Chp 25 Identifications

FDR and the Good Neighbor Policy

● Background Info: During the Great Depression, FDR put US economic interests
foremost and showed little interest in international economic cooperation.
● However, in Latin America, FDR did adopt the “Good Neighbor” policy and signed a
formal convention that “no state has the right to intervene in affairs of another.”
● FDR withdrew troops; urged US banks to loosen their hold on Haiti’s banking system;
renounced the Platt Amendment; reduced US intervention in Panama; helped
Batista (Cuba) indirectly rather than through military; and conceded Mexico’s right
to nationalize companies, settling for economic compensation.
● The Good Neighbor Policy did not change prevailing views nor ended intervention,
but made relations better. Better relations would help later in WW2 and Cold War.

Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, and Fascism

● Mussolini and his Fascist party seized power as early as 1922 as Italy’s economy lay
in ruins. He suppressed dissent, imposed one-party rule, and launched offensives to
Ethiopia and Albania in the 1930s.
● Likewise, Hitler’s National Socialist (Nazi) Party made use of hard times and
resentment of the Treaty of Versailles to gain strength. Hitler was named
Chancellor in Jan 1933 and imposed a brutal dictatorship and “purification” of Jews.
● Violating the Treaty of Versailles, Hitler re-militarized the Rhineland, proclaimed an
Anschluss (union) with Austria, and took back Sudetenland (Czechoslovakia).
● France, Britain, and US murmured their disapproval, but appeased Hitler. The
Munich Pact (1938) acknowledged Germany’s claim to Sudetenland and was
praised in the US for having avoided war.

Beginnings of Japanese Expansionism

● In Japan, a militarist govt. came in and launched expansion campaigns to gain the
raw materials needed for heavy industry.
● Japan, by 1939, had gained control of Manchuria as well as large parts of China
after a war in 1937. Weak protests from the US had little impact.

The American Mood and the Gathering Storm (~1939)

● Background Info: By the 1930s, most Americans agreed that their entry into WW1
was a mistake that should never be repeated.
● The feeble responses to aggression reflected American sentiment of avoiding another
“mistake” war entry. FDR responded by focusing on the US economy (New Deal)
and passing a series of Neutrality Acts (1935-1937).
● The Senate investigation headed by Gerald P. Nye concluded that banking interests
had tricked America into WW1. To prevent a repeat of being dragged into the war
because of financial loans, the acts also outlawed arms sales and loans.
● Some went further. Had the Ludlow Amendment (1938) been passed, a national
referendum would have been required when declaring war (except from direct
attack).
● However, tension began to build after Stalin and Hitler signed a German-Soviet
Non-aggression Pact (1939) and divided Poland amongst themselves. Britain and
France warned Hitler that they would help Poland if he attacked.
● Public opinion was largely divided, and more and more people began to lean towards
interventionism. FDR sent messages to Hitler and Mussolini (who both mocked FDR’s
messages). FDR also began to increase military production and budget in the US.

America and the Jewish Refugees

 ● Hitler began to discriminate Jews with the Nuremburg Laws (1935) and escalated
into violence in 1938 when the Nazis unleashed a frenzy of destruction against Jews
in the Kristallnacht. Jews began to leave Germany by the thousands.
● However, Americans did not sympathize with Jews, and 75% said no to increasing
the quota on immigration. This nativism became clear in 1939 when the St.Louis
with 900 Jewish refugees asked permission to dock in FL, only to be turned away and
sailed back to Germany.
● On the other hand, many prominent Jews came to America and played key roles in
developing the US. Refugees included Henry Kissinger (future Secretary of State),
Leo Szilard, James Franck, and Enrico Fermi (nuclear physicists).

War begins in Europe, “Neutrality” in America

● When Poland refused to return to Germany Danzig, Nazis stormed in.
● Two days later, Britain and France declared war on Germany.
● FDR asked for neutrality, but did not tell the people to be neutral in their minds like
Wilson had. FDR persuaded Congress to amend the Neutrality Acts to fit the
public mood of preventing a Nazi victory while staying out of war.
● The “cash-and-carry” amendment allowed belligerents to purchase arms if paid in
cash and transported on their own ships.
● But this system favoring the Allies did not stop Hitler from Blitzkrieg (lightening
war) as Germany quickly overwhelmed most of Europe, including France.
● Targeting Great Britain next, Hitler used the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) to
terrorize cities and civilians in the Battle of Britain. Britain’s new PM, Winston
Churchill, pleaded for more US aid. Americans, shocked by bombings on civilians,
wanted to accept his plea, but a large minority still insisted that war was not
American interest.

Election of 1940
● Another major speculation in 1940 dealt with the election.
● If FDR ran and was elected, he would break with tradition and become the first
president to be elected three terms. FDR only announced the day before the
Democratic convention that he would re-run. Republicans nominated an
internationalist, Wendell Willkie.
● FDR played the role of a crisis leader too busy to engage in politics by appointing
Republicans Henry Stimson and Frank Knox as secretaries of war.
● FDR signed the first peacetime draft in US history and engineered a “destroyers-
for-bases” swap with England (sent 50 ships in exchange for leases on British
bases). Although not intended to bring war, some isolationists were furious.
● Arch-conservative America First Committee isolationists (financed by Henry
Ford) and interventionists went head to head.
● Reassured by promises not to send an American boy to fight in a European war, 55%
of the voters chose to give FDR a third term!

American Intervention Sentiments

● Next, FDR proposed a “lend-lease” system, tying them financially to Britain, as in
WW1. After Hitler invaded Stalin’s USSR in 1941, FDR also allowed supplies to flow
to communist USSR. “I would hold hands with the Devil” to beat Hitler.
● FDR also allowed US Navy to help Britain track down German U-boats and kept
Greenland and Iceland away from the Nazis.
● A few months later, FDR and Churchill met and documented the Atlantic Charter
(1941), condemning aggression and affirming the right of self-determination.
● After a U-boat sank and killed 115 American civilians, FDR called Congress to permit
the arming of merchant ships. Virtually none of the Neutrality Acts remained.
Pearl Harbor (1941) and American Entry into War
● Background Info: Hitler’s triumphs in Europe encouraged Japan to expand further.
● Seeing Germany as the main danger and not having enough navy strength, FDR did
only enough to frighten off the Japanese until US could have a “two-ocean navy”.
● Both Japan and US hoped to avoid war. Japan wanted a Greater East Asia Co-
Prosperity Sphere but the US wanted to keep its Open Door Policy in China.
● Decades of “yellow peril” propaganda made the Japanese look like pushovers in
the American eye. Therefore, no one took initiative to prevent war with Japan.
● In 1940, hoping to coerce Japan out of China economically, the US banned the long-
standing trade treaty that sold aviation fuel and scrap metal to Japan.
● However, Japan responded stubbornly, signing the Tripartite Pact with Germany
and Italy. Also, with Britain occupied with Germany, Japan gambled by expanding to
gain the raw materials it needed rather than backing out of China.
● As Japan’s fuel meters dropped and the expansionist Gen. Hideki Tojo became PM,
Tojo set a deadline of first week of December as an attack on US if they did not
yield.
● The US deciphered Japan’s top diplomatic code and alerted all commanders in the
Pacific, but the US could not figure out where they would strike.
● Many expected the Japanese to continue southward and attack the Philippines, but
Japan went for the knockout punch by attacking Pearl Harbor, HI. Japan launched
simultaneous attacks on PHI, MAL, and HK.
● America, because of its own prejudices, had underestimated Japan’s skill and will.
But Japan miscalculated too, and instead of compromise, America declared war.
● Germany and Italy, as part of the Tripartite Pact, declared war on the US. US
reciprocated, launching itself into a war it was not ready for.
● By the end of 1942, U-boats had sunk over 1000 Allied ships and bottled up
Chesapeake Bay for six weeks! Japan continued to expand and forced American
troops on the Philippines onto a small island. It seemed as if Germany would expand
Southeast and Japan would expand inland to meet in India before US could
intervene.

Organizing for War

● Background Info: Congress passed a War Powers Act which granted the president
unprecedented authority over all aspects of the conduct of war.
● FDR formed the Chiefs of Staff made up of representatives from the army, navy,
and air force (which grew from a minor corps to achieve virtual autonomy).
● The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) became a forerunner to CIA.
● The War Production Board (WPB) allocated materials, limited civilian goods, and
distributed contracts to manufacturers.
● The War Manpower Commission (WMC) supervised mobilization of men.
● The National War Labor Board (NWLB) mediated disputes between mgmt. and
labor.
● The Office of Price Administration (OPA) rationed scarce products and imposed
price controls to limit inflation.
● In 1942, FDR persuaded James Byrnes to leave the Supreme Court and become
“assistant president”. In 1943, he was formally appointed to head the Office of
War Mobilization (OWM) and coordinated production, transportation, and
distribution.
● By late 1942, a third of the economy was committed to war production.
● America, once the largest crude rubber importer, became the largest synthetic
rubber exporter. The US produced twice as much weapons as the Axis powers did by
 1944. The time it took America to manufacture a ship decreased from 6 months in
1941 to 2 weeks in 1943 and a day in 1945!
● The federal govt. and the executive branch became powerful as they directed such
war efforts. To encourage businesses, the govt. provided tax-cuts, subsidies, and
suspended antitrust prosecutions.

The War Economy

● The US spent more than $320b during the war (about double what it had spent since
its founding!). This stimulated the economy out of depression.
● CA, along with the West, received a lot of funds.
● New industries began to develop in the South, allowing many tenant farmers to
move to cities and take higher paying jobs. More immigrants, women, elderly, and
teens were also employed. The war years also provided the only time where income
of lower and middle classes rose while the income of upper classes decreased.
● Commercial farming became dominated by corporations, and agribusinesses became
powerful alongside businesses, govt., and organized labor.
● Labor Union membership leaped as more workers entered the work force. They were
required to join the unions, and in return, the unions limited wage increases to 15%
and agreed not to strike. They were also able to negotiate paid vacation time, health
insurance, and pension plans.
● Some wildcats decided to strike, and although some won, their victories came at a
heavy price as Congress enacted the Smith-Connally War Labor Disputes Act
(1943) over FDR’s veto. The act enabled the president to take over any facility
where strikes interrupted war production.
● Buying war bonds curtailed inflation while giving the public a sense of being a part of
a faraway war. The Revenue Act of 1942 increased taxes for the rich and imposed
income taxes on middle/lower class for the first time, increasing govt. revenue by
20x.

Scientific and Technological Wartime Developments

● FDR created the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD).
● Wartime scientific developments saw the development of the powerful atomic bomb,
the first computer (IBM’s MARK I), and improved medical drugs, antibiotics, and
insecticides. Life expectancy increased 3 years and infant mortality decreased 30%.
● Improvements instilled faith that science and money could overcome all obstacles.
● (continued below)

J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project

● No scientific project was more important than the Manhattan Project: to develop the
atomic bomb. After Albert Einstein, a refugee from Germany, warned Roosevelt that
Germany was seeking to make a weapon of extraordinary destruction in 1939, FDR
promptly began an Anglo-American Project.
● After the first test in AZ, director Oppenheimer said he remembered the Hindu
scripture: “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.”

Propaganda and Politics

● FDR needed to sustain a spirit of unity and patriotism. He created the Office of
Censorship and suppressed information that might hinder the war effort.
● Fearful of demoralizing the public, the govt. banned photographs of American dead
until 1943, when Americans were getting overconfident.
● FDR also created the Office of War Information (OWI) and hired artists, writers,
and advertisers to depict the war as good vs. evil. Hollywood took its part in the
propaganda with movies and songs.
 ● While FDR focused on the war, Republicans gained large inroads in domestic politics
in the 1942 midterms. The conservatives abolished some New Deal agencies.
● Increasingly, the govt. managed the economy, molded the public, funded research,
and influenced lives.

The European Battlefront (1942~1944)

● The Allies agreed that Germany was the primary target, but differed in their views of
where they should attack. Stalin desperately called for a second front in the West.
● Churchill, recalling WW1 and wanting to protect the Suez Canal, wished to attack
North Africa. FDR stuck to Churchill’s side, and Operation Torch began in 1942.
The campaign was a successful Allied victory.
● The turning point of the war came in Jan 1943 as the Germans lost the Battle of
Stalingrad and USSR troops began to force Germans back out of USSR territory.
However, each side had lost more casualties than the US did in the entire war.
● Stalin again called for a second front, but the US and UK attacked Italy, where they
became bogged down. They spent 8 months inching 150 miles from Sicily to Rome.
● The Allies began to use round-the-clock bombardment, most prolifically highlighted
in the 60k dead in Dresden (Feb 1945).
● By mid-1944, the Allies were in full control. Stalin’s USSR had gained most of
Eastern Europe and set up communist govts.
● The second front finally opened in Normandy on D-Day (6 Jun 1944) and
Operation Overload went into effect. US Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower led the
Allies.
● Hitler threw his last reserves in Dec 1944 in the Battle of the Bulge, but the Allies
won, putting Europe close to the end of war.

The Pacific Battlefront (1942~1944)

● The day after the Philippines fell to Japan in May 1942, Japan and US clashed in the
Battle of Coral Sea, the first battle fought entirely by planes.
● In June 1942, the Japanese, eager to knock US out, decided to attack Midway, a key
base that lay between Asia and Hawaii. However, US Signal Corps deciphered and
anticipated the attack. Japan suffered a crushing defeat in the Battle of Midway.
● The US now advanced north through Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Admiral
Chester Nimitz, and “island-hopped” to within range of Tokyo in the fall of 1944.

FDR and the Grand Alliance

● FDR wished to win the war at the least possible cost and establish a world order
strong enough to preserve peace, open trade, and self-determination.
● FDR tried to keep the Allies together by focusing on victories and delaying postwar
settlement disputes. (UK wanted a balance of power and keep its empire, USSR
wanted a buffer zone in Eastern Europe and a permanently weakened GER)
● FDR became the first president to travel by plane in office. At Casablanca,
Morocco, he met with Churchill and proclaimed that they would fight for
unconditional surrender, partly to appease an angry USSR that wanted a second
front.
● Proceeding to Cairo, Egypt, FDR and Churchill met with Chiang Kai-Shek of China
and promised to return Manchuria and Taiwan, and make Korea independent.
● Then, the pair travelled on to Tehran, Iran, to meet with Stalin and set up
Operation Overload. Also, Stalin pledged to help defeat Japan once Germany fell.

Election of 1944
 ● FDR was forced to play on increasing conservative sentiment and dropped his VP for
a more conservative Harry S. Truman (MO), dubbed “the new Missouri
Compromise.” This re-united a dividing Democratic Party.
● Republicans also nominated a moderate, but FDR’s popularity carried him to a
narrow win, getting 53% of the national vote.
● FDR’s fourth term would not last though. Secretly suffering from hypertension and
heart disease, he directed his last energies toward defeating the Axis powers and
constructing a system of world peace.

The War and the GIs

● Sidenote: GI refers to US Army personnel and items.
● Most Americans only fought to live, and cared and knew little about the big picture.
Millions moved out of families and homes, and sharing camps helped break down
racial, ethnic, and social stereotypes and prejudices. (but at the same time
strengthened prejudice against foreigners and women)
● Every American family was impacted directly or indirectly, and many who served in
the war and lived faced psychological wounds that they would have to carry for the
rest of their lives.

The War and Women

● Over 15m moved, and 6m moved from rural to urban areas, leading to
overcrowding. Lifestyles became freewheeling as Americans left behind traditional
values.
● Absence of familiar settings and strained family relations led to high divorce rates,
mental illness, family violence, and juvenile delinquency.
● Although sexism increased, women were encouraged to enter the work force for the
first time. However, most saw this as part of their feminine duties during wartime
and expected women to return home after the war. Also, belief in women’s primary
duty of raising kids shaped resistance to child-care centers for employed women.
● On the other hand, more than 300k women joined the war as members of the
Women’s Army, Navy, and Air Force. Surprisingly, they were given the same
rewards and privileges as men who served in the war.
● Songs such as “Rosie the Riveter” symbolized women war workers, sometimes
scored and sometimes praised by male workers and supervisors.
● Overall, women gained sense of their new potential, and many refused to give up
their work after the war ended.
● Loss of students to war production forced colleges to accept more women as well.

African-Americans and the “Double V” Campaign

● Recognizing that the govt. needed loyalty and labor, black leaders called for a
“Double V” Campaign (victories over racial discrimination and the Axis).
● Membership in the NAACP multiplied 10x. Smith v. Allwright (1944) furthered
blacks’ cause by ruling all-white primaries unconstitutional.
● A new organization, Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) (1942) applied Gandhi’s
nonviolent direct action as they sought to desegregate public facilities.
● A. Philip Randolph, in his March-on-Washington, gained the compromise of FDR
as he issued Executive Order 8802, prohibiting discriminatory employment in war-
related work and establishing the Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC)
to enforce the policy.
● Overall, such action helped blacks gain ground on whites economically.
● Blacks were actually placed in combat units and the number of black officers
increased to 700. On the other hand, most of the 1m blacks remained in segregated
and discriminated service units. Some 50 black soldiers died due to racial conflicts.
 ● At home, blacks lobbied for black rights. The transformation of the racial issue into a
national problem (due to blacks migrating North) led to politicians keeping a closer
tab on blacks and offering them more incentives to vote for them.
● Also, as Americans saw the bad side of racism through Hitler, they began to look at
American race relations slightly differently.

Native Americans and the War

● More than 25k natives served in the army and the Navajo language proved a key
“code” against the Japanese. Another 50k left to the West Coast and took up
defense jobs. Many stayed there or wished to stay there, but discrimination forced
many back to their reservations which had suffered from budget cuts.
● Natives organized the National Congress of American Indians in 1944.

Mexican-Americans during WW2

● To relieve labor shortages, the US govt. negotiated an agreement with Mexico to
import braceros (temporary workers). Over 200 were guaranteed short-term
contracts, adequate wages, health care, and decent living conditions.
● But as illegal immigrants continued to flow in, farm owners were able to take
advantage of illegal immigrants, unable to complain without risking arrest.
● Much of the hostility to Hispanics focused on young “zoot suits” who were portrayed
as “nothing-but-bad” gang members and were known as pachucos.
● In a LA zoot-suit riot, sailors on leave physically abused pachucos. The police only
intervened to arrest the pachucos.
● Unlike blacks, Hispanics served in the war without segregation. Returning veterans
organized their own associations and pressed for equal veterans’ rights.

Internment of Japanese-Americans
● Following Pearl Harbor, farmers who wanted Japanese-Americans’ land and nativist
politicians combined to force FDR into signing Executive Order 9066, authorizing the
removal of anyone deemed a threat from military areas.
● Japanese-Americans were forced to sell their lands at low prices and forced onto
relocation centers enclosed by barbed wires.
● Few Americans protested. In the Korematsu Case (1944), the Supreme Cort
upheld the constitutionality of relocation centers.
● In a special govt. report in 1982 called Personal Justice Denied, the govt.
apologized for a “grave injustice”. In 1988 Congress voted to give $20k to surviving
internees. In 1998, Bill Clinton gave the highest civilian honor to Mr. Korematsu for
protesting the relocation all the way to the Supreme Court.

