Safe for Democracy: The United States and World War I

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, historical figures, and events from the United States' involvement in World War I and early 20th-century foreign policy.

Dollar Diplomacy

A foreign policy under President William Howard Taft aimed at spreading American influence in Latin America through economic investment and bank loans, substituting 'dollars for bullets.'

William Howard Taft

The U.S. President who instituted Dollar Diplomacy and dispatched Marines to Nicaragua to safeguard a government friendly to American economic investments.

Moral Imperialism

A foreign policy principle proposed by Woodrow Wilson stating that the United States should only intervene in foreign affairs when morally necessary, claiming Americans would spread liberty and justice.

Woodrow Wilson

The U.S. President who advocated moral imperialism, sent military forces into Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Cuba, and requested a war declaration from Congress in 1917.

Francisco Madero

The revolutionary leader who overthrew Mexican dictator Porfirio Díaz in 1911 before being assassinated by Victoriano Huerta.

Victoriano Huerta

The Mexican military commander who assassinated President Francisco Madero and seized power, prompting Woodrow Wilson to send U.S. troops to Vera Cruz.

Pancho Villa

The Mexican revolutionary who led forces across the U.S. border in March 1916 and burned the town of Columbus, New Mexico.

General John Pershing

The U.S. military leader dispatched by Woodrow Wilson with 10,000 troops into Mexico to capture Pancho Villa.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire whose assassination by a Serbian nationalist on June 28, 1914, precipitated World War I.

The Allies (World War I)

The World War I alliance consisting primarily of Britain, France, Russia, and Japan.

The Central Powers

The World War I coalition consisting of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire.

RMS Lusitania

A British passenger ship torpedoed by a German U-boat in May 1915, killing nearly 1,200 civilians, including 128 Americans.

Zimmermann Telegram

A secret 1917 message from German foreign minister Arthur Zimmermann inviting Mexico to ally with Germany against the U.S. in exchange for recovering lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.

Selective Service Act of 1917

Federal law initially requiring men aged 21 to 30 to register for the military draft, later expanded in 1918 to include men aged 18 to 45.

Harlem Hellfighters

An all-Black American combat unit that served on the frontline in France for six months, suffering over 1,400 casualties.

Great Migration

The relocation of half a million Black Americans from the South to northern cities between 1910 and 1920 in search of jobs, education, voting rights, and safety.

Hello Girls

Female telephone operators who served during World War I to maintain military communications.

Committee of Public Information

A government agency led by George Creel that orchestrated a nationwide campaign to build domestic support for World War I using media and public speakers.

Four-minute men

Volunteers hired by the Committee of Public Information to give brief patriotic talks at schools, movie theaters, and public venues.