Key Terms and Concepts from U.S. History Lecture

Flashcards covering key terms and concepts from a U.S. history lecture, highlighting important events, legislation, and movements.

Mutually assured destruction

A military doctrine that posits if two opposing sides both possess enough nuclear weapons to destroy each other, then neither will initiate conflict.

Dixiecrats

A short-lived political party in the United States that was formed in 1948 by Southern Democrats who opposed racial integration.

Brown v. Board of Education

The landmark 1954 Supreme Court case that ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional.

Iron Curtain

A term used to describe the division between the Soviet-controlled countries and the Western countries during the Cold War.

Containment

The United States policy aimed at preventing the spread of communism during the Cold War.

Truman Doctrine

A U.S. policy established in 1947 that aimed to contain communism by providing political, military, and economic assistance to countries resisting communist influence.

Marshall Plan

A U.S. program implemented in 1948 to aid Western Europe in economic recovery after World War II.

Berlin Airlift

The 1948 operation in which the U.S. and British aircraft supplied West Berlin with food and fuel after the Soviet blockade.

Fair Deal

President Truman's domestic program which aimed to expand social safety nets and promote civil rights.

Redlining

The discriminatory practice of denying services to residents of certain areas based on race or ethnicity.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

A civil rights protest against racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama, initiated by Rosa Parks in 1955.

Greensboro sit-in

A series of non-violent protests against segregated lunch counters in Greensboro, North Carolina, started by four African American college students in 1960.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

A 1964 resolution that granted President Johnson authority to use military force in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war.

War Powers Act

A law enacted in 1973 that requires the President to consult Congress before deploying U.S. forces into combat.

Vietnamization

The U.S. policy of withdrawing troops and transferring the responsibility for the war effort to the South Vietnamese forces.

Miranda v. Arizona

A 1966 Supreme Court case that established the requirement for police to inform suspects of their rights to silence and legal counsel during interrogations.

National Organization for Women (NOW)

An American feminist organization founded in 1966 advocating for women's rights.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

A military alliance established in 1949 among North American and European countries for mutual defense.

Warsaw Pact

A military alliance of communist nations in response to NATO, established in 1955.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

The 34th President of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961, known for leading during the Cold War.

Brinkmanship

A strategy of escalating tensions to the brink of conflict to achieve favorable outcomes.

Sputnik

The first artificial Earth satellite, launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, marking the start of the space race.

McCarthyism

A campaign against alleged communists in the U.S. government and other institutions led by Senator Joseph McCarthy in the early 1950s.

GI Bill

A law that provided various benefits to returning World War II veterans, including education and housing assistance.

Sun Belt

A region in the southern United States known for its warm climate and rapid economic growth since the 1970s.

Taft Hartley Act

A federal law enacted in 1947 that restricts the activities and power of labor unions.

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

A civil rights organization formed in 1960 to give younger African Americans a voice in the movement.

Betty Friedan

An American writer and feminist whose book 'The Feminine Mystique' sparked the second-wave feminist movement.

American Indian Movement (AIM)

A Native American advocacy group founded in 1968 to address issues of sovereignty, poverty, and injustice.

Freedom Rides

Civil rights activists who rode interstate buses into the segregated southern United States in 1961 to challenge local laws.

Cuban Missile Crisis

A 1962 confrontation between the U.S. and the Soviet Union over Soviet missiles deployed in Cuba.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

A landmark piece of civil rights legislation that outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

An act that aimed to eliminate various barriers to voting for African Americans.

Great Society

President Lyndon B. Johnson's domestic program designed to eliminate poverty and racial injustice.

Conservatism

A political philosophy that emphasizes tradition, limited government, and individual liberties.

Black Power

A movement advocating for the rights and independence of Black Americans, emphasizing racial pride and self-sufficiency.

Cesar Chavez

A civil rights activist who co-founded the United Farm Workers union and advocated for labor rights for farmworkers.

Stonewall Riots

A series of spontaneous demonstrations by members of the LGBTQ+ community against a police raid at the Stonewall Inn in 1969.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

An agency of the U.S. government established in 1970 to protect human health and the environment.

Stagflation

An economic condition characterized by stagnant economic growth and high inflation.

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT I)

Negotiations between the U.S. and the USSR aimed at limiting both countries' stock of nuclear weapons.

Watergate

A major political scandal in the U.S. in the early 1970s involving a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters.

Title IX

A federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs and activities.

Camp David Accords

A peace treaty between Israel and Egypt brokered by U.S. President Jimmy Carter in 1978.

U-2 incident