CPUSH final exam 2025

Ideologies of the US and USSR

US: capitalism & democracy; USSR: communism & one-party rule

Berlin Blockade

Soviet attempt to cut off Allied access to West Berlin in 1948

Berlin Airlift

U.S.-led mission to supply West Berlin during the Soviet blockade

Marshall Plan

U.S. aid program to help rebuild Western Europe and stop communism

Containment

U.S. policy to prevent the spread of communism abroad

McCarthyism

Accusations of communism without evidence during the Red Scare

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

Congressional group investigating suspected communists

Blacklists

Lists of people accused of communist ties; often lost jobs (e.g., in Hollywood)

UN (United Nations)

International organization promoting peace and cooperation

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization; military alliance against Soviet threats

Germany during Cold War

Divided into East (Soviet) and West (U.S./Allied); Berlin became a flashpoint

Korean War

1950-53 war where the U.S. fought to stop communism from spreading in Korea

Vietnam War

U.S. conflict to prevent communist takeover of South Vietnam

Board of Education

Supreme Court case that ended segregation in public schools

Emmett Till

14-year-old African American boy murdered in 1955; his death raised awareness of racial violence

Bus Boycotts

Protest against segregated buses; Montgomery Bus Boycott led by MLK

Little Rock Nine

Black students integrated Central High School under federal protection

Lunch Sit-ins

Nonviolent protests at segregated lunch counters by Black students

Freedom Rides

Integrated bus rides into the South to challenge segregation in interstate travel

Birmingham boycott

Protests and economic boycotts in Alabama to fight segregation

Women's Movement

Fought for equal rights, education, and job opportunities for women

LGBTQ Movement

Advocated for equal rights; gained momentum after the Stonewall Riots

Conservative Movement

Political trend toward traditional values, free markets, and limited government

President Nixon - Foreign Policy

Opened relations with China; détente with USSR

President Nixon - Domestic Policy

EPA creation, New Federalism; involved in Watergate scandal

Watergate

Political scandal that led to Nixon's resignation due to illegal cover-up

1970s Culture

Rise of disco, inflation, energy crisis, and shifting social norms

President Reagan - Foreign Policy

Anti-communist stance; military buildup; Iran-Contra scandal

President Reagan - Domestic Policy

Reaganomics, tax cuts, deregulation, conservative revival

End of the Cold War

Fall of the USSR, democratic revolutions in Eastern Europe

New World Order

Post-Cold War global system with U.S. as sole superpower

Gulf War

1991 U.S.-led effort to drive Iraq out of Kuwait

President George H. W. Bush

Led U.S. during Gulf War; emphasized international diplomacy

President Bill Clinton

Moderate Democrat; balanced budget, NAFTA, impeachment scandal

George w bush aka baby bush

President during 9/11; launched War on Terror

9/11

Terrorist attacks on the U.S. by al-Qaeda on September 11, 2001

War on Terror

U.S. military response to terrorism; included wars in Afghanistan and Iraq

HAPPY Document Analysis

Historical context, Audience, Purpose, Point of view, whY it matters

Historical Thinking Skills

Analyzing cause/effect, comparison, continuity/change, and sourcing

Source Credibility

Judging if a source is reliable, accurate, and unbiased

Thesis Statement

A clear argument with reasons that organize an essay

Evidence Supports Claims

Using facts to back up your argument effectively

Reconstruction - Effects

Expanded Black rights; Southern resistance (KKK, violence)

Carpetbaggers

Northerners who moved South during Reconstruction, often seen as opportunists

KKK during Reconstruction

White supremacist group using terror to oppose Black rights

Post-Reconstruction South

Rise of Jim Crow laws, Black Codes, sharecropping

Black Codes

Laws to restrict African American freedom post-Civil War

Sharecropping

Farming system trapping Black families in poverty and debt

Industrialization

Growth of factories and urban life in the late 1800s

Robber Barons/Captains of Industry

Wealthy business leaders seen as either exploiters or innovators

Labor Movement

Workers formed unions to fight for better wages and conditions

Strikes

Work stoppages used by labor to demand rights (e.g., Haymarket, Pullman)

Suffrage Movement

Fought for women's right to vote and social equality

WWI - Causes

Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism (MAIN)

WWI - Outcome

Allied victory; Treaty of Versailles; League of Nations created

League of Nations

International peace group; failed to prevent WWII

The New Deal - Relief

Help for unemployed and poor

The New Deal - Recovery

Programs to restart the economy

The New Deal - Reform

Changes to prevent future depressions

WWII - Causes

Aggression by Axis powers; failure of appeasement

Atomic Bomb

Used by U.S. on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end war with Japan