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On the Homefront

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The document summarizes how life on the homefront in the United States was impacted during World War 2. Key points include rationing of certain goods like food and gasoline to support the war effort. Women entered the workforce in large numbers to replace men who joined the military. This helped reduce unemployment and boost the economy. The government also instituted the draft and called on minorities to contribute to the labor force. However, over 110,000 Japanese Americans on the West Coast were forcibly relocated to internment camps due to misplaced fears of disloyalty, despite only a small number being interned in Hawaii.

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On the Homefront: The U.S. in WWII
Rationing • Rationing resulted from the government’s need to support the military • Factories began producing war materials instead of consumer goods • Certain types of food became difficult to get (meat, sugar, coffee, gasoline, and shoes) • The government regulated the amount of food items each family could purchase • OPA (Office of Price Administration) oversaw the rationing
Female Employment • All available citizens were encouraged to work in some way to support the war • 250,000 women served in auxiliary branches of the armed services (nurses and clerical workers) • Women entered jobs that had not been open to them before, especially factory work in manufacturing industries • Out of 18 million defense workers, 6 million were women • Women earned 40 percent less than men doing the same jobs • Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) helped the military during the war (nurses, ambulance drivers, radio operators, electricians)
End of the Great Depression • Brought about by government spending on weapons, airplanes, ships, and other equipment • The war increased production and created jobs in the United States • Much of the government’s spending on war goods was deficit spending • Unemployment dropped from 17.2% in 1939 to 9.9% in 1941 to 4.7% in 1942 • Increased consumer spending helped the economy- Americans spent money on entertainment (movies and books) • Desire for news helped the publishing and radio industries grow
Labor • The selective service system instituted a draft that provided the nation with 10 million additional soldiers • Defense contractors called for more workers to keep up with the demand for more war materials • 6 million women would answer the call (Rosie the Riveter) and more than 2 million minorities would help the war effort • A. Phillip Randolph (African-American labor leader- Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters) organized a march on Washington that forced President Roosevelt to issue an executive order stopping discrimination in defense industries
Minorities Serving • African-Americans, Mexican- Americans, and Japanese Americans: defended their nation by joining the military or working in defense industries • Many minorities encountered discrimination and racism- CORE (Congress of Racial Equality, sit-ins, marched/protested, boycotted) and JACL (Japanese American’s Citizens League, sought compensation for Japanese Americans forced into internment camps)
Children at the Weill public school in San Francisco pledge allegiance to the American flag in April 1942, prior to the internment of Japanese Americans. A Japanese American unfurled this banner the day after the Pearl Harbor attack. This Dorothea Lange photograph was taken in March 1942, just prior to the man's internment. Official notice of exclusion and removal
Internment camps and further institutions of the War Relocation Authority in the western United States.
Internment of Japanese Americans • In the name of national security, many Japanese-Americans were forced to move to special detainment camps starting in 1942 (many thought they were spies even though no evidence supported this conclusion) • 1% of Hawaii’s Japanese-Americans population (1,444) interned; 110,000 Japanese-Americans in California and other Western states were sent to camps • 2/3 of those interned were Nisei, or American born citizens. Many had been drafted into the army and wanted to fight against the Axis powers Heart-Mountain Camp

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On the Homefront

  • 2. Rationing • Rationing resulted from the government’s need to support the military • Factories began producing war materials instead of consumer goods • Certain types of food became difficult to get (meat, sugar, coffee, gasoline, and shoes) • The government regulated the amount of food items each family could purchase • OPA (Office of Price Administration) oversaw the rationing
  • 3. Female Employment • All available citizens were encouraged to work in some way to support the war • 250,000 women served in auxiliary branches of the armed services (nurses and clerical workers) • Women entered jobs that had not been open to them before, especially factory work in manufacturing industries • Out of 18 million defense workers, 6 million were women • Women earned 40 percent less than men doing the same jobs • Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) helped the military during the war (nurses, ambulance drivers, radio operators, electricians)
  • 4. End of the Great Depression • Brought about by government spending on weapons, airplanes, ships, and other equipment • The war increased production and created jobs in the United States • Much of the government’s spending on war goods was deficit spending • Unemployment dropped from 17.2% in 1939 to 9.9% in 1941 to 4.7% in 1942 • Increased consumer spending helped the economy- Americans spent money on entertainment (movies and books) • Desire for news helped the publishing and radio industries grow
  • 5. Labor • The selective service system instituted a draft that provided the nation with 10 million additional soldiers • Defense contractors called for more workers to keep up with the demand for more war materials • 6 million women would answer the call (Rosie the Riveter) and more than 2 million minorities would help the war effort • A. Phillip Randolph (African-American labor leader- Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters) organized a march on Washington that forced President Roosevelt to issue an executive order stopping discrimination in defense industries
  • 6. Minorities Serving • African-Americans, Mexican- Americans, and Japanese Americans: defended their nation by joining the military or working in defense industries • Many minorities encountered discrimination and racism- CORE (Congress of Racial Equality, sit-ins, marched/protested, boycotted) and JACL (Japanese American’s Citizens League, sought compensation for Japanese Americans forced into internment camps)
  • 7. Children at the Weill public school in San Francisco pledge allegiance to the American flag in April 1942, prior to the internment of Japanese Americans. A Japanese American unfurled this banner the day after the Pearl Harbor attack. This Dorothea Lange photograph was taken in March 1942, just prior to the man's internment. Official notice of exclusion and removal
  • 8. Internment camps and further institutions of the War Relocation Authority in the western United States.
  • 9. Internment of Japanese Americans • In the name of national security, many Japanese-Americans were forced to move to special detainment camps starting in 1942 (many thought they were spies even though no evidence supported this conclusion) • 1% of Hawaii’s Japanese-Americans population (1,444) interned; 110,000 Japanese-Americans in California and other Western states were sent to camps • 2/3 of those interned were Nisei, or American born citizens. Many had been drafted into the army and wanted to fight against the Axis powers Heart-Mountain Camp