Chapter 20 Key Terms

Nativism

favoring the interests of native-born people over foreign-born people.

Isolationism

opposition to political and economic entanglements with other countries.

Communism

An economic and political system based on one-party government and state ownership of property.

Bolsheviks

The Bolsheviks were the followers of Vladimir Lenin, who led the 1917 Russian Revolution, overthrowing the czarist regime to establish a Communist government.

A.Mitchell Palmer

A. Mitchell Palmer was the U.S. Attorney General during the Red Scare who aggressively targeted suspected Communists, socialists, and anarchists through measures known as the Palmer Raids.

J.Edgar Hoover

J. Edgar Hoover, appointed special assistant to Palmer, helped lead the Palmer Raids.

Anarchist

a person who opposes all forms of government

Sacco and Vanzetti

Two Italian immigrants who believed in radical ideas and were accused of murder. Their trial was unfair because many people judged them for being foreigners and having different beliefs, and they were executed.

Klu Klux Klan

A secret organization that used terrorist tactics in an attempt to restore white supremacy in Southern states after the Civil War.

Quota System

a system that sets limits on how many immigrants from various countries a nation will admit each year.

American Federation League

A large group of workers who had promised not to go on strike during the war faced many struggles afterward in their efforts to protect workers’ rights.

John L. Lewis

A leader of coal miners who organized strikes to demand better pay and working hours. He became famous for standing up for workers during hard times.

Warren G. Harding

He was described to be a good-natured man who "looked like a president ought to look."

Charles Evan Hughes

As Secretary of State, he urged that no more warships be built for ten years.

Fordney-McCumber Tariff

Raised taxes on some U.S. imports to 60 percent, the highest level ever.

Ohio Gang

The president's poker-playing cronies would soon cause a great deal of embarrassment.

Teapot Dome Scandal

A scandal during the Harding administration involved the granting of oil drilling rights on government land in exchange for money.

Albert B. Fall

A Secretary of the Interior during Harding's administration, and was a scheming anti-conservative. He was convicted of leasing naval oil reserves and collecting bribes, which was called the Teapot Dome scandal.

Calvin Coolidge

30th president, and fit into the pro-business spirit of the 1920s very well.

Urban Sprawl

The process of urban areas expanding outward, usually in the form of suburbs, and developing over fertile agricultural land.

Installment Plan

A payment plan that allows customers to make payments at set intervals over a period of time until the total debt is paid.

Charles Lindbergh

In 1927, Amelia Earhart and Charles Lindbergh helped promote cargo and commercial airlines by flying transatlantically.