The "Roaring Twenties"

The post-war era of the 1920's was a time of great economic prosperity and growth. During the war the U.S. had served as the primary supplier of goods to the Allies, seeing that America was so far detached from the war. As the economies of the British and French directed themselves completely toward the production of war machines, the U.S. filled the void of all the other necessary products, especially food; the demand for grain eventually pushed its price up to 3$ a bushel. This overall economic prosperity carried on throughout the 1920's for America in general. However, certain groups did not enjoy this prosperity due to the social and political conditions of the decade. In other words, the "Roaring Twenties" were not so "Roaring" for everyone.

With the Russian Revolution in 1917 and the subsequent formation of a Communist party in the U.S., the 1920's was begun with a period known as the "Red Scare"- a period characterized by a hysteria of anti-communism that resulted in the prosecution of nearly 6,000 people suspected of being Communist. However, a large part of those prosecuted had no connections to the Communist Party at all. Rather, the bulk of them were workers. But seeing that Communist ideals favored an uprising of the working class, any sort of strike or movement by them was perceived as the beginnings of a revolution. In one case, the mayor of Seattle called for federal troops to put down a simple strike, which he referred to as "the anarchy of Russia." Thus, due to a growing hysteria and the legislative backing of that hysteria, the twenties were not so "roaring" for many reformists.

Another outcome of the war was the growing dominance of the Republican Party. After a period of Progressive reform and high idealism, the nation grew tired of change that seemed to lead to nowhere, and reverted back to its old ways by electing Republican presidents throughout the 1920's. The Republican platform of the era, in general, was one that favored big businesses, low taxes, low tariff, and the abolition of worker's rights. The first example of this platform was seen in the 1923 Adkins v. Children's Hospital case, in which the Supreme Court ruled that because women had gained the right to vote in the 19^th amendment, they were legally equal to men, and therefore could not be given special protection against businesses under the law. The result was the abolishment of a minimum-wage for women workers. Another example was seen in the Esh-Cummins Transportation Act of 1920. The act, true to the Republican belief in laissez-faire, un-nationalized the railroads and promoted the private consolidation of them. Further leeway was given to business as the newly created Railway Labor Board cut wages for workers by 12% in 1922. Thus due to the political backing of big businesses and the reversal of many hard-gained worker's rights laws, the twenties were not so "roaring" for laborers.

As mentioned before, during the war, the U.S. had been the primary supplier of goods to the Allied forces, as their economies adjusted to wartime needs. Thus, American farmers were relied on to satisfy the increasing demand for food. In order to meet this demand, fields were expanded as well as production levels. Thus, when the war was over, the farmers were left with a large surplus and no place to sell it, resulting in a deflation of the price of their products. Their plight led to the formation of a 'farmers-bloc' in the 1921 congress, and the Capper-Volstead Act of 1922, which exempted farmer cooperatives from antitrust laws was passed. The bloc also tried for the McNary-Haughen Bill, which would have allowed the government to buy and sell the farmers' product abroad, but the bill was vetoed. Thus, little was done to help the farmers, and for them the twenties were not so "roaring."

Overall, due to the growing hysteria, reversal of progressive reforms, and lack of adjustment to the smaller demands of a peacetime economy, for many social groups the twenties were not so "roaring."

Sources:

The American Pageant: A History of the Republic, Eleventh Edition
Thomas A. Bailey, David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen