WorldWorldWarWar

IIIIThe

Homefront

What is thisWhat is thisposterposter’’ss

message?message?

PropagandaPropaganda

What is thisposter’s

message?Why?

What is theWhat is theimplication inimplication in

this poster?this poster?

What will happenWhat will happento this sweet,to this sweet,

innocent family ifinnocent family ifthey donthey don’’t buyt buy

war bonds?war bonds?

Is it effective?Is it effective?Why?Why?

A BLUEBLUE star showed others that yourfamily had a soldier(s) in the war. Many

families had more than one soninvolved in the war effort.

Families who sent “boys” to war placed a BLUEBLUEstar in their windows. When a solider died for

his country the star turned GOLDGOLD.

Your Response

Do you think we should issue blue and

gold stars for the Iraq and Afghanistan

wars? Why or why not?

What propaganda have you noticed in

connection with the Iraq and Afghanistan

wars? (The Israeli-Hezbollah)

Victory GardensVictory Gardens

Food was scarce, so growing yourown food aided the war effort

and provided needed food.

Victory Gardens

• Why would it be important to grow your own

food during wartime?

• Why do they call the gardens, “Victory

Gardens”?

• How are they trying to persuade people? Is it

effective? Why?

WomenWomenjoin thejoin the

warwarefforteffort

Factory Jobs:Factory Jobs:Supplying aircraft and weaponry

WeldingWeldingairplanes forairplanes forthe the ““boys.boys.””

Women in the War Effort

• Why would they have to persuade women to

go to work? Did many women work prior to

WWII?

• What happened to the women in the work

force when the men returned from war?

““ScrapScrap”” Drives: Metal, Drives: Metal,Tin, Paper, RubberTin, Paper, Rubber

The metal collected from scrap metal drives was

melted down to make airplanes, ships, guns, and

weapons. Rubber from tires, inner tubes, and

shoe soles was recycled to make tires for military

vehicles.

Rubber tires and inner tubes, metal objects, and

newspaper, were some of the most sought after

resources. Other collectibles were rags, string,

cooking grease and fat, and used nylon or silk

stockings. Clubs, schools, churches, and

community organizations often sponsored activities

and “drives” to collect these materials.

Throughout the country, schools instructedchildren on what materials they should helpgather. Young people became “junior army

commandos,” as they scoured their attics, cellars,alleys, and neighborhoods for “scrap.” Their

contributions would then be dropped off at schoolor other neighborhood collection sites.

The Victory Program did more than just help tosolve an economic problem for the United Statesduring the 1940s.

It joined the nation together with social activitiesand events which helped to raise the spirits of allAmericans during troubled times.

Women saved their cooking grease and oiland took it to a collection site. There itwould be poured into barrels and sent torendering plants, where it would be madeinto fuel oil used in the factories whichmade weapons and supplies for the war.They also saved old nylon and silkstockings, which could be made into militaryparachutes, towropes, and gunpowder bags.

— President Roosevelt asks Americans to support a totalwar during his annual message to Congress, January 6, 1942

“Scrap” Drives

• What happened during WWII that citizens hadto collect rubber, silk, newspaper, etc?

• What is rationing? Why would thegovernment institute that?

• Do you think we should have gas rationingtoday during the “war on terror” in order toforce prices down? Why?

War Bonds: to fund WWIIWar Bonds: to fund WWII

The local branch of the Citizens Service Corps asked residents to donate oldpots and pans to make war planes. Unfortunately, aluminum lacked the

strength needed for airplane construction. The government melted downmuch of the aluminum to make new kitchen utensils.

Local residents collected and scrapped all kinds of materials includingmetals, paper, cooking fat, and rubber. Appletonians alone collected1,540,818 pounds of paper and 576 tons of tin during the war.

Silk Stocking were rationed because the silk wasneeded for parachutes, etc. Women “painted” on

stockings, including the seam in the back!

A young boydoes his partto defend thehomefront bypulling down

a blackoutshade

Image courtesy of National Archives andRecords Administration.

A couple nails a blackout curtain over thewindow.

Image courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration.

Female air raid wardens line up andprepare for work.

Image courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration.

Black outs

• Of what were they afraid that they blacked out

their windows?

• For what were the air raid wardens looking?

• How close did the enemy ever come to our

borders?

A woman posts a Victory Home posterin her window.

Image courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration.

1942:1942:

KarylKaryl Goldsmith Goldsmith’’s father,s father,Karl Neuwerth, in World War IIKarl Neuwerth, in World War II

1942: 1942: KarylKaryl Goldsmith Goldsmith’’s mother, Carolyns mother, CarolynWoodward, and her sistersWoodward, and her sisters

RationRationBooks:Books:Victor and

Gladys Jordahl,Goldsmith’s

aunt and uncle

Chinook,Montana

September 1943

A Ration Book: InstructionsInstructions

Ration Coupons bought butter, eggs, milk,gasoline, meat, silk stockings, etc.

ZootZoot-Suit Riots-Suit Riots

• The zoot suit was one part of the jazz world that visually defied the norms ofsegregation. Unwritten rules demanded that people of color remain unseen andunheard in public spaces, but the zoot suit, with broad shoulders, narrow waist, andballooned pants, was loud and bold. Zoot-suited young men (and some youngwomen) held themselves upright and walked with a confident swagger that seemed toflow from the very fashion itself. As the Sleepy Lagoon murder trial of 1942, involvingmostly Mexican American young men, proved, this particular demographic, zoot-suited or not, came to be singled out and associated with criminality and gangsterismby Los Angeles authorities.

• In a time of war, when social boundaries were rapidly changing, questions ofallegiance and conformity became invested with particular significance. ManyAngelenos objected to the zoot suiters -- including, incidentally, older generations ofMexican Americans, whose communities were traditional, conservative, and self-contained. Critics saw Mexican American youths as cultural rebels and delinquentswho openly defied cherished American values and customs.

• In 1943 the committee issued its report; it determined racism to be a central cause ofthe riots. At the same time, Mayor Fletcher Bowron came to his own conclusion. Theriots, he said, were caused by juvenile delinquents and by white Southerners. Racialprejudice was not a factor.

Assignment

• Summarize the Zoot-suit Riots. What was the

conflict? Why?

• What did they hope to achieve? Did they

achieve it?

• Can you trace any residual influence to today?

March on Washington in 1941March on Washington in 1941

The threatened March onWashington in 1941prompted PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt toissue Executive Order 8802,stating that there should be"no discrimination in theemployment of workers indefense industries orGovernment because ofrace, creed, color, or nationalorigin." The Committee onFair Employment Practiceswas established to handlediscrimination complaints.

Pearl Harbor: Pearl Harbor: DorieDorie Miller Miller

On December 7, 1941, during theJapanese attack on Pearl Harbor, MessAttendant Doris "Dorie" Miller came

to the aid of his shipmates on theU.S.S. West Virginia, helping to move

the injured out of harm's way,including the mortally wounded

captain. Though untrained in its use,Miller also manned an antiaircraft

machine gun, downing severalJapanese planes before being orderedto abandon the sinking ship. Miller'scourage and devotion to duty at Pearl

Harbor earned him the Navy Cross, thefirst ever awarded to an African

American sailor.

Assignment

• Why was there a March on Washington?

• Who was Dorrie Miller and why is he

important historically?

Navajo Code TalkersNavajo Code Talkers

After the war, however, Japan's own chiefof intelligence admitted there was one codethey were never able to break— the Navajocode used by the Marine Corps. This is thestory of that code and the men who made itwork for the Marines.

As Americans and Japanese troopsfought island to island in the Pacificduring World War II, the Japaneseused their considerable skill as codebreakers to intercept many messagesbeing sent by American forces.

Assignment

• How did the Navajo Code Talkers help the US

win WWII?

• Why is this an important historical event,

besides the fact that they aided our win?

Assignment

• Choose one of the preceding four propaganda

posters and explain its goals completely.

• Analyze whether or not the goals were met

(ie: was the poster effective? Is it still?)

• How is the poster aimed at the US “home

front” specifically?

End of Unit