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What Are The Paradoxes Of The 1920s

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The 1920s, also known as the “Roaring Twenties,” was a decade of significant social, cultural, and political change in the United states. It was a time of both progress and paradoxes, with conflicting views and values. One of the significant paradoxes of the 1920s was the tension between nativist and immigrant beliefs. Nativism was a movement that opposed immigration and supported the interests of native born americans. This tension was exemplified by the trial of sacco and vanzetti in 1920-1927. Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were Italian immigrants who were accused of murder and robbery in Massachusetts. The trial was highly controversial and became a symbol of the conflict between nativist and immigrant views. Many believed that the trial was unfair and that Sacco and Vanzetti were convicted because of their immigrant status and anarchist beliefs. Despite worldwide protests, Sacco and Vanzetti were executed in 1927. Another paradox of the 1920s was the tension between religion and science. This conflict was exemplified by the trial of John Scopes was a high school science teacher who was accused of violating Tennessee’s Butler Act, which prohibited the teaching of evolution in …show more content…

Many native born Americans felt threatened by the changes that these immigrants brought with them, including different languages, customs and religions. Nativist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, gained popularity during this time and advocated for strict immigration laws and white supremacy. On the other hand immigrants faced a number of challenges including discrimination poverty and limited opportunities. Many immigrants were forced to work in low paying jobs and lived in crowded unsafe conditions. Despite these challenges immigrants also brought with them a rich cultural heritage that helped to shape American

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The Sacco Vanzetti trial was a trial that occurred during the time of the Red scare where people feared and accused others of communism. Unfortunately for these two italian men known as Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were accused of robbery and murder at the Slater and Morrill shoe factory in South Braintree in 1921. Later on both men were executed on April, 9 1927. The Sacco and Vanzetti trial was considered a witch hunt due to the red scare and the little evidence that was disproven.

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At the time, certain events were taking place that allowed the rise of religious fundamentalism. Larson says, “These scientific developments helped set the stage in the early 1920s for a massive crusade by fundamentalists against teaching evolution in public schools, which culminated in the 1925 trial of John Scopes. ”13 Developments such as the increase of public schools, new fossil discoveries that strengthened the evolution argument, and the rise of religious fundamentalism all helped strengthen the case of anti-evolution advocates. These anti-evolution movements lead by religious leaders such as William Jennings Bryan argued that the teaching of evolution should be banned in public schools since it was the will of the majority, even if freedom of speech was compromised. The ACLU eventually advertised for a teacher to challenge the law that banned evolution.

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Urban vs Rural Scopes Trial The 1920’s can be characterized as a clash between the traditional and the modern. One of the biggest moments where urban vs rural was tested was in the scopes trial or “monkey trial”. The scopes trial involved a substitute teacher, John Scopes, who was accused of violating the Butler Act, which had made it unlawful to teach evolution in any state-funded school in Tennessee. This is where urban vs rural had huge conflict, this teacher who was considered modern for teaching his theory of humanity to a traditionalist school.

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Jim Crow laws were still prevalent and continued to restrict their freedom (Doc D). During the 1920s, the American economy took a giant step forward. Economic prosperity put the “roar” into the twenties. A new

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On July 10th of 1925, in the heated town of Dayton, Tennessee, a great debate culminated in the greatest joke of the year. At the onset of Dayton’s Scopes Trial, now laughably referred to as the “Monkey Trail” the cause for conflict was quite real. John Scope had been charged with “illegally teaching the theory of evolution” (dd) Prior to this event, Democratic candidate for President Bryan had succeeded in passing legislation in fifteen states, including Tennessee, which banned the teaching of Evolution in public schools. When the scopes trial came to fruition, Bryan himself chose to Prosecute.

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Due to these propositions, the case of Sacco and Vanzetti became very popular. Two Italian immigrants, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were convicted in a Massachusetts court of robbery and murder. Many liberals felt that they were only convicted due to their ethnicity and political beliefs (anarchists). They were executed in 1927, despite these remarks. Moreover, the most severe example of nativism in the United States was the resurgence of the KKK.

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The Scopes Trial John Scopes, a high school biology teacher, who found himself at the center of one of the 20th century’s most famous life-changing court hearings; The Scopes Trial. It was also known as the Monkey Trial, where biology teacher John Scopes was prosecuted for teaching evolution in a public school located in Tennessee (Kemper). Prior to the trial, there was a anti-evolution law that was passed making Scopes actions illegal, this was known as The Butler Act. As a matter of fact, when Scopes went against this law it was the first step in moving towards modernism. As well as, causing America to move away from traditional values.

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The Scopes Trial represented a significant setback for anti evolution forces (5B). Many teachers in the 1920’s wanted to be able to teach evolution in relation to scientific terms but they were not able to. Teachers wanted to be able to teach students something

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Being the most important witness in the prosecution side, he made an accusation that John T Scopes taught him about evolution. The prosecution attorney then could state that John T Scopes was convicted and guilty of the crime committed. The defense side might argue about the law but could no longer claim that John did not teach evolution in school. The statements raised by Harry Shelton were very definite and potent. According to what he said, he warned John T Scopes that it’s illegal and not proper to teach evolution in school.

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Emma Lynch Mr. Holland APUSH January 27, 2017 Roaring 20s DBQ The 1920s appeared to be a period of turning inward for Americans, as they had been disillusioned and damaged by World War I. President Warren G. Harding had coined the term ‘a return to normalcy’, which was a nostalgic vision of American society with traditional values and roles, and was widely accepted and eagerly embraced by the population. It was during this time that America experienced “The Roaring Twenties”, an outstanding period of prosperity. There was also a significant shift from an agrarian society to an industrial society, which as a result, caused tremendous tension between traditionalists and modernists.

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The Scopes Monkey trial was one the biggest and most influential court cases of all time. John Scopes was a public high school teacher in dayton tennessee who was arrested and tried for breaking the butlers law. Passed in 1925 it made teaching evolution in any schools and colleges in the state of Tennessee illegal. This was because evolution challenges the idea of creationism which was the popular religion in the tennessee. this was a huge problem because it was written in the constitution that you must separate church and state.

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Key point being the fact that America has no set religion therefore schools should not teach only evolution, or only creationism. Both should be taught, or neither should be taught. Schools cannot teach neither though because there is valuable knowledge in both. During the trial Scopes said “... violation of my ideal of academic freedom-that is, to teach the truth as guaranteed in our constitution of personal and religious freedom”(“Scopes”). John Scopes had a very eye opening point; stating that he can believe whatever he wants to believe in because he has those rights granted by the Constitution.

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America experienced a sudden disregard of Victorian values following World War I, causing the generation of the 1920s to dramatically contrast the previous. This severe degree of change produced three major manifestations of the contradictions in the twenties. There were massive conflicts to the Jazz Age, technological advancements, and Black Migration. The contradictions of the 1920s reflect America’s conflicted state between advancement and convention, as the cultural and technological developments of the era coincide with the inability of individuals to stray from traditional norms and racist attitudes.

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During the 1840s-1850s Americans saw a huge increase in the number of immigrants arriving in America, and this only lead to white American citizens fearing them during that period. There was fear for many reasons, the main reason being Americans feared that immigrants would steal their jobs. Namely these jobs were in New York city and other large coastal

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The 1920’s was an interesting time in American history. This era was also known as the roaring twenties. Although it is remembered as a fond time before the Great Depression there was also a lot of conflicts arising, Cultural conflicts in particular were at the center. Prohibition and Immigration were two of the main cultural conflicts during this time period.

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