The World War II Bond Campaign / Lawrence R. Samuel.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Samuel, Lawrence R., author.

Series:

World War II.

World War II

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

World War, 1939-1945--Finance--United States.

World War, 1939-1945.

Bond market--United States.

Bond market.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (275 pages)

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Fordham University Press, [2025]

Summary:

How America’s greatest marketing triumph in World War II shaped race, ethnicity, and class in modern AmericaThe World War II Bond Campaign is a history of the World War II bond drive led by the federal government, an effort called the most successful marketing operation in history. By the war’s end, some 85 million Americans had spent $186 billion in an unprecedented outpouring of patriotism that contributed to the military victory and the prosperity of the following decades. The FDR administration used bonds to raise capital to support the war and promote national unity within the context of the nation’s increasingly pluralistic society as the “melting pot” theory was retired. African Americans, Euro-Americans, and labor union members enthusiastically bought bonds to express national loyalty but also to demonstrate racial, ethnic, or class pride, a reflection of their dualistic or “hyphenated” identities.Drawing on various primary sources, The World War II Bond Campaign illustrates how the Trea­sury Department’s multicultural marketing strategies tapped into Americans’ aspirations alongside their patriotic impulses. Citizens of all social and economic backgrounds eagerly responded to what can be seen as the selling of America, making the subject an ideal lens to view national identity at a critical moment in the country’s history. The author contends that the drive’s success helped pave the way for the emergence of both the civil rights movement and the vigorous consumer culture of the postwar years.

Contents:

Cover

Series Editors

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Contents

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part One: The Development and Marketing of World War II Bonds

Chapter 1. The Voluntary Way

Chapter 2. Democracy in Action

Chapter 3. The Biggest Selling Campaign in History

Part Two: War Bonds and Labor, Class, and Ethnicity

Chapter 4. On This We Are United

Chapter 5. Consent of the Governed

Part Three: African Americans and World War II Bonds

Chapter 6. William Pickens and the Inter-Racial Section

Chapter 7. The NAACP and War Bonds

Chapter 8. African American Notables and War Bonds

Chapter 9. African American Investment in War Bonds

Conclusion

Notes

Index

List of Series Editors.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Description based on print version record.

Includes index.

ISBN:

9781531509279

1531509274

OCLC:

1485003330