APUSH Unit 11

Baby Boom (1945-1960)

Huge increase in birth rates after WWII, reshaping demographics.

White Flight/Suburbanization

Whites left cities for suburbs, supported by FHA/VA loans; Black Americans remained in underserved urban areas due to discriminatory policies.

Migration to the Sunbelt

Americans moved south and west for jobs, lower taxes, and warmer weather.

Operation Dixie (1948)

Failed CIO attempt to unionize southern workers due to racism.

Strikes of 1946

Major labor unrest across the U.S. as price controls lifted and wages lagged.

Douglas MacArthur

Led democratization of Japan after WWII.

Julius & Ethel Rosenberg

Executed for passing nuclear secrets to the USSR.

Alger Hiss

Convicted of perjury for suspected spying; investigated by HUAC and Nixon.

Yalta Conference (1945)

U.S., UK, and USSR planned postwar world; USSR later violated agreements.

Start of the Cold War (1945-1947)

Tensions grew between U.S. and USSR over Europe, ideology, and security.

United Nations Founded (1945)

Replaced the League of Nations with global participation and peacekeeping goals.

Containment Policy (1947)

U.S. strategy to stop the spread of communism.

Truman Doctrine (1947)

U.S. aid to countries (like Greece) fighting communism.

Marshall Plan (1948)

$12.5 billion in aid to rebuild Europe and resist communism.

Berlin Blockade and Airlift (1948-1949)

USSR blockaded West Berlin; U.S. flew in supplies for nearly a year.

Creation of NATO (1949)

Military alliance between the U.S. and Western Europe against USSR.

National Security Act (1947)

Created the Department of Defense, CIA, and National Security Council.

McCarran Act (1950)

Allowed arrest/detention of suspicious people during national emergencies.

Smith Act Trials (1949)

Convicted 11 communists for advocating violent overthrow of the government.

HUAC Investigations

Congressional hearings targeting suspected communists in the U.S.

Recognition of Israel (1948)

Truman supported the new Jewish state despite Arab opposition.

Democratic Split (1948)

Truman won despite splits with Dixiecrats (Thurmond) and Progressives (Wallace).

Point Four Program

Truman's plan to send aid to developing nations to resist communism.

Fair Deal (1949)

Truman's domestic agenda; passed minimum wage hike and public housing.

Harry S. Truman

President who led the U.S. through early Cold War; supported civil rights and containment.

George F. Kennan

U.S. diplomat who developed the containment policy.

George C. Marshall

Secretary of State who proposed the Marshall Plan.

Joseph Stalin

USSR leader who broke postwar agreements and expanded communism.

Richard Nixon

Congressman who gained fame by pursuing Alger Hiss.

Thomas Dewey

Republican candidate in 1948; lost to Truman.

Strom Thurmond

Dixiecrat candidate in 1948; opposed civil rights.

Henry Wallace

Progressive Party candidate in 1948; supported friendly relations with USSR.

Postwar Inflation & Strikes (1946)

Prices spiked after war controls ended; workers struck for better pay.

Taft-Hartley Act (1947)

Restricted union power; passed over Truman's veto.

Employment Act (1946)

Created the Council of Economic Advisers to promote economic stability and growth.

GI Bill (1944)

Provided veterans with education and housing; expanded the middle class.

Postwar Boom (1950-1970)

U.S. economy surged; growth in service jobs and consumerism.

Sunbelt Growth

Driven by federal spending, military bases, and economic opportunity in the South/West.

Shift from Farming to Industry/Services

Mechanization and chemical use made farming efficient; people moved to urban jobs.

Low Oil Prices

Supported American car culture and suburban growth.

Bretton Woods (1944)

Created IMF and World Bank to stabilize global economy; U.S. led.

Reconstruction in Japan

U.S.-led reforms under MacArthur modernized and democratized Japan.

Bernard Baruch

Proposed international control of atomic energy; rejected by both superpowers.