Economic Struggles, Fascist Expansion, and America's Isolationism
About This Footage
Reel 3 of War Comes to America examines America’s journey from the aftermath of WWI to the global tensions of the 1930s. The footage begins with WWI battle scenes, featuring trench warfare, artillery fire, tanks, and aircraft, followed by Americans celebrating the Armistice in 1918. Postwar disarmament is shown as naval ships are dismantled under treaty obligations. The 1930s bring the Great Depression, bread lines, and Dust Bowl migrants ("Oakies") fleeing hardship. Meanwhile, world events escalate—Japan invades Manchuria in 1931, and a well-dressed American retrieves a newspaper with the 1933 headline "Hitler in Power". The reel captures Hitler's rise, Nazi rallies in Nuremberg, torchlight processions, and scenes of Hitler, Himmler, and Lutze at the Luitpoldarena. Tensions mount as Mussolini invades Ethiopia in 1935 and Spanish cities suffer aerial bombings during the Spanish Civil War. The reel closes with a Gallup poll revealing most Americans opposed involvement in another European war, reflecting the nation’s isolationist sentiment.