Double V Campaign Activity 1 Listening to African American Voices How could individual African Americans further their own quest for equal rights during WWII?  To further their quest for civil rights, certain African American knew that by becoming a soldier they would gain some more respect and be able to enjoy some of the same things the white men did. There were these projects that only allowed the entrance of colored war workers and were rented by them. They came equipped with auditoriums, playgrounds, and day nurseries for those parents who worked during the day. Also many African Americans began being trained in the occupations of machinery and working with cars, although many white people resented this. When some African Americans were denied jobs solely because of their race, they left Mobile, Alabama, which was extremely segregated. The Homefront Activity 3 Rationing & Recycling 1. Develop a list of some of the major items that civilians in the United States rationed, recycled, or just went without during WWII. Gasoline Rubber Steel Metal Certain foods Paper 2. How were these items used in the war effort? Gasoline was used to fuel tanks, and also cars and trucks used in battle and for transportation. Rubber was used to make tires for tanks, and also used in the production of boats and aircrafts used in the war. Both steel and metal are used to build airplanes and tanks to keep them strong and protect from firing bullets. Certain foods were rationed so that they could be sent to the troops fighting over in Europe and to the hungry and starving communities there. Paper was used in the war effort to make war posters, and also to encourage people to buy war bonds. 3. How did the Depression help Americans to prepare for life without the "luxury" items? Since the Depression hit and devastated millions of Americans, they were already used to living without very pricy and luxurious things. So once the war began and things were being rationed, they didn't really feel that great of a loss as they had felt once the Great Depression had started. Why do you think did Americans not begin to recycle things after the war was over? I don't think Americans began recycling things after the war was over because they were afraid that they might end up in either another Depressed state, or another state of war. They probably began keeping everything that they could, incase another state of hysteria occured. 4. How do you explain the contradiction between Americans whose act of rationing and recycling made them feel they were part of the war effort and the emergence of a black market for goods during the war? The contradiction occured because some Americans felt that by donating and recycling everything they had and used they would be helping out the troops in Europe greatly. However, some Americans were more interested in selling these recycled goods to people inside the country who would buy them off of them because they needed these items for some reason. 5. How did rationing and recycling contribute to a sense of community? Do you think Americans today would ration to contribute to a war effort? Explain your answer. Rationing and recycling contribute to a sense of community because it allows regular civilians to do something that will benefit their country. They come together as a whole and give everything that they have so that they can support the people fighting for their freedom. I don't think Americans today would ration to contribute to a war effort. Nowadays everthing is so fast paced and everyone mainly looks out for themselves and rarely takes time to worry about the people who are out their winning them the civil liberties they enjoy everyday without realizing it.

Letters from the Front Lines Activity 1. To whom is Babe writing, one person or many? Babe is writing to his entire family. 2. What does Babe recount that his family will be happy to hear He wants his family to know that he is in the best of health. 3. In what ways does Babe make it sound as if he is practically on a vacation? He states that the weather is beautiful and that all he does there is eat and sleep. 4. What do you think he might be implying when he says, "Don't worry about my money situation, because theire isn't anything to spend it on here in Anzio"? He might be saying that he doesn't need his family, who is probably suffering money problems, to send him any this month because there is nothing he needs to buy there and he doesn't want them to have to send him their money. 5. In what ways does Babe intimately convey that he is still very connected to his home and family? At the beginning of one of his letters, he mentions that he hopes everyone in the family is doing well, and that he wants everyone to take care of themselves, because when he comes home he will be doing a lot of eating. 6. Why do you think Babe does not give his family more details about the real conditions on the beaches of Anzio? I think Babe leaves out a lot of information because he doesn't want them to worry about him or frighten them with the horrors of war. By leaving out the gruesome details he leaves his family with happy thoughts so they aren't fearing for his life the entire time he is away. 7.How does Babe's brother interpret the letters he received from Babe differently today than he did during the war? He interprets the letters differently because I think he realized what Babe was doing. He noticed that he never mentioned any of the bad aspects of war in his letters, just the occasional good thing that would occur. 8.Do you think Babe was right to hide so much of the reality he was living from his family? Yes, I think Babe was right to hide so much from his family. I don't think they needed to know about all the casualties going on there. This would have caused them to worry so much while he was there and they would have had a hard time going on with the rest of their daily lives.

