Unit 8 - 1945 to 1980 Flashcards
Truman Doctrine
Harry S. Truman, Great Britain, Turkey, Greece
Great Britain was unable to financially support anti-Communists in the Turkish civil war. In their place, the U.S. contributes $400 million to Turkey and Greece to deter a Communist victory.
Europe, Turkey, and Greece
1947
Asserted the right of the U.S. to intervene and prevent countries from being Communist; establishes a policy of containment.
Marshall Plan
George Marshall
Recovery program intended to deter the growth of socialism in Western Europe, and to protect markets for the U.S.
Europe
1947
Deepens the tension between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. Reinforces the U.S. foreign policy of containment in Western Europe.
Military Industrial Complex
Dwight D. Eisenhower, government, military, defense contractors.
Policies and monetary relations between the U.S. federal government, the Department of Defense, and defense industries.
United States
1961
Eisenhower warned the United States about the Military Industrial Complex; resulted in high defense spending; funnels vast amounts of funding and resources to the military.
McCarthyism
Joseph McCarthy, House Un-American Activities Committee, Congress
Second Red Scare. Hysteria-based investigation and persecution of “subversives” in the federal government. Used to target individuals and groups for being un-American (i.e. Hollywood 10, Alger Hiss).
United States
1950s
Intended to silence critics of the Cold War; liberals.
G.I. Bill
Congress, Veterans
Act providing benefits to World War II veterans: low cost mortgages, low interest business loans, college tuitions, and medical care, among other benefits.
United States
1944
4.3 million in real estate loans helped returning soldiers. 8 million Veterans returned to school. 1/3 of the U.S. population benefitted in some way from this act as it elevated Veterans and their families into the middle class.
Korean War
Harry S. Truman, U.S. Military
Proxy war between the U.S. and U.S.S.R. in Korea. No victor and no border change due to the conflict.
United States, North Korea, South Korea.
1950 to 1953
Demonstrates the Truman Doctrine at work; attempt by the United States to contain the spread of Communism. First “hot war” of the Cold War
Vietnam War
Ho Chi Minh; Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard Nixon
Long proxy war fought between North (Communist) and South Vietnam.
United States, South Vietnam, and North Korea
1955 to 1975
Incited anti-war movements, and led to increased doubt and questioning of the federal government.
Brown v. Board of Education
Oliver Brown, Earl Warren, Thurgood Marshall
Supreme Court decision that ruled segregation in public schools, and by extension the doctrine of “Separate, But Equal” is unconstitutional; thus, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson.
United States
1954
Landmark Supreme Court decision overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and represented one of the first successes of the Civil Rights Movement. It paved the way for later Civil Rights reforms and demonstrates the judicial activism of the Warren court.
The Great Society
Lyndon B. Johnson
Ambitious series of policy initiatives, legislation and programs spearheaded by President Lyndon B. Johnson with the main goals of ending poverty, reducing crime, abolishing inequality and improving the environment.
United States
1964
Launched new major domestic programs. Major achievements include the Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, and the establishment of Medicare and Medicaid.
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Lyndon B. Johnson
Legislation that prohibited discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. It ended unequal application of vote registration requirements and racial segregation in all federal, state, and local institutions.
United States
1964
Began the desegregation process in the United States, and marked the beginning of the legislative branch’s involvement in the Civil Rights Movement .
Immigration Acts of 1965
Lyndon B. Johnson, Congress, Immigrants
Represented a change in U.S. immigration policy since the 1920s. Abolished the “national origins” quota and effectively doubled the number of immigrants allowed to enter the U.S. annually.
United States, Asia, Latin America.
1965
Immigration numbers largely increased and created more diversity in the U.S. It allowed for family unifications with chain migration.
Black Panther Party
Huey P. Newton, Bobby Seale
Activist black power party that worked towards African American rights and conducted community services for African Americans in large cities. Patrolled African American communities to protect them from police brutality.
Oakland, California
1966
Revolutionary organization that came to portray a powerful image of black nationalism and pride. Highlights the continued tension over issues of race in the United States.
Chicano Movement
Cesar Chavez, Dolores Huerta, Reies López Tijerina, Hector P. Garcia, Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzáles, Rosalio Muñoz, and Chicano/as (people of Mexican descent).
Social and political movement in the U.S. that worked to embrace a Chicano/a identity and worldview that combated structural racism, encouraged cultural revitalization, and achieved community empowerment by rejecting assimilation.
Southwestern United States, California, New Mexico, Arizona, Texas
1965 to 1975
Brought about educational, economic, and political reforms for people of Mexican-American descent. Gave a political voice to Mexican-Americans, and made Americans more aware of the unfair laws and discrimination Chicano/as faced in U.S.
Stonewall
LBGT Community, Gay Rights Activists, NYPD
Series of demonstrations by LBGT community and gay rights activists in response to a police raid that began in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of NYC.
Greenwich Village, New York City
June 28, 1969
Widely considered a watershed event that transformed the gay liberation movement and the twentieth-century fight for LGBT rights in the United States.
Environmental Protection Agency
Richard Nixon, Congress, Rachel Carson
Federal agency to oversee environmental monitoring and cleanup programs. Established to protect environmental health.
United States
1970
Protected the environment from industrial pollution and destruction. Demonstrates awareness and concern environmental issues by the federal government.
Equal Rights Amendment
Women, Middle Class
Proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution intended to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of
sex.
United States
1971
Supported by middle class. Criticized by working class due to lack of protection for women in the workplace. Passed Congress, but was approved only by 35 state legislatures, thus, falling short of the required 38. Though it failed, federal and state governments passed laws protecting the legal rights of women.
Watergate
Richard Nixon, Democratic National Committee, Congress
Political scandal involving the Nixon administration following the arrest of five burglars caught at the Watergate Hotel,
headquarters of the Democratic National Committee. Uncovered by the Washington Post by Woodward and Bernstein.
United States
1972 to 1974
Leads to a huge decrease in trust in government and the first president to resign to avoid impeachment.
War Powers Act of 1973
Richard Nixon, Congress
Law that limits the power of the President to commit the U.S. to long-term armed conflicts (“wars”) without Congressional
approval.
United States
1973
Response to the Vietnam War (i.e. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution). Checks the President’s power as Chief and Commander of the United States military.
Roe v. Wade
Supreme Court, Norma McCorvey (Roe)
Landmark Supreme Court ruling legalizing abortion in the first 2 trimesters. Court ruled 7 ro 2 that the right to privacy was
protected under 14th Amendment.
United States
1973
Reshaped national politics. Divides the U.S. population into pro-choice and pro-life factions. Grass roots movements on both sides.
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
Algeria, Angola, Congo, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, IR Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela.
Middle Eastern majority of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries embargoed countries that supported Israel in the
Yom Kippur War of 1973; thus, causing oil and gas prices to increase dramatically in Western nations.
United States, Europe, Middle East
1973 to 1974
OPEC Oil Embargo caused emergency rationing and a recession (stagflation of the 1970s) in the United States. Ends period of economic prosperity that occurred after World War II.
Sunbelt
American People
Internal migration to Southern and Western states for retirement, employment, (defense, technology, service) climate, and lower
taxes from northeastern cities.
Southern U.S. States (Southern California, Arizona, Texas, Florida)
1950s to 1970s
Increased population and political significance of the Southern states.
Moral Majority
Christians, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell
Christian political action group that formed to further conservatism. Religious agenda included allowing prayer in school and
making abortion illegal in the United States.
United States
1979 to 1989
Rise of religious fundamentalism in the United States as a response to social change and the experimentation of the 70s. New use of media. Helps Ronald Reagan win the Election of 1980.
Detente
Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, China, Soviet Union
Relaxation of tensions between the United States and Soviet Union. A time of increased international trade and cooperation.
Evidenced by the SALT treaties. Relations became tense again when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979.
United States and Soviet Union.
1970s
Relaxed tensions contribute to the end of the Cold War.
