Key Terms from Modern American History Lecture

Flashcards covering key terms and definitions from the lecture on modern American history.

Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev

Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party from 1964 to 1982.

Peaceful Coexistence

The easing of hostility or strained relations, especially between countries.

Clean Air Act

A law aimed at reducing and controlling air pollution, originally enacted in 1963.

Détente

A period of relaxation of tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Khmer Rouge

An extreme Communist Party in Cambodia, responsible for mass executions and starvations.

Roe v. Wade

A landmark 1973 court case that legalized abortion in the United States.

SALT I

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks that limited the number of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).

OPEC

Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which raised oil prices during the oil embargo.

Realpolitik

A politics of power that focuses on practical and strategic considerations rather than ideological principles.

Yom Kippur War

A 1973 conflict between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria.