114 THE WIDENING WAR 1942
Following the US’s entry into the war in
December 1941 (see pp.110–111), Roosevelt
used a series of War Power Acts to
reorganize the economy and industry
for total war. Everyday life across the US
changed. Meat, sugar, butter, canned
goods, gasoline, fuel oil, clothes, and other
commodities were all rationed, and
civilians planted “victory gardens” to
grow their own food. Americans were
encouraged to save scrap metal for the
war industries, and armament production
soared. To fund the expense of waging
a global war, US propaganda urged the
public to buy war bonds and victory
stamps. Meanwhile, anti-Japanese feeling led to the confinement of
nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans in west-coast internment camps.Changes in the workplace
To replace the men drafted into the armed forces, women joined the
workplace in ever-increasing numbers. Many were enthusiastic about
their new opportunities, some inspired by an advertisement that told
them working in a war plant was “a lot more exciting than polishing
the family furniture.” The war also offered better jobs to thousands
of African Americans, who moved from the south to work in the
industrial cities of the north, midwest, and west. It was the start of the
largest internal migration in US history. However, racial segregation
was still in place, and race riots broke out in some urban centers.HOLLYWOOD AT WAR
AMERICA
AT WA R
With the onset of war, life in the US changed dramatically.
Millions of men were conscripted, while at home industry
geared up to provide necessities for the war effort, turning
the country into what President Franklin D. Roosevelt
christened “the arsenal of democracy.”
Hollywood played an
important role in boosting
national morale during the
war. Film star and singer
Marlene Dietrich (right),
who in 1939 renounced
her German citizenship
and became a US citizen,
often entertained the
Allied troops. At home,
Hollywood star power
was used in the drive to
raise funds for the war.△ Patriotic duty
A recruiting poster urges women
to enroll as volunteer nurses.
Around 74,000 served in the US
Army and Navy in World War II.US_114-115_F_America_at_War.indd 114 04/03/19 10:47 AM