The Yalta Conference (Feb 1945)

● Background Info: By this time, the USSR had penetrated into Eastern Europe and lay
just 50 miles from Berlin. In contrast, US and UK forces were just recovering from
the Battle of the Bulge and faced stiff Japanese resistance in the Pacific.
● Dominating the scene, Stalin knew he had the luxury of deciding whether or not to
enter war against Japan. Stalin reaffirmed that he would attack Japan two or three
months after Germany’s surrender. Churchill and FDR turned their backs on China
and decided to give USSR Manchuria and territories lost in the Russo-Japanese
War.
● Unable to reach agreement on Germany, they left vague matters regarding
Germany’s post-war future. Stalin, already in much of Eastern Europe, promised to
hold democratic elections in those nations. Many of them became communist
nations.
 ● Stalin turned Poland into a pro-communist buffer zone and then appeased Churchill
and FDR by promising “pro-westerners” in the Polish govt. Given Stalin’s control
there already, FDR and Churchill could only hope Stalin would be faithful to his vow.
● Most importantly to FDR, the negotiators accepted a plan for a new international
organization, the United Nations (UN), beginning in SF in April 1945.

V-E Day and the Potsdam Conference (1945)

● The Allies closed in on Berlin from East and West. Churchill proposed a rapid thrust
to Berlin, but Eisenhower and FDR persuaded to advance slowly rather than risking
high casualties to an area already designated for USSR.
● On Apr 12, FDR fell unconscious, and died with a cerebral hemorrhage. On Apr 25,
the Red Army met with the GIs and on Apr 30, Hitler committed suicide as Soviets
reached Berlin on May 2. A new German govt. surrendered unconditionally on May
8.
● Americans celebrated V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day), but Truman’s
unpreparedness led to deteriorating Soviet-American relations. Hopes of UN
becoming a new international order diminished as the UN became a diplomatic
battleground.
● Barely able to agree on anything in the Potsdam Conference that continued post-
war agreements begun at Yalta, most of the issues were postponed and left to the
Council of Foreign Ministers. Military power would determine the world leader.

The Holocaust
● When news of the Holocaust (Nazi’s extermination of Jews) first reached American in
1942, most denied the claims. American Jews’ plea to bomb death camps fell on
deaf ears due to anti-semitism, worry of influx Jew immigrants, and Britain’s want to
appease Arabs (competing with Jews in Palestine).
● What could have been done remains uncertain. When Eisenhower liberated his first
death camp and sent for American media to make sure that such experience would
never be forgotten, Americans finally realized the extermination of over 6m Jews was
no myth but a grave reality.

The Potsdam Declaration, atomic bombs, and Japanese surrender

● After gruesome battles, Americans entered Iwo Jima and Okinawa, places crucial
to attacking the mainland. But a 35% casualty rate, Japan’s stubborn resistance,
and their 2m army and 5k kamikaze aircrafts led experts to estimate that American
deaths would exceed 1m if they attacked Honshu (main island of Japan).
● Japan rejected the Potsdam Declaration that warned Japan to surrender
unconditionally or face “utter destruction” (referring to the atomic bombs).
● On Aug 6, the first atomic bomb plunged into Hiroshima. 60k died due to the
bomb, and a further 70k died later with burns and radiation poisoning.
● On Aug 8, Stalin declared war on Japan. On Aug 9, the Allies dropped another bomb
on Nagasaki. On Apr 14, Japan finally accepted American terms of surrender.
● Some historians have questioned the US resorting to atomic bombs and point to
American racism towards the Japanese as the reason for the decision. On the other
hand, the bomb, originally planned for Germany, could have been dropped there too,
had the technology been made available by their surrender.
● Others argue that Japan was ready to surrender and the bombs were unnecessary.
● The largest number of historians point to Truman’s worsening relations with USSR.
Truman could have ordered the bombing to stop Stalin from intervening in Asia,
while showing him the destructiveness of the bomb to win concessions in Eastern
Europe.
 ● But the largest reason is probably the fact that the US did not want to lose any more
lives and that they had a weapon they could use (in which they had invested $2b).

© 2011 SeungJoon Sung

Disclaimer: I take no responsibility for any wrong information that may be present.