The 1920s were an exciting and fascinating time in American history filled with art, music, new idea and inventions, and much more. During this time, America seemed to break into a more modern era. The old Victorian style was transformed into this vibrant and lively America. It was a time of new behaviors, new attitudes, and new freedoms. This was also a time of significant cultural and social changes as well as conflicts. Societies views on women, did little to stop their progress in fighting for equality and reform. Prohibition did little to keep people from finding ways to get and sale alcohol.
African Americans also saw progress, despite the resurgence of the KKK. In 1919 the 18th amendment was ratified and it banned the sale, transportation, and consumption of alcoholic beverages. Mainly Protestants and social Progressives supported prohibition, because they saw alcohol as a door to illness, poverty, and insanity. However, the ban did little to limit the alcohol usage, especially when the 20s rolled around. The war was over, and everyone was looking for a way to have a good time, one of these ways was alcohol. Alcohol was still widely available at many underground bars and other establishments.
There were also numerous private bars where drinks were available as well as people who learned to make their own beer at home. Because of the demand for alcohol, large quantities of alcoholic drinks were smuggled from Canada. Many people believe that because of prohibition there was a decrease of alcoholism and diseases caused by alcohol. However, deaths from alcohol poisoning increased greatly. Because the manufacture and sale of alcohol was now illegal, alcohol was not produced under government supervision and was not made with directions from chemists.
In most cases, people who brewed their own alcohol at home, put dangerous chemicals and poisons to give it an extra “kick”. This caused many people to become sick with alcohol poisoning, and many died. Prohibition also affected the economy negatively. Without the sale of alcohol, money was no longer made in that area, and the government lost quite a bit of money while also spending money on trying to enforce prohibition. Prohibition also set a tone for the 20s that the average, everyday citizen could break the law and it was okay.
Overall, prohibition was a social conflict that ultimately had a detrimental effect on this era when the disadvantages outweighed the advantages. People were still able to buy or make their own alcohol, alcohol poisoning increased tremendously, the economy was damaged, and it produced enormous amounts of organized crime. The 1920s was a turning point for women. During the war, women were responsible for filling the gaps in society that the men left when they went to fight. After the war and after fighting for suffrage for so long, the women of this age were simply looking for a way to relax and have fun.
The 1920s brought a new sense of freedom for freedom and drive. More women began to work, more women went to college, and the role of women took a leap forward when they were given the right to vote. Clerking jobs were more abundant than ever, and an increase in phone usage required people (typically women) to work as operators. Women were also needed to work in department stores because they related well to the customers which were primarily other women. However, working wasn’t the only thing on most women’s minds.
Women were looking to express their independence, experiment with their style, and embrace themselves. Single, young, middle class women were typically known as flappers. Flappers sought to enjoy themselves, and they defied the standard norms and behaviors. They were socially liberated and were often reckless and carefree. They cut off their hair to short bobs instead of long locks, they traded in their corsets and long skirts for knee length and sleeveless dresses, and they exchanged their natural look for faces full of makeup. The look of the flapper was definitely one that differed rom the Victorian style that most people were used to.
Women other than the flappers also threw out their restricting clothing for something more comfortable and revealing in order to free themselves from the chains of the Victorian Era. The women of this generation believed that they should be able to have fun and experience all the activities that men were able to experience. So during this time women drank more alcohol than ever before, despite the push for prohibition. Smoking, as well as engaging in more sexual activities, also became popular among women, especially the flappers.
With the 19th amendment under their belt, women sought to eliminate all sexism and double standards within society. Because of this, divorce became easier for women. The women of this age were not content to simply stay home and put up with a bad or an abusive husband, so during this era the number of divorces increased drastically. Most of society did not want women to portray this rebellious, provocative, and feminist image. Society, especially parents, became concerned with the young women of this generation.
Parents, fearful that their daughters would become corrupt, placed them in reformatories, also known as youth detention centers. Parents believed that their daughters should grow up to become housewives and that by placing them in these reformatories they would regress to their traditional lifestyles. Reformatories were one of society’s responses against women and their journey to equality and reform. However, despite societies prejudiced views against women during this era, women were able to do things that made them happy instead of trying to please their husband.
They were able to get more jobs and more women were able to go to colleges. Women were able to express themselves and try new things, and they were able to exercise their independence as well as their political rights. Women fought hard during this time to prove that they deserved to be granted every right and treated equally. In the end, because women disobeyed society norms and rules, a change was made. Racism was still ever present in the United States, however, during the 1920s African Americans did see an improvement and more opportunities in their lives.
The Great Migration was a large scale movement on African Americans to northern cities. This occurred as a result of WW1 because there were numerous job openings due to men leaving to fight in the war. African Americans also moved north to try and escape from discrimination. However, African Americans were not accepted easily. Many whites were bitter and believed that African Americans were causing the wages to decre conflicts between the whites and blacks in northern cities caused the breakout of race riots, and the resurgence of the KKK.
However, the KKK didn’t only discriminate against African Americans. They sought to return to the past and to the traditional ways, and they were anti-Jewish, Catholic, African American, radical politicians, “wild” women, immigrants and minority groups. Unlike the Klan during the Reconstruction Era, this new Klan formed active groups in every region of America, and gained political power and respect. The KKK used violence and intimidation to threaten groups of people who were different. They believed that anyone who was bringing new religions, new morals, or new customs, should not be here.
The KKK even requested that Congress limit immigration into America. Because discrimination and prejudice views were still present many African Americans found themselves in rundown, urban areas. One of these areas being Harlem. The Great Migration brought many African Americans together and triggered an explosion of cultural pride, thus bringing forth the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural, social, and artistic movement that celebrated the African American culture.
From this movement many talented and brilliant people came to the light. There were exceptional writers and actors such as Langston Hughes. Hughes was a poet who changed how poetry was written by giving it rhyme and rhythm that reminded people of blues and jazz. The movement also brought forth many talented musicians. Jazz was a huge part of the Harlem Renaissance and the 1920s. Thousands of people, white and black, went to clubs and other places night after night to listen to talented and brilliant black musicians.
This movement brought forth singers and musicians like Louis Armstrong, who people still recognize today from his famous songs. Along with writers, actors, and musicians, the movement also saw many black photographers, talented scholars, and extraordinary artists. African Americans still faced many hardships and trials. However, the Great Migration and the Harlem Renaissance brought together some of the most talented and brilliant minds of the generation.
The people of the Harlem Renaissance undoubtedly changed how the African an culture was seen, and the impact was one that you could not look away from. For the first time, white Americans could not look away and could not avoid the allure that was the African American culture. The clash between old and new, and the contrast between new attitudes and traditional views undeniably present. People blamed crime and their problems on alcohol, but Prohibition did little to stop crime of alcohol consumption. In fact, it only increased and encouraged organized crime and escalated the amount of alcohol poisoning.
African Americans became aware of who they were. They gained pride for their culture and realized they were entitled to success and the American dream. Women sought to gain their independence and express themselves freely. They believed that they were entitled to equality and freedom from the traditional image of a woman, and they strived to create a new image of a new woman. The 1920s were a time of reform and change. Despite the conflicts that may have occurred during this era, the world benefited in music, art, independence, freedom, and in so many other areas.
