With Great Britain fighting the war alone, Americans slowly changed their minds to supporting them. Those who still opposed any intervention in the war formed the America First Committee. Charles Lindbergh was an important member in this organization. He gave a speech in New York explaining what the committee position was. Lindbergh made it clear that he believed that it was not our fault that Britain declared war, and we also should not declare war. He states that America can not win this war for England, no matter how much assistance is given. Lindbergh also notes that this country was founded on democracy and millions of people were against the intervention. His speech was made to persuade people stuck in the middle to join the opposing war side. For Americans, he made many good points on why the U.S. should stay away from the war. However, his speech was not enough to forgo the entrance of war.
In 1941, the unexpected happened. Japan attacked the United States. More than 2,000 Americans were killed. After the initial aftershock of the attacks, Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan. Roosevelt turns the actions of Japan to even more cowardly acts than they actually were. He makes sure to point out that the path Japan has taken is a deceiving. Since Japan was still included in talks with the U.S., they showed no threat to America. Although America was not the only nation to come under attack from Japan, the others were also unknowing. This made it easy for Roosevelt to stress how bad Japan was in doing these acts. After Roosevelt’s speech, it was easy to see that America was indeed headed for war.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan, America was looking to make sure there was no help from Japanese Americans for Japan. To reassure this, Japanese Americans were relocated to internment camps. These internment camps were not in the best condition. These centers somewhat resembled concentration camps. One man, Kikuchi, kept a diary during his time in the internment camp. In his diary, it is clear that most Japanese Americans were on the American side for the war. It is also very clear that while they were being put into these horrible conditions, people such as Kikuchi understood this. The idea to put Japanese Americans in internment camps was a brave one by the United States. These people were not against us, and we still treated them as foreigners who were only out to defeat us.
Women also began to be treated differently. Many women took up jobs that only men were once allowed to have. Not only did women work the same jobs as men, they began to take up a similar lifestyle. Working six days a week was unheard of for most women. Many women young and old, who were once housewives, were now in charge of working eight hours in a plant rather than cooking and cleaning. Factories were booming with the help of American women. These women were now making a good pay doing skilled jobs. Up until the war, factories were vacant of women. Although many girls enjoyed their time working in the factories many knew it would end. Most of the girls that were working at these plants would go home at the end of the war and continue to play housewife wherever they left off.
During the war, many things were done to get people to support the war. Of these things, war time posters were one that was very prominent. In all three of these posters, they are aimed to get support and help from Americans. Since women were now considered into the work force, the first poster is showing that they can in fact do it. It was unlike women to have any factory jobs before the war, much less be taking over a man’s job. Now women could work right along side men. Along with new women’s role in the job industry, there was also a rise in racial exception in jobs. The second poster shows a black man and a white man working together. At the time of war, the job industry needed help, and it seemed as if it no longer mattered what race or gender you were. The third poster is talking about the meaning of sacrifice. The talking of sacrifice that was going on at homes of people was nothing like the sacrifices men were making everyday overseas. The war brought on many different ways to advertise jobs to help the war, and for those who did all they could for the war.
The atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945. This bombing was made in the effort to end the war. Nearly 80,000 people died immediately. Leading up to the decision, Truman was uninformed of the bomb. After hearing the benefits of the atomic bomb from Stimson, Truman decided to bomb Japan. His only idea behind using the atomic bomb was so that the war would finally come to an end. As for those in Japan, they suffered greatly. Those that lived through the bombing of Hiroshima lived through something extraordinary. Nakamoto, a Japanese citizen, remembers all of the events of that day. She goes into great detail about the bombing. She also talks about how there were many like her that were burned by the bomb. The entire city was burning, not only those who were hit directly by the bomb.
America in the Second World War was very different. The direct isolationism that the American government first played was quickly switched to war intervention with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Gender and social roles were also affected by this war. Women and blacks were now able to work in jobs that were once reserved only for white men. The harsh environment that we forced upon our own citizens was nothing of the environments that those Japanese Americans had to live through. America in World War II was a very different kind of place. Our ideas and ways changed with a simple bombing. War is very delicate and it proved to be that way to the United States.
