chapter 24 truman in colder america 1945-1952 individual choices jackie robinson in high school and college jackie robinson proved he was a gifted athlete but if you would have thought those gifts would contribute to one of the most important choices in american sports as this chapter's individual voices feature illustrates great controversy surrounded the idea of african americans playing baseball's white major leagues in 1945 branch rickey the president and general manager of the brooklyn dodgers asked robinson if he was the right man to play baseball in the dodgers system to integrate major league baseball ricky wanted to know whether robinson could take abuse be someone with guts enough not to fight back robinson said he could turn the other cheek and the deal was set robinson would get 600 a month to play with the montreal royals a dodgers farm team at moyer technical high school pasadena junior college and the university of california at los angeles robinson excelled in athletics lettering in four sports track baseball football and basketball in 1941 he was drafted into the army and applied to officer training corps which was accepting applications from african americans for the first time he completed training in 1943 received a commission as second lieutenant and was assigned to a segregated tank regiment remember that world war ii is happening right now robinson never deployed to europe or saw combat involved in an alleged racial incident and charges of insubordination resulted in a court martial at captain stateside acquitted robinson was honorably discharged from the army in november of 1944. he played professional baseball with the kansas city monarchs of the negro leagues until he went to montreal in 1945. with montreal robinson quickly experienced the racial hostility that ricky had predicted the club held spring training in florida where he could not room at the team hotel and some local officials canceled games rather than let him play on their field robinson survived and during the regular season led the royals minor league in batting and was 1946's most valuable player the following year he would play in the majors for the dodgers on april 15 1947 robinson became the first african-american player in major league baseball since the 1890s he immediately faced racial tensions within the clubhouse and on the field team manager leo durocher made his views clear i do not care if the guy is yellow or black or if he has stripes like a zebra i say he plays what's more i say he can make us all rich and if any of you cannot use the money i will see that you all are traded when players threaten to strike rather than play against robins and the commissioner baseball vowed to suspend them these actions kept robinson in the games but did not stop the verbal and physical abuse that he received on and off the field robinson responded with his bat fielding and base running earning the rookie of the year title the integration of major league baseball was history robinson played 10 seasons with the dodgers before retiring and he entered the baseball hall of fame in 1962. when world war ii ended americans expected to return to a normal life living in peace when they enjoyed the benefits of a consumer society many found jobs that allowed them to move to the suburbs and to live the american dream but world peace proved more elusive by 1947 the us and the soviet union were locked in a cold war it really started in 1945. washington's policy was to contain soviet power first in western europe and then in asia that's containment when north korea invaded south korea the cold war suddenly became hot as president truman committed american troops to halt communist aggression domino theory and all that good stuff the cold war affected every aspect of american life the growing fear of communism provided many with ammunition to attack ideas institutions and people they believed were too liberal like in the second red scare conservatives and business people asserted that unions had become too powerful they needed to be restrained and purged of their communist members southern whites charged that civil rights advocates were tainted with socialist values we're going to see the dixiecrats emerge with that across the nation change and diversity were increasingly suspect spearheading america's defense against the dangers of communism where the house on american activities committee huac and republican senator joseph mccarthy both claimed that american institutions were rife with disloyal americans the expanding cold war also made it more difficult for truman to introduce or expand on new deal-style programs truman had to accept the politics of the possible a moderate agenda that pleased neither ardent liberals nor staunch conservatives despite growing concerns about communism the majority of americans looked forward to transitioning to a normal life the gi bill provided veterans a means to re-enter civilian life with new opportunities those who had found new opportunities during the war however were expected to relinquish their wartime gains and return to their customary roles in american society looking at you ladies still a sense of optimism prevailed the skills experiences and self-confidence gained during the war could not be taken away from anybody you know women people of color they've experienced something different they've gone through this sort of radical change within themselves and now they want more out of america and more out of life and they're willing to fight for it the cold war begins considering the three questions what views and actions chosen by the soviet union and the us contributed to the cold war how was the containment policy applied to western europe between 1947 and 1951 and how did the truman administration promote and protect american interests in latin america and the middle east around the globe people hoped an enduring peace would follow the defeat of the axis powers but could the cooperative relationship with the allies continue into the post-war era without a common enemy to unite them in world war ii the enemy of my enemy was my friend we worked with the soviet union not because we liked them but because we had to because they hated the nazis too suspicion and distrust already existed over the soviet creation of a zone of security with friendly governments in eastern europe looking at the iron curtain a little bit and president harry s truman appeared less willing than roosevelt to trust the soviets the soviet union needs us more than we need them truman told a calling although he was new to formulating foreign and domestic policy chairman was determined to face the challenges the buck stops here read a plaque in his office truman and paths to peace truman and other american leaders identify two overlapping paths to peace international cooperation and deterrence based on military strength in 1944 as a means to achieve global cooperation and economic development the international monetary fund and the world bank were created at the dumbarton oaks conference delegates from the u.s china britain and the soviet union mapped the basic structure of the united nations the u.n in april of 1945 a conference in san francisco finished the task it wrote the charter of the united nations an organization of six distinct bodies the most important of which are the general assembly and the security council composed of all member nations the general assembly was the weaker body with authority only to discuss issues whereas resolving issues was the responsibility of the security council composed of 11 nations six nations were elected by the general assembly but the real power was held by five permanent members the us the soviet union the united kingdom china and france to give the un authority the security council could apply economic and military pressures against other nations but to protect their interests each of the five permanent nations could veto security council decisions so all those five have veto power when it was decided to house the headquarters of the u.n in new york city truman noted that the center of western civilization had shifted from europe to the united states still most americans did not want to rely solely on international cooperation to maintain national security or peace they concluded that the us must continue to feel the strong military force bases around the globe maintain its atomic monopoly meaning we're the only ones at the atom bomb that would be true only until 1949 and take the lead in creating the conditions for an enduring peace drawing on lessons learned during world war ii most americans believed in halting aggressors supporting democratic governments and promoting a prosperous world economy from this perspective the soviet union appeared to be threatening world peace by following an ominous course in eastern europe creating undemocratic puppet governments and closing the region to free trade as 1946 began truman concluded that he was tired of babying the soviets and the state department asked its russia expert george kennan to evaluate soviet policy to determine its motivations and goals kennan's long telegram described the soviet totalitarianism as internally weak soviet leaders he said held communist ideology secondary to remaining in power and needed western capitalism as an enemy to justify their rule but he argued soviet leaders were not fanatics and would retreat when met with opposition he recommended a policy of containment meeting head on any attempted expansion of soviet power his report immediately drew high praise from washington's official circles sooner after truman adopted a policy designed to set will against will force against force idea against idea until soviet expansion is finally worn down by the spring of 1946 increasingly fearful of