history final

buying on margin

Purchasing stocks by paying only a small percentage of the price upfront and borrowing the rest. This risky practice contributed to the 1929 stock market crash.

Bank run

A panic where many depositors rush to withdraw their money from a bank at the same time, leading to the bank's collapse because they do not have enough cash on hand.

Overproduction

The production of more goods than consumers are willing or able to buy. This led to a drop in prices and business closures, acting as a major cause of the Great Depression.

Underconsumption

When consumers buy fewer goods than are being produced, causing inventory to pile up, which leads to layoffs and factory closures.

Dust Bowl

Severe dust storms in the Great Plains during the 1930s caused by a massive drought and poor farming practices (over-plowing) that destroyed the topsoil.

Black Tuesday

October 29, 1929; the day the stock market completely collapsed, officially signaling the beginning of the Great Depression.

Bonus Army

A group of WWI veterans who marched on Washington, D.C., in 1932 to demand early payment of a promised military bonus. President Hoover ordered the military to forcibly remove them.

Hoovervilles

Shantytowns built by unemployed and destitute people during the Depression. They were named to mock President Hoover, whom people blamed for the crisis.

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

A New Deal relief program that hired young, unemployed, unmarried men to do environmental conservation work (planting trees, building parks).

Works Progress Administration (WPA)

A massive New Deal agency that employed millions of job-seekers (mostly unskilled men) to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings, roads, and employing artists and writers.

What caused the Great Depression?

A combination of factors: the 1929 Stock Market Crash, bank failures, industrial overproduction, underconsumption, high tariffs (Hawley-Smoot) restricting international trade, and an unequal distribution of wealth.

How did President Hoover respond to the Great Depression?

He initially relied on "rugged individualism" and voluntary cooperation from businesses. He later provided some federal loans to businesses and banks (Reconstruction Finance Corp) but strongly opposed direct federal relief (welfare) to individuals.

How did President Roosevelt respond to the Great Depression?

FDR responded with the "New Deal," which drastically expanded the size and power of the federal government to provide direct relief, economic recovery, and financial reform.

What was the New Deal?

President Franklin D. Roosevelt's series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted between 1933 and 1939 to end the Great Depression.

What were the 3 Rs of the New Deal?

Relief (immediate help for the unemployed), Recovery (rebuilding the economy and businesses), and Reform (changes to the financial system to prevent future depressions).

What kinds of solutions to the Great Depression did it include?

Bank holidays to stabilize finance, massive public works programs (CCC, WPA) for jobs, agricultural subsidies (AAA) to fix farming, social safety nets (Social Security), and labor protections (Wagner Act).

How effective was it?

It was highly effective at providing immediate relief, lowering unemployment, and reforming the financial system. However, it did not completely end the Great Depression; the massive industrial production required for WWII ultimately ended it.

What impact did the New Deal have on African-Americans?

It provided some economic relief and jobs, but many programs were heavily segregated and discriminatory. FDR refused to support anti-lynching laws to keep the political support of Southern Democrats, though he did consult a "Black Cabinet" of advisors.

Explain the shift in population in the United States during the 1930s? From where did people leave? Where did they go?

Hundreds of thousands of farmers ("Okies" and "Arkies") fled the devastated Dust Bowl region in the Great Plains/Midwest and migrated westward, predominantly to California, searching for agricultural work.

What was the human toll of the Great Depression? How did Americans endure the hardships?

The human toll included massive unemployment (25%), homelessness, malnutrition, and broken families. Americans endured by relying on soup kitchens, bread lines, mutual community aid, and cheap escapist entertainment like movies and radio programs.

What was the Wagner Act?

Officially the National Labor Relations Act (1935); it guaranteed the right of private sector workers to organize into trade unions, engage in collective bargaining, and take collective action such as striking.

Facism

A far-right political system headed by a dictator that calls for extreme nationalism, militarism, and racism, with absolutely no tolerance for political opposition.

Dictator

A ruler with total power over a country, typically one who has obtained control by force and rules without democratic checks and balances.

Nationalism

Extreme pride and loyalty to one's nation, often putting its interests entirely above all other nations and viewing outsiders with hostility.

Scapegoat

A person or group made to bear the blame for others or to suffer in their place (e.g., Jewish people were scapegoated by the Nazis for Germany's economic problems).

Propaganda

Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, aggressively used by governments to promote or publicize a particular political cause, leader, or point of view.

Appeasement

The diplomatic policy of yielding to the demands of an aggressive power in order to avoid conflict (e.g., Britain and France allowing Hitler to take the Sudetenland in hopes he would stop expanding).

Double V Campaign

An African American initiative during WWII advocating for two victories: "Victory abroad against fascism, and Victory at home against racism."

Why were fascist dictators able to rise to power in Europe?

Massive economic instability from the Great Depression, deep resentment over the punitive Treaty of Versailles (in Germany), and the weakness of post-WWI democratic governments.

Hitler’s 9 steps towards war

1. Rearmament 2. Remilitarization of the Rhineland 3. Forming the Axis Alliance 4. Anschluss (Annexing Austria) 5. Demanding the Sudetenland 6. The Munich Agreement (Appeasement) 7. Invading the rest of Czechoslovakia 8. Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact 9. Invasion of Poland (which started WWII).

Who were the leaders of Italy, Russia, Great Britain, and Japan?

Italy: Benito Mussolini. Russia (USSR): Joseph Stalin. Great Britain: Winston Churchill. Japan: Emperor Hirohito and Prime Minister Hideki Tojo.

What actions did the United States take before officially entering the war?

The US shifted from strict isolationism (Neutrality Acts) to actively helping the Allies through "Cash-and-Carry," "Destroyers-for-Bases," and the Lend-Lease Act, becoming the "Arsenal of Democracy."

Pearl Harbor attack – when, why, significance

December 7, 1941. Japan attacked the US naval base in Hawaii to cripple the Pacific fleet, allowing Japan to conquer Southeast Asia unopposed. Significance: It instantly brought the US into WWII.

Japanese internment – when, why & Korematsu vs. US

In 1942, FDR signed Executive Order 9066 forcing over 100,000 Japanese Americans into camps due to wartime hysteria, racism, and false fears of espionage. Korematsu v. US (1944) ruled the internment was constitutional based on "military necessity."

How did the American economy change during WWII?

It rapidly shifted to a total wartime command economy. Factories converted to making war materials, ending the Great Depression. The government instituted strict rationing of consumer goods and imposed price and wage controls.

In what way did women contribute to the war effort? Why was there resistance to women working at first?

Women took millions of heavy industrial jobs ("Rosie the Riveter") and served in non-combat military roles (WACs). Initial resistance stemmed from traditional gender roles and sexist fears that women couldn't handle the physical labor or would abandon family duties.

Who was A. Phillip Randolph & what did he want FDR to do?

A prominent Civil Rights and labor leader who threatened a massive March on Washington. He successfully forced FDR to issue Executive Order 8802, banning racial discrimination in the defense industries.

Who were the Tuskegee Airmen & why are they significant?

The first African American military aviators in the US Armed Forces. Despite facing intense racism, their stellar combat record in Europe helped pave the way for the eventual integration of the US military.

What was the 761st Tank Battalion & why are they significant?

A highly decorated, primarily African American tank unit (the "Black Panthers"). They are significant for their heroism and effectiveness in the European theater despite fighting in a strictly segregated military.

Who were the Navajo Code Talkers and what was their role in WWII?

Native American Marines who used their complex, unwritten indigenous language to transmit highly classified tactical messages in the Pacific theater. Their code was the only one never broken by the Japanese.

D-Day: What happened, strategy, significance

June 6, 1944. A massive Allied amphibious invasion of the beaches of Normandy, France. Strategy: To open a major two-front war against Germany. Significance: It was the successful beginning of the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control.

