Zoot Suit Riot Facts
Franklin D Roosevelt was
the 32nd American President who served in office from March 4, 1933 to April 12, 1945,
the day of his death.
One of the important events during his presidency was
the Zoot Suit Riots.
WW2 Zoot
Suit Riot Facts
for kids
The following fact
sheet contains interesting information, history and
facts on Zoot Suit Riots for kids.
WW2 Zoot
Suit Riot Facts for kids
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 1: The flamboyant 'Zoot Suit' was a
originally a strong fashion statement for African
American men during the 1920's Harlem Renaissance of the
Jazz Age.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 2: The term "zoot" derived from the jazz
culture meaning something performed or worn flamboyantly
and became used to describe the flamboyant type of suits
worn by the young black men during the era.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
3: Zoot Suits were often complimented
with fedora hats, colorful handkerchiefs and suspenders.
Shirts were often worn open-necked without a tie.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 4: The young American Mexicans who wore them also
styled their hair in the "ducktail" hairstyle in which their hair
was greased into a quiff at the front and combed into a duck's tail
at the back of the head
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 5: During WW2 there was a shortage of cloth as this
was required to make the soldier's uniforms. The length of women's
skirts and dresses were shortened and vests, pockets and cuffs were
eliminated from men’s suits in order to help the war efforts - see
US Mobilization
for WW2.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 6: Victory Suits: Men during WW2 either wore
their pre-war clothes or wore 'Victory' suits to conserve fabric.
The material required to make the Victory suits was reduced as much
as possible and lacked items and embellishments such as pleats,
cuffs, pockets, linings and had narrow trousers and lapels. The
American "Victory" suits were known as "Utility" suits in Britain.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 7: The flashy, ostentatious zoot suits
were a stark contrast to the plain, unobtrusive Victory
suits. The Victory suits represented the patriotic
efforts that Americans were making towards the war
effort the non-conformist wearing of the Zoot suits
implied the reverse.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 8:
The Zoot Suit Riots were sparked by racism combined with
fears of juvenile delinquency and any perceived
unpatriotic acts.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 9: The fear of Juvenile Delinquency was
a wartime phenomenon and a rise in youth crime had
occurred in the United States during World War One. The
British had already experienced a huge growth in youth
crime rates in the early years of WW2 and a similar
pattern was expected in American following
Pearl Harbor.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
10: Japan's surprise attack on Pearl
Harbor led to
Executive Order 9066 and the removal and
relocation of Japanese Americans living in the West
Coast. Wartime anxieties, especially in Los Angeles,
California then transferred to the Mexican Americans,
the city's largest minority group with demands for
total, patriotic conformity. .
Continued...
WW2 Zoot
Suit Riot Facts for kids
Facts
about the Zoot Suit Riot Facts for kids
The following fact
sheet continues with interesting information, history and facts
on Zoot Suit Riots for kids.
WW2 Zoot
Suit Riot Facts for kids
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
11: The Bracero
Program was re-introduced by
the US government in 1943 bringing 5 million temporary Mexican
laborers to work in America
to help the US economy during WW2. Many Mexicans were
employed on the farms in California and although this
helped the nation it also increased racial tensions and
prejudice that led to the zoot suit riots.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
12: Los Angeles newspaper reports about
Mexican American gangs and warnings of the rise in
Mexican American youth crime by the Los Angeles law
enforcement officials contributed to the zoot suit
hysteria and the emergence of vigilante actions.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 13: The young, rebellious, zoot suited Mexican
American teenagers were highly visible non-conformists and became
targets for vigilante attacks.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
14: United States servicemen, who were
wearing patriotic "Victory" suits during off-duty
periods, were becoming increasingly angered by the zoot
suit wearers and their non-conformist lavish use of
materials openly flouted the requirements of war-time
rationing.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 15: In June 1943 rumors spread that zoot suiters had
attacked several servicemen along Main Street in Downtown Los
Angeles. The Los Angeles Police Department responded to the incident
including off-duty police officers calling themselves the Vengeance
Squad
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
16: The next day, on June 4, 1943, about
200 members of the U.S. Navy got together a convoy of
about 20 taxicabs and headed for East Los Angeles. They
violently attacked anyone they encountered who was
wearing a zoot-suit, stripped them of the clothes, cut
off their 'duck tails' and burnt their suits and the
Zoot Suit Riots bagan
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 17: The Zoot Suit riots soon escalated and continued
for several days. The police did not intervene. The newspapers
lauded the actions of servicemen stating they had rid the city of
juvenile delinquent gangs and hoodlums The City of Los Angeles
responded by banning the zoot suit.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts - 18: On June 7, the Navy and Marine Corps confined all
sailors and Marines to their barracks and declared Los Angeles to be
off limits to all military personnel.
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
19: The Zoot Suit riots spread throughout
California and to cities in Texas and Arizona. Other,
similar incidents broke out in northern cities such as
New York City, Detroit and Philadelphia and continued
into the summer.
Zoot Suit Riot Facts - 20:
Despite the racial hostility towards
Mexican Americans approximately 400,000 joined the armed
forces in WW2. By the end of WW2 17 Mexican Americans
had been awarded the Medal of Honor
Zoot Suit Riot Facts - 21:
After WW2 and the end of rationing, the zoot suit
emerged as part of mainstream fashion
Zoot Suit
Riot Facts -
22: "Zoot Suit" is a song by the British
rock band 'The Who' on their album Quadrophenia.
The lyrics of the song are about "the snappiest dresser
right down to my inch wide tie."
WW2 Zoot
Suit Riot Facts for kids
Zoot Suit Riot Facts for kids - President Franklin Roosevelt Video
The article on the
Zoot Suit Riot Facts provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
Franklin Roosevelt video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 32nd American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1933 to April 12, 1945.
Zoot Suit Riot Facts
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Interesting Facts about Zoot Suit Riots for kids and schools
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Zoot Suit Riot Facts for kids
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Zoot Suit Riot Facts with important dates and key
events
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Franklin Roosevelt
Presidency from March 4, 1933 to April 12, 1945
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Fast, fun, Zoot Suit Riot Facts for kids
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Foreign & Domestic
policies of President Franklin Roosevelt
● Franklin Roosevelt Presidency and
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