cold war

Truman Doctrine

A U.S. policy (1947) providing aid to countries threatened by communism, especially Greece and Turkey.

Marshall Plan

A U.S. economic aid program (1948) to help rebuild Western Europe and prevent communism's spread.

Containment

A U.S. strategy to prevent the spread of communism through military, economic, and diplomatic means.

Brinkmanship

A Cold War policy of pushing conflicts to the brink of war to force an opponent to back down.

NATO

A military alliance (1949) between the U.S., Canada, and Western Europe to defend against the Soviet.

Korean War

A conflict (1950–1953) between communist North Korea (backed by China/USSR) and democratic South Korea (backed by the U.S./UN), ending in a stalemate.

Immigration and Naturalization Act (1952)

Also known as the McCarran-Walter Act, it limited immigration from communist countries and allowed the deportation of suspected communists.

Taft-Hartley Act (1947)

A law restricting union power, allowing 'right-to-work' laws, and requiring union leaders to affirm they were not communists.

Executive Order 9981

An order by President Truman (1948) that desegregated the U.S. military.

Dennis v. United States (1951)

A ruling that upheld the conviction of Communist Party leaders under the Smith Act, restricting advocacy for government overthrow.

Yates v. United States (1957)

A ruling that distinguished between advocating for abstract communist ideas (protected speech) and inciting immediate violent action (not protected).

Harry Truman

U.S. president (1945–1953) who led the U.S. into the Korean War and implemented the Truman Doctrine & Marshall Plan.

Senator Joseph McCarthy

A U.S. senator known for leading anti-communist investigations during the 'Red Scare.'

Dwight Eisenhower

U.S. president (1953–1961) who expanded Cold War policies, issued the Eisenhower Doctrine, and enforced school desegregation.

John Foster Dulles

Eisenhower’s Secretary of State, a strong anti-communist who promoted brinkmanship and massive retaliation.

Douglas MacArthur

U.S. general who led UN forces in the Korean War but was fired by Truman for insubordination.

J. Edgar Hoover

Longtime FBI director who aggressively pursued suspected communists and civil rights activists.

Jackie Robinson

The first African American Major League Baseball player, breaking the color barrier in 1947.

Thurgood Marshall

NAACP lawyer in Brown v. Board of Education; later became the first Black Supreme Court Justice.

Rosa Parks

Civil rights activist whose 1955 arrest for refusing to give up her bus seat led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

A successful 1955–1956 protest against bus segregation, led by Martin Luther King Jr.

Little Rock School Crisis (1957)

Eisenhower sent federal troops to enforce school integration for nine Black students in Arkansas.

Civil Rights Act of 1957

The first civil rights law since Reconstruction, aimed at protecting Black voting rights.

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

A Supreme Court decision that ruled school segregation unconstitutional.

Satellite Nations

Eastern European countries controlled by the Soviet Union, including Poland, Hungary, and East Germany.

The Rosenbergs

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed in 1953 for allegedly spying for the Soviet Union.

Whittaker Chambers

A former communist and key witness in the Alger Hiss trial, which fueled anti-communist fears.

Nikita Khrushchev

Soviet leader after Stalin, known for de-Stalinization, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Cold War confrontations.

Loyalty Review Program

A Truman-era program investigating federal employees for communist ties, leading to many dismissals.

Iran (1953)

The CIA orchestrated a coup to overthrow Iran’s Prime Minister Mossadegh and reinstall the Shah.

Guatemala (1954)

The CIA led a coup against democratically elected Jacobo Árbenz, fearing communist influence.

Taiwan

Home to China’s Nationalist government after their defeat by communists in 1949, supported by the U.S.

Eisenhower Doctrine (1957)

A policy pledging U.S. aid to Middle Eastern nations threatened by communism.

Sputnik (1957)

The first artificial satellite, launched by the Soviet Union, sparking the Space Race.

1950s Culture

Defined by economic prosperity, suburban growth, conformity, anti-communist fears, rise of television, and rock & roll.