soviet intentions both democrats and republicans tried to educate the public about the soviet threat to world stability one of the most dramatic warnings however came from winston churchill on march 5th 1946 at westminster college in fulton missouri why is he touring the united states because he has been um well he's been replaced churchill is no longer prime minister of britain with president truman sitting beside him the former prime minister of britain decried soviet expansionism and stated that an iron curtain had fallen across europe churchill called for a fraternal association of the english-speaking peoples to halt the russians truman thought it was a wonderfully eloquent speech but it would do and would do nothing but good churchill time magazine pronounced had spoken with the voice of a lion the iron curtain by the way was the name given to the military political and ideological barrier established between the soviet bloc and western europe after world war ii as churchill spoke a crisis loomed in iran during world war ii the big three had stationed troops in iran to ensure the safety of london leased materials going to the soviet union the troops were to be withdrawn by march of 1946 but as that date neared soviet troops remained in northern iran when the deadline passed and reports flash that the soviets were advancing rather than withdrawing some worried that war was imminent after britain and the us sent a harshly worded telegrams to moscow and petitioned the un to consider an iranian complaint against the soviet union soviet forces soon evacuated iran the crisis was over but it convinced many americans that the war with the soviets was possible red fascism had replaced nazi fascism and for the sake of civilization there could be no more appeasement the division of europe as the crisis in iran are seeded events in europe assumed priority a deepening economic crisis across europe appeared to favor leftist parties and their assertion that state controls in state planning led to quicker economic recovery basically the economy is in the tank and it appears that people on the left are having solutions and that's going to worry us because anything to the left is going to be tainted red it's going to maybe be a little bit too more too much communist flavored for american liking at this point in time but the most immediate uh trouble spots were in greece and turkey the soviets were pressuring turkey to permit them some control over the dardanelles the straits linking the black sea to the mediterranean in greece a civil war raged between communist-backed rebels and the british supported conservative government in february 1947 britain informed washington that it was unable to provide economic or military aid to the two nations and asked the us to assume its role in the region to prevent communist expansion truman eagerly assumed the responsibility of world leadership with all of its burdens and all of its glory and of course what becomes known as the truman doctrine you can remember it because truman loves greasy turkey it's support for greece and turkey and it turns out other nations do to convince congress and gain public support for the 400 million dollars to support greece and turkey truman overstated the crisis presenting an image of the world under attack from the forces of evil on march 12 1947 he set forth the truman doctrine offering an ideological black and white view of world politics he said that it was the duty of the u.s to support free people who resisted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressure congress agreed and provided aid for greece and turkey bolstered by american support turkey resisted soviet pressure and retained control over the straits and the great government was able to defeat the communist rebels in 1949 although the truman administration asked congress only to support greece and turkey officials admitted among themselves that their request was just the beginning it happened so we were having a little trouble with greece and turkey at the present time stated a war department official but they are just one of the keys on the keyboard of this world piano on june 5th 1947 secretary of state george marshall uncovered more of the keyboard he offered europe a program of economic age restore stability and prosperity the marshall plan for the truman administration the difficult question was whether to include the soviets and eastern europeans in the invitation to do so it seemed contrary to the intent to be a truman doctrine but if the soviets were excluded the us might be seen as dividing europe an image the state department wanted to avoid chaired by ken and you know mr long telegram the state department planning staff recommended that the us take a hell of a big gamble and offer economic aid to all europeans kenan believed the soviets would reject the offer because it involved economic and political cooperation with capitalists thus marshall invited all europeans to work together and to write a program designed to place europe on its feet economically the gamble worked at a june meeting in paris the soviets rejected a british and french proposal for an economically integrated europe joint economic planning and a requirement to purchase mostly american goods the soviets and the eastern europeans left the conference and over the next 10 months the soviet union took steps to solidify its control over its satellite states in july of 47 moscow announced the molotov plan which further incorporated eastern european economies into the soviet system throughout the region non-communist elements were expelled from governments an effort that culminated in the february 1948 soviet-engineered coup that toppled the czechoslovakian government we are faced with exactly the same situation with which britain and france were faced in 1938 and 39 with hitler truman announced the czech coup helped to convince congress to approve 12.5 billion dollars in marshall plan aid to western europe in march of 1948 the u.s announced that the western zones of germany were eligible for martial plan aid would hold elections to select delegates to a constitutional convention and would adopt a standard currency the meaning of these actions seemed clear a west german state was being formed faced with the prospect of a pro-western industrialized and potentially re-militarized germany stalin reacted on june 24th the russians blockaded all land traffic to and from berlin which had been divided into british french soviet and u.s controlled zones after the war berlin was divided into four zones just like the entirety of germany was the idea was that you know berlin's technically in the soviet zone of rebuilding in germany but we can't let the soviets have this entire city all themselves berlin and it's you know it's an ideological thing as well as maybe an industrial practical political thing too so in order to get to berlin you got to go through soviet territory right and that's sort of where the rub is here so let's see the russians have blockaded land traffic to and from berlin with west berlin isolated 120 miles inside the soviet zone of germany the soviet goal was to force the west either to abandon the creation of west germany or to face the loss of berlin faced with soviet hostility americans were determined not to back down churchill affirmed the west's stand we want peace he stated but we should by now have learned there's no safety in yielding to dictators whether nazi or communist we are very close to war truman wrote in his diary american strategists confronted the dilemma of how to stay in berlin and supply 2.4 million people without starting a shooting war although some recommended fighting across the soviet zone of the city truman chose another option one that would not violate soviet-occupied territory or any international agreements marshaling a massive effort of men provisions and aircraft british americans flew supply planes to three berlin airports a day day after day month after month delivering over a ton of vital supplies daily to drive home to the soviets the depth of american resolve truman ordered a wing of b-29 bombers the atomic bombers to britain these planes carried no atomic weapons but the general impression was that their presence lessened the likelihood of soviet aggression the berlin airlift was a victory for the us in the cold war and testified to america's resolve to stand firm against the soviets and to protect western europe in may of 1949 stalin finding no gains from the blockade ended it without explanation and allowed land traffic to cross the soviet zone into berlin once more the crisis swept away most congressional opposition to the marshall plan and the creation of west germany and silenced those who had protested a permanent american military commitment to western europe in june 1949 congress approved american entry into the north atlantic treaty organization or nato definitely understand nato very very big deal folks listen carefully ensuring that american forces would remain in the newly created west germany nato by the way is a mutual defense alliance formed in 49 among most of the nations of western europe and north america in an effort to contain communism the mutual defense assistance act passed in 1949 provided 1.5 billion dollars in arms and equipment for nato member nations by 1952 80 of american assistance to europe was military aid to facilitate fighting the cold war congress passed the national security act in 1947. this does a lot it creates the air force as a separate service and unified command of the military with a new cabinet position the department of defense to improve coordination between the state department and the department of defense the national security council or nsc was also formed to provide policy recommendations