The Manhattan Project, Hiroshima, & Nagasaki

The Manhattan Project was the top-secret US program to develop the atomic bomb. The bombs were dropped on Hiroshima (Aug 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (Aug 9, 1945) to force Japan to surrender without a costly US mainland invasion.

How/why the war ended

In Europe: Germany surrendered in May 1945 after being crushed between the Soviets advancing from the East and Western Allies from the West. In the Pacific: Japan surrendered in September 1945 following the two atomic bombings and the Soviet Union's declaration of war.

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

A congressional committee that heavily investigated alleged communist influence and subversion in the US, most famously targeting the Hollywood film industry (resulting in blacklists).

Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD)

The military doctrine that full-scale use of nuclear weapons by two opposing sides would result in the complete annihilation of both the attacker and the defender, theoretically deterring nuclear war.

The Marshall Plan

A massive US program providing billions in economic aid to rebuild Western Europe after WWII, strategically designed to stabilize their economies so they wouldn't fall to communism.

Containment

The fundamental US foreign policy during the Cold War aimed at stopping the spread of communism to any new countries, using military, economic, and diplomatic pressure.

The Warsaw Pact

A collective defense treaty signed by the Soviet Union and its satellite states in Eastern Europe, created as a direct communist counter-alliance to NATO.

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization; a mutual defense military alliance formed in 1949 by Western democracies (US, Canada, Western Europe) to counter the Soviet threat.

Iron Curtain

A term coined by Winston Churchill describing the ideological and physical dividing line in Europe between the democratic/capitalist West and the totalitarian/communist Soviet bloc in the East.

Fidel Castro

The communist revolutionary leader who overthrew the Cuban government in 1959, established a dictatorship, and closely allied Cuba with the Soviet Union, bringing the Cold War to the Western Hemisphere.

McCarthyism

The practice of making sweeping, unsubstantiated accusations of treason or communist sympathies without proper evidence, named after Senator Joseph McCarthy's aggressive anti-communist witch hunts in the 1950s.

What was the Truman Doctrine and why is it significant?

President Truman's pledge to provide military and economic aid to any free nation threatened by internal or external authoritarian forces (initially Greece and Turkey). Significance: It officially established the US policy of Containment.

What was the “domino theory”?

The Cold War geopolitical belief that if one country in a region fell under the influence of communism, the surrounding countries would inevitably follow suit, like falling dominoes.

What happened to Germany after WWII? What was unique about the capital city of Berlin?

Germany was divided into four occupation zones (US, British, French, Soviet). Berlin was unique because, although it was located entirely deep inside the Soviet zone, the city itself was also split into democratic West Berlin and communist East Berlin.

What was the Berlin Blockade and how did the US respond?

In 1948, Stalin blocked all land and rail access to West Berlin to starve the city into submitting to Soviet control. The US responded with the Berlin Airlift, flying in food and supplies non-stop for nearly a year until Stalin backed down.

What was the “Red Scare”? How did it affect the US?

A period of intense anti-communist hysteria in the US. It deeply affected society by triggering loyalty oaths, government investigations (HUAC), blacklisting of citizens, ruined careers, and a chilling effect on free speech.

How and why was Korea divided after WWII?

At the end of WWII, Korea was liberated from Japan and temporarily divided at the 38th parallel. The Soviet Union occupied the North (installing a communist regime) and the US occupied the South (backing a capitalist/democratic regime).

What is the DMZ?

The Demilitarized Zone; a heavily fortified buffer zone dividing North and South Korea near the 38th parallel, established at the end of the Korean War.

How and why did the Korean War start?

It started in June 1950 when communist North Korea launched a surprise invasion across the 38th parallel into South Korea with the goal of unifying the entire peninsula under communist rule.

What were the results & significance of the Korean War?

The war ended in a 1953 armistice (ceasefire, no official peace treaty) with borders remaining almost exactly where they started at the 38th parallel. Significance: It proved the US was willing to use physical military force to uphold the policy of containment.

What was Sputnik and why was it significant?

