While life was good for many there were still some problems in the 1940's:
Problem #1
After World War II was over, soldiers wanted to come home. President Truman had to keep some soldiers overseas because the Communists were trying to take over. The military was also needed to help rebuild many European countries and Japan.
Problem #2
During the 1940s, the price of goods kept going up. One of the main reasons for this was Americans were making so many military goods. Another reason for higher prices was that unions were demanding higher wages. When money is worth less and less and the cost of goods grows higher and higher, it is called inflation.
Problem #3
President Truman believed in civil rights for all Americans. He believed that people should be able to live and go to school wherever they wanted. Truman set up a Commission on Human Rights. He told the Commission that he wanted to make the Bill of Rights work for everyone. The Commission studied the problems and reported back to President Truman. He liked the Commission's ideas and sent them to Congress. Congress refused to pass the new laws which Truman wanted.
Truman decided to use his power as President to make some changes. He said that no part of the armed forces could be segregated by race. This caused many people to become angry at Truman. Others were angry at Truman over inflation.
When the next Presidential race took place, many people thought Truman would not be re-elected. Truman traveled around the United States by train. He talked about "common sense." To America's surprise he won the election by getting 303 electoral votes to Dewey's 189, and Thurmond's 39. |
