Running Head: DISASTERS OF THE 20TH CENTURY

Disasters of the 20th Century

Jennifer Alvarez Gomez

E3 Civic High

DISASTERS OF THE 20TH CENTURY

 Abstract

(Prompt) How do political, social, and economic developments shape peoples lives and

the whole of society?

(Thesis) Events such as World War II have shaped the lives of people and the whole of

society badly politically, socially, and economically by making people believe they had power,

and having people go into nationalism, and having many people perform labor to help the

country from sinking while in its years of war.

DISASTERS OF THE 20TH CENTURY

Wars are often caused by disagreements within two or more groups, which is a bad thing

for the country itself and its people because the people that are dragged into the war have to deal

with several problems that are constantly brought up such as separating families because their

husband or a man in their family had to go fight in the war and possibly not come back causing

grief for the family, and changing the ways and rights of the people and then are forced to adjust

to some rules that can make them go out of their comfort zone. Money is another big problem

because in order to fight, the supplies cost money and the food also costs money, often times

leading into debt from another country because they ask for a loan that can eventually add up and

take a long time to pay it back. Events such as World War II have shaped the lives of people and

the whole of society badly politically, socially, and economically by making the people think
they had power, having people go into nationalism, and having many people perform labor to

help the country from sinking while in its years of war.

In the World War II era, the United States was based more on Democracy, there was an

issue on letting foreigners into the country. Due to prior experiences with foreigners in the

country, the United States is more hesitant on trusting the people from other countries making it

harder for them to get in. They say that the power was within the people, however, in a way that

is not true because in order to vote for a president you have to have a state representative and the

representatives vote does count so the vote is not really within the people. Not only did many

liberals fear subversion and accept the need for controls, but many of them felt at one, socially

and politically, with the government officials who were implementing restrictive policies.

(O'Brien, 1995, p.17) The people would feel like they were under control and were being forced

to make decisions that did not satisfy them, they did not feel free which is a big issue because the

United States would usually be seen as a free country. Due to the war, there is a possibility for

new enemies making it difficult to try to ally with other countries. There were other factors on to

why that era would also affect the people socially.

In the World War II era, people were put through a mentality where racism and

segregation was approved which would lead to the races isolating themselves from others and

doing their own thing. In a setting where racial prejudice and discrimination had as much to do

with the black World War II. (Jefferson, 2008, p. 145). Discrimination would increase against

other non Americans. People did not believe in the fighting abilities of the African Americans

and did not have a lot of faith in them which is why they would be set in the back of the lines.

During that era, the committee members express little hope towards the minorities and their

abilities were underestimated. This would cause social problems because people would isolate
themselves from other groups leading into discrimination and racism. Other races would

question equality and their freedom that was promised within the country. There was a lot of

propaganda that was brought up during that era which would be pointed towards other people, an

example would be the women and how they had to work at home during that era and were

basically housewives, this would make people view one another differently and begin

stereotyping. The wars had caused more issues such as one important one being money.

World War II was very expensive and caused the country to go in debt. Supplies cost

money and feeding people also costs money. There was a reduction in the consumption of items,

meaning that there were less jobs and more unemployment so people could not really make

money. There was an economic growth decline due to the lack of government spending. People

still had to pay taxes but couldnt figure out how since there were not enough jobs because of the

decrease in consumption. The U.S had expanded with Nuclear weapons and there was an

increase in Nuclear weapons which was not good because other countries had done the same

which would put people into fear and cost a lot of money to produce and to pay the people who

work on those topics. World War II had caused the country to go into extreme debt with other

countries so they have to find a way to pay back which could hurt a lot of the people in the

country. The dollar would go up meaning everything would cost a little more in order to help pay

for the debt that the United States had left for World War II. World war 2 had caused a lot of

difficulties and racism which affected society as a whole.

Counter Arguments

There are always disagreements, but everyone is entitled to their own opinion. People did

have some power during that era, but they did not have the power that they were promised so it

was a let down. People expected more than what they got because when someone promises you
something and you get less, you are not very happy. Yes, racism was abolished before, but,

people would still be racist and there was still a lot of discrimination going and and people would

still isolate themselves from other groups. The committee members would underestimate the

African Americans and their fighting abilities in the battlefield. The United States was left under

a huge debt after the War, Yes, the U.S will eventually pay off their debt but, the U.S couldve

owed less if they would have thought more critical and in depth about it, instead they kept

borrowing supplies and money from other countries.

Conclusion

Wars are bad for the country itself because they can cause lots of risks, meaning people

can split apart or the country itself can deteriorate. Wars like World War II can affect the country

politically by people creating different parties causing the people to become less united with one

another and can eventually segregate from one and become their own. The people of the U.S did

not really trust foreigners so it would cause racism and discrimination and isolation within other

ethnic groups which made it difficult to share ideas from one another. These type of events are

expensive especially since there are nuclear weapons and those are expensive to make,

borrowing supplies from other countries would eventually have to be paid back, so taxes would

kick in and people would have to work harder. The lives of people that are lost can not be bought

back with money and be easily forgotten, especially if they were underestimated in their skills,

they would just be thrown around like ragdolls. Instead of wars, people should debate because

when you start a war, that could lead to you destroying your own country and making things

worse between one another which can lead to another great depression. Of course not everyone is

going to agree with each other, but that does not mean you have to fight it out.
 References

Jefferson, R. F. (2008). Fighting for hope: African American troops of the 93rd Infantry Division

in World War II and postwar America. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University

Press.

Mawdsley, E. (2009). World War II: a new history. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
O'Brien, K. P., & Parsons, L. H. (1995). The home-front war: World War II and American

society. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Stone, O. (Director), Sulichin, F., & Ibanez, J. (Producers), & Kuznik, P., Graham, M., & Stone,

O. (Writers). (2014). Oliver Stone's Untold History of the Unites States [Motion

picture on DVD]. United States: Warner Bros.

Winslow, Rachel Rains. "Raising the World: Child Welfare in the American Century." Canadian

Journal of History, vol. 51, no. 3, 2016, p. 644+. U.S. History in Context,

link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A477085863/UHIC?u=sddp_main&xid=ea076b3a.

Accessed 5 Feb. 2017.

Wood, E. W. (2006). Worshipping the myths of World War II: reflections on America's dedication

to war. Washington, D.C.: Potomac Books.

Annotated Bibliography

Jefferson, R. F. (2008). Fighting for hope: African American troops of the 93rd Infantry

Division in World War II and postwar America. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins

University Press.

This book talks about how military men and women seized their through

barracks culture and politics after World War II. This can be useful to explain how the lives of
 the people was like after the world war II era. So I can compare both and talk about how both

during and after the war were both effective in a bad way and how it did not help. Robert F.

Jefferson explores the curious contradiction of war-effort idealism and entrenched

discrimination through the experiences of the 93rd Infantry Division. with the army taking

great pains to regulate contact between black soldiers and local women. Focuses on how the

soldiers wartime experiences reshaped their perspectives on race and citizenship in America.

He finds in these men and their families incredible resilience in the face of racism at war and

at home and shows how their hopes for the future provided a blueprint for Americas postwar

civil rights struggles. Examines the ways in which political meaning and identity were

reflected in the aspirations of these black GIs and their role in transforming the face of

America.

Mawdsley, E. (2009). World War II: a new history. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

This book talks about how worldwide events would affect world war II and its people. It

states the strategies the people would use. Another thing the author examines the political,

economic, ideological, and cultural factors which influenced the course of events. Which can fall

under both the economic and political category for the thesis to support it in my paper. It also

includes the consequences of the war which could help me by using it as evidence to prove my

point. The book includes illustrations that could help me a lot by quoting them. The author also

studies the key figures such as the leaders and the conditions.

O'Brien, K. P., & Parsons, L. H. (1995). The home-front war: World War II and American

society. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

This is a book of a collection of Essays throughout World War II that explain the

conditions and how the people would live their lives. This is useful because since my topic
relates to World War II and I talk about society and how is has changed, a collection of essays

from World War II is very helpful. They would make women work and they would actually have

to work like men during that era. It also explains the working conditions in Indiana during the

time of the war. This book also explains the impact of the war and how it influenced the concepts

of race, gender, class, and ethnicity. It is a possibility where this came into plan on eliminating

most stereotypes around the nation. This could fit under the social part because of how the

gender roles would play and how the people were before and how they would classify each other.

Stone, O. (Director), Sulichin, F., & Ibanez, J. (Producers), & Kuznik, P., Graham, M., & Stone,

O. (Writers). (2014). Oliver Stone's Untold History of the Unites States [Motion

picture on DVD]. United States: Warner Bros.

In this documentary, it reveals the untold truth about the historical event of World War II.

The documentary uses recently discovered archives and newly declassified materials. One

question is being asked in the documentary and that would be if it is too late for America to

change because of the events that will happen. The documentary talks about several events but I

will be discussing about the World War II related events and how that relates to supporting my

thesis. It also explains how the U.S has drifted from its democratic traditions and how powerful

forces have struggled to pull us back together. It also discusses our role in the war and what

happened politically and socially which is good because I can gather evidence from the people

who speak from there and have more evidence to back it up.

Winslow, Rachel Rains. "Raising the World: Child Welfare in the American Century." Canadian

Journal of History, vol. 51, no. 3, 2016, p. 644+. U.S. History in Context,

link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A477085863/UHIC?u=sddp_main&xid=ea076b3a.

Accessed 5 Feb. 2017.

 This Journal explains how the children would work and how their conditions were like

during the war and what kind of jobs they had. The author also incorporates letters from teh

children themselves. As the field shifted, voluntary agencies hurried to detach their relief work

from foreign affairs. The so-called "naturalness" of childhood remained immutable even as

global politics had changed once more. this is a smart and timely book. Fieldston knows the

players well and provides a convincing framework for bringing children into foreign affairs. As

Fieldston argues, through the advocacy of American voluntary organizations abroad and child

sponsorship programs, US policymakers, experts, and citizens wielded the foreign child as a

powerful political actor in the early Cold War era. That can be part of the political category and

the social category because how children would be taught into labor at a young age having them

miss out on an opportunity of a childhood, instead they are working.

Wood, E. W. (2006). Worshipping the myths of World War II: reflections on America's dedication

to war. Washington, D.C.: Potomac Books.

The author believes that events from World war II are relevant to today's events. There is

a reflection of the topics of killing innocent people which can relate to how it affected society as

a whole. The whole concept of killing innocent people became acceptable during the times of

war which can also relate to how that makes wars bad because people are believing that it is okay

to kill innocent people. The reports and war discussions are usually ignored so they dont make it

a big deal, such as today people get plead guilty if they are involved in a killing. takes a critical

look at what he sees is Americas dedication to war as panacea and as Washingtons primary

method for leading the world.