APUSH Unit 8 1945-1980

Cold War

Cold War

A period of political tension and military rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, characterized by ideological conflict and proxy wars rather than direct military engagement. Soviet Union wanted to spread Communism while the US wanted to spread Democratic Capitalism

Containment Policy

A strategy adopted by the United States to prevent the spread of communism, as exemplified by the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan.

Truman Doctrine

A policy announced by President Harry Truman that aimed to contain the spread of communism by providing support to countries threatened by Soviet influence. (Part of the containment policy). Truman also issued Executive Order 9981 which banned segregation in the U.S. armed forces

Marshall Plan

An initiative to provide financial aid (13 billion dollars) to European countries to help them rebuild after World War II and prevent the spread of communism.

Berlin Blockade

A Soviet attempt to block Western access to West Berlin in 1948, countered by the Berlin Airlift which was where 200,000 US and allied flights of supplies were taken to Berlin to prevent Soviets from taking over the city of Berlin

Warsaw Pact

A military alliance formed by the Soviet Union and its satellite states in response to NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) which was an alliance formed to combat any Soviet aggression

Nuclear Arms Race/Nuclear Proliferation

A competition between the United States and the Soviet Union to develop and stockpile nuclear weapons, leading to the threat of mutually assured destruction.

Proxy Wars

Indirect conflicts between the United States and the Soviet Union fought in other countries, such as the Vietnam War and the Korean War.

Red Scare

Periods of intense anti-communist hysteria in the United States, particularly after World War II, marked by government investigations and fear of communist infiltration.

Joseph McCarthy

Claimed to have names of 205 communists that infiltrated the state department and increased fear during the Red Scare

Hollywood Ten

A group of Hollywood directors who were blacklisted and imprisoned for refusing to testify about their alleged communist affiliations during the Red Scare.

Rosenberg Case

The espionage trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, who were accused of passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union in the context of Cold War tensions and were later executed.

GI Bill

Provided veterans with opportunities for college education, low-interest loans for housing, and starting businesses.

Baby Boom

Period from 1945-1960 when 50 million babies were born in the United States.

Interstate Highway Act

Led to the construction of the interstate highway system in the United States and made migration much easier. This led to mass migration to the sun belt to avoid icy winters and tax dollars led to many economic opportunities there

Mass Culture

90% of households now had a tv, suburban sitcoms (leave it to beaver, father knows best, and ideal american family), advertising appealed to consumers emotion and need for societal justification (keeping up with the jones’), and credit cards were created to “solve” the problem of consumer culture (people could buy more than they could afford and pay it over time)

McCarthyism

Period of intense anti-communist suspicion and fear in the United States during the Cold War and making accusations of subversion or treason without proper regard for evidence, named after Senator Joseph McCarthy's anti-communist campaign in the 1950s.

Beatniks

Group of poets who rebelled against the conformity of the age. JD Salinger wrote Catcher in the Rye and him and Jack Kerouac called for spontaneity and truthful living

Civil Rights Act 1964

Made discrimination based on race, religion, or sex illegal .

Brown v Board of Education

Landmark Supreme Court case in 1954 that declared segregated schools unconstitutional. Oliver Brown argued it violated the 14th amendment (all citizens have equal protection under the law) resulting in the Supreme Court overturning Plessy v Ferguson and agreeing that separate was not equal. Schools had to be integrated with “all deliberate speed”

Little Rock Nine

Group of African American students who faced resistance when trying to integrate into Little Rock High School in 1957. Orval Faubus (governor of Arkansas) ordered state national guard to prevent black students from entering a Little Rock school but Eisenhower sent federal troops to protect these nine students as they entered school

Decolonization

Movement of former colonies gaining independence from European empires after World War II.

Bay of Pigs Invasion

A failed attempt by the US to overthrow Castro's regime in Cuba using Cuban exiles.

Cuban Missile Crisis

A tense confrontation between the US and the Soviet Union over the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba that led to both sides backing up.

Domino Theory

The belief that if one country falls to communism, neighboring countries will also fall.

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

North Vietnam's attack on a US battleship used as a justification for increased US involvement in Vietnam. The resolution was a blank check to the president to use whatever powers necessary to protect American interests (not a declaration of war)

Vietnamization

Nixon's policy of reducing US troops in Vietnam while supporting the South Vietnamese war effort. Ultimately ended the Vietnam War.

Great Society

A series of domestic programs by Lyndon Johnson aimed at eradicating poverty and expanding welfare, (extension of FDR’s New Deal).

Warren Court

The Supreme Court under Chief Justice Earl Warren that made decisions expanding civil liberties and rights and investigated the assassination of JFK.

March on Washington

A political demonstration held in Washington, D.C., in 1963, where 200,000 people came in support of civil and economic rights for African Americans. Also where MLK delivered his famous “I have a dream” speech.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Outlawed literacy tests and poll tax.

Women's Movement

A social movement that seeks equal rights, opportunities, and treatment for women.

Title IX

Banned discrimination on the basis of gender and gave funding for women's sports teams.

Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

A proposed amendment to the United States Constitution to stop discrimination based on sex but it was never ratified. In response, Phyllis Schlafly led a campaign called Stop ERA and stated that women enjoyed privileges such as not having to apply for the draft and having separate bathrooms.

Roe v Wade 1973

A landmark decision issued in 1973 that said states could not prohibit women from having abortions during the first two trimesters (contributed to counterculture).

United Farm Workers

A labor union for migrant farmers in the United States created by Cesar Chavez and Delores Huerta

American Indian Movement

A Native American advocacy group in the United States founded in 1968.

Stonewall Inn

A gay bar in New York City where a police raid in 1969 led to protests and demonstrations by the LGBTQ+ community.

Counterculture Movement

A social and cultural movement that emerged in the 1960s in response to the dominant culture of the time. Different clothing, free love, experimental drug use.

Woodstock Music Festival

A music festival held in 1969 that became a symbol of the counterculture movement of the 1960s. (Hippies)

OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)

An intergovernmental organization of 13 oil-exporting nations that coordinates and unifies the petroleum policies of its member countries.

Environmental Movement

A social and political movement focused on addressing environmental issues and advocating for the protection of the Earth. Started because of an Ohio River catching on fire.

Chernobyl

The site of a catastrophic nuclear accident in 1986 in Ukraine, which resulted in a significant release of radioactive materials into the environment.

Rachel Carson

Author of "Silent Spring," a book that raised awareness about the harmful effects of pesticides on the environment and human health.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

A governmental agency established in 1970 by President Nixon to protect human health and the environment by enforcing regulations aimed at reducing pollution.

Clean Air Act

Regulated air pollution on a national level in the United States.

Young Americans for Freedom

A conservative student movement that supported Barry Goldwater's presidential campaign in 1964. Consisted of people who were proud of their religious background, resisted counterculture, and designated roles for men and women.

The New Right

Coined by Barry Goldwater, it refers to a coalition of conservatives who resisted liberalism and emphasized traditional values.

Bakke v University of California

A landmark Supreme Court case in 1978 that ruled against the use of racial quotas in university admissions but still allowed for race to be considered as a factor.

Yalta Conference

Stalin violates this and keeps Soviet troops in countries between him and Germany which turned them into Communist countries

Iron Curtain

The imaginary line dividing Europe between Soviet influence and Western influence. This was made because Russia wanted to keep Germany weak but the US wanted a strong Germany

Korean War

Korea was taken from Japan and divided at the 38th parallel after WW2. Soviet Union took the North and US took the South. North Korea invaded South Korea and American troops pushed back North Korea almost to the Southern border of China so China sent troops to repel Americans back below the 18th parallel

Taft Hartley Act and Federal Employee loyalty and security program

Taft Hartley Act was loyalty pledges of labor unions. Federal Employee loyalty and security program was loyalty pledges of federal workers/investigations into associations of political workers

Un American Activities Committee

Investigated alleged disloyalty and rebel activities on the part of private citizens, public employees and organizations suspected of having Communist ties.

Committee On Civil Rights

Examined the real conditions of Civil Rights in America to give recommendations on how to address it. They also were federal protection against poll taxes (24th amendment abolished) and lynchingThe Manifesto argued that the court's ruling abused its power because it substituted personal political opinion for the amendment process.

Southern Manifesto

The Manifesto argued that the court's ruling (Brown v Board of Education) abused its power because it substituted personal political opinion for the amendment process.

Vietnam

North Vietnam was under the ruling of Ho Chi Minh (Communist) and South Vietnam remained Democratic

Military Industrial Complex

Developed and produced military technologies equal to the existential threat perceived to be posed by the Soviet Union.

John F Kennedy

Agreed with the Domino Theory and sent 16,000 military advisors into South Vietnam to combat Northern aggression. After he was assassinated, Lyndon B Johnson took over and escalated the Vietnam War and made American Liberalism at its peak

Vietnam War

North Vietnam sent 40,000 troops to fight South Vietnam. Johnson applied step by step pressure and continued to send more and more troops. He ended up sending over 400,000 troops. This war was never officially declared but it was the first televised war. Johnson painted a rosy picture of what was going on but it did not match up with what was happening on tv. This created the credibility gap which was the belief that Johnson was lying about the progress of the war. (Proxy War)

Tet Offensive

Massive surprise attack carried out by Northern Vietnam. US countered and inflicted even heavier losses and Johnson requested 200,000 more troops but was denied so he ended escalation in Vietnam

Richard Nixon

Elected on his promise to reduce US involvement in Vietnam without looking like we conceded defeat

Programs

Office of Economic Opportunity (self help programs such as literacy instruction and vocational training), Medicare Program (gave insurance to those over 65), Medicaid Program (gave insurance to impoverished people), and Abolition of Immigrant Quotas (provided opportunity for immigrants)

Court Cases

Gideon v Wainwright (court appointed attorneys), Griswold v Connecticut (declared forbidden birth control unconstitutional), Engel v Vitale (declared school prayer unconstitutional), Baker v Carr (redrawing of legislative zones to reflect population density), Loving v Virginia (struck down state laws that made interracial marriage illegal)

Montgomery Bus Boycott

Public transportation was segregated by state law in Alabama. Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white passenger and was arrested. The Boycott lasted for about a year and created financial pressure on the transportation department. It ultimately ended the policy of black passengers to yield their seat

MLK v Malcom X

MLK- Non violent, civil disobedience (peaceful protests of unjust laws), sit in movements (sitting in business areas designated for white customers). Malcom X-The way to freedom was not desegregation but separatism and militarism, counter violence with violence, created Black Panthers (formed to secure black rights by violence if necessary

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Civil Rights group that gathered for peaceful protest

Bull Connor

Public safety commissioner that used unnecessary force to disperse protesters (high powered hoses and dogs)

Children’s Crusade

Children were not immune to brutal treatment during protests and the brutalization of children who were peacefully protesting enraged Americans and lawmakers to make a change

Feminine Mystique

Research and Interviews of suburban housewives that showed boredom and imprisonment of housewives and millions of copies sold (Betty Friedan)

National Organization for Women

Advocated for Women’s rights and equal opportunity and equal pay for women entering the workforce

Ms. Magazine

Written by Gloria Steinem and was a popular source for feminist news

Sexual Revolution

Widespread use of birth control and antibiotics to treat STDs. Instead of conserving oneself for marriage this normalized casual sex/sex with multiple partners

Gay Liberation Movement

1969 raid on the Stonewall Inn. Met with resistance that triggered other protests in this movement and led activists to expand gay rights and laws, encouraged openness and changed homosexuality from a mental illness to a sexual orientation

Hippies

Communal living that encouraged counter cultural ideals and were the first tboth instances made Americo try Marijuana LSD

Three Mile Island

Nuclear reactor that melted down in Pennsylvania and released radioactive material in the surrounding environment. It happened again in Chernobyl and both instances made Americans question the safety of nuclear energy

John Birch Society

Group of conservatives that opposed communism, advocated for limited government, and spun right conspiracies

Religious Right

Religious conservatives that opposed liberal trends and counterculture and had a huge issue with Roe v Wade

Jerry Falwell

Argued that separation of church and state was the reason for moral downfall and sought to marry the two

Focus on the Family

Radio program that resisted gay rights and argued for reinstatement of prayer in school

Stagflation

Economic mess that combines inflation with a stagnant economy. Nixon tried to remedy this problem by cutting government government spending

Watergate Scandal

Nixon’s reelection committee hired men to break into the democratic headquarters and bug phones and steal documents. Nixon knew about this and endorsed the behavior, lied about it, and was impeached and forced to resign

Affirmative Action

Race would be a factor in the hiring process and college admissions and a certain number of positions and applicants had to be of a certain race. Conservatives opposed this