To prevent the economic chaos that followed WWI, the U.S. passed the Servicemen's Readjustment Act, commonly known as the GI Bill. It provided veterans with low-interest mortgages, business loans, and most importantly, tuition for college or vocational school. By 1947, veterans made up half of all college students. This led to a massive expansion of the American middle class and the 'suburbanization' of the country. However, the bill was often implemented in a discriminatory way, denying many Black veterans the same housing and education benefits as their white counterparts, contributing to long-term wealth gaps.