The Homefront
Morgan Fisher
Embedded Files
The Homefront
The Homefront
What was American life like from 1939-1945 regarding WWII? WWII in America was a time of struggle, loss, and change. Those who weren't at war were at home, growing extra crops and taking on new jobs to help take the places of those gone. There were riots and discrimination, lives lost and lessons learned. The period of time between 1939 and 1945 were rough, ugly years, but was years that brought us forth into the lives we live now.
What did life look like for women during WWII? Women stayed home. They were encouraged to grow more vegetables to help with rationing, and many took up jobs to help fill men’s shoes. This was a time of change for women. Centuries of restrictions on jobs they could have were lifted, women were now encouraged to fill the roles of the men who were off at war. Jobs included working to build weapons and war supplies, working in factories, playing sports, and more. The main source of news was through the radio, movie theaters began showing newsreels from the war, and war songs became increasingly popular. Life for those not at war was drastically different, as women began taking on jobs and society adjusted to the new changes.
What was Japanese internment during WWII? On February 19th, 1942 President Roosevelt set an executive order 9066 in place that established internment camps for Japanese people. The order was in effect from 1942 to 1945. The camps forced people of Japanese descent, regardless of citizenship, into isolation camps, mostly as a result of the Pearl Harbor attacks. He wanted to prevent the possibility of Japanese spies. In the end, over 120,000 people were impacted, most of which people were American citizens. It started on the day after Pearl Harbor when the FBI gathered 1,291 Japanese Americans and arrested them without evidence. These people were then moved to prison camps across many different states, and most of them were not able to contact family members. On March 24th, anyone who was 1/16th Japanese or more was forced to evacuate, after only six days of notice. They could only bring what they could carry. How did it end? The final camp was closed in March of 1946. President Ford repealed the executive order in 1976, and in 1988 the Civil Liberties Act was passed, granting $20,000 to over 80,000 Japanese Americans. Of course, this didn’t make up for the great impact and devastation that the camps caused, and the significance of the event is still huge today.
What were the Zoot Suit Riots in Los Angeles during WWII? Zoot Suits were suits that included padded shoulders and wide lapels, along with cuffed pants and watch chains. Zoot Suits were very popular and were even called “the only totally and truly American civilian suit”. They gained a racist reputation as the African American and Mexican American communities adopted them, along with other minority groups. As the war began, essential materials such as silk and wool were restricted, making it illegal to create the suits as they required so much material. Some companies kept making them anyway. The summer of 1943 is when the tensions began to grow. On May 31st, a U.S. sailor was beaten by a Mexican American. This began the riots. On June 3rd, 50 sailors from the U.S. Naval Reserve Armory had a march through Los Angeles carrying clubs and other weapons and attacking anyone in Zoot Suits or other clothing that was associated with Mexican American or African American identities. The riots spread across California cities, until June 17th. On June 17th, several thousands of soldiers marched through the streets of downtown LA, killing and injuring everyone in a Zoot Suit that they could find. The police took little action, mostly taking interest in the Latino people who fought back. The next day, LA banned Zoot Suits.
Overall, American life during the war involved everyone. Those who were left to work from home got jobs and grew extra crops. Tensions between the Japanese and the U.S. led to a tragic few years of Japanese internment. Racism led to riots and many deaths and injuries for African American and Mexican American people. The time of WWII in America was chaotic and messy. Women were allowed to do things they’d been fighting to do for years, but racism was deep and dangerous. American life during WWII was unlike anything the country had ever seen before.
Berit Maute
The image is from recruiting soldiers to the United States army. This was an advertisement for the army and had the goal to make the army more appealing to those who did not wish to apply. The creator of this poster was Crandell Bradshaw, who created it in the United States, and created this poster from Cosmopolitan magazine. The poster served as propaganda for the United States Army, and to convince women that joining the army would not deprive them of their femininity. This image hoped to aspire to the continued familiarity of women’s commercial images. This also supported the government in their claim that occupations during wartime were not permanent, and would not change the women or their role. This image depicts a typical 1940s American woman, with an average figure, and white skin. The hair doo is typical for the time period and seen across the country in women. The female is standing in front of the American flag in an army suit. The headline states “Are you a girl with a Star-spangled heart?”, and “Join the WAC now”. These are the slogans the government used to encourage women to join the army corps. The value of this image is great as this shows the American propaganda used to encourage women to join the army. The image symbolizes the patriotic colors of the United States, and shows the glamor of joining the US army. The limitations of this poster is it’s bias, as it shows only the benefits perceived from joining the army, furthermore it does not include testaments from women in the army. It also fails to support its claim and message, though these are hard to do when considering it is a poster. Overall it is a good representation of the propaganda faced by the women during the Second World War.
Morgan Fisher
This image originated in the 1940s and was a piece of American war propaganda encouraging people to buy war bonds. The purpose was to encourage people to buy war bonds. Because it costed so much money, the government asked people to buy war bonds. War bonds were an investment that helped fund the war and helped Americans financially. People would buy a war bond, then the government would use the money to fund the war. After ten years, the people could redeem the war bond and even get a little more money than they originally paid. Each $25 bond costs $18.75, meaning that for each bond people get back $6.28. The more bonds people bought, the more money they got back. This poster contains muted brown tones depicting the war and a large, colorful image of Uncle Sam in American gear pointing at those viewing the poster. In bold letters at the bottom it says “Buy War Bonds”, making the message of the poster clear. This photo is valuable as it is a primary source and depicts a little of what life was like during the war. It shows what people were being encouraged to do, and where society placed its value. The propaganda shows things that helped to persuade society to take action. This photo is limited in that it only appeals to those who are patriotic and may have even persuaded a more republican audience than appealing to all. It also fails to explain how to buy war bonds, making it potentially easier for people to see the poster and move on, not wanting to take the time to figure out how to buy the war bonds themselves. Though it is colorful, the dull background makes it harder to grab attention as only the center of the poster is colorful. This photo is a great piece of American propaganda and is a primary source from the 1940s. It portrays the way that society worked, and also shows how valuable war bonds were, how much everyone’s participation in war in whatever way possible was worth it. Overall this is a significant piece of propaganda that encouraged people to buy war bonds and allows us to see what American life was like during the 1940s and WWII.
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