Cultural Conflicts of the 1920s Cultural conflicts present during the 1920s Conflicts in beliefs and values as a result of the rapid social changes of the 1920s

The divides could be seen along the following lines: Rural v. urban Traditional beliefs v. modern (way of life) Conservative v. liberal Society of the 1920s: Great Migration Great Migration- movement of black Americans from the South to Northern urban areas Reasons for moving: Push factors- escape racism, segregation (Jim Crow laws) Pull factor- Higher paying job opportunities (sharecropping to factory jobs) Results: Black population in Northern states increased

 1860- 7% 1910- 11% 1930- 20% Social unrest arose as an unintended consequence Migration patterns Racism 1919 “Red Summer” Bloody riots break out in nearly 40 cities across the U.S. to postwar social tensions related to the demobilization of WWI vets, both black and white, & competition for jobs among ethnic whites and blacks The federal government laid much of the blame on local black community leaders thus did little stop the violence Racism Revival of the KKK Membership- 1922 (100,000) 1924 (4,000,000) Racism- Strongest in the South (mostly rural) and other sparsely populated areas of the country (IN had the most KKK members) Actions were against Jewish, Catholic, and black Americans Lynchings increase Lynching in rural Alabama 1923 1925 KKK March on Washington -An estimated 5 million klansmen participated showing its political clout Counteracting racism

Booker T. Washington Avoid confrontation over segregation, instead focus on long-term educational and economic advancement in the black community W.E.B Du Bois Staunch advocate for civil rights & political reform Helped est. the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)  Worked for anti-lynching laws and voting rights Marcus Garvey Universal Negro Improvement Association called for blacks to build self-respect and economic power among the black community Called for a return to “Motherland Africa” Society of the 1920s: The Red Scare and anti-immigration movement

Isolationism foreign policy dominates national policy Differences between Russian Communism and the U.S. Anti-Immigrant Legislation 1921 Congress enacts Emergency Quota Act Limited the total number of immigrants to ~350,000/year In response to immigrants leaving Europe after WWI Concern by nativists that immigrants were destroying “American” culture and taking jobs

1924 National Origins Act replaces Emergency Quota Act Established more stringent national quotas- Asians and southern and eastern Europeans were subject to fierce discrimination Fear that communists & spies infiltrating the U.S. Effects of Quota Laws Effects of Quota Laws Why distrust communists

Communism v. democracy Political differences Economic differences Social differences

This distrust of communism spreading to the United States created a “Red Scare” that gripped the U.S. during the 1920s. Effects of the Red Scare Palmer Raids- attempts by the United States Department of Justice to arrest and deport radical leftists, especially anarchists, from the United States

Men waiting at Ellis Island to be deported Effects of the Red Scare

1927 Sacco and Vanzetti trial & execution

Society of the 1920s: Growth of Urban Areas

First decade where urban population out paced rural population Continued flight by the middle-class from urban centers to the suburbs Spurred on by the affordability of the automobile, trolleys and busses Fasted paced lifestyles in metropolitan areas attracted younger Americans while many still preferred the tranquility of rural areas 1920s- a changing American society

What lifestyle differences would exist between a person living in the picture on the left compared to one on the right?

The battle over religion: Fundamentalism v. Evolution Fundamentalism (the Bible is literal truth) v. Evolution (man evolved from primates)

Case background: Teaching the theory of evolution in public schools was illegal in the state of Tennessee (due to conflict with teachings from the Bible) John Scopes (teacher) encouraged a friend to file suit against him Clarence Darrow (defense lawyer) v. W.G. Bryan (prosecuting attorney) two of the best trial lawyers in the country volunteered The case garnered national attention in the summer of 1925 and Dayton, TN became a “circus” of attention Minor outcome: Scopes fined $100, but the fine was dropped to prevent appeal A circus-like atmosphere in Dayton, TN

The battle over religion: Fundamentalism v. Evolution Outcome: Bryan (lawyer supporting the anti- evolution law) testified that even he didn’t believe everything written in the Bible as literal truth thus a victory for the theory of evolution

A timeline of events concerning the Scopes “Monkey” trial

Darrow and Bryan Significance Religion- fundamentalism strongest in the South and rural areas of the Midwest while evolution believers tended to live in urban areas

