In desperation, Jewish organizations made various proposals to halt the extermination process and rescue Europe's remaining Jews. On some days as many as 10,000 people were murdered in its gas chambers. It was considered a common good for the war effort, and it affected every American household.During the spring of 1944, the Allies received more explicit information about the process of mass murder by gassing carried out at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Sacrificing certain items during the war became the norm for most Americans. Americans used their ration cards and stamps to take their meager share of household staples including meat, dairy, coffee, dried fruits, jams, jellies, lard, shortening, and oils.Īmericans learned, as they did during the Great Depression, to do without. The OPA rationed automobiles, tires, gasoline, fuel oil, coal, firewood, nylon, silk, and shoes. Ration cards included stamps with drawings of airplanes, guns, tanks, aircraft, ears of wheat and fruit, which were used to purchase rationed items. Other ration cards developed as the war progressed. The first card, War Ration Card Number One, became known as the “Sugar Book,” for one of the commodities Americans could purchase with their ration card. The OPA’s main responsibility was to place a ceiling on prices of most goods, and to limit consumption by rationing.Īmericans received their first ration cards in May 1942. On August 28, 1941, President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 8875 created the Office of Price Administration (OPA). For example, the Japanese Imperial Army controlled the Dutch East Indies (today’s Indonesia) from March 1942 to September 1945, creating a shortage of rubber that affected American production. War also disrupted trade, limiting the availability of some goods. Supplies such as gasoline, butter, sugar and canned milk were rationed because they needed to be diverted to the war effort. When the United States declared war after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States government created a system of rationing, limiting the amount of certain goods that a person could purchase. Rationing was not only one of those ways, but it was a way Americans contributed to the war effort. depicts farmers harvesting wheat while a soldier leans on the tractor's wheel.ĭuring the Second World War, Americans were asked to make sacrifices in many ways. A bas relief panel on the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |