History Key Terms - Chapters 22 & 23

Anti-Imperialist League

a group of diverse and prominent Americans who banded together in 1898 to protest the idea of American empire building

dollar diplomacy

Taft’s foreign policy, which involved using American economic power to push for favorable foreign policies

Frontier Thesis

an idea proposed by Fredrick Jackson Turner, which stated that the encounter of European traditions and a native wilderness was integral to the development of American democracy, individualism, and innovative character

Open Door Notes

the circular notes sent by Secretary of State Hay claiming that there should be “open doors” in China, allowing all countries equal and total access to all markets, ports, and railroads without any special considerations from the Chinese authorities; while ostensibly leveling the playing field, this strategy greatly benefited the United States

Roosevelt Corollary

a statement by Theodore Roosevelt that the United States would use military force to act as an international police power and correct any chronic wrongdoing by any Latin American nation threatening the stability of the region

Rough Riders

Theodore Roosevelt’s cavalry unit, which fought in Cuba during the Spanish-American War

Seward's Folly

the pejorative name given by the press to Secretary of State Seward’s acquisition of Alaska in 1867

sphere of influence

the goal of foreign countries such as Japan, Russia, France, and Germany to carve out an area of the Chinese market that they could exploit through tariff and transportation agreements

yellow journalism

sensationalist newspapers who sought to manufacture news stories in order to sell more papers

clear and present danger

the expression used by Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in the case of Schenck v. United States to characterize public dissent during wartime, akin to shouting “fire!” in a crowded theater

Fourteen Points

Woodrow Wilson’s postwar peace plan, which called for openness in all matters of diplomacy, including free trade, freedom of the seas, and an end to secret treaties and negotiations, among others

Harlem Hellfighters

a nickname for the decorated, all-Black 369th Infantry, which served on the frontlines of France for six months, longer than any other American unit

Irreconcilables

Republicans who opposed the Treaty of Versailles on all grounds

League of Nations

Woodrow Wilson’s idea for a group of countries that would promote a new world order and territorial integrity through open discussions, rather than intimidation and war

liberty bonds

the name for the war bonds that the U.S. government sold, and strongly encouraged Americans to buy, as a way of raising money for the war effort

neutrality

Woodrow Wilson’s policy of maintaining commercial ties with all belligerents and insisting on open markets throughout Europe during World War I

Prohibition

the campaign for a ban on the sale and manufacturing of alcoholic beverages, which came to fruition during the war, bolstered by anti-German sentiment and a call to preserve resources for the war effort

Red Scare

the term used to describe the fear that Americans felt about the possibility of a Bolshevik revolution in the United States; fear over Communist infiltrators led Americans to restrict and discriminate against any forms of radical dissent, whether Communist or not

Red Summer

the summer of 1919, when numerous northern cities experienced bloody race riots that killed over 250 persons, including the Chicago race riot of 1919

Reservationists

Republicans who would support the Treaty of Versailles if sufficient amendments were introduced that could eliminate Article X

Zimmerman Telegram

the telegram sent from German foreign minister Arthur Zimmermann to the German ambassador in Mexico, which invited Mexico to fight alongside Germany should the United States enter World War I on the side of the Allies