The Twenties

The Twenties

The United States of America entered something of a golden age in the 1920s. Compared to most of Europe, America has hardly suffered at all in the Great War. Although about four million men were drafted into the armed forces and an American Expeditionary Force (AEF) of over 1.2 million was sent to Europe the United States troops only had to endure a few months of war before the armistice was signed. After the war the United States rose in international power politically and economically with its main European competitors now substantially weakened.

American xenophobia increased after 1918, because of the fear of becoming engaged in another costly 'foreign' war and by the 'Red Scare', the terror practiced by the Bolshevik revolution in Russia. A series of strikes and bombings in 1919-20 caused a greater fear of anarchy, which lead to harsh measures, with many innocent aliens deported and civil rights violated. Many acquired a distrust of organized labor, which continu...