See the map onpage 129.) In June 1941, Hitler's armyturned east and invad-ed the SovietUnion. Soon Germany controlled a largepart of that country.

u.s. entry into the war In Asia,Japan controlled a large part of Chinaas well as other territory. In 1941, theUnited States demanded that Japanwithdraw from China. Tension betweenthe United States and Japan increased.

Early in December, Japanese shipssecretly sailed near Hawaii. OnDecember 7, airplanes from those shipsattacked Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harborwas the main U.S. navy base in thePacific. In just two hours, the Japanese

The Allies Defeat the Axis.How did the Allies defeat the Axis?

The people of London sat quietly inunderground air-raid shelters. Suddenly

1937'I Japan invades China.

1944D-Day is launched.

1939WWII begins in Europe and Asia.

1945Germany surrenders. The U.S.

drops the A-bomb. Japan surrenders.

1938Germany invades Austria

and part of Czechoslovakia.

1941Japan bombs Pearl Harbor.The U.S. enters the war.

destroyed most of the base and its ships.Over 2,400 Americans died.

The following day, the U.S. Congressdeclared war on Japan. Three dayslater, Germany declared war on theUnited States. The United States hadentered World War II.

France in 1940. Britain now stood aloneagainst Germany.

The German army seemed unstop-pable. It had conquered most of WesternEurope by June 1940. (See the map onpage 129.) In June 1941, Hitler's armyturned east and invaded the SovietUnion. Soon Germany controlled a largepart of that country.

u.s. entry into the war In Asia,Japan controlled a large part of Chinaas well as other territory. In 1941, theUnited States demanded that Japanwithdraw from China. Tension betweenthe United States and Japan increased.

Early in December, -Japanese shipssecretly sailed near Hawaii. OnDecember 7, airplanes from those shipsattacked Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harborwas the main U.S. navy base in thePacific. In just two hours, the Japanese

The Allies Defeat the his.How did the Allies defeat the Axis?

The people of London sat quietly inunderground air-raid shelters. Suddenly

~ha~ter 1~

a loud explosion was heard. Then, theground shook. In September 1940, theGermans began bombing raids theBritish called the "London Blitz." Theraids continued until June 1941. Thecity of London was badly damaged, butnot destroyed. Most important, theNazis had not crushed the British spiritto win the war.

built fast and powerful airplanes tobomb cities. Many people were killed inthese attacks.

U.S. and British scientists developedradar to track airplanes. They came upwith sonar to find submarines. Late inthe war, Germany developed the world'sfirst jet planes and large rockets. But, in1945, the United States created themost powerful weapon ever. It was theatomic bomb.New weapons The will to win was

important. However, modern sciencealso played a great role in winning thewar. Both the Allies and the Axis usedscience to build new weapons. They

Axis victories The Axis powerswere winning the war in 1941. Theycontinued to win most battles during

Reading a Map. Name the main Axis powers. Name the main Allied powers. Whenit was at its greatest size, the Axis powers controlled territory on what continents?Where did the major Allied invasion of Europe take place?

~ ffiilc "icC:",';",-;;; c; c;c;;c;,,; ";;j;"'"l'", c:'c

1942. The Germans advanced both inthe Soviet Union and in North Mrica.

The Japanese also advanced. Theyinvaded the Philippines and conqueredparts of Southeast Asia. They also tookover many islands in the Pacific Ocean.

Nobody could stop the Japanese dur-ing 1942. However, in the spring theU.S. Navy defeated them twice in thePacific. In early 1943, the United Statesbegan driving the Japanese back.

Allied victories By the end of1942, the tide of battle turned againstGermany. In October, the British andAmericans stopped the German army inNorth Mrica. The Soviet army stoppedthe Germans at the city of Stalingrad.

D-Day By 1943, Allied forces inEurope had the advantage. Then on June6, 1944, Allied troops launched a boldplan. They crossed the English Channeland landed in France. The Allies calledJune 6, D-Day. D-Day was the largest

Reading a Map. How far east did the maximum area of Japanese control extend in1942? Give your answers both in terms of longitude and in terms of the islandsJapan did or did not control in 1942.

~

naval invasion in history. It involved overthree million soldiers.

After D-Day, Allied soldiers pushedthrough France and eastward intoGermany. Meanwhile, from deep insidetheir country the Soviets fought theirway westward.

In 1945, the Allies closed in onGermany from the east and west.However, President Roosevelt did notlive to see Germany's final defeat. Hedied on April 12. Vice President Harry STruman became the new President.Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945.

Dorie Miller was one of 1,000,000 AfricanAmericans who served in World War II. Millerwon the Navy Cross for shooting down fourJapanese planes.

The Holocaust The end of the warin Europe brought with it horrible news.During the war, the Allies had heardreports of Nazi death camps. But no onewas prepared for what Allied soldiersfound when they liberated the concen-tration camps. The Nazis had murderedsix million Jews in concentration camps.The Nazis also killed millions of otherinnocent civilians. This terrible crime iscalled the Holocaust.

News of the Holocaust shocked peopleall over the world. Today, it is importantto remember what happened in theHolocaust so it will not happen again.

Japanese surrender The waragainst Japan lasted four months afterGermany surrendered. One by one theUnited States retook the islands theJapanese had conquered in the Pacific.

The United States finally ended thewar by dropping two atomic bombs onJapan. The first bomb was dropped onthe city of Hiroshima (hir-eh-SHEE-mah) on August 6, 1945. The second onewas dropped on Nagasaki (nah-geh-SAH-kee) on August 9. The atomicbombs caused great loss of life and terri-ble destruction in Japan. Japan surren-dered on September 2, 1945. World WarII was over.

The United States needed a huge mili-tary force to fight the Axis. It had todraft millions of soldiers. When a personis drafted, he or she is required to serve

..,I~3 8F

How did Americans participate in WorldWar II?

in the military. More than 15 millionAmericans served in the U.S. military.

tIe front. Unlike African Americans,Latinos were not put in segregatedunits. Seventeen Mexican Americanswon the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Native Americans also served in thearmed forces. Among them were a groupfrom the Navajo who served as "codetalkers." Using the Navajo language,they developed a secret code theJapanese could not break. It helpedsend information over the radio to U.S.soldiers on many battlefields.

Thousands of Japanese Americansfought for the United States. You willread more about the discriminationJapanese Americans faced in Chapter 16.

Women also served in the military.More than 300,000 women served asnurses and in special women's units innon-combat jobs. The army called itsunit the Women's Army Corps (WACs).

African Americans in the militaryMore than one million AfricanAmericans served in the military duringWorld War II. More than 6,000 becameofficers. However, the military remainedsegregated.

More than 20 AfricanAmerican combat units fought inEurope. A unit of African Americanpilots flew fighter planes that protectedU.S. bombers. It shot down 400 enemyairplanes during the war.

One of this country's first heroes wasan African American named DorieMiller. He was at Pearl Harbor workingin the kitchen of a battleship. When theJapanese attack began, he ran on deckand dragged his wounded captain tosafety. Then, Miller grabbed a machinegun and shot down four planes. He wasawarded the Navy Cross for his bravery.

Other groups in World War IIMore than 500,000 Latinos served inthe armed forces. They served in everybranch of the military and on every bat-

I

How did World War II affect lifein the United States?

One way for people on the home front to help the war effort was to collectaluminum. These New Yorkers had a party to give pots and pans.

Looking at Key Terms.victory garden.Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC).zoot suit riots

such resources as food,clothing, or fuel

.bracero: a contract laborerfrom Mexico

.internment camp: aprison camp

Looking at Key Words.civilian: a person who is

not in the military.price control: the setting

of prices on certain goodsand services by the govern-ment

.ration: to portion or limit

As U.S. soldiers fought overseas dur-ing World War II, they often thought offamily and friends they left behind. Thepeople left at home also missed the sol-diers. However, there was importantwork to do on the home front. In fact,work on the home front was very impor-tant to soldiers on the battlefield.

Price controls and rationing Sofew goods were available that pricesrose. They rose so quickly that in 1942,the government set price controls.This meant that sellers could not raisetheir prices any more.

The government also introducedrationing. Rationing is when peopleare limited in how much of an item theycan buy. The goal was to make sure thateach person got their fair share.Gasoline, meat, butter, shoes, sugar,canned goods, and other products allwere rationed.

Allied soldiers won World War II onthe battlefield. But they could not havebeaten the enemy without weapons andsupplies. Millions of U.S. workers athome made all that the soldiers neededto fight a modern war. These workerscame from all groups in U.S. society.

Families during the war Familieshad to accept other hardships duringthe war. Many families moved to newcities or towns to get factory jobs. Citieslike Los Angeles, Detroit, and Seattlegrew rapidly.

Often in these and other cities, therewas a shortage of housing. Schoolsbecame overcrowded. Many had to go ondouble session. There were blackouts ofelectricity. People had to practice civildefense drills in case enemy planesbombed their cities.

These problems did not stop familiesfrom working together to help the wareffort. People grew their own food onsmall plots of land called victory gar-dens. Even people in big cities like NewYork grew victory gardens. Childrengathered tin cans and tinfoil so themetal in them could be used to makeweapons. These activities cheered peo-ple up because they felt they were help-ing to win the war.

The war and the economy TheU.S. government spent $320 billion tofight World War II. It purchased ships,airplanes, tanks, and other war sup-plies. These supplies were produced byU.S. factories. The factories in turn pro-vided jobs for millions of workers.

War spending lifted the United Statesout of the Depression. Unemploymentdropped from ten million to almostnothing. Wages went up. The income ofmost workers doubled.

For the first time in over a decade,people had money to spend. However,there often was nothing for them to buy.Factories were producing weapons andother war materials for the government.

There were shortages of things civil-ians, or those not in the military, want-ed to buy. Toasters, hair curlers, nylonstockings, and dishes were in short sup-ply. Mter 1942, there were no new carsand trucks at all! The government need-ed car and truck factories to producetanks and airplanes.

~napter 1~ 1 J a I-

1. How did war spending end theDepression?

2. What goods were rationed duringthe war?

How did Americans on the home front con-tribute to the war effort?

"Rosie the Riveter" dressed in cover-alls and carried a wrench in her hand.She became an American hero duringWorld War II. Rosie was not a realwoman, however. She was a symbol.Rosie stood for the millions of womenwho worked in war industries. Many ofthese women had never worked outsidethe home before. The working world wasa new challenge. Women met it withgreat energy.

Women at work World War II cre-ated a labor shortage. Fifteen millionmen were in the military. As a resultmillions of jobs opened up. Women filled

many of those jobs and played a crucialrole in the war effort.

About 6.5 million women joined thework force between 1941 and 1945. Manyof the new women workers took jobs infactories. They also worked for the govern-ment. By 1945, women made up morethan one third of the U.S. work force.

Often women worked in jobs tradi-tionally held by men. Some worked aswelders and in electronics. Others builtplanes and tanks. Still others drovetrucks and repaired machinery.

Working women also supported theirfamilies. A soldier's pay was not enoughfor a family. Working women whose hus-bands were not in the military gavetheir families a second paycheck. Thishelped many families to live better.

Among those who gained the mostwere African American women. Before

What role did women play in the war effortatlwme?

World War II, they often worked onfarms or as servants. After 1941, over300,000 found jobs in factories wherethey earned higher wages.

Child care However, not every-thing was rosy for Rosie the Riveter.Working women during the war facedmany problems. There were few daycare centers for their children. Usuallyfamily members cared for children. Butsometimes help from family memberswas not enough.

Working women also had problems athome. After a full day in a factory oroffice, they had to do housework. If theywere mothers, they also had to take careof children. This meant that manywomen had to do two jobs.

The role of women changed dramatically duringWorld War II. The demand for workers ledwomen to join the workforce in record numbers.Here a woman works with an acetylene weldingtorch at a U.S. Navy shipyard.Mrican Americans an~ latinos ~ontribute to

the War Effort.How did African Americans and Latinoshelp the United States win World War II?

The labor shortage created by WorldWar II opened new opportunities forAfrican Americans and Latinos.Millions moved from farms and smalltowns to cities in the North, West, andMidwest. Many made good money work-ing in war industries. However, theystill faced discrimination.

job discrimination. The United Stateswas fighting for freedom abroad. But itstill denied some of its citizens equalrights. African American leaders saidthey wanted a Double V. It meant victo-ry over enemies abroad and over racismat home.

The man who led the struggle forequality during the war was A. PhilipRandolph. Randolph was the head ofthe Brotherhood of Sleeping CarPorters. It was the most powerfulAfrican American labor organization inthe country. Randolph demanded equal-ity injobs and in the military.

Fighting for a Double V AfricanAmericans were angry about segrega-tion in the military (see page 132) and

~~apter 1~1311

One summer night in Los Angeles in1943, some white sailors complainedthat "zoot suiters" had attacked them.The following night hundreds of sailorsroamed Los Angeles. They beat upMexican Americans wearing zoot suits.Local police did little to stop the attacks.Finally, the military police were calledin to end the riot.

In 1941, Randolph began to organizea march on Washington to end discrimi-nation. He promised "ten, twenty, fiftythousand [African Americans] on theWhite House lawn." Under this pres-sure, President Roosevelt took action. InJune 1941, the President banned dis-crimination in war industries. He alsoset up the Fair EmploymentPractices Commission (FEPC) tocombat discrimination.

The FEPC had some success in stop-ping discrimination. Mrican Americansgot better jobs in defense plants. Theyalso were able to join labor unions.

They. ..built barbed-wire fencesaround the camp with a tower oneach corner with military personneland machine guns, rifles, andsearchlights. It was terrifyingbecause we didn't know what wasgoing to happen to us.

Riots However, many problemsremained. African Americans whomoved to northern cities often metanger from whites. There were tensionsover jobs and over housing. This tensionerupted into race riots in several cities.The worst riot occurred in Detroit in1943. It began as a fist fight between anAfrican American and a white man.Within hours a riot swept across thecity. It resulted in the deaths of 25blacks and 9 whites.

Many people rushed to fill factory jobsduring the war. However, there was alsoa labor shortage on the farms. Workerswere needed to tend and harvest crops.To meet this shortage, the U.S. andMexican governments set up thebracero program. Braceros were labor-ers from Mexico who worked on farmsin the United States. Beginning in 1942,braceros came to the lJnited States toharvest crops. When the harvest wasover, the braceros returned to Mexico.

Discrimination against MexicanAmericans remained, however. The so-called zoot suit riots were one exam-ple. A zoot suit was a style of dressing.It featured an oversized jacket andbaggy pants. The style was popular withmany young Latino men in the 1940s.

This was how Ben Yorita describedthe camp he and his family were takento during World War II. Yorita was not aprisoner of war captured in Europe orAsia. He was a U.S. citizen sent by theU.S. government to a prison camp. Hisonly "crime" was that he happened to bea Japanese American.

Discrimination The worst singleexample of discrimination during WorldWar II affected Japanese Americans.About 110,000 Japanese Americanslived along the U.S. West Coast. Theyhad long been the targets of discrim-ination. Many businesses refused toserve Japa~ese Americans. Japanese

1J~ ~~apter 1~

Why were Japanese Americans placed ininternment camps?

zens or not. They were forced to live incamps in other states.

American children often were left out ofschool events by their classmates.

Mter Japan bombed Pearl Harbor inDecember 1941, the pressure onJapanese Americans increased. Peoplequestioned their loyalty. Mobs attackedJapanese Americans and destroyedtheir property.

In February 1942, PresidentRoosevelt gave an order that all peopleof Japanese ancestry must leave theWest Coast. They had to leave theirhomes whether they were American citi-

Internment Once the U.S. govern-ment gave the orders, JapaneseAmericans were given little time to pre-pare. They had to sell their propertyquickly because they could take onlywhat they could carry. Often, they hadto sell everything at a very low priceand lose a lot of money.

Japanese Americans were taken toone of ten internment camps. An

Reading a Map.lt"rom what coast were people of Japanese descent evicted duringWorld War II? Which War Relocation Authority (WRA) camps were farthest east?In what state did most of the assembly centers lie? What states had the mostWRA camps?

~1E3 8F

internment camp is a prison camp. Mostof the camps were located in far-off areasin the West. Barbed wire and soldierssurrounded the camps. Each family wasgiven one room in a long building.Medical treatment was limited.

Despite this treatment, thousands ofyoung men from these camps fought inthe U.S. Army. They served bravely inmany battles. Japanese Americans ofthe 442nd Regiment earned over 18,000medals for their bravery.

In late 1945, the government closedthe camps. Japanese Americans werefinally allowed to go home. In 1988, theU.S. government admitted it hadwronged these citizens. Each survivingpersun received a $20,000 payment.However, it was a small amount com-pared to the injustice that was done.

The time: June 1942. The place: Los Angeles. AJapanese American mother waits with her chil-dren to be taken to an internment camp.

--{8[E3 F