Jazz and politics

To me this period in American history, from the end of the First World War to the beginning of the second, has some of the most interesting times in the United States. Reasoning for this? To start this was the time when one of America’s greatest musical traditions began to grow and develop; it was in this period of time that Jazz became big. To tell the truth I was disappointed by the lack of information there was on this in either of the two books. For starters, Chicago was Jazz’s second home, where after New Orleans it grew into a national and international popular music style.

Another thing that caught my attention about this era is the importance of the mayors. It seems that the mayors of cities such as Chicago held a lot of power at this time, and were well known by the citizens of the city. I have no idea how much power mayors hold now, but they do not seem to have the same amount of power or publicity as I do not even know who our mayor in Orlando is or what he or she has done. This also includes the increase of the importance of the workers in politics, as politicians began to target them and their needs instead of the upper and middle class.

Of course, another trend in politics began around the Great Depression. When FDR was elected into office, the government became much more involved in the lives of the citizens. This is something I believe can be linked to today, where with Obama in office the government plans on making the United States a more socialized country. The times are similar to the great depression (although not as harsh). Whether or not a more socialized country is good or not is of course a sticky conversation, with America’s distaste for communism, but as the economy goes down, it seems that the government takes a larger role in providing for its people.

This change in politics, along with the growth of one of my favorite music styles gives me great appreciation for this era.