14.2

Chapter 14Part 2 of 3

Life in the US during WWII

Battle of Midway• This is known as the turning point of the Pacific theatre.• 6 months after Pearl Harbor• Most of the fighting took place on June 4th 1942.• Japan attack to get rid of America in the Pacific• The U.S. lost one carrier vs. Japan losing four.• 362 Americans died vs. 3,057 Japanese. • It is known as “Midway” because it is midway between

Hawaii and Japan.• Japan’s industrial strength wasn’t big enough to replace all

that was lost…• America’s Navy was still growing

Japanese carrier that attacked at Pearl Harbor but was destroyed at Midway

Air attack missing a Japanese ship

American attack planes getting ready to take off during the battle.

Yorktown destroyer getting hit.

Japanese carrier sinking

And…another Japanese ship sinking

Battle for North Africa• The German forces were

commanded by General Erwin Rommel whose nickname was “Desert Fox.”

• The Allied forces were commanded by Gen. Dwight Eisenhower and Gen. George Patton.

• Fighting began on November 8th 1942 in Morocco.

• The German’s surrendered on May 13th 1943.

• Over 275,000 Axis POWs were captured

Burning German tank

Battle of the Atlantic

• German U-boats found American cargo ships to be easy targets along the American coastline because of all the city lights.

• Americans began dimming their lights at night and driving without headlights.

• In May and June of 1942 alone, Germany destroyed 1.2 million tons of cargo.

• New technology like radar, sonar, and depth charges, helped the allies to gain the upper hand in the Atlantic.

Allie Fighter Plane escorting cargo ships to England

US Robin Moor• No military equipment on board• 9 officers, 30 crew, 10 passengers • Stopped by German U-boat and was given 30

minutes to board life boats before sinking the ship• 18 days at sea before being rescued

Women In Factories• WWII created 19 million new jobs for Americans.• With the men serving in combat, women filled

the roles in factories.• 2.5 million women worked in shipyards, aircraft

factories, and other plants.• A popular cartoon symbol to hire women was

Rosie the Riveter. (see page 501)

Japanese Americans in the US• Being a Japanese American was very difficult.• February 19th 1942 FDR signed an order that would

allow for Japanese Americans to be placed in internment camps.

• Executive Order 9066 -- Law which basically gives the United States military the right to round up all Japanese Americans and send them to detention centers.

• These internment camps were just like Jewish concentration camps.

Public/Media goes Anti-Japanese

• "We're charged with wanting to get rid of the Japs for selfish reasons. We do. It's a question of whether the white man lives on the Pacific Coast or the brown men… If all the Japs were removed tomorrow, we had never miss them in two weeks, because the white farmers can take over and produce everything the Jap grows. And we do not want them back when the war ends, either.”

• Saturday Evening Post

Fear and Prejudice

• "I am for the immediate removal of every Japanese on the West Coast to a point deep in the interior. I don't mean a nice part of the interior either. Herd 'em up, pack 'em off and give 'em the inside room in the badlands. Personally, I hate the Japanese. And that goes for all of them.“– Report created for President Roosevelt

Los Angeles Times

• "A viper is nonetheless a viper whenever the egg is hatched - so a Japanese American, born of Japanese parents - grows up to be a Japanese, not an American."[

But we did let them fight for us…

• Many Japanese served in the war for the Americans. The 442nd Regimental Combat Team was the most highly decorated unit in WWII.

Detroit Race Riot of 1943

• June 20th, 1943…weather was incredibly hot• Nearly 100,000 people went swimming in a

park off the Detroit River• A group of white and black girls began

fighting…the fighting spread• Full-scale riot erupted• 25 African Americans died….9 whites

Check out the car…it belonged to a black man

Same car

Zoot Suit Riots• Zoot Suits were worn in protest of the war.• Many teenagers and Mexican Americans wore

Zoot suits.• They had baggy pants, large jacket, and a long

key chain.• Many large cities banned people from wearing

these outfits due to riots and hostility.• Zuit Suit Riots in LA were the biggest and most

violent

Chicanos beaten and stripped

Cutting Back For War• Food and products began to be limited to the

public.• Food Stamps were issued. Blue stamps were for

processed food and Red stamps were for meats. • Rubber and gasoline were also rationed. The speed

limit was set at 35 mph. • Victory gardens were established to help raise food

for the soldiers.

• Factories converting to military production needed every scrap of rubber they could find, and citizens were asked to turn in old tires, raincoats, gloves, garden hoses, and rubber shoes for recycling. New tires became almost impossible to buy, and people tell stories of lining the insides of their tires with newspaper to make them last longer.

Gas stamps…A stamps were worth 3-5 gallons per week for non-working men or women

• Paper was needed for packing weapons and equipment before they were shipped overseas. The American Legion in Chillicothe, Missouri, set up this booth to collect scrap paper.

Sugar coupons….Sugar from Asia stopped coming…

Prevented skyrocketing prices…

Each person got 48 points per month for canned and frozen goods

Home canning wasn’t restricted, and was encouraged by the government

• Women were urged to save waste fat and greases and return them to butchers. The poster on the counter in this photograph announced that the butcher would pay for the fat and sell it to rendering plants so that it could be processed into explosives. Since meats, oils, and butter were all rationed, women had to re-use fat for frying as often as possible before collecting it in a can and turning it in

Even typewriters were rationed…

Paying For The War• The government spent $300 billion during WWII.• The government raised taxes and issued war

bonds.• One bond called an “E-bond” sold for $18.75 and

could be cashed in after ten years at $25.• Victory Gardens were also popular just as they

were in WWI.