Divided Society

Question 1

When did prohibition become law?

Answer 1

1920

Question 2

When was prohibition (the Volstead Act) law? (How long did prohibition last?)

Answer 2

Prohibition lasted from 1920 - 1933

Question 3

How did prohibition change the levels of alcohol consumed in the early 1920s?

Answer 3

Levels of alcohol consumption fell about 30% in the early 1920s

Question 4

Why was prohibition introduced? (3)

Answer 4

Temperance Movement
Rising crime rate linked to alcohol
Children’s purity + innocence said to be at risk

Question 5

Effects of prohibition (4)

Answer 5

Corruption
Gangsterism
Made criminals out of ordinary people as the liquor trade simply ‘went underground’
Poor quality moonshine sometimes killed people

Question 6

Name one poor quality moonshine + it’s effect

Answer 6

‘Jackass brandy’ caused internal bleeding

Question 7

What fraction of prohibition agents were dismissed for corruption?

Answer 7

1 in 12 prohibition agents dismissed for corruption

Question 8

Why was prohibition impossible to enforce? (5)

Answer 8

Briberies frequently used (of agents + of judges, senior officers
Gangsters operated all over country
Not enough agents
- Agents responsible for very large areas
Each agent was poorly paid

Question 9

How many prohibition agents were there?

Answer 9

4000

Question 10

How many gangland murders were there between 1927 - 1930

Answer 10

500+

Question 11

Name two infamous gang leaders

Answer 11

Al Capone

Bugs Moran

Question 12

Bootlegger

Answer 12

Someone who supplies people + speakeasies with illegal alcohol

Question 13

Where did the illegal alcohol usually come from + why?

Answer 13

2/3 of alcohol came from Canada

The vast border was difficult to patrol

Question 14

Stills

Answer 14

Illegal distilleries producing moonshine (illegal alcohol)

Question 15

Speakeasy

Answer 15

Illegal bar selling alcohol

Question 16

Amount of speakeasies in the 1920s compared legal bars in previous decade

Answer 16

More speakeasies in the 1920s than there were legal bars before the decade

Question 17

How much did Al Capone make a year from his speakeasies?

Answer 17

Made around $60 million a year from his speakeasies

Question 18

St Valentine’s Day Massacre (4 - what, when, who, how)

Answer 18

Infamous gang murder
14 February 1929
Al Capone’s men murdered 7 of rival Bug Moran’s gang
Used a false police car + 2 gangsters in uniform to put Moran’s men off guard

Question 19

When did prohibition end?

Answer 19

1933

Question 20

Why did prohibition end? (4)

Answer 20

Lead to too many deaths
Hadn’t lead to decrease in crime but crime actually increased
Government income (from alcohol taxes) had decreased by $11 billion
Rising unemployment in late 1920s - alcohol trade could create jobs

Question 21

Between 1850 - 1919, amount a people from Europe that came to America?

Answer 21

Between 1850 - 1919, about 10% of population of Europe (some 40 million) left for a new life in America

Question 22

First Americans (3) (who, who took their land, where did they live after)

Answer 22

(Native Americans)
White European settlers gradually took their land
- forced to live in reservation areas

Question 23

Old Immigrants (3)

Answer 23

White settlers who arrived in America from Europe in 1600s
Then gained independence from British empire
By 1900s, = most powerful + richest group in society

Question 24

Black Americans (3)

Answer 24

The slaves brought to America between 1600 - 1800
Slavery then abolished 1865 + slaves set free
Faced segregation + prejudice

Question 25

New Immigrants (4)

Answer 25

The wave of people that flooded into America from 1850 onwards Mainly from Eastern Europe Irish people that had left after the major famines Growing number of Chinese + Japanese

Question 26

Why did Immigrants come to the US? (6)

Answer 26

``` Escaping poverty Escaping political persecution Hope of owning land (plentiful supply) Jobs with higher wages Adventure Hope of equality + opportunity ```

Question 27

3 Immigration laws passed by US Congress

Answer 27

Literacy Test, 1917 Emergency Quota Act, 1921 National Origins Act, 1924

Question 28

Literacy Tests (3) (when, what, who usually failed)

Answer 28

Introduced 1917 Immigrants had to pass series of reading + writing tests before they could enter Poorer, less educated immigrants failed so were refused entry

Question 29

Emergency Quota Act (3) (when, number, countries that it favoured)

Answer 29

Introduced 1921 Restricted to 357000 immigrants per year Quota system favoured Immigration from Britain + Western Europe

Question 30

National Origins Act (3) (when, number, continent)

Answer 30

Introduced 1924 Reduced immigration to 150000 per year Prohibited immigration from Asia

Question 31

Lifestyle of immigrants (2) (area, jobs)

Answer 31

Poor, overcrowded areas in cities | Low paid menial jobs

Question 32

Life for African Americans living in south (4)

Answer 32

Segregation as a result of Jim Crow laws Denied access to higher education, good jobs + right to vote Forced to work low-paid, unskilled jobs Prejudice + discrimination

Question 33

Life for African Americans living in north (6)

Answer 33

``` Jim Crow laws didn’t exist in north - still faced discrimination Given most menial jobs Lived in squalid ghettos Better chance of getting a good job + education than in south - many moved north ```

Question 34

KKK (5) (when, aim, actionsx3)

Answer 34

``` Established 1865, revived 1915 Wanted to preserve white supremacy Terrorised minority groups Violence used to intimidate Lynching ```

Question 35

How many people were lynched by the KKK in the 1920s?

Answer 35

400 black Americans

Question 36

By 1923, how many members did the KKK have?

Answer 36

5 million members by 1923

Question 37

How did the film ‘The Birth of a Nation’ impact the KKK? (3) (when, how, who showed it)

Answer 37

Release of film in 1915 Glorified the klan as defenders of decent American values against evil President Wilson showed it in the White House

Question 38

Why were KKK members rarely punished? (3)

Answer 38

Many held positions of authority - e.g. judges so KKK members not found guilty in courts Politicians didn’t take action - scared of losing votes

Question 39

Red Scare (4) (what, why, who under threat)

Answer 39

Period when there was an extreme fear of communism - Americans frightened by Russian Communist Revolution 1917 - some believed the same thing would happen in USA - Immigrants under suspicion

Question 40

Events that heightened the Red Scare (4) (1919 + 1920)

Answer 40

Industrial unrest in 1919 - immigrants blamed for strikes Discovery of 36 mail bombs in April 1919 – A bomb destroying the front of the house of the Attorney General, Mitchell Palmer – A bomb exploding on Wall Street in September 1920, killing 38 people

Question 41

Sacco and Vanzetti case (6)

Answer 41

Italian Immigrants, anarchists Accused of 2 murders during armed robbery at a shoe factory Both arrested 1920 with guns in their car Tried in court at height of Red Scare in 1921 They were convicted on weak evidence by a prejudiced judge Both executed 1927 even though a man had come forward + said it was him

Question 42

When were Sacco and Vanzetti executed?

Answer 42

August 1927

Question 43

When was Sacco and Vanzetti‘s court case?

Answer 43

May 1921