APUSH 1920’s

red scare

fear of the new immigrants, from South Eastern Europe, and communism; partly a reaction to the Russian revolution

harding scandals

many of the people Harding put in office behaved corruptly and were put in jail later

Prohibition

the prevention by law of the manufacture and sale of alcohol between 1920 and 1933; wanted to eliminate drunkenness

The ‘new woman’

flappers, rebellious, bold, energetic, smoked, cut their hair, but important things (economy, jobs, politics) didn’t change

KKK

5 million members, held political power in several states, popularity expanded beyond the South, against everyone different than them (not just blacks)

tariffs and international trade

tariffs were raised to protect Americans from foreign competition, but this forced Europe to raise tariffs too, which made it harder for the US to trade internationally

restriction acts

(1921 and 1924) created to favor old immigrants over new immigrants; based the number of immigrants let into the country on number of people from that area already in the US; 1921 let in 3% based on a later census; 1924 let in 2% based on an earlier census

Scopes Trial

John Scopes was accused of purposely teaching evolution in a public school in Tennessee, which broke a state law; he was found guilty and fined

Leopold and Loeb Case

teenagers Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold were tried for murder; their lawyer Clarence Darrow pleaded for 12 hours against the death penalty; "one of the most eloquent attacks on the death penalty ever delivered in an American courtroom"; they were eventually sentenced to life in prison

Socco/Vanzetti Trial

Italian immigrants convicted of murder without solid evidence, mostly because they were anarchists

Movies

movie theaters were being created in many towns; many Americans frequently went to see movies; movie industry became big

Radio

large networks were developed that helped broadcast radio programs to multiple stations

Aimee Semple McPherson

fundamentalist; founded the Foursquare Church; pioneer in the use of modern media, especially the radio, for preaching

Andrew Mellon

secretary of the treasury, created large tax cuts for the wealthy; promoted wealthy inequality

Charles Lindbergh

made the first solo nonstop flight from Ney York to Paris; thought of as a hero and celebrity

Model T

Ford car; used the assembly line; massed produced, more available to the average person

Golden age of sports

Large crowds gathered to watch sporting events for the first time (baseball, boxing, golf, etc.)

Stock Market

stock prices increased in the early 20’s; people bought shares in hopes of being able to sell them for an even higher price to other people and make a profit; people borrowed on "margin" to buy them, meaning they only had to pay a small amount of money and could borrow the rest; prices began to decline in September 1929; people rushed to sell their stocks on Black Thursday, Oct. 24; Big banks tried to save it, but couldn’t; prices fell again on Black Tuesday

Themes

Disillusionment, prosperity, intolerance, conservatism, new morality, fundamentalism, materialism

disillusionment

condition or fact of being disenchanted

prosperity

being successful/prosperous

intolerance

not tolerant of others’ views/beliefs

conservatism

The inclination to maintain the existing or traditional order

new morality

rapid social change

fundamentalism

set of religious beliefs including traditional Christian ideas about Jesus Christ; the belief that the Bible was inspired by God and is literally true

materialism

desire for wealth and material possessions with little interest in ethical or spiritual matters

Palmer Raids

attempts by the US Department of Justice to arrest/deport anarchists; led by Attorney General Mitchell Palmer

1920 election

Harding vs. Cox, Harding won by a lot, statement about what the people thought about the outgoing Democratic president (Wilson); issues included the league of nations, strikes, race riots, etc.

1924 election

Coolidge (republican), Davis (democrat), La Follette (progressive); Coolidge won by a lot; he had been given credit for the great economy after Harding died; both Coolidge and Davis campaigned for limited government, reduced taxes and less regulation, while La Follette said the opposite

1928 election

Hoover (republican) vs. Smith (democrat); Coolidge chose not to run; Hoover won; republicans were associated with good economy; Smith received anti-catholic prejudice; Hoover won in a landslide

Ohio Gang

Harding appointed all his good friends, who ended up going behind his back and behaving corruptly

Teapot Dome

bribery incident while Harding was president

Albert Fall

leased Navy petroleum reserves to private oil companies without competitive bidding

Harry Sinclair

owner of Mammoth Oil, who the oil production rights were leased to; lease terms were favorable to the oil companies

Charles Forbes

appointed the first Director of the Veteran’s Bureau by Harding; he was a favorite of Harding’s; convicted of conspiracy to defraud the US government and sent to jail

Gangsterism

the selling alcohol went to the black market; became a way for gangs to make money that was then used for criminal behavior

Speakeasy

illegal liquor store or bar

19th amendment

gave women the right to vote, but little changed for them politically or economically; even though they could vote, many didn’t

Talkies

movie with sound

Jazz Singer

first talkie feature film presented; marked the decline of silent films and incline of talkies

KDKA/Pittsburgh

one of the first modern radio stations; featured musical performances and live broadcasts

Frank Lloyd Wright

architect, interior designer, writer and educator

farm economy

not very prosperous to begin with; prices for crops kept going down, but living and working costs for farmers remained the same; many went into debt

Great Migration

lots of blacks moved out of the South to the Northeast, Midwest, and West, hoping to find better jobs and opportunities

Harlem Renaissance

"New Negro Movement"; New York; influenced black writers, musicians and artists

Langston Hughes

writer/poet and social activist; jazz poetry; tried to depict the real life of blacks in his work; criticized the divisions and prejudices based on skin color

Jazz

spread from New Orleans to Chicago, New York and other cities; was a way for blacks to present themselves as successful to whites; "new negro"

WEB DuBois

integration into white society, NAACP and Urban League wanted to improve the image of the African American

Marcus Garvey

separatist, good at speaking in front of people, wanted to build a strong black community, "Africa for Africans" o UNIA: Universal Negro Improvement Association

critics/supporters of prohibition

conservatives were in favor because they thought younger people were straying from tradition; materialists/younger people were against it

Billy Sunday

fundamentalist, preacher

Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis

satire of American culture, society and behavior; criticizes middle-class America and conformity

the Lost Generation

phrase made known by Hemingway; directed towards the generation who were a part of WWI; authors included themselves in this, including Hemmingway, Fitzgerald, etc.