The American public was exhausted from World War I. Public debate over the League of Nations had divided America. An economic downturn meant many faced unemployment and a wave of nativism swept the nation
Fear of Communism
Fear of Communism
One perceived threat to American life was the spread of Communism. The Red Scare fed nativism in America. Italian anarchists Sacco & Vanzetti were a shoemaker and a fish peddler. Convicted of robbery and murder despite flimsy evidence, their execution was symbolic of discrimination against radical beliefs during the Red Scare
Breaking the Unions
A Time of Labor Unrest
Strikes were outlawed during WWI, however in 1919 there were more than 3,000 strikes involving 4 million workers. The 1920s hurt the labor movement. Union membership dropped from 5 million to 3.5 million. Why? African Americans were excluded from membership and immigrants were willing to work in poor conditions
Protesters Advocating Isolationism
Isolationism
A desire for normality after the war and a fear of communism and "foreigners" led top post-war isolationism, which meant pulling away from involvement in world affairs
“The chief business of the American people is business . . .the man who builds a factory builds a temple – the man who works there worships there” Calvin Coolidge
KKK Meeting
The Klan Rises Again
As the Red Scare and anti-immigrant attitudes reached a peak, the KKK was more popular than ever
Immigration Control
Congress Limits Immigration
Congress, in response to nativist pressure, decided to limit immigration from southern and eastern Europe. The Emergency Quota Act of 1921 set up a quota system to control and restrict immigration.