United States Government Has Taken Various Actions to Address Problems with the Nation's Economy

...

The 18th Amendment

- The 18th Amendment was ratified in 1919. It established prohibition in America, making manufacturing, selling, and purchasing alcohol illegal. Prohibition was the result of the Temperance Movement which existed since the mid-19th century.

- Reformers associated the consumption of alcohol with the corruption of society. There was a direct correlation between alcoholism and violence, poverty and crime. Drunken husbands were more likely to beat or harm their wives and children. In cities, some people committed robberies or mugging just to get money to buy alcohol.

- Reformers assumed that these problems could be diminished by getting rid of the alcohol. Therefore, the 18th amendment was passed after World War I. During this period of time, the consumption of alcohol decreased. However, because it became obvious that morals could not be regulated in a democracy.

- For many, alcohol was an aspect of their culture.

- Italian Americans enjoyed deinking wine with their medicine.

- Others depended on alcohol to live, so many people made an effort to acquire alcohol. Moonshine, a homemade alcohol beverage was created but it was dangerous because amateurs were unaware of the precautions taken when fermenting alcohol. Another thing that became popular was bootlegging. Organized crime increased rose as bootleggers smuggled alcohol into the country to make it available to the people. Many people rose to great wealth as a result of this operation. In addition, speakeasies, illegal bars with secret passwords needed to enter, became permanently associated with this decade. Moreover, enforcement of this amendment became impossible. Therefore, an amendment was passed to repeal the 18th Amendment.

The 19th Amendment

- The 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920 and granted suffrage to all adults regardless of race, religion or gender. After the 15th Amendment was passed, women focused on obtaining their own right to vote and gaining equal rights. It began at Seneca Falls where a few feminists challenged common belief.

- From the time of World war I, many women were responsible for earning money and carrying out jobs in factories. The idea that women were able to work and fulfill the job just as well as men did revealed that women deserved more credit that they were given. They then strived for equality and the right to vote. In 1920, suffragists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton fought for the passage of the 19th Amendment. After the 19th Amendment was passed, women gained political equality as well as more job opportunities and involvement in the government. In addition, because women were allowed to vote, many politicians had to campaign ideas that were appealing to women as well as everyone else. Therefore, politicians had to support legislation like factory reform and labor laws to get their vote.

4. Throughout the history of the United States, the primary goal of its foreign policy has been to protect the nation’s interests. The United States has taken military and economic foreign policy actions to achieve that goal. These actions have resulted in varying degrees of success. Select two military and/or economic foreign policy actions taken by the United States to protect its national interests and for each

• Describe the historical circumstances that led to the action

• Discuss the extent to which this action was successful in protecting the national interests

VIETNAM WAR

- The goal of the United States in fighting in Vietnam was to prevent the spread of communism in South East Asia. The Vietnam War occurred during the Cold War.

- During the Cold War, the United States was locked in a conflict with the Soviet Union, a communist nation. Fearing communism, America did anything they could to contain it.

- Americans were especially determined to contain communism in Vietnam because of the domino theory, the idea that once a nation fell to communism others would follow. Many feared that the “falling dominoes” threatened the overall security of the United States.

- At the time, Vietnam was divided between communists in the North and noncommunists in the South. Americans supported South Vietnam because they believed that another communist nation would threaten American interests and dominance in Asia.

- Going into the Vietnam War, America was confident that it would win. After all, the United States was a superpower that possessed the most powerful and destructive weapons on Earth. Americans were confident in their superiority over the Vietnamese in military tactics and ability.

- However, the Vietnamese proved to be a worthy adversary. The Viet Cong, communist rebels in South Vietnam, and the North Vietnamese fought a guerilla war against the Americans. Because the U.S. soldiers were unfamiliar with the Asian jungle, they often lost.

- America’s failure in Vietnam was also due to the diminishing support for the war at home. Back in America, the nation had split into two groups: those who supported American intervention, and those who were against the Vietnam War. After it revealed that America was not in fact winning the war, the majority of Americans demanded a withdrawal of U.S. troops. Ultimately, America did pull out of the war.

- Although many Americans died for the cause, Vietnam became a unified communist nation. America’s military actions failed to achieve the goal of containing communism. Moreover, this failure brought humiliation to the nation.

SPANISH AMERICAN WAR

- The Spanish American War was a very quick war. It did not take long for American to defeat the Spanish despite the problems of malaria and yellow fever. The Rough Riders led by Theodore Roosevelt, black soldiers, and other American forces worked together to win. Since America won, the nation benefitted from the war.

- From the Spanish-American War, the United States gained control of the Phillippines and Guam which added Asian markets and raw materials for America’s growing industries.

- Cuba gained its independence as a result too. America benefitted greatly from this because it retained control over Cuba. Under the Platt Amendment, the United States had the power to intervene in Cuban affairs. Thus, the nation could protect its economic interests in Cuba, which was its original goal.

- American economic imperialism boomed as investments in sugar, railroads, and tobacco increased. Moreover, the United States became respected as