Kelby Kim

Assignment #22

World War II Project

Activity 1

Just War

After reading President Roosevelts declaration of war and reviewing the 6 principles of jus ad bellum I believe that President Roosevelt spelled out a case for a just war with Japan.  President Roosevelt followed the 6 principles when outlining to Congress his request for war with Japan.  First of all he explained the just cause reason as it is described within the 6 principles by telling Congress that Japan had physically and aggressively attacked the U.S. navy at Pearl Harbor.  Second, he explained his intention for the U.S. to enter war was because of the Japanese attack and the need for the U.S. to defend itself against further aggression.  Third, the President was following the proper authority by requesting that Congress to agree with him and to declare war.  Fourth, Roosevelt outlined for Congress that this war was the last resort.  He explained that the U.S. was in negotiations with Japan for a peace agreement up to just a short span of time prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He further explained to Congress that only after the bombing of Pearl Harbor had begun did the U.S. receive a message from Japanese Ambassador to the U.S. that negotiations to continue a peaceful agreement between the two countries seemed useless but that the message did not contain a declaration of war.  Roosevelt clearly outlined the fifth principle which is the probability of success.  He gave a clear message that he fully intended to use the military to strongly defend the nation against this type of an attack again.   He tells Congress that the U.S. will fight to win and to ensure that no other nation will ever use this type of surprise warfare against the U.S. in the future.  Finally the President does describe proportionality by telling Congress the universal good that will be achieved by defending the U.S. possessions in the Pacific and also that victory will ensure that we as a nation will maintain our freedom.  The only piece that he does not elaborate on is the death and destruction that will occur during the war which he is asking Congress to declare.  I believe that he intentionally chose not to highlight this piece and chose instead to highlight the attack and the death and destruction that had just occurred at Pearl Harbor to meet the proportionality criteria.

Activity 2

Combat and War

Battle/ Answer questions regarding personal accounts of two men from the clip Combat and War.

1. As the men land on Iwo Jima they are afraid and they noticed that the battle techniques that they had used to battle before did not apply in this battle.  The intensity was extreme there were already so many wounded and there was much shooting and noise with an extreme amount of chaos. 
2. The men were really unable to draw much on previous combat because this was different.  They were used to the hit and run jungle tactics but they could not use them at Iwo Jima.  They could offer some advise to the younger soldiers who were not experienced and were trying to dig in under the artillery by telling them to move.  They also were experienced with the sounds of the shells and they knew when the shells were right on top of them.
3. I dont believe that either man believes that they have control over their fate in battle but they did try to use whatever protection they could to seal their fate by moving out of the way of the shells and by advising others with less battle experience to do the same.  Ariass story pretty much sums up the lack of control over fate when he describes what happened to him.  He was hurt in battle and a corpsman came to his aid by giving him medication and by laying on top of him to protect him from further damage from the oncoming shell and that corpsman died.  You could never really predict where the shell would land or where the bullets would land so other than doing the best to protect yourself there was little that could be done to control fate.
4. Combat creates a bond among all of the men who have experienced it because they are like a special club of individuals who truly know what it was like to be in battle and to experience the fear and the chaos involved and to see death around you.  Unless you have experienced it yourself it is impossible for civilians to even closely understand the full experience that these men have experienced and these shared experiences create that special bond.
5. A hero is someone that has done something commendable and is a person that other people admire and look up to.  Most soldiers do not consider themselves heroes because they feel that they are only doing what they have been trained and told to do.  They feel that everything that they do in battle is expected of them as soldiers.
6. The aspects of battle that are common to all wars are the casualties of war.  In every war soldiers are injured and soldiers die.  This has always been and will always be a fact of war.  Combat has changed over time.  For example the types of weapons have changed.  The canons and muskets have been replaced with high powered rifles and tanks.  There have been grenades and shells.  The weapons of World War II differed from those of wars before it.  This war was fought from the air the ground and the sea.  There were shells being fired from ships and bombs being dropped from planes and on the ground the tactics for hiding in wait and digging in foxholes made it  different from other wars before it.  Today the aspects of combat have changed even more. The war today has the added danger of the suicide bombers which are usually civilians.  I think that there is no more or less to fear in battle then or now.  I think that all war has its share of fearful situations.  To be in the middle of battle and to not know where the next shell or bullet or bomb with hit gives cause for fear.  The destruction that constantly presents itself to the soldiers and the uncertainty of what will happen at any given moment is cause for fear in any war.

Activity 3

Japanese American Internment

Watch clip and answer questions regarding reflections of Japanese Americans interviewed.

