Question

7. How did a war fought to bring “essential human freedoms” to the world fail to protect the home-front liberties of blacks, Indians, Japanese- Americans, and Mexican-Americans?

Answer 1

World War II was the war fought to bring "essential human" freedoms. However, in America, many minority groups did not have the essential freedoms they were fighting overseas for.

For example, black men served in the US military and gained new economic opportunities in factories during World War II. These men were vital to the war effort. However, they still lacked the same freedom in the US in comparison to white citizens. Many black citizens were stopped from voting, attending the same school as white citizens, etc.

This was also true for Japanese American citizens. Thousands of Japanese-American citizens were put into internment camps by the US government after the attack on Pearl Harbor. This limited the freedom of these citizens even though they did not commit any crimes.