The Roaring 20’s

After today you should know:How women’s roles changed

What major population shifts occurredHow population shifts led to conflicts of values in America

How fundamentalism influenced America

S - New Roles for Women

Voting• 19th Amendment ratified in 1920

– gave women right to vote– Women soon elected to local and

state offices• Nellie Tayloe Ross – WY• Miriam Ferguson – TX

• Women generally voted the same as the men in their lives– Didn’t bring the change people

had suspected

S & E – New Roles for WomenJobs

• Many women resumed jobs during economic boom of the 1920’s– Mostly low paying

professions• Nursing• Teaching• Domestic servants• Secretaries

College

• Women also started attending college in record numbers– Especially those in middle and

upper class

The Flapper

S - The Flapper

• Changing opportunities for women brought about changing attitudes– Including: basic rules defining proper

behavior for women• The Flapper– Defied traditional ideas of proper

dress and behavior– Cut hair– Wore makeup– Smoked cigarettes– Drank alcohol – Went out dancing all night

– Became a new mode of popular dress

S – The Flapper

• Also became a popular image reflecting the changes affecting women– Suggested freedom and independence

• But some women didn’t approve, especially– Women in rural areas

• Only seen pictures in magazines• Conflicted with conservative values

– Older supporters of women’s rights• Thought flappers disgraced the work that had been done to

advance the cause of women

S – New Roles for Women

• But a woman’s major role was to care for children and the home

• Still depended on men for financial support

• Did seek greater equality in their relationships with men

G, S, R, I, E – Urbanization

• Farmers experiencing hard times flocked to cities for new jobs

• 1920 census showed for the first time that more Americans lived in urban areas than rural areas– http://www.census.gov/population/www/censusdata/

files/table-4.pdf– In 2008 – 79.2% urban, 20.8% rural– 75% of Americans worked somewhere other than a farm

• Access to cars shrunk the distance between the country and the city– Rural people less isolated, changed outlook

S, I – Education

• The shift to the cities provided access to education

• States passed laws requiring young people to go to school– Got children out of factories– Opened up new jobs

• School attendance, college enrollment increased

S – Intolerance

• Urban and rural values clashed in the 20’s

• Rural dwellers disapproved of many parts of urban life

• Ku Klux Klan grew because of the differences in values– Drew lots of members from

rural America• Believed they could preserve

their place in society

– Targeted African-Americans, Catholics, Jews

– Membership peaked in 1920’s• In the millions

How do people feel in times of change?

S, R – Fundamentalism • Changes of the time

attracted many people to religion

• FUNDAMENTALISM became very popular– Form of Christianity based

on a literal interpretation of the Bible

– Condemned radicals and criticized the changing attitudes of women

• Prominent fundamentalist preachers– Billy Sunday

• Former baseball player

– Aimee Semple McPherson• Well known for healing the

sick through prayer

S, I, P – Fundamentalism vs. Evolution

• Fundamentalism conflicted with modern science– Especially Charles

Darwin’s Theory of Evolution

• Fundamentalists believed evolution undermined religious faith

• Tried to prevent teaching evolution in schools

• Several states passed laws outlawing teaching evolution

• Law passed in Tennessee in 1925 made it illegal to teach evolution

S, I, P – Scopes Trial• Tennessee teacher John Scopes arrested for teaching

evolution• People all over the country followed his court case• Guilt was never in question• Two important lawyers faced off:

– Clarence Darrow defended John Scopes• Famous criminal lawyer • Argued that teaching evolution was a matter of free speech

– William Jennings Bryan – • 3 time candidate for president• Fundamentalist• Believer in rural values• Argued that the ideas competed with Christianity

S, I, P – Scopes Trial

• Scopes was convicted• 5 days later William Jennings Bryan died– Considered a hero

• Law remained in place until 1960

The Scopes Trial

S, P - Prohibition• Through history many groups tried to outlaw alcohol

– Thought it was a source of unhappiness, hurt families, promoted crime

• In 1900’s the Progressives tried to outlaw it• WWI led to support for the ban

– Wartime called for discipline– Need for grain

S, P – Prohibition • Bias against immigrants, city life supported argument– People said immigrants and urban dwellers were abusers

of alcohol• By 1917 over 50% of states passed some form of

restriction on alcohol use– Encouraged by Fundamentalists– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVuwREbGh3w&feature=related

S, P – Prohibition

• 1917 – Congress proposed constitutional amendment making it illegal to manufacture, transport or sell alcohol

• 1919 – Amendment ratified• 1920 – Volstead Act passed to enforce the

amendment– Prohibition became the law of the land

Prohibition

S, P – Prohibition

• Virtually impossible to enforce• Making, transporting, selling alcohol illegal,

but drinking it was NOT• Gave rise to huge smuggling operations– 2nd biggest industry in Detroit in 1920’s– Smugglers - BOOTLEGGERS– Illegal bars that served alcohol – SPEAKEASIES

S, P – Prohibition • 1925 – only 5% of liquor

entering country had been stopped

• Illegal liquor business – foundation for great criminal empires– Al Capone – Chicago

• Federal government couldn’t compete with criminals

• Prohibition continued through the 1920’s without success– Damaged government

prestige

Prohibition

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJp3lnu-V-M&feature=PlayList&p=DFD79F9A222C8A9E&playnext=1&index=21

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiYqFXmVAFg&feature=related

• http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?p=prohibition&ei=UTF-8&fr=b2ie7&fr2=tab-web&tnr=21&vid=000165489586