Key U.S. History Events and Figures: 20th Century Civil Rights, Wars, and Politics

ERA (Equal Rights Amendment)

A proposed constitutional amendment intended to guarantee equal rights regardless of sex; it was never fully ratified.

Red Summer (1919)

A period of racial violence and race riots across the United States, with many attacks on African Americans.

Teapot Dome Scandal (1920s)

A corruption scandal in which government oil reserves were secretly leased to private companies in exchange for bribes.

National Origins Act (1924)

An immigration law that established quotas favoring immigrants from Northern and Western Europe while limiting others.

Fireside Chats (1930s-1940s)

Radio broadcasts by President Franklin D. Roosevelt used to communicate directly with Americans about government policies and national issues.

Battle of Midway (1942)

A major U.S. naval victory against Japan during World War II that became a turning point in the Pacific War.

Operation Overlord (1944)

The Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied France on D-Day, June 6, 1944.

Executive Order 8802 (1941)

President Roosevelt's order prohibiting racial discrimination in defense industries and federal employment.

Executive Order 9066 (1942)

President Roosevelt's order that led to the forced relocation and incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.

Berlin Airlift (1948-1949)

A U.S. and Allied operation that flew supplies into West Berlin after the Soviet Union blockaded the city.

Sunbelt

The rapidly growing region of the South and West that gained population, economic power, and political influence after World War II.

Double V Campaign

A World War II movement among African Americans advocating victory against fascism abroad and racism at home.

Suez Crisis (1956)

An international conflict over control of the Suez Canal involving Egypt, Britain, France, and Israel.

Gulf of Tonkin Incident (1964)

A naval incident that led Congress to authorize increased U.S. military involvement in Vietnam.

Tet Offensive (1968)

A large surprise attack by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces that weakened American public support for the Vietnam War.

The 1970s

A decade marked by inflation, energy crises, the end of the Vietnam War, and growing distrust of government.

Reaganomics (1980s)

President Ronald Reagan's economic policies emphasizing tax cuts, deregulation, and reduced government intervention in the economy.

Watergate (1972-1974)

A political scandal involving the Nixon administration that led to President Richard Nixon's resignation.

Iran-Contra Affair (1980s)

A scandal in which U.S. officials secretly sold weapons to Iran and used the profits to support Contra rebels in Nicaragua.

OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)

A group of major oil-producing nations that works to influence global oil production and prices.

Woodrow Wilson

28th President; led the U.S. during World War I, proposed the League of Nations, and promoted his Fourteen Points plan for peace.

Warren G. Harding

29th President; associated with the Teapot Dome Scandal, one of the biggest political scandals in U.S. history.

Charles Evans Hughes

Supreme Court Justice, Secretary of State, and Republican presidential candidate in 1916; associated with diplomacy and government reform.

Herbert Hoover

31st President; associated with the beginning of the Great Depression and criticized for his response to it.

Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ)

36th President; known for the Great Society, Civil Rights Act (1964), Voting Rights Act (1965), and escalation of the Vietnam War.

Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR)

32nd President; led the nation through the Great Depression and World War II, created the New Deal, and delivered Fireside Chats.

Father Charles Coughlin

Catholic priest and radio personality; criticized FDR and became known for controversial, anti-Semitic views.

Benito Mussolini

Dictator of Italy; founder of Fascism and ally of Nazi Germany during World War II.

Jimmy Carter

39th President; associated with the Camp David Accords, energy crisis, inflation, and the Iran Hostage Crisis.

A. Philip Randolph

African American labor and civil rights leader; organized the movement that pressured FDR to issue Executive Order 8802 and later helped organize the March on Washington.

Harry S. Truman

33rd President; ordered the use of atomic bombs on Japan, created the Truman Doctrine, and oversaw the Berlin Airlift.

George Kennan

Diplomat who developed the policy of containment to stop the spread of communism.

Joseph Stalin

Leader of the Soviet Union during World War II and the early Cold War.

Mao Zedong

Communist leader who founded the People's Republic of China in 1949.

Douglas MacArthur

U.S. general in World War II and the Korean War; famous for leading Allied forces in the Pacific.

Betty Friedan

Feminist leader and author of The Feminine Mystique; helped launch the modern women's rights movement.

Joseph McCarthy

U.S. Senator known for McCarthyism, accusing people of being communists during the Red Scare.

Ho Chi Minh

Communist leader of North Vietnam and key figure in the Vietnam War.

Ronald Reagan

40th President; associated with Reaganomics, conservative politics, and the end of the Cold War.

Ngo Dinh Diem

Anti-communist leader and president of South Vietnam; supported by the United States before being overthrown in 1963.

Nikita Khrushchev

Soviet leader during the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Space Race.

John F. Kennedy (JFK)

35th President; associated with the New Frontier, Cuban Missile Crisis, and his assassination in 1963.

Alfred Kinsey

Researcher whose studies on human sexuality challenged traditional attitudes in the 1940s and 1950s.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Civil Rights Movement leader; advocated nonviolent protest and delivered the 'I Have a Dream' speech.

Emmett Till

African American teenager whose 1955 murder became a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement.

Stokely Carmichael

Civil rights activist associated with Black Power and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

Malcolm X

Civil rights leader who advocated Black pride, self-defense, and Black nationalism; associated with the Nation of Islam before later changing some of his views.

Winston Churchill

Warned that the Soviet Union was taking control of Eastern Europe after World War II.

Iron Curtain

A term used to describe the division between Western democracies and Eastern communist countries.

Martin Luther King Jr. - Famous phrases

'I Have a Dream' and 'Letter from Birmingham Jail'.

Queen Liliuokalani

Last queen of Hawaii; opposed the U.S.-backed overthrow of her government and protested annexation.

Richard Nixon

Involved in the Watergate cover-up which led to his resignation and increased public distrust of the federal government.

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Ended legal school segregation and advanced the Civil Rights Movement.

Civil Rights Act (1964)

Expanded protections for African Americans and strengthened democracy.

Voting Rights Act (1965)

Expanded protections for African Americans and strengthened democracy.

Berlin Airlift (1948-49)

Helped prevent Soviet expansion and protected Western Europe.

Reaganomics

Ronald Reagan's economic policies that helped lower inflation and encouraged economic growth during the 1980s.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964)

Greatly expanded U.S. involvement in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war.

Watergate Scandal (1972-1974)

Exposed corruption in the Nixon administration and led to Nixon's resignation.

Iran-Contra Affair (1985-1987)

Showed government officials violating congressional restrictions and damaged trust in the Reagan administration.

Executive Order 9066

Legacy continued to raise concerns about civil liberties and government power.

Cold War policy of containment

Helped stop Soviet influence but also led to conflicts such as the Vietnam War.

Woodrow Wilson

28th President; led the U.S. during World War I, proposed the League of Nations, and promoted his Fourteen Points plan for peace.

Warren G. Harding

29th President; associated with the Teapot Dome Scandal, one of the biggest political scandals in U.S. history.

Charles Evans Hughes

Supreme Court Justice, Secretary of State, and Republican presidential candidate in 1916; associated with diplomacy and government reform.

Herbert Hoover

31st President; associated with the beginning of the Great Depression and criticized for his response to it.

Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ)

36th President; known for the Great Society, Civil Rights Act (1964), Voting Rights Act (1965), and escalation of the Vietnam War.

Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR)

32nd President; led the nation through the Great Depression and World War II, created the New Deal, and delivered Fireside Chats.

Father Charles Coughlin

Catholic priest and radio personality; criticized FDR and became known for controversial, anti-Semitic views.

Benito Mussolini

Dictator of Italy; founder of Fascism and ally of Nazi Germany during World War II.

Jimmy Carter

39th President; associated with the Camp David Accords, energy crisis, inflation, and the Iran Hostage Crisis.

A. Philip Randolph

African American labor and civil rights leader; organized the movement that pressured FDR to issue Executive Order 8802 and later helped organize the March on Washington.

Harry S. Truman

33rd President; ordered the use of atomic bombs on Japan, created the Truman Doctrine, and oversaw the Berlin Airlift.

George Kennan

Diplomat who developed the policy of containment to stop the spread of communism.

Joseph Stalin

Leader of the Soviet Union during World War II and the early Cold War.

Mao Zedong

Communist leader who founded the People's Republic of China in 1949.

Douglas MacArthur

U.S. general in World War II and the Korean War; famous for leading Allied forces in the Pacific.

Betty Friedan

Feminist leader and author of The Feminine Mystique; helped launch the modern women's rights movement.

Joseph McCarthy

U.S. Senator known for McCarthyism, accusing people of being communists during the Red Scare.

Ho Chi Minh

Communist leader of North Vietnam and key figure in the Vietnam War.

Ronald Reagan

40th President; associated with Reaganomics, conservative politics, and the end of the Cold War.

Ngo Dinh Diem

Anti-communist leader and president of South Vietnam; supported by the United States before being overthrown in 1963.

Nikita Khrushchev

Soviet leader during the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Space Race.

John F. Kennedy (JFK)

35th President; associated with the New Frontier, Cuban Missile Crisis, and his assassination in 1963.

Alfred Kinsey

Researcher whose studies on human sexuality challenged traditional attitudes in the 1940s and 1950s.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Civil Rights Movement leader; advocated nonviolent protest and delivered the 'I Have a Dream' speech.

Emmett Till

African American teenager whose 1955 murder became a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement.

Stokely Carmichael

Civil rights activist associated with Black Power and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

Malcolm X

Civil rights leader who advocated Black pride, self-defense, and Black nationalism; associated with the Nation of Islam before later changing some of his views.

Winston Churchill

Communism / Cold War

Iron Curtain

A term used to describe the division between Eastern and Western Europe during the Cold War.

Soviet expansion

The increase of Soviet influence and control in Eastern Europe after World War II.

Eastern Europe

Region that fell under Soviet control after World War II.

Threat of communism

The perceived danger posed by communist ideologies during the Cold War.

Democracy vs. dictatorship

The ideological conflict between democratic governance and authoritarian rule.

Cold War tensions

The political and military rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Famous phrase by Churchill

"The Iron Curtain has descended across the continent."

Importance of Churchill's speech

It warned that the Soviet Union was taking control of Eastern Europe after World War II.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Civil Rights leader.

Nonviolence

A principle advocated by King to achieve social change without violence.