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WMA America and the Jewish Refugees As Hitler’s anti-Semitic attacks continued to escalate many Jews began to flock towards the United States. Unfortunately Americans were generally not very welcoming towards incoming Jewish immigrants. With the Great Depression still looming in the United States many Americans feared that an influx of Jews may somehow upset the economy. Unemployment rates were still high, causing Americans to distrust potential competitors, especially Jews. In history Jews have often been labeled bad omens and shunned; these anti-Semitic beliefs existed in the United States and Hitler’s claims that the Jews were to blame for Germany’s economic crisis certainly did not diminish American fears. On the other hand, many of the Jewish immigrants accepted during this time period lead to major contributions toward American history and culture. From talented musicians and scientists that helped construct the atomic bomb to influential politicians, America received a variety of highly skilled immigrants. Despite their credentials, a vast majority of Americans still did not welcome Jews.

SMR- “The Grand Alliance” Roosevelt’s goals in the war were: total defeat of the Axis powers with the least possible cost of American lives, and the establishment of a world strong enough to preserve world peace, open trade, and ensure national self-determination in the post-war era. Roosevelt joined the Allied powers because Churchill and Stalin had similar goals. Churchill wished to establish a balance of power in Europe and Stalin wished for Russia to gain more influence. During World War II, Roosevelt served as a mediator between conflicts with Britain and Russia. As a result, Roosevelt resolved the problem of dividing Berlin into zones of occupation. In turn, Stalin pledged to enter to war against Japan and help with American defenses. Roosevelt also convinced China to stay in the war in return for Manchuria and Taiwan. While Roosevelt was very involved in the war effort, he turned his attention toward domestic affairs due to increased conservative sentiment. The conservative sentiment forced Franklin Roosevelt to drop liberal Henry A. Wallace, and appoint Harry S. Truman as his vice-presidential candidate. Truman would inevitably approve of the atomic bombs dropping in Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

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APC: Black During in the War

As the Nazis began to dominate the European continent, African Americans continued to fight with the realities of life in a racist society. Jim Crow segregation and de facto segregation dominated the United States. Violence held up this social structure and prevented blacks from gaining some measure of equality with whites. World War II gave blacks an opportunity to prompt the struggle against discrimination and coupled with other social and political developments to change the nation. In spite of their heroic performances in World War I, which had been widely recognized in Europe, black soldiers were outcasts in the United States. Whites remained joined the presumption of black inferiority, disloyalty, and cowardice. Because of rampant discrimination, black leaders sought proportional representation of blacks in the Army's combat units. President Roosevelt and others urged the Army to adopt a quota system so that the numbers of black soldiers would be representative of their proportion in the general population. Following the 1940 Selective Service Act, the enlisted strength of the Army usually was 10 percent black. These gains aside, black troops found themselves thwarted to the bottom of the military, and the armed services continued their practice of segregating blacks. Military officials forced black soldiers into segregated service units. Military policy did not allow blacks into combat units until 1944, therefore accounting for the fact that little more than 50,000 black troops engaged the enemy in combat. Blacks served courageously in every theater of action, yet the military failed to honor their bravery. Despite the heroics of many, black soldiers faced violence and hostility at home. Expanding black neighborhoods and business centers increased the competition for physical, cultural, and political space in America's cities. The occurring tensions came in racial clashes and riots throughout the war years, the worst coming in Detroit in 1943. Ultimately, the successes of black activists encouraged a stronger push for racial justice. President Roosevelt's actions served as a prelude to the Truman administration's executive order integrating the military and its acceptance of civil rights. The treatment and triumphs of black workers, voters, and soldiers radicalized a community that was already eager to end the last indications of racism. In this way, World War II,and the black responses to it, paved the way for racial integration, the civil rights movement, and a wider debate on the nature of American citizenship.

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