The case reflected the clash between modern and traditional values in the 1920s. Church – State controversies today SC case from Greece, NY Dover, PA BOE v. teachers Society of the 1920s: The changing role of women Society of the 1920s Women’s Changing Role Pre-1920 Women 1920s “Flapper” Women Conservative standards Not a majority of society but a symbol of the Long hair decade Bonnet More willing to experiment against old social No make-up (only for norms, and break from the past prostitutes) Bobbed hair Could not vote Flapper dresses (material shrank from Few jobs outside the 19.5yds per garment in 1913 to 7yds in 1928) home Wore make-up Smoking and drinking acceptable 1920 could vote, a few even held political positions Held a job until married Pre-1920 1920s Look at that well turned ankle… “Do you want to Charleston?” Dance Crazes of the 1920's

The 1920s Woman- Earning the right to vote Attempts at female suffrage did not come easily Western states were the first to adopt female suffrage The 1920s Woman- Earning the right to vote Opposition by many groups continued until ratification The 1920s Woman- Earning the right to vote 1920- The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is ratified giving women the right to vote.

Society of the 1920s: Heroes Why focus on heroes? People longed for the symbols of old-fashioned values

Charles Lindbergh “Spirit of St. Louis” first Trans-Atlantic flight earned the Congressional Medal of Honor Amelia Earhart- 1st women to fly across the Atlantic and from Hawaii to California, lost over the Pacific attempting to fly around the world Jack Dempsey (boxer) Gertrude Ederle (swam the English Channel, Olympian) Babe Ruth (baseball) Shipwreck Kelly- (flagpole sitting) Shipwreck Kelly says, “Flags belong on flagpoles not people but, since I’m up here I might as well see how long I can last.” Society in the 1920s- Mass Media & Jazz Mass Media and the Jazz Age What is mass media? Print and broadcast methods of communication to large numbers of people. How did the development of mass media during the 1920s promote a national culture? The radio and newspaper helped create a national culture by breaking down regional barriers through news, advertising previously regional goods and services How did jazz music seem to sum up the character of the 1920s? Jazz became a nationwide craze Summed up the unconventional character of the decade The “devil’s music” was played by 2/3s of all radio stations by 1928, played clubs all over the U.S. Young people craved the music Forms of Mass Media Radio Movies Newspapers By 1930, nearly 14 Hollywood Newspaper chains million American becomes the buy up newspapers households owned center of the film around the country radios industry Number of Networks broadcast newspapers sold daily nationwide (NBC, CBS) 90 million theater increases 41% during People could now tickets sold on avg. the 20s listen to the same per week (U.S. People share the music, news, and pop. 125M) same information and commercials thus are influenced by the eliminating regional Film making same ideas and th identities and becomes the 4 fashions PROMOTING A largest industry in NATIONAL CULTURE the U.S.

The Harlem Renaissance A literary, artistic, and intellectual movement that kindled a new black cultural identity spanning the 1920s to the mid-1930s

Langston Louis Armstrong Hughes

Duke Ellington Society of the 1920s- Prohibition Prohibition- the prevention by law of the manufacture and sale of alcohol between 1920 and 1933. The push for Prohibition 18th Amendment- 1920 Banned alcohol Reasons to support Prohibition Need grain to feed soldiers & allies Anti-German sentiment Contributes to poverty Reduction in crime & immoral behavior Enforcing Prohibition Almost entirely ignored in big cities and along the East Coast, generally supported in rural areas 95% supported in Kansas Local examples- Troy (Hayner) & Sidney Causes & Effects of Prohibition Reasons for Prohibition Effects of Prohibition Improve moral Rise of organized crime & character (with focus violence (gangsters) on recent immigrants) Racketeering “payments for protection” Curb vice in urban Prostitution areas Gambling Need for grain for Bootlegging (25A a major route) soldiers overseas Speakeasies during WWI Flourished in urban areas (especially on the East Coast) Loss of jobs Unintended Consequences of Prohibition

Bootlegging and speakeasies Organized crime Al Capone Violence The Grand Experiment Ends

21st Amendment- 1933 Repealed Prohibition Reasons to end: Great Depression- the government needed revenue and people needed jobs The “costs” & unintended consequences (crime, speakeasies, enforcement costs, etc.) outweighed the perceived benefits Alcohol never went away, it just went “underground” Enforcement near impossible The need for increased tax revenue 1920s Cultural Conflict Overview Conflicts in beliefs and values as a result of the rapid social changes of the 1920s

The divides could be seen along the following lines: Urban v. rural New v. traditional beliefs (way of life) Liberal v. conservative