BIG GIGANTIC TEST Flashcards
Joseph McCarthy
The man who was paranoid about communists so he insisted that many government employees were commies but he never found any proof.
Alger Hiss
A former State Department official who was accused of being a Communist spy (giving classified documents to the Soviets) and was convicted of perjury. The case was prosecuted by Richard Nixon.
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong Chinese communist leader (1893-1976)
Dwight D. Eisrnhower
Former U.S General who led the Allied forces in D-Day during WWII who was the Republican candidate for president in the election of 1952 with the slogan “I like Ike”. As president, he filled his cabinet with successful corporate executives and was criticized for leaving important decisions to others, although proven untrue. In domestic policies, he described his approach as “modern Republicanism”, and authorized the interstate highway system. He left business alone to prosper, which it did. His foreign affairs mostly concerned the Cold War and adopted the _________ Doctrine. He won reelection in 1956.
The U-2 INcident
1960; an American U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. The U.S. denied the true purpose of the plane at first, but was forced to when the Soviets produced the living pilot and the largely intact plane to validate their claim of being spied on aerially. The incident worsened East-West relations during the Cold War and was a great embarrassment for the United States.
Henry Wallace
A former Democratic and VP under FDR, who ran on the New Progressive Party due to his disagreement on Truman’s policy with the Soviets. He caused the Democratic party to split even more during the election season.
Governor Thomas Dewey
Republican candidate for pres in both 1944 (lost to FDR) and 1948, where he lost to Truman in a big upset
Hotline
There was a landline phone placed in the oval office that was directly connected to the soviets
Republican Presidential Candidates in 1964
Lyndon Johnson and Barry Goldwater. Johnson won by a landslide
Democratic Presidential Candidates in 1968
Richard Nixon and Hubert Humphrey. Nixon won
Lee Harvey Oswald
Shot JFK and then was shot and killed while being arrested Died in the same hospital.
Fragging
Intentionally killing officers who ordered them to combat
Viet Cong Guerrillas
Vietcong A group of Communist guerrillas who, with the help of North Vietnam, fought against the South Vietnamese government in the Vietnam War. AKA the National Liberation Front.
Lt. William Calley
William Calley - the young lieutenant in command who was court-martialed, sentenced to life imprisonment, then released to his barracks at Nixon’s order and eventually patrolled
“Long Hot Summers”
in the 60’s the riots became expressions of black discontent. National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (the Kerner Commission) reported 130 separate race riots in the summer of 1967 alone — now initiated by blacks in response to police brutality, poor housing, no jobs, and exclusion from the benefits and promises of American life
Camelot
The term “Camelot” was applied to the presidency of John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) by his wife, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (1929-1994). Camelot refers to the seat of the court of the legendary King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table; it has come to mean a place or time of idyllic happiness. (Arthur was a British king; the Round Table was the name for his knights.) Shortly after John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, the former first lady was talking with a journalist. She described the years of her husband’s presidency (1960-63) as an American Camelot, a period of hope and optimism in U. S. history, and asked that his memory be preserved. She had shown fortitude (ability to deal with adversity or pain) and grace as she guided her family and the country through the president’s funeral and was one of America’s most beloved first ladies.
OPEC
OPEC Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries: a permanent, intergovernmental Organization, created at the Baghdad Conference on September 10-14, 1960. Basically, it expresses the interests of countries that export oil , as seen through its ability to control oil prices. Controversial activity by the group can be seen in the 1973 oil crisis.
Congress of Racial Equality
Congress of Racial Equality. Nonviolent civil rights organization founded in 1942 and committed to the “Double V” campaign, or victory over fascism abroad and racism at home. After World War II, CORE became a major force in the civil rights movement.
Black Panthers
A black political organization that was against peaceful protest and for violence if needed. The organization marked a shift in policy of the black movement, favoring militant ideals rather than peaceful protest.
President Truman
d
Subversion
d
Chiang Kai-shek
d
Nikita Khrushchev
f
Sputnik
1957, Soviets launch first satellite into space; scares US, behind in technology; begins Space Race
Jack Kerouac’s On the Road
d
Fidel Castro
Cuban socialist leader who overthrew a dictator in 1959 and established a Marxist socialist state in Cuba (born in 1927)
Shah of Iran
Shah of Iran Repressive pro-Western ruler whose 1979 overthrow precipitated a crisis for the United States
Ayatollah Khomeini
An Iranian religious leader and politician, and leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution who saw the overthrow of the Shah of Iran. Following the revolution, he became the country’s Supreme Leader — a position created in the constitution as the highest ranking political and religious authority of the nation — until his death. He was known for his support of the hostage takers during the Iran hostage crisis and has been criticized violations of human rights of Iranians.
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Civil-rights organization founded in 1957 by Martin Luther King, Jr., and headed by him until his assassination in 1968. Composed largely of African-American clergy from the South and an outgrowth of the Montgomery, Ala., bus boycott that King had led, it advocated nonviolent passive resistance as the means of securing equality for African Americans. It sponsored the massive march on Washington in 1963.
NAACP
(National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) created in 1909 by a group of liberals (including Du Bois, Jane Addams and John Dewey) to eradicate racial discrimination
Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee
d
The Containment Policy
The goal was to keep communism from spreading.
The Marshall Plan
Marshall Plan Introduced by Secretary of State George G. Marshall in 1947, he proposed massive and systematic American economic aid to Europe to revitalize the European economies after WWII and help prevent the spread of Communism.
