HISTORY
The New Mexican-Americans in Wartime America:
How the "Z-Oot Suit Riots" and the "Second Generation"
Transformed Mexican-American Ethnic Politics
Brady Dvorak
riots reflect the state of the Mexican American pop
events shape the future of the Mexican American c
In this paper, l will show how the unique state oft
especially the first US-born generation of Mexican
Abstract
second generation) - coupled with the anxiety of\
This paper looks at the unique demographic, economic, and cultural state of ethnic Mexicans living
of racial tensions in Los Angeles. And, I will sho\\
in the United States during World War II and how the "Zoot Suit Riots" both refl ected the wartime
riots" created by the sensationalistic press affected
ethnic relations between Latinos and Anglos and influenced the future of Mexican American civil
campaign in two ways: (1) Popular interpretation<
rights movements. In particular, the riots will be examined within the context of the emergence of a
American youth, bridging a correlation between et
pachuco youth culture within the second generation of US-born ethnic Mexicans. Newspaper
there being any racial discrimination during the ric
articles of the time and complimentary research will also show how popular public perception of
perception of there being no racial element of disc
the events affected the way in which Mexican American community leaders would negotiate the
communities. With Mexican American activists or
ethnic politics of civil rights until the 1960s.
anti-Mexican sentiment, they preached uncompror
while ignoring the more complex problems of disc
Introduction
disparity between Latinos and Anglos in the Unite
0
Mexican Americans, Pachucos, and World
ne of the most notorious episodes in the history of US ethnic relations, and certainly in
Mexican American history, was the so called "zoot suit riots" that took place in wartime
Los Angeles. From June 3 to June 13, 1943, white servicemen on leave squared off with
the local Latino population in downtown and East Los Angeles in a series of violent clashes that
By the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor and Amt
Mexican nationals and Mexican-Americans in the
left many Mexican-American youth badly beaten and soured the ethnic relations between the Anglo
the climate of wartime had given them new opport
community and Latinos in Southern California and throughout the United States. The riots were
During the Great Depression of the 1930s,
Latino~
largely initiated by Navy men stationed in Los Angeles, who formed mobs - sometimes with the
economic turmoil and nativist backlash. Thousand
civilian population - and hunted down Mexican American youth (known as pachucos) clad in their
oftentimes regardless of US citizenship, while imr
iconic "zoot suits" as a result of rising tensions between them and the sailors. Leading up to the
population became largely settled and by 1940, ac
events, the pachuco youth and their subculture had been the subject of rising Anglo fears over the
history the majority of US Spanish speaking peopl
rampant criminality spreading out of the barrios and into the city as this unique Mexican American
4
generation made themselves known to the public .
saw the World War II period as an important time
cultural conflicts they experienced during the Gre;
economic and political opportunities under the bai
But what many assumed at the time to be a military crusade for criminal justice was nothing short
But David Gutierrez points out that although the r
of a race riot, with Anglo mobs of servicemen - unofficially sanctioned by local LAPD - pulling
the ethnic Mexican population were either unnatu
Mexican-Americans out of theaters and off of cable cars, stripping them of their clothes, cutting
elusive second generation and not experiencing th
their hair, and severely beating them, targeting on ethnic grounds whether or not they were wearing
the war: "Although thousands of Mexican Americ
the pachuco "zoot suit" uniform. This important historical incident had lasting political and social
effects on the future of Mexican American relations within mainstream US society. But how did the
5
Griswold del Castillo, Richard. "The Los Angeles 'Z0<
Perspectives" . Mexican Studies/ £studios Mexicanos . V
4
.
Leonard, Kevtn Allen. The Battle of Los Angeles: Racial Ideology and WWII. University of New Mexico
Press (2006), p.130
46
6
Gutierrez, David G. Walls and Mirrors: Mexican Ame
Ethnicity. University of California Press (1995), p.117
HISTORY
ans in Wartime America:
nd the "Second Generation"
.merican Ethnic Politics
vorak
riots reflect the state of the Mexican American population during the 1940s? And how would these
events shape the future of the Mexican American civil rights movement?
In this paper, I will show how the unique state of the Mexican American population - but
especially the first US-born generation of Mexican immigrant parents (commonly referred to as the
:ract
second generation) - coupled with the anxiety of World War II laid the groundwork for an eruption
omic, and cultural state of ethnic Mexicans living
of racial tensions in Los Angeles. And, 1 will show how the public perception of the "zoot suit
1
the "Zoot Suit Riots" both reflected the wartime
riots" created by the sensationalistic press affected the future of the Mexican American civil rights
influenced the future of Mexican American civil
campaign in two ways: (1) Popular interpretation of the events placed the blame on Mexican
xamined within the context of the emergence of a
American youth, bridging a correlation between ethnicity and crime; and (2) Popular denial of
·ation of US-born ethnic Mexicans. Newspaper
there being any racial discrimination during the riots on behalfofthe servicemen lead to the
Nill also show how popular public perception of
perception of there being no racial element of discrimination in the plight of Mexican American
merican community leaders would negotiate the
communities. With Mexican American activists on the defensive against a powerful new wave of
anti-Mexican sentiment, they preached uncompromising assimilation as a strategy for civil rights
while ignoring the more complex problems of discrimination that contributed to the socioeconomic
disparity between Latinos and Anglos in the United States.
istory of US ethnic relations, and certainly in
Mexican Americans, Pachucos, and World War II
led "zoot suit riots" that took place in wartime
B , white servicemen on leave squared off with
By the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor and America ' s entrance in World War U, the state of
Los Angeles in a series of violent clashes that
Mexican nationals and Mexican-Americans in the United States had changed demographically and
nd soured the ethnic relations between the Anglo
the climate of wartime had given them new opportunities as well as created sudden new pressures.
I throughout the United States. The riots were
During the Great Depression of the 1930s, Latinos in the US were faced with the threat of
~eles ,
economic turmoil and nativist backlash. Thousands were deported (or "repatriated") to Mexico,
who formed mobs - sometimes with the
merican youth (known as pachucos) clad in their
oftentimes regardless of US citizenship, while immigration was virtually halted. The remaining
ween them and the sailors. Leading up to the
population became largely settled and by 1940, according to the US Census, for the first time in
5
history the majority of US Spanish speaking people were native-born US citizens . Many historians
been the subject ofrising Anglo fears over the
1d into the city as this unique Mexican American
saw the World War II period as an important time for Mexican-Americans, when the political and
cultural conflicts they experienced during the Great Depression subsided and gave way to new
6
economic and political opportunities under the banner of American unity thanks to the war effort .
, crusade for criminal justice was nothing short
But David Gutierrez points out that although the many ethnic Mexicans were US citizens, 60% of
Jfficially sanctioned by local LAPD - pulling
the ethnic Mexican population were either unnaturalized Mexican nationals or members of the
: cars, stripping them of their clothes, cutting
elusive second generation and not experiencing the same perceived economic or social benefits of
:thnic grounds whether or not they were wearing
the war: "Although thousands of Mexican Americans did begin to think of themselves more as
storical incident had lasting political and social
; within mainstream US society. But how did the
5
ti Ideology and WWII. University of New Mexico
Griswold del Castillo, Richard. "The Los Angeles 'Zoot Suit Riots ' Revisited: Mexican and Latin American
Perspectives". Mexican Studies/ £studios Mexicanos. Vol. 16, No. 2 (Summer, 2000), p.367
6
Gutierrez, David G. Walls and Mirrors: Mexican Americans, Mexican immigrants, and the Politics of
Ethnicity. University of California Press (1995), p.117
47
HISTORY
Americans than as Mexicans during the 1940s, thousands more remained deeply ambivalent about
7
their cultural and nat10nal identities even at the height of the war"
prejudice during this time. And although the con'
the sentencing and sensationalist news coverage<
Angeles and helped serve as a precursor to the ri<
A large proportion of this ambivalence toward the perceived economic opportunities of the 1940s
servicemen and pachucos during this time also in
stemmed from the "problem of the second generation", from which the pachuco gang subculture
the flashy style and ambivalence of second gener:
emerged. Caught between the mainstream of US society and the world of their immigrant parents,
the unusually high density of sailors in pachuco
l
the second generation was a unique demographic that represented the first generation of US nativeborn Chicanos immersed in their own distinct subculture, yet participating in the collective culture
"C ity planners first complicated the so<
1
of20 h century American mass society in plain view of Anglos. Many became isolated from their
Mexican neighborhoods in erecting a n
parent's culture as a result of intergenerational tensions that included " language differences,
Navy there. Not only did this make all
disputes over diet in the home, outright rejection of parental authority, and, at the extreme, juvenile
8
delinquency and crime among US-born Mexican American youth" . The pachuco subculture the
it also exposed the families in this area
1
uncivil behavior of military men on lea
emerged in the Mexican neighborhood clubs or gangs of South Texas and Southern California in
the 1930s and spread out to larger urban areas by the 1940s was not exclusively associated with
But, regardless of the exact causes and details of
criminal delinquency, but largely emblematic of the second generation's distinctiveness. Pachucos
and the impact of the riots that affected the way r-
(or cholos) were characterized by a hybrid English-Spanish slang (calo), tattoos, and the zoot suit,
and fight for civil rights during World War II an(
which constituted " long jackets with exaggerated shoulders, pegged pant legs, thick soled shoes,
9
long watch chains, and wide-brimmed pancake hats worn over duck-tall haircuts"
Public Perception of the Riots and the Im1
The Anglo reaction to the emergence of this pachuco subculture that eventually reached crisis
Despite the "riots" being a series of attacks by Ar
proportions by the time of the "zoot suit riots" in the summer of 1943, was caused by a fusion of
Americans, "the events were widely publicized ir
vocal and latent racial antagonisms and the patriotic fervor and paranoia stirred up after the attack
example ofMexican's inherent barbarity, hooliga
on Pearl Harbor. "As tensions and uncertainty built up both before and immediately after the attack
newspapers, including the Times, the Herald-Exp
on Pearl Harbor, the problem of the second generation contributed to a rapid erosion of interethnic
relationships"
10
publications, such as Time and Life, ran headlinei
. Ethnic Japanese on the West coast were placed in internment camps and greater
"Marauding Latin Gangs" and " Roving Wolf Pac
pressures to conform during wartime were put on ethnic Mexicans and other minorities as a result
13, on June 9 the Navy ordered the city of Los Al
of the "highly charged atmosphere of ultrapatriotism, xenophobia, and jingoism"
11
. But while
Navy, Marine Corp, and Coast Guard. On that da
Mexican American community leaders saw the wartime as an opportunity to unite Mexican
"zoot suit war". Instead of being seen as instigate
Americans in patriotic harmony with the rest of the United States through enlistment and job
defenders "augmenting the work of city police": '
opportunities in the war economy, second generation Mexican American youth became the targets
with watchful eyes on men looking for trouble". ·
of Southern California Anglos.
done on the part of the servicemen, instead itemi;
sailors from behind and beating them viciously b
The corrupted trial and sentencing of 21 Latino youth in the murder of Jose Diaz in late 1942 -
"walking peaceably along the street" when "at le<
known as the "S leepy Lagoon Murder" - came to be seen as a highly indicative case of racial
attacked them". Another innocent sailor was "be<
was waiting for a bus". It restates the official Nav
7
8
9
Ibid. , p. I 18
Gutierrez, p. I 19
Ibid ., p.123
10
11
48
Ibid.
Ibid ., p. I 18
12
Pagan , Eduardo Obregon. "Los Angeles Geopolitics
Vol. 24, Issue I (2000), p.224
13
14
Gutierrez, p. I 24
[bid., p.125
HISTORY
1ousands more remained deeply ambivalent about
.
eight
o f the war" 7
prejudice during this time. And although the convictions were reversed in Appeals court in 1944,
the sentencing and sensationalist news coverage of the trial heightened interethnic tensions in Los
Angeles and helped serve as a precursor to the riots that summer. Confrontations between
e perceived economic opportunities of the 1940s
servicemen and pachucos during this time also increased as Navy men became more intolerant of
tion", from which the pachuco gang subculture
the flashy style and ambivalence of second generation Mexican American youth. Pagan argues that
5ociety and the world of their immigrant parents,
the unusually high density of sailors in pachuco areas helped contribute to the growing tensions:
that represented the first generation of US native-
iculture, yet participating in the collective culture
"City planners first complicated the social geography of these low-income, mostly
ew of Anglos. Many became isolated from their
Mexican neighborhoods in erecting a million-dollar training school for the all-white
1sions that included "language differences,
Navy there. Not only did this make all the more obvious the wages of racialized privilege,
of parental authority, and, at the extreme, juvenile
it also exposed the families in this area to the widespread problem of controlling the often
. ·1 be havwr
. o f mi·1·1tary men on Ieave " 12
unc1v1
8
American youth" . Thepachuco subculture the
angs of South Texas and Southern California in
the 1940s was not exclusively associated with
But, regardless of the exact causes and details of the riots themselves, it is the public perception
he second generation's distinctiveness. Pachucos
and the impact of the riots that affected the way Mexican Americans adapted their ethnic identity
h-Spanish slang (calo) , tattoos, and the zoot suit,
and fight for civil rights during World War II and after.
shoulders, pegged pant legs, thick soled shoes,
9
its worn over duck-tail haircuts" .
Public Perception of the Riots and the Impact on Mexican American Ethnic Politics
uco subculture that eventually reached crisis
Despite the "riots" being a series of attacks by Anglo servicemen and some civilians on Mexican
the summer of 1943, was caused by a fusion of
tic fervor and paranoia stirred up after the attack
Americans, "the events were widely publicized in the local and national press as yet another
13
. Los Angeles
example ofMexican ' s inherent barbarity, hooliganism, and questionable loyalty"
It up both before and immediately after the attack
newspapers, including the Times , the Herald-Express , and the Daily, along with national
ition contributed to a rapid erosion of interethnic
publications, such as Time and Life, ran headlines describing Mexican American youth as
14
"Marauding Latin Gangs" and " Roving Wolf Packs" . Although the violence continued until June
1st were placed in internment camps and greater
ethnic Mexicans and other minorities as a result
11
>m, xenophobia, andjingoism" . But while
Navy, Marine Corp, and Coast Guard. On that day, the LA Times ran an article chronicling the
1rtime as an opportunity to unite Mexican
"zoot suit war". Instead of being seen as instigators, the Navy men were depicted as righteous LA
e United States through enlistment and job
defenders "augmenting the work of city police": " [G]roups of soldiers moved through the district
ion Mexican American youth became the targets
13 , on June 9 the Navy ordered the city of Los Angeles a restricted area off limits to men of the
with watchful eyes on men looking for trouble" . The article refrained from mentioning any abuses
done on the part of the servicemen, instead itemizing incidents of "groups ofzoot suiters" attacking
sailors from behind and beating them viciously before fleeing like cowards. Two soldiers were
•uth in the murder of Jose Diaz in late 1942 be seen as a highly indicative case of racial
"walking peaceably along the street" when "at least 15 zoot suiters jumped from auto-mobiles and
attacked them" . Another innocent sailor was "beaten and kicked by a gang ofzoot suiters ... as he
was waiting for a bus". It restates the official Navy announcement that described the sailors as
12
Pagan, Eduardo Obregon. " Los Angeles Geopolitics and the loot Suit Riots, 1943", Social Science History.
Vol. 24, Issue I (2000), p.224
13
14
Gutierrez, p. 124
Ibid. , p.125
49
HISTORY
acting in "self-defense against the rowdy element" and then goes on to defend the servicemen -
to women, children, and "black communities". It i
"who banded together and took on all persons they found clad in zoot suits" - on the basis that they
. t he area " 15
. ·1·1ans assem bl e d m
were "egged on" by "thousan d s o f c1v1
riots and inciting further violence, which is "prom
to the Office of War Information and urges " imme
Although the servicemen went on to target Mexican Americans - and some African American and
that is decidedly inflammatory", claiming that the
press which has openly approved of these mutinie
Filipino youth, as well - with or without "zoot suits", the article in the Times is indicative of the
international repercussions which will inevitably<
changing tide in the press at this time, which in the face of protests and accusations of
would go largely unnoticed within the public perc
discrimination wished to deny any racial element of the riots by identifying the criminal
against ethnic Mexicans in the United States woul
perpetrators as "zoot suiters". After the outbreak, some government and community officials, as
world of ethnic politics.
well as Mexican American activists, raised concerns about the "racial" dimensions of the situation,
but ultimately sensationalist news coverage and even later official reports asserted that racial
Defenders of Mexicans in the riots that claimed di
discrimination was not a factor in the riots while blaming the riots officially on the Mexican
of stirring racial agitation during a time of war an<
American youth
16
. This reflected a common historical trend in disguising racial or ethnic tensions
of a larger Communist plot responsible for the rio
in terms of mere criminality, leading to the negative reception of those Mexican American activists
Committee on Un-American Activities (1945) cla
who often vocalized socioeconomic discrimination as a factor in their plight.
agitation", Communists "continually fed the fires
youth in the United States was being subjected to
20
On June 17, LA newspapers published a statement made by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt at a press
and humiliation"
conference on June 16. She said that she believed the riots resulted from "long standing
emphasized discrimination and socioeconomic di ~
discrimination against Mexicans" and that "for a long time I've worried about the attitude toward
important part in the agitation of the Mexican Pac
Mexicans in California and the States along the border". She even went on to say that "race
keeping the issue alive when the violence had cea
problems" were expanding throughout the US and that "we must begin to face it"
17
. The Committee went on to bl
. LA
newspapers responded harshly to the First Lady's assertion that race played a major part in the
This renewed hostility toward ethnic Mexicans fo
riots. They also seemed to ignore the claims made by members of the Coordinating Council for
community leaders into defensive positions. The
Latin American Youth (Made up of both Anglos and ethnic Mexicans, it was established by the LA
America had been curtailed by the nativist backlai
l
County Board of Supervisors in 1941 to address the many problems facing the second generation,
the second generation and the renewed ethnic anti
particularly juvenile delinquency), the Sleepy Lagoon Defense Committee, and smaller Spanish
attempts to address discrimination as a factor in tt
language and English language newspapers. Leonard points out that these people and other
Mexican-American population would be perceive
" middle-class Mexican Americans agreed that discrimination against people of Mexican descent
activists continued to champion an ineffectual car
was a pro bl em
,,18
They employed wartime rhetoric that focused on t
American community, usually expressing "explici
On the same day as the Times article, the Los Angeles Spanish-language daily newspaper, La
American patriotism as well as the critical need fc
Opinion, published a statement made by the Coordinating Council for Latin American Youth
addressed to the Head of the Office of War Information, the Head of the Division of Foreign
And while this strategy allowed for some success(
Languages, and President Roosevelt. It describes the "Battle Between Marines and Pachucos" as an
movement during the 1950s, the denial of discrim
"unprovoked" attack by marines and soldiers on "Mexican zoot suiters" that has expanded violence
socioeconomic conditions of many and the suppn
15
"City, Navy Clamp Lid on Zoot-Suit Warfare", Los Angeles Times, June 9, 1943
19
Leonard, p.157
20
Leonard, p.175
21
fbid ., p.177-78
22
16
17
18
50
"The Battle Between Marines and Pachucos", La Op
Gutierrez, p.126
Griswold del Castillo, p.384
Gutierrez, p.128
HISTORY
nt" and then goes on to defend the servicemen -
hey found clad in zoot suits" - on the basis that they
embled in the area"
15
.
to women, children, and "black communities". It accuses the local press of sensationalizing the
riots and inciting further violence, which is "prompting racial antagonism". The statement appeals
to the Office of War Information and urges "immediate intervention .. . so that it moderates the local
press which has openly approved of these mutinies and which is treating this situation in a manner
{ican Americans - and some African American and
that is decidedly inflammatory", claiming that the situation "will undoubtedly have grave
suits'', the article in the Times is indicative of the
international repercussions which will inevitably damage the war effort"
the face of protests and accusations of
would go largely unnoticed within the public perception of the riots and the ensuing backlash
nt of the riots by identifying the criminal
against ethnic Mexicans in the United States would transform their approach to negotiating the
k, some government and community officials, as
world of ethnic politics.
19
. This appeal, however,
cerns about the "racial" dimensions of the situation,
1even later official reports asserted that racial
Defenders of Mexicans in the riots that claimed discrimination was a root cause would be accused
e blaming the riots officially on the Mexican
of stirring racial agitation during a time of war and often denounced as Communists or even agents
storical trend in disguising racial or ethnic tensions
of a larger Communist plot responsible for the riots. The California State Legislature's Tenney
ative reception of those Mexican American activists
Committee on Un-American Activities (1945) claimed that "pursuing the party line on racial
tion as a factor in their plight.
agitation", Communists "continually fed the fires of racial antagonism by charging that Mexican
.ent made by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt at a press
and humiliation"
ed the riots resulted from "long standing
emphasized discrimination and socioeconomic disparity as the causes of violence: "They played an
a long time I've worried about the attitude toward
important part in the agitation of the Mexican Pachucos, both in preparing for the riots and in
21
keeping the issue alive when the violence had ceased"
border". She even went on to say that "race
.
f;
.
17
youth in the United States was being subjected to police brutality, race discrimination, segregation,
20
. The Committee went on to blame the riots on those publications that
md that "we must begin to ace 1t" . LA
r's assertion that race played a major part in the
This renewed hostility toward ethnic Mexicans forced many Mexican-American activists and
.de by members of the Coordinating Council for
community leaders into defensive positions. The apparent social and economic benefits of wartime
s and ethnic Mexicans, it was established by the LA
America had been curtailed by the nativist backlash against the distinctively pachuco subculture of
s the many problems facing the second generation,
the second generation and the renewed ethnic antagonism that followed the riots. But because
,agoon Defense Committee, and smaller Spanish
attempts to address discrimination as a factor in the socioeconomic disparity affecting much of the
onard points out that these people and other
Mexican-American population would be perceived as disruptive during a time of war, many
liscrimination against people of Mexican descent
activists continued to champion an ineffectual campaign for civil rights that ignored these factors.
They employed wartime rhetoric that focused on the loyalty and "American-ness" of the Mexican
ngeles Spanish-language daily newspaper, La
American community, usually expressing "explicitly assimilationist rhetoric that emphasized
22
American patriotism as well as the critical need for pan-American unity during wartime"
ordinating Council for Latin American Youth
rmation, the Head of the Division of Foreign
And while this strategy allowed for some successes and gains in the Mexican American civil rights
:s the "Battle Between Marines and Pachucos" as an
movement during the 1950s, the denial of discrimination as a cause for the desperate
1 "Mexican
socioeconomic conditions of many and the suppression of a distinctive Chicano culture that lay at
zoot suiters" that has expanded violence
>Angeles Times, June 9, 1943
19
"The Battle Between Marines and Pachucos", la Opinion, June 9, 1943
Gutierrez, p.126
21
Griswold del Castillo, p.384
22
Gutierrez, p.128
20
51
HISTORY
the heart of the "prob lem of the second generation" would still threaten the possibility of having a
"The Making of th
Inside the Creation of the Federal F
meaningful debate over Mexican American ethnic politics. The assimilationist approach to civil
rights would become even more ineffective as anti-Mexican sentiments in the United States grew as
the effects of the bracero guest worker program (which began as the Emergency Farm Labor
Program in 1942) became more noticeable. New waves of Mexican immigration as a result of this
program led to the mass settlement of more unnaturalized Mexican nationals and contradictory
mass deportation (like "Operation Wetback") took place during the 1950s as a result of growing
public concerns. It would not be until the strong Chicano and Mexican American student
movements of the late 1960s that Mexican American activists changed their strategy by embracing
their unique chicano culture that began with the first second generation ofzoot-suitedpachucos.
Bibliography
"City, Navy Clamp Lid on Zoot-Suit Warfare'', Los Angeles Times, June 9, 1943
Nicola~
"The Battle Between Marines and Pachucos", La Opinion, June 9, 1943
Abst
In 1913 the United States Congress passed, and
Griswold de! Castillo, Richard. "The Los Angeles 'Zoot Suit Riots ' Revisited : Mexican and Latin
American Perspectives". Mexican Studies/ £studios Mexicanos. Vol. 16, No. 2 (Summer,
2000), p.367-391
Owen-Glass Federal Reserve Act. The act grante
specially designated private banking firms with
regulation of the financial markets. The declar
prosperous national economy by avoiding exces
Gutierrez, David G. Walls and Mirrors: Mexican Americans, Mexican Immigrants, and the Politics
of Ethnicity. University of California Press (1995), p. 117
manipulation of the banking and credit industry
prosperity and influence unrivalled in modern ti1
had many detractors and has been shrouded in cor
Leonard, Kevin Allen. The Battle of Los Angeles: Racial Ideology and WWII. University of New
Mexico Press (2006)
Pagan, Eduardo Obregon. "Los Angeles Geopolitics and the Zoot Suit Riots, 1943", Social Science
History. Vol. 24, Issue 1 (2000), p.223
T
he notion ofa privately owned bank recei·
nation's money supply sounds like an Orv
difficult to grasp, then surely the intended
harder to understand. Yet in 1913 , with the passai
foundation for just such an institution was constn
System came into prominence in the United State:
These issues revolve around the idea of who woul
States, and for what purpose. A thorough analysis
Reserve System lie not with the lawmakers who v
and interest of the business leaders and their asso<
Brady graduated December 2009 with a B .A. in History.
He wrote this paper for Professor Froysland and his HIST-A352 class.
52
23
Orwellian - of or like the soc iety portrayed by Orwell
totalitarian state exercises almost total control over the
http://www.yourdictionary.com/orwellian