9.6: Summary

World War II, like the Gold Rush, was a major turning point in California history. The wartime defense boom lifted the state out of the Depression and led to the growth of new industries that would ensure prosperity for years to come. The war also fueled anti-Japanese hostility, resulting in the relocation and internment of California’s Japanese American population. Thousands of newcomers flocked to the state, increasing the size, diversity, and cultural richness of its population. At the same time, declining infrastructure and increased competition for resources fueled racial tensions and intensified discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations. Ethnic groups and white liberals, pointing to the contradiction between fighting a war for democracy and racial discrimination on the home front, fought back, creating the institutional framework for postwar civil rights struggles and electoral contestations. Through it all, California’s enigmatic governor, Earl Warren, greatly expanded the state’s role in directing the forces of social and economic change. Out of this momentous wartime transformation came competing visions of the California “dream” and renewed efforts to extend its promise to all of the state’s citizens.