The Truman Doctrine
1947, containment; US will “contain” Soviets in Greece and turkey- support free peoples; $400 million to stop them from falling to communism
McCarthyism
The term associated with Senator Joseph McCarthy who led the search for communists in America during the early 1950s; the use of fear to destroy political opponents with smear of communism
The events leading up to the Korean War
d
U.N motion on Korea
f
The Dixiecrats
Dixiecrats, 1948 fought for old Southern way of life (states’ rights), attempted to gain higher standing within Democratic party; aimed to deny Truman enough electoral votes to avoid his reelection by nominating Strom Thurmond (SC governor)
Eisenhower’s Farewell Address
Warns of connection between businesses and military; fear of military becoming too powerful
1950’s society’s impact on families and women
enormous emphasis on family life in the 1950s reenforced prejudices against women entering professions, women having jobs seemed demeaning to their husbands, prevailing ideas about motherhood seemed to require women to stay home full-time. many forced to leave industrial jobs to make way for returning veterans.
but # of married women working actually increased after WWII out of middle-class need for more income (pink collar jobs)
Reasons to move to the suburbs
Levitowns were new American suburbs where almost anyone can afford a home; small houses built using mass production techniques.
How Harry Truman aided Civil Rights
desegregating the armed forces.
The Civil Rights Act of 1957
which established a Civil Rights Commission but had little real effect and was mostly symbolic
The Bay of Pigs invasion
1961, CIA trained 1400 Cuban exiles to retake Cuba from Castro; failed miserably, embarrassment
Methods of Martin Luther King Jr
All non-violent methods. boycotts, sit-ins, marches
Methods of Malcom X
spread ideas of black nationalism. disagreed w/ both the tactics and goals of the early civil rights movement. minister of the nation of isam. rejected his original name because it was his family’s slave name
Domino Theory
A 20th Century Foreign Policytheory, promoted by the government of the United States that speculated if one land in a region came under the influence of Communists, then more would follow in a domino
Detente
The general easing of relations between the Soviet Union and the United States in 1971, a thawing at a period roughly in the middle of the Cold War. The period was characterized by the signing of treaties such as the SALT I and the Helsinki Agreement. It ended after the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan. Its success in establishing peace are debatable, though it did take a step in the right direction.
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Civil Rights Act 1964 Banned discrimination in public accomodations, prohibited discrimination in any federally assisted program, outlawed discrimination in most employment; enlarged federal powers to protect voting rights and to speed school desegregation; this and the voting rights act helped to give African-Americans equality on paper, and more federally-protected power so that social equality was a more realistic goal.
Saturday Night Massacre
dismissal of independent special prosecutor Archibald Cox, and the resignations of Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus during the Watergate scandal 1973
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
This gave the president authority to take “all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against forces of the United States.”
Tet Offensive
1968, North Vietnam launched a huge attack on US-held areas in South Vietnam; public support for war plumetted as they realized that the war would not be quick
War Powers Act
War Powers Act 1973, Congress responded to the Johnson and Nixon administrations’ escalation of the conflict and lies to the American public; required president to get congressional approval within 60 days of troop deployment in an area of conflict; a check on presidential power- pretty much worthless
My Lai Massacre
1968 massacre of a village in Vietnam in which US soldiers brutally killed 350 civilians; greatly damaged morale and war support.
Alliance for progress
a program in which the United States tried to help Latin American countries overcome poverty and other problems, 1961-63; JFK economic policy towards S.America, 10 yr. development plan where JFK promised Latin Amer. leaders that U.S. would
The fall of Saigon
dfinal assault of north vietnamese on south Vietnam’s capital city in 1975; occasion of surrender of South Vietnam
The presidency of Gerald Ford
president 1974-77, Nixon’s Vice president, only person not voted into the White House, appointed vice president by Nixon: became president after Nixon resigned
Camp David Accords
Camp David Accords The Camp David Accords were the peace accords signed by Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat to finally end the Israeli-Egyptian disputes. The achievement by Carter is considered his greatest achievement in office.
Flexible Response
Opposite of brinksmanship. Instead of going balls to the wall we thought about other solutions to foreign conflict.
The United Nations Security Council
coordinated the making of foreign policy in the Cold War
Cubam Missile Crises
The Cuban Missile Crisis was an incident where Soviet missiles were placed in Cuba as a response for help. The event greatly increased tensions between the Soviets and the Americans. As a result, a hotline was established between the two nations to avoid any accidents.
Helsinki Accords
- Ford and leaders from 34 other nations signed these in July ‘75
- Officially wrote an end to WWII by finally legitimizing the Soviet-dictated boundaries of Poland and other Eastern European countries
- Soviets guaranteed more liberal exchanges of people and information between East and West and protecting certain basic “human rights”
- Kindled small dissident movements in Eastern Europe and in the USSR
- Praised as a milestone of detente
The presidency of Jimmy Carter
he defeated Gerald Ford in 1976. As President, he arranged the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel in 1978 but saw his foreign policy legacy tarnished by the Iranian Revolution and hostage crisis in 1979. Domestically, he tried to rally the American spirit in the face of economic decline, but was unable to stop the rapid increase in inflation.
The Great Society
the Great Society was inspired by JFK and prompted by LBJ’s insecure need to win over the American people. Largely successful in the first two years of the Johnson administration, the idealism would later give way to virulent conservatism and a return to traditional values.
The BErlin Blockade
In 1948, (West) Berlin was blocked off by the Soviet Union in order to strangle the Allied forces. In order to combat this, the United States began to airlift supplies into the Western-controlled portions of Berlin.
Sig: Occurred before the wall was built, airlifts occurred every 4 minutes.
Watergate
Watergate is a name given to the scandal the Nixon administration committed during the ‘72 presidential election where hired “goons” broke into Democrat HQ at Watergate hotel for any dirt. This scandal revealed several other dirty plays Nixon’s administration did the years leading up to the election and forced him to resign and killed the faith the public had in the government.