The first artificial Earth satellite, successfully launched by the Soviet Union in 1957. Significance: It triggered the Space Race, sparked panic in the US that they were falling behind technologically, and led to the creation of NASA and increased funding for STEM education.

What was the Bay of Pigs invasion? What was the result?

A disastrous 1961 CIA-backed military invasion of Cuba by armed Cuban exiles, intended to overthrow Fidel Castro. Result: It failed completely, embarrassed President Kennedy, and pushed Cuba to seek military protection from the Soviet Union.

What was the Cuban Missile Crisis? What was the result?

A tense 13-day standoff in 1962 after the US discovered Soviet nuclear missiles stationed in Cuba. Result: The closest the world came to nuclear war; ended peacefully when the Soviets removed the missiles in exchange for a secret US promise to remove missiles from Turkey and not invade Cuba.

What was the space race, who was involved, and what were the major accomplishments?

A fierce technological competition between the US and the USSR. The USSR accomplished the first satellite (Sputnik) and first human in space (Yuri Gagarin). The US accomplished the ultimate goal: putting the first humans on the moon in 1969 (Apollo 11).

de jure & de facto segregation

De jure: Segregation enforced strictly by law (e.g., Jim Crow laws). De facto: Segregation that exists by custom, practice, or socio-economic realities (e.g., residential housing patterns or generational wealth disparities).

Jim Crow laws

State and local laws enacted in the Southern United States that systematically enforced racial segregation and stripped African Americans of their basic civil rights.

Sit-Ins

A direct-action, nonviolent protest tactic where activists would sit at segregated lunch counters and refuse to leave until they were served, sparking a wave of youth-led desegregation efforts across the South.

feminism

The belief in and advocacy for the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.

Thurgood Marshall

The brilliant lead attorney for the NAACP who successfully argued Brown v. Board of Education; he later made history as the first African American Supreme Court Justice.

James Meredith

A civil rights activist who became the first African American student admitted to the segregated University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) in 1962, requiring federal marshals to enforce his enrollment amidst deadly riots.

John Lewis

A prominent civil rights leader who served as chairman of SNCC, was one of the original Freedom Riders, led the Selma to Montgomery march ("Bloody Sunday"), and later served as a revered US Congressman.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr

The foremost leader of the Civil Rights Movement who founded the SCLC, advocated for strictly nonviolent civil disobedience, delivered the "I Have a Dream" speech, and was assassinated in 1968.

A. Philip Randolph

A trailblazing labor and civil rights leader who organized the first predominantly Black labor union (Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters) and was the primary architect of the 1963 March on Washington.

Malcolm X

A fiery and influential civil rights leader and former Nation of Islam minister who advocated for Black empowerment, self-defense, and racial separation, before softening his views on integration shortly before his assassination.

Stokely Carmichael

A civil rights activist and leader of SNCC who famously coined the phrase "Black Power," shifting the movement away from nonviolent integration and toward racial pride, self-reliance, and self-defense.

Betty Friedan

Feminist author who wrote "The Feminine Mystique," effectively sparking the second wave of American feminism, and co-founded the National Organization for Women (NOW).

Gloria Steinem

A prominent feminist journalist, political activist, and face of the women's liberation movement who co-founded Ms. Magazine to bring feminist issues to the mainstream public.

Phyllis Schlafly

A highly effective conservative activist who successfully campaigned against the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), arguing it would strip women of traditional protections.

Harvey Milk

A visionary LGBTQ+ rights activist and the first openly gay elected official in the history of California (San Francisco Board of Supervisors); he was tragically assassinated in 1978.

Cesar Chavez

A Mexican-American labor leader and civil rights activist who co-founded the United Farm Workers (UFW) and championed nonviolent tactics like strikes and boycotts to win rights for migrant farmworkers.

Dolores Huerta

Co-founder of the UFW alongside Cesar Chavez; she was a master organizer, fierce negotiator, and champion of both farmworkers' rights and the women's rights movement.

What was the decision in Plessy v. Ferguson? What were the effects?

