period 8

Cold War

Geopolitical tension between US and Soviet Union.

Containment Policy

US strategy to prevent spread of communism.

Iron Curtain

Division between Soviet-controlled Eastern Europe and West.

Truman Doctrine

US support for countries resisting communism.

Marshall Plan

US aid to rebuild Western European economies.

Berlin Airlift

US response to Soviet blockade of West Berlin.

NATO

Military alliance to counter Soviet expansion in Europe.

Warsaw Pact

Military alliance of communist states in Eastern Europe.

Domino Theory

Belief that communism would spread in Southeast Asia.

Eisenhower Doctrine

US aid to Middle Eastern nations against communism.

Cuban Missile Crisis

Confrontation over Soviet missiles in Cuba.

McCarthyism

Political movement against alleged communists in America.

Loyalty Review Board

Investigated federal employees for communist ties.

Smith Act

Criminalized advocating for violent overthrow of government.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Outlawed discrimination in public facilities.

Brown v. Board of Education

Supreme Court ruling against school segregation.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Leader of nonviolent civil rights protests.

Letter From Birmingham Jail

MLK's defense of nonviolent protest methods.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Eliminated barriers to voting for African Americans.

Title IX

Prohibited sex discrimination in federally funded education.

GI Bill of Rights

Provided education and housing benefits to veterans.

Baby Boom

Significant increase in birth rates post-WWII.

Highway Act of 1956

Funded interstate highway system for defense.

Warren Court

Supreme Court known for liberal decisions.

Counterculture Movement

Cultural movement opposing mainstream values in the 1960s.

SNCC

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee for civil rights.

Malcolm X

Advocate for Black nationalism and self-defense.

Civil Rights Laws of 1957 and 1960

Empowered federal government to protect voting rights.