to the president this act the national security act also established the cia the central intelligence agency to collect and analyze foreign intelligence information and carry out covert actions supporting national security by mid-1948 covert operations included efforts to influence italian elections a success and a topple the communist albanian government which was a failure the u.s presence in latin america and the middle east while the truman administration's primary foreign policy was europe concern was europe it did not ignore the rest of the world in latin america the administration encouraged private firms to develop the region and in 1947 helped to organize the rio pact the rio pact was considered the first cold war alliance it joined latin american nations canada and the us in an agreement to prevent communist inroads in latin america and to improve political social and economic conditions among latin american nations it also created the organization of american states or the oas the pact established the concept of collective security for latin america and created a regional organization the oas to coordinate command our common defense economic and social concerns in the middle east fear of future oil shortages led the united states to promote the expansion of american petroleum interests in saudi arabia kuwait and iran at the same time the us became a powerful supporter of a new jewish state to be created in palestine the area of palestine had been administered by the british since the end of world war one and had experienced increasing tensions between the indigenous arab population the palestinians and a growing number of jews largely immigrants from europe as world war ii ended britain faced growing pressure to create a new jewish state in palestine and to allow at least a hundred thousand displaced european jews to migrate there considering the nazi terror against jews he believed they should have their own nation if you strongly supported by a well-organized pro-jewish lobbying effort across the united states on may 14 1948 the un voted to partition palestine into arab and jewish states truman recognized the nation of israel within 15 minutes war quickly broke out between israel and the surrounding arab nations who refused to recognize the partition although outnumbered the better equipped israeli army drove back the invading armies and in january of 1949 u.n mediator ralph bunche arranged a ceasefire when the fighting stopped israel had added 50 more territory to its emerging nation no palestinian state was created and more than 700 000 arabs left israeli-controlled territory many living as refugees in the gaza strip lebanon and jordan and egypt bitter at the loss of what they regarded as their homeland the majority of palestinians and other arabs were determined to destroy the jewish state the cold war in asia considering the three questions how did the truman administration's response to communist expansion in china differ from its response regarding europe what events contributed to nac68 and how did it represent a change in strategy that's going to be a really important top secret document and what were the truman administration's goals in korea and how do they change as the war progressed how did the hot war in korea affect american foreign policy if americans were pleased with events in latin america in the middle east asia provided several disappointments under american occupation japan's government was reshaped into a democratic system and placed it safely within the american orbit but diplomatic setbacks occurred in china and korea the chinese civil war during world war ii the nationalist chinese government of jiang jae shi also known as chiang kai-shek and the chinese communists under mao zedong also known as mao zeitung had collaborated to fight the japanese prior to world war ii the nationalists and the communists were at war with each other there's a civil war going on but after the japanese invasion they basically call up their own civil war to unite and defeat the japanese and after world war ii what do you think they do they go right back to fighting their own civil war so let's see when the war ended old animosities quickly resurfaced and the civil war followed in february of 1946 american supporters of jiang led by the china lobby recommended that the us increase its economic and military support for the nationalist government arguing that soviet power threatened china and the rest of asia as much as it did europe truman and marshall dreaded communist success in china but they questioned whether the corrupt and inefficient nationalist government could ever effectively rule the vast country while willing to continue some political economic and military support neither wanted to commit american resources to an asian war which would be like throwing money down a rat hole truman told his cabinet jing's outma or overmatched nationalist forces soon disintegrated and in december of 1949 the nationalist government fled to the island of taiwan conservative democrats and republicans labeled the wrath of jiang a humiliating american defeat and toured the truman administration as soft on communism truman is accused of losing china at this point to quiet critics and to protect jiang truman refused to recognize the people's republic of china on the mainland where the communists led by mao zedong had won and remained and truman ordered the us seventh fleet to the waters near taiwan adding to dismay over china in late august 1949 the soviets detonated their own atomic bomb shattering the american nuclear monopoly a joint pentagon state department committee concluded that the soviets driven by a new fanatic faith whose objective was to dominate the world might be able to launch a nuclear attack on the us as early as 1954. the committee's report nsc memorandum number 68 called for global containment and a massive buildup of american military force amounting to military spending of nearly 50 billion dollars for the next fiscal year an increase of almost 400 percent nsc 68 is really going to set us on on this path towards the arms race toward nuclear determinants deterrence excuse me mutually assured destruction all this stuff truman worried that such a mobilization of industry would choke off the manufacturer of domestic consumer goods eventually agreed to a moderate 12.3 billion dollar military budget from 1950 that included building the hydrogen bomb proponents of nsc 68 won the final argument on june 25th 1950 when north korean troops stormed across the 38th parallel it seems like all their nightmares are coming true and like they were right to warn about the expansion of communism halting communist aggression in korea when world war ii ended soviet forces occupied korea north of the 38th parallel and american forces remained south of it and by mid-1946 two koreas existed in the south was an american supported republic of korea led by sing-men re and in the north a communist-backed democratic people's republic of korea headed by kim il-sung in 1949 the soviet and american forces withdrew leaving behind two hostile regimes both claimed to be korea's rightful government and launched raids across the border causing more than a hundred thousand korean deaths with approval from the soviets on june 25th 1950 kim il-sung launched a full-scale invasion of the south overwhelmed south korean forces rapidly retreated concluding that south korea's survival depended on it truman asked the u.n security council to intervene to protect a member nation the security security council complied and condemned at north korea's invasion called for a ceasefire and asked member nations to provide assistance to south korea that's how we get involved we never declare war it's a u.n police action and if you're sitting there thinking well i thought that there was you know five states who could veto any of them and you know the ussr and china are among them why why are they going along with this the fact is that neither of them are at the table they're both boycotting you in at this point because of american support for nationalist china so really the two you know socialist and communist powers they're not there to put the brakes on any of this so it's a u.n police action and it's really led by you know america and britain and france here american forces led by general douglas macarthur officially under united nations control arrived in korea in july but they were unable to halt the north korean advance by the end of july north korean forces occupied most of south korea u.n forces including nearly 122 000 americans and what remained of the south korean army held only the southeastern corner of the peninsula known as the pusan perimeter in september the tide turned the 70 000 american troops landed at inchon near seoul which is further to the north and west while u.n forces advanced north from busan the north koreans fled back across the 38th parallel seoul was liberated on september 27th the police action had achieved its purpose the south korean government survived and the 38th parallel was again a real border seeking to liberate north korea now however the south korean leadership macarthur truman and most americans wanted to unify the peninsula under south korean rule it's not enough to kick the north out now they got to go north and you know take it bending under american pressure the u.n on october 7th approved a new goal to liberate north korea from communist rule in mid-october 1950 u.n forces pushed northward toward the chinese occurring chinese exciting border at the yalu river the chinese threatened intervention if the invaders approached the border relying on faulty intelligence estimates that said any intervening chinese forces would number less than fifty thousand american british and korean forces advanced to within a few miles of the yalu river at which point nearly three hundred thousand chinese soldiers entered the korean conflict we poked china and hundreds of thousands of soldiers came pouring out blowing their bugles the chinese attacked in waves taking massive casualties and nearly trapping several american and south korean units in the most brutal fighting of the war u.n forces fell back the us first marine division was nearly surrounded at the choson reservoir when asked about the marines retreating general o p slamsmith responded gentlemen we are not retreating we are merely advancing in another direction within three weeks the north koreans and chinese had shoved the u.n forces back to the 38th parallel american casualties exceeded 12 000 but the chinese had lost three times as many truman now abandoned the goal of a unified pro-western korea and sought a negotiated settlement even if it left two koreas the decision was not popular americans wanted victory encouraged by public opinion polls and truman's republican critics general macarthur publicly objected to the limitations his commander-in-chief had placed on him already displeased by macarthur's arrogance truman replaced him with general matthew ridgeway what macarthur did was write a letter to um i think he was a prominent republican in the house and complained about truman's choice and the fact is you can't do that that is insubordination and truman's decision to remove macarthur's deeply unpopular looking back it's probably the right choice though he he was insubordinate you know this decision unleashed a storm of protest some called for truman's impeachment and congress opened hearings to investigate the conduct of the war macarthur testified that expanding the war could achieve victory while the administration argued that it might lead to a global nuclear war in polls truman's approval rating plummeted at the same time macarthur's hopes for a presidential candidacy collapse because most americans feared his aggressive policies might result in world war iii by the beginning of 1952 the vast majority of americans were simply tired of the useless conflict and they just wanted it to end the korean front meanwhile stabilized along the 30th parallel as four power peace talks among the us south korea china and north korea began in july of 1951. the negotiations did not go smoothly while the powers postured and argued about prisoners cease-fire lines and a multitude of lesser issues soldiers fought and died over scraps of territory when the eisenhower administration finally concluded a ceasefire in july of 1953 the korean conflict had cost more than 20 billion dollars and 33 000 american lives but it had left south korea intact the hot war in korea had four reaching military and diplomatic results for the us increased military spending the rearming of west germany and italy and a large permanent american presence in asia and the pacific in 1951 the us and japan agreed that american forces would remain in japan and on the island of okinawa the australian new zealand u.s and zeus treaty of 1951 promised american military protection to those countries at the same time the us increased its military aid and commitments to nationalist china and french indochina the containment policy had expanded formally and financially to cover east asia and the pacific and now to go back real fast and read deciding on war in korea a deeper understanding of history within days after north korea invaded south korea president truman committed american forces to the conflict calling it a police action to uphold the rule of law it was a straightforward and simple explanation of a decision that cost millions of dollars and thousands of lives but the terms simple and straightforward often do not apply to the way national decisions are made and it's up to historians to examine the records of decision-making processes to better understand the how and why of it among the questions asked about the situation in korea were what alternatives to entering the conflict were available and what considerations produced the decision to commit u.s forces in the way that it was done the records provide the following answers before the invasion the administration considered south korea of no strategic value but within minutes of the attack truman chose to help defend south korea a central consideration of the first decision was the belief as the cia reported that the soviet union was using north korea to challenge the us and test its resistance to communist expansion south korea had suddenly become symbolically significant but what were the best means to meet the communist challenge one choice was to immediately commit american military forces to defend south korea truman could do this by executive order but a declaration of war by congress would ensure broad political support the immediate deployment of us troops could defeat north korean forces but this option carried the risk of enlarging the conflict from a localized one to a regional or even a global war another choice was to denounce the invasion provide a mill immediate military aid to south korea and seek a diplomatic solution this option reduced the possibility of expanding the conflict but it would not ensure south korea's survival and would make the u.s look weak europeans to say nothing of the asiatics are watching to see what the us will do one official noted and a weak response would encourage additional soviet-sponsored acts of aggression neither of these choices met the administration's needs and they received little or no consideration but the existence of the u.n offered a third option the choice the us government made was to act forcefully and protect its credibility by using the umbrella of the united nations hours after the invasion began truman stated that the u.s should introduce a resolution to the security council calling for the u.n to defend south korea a member state against outside aggression by the next evening the u.n agreed to call upon its members to oppose the aggression and restore peace in korea truman also deployed selected american-era naval forces to south korea on a limited basis two days later the security council approved a second u.s resolution calling for member states to provide south korea such as systems as may be necessary to repel the armed attack and to restore international peace and security in the area using the u.n umbrella truman now expanding us naval and air operations and permitted a limited use of ground forces in korea three days later june 27 as north korean forces continued their advance and there was no sign of further soviet or chinese involvement truman ordered american ground troops into the conflict able to tell the public in the world that they were involved in a un-sponsored police action to uphold the international rule of law post-war politics considering the two questions in what ways did truman attempt to maintain and expand the new deal how did the fear of communism strengthen conservative opposition to his programs and why did truman win the 1948 election when roosevelt died many wondered if truman would continue the roosevelt new deal approach to domestic policies would he work to protect the social and economic gains that labor women and minorities had earned during the war conservatives and some of truman's friends predicted that the new president was going to be quite a shock that the new deal is as good as dead but truman had no intention of extinguishing the new deal truman and liberalism in september 1945 truman presented to congress what one republican credit called an effort to out new deal with a new deal truman set forth an ambitious program designed to ease the transition to a peacetime economy and re-energize the new deal to prevent inflation and a recession he wanted congress to continue wartime economic agencies to help control wages and prices he also asked that the fair employment practices commission be renewed and he recommended a an expansion of social security an immediate and substantial increase in the 40 cents an hour minimum wage the development of additional housing programs a commitment to full employment and a national health system a conservative coalition of southern democrats and republicans embarked on a campaign to persuade the american public of the dangers of truman's program which they argued involved too much government threatened private enterprise and endangered existing class and social relations the wall street journal labeled truman's program a move towards socialism public sentiment is everything wrote an officer of standard oil a truman official sadly agreed the consuming fear of communism fostered a widespread belief that change was subversive congress rejected or severely scaled back nearly all of truman's proposals wartime economic controls and the fair employment practices commission quickly faded away congress spurned any idea of full employment and a national health program while congress and truman disagreed over the domestic agenda the country experienced economic and social dislocations caused by the conversion to a peacetime economy inflation quickly emerged as a principal issue with prices rising 25 within 18 months after the feat of germany defeat of germany inflation cuts in hours and layoffs could end up many workers purchasing power reducing it for some by as much as 30 the economic changes led to nearly 4.5 million workers staging more than 5 000 strikes gm placed ads in newspapers stating that the country was at a crossroads and asked is american business to be based on free competition or become socialized and this phenomenon by the way of an economic little stumble or recession even perhaps after a war is not uncommon right it happened after world war one it happens after