1. Only Japanese Americans on the West Coast were affected by Executive Order 9066 because most of the Japanese and Japanese Americans living in the U.S. were living on the West coast.  After Pearl Harbor the American people saw the Japanese as the enemy and the West Coast population became fearful of the Japanese living there.  West Coast politicians and people started to spread rumors about possible danger from the Japanese Americans living on the West Coast and they asked the President to evacuate the Japanese.
2. The Americans did not object to the internment of Japanese Americans in 1942 because they were still upset over the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the U.S. was at war with Japan.  Japan was seen as the enemy and the U.S. citizens were probably fearful of further attacks from the Japanese.  Fearing that some of the Japanese living in the U.S. may help Japan as spies or even help to plan another event such as Pearl Harbor I think that it was easy for the American people to accept the internment and not raise any objections to it.
3. The impact of the internment was devastating to the Japanese American people.  The Japanese American people allied themselves with the U.S. and they went to schools in the U.S. they had businesses in the U.S. they considered themselves as Americans.  They saluted the flag and pledged allegiance to the U.S. flag.  It was devastating to them to be considered an enemy of America and to have their freedom removed without just cause.  These people were forced to leave their homes, farms and businesses.  They lost all of their property and possessions and the Japanese American farmers had to leave their crops to be harvested by their neighbors. They lost all of these things and were forced to live in squalid conditions without privacy.  Their living conditions at the internment camps were the equivalent of concentration camps.  Even though the social and economic impact of the internment were hard the personal impact was the most severe.  The Japanese American people who suffered internment were stripped of their pride and respect. They were denied all of their rights as American citizens. Their patriotism was ignored and rejected by the U.S. government and other American people. It was an experience that they would never forget.  It raised the prejudice against the Japanese American people that remained after the war had ended.
4. The government was not justified in sending Japanese Americans to relocation camps on the basis of ethnicity.  It was wrong of the government to take away all of the rights granted to all American people under the Constitution from the Japanese Americans living on the West Coast.  They had no proof that these individuals were the enemy of the U.S. It was just fear and a hysterical reaction to the events of Pearl Harbor that created Executive Order 9066.  Other options would have been to let them remain in their homes and allow them to live as other Americans did unless their was specific evidence that the individual was a threat to U.S. safety and security.

Combat and War: Activity 1 - Feelings about War

How do Daniel Inouyes and Quentin Aanensons recollections reflect similar sentiments? How do they differ?

          They both show examples of how soldiers are trained to see their enemies as inhuman and to attack enemies indiscriminately.  They both show a soldier doing their job.  However, Daniel recollection shows the human part of the enemy that soldiers didnt see unless they got up close while Quentins just shows little people running around on the ground much like target practice.

Soldiers are taught to think of the enemy as inhuman, but when they come close to the enemy that assumption is sometimes challenged. How did these two men view the enemy? How does the experience of battle differ on the ground and in the sky?

          Daniel view of the enemy changed after his encounter with the German soldier in the house where he now saw them as the people and humans they were.  He saw them to be just like him, with a family and life back home.  On the other hand Quentin saw the enemy as just targets to take out because it was his job.  This can be explained because battle on the gorund differs greatly from battle in the air.  When on the ground a soldier is in the thick of battle and has their senses flooded with exploding bombs, yelling, gunfire, killing, constant danger, etc. and they see their enemy closer and sometimes face to face.  On the other hand battle in an airplane separates from most of those senses and from your enemy as the soldier is in a machine high above the enemy and moving too fast to even see the enemies faces.  You only see where the enemy is and attack from a distance. 

In its simplest terms, war means killing people. To win a war, one army has to kill more soldiers than the army it is facing. However, we are brought up in a civilized society that condemns killing. How do we expect soldiers to balance these notions? How can they, as Aanenson states, go out and do their jobs again and again and again?

          WE can expect them to balance these notions by justifying why theyre fighting.  If their fighting a just war against an unjust or just plain brutal enemy then that enemy needs to be stopped at all costs or they will threaten our families and other civilians back home.  We need our soldier to be able to do whatever is necessary to stop evil from spreading so we can continue to have a civilized society top return to.

Letters From The Front Lines: Activity 1

To whom is Babe writing, one person or many?

          He is writing to his entire family back home.

What does Babe recount that his family will be happy to hear?

In what ways does Babe make it sound as if he is practically on a vacation?

          He recounts that he just had food and the weather in Anzio is beautiful.  He makes it sound like he is always eating and that he doesnt do any fighting and just sits around, taking in the sites.

What do you think he might be implying when he says,

Dont worry about my money situation, because there isnt anything to spend it on here in Anzio?

          He might be implying that no shops are open because of the war and that much of the areas towns and cities could be destroyed.

In what ways does Babe intimately convey that he is still very connected to his home and family?

          He talks about events back home almost as if he was there watching it from afar and always makes it seem like he is more worried about them and how their doing than himself.

Why do you think Babe does not give his family more details about the real conditions on the beaches of Anzio?

          The foremost reason is that he does not want them to worry about him, he does not want them to live day to day feeling that he could be killed at any moment.  He also wants to keep personal life and war life completely separate. 

How does Babes brother interpret the letters he received from Babe differently today than he did during the war?

          During the war he interpreted the letters just as Babe wanted him to and was kind of ignorant of the fact that he was actually fighting and just thought he was there doing nothing but sitting around, like he was on vacation.  Today he realizes how unreal he previous interpretation was.  He knows now that his brother was probably fighting while writing these letters and was in worse condition than he let on.

 Do you think Babe was right to hide so much of the reality he was living from his family?

          I believe he was because he did it not only for them but for him.  He did not only want them to not worry, but he also wanted something that could separate him from the bloody war he was fighting, this was writing letters to his family.  This was a psychological relief for himself.

Art and Propaganda: Activity 1 Why We Fight and War Bonds

What are the messages presented in the newsreel Why We Fight?

          The main message is that there are two worlds, one of freedom and democracy and one of slavery and tyranny.  The free world represented all free and democratic nations of the world who supported peace and justice while the dark and tyrannical world represented the axis powers and their twisted views.  Most of the other messages in this newsreel are advocating that we have entered into this war to fight for freedom as our forefathers did and uphold justice against the unjust and that everything we have done so far has been necessary to fight off the evil and sick Axis Powers and their propaganda. 

Why do you think Burnett Miller at first believed the war time propaganda was an awful lot of baloney? How did his attitude change later as the war progressed?

          He saw it as being silly at first because he thought it was just the politics of war being implemented to rouse public sentiment in favor of the war and to support it.  His opinion changed when he realized that this propaganda was fundamental to the war effort as our enemies had a head start against us and we needed to do all we could to help our soldiers over seas.

Examine the propaganda posters individually, and describe how well each might shape the thinking of people like Burnett Miller.

          Each poster was specifically designed with a purpose and a specific target and was not just thrown together.  Posters were meant to strike people at the core and arise deep emotions in them so they wouldnt merely read it and blow it off but to take the message to heart and to act accordingly.  They meant to unite the people of the U.S. together disregarding racism, sexism, etc.  to maximize production in the U.S. These posters would affect peoples thoughts by showing how the little things do make a difference if everyone contributes and how they could hurt if you did not do them.  They exploited our sense of nationalism and unity by arguing that if we didnt help the war effort we were just like the enemy.

Do you think such persuasion techniques in the posters would be effective today? Why or why not?

          Yes I do believe that they would be, to some extent, because, when threatened, appreciate the freedom they have and will fight or support a cause to protect it, especially if every else does it.  However I believe people are a bit more informed today so it is more difficult to use such open persuasion but it would be better to do it in a more concealed way.

Why were movie stars recruited to help sell war bonds?

          During the 20s and 30s movie stars became very popular and culturally influential.  They were used to sell war bonds because their face was one that the public recognized and idolized.  So when they advocated for something people were a lot more lenient to go with the idea rather than if the idea was advocated by a no-name. 

Examine the themes in the each poster example and identify the different messages each makes to appeal for funds.

          The posters used many messages to get people to react to them and act on that feeling.  Some used the argument that if you talk, to the enemy, then that is as good as killing a soldier or a loved one.  Others glorified the work that soldiers did showing prime examples of soldiers in their posters, showing what ordinary people can do and contribute to this great country if the join the armed forces.  Still others encouraged work and production saying that every minute wasted was working against the return of their beloved soldiers overseas or increased production would cause their return to come sooner.  The war bond poster encouraged people to buy the bonds to not only support the U.S. but when you did you were being patriotic and hurting the enemy. And others still encouraged the importance of women working and that it was necessary for them to keep up the good work.

Why do you think buying war bonds was important to the American public?

          It was important to the public but it was an outward way of showing your own patriotism and it strengthened Americans resolve in the war as they were convinced they were directly effecting and contributing to help the war effort.

Toxin wrote:

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I believe this belongs in the Atomic Bomb Mock Trial thread not here. LOL

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Goody-Two Shoes wants to be a board monitor now?!?!