The USA in the 1920s Sources Questions

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The USA in the 1920s Sources Questions

1.

All of these sources indicate America’s extreme view towards immigrants.  In the 1920s America was full of intolerance and source i. Shows this well:  “I have suffered because I was an Italian, and indeed I am an Italian”.  These words were uttered by an Italian, namely Bartolomo Vanzetti just before he was executed.  America shows an extreme hatred towards all immigrants.  If the immigrants were different in race or culture to the Americans – they singled them out.  However, immigrants who could be assimilated easily, were treated well.  We can see from source ii. That immigrants from anywhere except North and West Europe, were singled out and not allowed into America.  America thought that immigrants were corrupting their way of life.  Senator Albert Johnson in source iii. says that the “foreign-blood” is a “threat to the happiness of individual Americans”.  We can clearly see from these sources that America had a very arrogant view towards immigrants.  They did not know much about the cultures from which a lot of the immigrants came, and so were afraid and racist.  The fact that a politician of Washington in source iii. Could openly say that America “no longer shall offer free asylum to the rest of the world” shows that racism and hatred towards immigrants and their “threat” on society was an accepted point of view.  In conclusion, America had a very extreme view on immigrants and America should “maintain” their homeland.

2.

Source C i.  Is not very useful to a historian studying racial attitudes in America around the 1920s.  The picture by itself would be quite useful, as it would just show two Blacks being hanged surrounded by a huge white crowd.  However, the italics add a number of unanswerable questions to the circumstances of the picture.  Names and the exact date of this lynching would be helpful to the Historian, however the italics seem to be very vague and sketchy about such fine details.  The italics also state that this lynching occurred in the North of America.  This would have been an unusual incident as in general, Blacks were treated with more respect towards the North of the country.  The caption also states that it is unconfirmed as to why these Blacks are being lynched but one source says that the two “criminals” murdered a white couple.  This information is unconfirmed however, and can’t be trusted.  Anther question, which is raised by the caption, is the circumstances of the crowd.  If there were no caption, one would presume that the lynching took place in the South due to racial attitudes towards Blacks.  One would also presume that the crowd wanted the lynching to take place.   However, italics explain that all information regarding this photograph is debatable, as no one really knows for sure who took it.  It might be the case that, the huge crowd were appalled to see this lynching and the photograph could have been taken in horror as these two black men get lynched.  The crowd, on the other hand could have been the ones who engineered the whole atrocity.  It is all unclear because of these italics.  In light of this caption, a historian studying racial attitudes in America around this time would not find this source very useful.  The italics actually raise more questions than they answer.

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3.

A conclusion cannot really be obtained from sources C ii. and iii. about racial attitudes towards Blacks in the 1920s.  This is because only source ii. states any relevant information about racial attitudes in Chicago.  Source ii. is a very racist Property Owners’ Journal from Chicago in 1920 and states that the “Niggers” are “proud as peacocks” but have “nothing of the peacock’s beauty”.  This entire document is completely against Blacks in general.  The fact that it this article was published in the 1920s shows that attitudes around that time toward the Blacks was that of arrogance ...

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