Date: May 1994

Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

Subject(s):

• Social Studies/History

Overview: Social science teachers often discover that the rights we cherish are rather mundane to our students. When we warn of threats to our constitutionally guaranteed rights, our students often side more with expedience, for instance, than with due process. Likewise, in international crises, the challenge is leveled: Why don't we just nuke them?

This generation which has not experienced warfare sometimes expresses a yearning for its excitement and finality. Perhaps as history teachers we have glorified war by our focus on victors, strategies, and wartime leaders. This activity is an attempt to balance this treatment of war with concern for the domestic consequences of nations going to war. It is particularly appropriate after studying the fall of Athens or Rome in World History, the US in the Civil War of during World War I, and as a current issues lesson during times of international tension.

Purpose: The purposes of this activity are threefold:

1. To demonstrate to the history student that human experience does reveal patterns which modern society can learn from.
2. To develop analytical skills.
3. To develop awareness of the political and economic ramifications of war regardless of military outcome.

Objectives: Upon completion, participants in this group activity will be able to:

1. Identify several political, economic, and personal rights which citizens of various nations have enjoyed during peacetime but lost during wartime.
2. Compare circumstances and political consequences of American and foreign wars.
3. Analyze historical data to predict domestic consequences of a hypothetical U.S. war today.

Activities:

1. Ask the history students studying one of the wars listed on Data Sheet 1 or 2 to identify the war's effect on the warring nation's own citizens. Include the political, economic, and personal consequences. Afterwards, distribute the two Data Sheets (omit consequences of war being studied) or assign pairs of students to research the domestic sequences of different U.S. and foreign wars. To focus attention on diversity, locate each on a world map and on a timeline. Remind the students that these were usually consequences to the victors. When questioning strategies you might include why governments demanded these powers and why citizens surrendered their rights. Would we willingly surrender these same rights during war?

2. Discuss the current role of the U.S. in the world and conflicts we currently have with other nations. The class should choose one nation the U.S. might consider using force against. Assign students to small mixed-ability groups and distribute Group Assignments to each. Describe an imminent hypothetical U.S. war and ask the groups to rank the listed consequences from most likely to least likely to happen today. (Assume this war would not result in nuclear annihilation.) It is useful to limit the number of consequences allowable in the "might happen" column. Requiring group consensus instead of simple majorities encourages vigorous debate.

3. After each group shares its predictions with the class, ask students INDIVIDUALLY to circle those consequences they would not mind. Share the debrief.

Resources/Materials Needed:
Data Sheet #1 - Some effects of nations going to war on their citizens:

• Roman Republic: (c. 200 B.C.)

  Farmers forced to fight led to agricultural crisis and takeovers of farms by large landowners, powerful aristocracy developed.
  Political violence, civil war.
  Representative democracy overthrown by military dictators.
  Debtors become slaves.
  Loss of freedoms, such as freedom to criticize governments.
  

• European Crusades: (1100 A.D.)

  Religious minorities persecuted and killed.
  Intellectuals, "free thinkers," punished severely for "heresy."
  Church gains power over regular governments.

• Aztec Warfare: (c. 1300 A.D.)

  Emperor gains absolute power, tyranny.
  Citizens sometimes killed for pleasure, other times for sacrifice.
  High taxation to support armies.

• Spanish Reconquest: (1469-1492)

  Nobles lost positions of authority.
  Land seized from opponents.
  Jews, Moslems, and "heretics" (Protestants) persecuted and killed. Intellectuals, artists, and doctors persecuted.

• Russian Expansion: (1547-1584)

  Ivan the Terrible's army murders thousands of "boyars."
  Peasants become slaves to landowners.
  Taxes on peasants rise sharply.
  Peasants' freedom ended.

• English Civil War: (1642-1660)

  Land and property seized from people on both sides.
  Numerous executions of opponents.
  Parliament (representatives) overthrown by dictator.

