End of WW2 & Cold War

GI Bill

The Service Readjustment Act, A law that gave returning veterans money for college, housing, and other benefits.

Watergate Scandal

was when people connected to President Richard Nixon broke into the Democratic Party headquarters to spy—and then the government tried to cover it up.

Glasnost

It was introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the 1980s to make the government more transparent and less strict.

Perestroika

was a policy to change and improve the Soviet Union’s economy and government, making it less strict and more efficient.

Baby Boom

Caused by GI Bill, large number of babies born after WW2

Potsdam Conference

Meeting between the Allied leaders in 1945 to decide how to govern Germany and Europe after the war.

Harry Truman

The U.S. president who took office after Franklin Roosevelt died and helped lead the country at the end of WWII and after.

Desegregation

The ending of racial segregation, especially in schools, the military, and other public places after WWII.

Cuban Missile Crisis

A 13-day confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union in October 1962 over the presence of missile sites in Cuba.

Berlin Wall

A barrier that divided East and West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, symbolizing the Cold War.

My Lai Massacre

A mass killing of between 347 and 504 unarmed South Vietnamese civilians by U.S. Army forces during the Vietnam War on March 16, 1968.

United Nations

An intergovernmental organization founded in 1945 to promote international cooperation and maintain peace.

Truman Doctrine

A policy established in 1947 by President Truman to counter Soviet geopolitical expansion during the Cold War.

Domino Effect

The theory that a political event in one country could cause similar events in neighboring countries.

Yalta

A meeting of the Allied leaders in February 1945 to discuss the post-war reorganization of Europe.

SEATO

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, established in 1954 to prevent communism in Southeast Asia.

South Korea

A country located on the southern part of the Korean Peninsula, established after World War II.

Bay of Pigs

A failed military invasion of Cuba undertaken by the CIA in April 1961.

Marshall Plan

A U.S. program providing aid to Western Europe following the devastation of World War II.

quarantine

The act of isolating a country to prevent the spread of communism, notably used during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a military alliance established in 1949.

Poland

A Central European country, significant during the Cold War due to its communist government.

Space Race

The competition between the U.S. and the Soviet Union to achieve significant milestones in space exploration.

McCarthyism

A campaign against alleged communists in the U.S. government and other institutions led by Senator Joseph McCarthy.

blockading

The act of preventing goods or services from entering or leaving a place.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

A resolution passed by Congress in 1964, giving President Johnson the power to use military force in Vietnam.

SALTS

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks aimed at curbing the arms race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.

Gorbachev

The last leader of the Soviet Union known for his reforms of glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring).

Airlift

An operation to transport supplies into a location, specifically used in the Berlin Airlift.

North Korea

Invaded South Korea starting a 3 year war that included the US and Chine

Tet Offensive

when North Vietnam suddenly attacked many places in South Vietnam at the same time in 1968 during a holiday. Even though the U.S. and South Vietnam stopped the attacks, it made people realize the war was not close to ending.

Containment

Cold War policy of stopping communism from spreading to other countries.

Vietcong

were communist fighters in South Vietnam who fought against South Vietnam and the United States during the Vietnam War. They were supported by North Vietnam.

Warsaw Pact

was a military alliance of communist countries in Eastern Europe led by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It was created in 1955 as a response to NATO.

Pentagon Papers

were secret government documents that showed the U.S. government had not been fully honest about the Vietnam War. When they were leaked in 1971, many people became more upset and distrustful of the government.

US dishonesty with Vietnam War

The U.S. government said the Vietnam War was going well and that the U.S. was close to winning. But the Pentagon Papers showed that government leaders privately knew the war was not going well and was becoming harder to win. They also secretly expanded the war into places like Cambodia and Laos while telling the public they were not.

Detente

was a period during the Cold War when the United States and the Soviet Union tried to relax tensions and improve relations instead of fighting or threatening each other.