An 1896 Supreme Court ruling stating that "separate but equal" public facilities were constitutional. Effects: It legalized and deeply entrenched the vicious Jim Crow segregation system in the South for over 50 years.

Brown v. Board of Education: What was this case about?

A landmark Supreme Court case challenging the constitutionality of racially segregated public schools.

Brown v. Board of Education: What did Dr. Clark’s doll experiment show?

The psychological study showed that segregation caused Black children to internalize racism, leading to deep feelings of inferiority and self-hatred.

Brown v. Board of Education: What was the decision?

The 1954 unanimous Supreme Court decision ruled that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal," officially overturning Plessy v. Ferguson and ordering the desegregation of public schools.

Who was Emmett Till and what happened to him? Why is his death important?

A 14-year-old Black boy from Chicago who was brutally lynched in Mississippi in 1955 for allegedly whistling at a white woman. His mother insisted on an open-casket funeral, which exposed the savage reality of Southern racism to the world and catalyzed the Civil Rights Movement.

Who were the Little Rock Nine, what did they do, and why are they important?

Nine Black high school students who volunteered to integrate Central High School in Arkansas in 1957. They are important because their bravery forced President Eisenhower to send federal troops to enforce school desegregation against violent state resistance.

What was the Montgomery Bus Boycott? Who was involved? What was the goal?

A 381-day mass protest sparked by Rosa Parks' arrest, heavily organized by local Black women and led by Dr. MLK Jr. The goal was to financially cripple the city's transit system until they agreed to fully integrate the buses (which succeeded).

What were the Freedom Rides? Who was involved and what was the result?

Civil rights activists (Black and white, organized by CORE) rode interstate buses into the deep South to test a federal ban on segregated transit. They faced horrific mob violence, which ultimately forced the Kennedy administration to strictly enforce the integration laws.

What was the Letter from Birmingham Jail (who wrote it and what was the message)?

Written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. while imprisoned for protesting. The message passionately defended the strategy of nonviolent direct action and argued that citizens have a moral duty to actively disobey unjust laws.

What was the March on Washington? When did it take place? Who was involved? What was the goal?

A massive peaceful rally of 250,000+ people in August 1963, featuring major civil rights leaders (where MLK gave his "Dream" speech). The goal was to publicly pressure Congress and the President to pass a comprehensive federal civil and economic rights bill.

What did the Civil Rights Act of 1964 do?

A landmark law that officially outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, and legally ended segregation in public accommodations and the workplace.

What did the Voting Rights Act of 1965 do?

It outlawed discriminatory voting practices designed to disenfranchise Black voters (such as literacy tests) and authorized the federal government to oversee voter registration and elections in areas with a history of discrimination.

What was the Kerner Commission? Why were they created? What were the results? What was the reaction?

Created by President LBJ to investigate the causes of the massive 1967 race riots. Results: It concluded the riots were caused by systemic white racism and that the US was moving toward "two societies, one black, one white—separate and unequal." Reaction: LBJ largely ignored its recommendations for massive investments in urban areas due to political fallout and the Vietnam War.

Women’s Movement: What is The Feminine Mystique and what was its importance?

A 1963 book by Betty Friedan that exposed the widespread but hidden unhappiness of middle-class housewives, importantly sparking the second-wave feminist movement.

What was the Weeks v. Southern Bell case about? What was the decision?

Lorena Weeks sued her employer for gender discrimination after being denied a promotion to a higher-paying role reserved "for men" due to weight-lifting requirements. The court ruled in her favor, striking a major blow against restrictive, sexist labor laws.

What was Ms. Magazine and what was its importance?

A pioneering feminist magazine co-founded by Gloria Steinem in 1971. It was vital for bringing complex feminist issues (domestic violence, reproductive rights) to a wide, mainstream national audience without filtering through a male perspective.

Which organization led the movement?

The National Organization for Women (NOW), founded in 1966.

What is Title IX?

A landmark 1972 federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or educational program that receives federal funding, famously revolutionizing women's participation in high school and college athletics.