other conflicts as well many thought the nation had reached the crossroads in the spring of 1946 when coal miners and railroad workers went on strike the earlier strikes had often been successfully ended through negotiation negotiation negotiating panels created by truman with settlements that usually raised workers wages and allowed companies to raise prices but the coal and railroad strikes brought a different response german was angry and determined not to let the unions threaten the nation's economy or dictate to the government he issued orders for the government to take control of the coal mines and railroads ordering the workers to return in may truman went to congress to ask for the power to draft strikers and put them back to work the railroad strike was settled that same day but labor strife continued in the coal fields for the rest of the year and ended only when the us government took legal action against the united mine workers and john l lewis truman's action cost him the support of many unions and workers but the strikes also had led congress and state and local governments to pass legislation designed to weaken unions and to end work stoppages right to work laws which are still a big deal definitely understand these right to work laws banned compulsory union membership the closed shop so it banned you know requiring someone to join a union to work here and in some cases provided legal and police protection for workers who were crossing picket lines in june of 1947 congress approved the taft-hartley act which banned the closed shop prevented industry-wide collective bargaining and legalized state-sponsored right to work laws that hindered union organizing it also required that union officials sign affidavits that they were not communists echoing truman's actions in the coal strike labor also empowered the president to use a court injunction to force striking workers back to work for an 80-day cooling-off period truman vetoed the legislation knowing that his veto would be overridden by congress and hoping that it would regain labor support for his 1948 presidential run so he stands up for unions you know for political reasons he knows that it's not going to work he knows that congress will override his veto but he's hoping the union members will see his veto and say hey i'm going to vote for this guy for president again in 1948 amid strikes soaring inflation divisions within democratic ranks and widespread dissatisfaction with truman's leadership to heirs truman was a common quip republicans asked the public had enough voters responded affirmatively in 1946 and 1947 filling both houses of the 80th congress with more republicans and anti-new deal democrats truman refused to retreat and continue to ask congress to pass many of the same programs that he had offered in 1945 the political battle between the president and congress reignited congress rejected truman's proposals truman vetoed 250 bills and congress overrode 12 of truman's vetoes truman's veto of taft hartley was an easy political decision in contrast the issue of civil rights was extremely complex and politically dangerous democrats were clearly divided southern democrats opposed any mention of civil rights while african americans and liberals including eleanor roosevelt demanded that truman speak to the issue a central part of the issue was the racial violence in the cell where 56 african americans were murdered within a year of the war's end one of the worst incidents was in georgia where two african-american veterans and their wives were pulled from a car and brutally murdered a national uproar prompted an investigation by the justice department nobody was ever accused or convicted of the murders go figure but the crime and investigation increased calls for government action the north too was experiencing racial tension and violence including several race riots in chicago something has to be done here confessing that he did not know how bad conditions were for african americans and that the top dog in the world ought to clean his own house truman in december 1946 appointed a presidential committee to examine race relations in the country the december 1947 report to secure these rights described the racial inequalities in american society and called on the government to take steps to correct the imbalance among its recommendations were the establishment of a permanent commission on civil rights the enactment of anti-lynching laws and the abolition of the poll tax the committee had also also called for integration of the us armed forces and support for integrating housing programs and education truman asked congress in february of 1948 to act on the recommendations but no civil rights legislation was forthcoming the 1948 election republicans hopes for high in 1948 they had done well in congressional elections in 1946 and 1947. to take on truman they chose new york governor thomas e dewey he had lost roosevelt in 1944 but he'd earned a respectable 46 percent of the popular vote and truman was not roosevelt the democrats were also mired in bitter infighting over the direction of domestic policy many democratic liberals and minorities wish the truman had pushed harder to sell his new deal type programs and civil rights to the public and to congress henry a wallace the former vice president entered the race as a progressive party candidate at the democratic national convention in july of 1948 liberal democrats forced the inclusion of civil rights recommendations in the party platform southern democrats opposing any such statement walked out of the convention unwilling to support a republican though they met in birmingham and organized the state's rights democratic party better known as the dixie crap party nominating south carolina governor j strom thurman for president days later truman ordered desegregation of the armed forces and the federal workforce the navy and the air force complied although it took a year to implement the changes afterwards the seventh marines commander observed never once did any color problem bother us it just wasn't any problem but the army refused until december of 1949 when it finally agreed to integrate but only gradually the korean war the first integrated footwear the first war fought by integrated forces it sped up integration but it was not until october of 1954 that the last unit was integrated despite his caution truman had done more in the area of civil rights than any president since lincoln a record that ensured african-american and liberal support confounding the pollsters truman defeated dewey in a triumph for roosevelt's new deal coalition and you can see that photo there on page 680 a very very famous photo of truman holding up a newspaper saying dewey defeats truman because the chicago daily tribune had printed what they thought would be true before it happened very famous photo there make sure you do take a look at that where were we all right truman defeats uh yeah truman defeats dewey in a triumph roosevelt's new deal coalition despite the dixiecrats most southerners did not abandon the democratic party thurman carried only four southern states and wallace carried none democrats also won majorities in congress and truman hoped in 1949 he would succeed with his domestic program which he called the fair deal in his inaugural address truman asked for increases in social security public housing and the minimum wage the repeal of the taft-hartley act so there's some support for unions there and the creation of a national health program he also gave civil rights and federal aid to education a place on the national agenda rewarding farmers for their role in his victory truman submitted the brennan plan which included federal benefits for small farmers congress responded favorably to truman's new programs [Music] sorry about that uh congress responded favorably to truman's programs in areas already well established by the new deal a 65-cent minimum hourly wage funds for low and moderate income housing and increases in social security coverage and payments proposals going beyond the scope of the new deal encountered effective opposition from a coalition of southern democrats and republicans a national health system and government intervention in education were communistic said opponents while civil rights efforts were part of a communist conspiracy to undermine american unity that's how they painted adding their voices to the course agribusiness leaders attacked the brandon plan as socialistic and class oriented a frustrated and angry truman complained that he had kissed more sob so-called democrats and left-wing republicans than all the presidents put together to no avail cold war politics considering the questions while fears and events heightened society's worries about internal subversion and how did politicians respond to the public's concerns and how and why did joseph mccarthy become so powerful by 1952 attacks on liberal programs as socialistic or communistic were not new but the developing cold war intensified fears that communists and their supporters were undermining american values and stability leading to a second red scare some of the growing concerns were valid the soviets did have a well-developed espionage system operating in the country they were spying on us including within the atomic bomb program what do they say you're not paranoid if it's true other concerns though arose from political opportunism and broad anti-liberalism tobacco giant r.j reynolds characterized unionism as a step towards socialism in its multi-million uh multi-million dollar public ad campaign to defeat a cio effort to organize southern workers in pittsburgh pennsylvania a local paper labeled those trying to integrate a public swimming pool commies across the country neighborhoods and communities organized watch groups which screened books movies and public speakers and questioned teachers and public officials seeking to ban or dismiss those considered suspect of being communist the red scare responding to increasing accusations including those of the house and american activities committee or huac that his administration tolerated communist subversion truman moved to beef up the existing loyalty program by issuing executive order 9835 in march of 1946 which established the federal employee loyalty program if reasonable grounds existed for believing a federal employee was disloyal in belief or action the employee could after a hearing be fired soon supervisors and workers began to accuse one another of un-american thoughts and activities it's a little bit of that hysteria maybe like a salem witchcraft type hysteria happening here between 1947 and 51 the government discharged more than 3 000 federal employees because of their supposed disloyalty in almost every case the accused had no right to confront the accusers or to refute the evidence while the soviets used american citizens to conduct espionage few of those forced to leave government service we're actually communists and if you've read the crucible by arthur miller you're familiar with some of those tensions right there's a reason why he publishes this book in 1953 i believe it is truman's loyalty program intensified rather than calm fears especially when federal bureau of investigation fbi director j edgar hoover proclaimed there was one american communist for every 1814 loyal citizens and attorney general tom clark warned that communists were everywhere in factories offices butcher shops on street corners and private businesses carrying the germs of death for society grabbing headlines in 1947 he had targeted hollywood intent on removing people with liberal leftist viewpoints from the entertainment industry and ensuring the mass media promoted american capitalism and traditional american values with much fanfare huac called hollywood notables to testify about communist influence in the industry many of those call used the opportunity to prove their patriotism and to denounce communism actor ronald reagan president of the screen actors guild and of course refuge of course future president of the us denounced communist methods that sucked people into carrying out red policy without knowing what they were doing and testified that the conference of studio unions was full of reds not all witnesses were cooperative some including the hollywood ten took the fifth amendment and lashed out at the activities of the committee remember that the fifth amendment provides protections against self-incrimination so you can't be forced to testify against yourself labeled the fifth amendment communists the ten were jailed for contempt of congress and blacklisted by the industry eric johnson president of the motion picture association announced that the hall that hollywood produced no more films like the grapes of wrath featuring the hardships of poor americans or the simi side of american life movie maker soon issued a new code a screen guide for americans that demanded don't smear the free enterprise system and don't show that poverty is a virtue just before the election of 1948 huax zeroed in on spies within the government bringing forth a number of informants who'd been soviet agents and were now willing to name others who allegedly had sold out the us the most sensational revelation came from a repentant ex-communist named whitaker chambers whitaker chambers accused alger hiss a new deal liberal one-time state department official and president of the carnegie endowment for international peace of being a communist at first alger his denied knowing chambers but under interrogation by huac members especially congressman richard nixon of california and also a future president his admitted an acquaintance with chant with chambers in the 1930s but denied that he was or had been a communist when his sued chambers for libel chambers escalated the charges he stated that he had passed state department secrets to him in the uh 1930s and he produced rolls of microfilm that he said his had delivered to him um supposedly hidden them inside of a pumpkin known as the pumpkin papers kind of funny there in a controversial and sensationalized trial in 1949 hiss was found guilty of perjury which is the statute of limitations on espionage that expired and said uh he was sentenced to five years in prison basically they found him guilty of lying in court because they couldn't actually charge him with espionage because you know too much time had passed as the nation followed the his case news of the communist victory in china and the soviet explosion of an atomic bomb about those of course happened in 1949 heightened american fears many americans believe that such communist successes could have occurred only with help from american traders congressman harold veldig of illinois proclaimed our government from the white house down has been sympathetic to the views of communists and fellow travelers with the result that it has been infiltrated by a network of spies congress responded in 1950 by passing over truman's veto the mccarran internal security act requiring all communists to register with the attorney general the following year the supreme court upheld the smith act passed in june of 1940 ruling that membership in the communist party was equivalent to conspiring to overthrow the american government and that no specific act of treason was necessary for conviction so just believing in communism is enough to break this law i'm going to skip back over real fast to page 681 toward a more perfect union the cold war and freedom of speech passed in 1940 the alien registration act or the smith act made it illegal for a person or organization to advocate the overthrow of the us government it made advocacy of ideas a crime and departed from the view that words and deeds needed to constitute a real danger sparingly used during world war ii in 1949 the smith act justified the arrest of 12 leaders of the communist party whose words and ideology advocated the overthrow of the u.s eleven stood trial together and were found guilty they appealed on the grounds that advocacy of an idea constituted no real and present danger and that their arrest violated their first amendment right to free speech their appeal dennis vus reached the supreme court which upheld their conviction some 140 american communist party members were indicted under the smith act until the supreme court in yates the u.s 1956 and notovey united states 1961 weakened the law by requiring evidence that a real threat existed in 1969 the court concluded in brandenburg v ohio that advocacy of ideas was protected by the first amendment but did so without invalidating the smith act back to the text such outcomes seemed vindicated in february of 1950 when julius and ethel rosenberg were accused of being part of a soviet atomic spyrring at trial in 1951 the prosecution alleged that the information the rosenberg's passed to the soviets was largely responsible for the success successful creation of an atomic bomb the rosenbergs professed innocence but they were convicted of espionage soviet documents released in the 1990s the winona papers indicate that julius rosenberg was engaged in espionage but that ethel his wife was probably guilty only of being loyal to him documents concerning hiss are inconclusive continuing a sphere to debate about his guilt or innocence the fact that we're finding some real spies seems to confirm our fears that spies are everywhere like to go back to the salem analogy can you imagine what would have happened in salem if during one of these trials where they got spectral evidence and all that other stuff what if one of the accused like popped on a broomstick and flew out of the courtroom can you imagine what salem would have done it would have exploded and now here we are on the second red scare you know the first is after world war one the seconds after world war two here we are on the second red scare and we're actually finding some spies that definitely contributes i think to this atmosphere of paranoia speaking of paranoia joseph mccarthy and the politics of loyalty feeding on the fuhrer over the enemy within republican senator joseph mccarthy of wisconsin emerged at the forefront of the anti-communist movement to attract votes when he ran for the senate in 1946 he invented a glorious war record for himself that included the nickname tail gunner joe and several wounds note again he invents this for himself in february of 1950 he announced to a republican woman's group in wheeling west virginia that he knew of 205 communists working in the state department how specific when examined by a senate committee mccarthy's accusations were shown to be at best inaccurate but he ignored the findings and continued to claim he was exposing communists the fears generated by the korean war increased the senator's popularity and power few dared to oppose him and he found many supporters including the senate's most powerful republican robert taft of ohio who slapped mccarthy on the back saying keep it up joe by 1952 with the korean conflict stalemated truman's popularity was almost non-existent and republicans were having a field day attacking cowardly containment calling for victory in korea and labeling new deal and administration programs socialistic republicans were sure voters would elect a republican president homecoming and social adjustments considering the questions how did suburban america reflect the social and economic expectations of many americans and what adjustments did women and minorities have to make in post-war america with world war ii over americans were eager to return home and resume normal lives organized bring daddy back clubs flooded washington with letters demanding a speedy return of husbands and fathers by november 1945 1.25 million amer american gi's were returning home each month for americans entering the post-war world the homecoming was void with expectations and fraught with anxieties the nation had experienced dramatic economic growth but remembering the depression americans wondered if the postwar economy would remain strong still most were optimistic that any recession would be short-lived and that they'd be able to spend savings find jobs and enjoy the american dream consumption is the frontier of the future trip one economic forecast rising expectations owning a homeless for many the symbol of the american dream before 1945 only about 40 of americans owned homes and the housing industry had focused on building custom homes or multi-family dwellings like apartment homes or maybe duplexes but the posts were demand for single-family homes together with the gi bill which provided thousands of veterans with low interest home loans changed at the housing industry to meet this new demand for houses william levitt and other developers supplied mass-produced pre-fabricated houses the suburban tract homes using building techniques developed during the war timber from his forests and non-union workers lovett boasted that he could construct an affordable house on an existing concrete slab in 16 minutes standardized with few frills the two-story house had four and a half rooms built on generous 60 by 100 foot lots complete with a tree or two love it homes cost slightly less than eight thousand dollars giving love it a one thousand dollar profit the first levittown sprang up in hempstead long island and was a planned community with more than seventeen thousand homes seven village greens fourteen playgrounds and nine swimming pools hundreds of look-alike suburban neighborhoods were seen built across the nation contributing to a growing migration from rural and urban america to the suburbs nowhere were tracked homes more prominent than in southern california during and after the war networks of roads extended out from northern excuse me southern california cities developing satellite economic centers pulling businesses homes and industries away from the central cities in los angeles this resulted in a 50 loss in sales and tax revenues the reduction of public transportation the loss of jobs and a growing urban poverty rate this pattern of development became increasingly common across the country as suburbs multiplied although part of the american dream suburbs were not for everybody widespread discrimination kept some out by design whether it was through the official policy of developers like leavitt individual neighborhood covenants or denial of home loans almost every suburb in the nation was predominantly white and christian even though the supreme court had ruled in shelley v kramer in 1948 that restrictive restrictions were illegal the decision failed to have much effect to go back and define shelley v kramer real fast um it is a supreme court ruling of course that barred lower courts from enforcing restrictive agreements that prevented minorities from living in certain neighborhoods but it had little impact on actual practices and how people were actually now able or unable to get jobs neither did the court's decision to prevent banks and the fha from rejecting home loan applications from minorities trying to buy houses in white neighborhoods real estate agents continued to abide by their realtor's code of ethics which called it unethical to permit the infiltration of inharmonious elements into a neighborhood across the nation fewer than five percent of suburban neighborhoods provided non-whites access to the american dream home for many veterans a cozy home was only part of the postwar dream so too is going to college armed with economic support through the gi bill in september of 1946 nearly a million veterans enrolled in college new jersey's rutgers university saw its enrollment climb from 7 000 to 16 000. at lehigh university in pennsylvania 940 veteran students outnumbered the 396 civilians and refused to don the traditional freshman beanie schools responding to the influx of students not only hired more faculty and build more facilities but also began to provide special housing day care centers and expanded health clinics for married students by the time the gi bill expired in 1956 over 2 million veterans including 64 000 women had earned their degrees under its umbrella veterans expected jobs too and most figured that wartime workers would relinquish their jobs and return to traditional roles at first jobs were scarce the cancellation of wartime contracts and the nationwide switch to domestic production resulted in 2.7 million workers being dismissed from their jobs within a month of japan's surrender once we don't need to produce as much for the war effort people are going to be out of jobs because we simply don't need them to you know make as many things fortunately for veterans the gi bill provided unemployment compensation for a year until a job was found and within a year jobs were becoming more and more available as american industries began producing for the domestic market by 1947 60 million people were working 7 million more than at the peak of wartime production but the workforce had changed with noticeably fewer women and minorities it matters today the gi bill passed in 1944 the gi bill took effect with the end of the war and provided benefits until 1956 its benefits included a year's unemployment payments loans to start businesses and farms money for education and inexpensive no money down loans for homes about 16 million veterans were eligible who would their families equal nearly one-third of the population by 1950. it was the nation's largest social welfare program and nobody called it welfare or socialistic those receiving the benefits had earned them by fighting for the nation almost half the veterans use the education option to attend college or vocational and training schools or to complete their high school education they also bought homes in 1946 and 47 veterans mortgages represented 40 percent of all new homes purchased in storming campuses in suburbia vets and their families reshaped the middle class and reset the american dream with an emphasis on education upward mobility and a home with a yard of course that 2.5 kids and white picket fence how does the ijob the gi bill era compare with today's opportunities for higher education and upward mobility and how do the differences affect america's economy and society and because of its consequences the gi bill has been called the silent revolution what types of products legislation or opportunities could be promoted today that could produce similar changes in the country from industrial worker to homemaker last hired first fired fit the industrial workplace as the war ended across the nation women african-americans and latinos were told they're no longer needed in the aircraft and shipbuilding industries companies drastically trimmed their workforces as wartime orders ended dismissing most of the women and african-americans who had provided much-needed labor during the war mirroring the rest of the nation in seattle and baltimore two-thirds of aircraft workers and one-third of the shipbuilding workers lost their jobs within a month after japan's surrender in the aircraft industry women women had made up 40 of the workforce but by 1948 they numbered a mere 12 percent for most women the loss of jobs was expected we will work as long as they need us stated a woman employing an employee at boeing and when we're through we'll go back to our meals and dishes and children indeed most of society assumed that women would want to go back to domesticity a fortune paul in the fall of 1945 revealed that 57 of women and 63 percent of men believed that married women should not work outside the home other polls however found that a sizable majority of women especially single women wanted and needed to keep their jobs one single woman asked simply what are we to do i need a job badly for women who did keep working the post-war workplace became highly gender oriented again those women finding her keeping work took lower paying female jobs rosie the riveter had become fran the file clerk as wages declined from about fifty dollars to thirty five dollars a week while some women struggled to find or keep jobs society stressed a renewed emphasis on femininity family and a woman's proper role psychiatrists and marriage counselors argued that women wanted their wives to excuse me the men wanted their wives to be feminine and submissive not fellow workers fashion designers such as christian dior in his new look lengthen the skirts and accented waists and breasts to emphasize femininity marriage was more popular than ever by 1950 two-thirds of the population was married and having children factors contributing to the rush to the altar were fears of male scarcity caused by war losses and a new attitude that viewed marriage as the ideal state for young people many women's magazines and marriage experts championed the idea that men should marry around age 20 and women around age 18 or 19. with veterans returning home society celebrating family and prosperity increasing the baby boom began and will last for nearly 20 years from a depression level of under 19 births per 1000 women per year the birth rate rose to more than 25 births per thousand women by 1948 and that's where you get the baby boomers the boomers as they're known of course in the wider world the condition of women in france in 1949 simone de bevier wrote the second sex one of the century's most important works on the condition of women in it she asked what is a woman her answer was that woman was the other subordinate to man who was the absolute rejecting that premise she argued that women needed to live authentic lives rather than necessary lives devoted to reproduction and motherhood women should dream the dreams of men and achieve freedom writing the work she discovered something that had been staring you in the face all the time which somehow you've never noticed women lived lacerated in a world made to put them at a disadvantage she said where reality offered far more victories to be won more prizes to be gained more defeats to be suffered in 1963 betty fordam drew upon the observations of the bovier for her own controversial book the feminine mystique which is discussed in chapter 26. not all women accepted the role of contented submissive wives and homemakers the war experience had changed relationships when one veteran informed his wife that she could no longer handle the finances because it was not women's work she indignantly reminded him that she had successfully balanced the checkbook for four years and that his return had not made her suddenly stupid reflecting such tensions and too many hasty wartime marriages the divorce rate also rose dramatically 25 of all wartime marriages were ending in divorce in 1946 and by 1950 over a million gi marriages had dissolved as the number of female heads of household rose al so also did the poverty and social stigma attached to single parenthood following her divorce one suburban resident recalled that her neighbors avoided her and made remarks like why don't you get a job instead of taking tax monies she also noted that her children were singled out of school because they did not have a father at home latinos and african-americans restrained expectations for latinos the warriors had brought many positive changes many experienced a higher degree of equality than before and especially among mexican-americans there was more of a sense of being part of the united states of american-ness a wounded veteran and resident of el paso texas moises flores recalled i am proud to be an american sometimes i even call myself gringo which i'm not i'm still mexican but i'm an american first the war also saw in many an increasing unwillingness to return to traditional roles antonio campo for one had experienced a segregated life in houston before the war after the war he used the gi bill to go to college and later ran for political office when told in response to his activism if you don't like it why don't you go back to mexico he shot back i was born here in texas i went overseas and put my life on the line so you people can make decisions he lost the election but like many other latinos drew from the same desire for change that energized the league of united latin american citizens lulac and the american gi forum to attack discrimination throughout the west and the southwest the american gi forum organized in texas in early 1948 by mexican-american veterans worked to secure for latino veterans the benefits provided by the gi bill and to develop leadership within the mexican-american population in california and texas lulac and the american gi forum successfully used federal courts to correct school systems that segregated latinos from white children in mendesville westminster in 1946 and delgado v bastrop school district in 48 federal courts ruled that school systems could not educate mexican-americans separately from anglos mendez and delgado they both mandate you know there has to be desegregated desegregated education basically integration despite these rulings throughout the southwest and west latino students remained in predominantly mexican schools and classrooms which perpetuated inferior educational opportunities and contributed to higher dropout rates african-americans had experienced experiences similar to those of latinos and also exhibited a heightened degree of resistance to returning to old norms even as african-americans lost industrial and other higher paying jobs as the war ended some positive changes occurred and the south african-american voter registration increased primarily in the upper south and in urban areas in several northern cities african-americans displayed their growing political voice by electing black representatives to local and state office and in 1945 they sent adam clayton powell jr to congress from new york that same year jackie robinson gained more national recognition when he began playing in the minor leagues while the post-war period generally saw significant loss of income and status for women americans latinos their experiences had energized many to pursue their own vision of the american dream one that included not only improved prosperity but an unfettered role in society and an unmuzzled voice in politics and it's no wonder that the activism of the 1950s and 60s followed world war ii examining a primary source individual voices the sporting news editorializes on african americans and baseball the sporting news tsn established in 1886 and called the bible of baseball was for decades the most important source for those seriously interested in the sports its editorials and articles shaped and expressed the public's views on sports the following editorials separated by three years discuss the integration of baseball each reflects the views of both the baseball insider and the generalized public and helps today's readers and historians better understand the attitudes and rationalizations regarding race in american society at the time august 8th 1942 no good from raising race issue there is no law against negros playing with white teams nor whites with colored clubs but neither has invited the other other sports had their joe lewis jesse owens respected and honored by all races but they competed under different circumstances from those dominating in baseball the baseball fan is a peculiar creature it's his inalienable right to criticize and jeer in words that not always are the most gentlemanly not even a ted williams or a babe ruth is immune it is not difficult to imagine what would happen if a player on a mixed team should throw a beanball a strikeout with the bases full or spike arrival clear-minded men of tolerance of both races realized the tragic possibilities and have steered clear of such complications november 1st 1945 montreal puts negro player on the spot this is three years later in signing jack roosevelt robinson brand tricky touched off a powder king in the south unstinted praise in negro circles and a northern convention that the racial problem in baseball is as far from a satisfactory solution as ever robinson was reported to possess baseball abilities which were he white would make him eligible for a trial with let us say the brooklyn dodgers class b farm at newport news if he were six years younger here then is the picture which confronts the first negro signed an organized ball one he is thrown into competition with a vast number of younger more skilled and more experienced players two he is too old three he is confronted with the sweat and tears of toil with the social rebuff and the competitive heartaches which are inevitable for a negro trailblazer and organized baseball four he will be expected to demonstrate skills far beyond those he's reported to possess or be able to develop granted that robinson can take it in so far as points two three and four are concerned the first factor alone appears likely to beat him down the sporting news believes that the attention uh which the signing of robinson elicited in the press around the country was out of proportion to the actual vitality of the story and is convinced that those players who gave out interviews blasting the hiring of a negro would have done a lot better if they refused to comment it's all right with me just so long as robinson isn't on our club the standard reply is unsportsmanlike and above all else un-american summary people hope that the end of world war ii would usher in a period of international cooperation and peace this expectation vanished with the start of the cold war to protect the country and the world from soviet expansion the us implemented a containment policy that was first applied to western europe but eventually included asia as well by the end of truman's presidency the u.s viewed its national security in global terms and vowed to use its resources to combat and the spread of communist power and documents like nfc68 are really going to back that up at home truman sought to expand the new deal but found success difficult while existing new deal programs like social security farm supports and a minimum wage were extended a conservative congress blocked new programs linking liberal ideas and programs with communism moderates and conservatives with the house on american activities committee and joseph mccarthy leading the way promoted their own political social and economic interests most americans expected to enjoy an expanding post-war economy that would bring increased prosperity and more consumer goods for many the vision of the suburbs with its stable family structure and new model car in every garage seemed obtainable women were encouraged to return to domestic life and to raise a family post-war america saw a rise in marriages and the start of a baby boom but alongside these trends were an increasing number of divorces and women dissatisfied with their traditional roles while white families seemed poised to achieve the american dream african-americans and latinos found that discrimination under many of the economic and social gains they'd made during the war although forced into lesser jobs and still living in a socially segregated society many saw changes that they hoped to bring economic and educational improvement as well as full political and civil rights