The GI bill, commonly known as the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, was made to provide aid to World War II veterans by creating hospitals, covered college and trade school tuitions, and made low-interest mortgages available.
After being proposed by American Legion National Commander and Republican National Chairman Harry Colmery, the bill was signed into law by President Roosevelt.Colmery began thinking about soldiers' lives after the war before it even ended. While Congress limited benefits to soldiers based on income, Colmery wanted the benefits to extend to all regardless of income or gender.
Through the bill, veterans who contributed at least 90 days of service and wanted to receive higher-level education could be granted $500 for their tuition and a cost-of-living stipend. Because of this, 49% of college admissions were veterans in 1947. While searching for work, veterans were given a $20 weekly unemployment benefit to sustain themselves. The government provided loans for veterans who were trying to purchase homes, businesses, or farms. Additionally, medical care was provided and new hospitals were established for veterans.
Although the GI Bill was created to benefit any veteran, some discrimination was prevalent when distributing benefits. Even though African Americans could receive help with tuition, there weren't many choices in colleges they could attend because many were segregated. Additionally, men were normally given priority when it came to college admissions. In regards to buying homes, African Americans had a harder time obtaining them since some local banks refused to give them loans and many suburban areas restricted African Americans from living in them.
Regardless of the discrimination hindering the benefits of the bill, by 1956, roughly 10 million veterans received aid from the GI bill. After the war, the bill allowed thousands of veterans to continue their education, resulting in a drastic increase of students graduating from college and the expansion of homeownership in the United States.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/gi-bill
https://www.nationalww2museum.org/students-teachers/student-resources/research-starters/research-starters-gi-bill
https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=76
https://www.nber.org/digest/dec02/w9044.html
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ReplyDeleteYour post was well written and the information was very clear. Learning that someone was thinking for the veterans even before the war had ended is pretty assuring for the government at the time, and all the benefits seem very uplifting and positive. I started to look more into the discrimination against the black people. At first, when lawmakers began drafting the GI Bill in 1944, many southern democrats
ReplyDeletesaw that return black veterans would use this against them and argue against Jim Crow Laws. Another example of this discrimination is shown in the chair of the House Veterans Committee, Mississippi Congressman John Rankin, where he insisted that the program should be administered by individual states rather than the federal government, which he ultimately got away with. A more direct impact on the black people, they were attacked and lynched, being singled out and forced to not use the gift that the GI gave them.
https://www.history.com/news/gi-bill-black-wwii-veterans-benefits
This is a super interesting and informative post! I like how you explained the purpose of the bill, how it was implemented, and some of the places where it fell short. Despite some discrimination, it seems like the GI bill helped a lot of former soldiers assimilate back into American society after WW2. I was curious to see what the benefits were for American veterans today. I learned that some of the benefits include life insurance, free career counseling, and mortgage help. I also found out that there was a "Forever GI Bill" signed in 2017 which extends the opportunities from the original bill.
ReplyDeletehttps://militarybenefits.info/10-veterans-benefits-you-may-not-know-about/
https://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/college-resource-center/forever-gi-bill/
I really enjoyed reading your post! I think the underlying intentions of this bill are good and virtuous, but it's disheartening to see that many veterans who risked their lives and fought for our nation were still subject to discrimination. I also read an article that explained that this discrimination was made easier because many of the benefits were administered by white southerners at the state and local level. I also learned that some of the discrimination was not as direct as just banks refusing to give out loans or African Americans being under prioritized in college admissions. According to the article, many of the black veterans were encouraged to do low-skill jobs instead of going to college. Another thing I found interesting was that this bill is is still in effect today (it was recently modified by President Donald Trump in 2017). It is nice to see that this historic bill still empowers and supports veterans today.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/gi-bill