• British War w/ France: (1754-1763)

  Dramatic increase in taxes to finance war.
  New restrictions on trade to favor one monopoly.
  Riots and violence.
  Soldiers stationed in private homes.

• Napoleonic Wars: (1799-1815)

  Representative government overthrown by dictator.
  Loss of rights to women.
  Workers lose rights.
  Loss of freedoms of speech and press.
  Dictator's spies spy on citizens and opposition.
  Soldiers drafted into army.
  Taxes raised.
  Raw materials taken for government.
  Trade restricted.

• War of 1812:

  Central government takes power from state government. Trade restricted.

• Civil War: (1861-1865)

  President takes over Constitutional powers of Congress.
  Government examines private mail and telegrams.
  Military leaders allowed to arrest citizens without warrants.
  Criminal rights suspended (habeas corpus, etc.).
  Freedom of speech and the press ended by arrests and presidential orders.
  Draft of citizens.
  Government seizes private property.
  Taxes raised to support war.

  World War I: (1917-1919)

  Government control over key areas of economy, including railroads, farms, and power plants; also fixed prices.
  Hate propaganda sponsored by government, led to persecution of Americans of German descent, Irish-American, and Jews.
  Vigilante groups form to lynch labor leaders and pacifists.
  Espionage Act gave strict punishment to those critical of war censorship of mails. Censorship of press; end to freedom of speech (Sedition Act).
  Supreme Court grants government right to overthrow freedom of speech.
  Selective Service Act created mandatory draft.
  Intolerance led to brutal attacks on Black Americans.

• World War II: (1941-1945)

  Government control over economy (rents, wages, salaries, factories, rationing, etc.).
  Government sponsored hate propaganda.
  Draft resumed.
  Favored treatment for big business led to problems for smaller ones.
  Japanese-Americans forced into concentration camps, lost their homes and property.
  Labor unions lost rights.

• Vietnam War: (1962-1975)

  Presidents take over powers of Congress.
  FBI and CIA spy on citizens.
  Draft resumed.
  Increased "cooperation" between government and big business.
  Freedom of press restricted.
  Criminal rights restricted.

Tying It All Together: This activity takes about two class periods to complete. It is a very powerful activity which vindicates history as a relevant field of study. As students develop their critical thinking skills, they become aware of the complexity of decision-making and the important consequences of rash actions.

Group Assignment: Discuss within your group each of the following potential consequences if the U.S. went to war with a specific country. Determine the degree of likelihood of each and categorize accordingly on your paper. You will be graded for effort and participation and also for participation in discussion of your results tomorrow.

Consequences:

• Decreased U.S. power internationally
• Increased U.S. power internationally
• Demagogues gaining power
• A "draft"
• Women being drafted
• Private property seized by government
• Concentration camps
• Increased covert activities
• Rights of the accused (habeas corpus, etc.) suspended
• Restrictions on trade
• Increased taxes
• Decreased taxes
• Anti-propaganda
• Persecution of minorities
• Censorship of newspapers
• Increased spying (wiretapping, etc.) on American citizens
• President taking power from Congress
• Congress taking power from the President
• Riots in the U.S
• Increased military control over civilian government
• Restrictions on freedom of speech
• Anti-intellectualism
• Oil shortage (or shortage of opponent's main export)
• Government takeover of some industries (oil?)
• Economic prosperity
• Economic depression
• Government control of economy (wages, prices, etc.)
• Congress overthrown by military dictator
• Increased tolerance of minorities
• Greater citizen involvement in government
• More worker's rights
• Political violence and assassinations
• More money and higher inflation
• Farm crisis and loss of farmland to large-scale farm operations
• Increased alliance between government and big business
• Increased government corruption
• More secrecy in government
• More openness in government
• Vigilante groups
• More tolerance of dissent

Group Assignment:

Consequences of a Hypothetical U.S. War with (specific country)
(* Circle those consequences which you would not mind if they happened.)

These things would DEFINITELY happen*