AKS 49 & 50: The Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson Years

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers key figures, policies, and events from the Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson presidencies, focusing on the Cold War and the Civil Rights Movement.

Cold War

A long period of tension between the United States and the Soviet Union characterized by a struggle for power, influence, technology, and ideas rather than direct military conflict.

Containment

The United States policy adopted by President Truman to stop the spread of communism to new places.

Truman Doctrine

A 1947 policy stating the U.S. would provide aid to free peoples resisting communist takeovers, specifically applied to Greece and Turkey.

Marshall Plan

An economic aid program proposed by Secretary of State George C. Marshall to rebuild Europe after World War II to make countries less likely to fall to communism.

Mao Zedong

The leader who brought communism to China in 1949, increasing American fears about communist expansion.

Korean War

A conflict from 1950 to 1953 where the U.S. and United Nations defended South Korea against an invasion by communist North Korea, ending with a border near the 38th parallel.

G.I. Bill

Also known as the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, this law helped veterans pay for college, buy homes, and start businesses, boosting the postwar economy.

Levittown

A symbol of the postwar suburban boom in the United States.

Integration of the Armed Forces

A 1948 order by President Truman to end the practice of separate units for Black and White soldiers, pushing the country toward racial equality.

McCarthyism

The period of extreme fear and suspicion led by Senator Joseph McCarthy, who accused people of being communist sympathizers without strong evidence.

National Interstate and Defense Highways Act

A 1956 law passed under Eisenhower to build highways for national defense and travel, which significantly encouraged the growth of suburbia.

Brown v. Board of Education

The 1954 Supreme Court ruling that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional because separate schools were inherently unequal.

Sputnik I

The first man-made satellite, launched by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, which shocked Americans and led to increased funding for science and math education.

NASA

The national space agency created by the United States in response to the Soviet launch of Sputnik I.

Kennedy-Nixon Debates

The first nationally televised presidential debates in 1960, which demonstrated that image and television could shape public opinion and modern politics.

Bay of Pigs

A failed 1961 CIA-supported invasion of Cuba by Cuban exiles intended to overthrow Fidel Castro’s communist government.

Cuban Missile Crisis

A 13-day standoff in 1962 triggered by Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba, resolved peacefully after a U.S. naval blockade.

Domino Theory

The belief that if one country in Asia fell to communism, surrounding countries would also fall, which influenced U.S. involvement in Vietnam.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

A 1964 law that gave President Johnson the power to use military force in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war.

Living room war

A term for the Vietnam War because television coverage brought the brutal reality of combat and casualties directly into American homes.

SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference)

A civil rights organization led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that used nonviolent protest to challenge segregation.

SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee)

A group that organized student-led protests, including sit-ins and Freedom Rides, as part of the Civil Rights Movement.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

A 1963 document written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. arguing that people have a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.

I Have a Dream

A famous speech delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the March on Washington that emphasized hope, equality, unity, and justice.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

A federal law that outlawed segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

A law that banned literacy tests and other discriminatory practices that had prevented African Americans from voting.

Great Society

President Johnson’s group of federal programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, designed to fight poverty and improve education and healthcare.

Cesar Chavez

A leader who co-founded the United Farm Workers (UFW) and used nonviolent boycotts and strikes to fight for the rights of Hispanic and Latino farm workers.

Tet Offensive

A major 1968 attack by North Vietnamese forces that shocked Americans and increased anti-war sentiment by proving the war was not near victory.

Silent Majority

The term used by Richard Nixon to describe the segment of the population that supported his message of law and order during the turmoil of 1968.