Civil Rights Movement and Cold War Study Guide

Comprehensive flashcards covering key figures, events, and concepts from the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, and the late $$20^{th}$$ Century US history based on the study guide.

Jackie Robinson

The baseball player who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball (MLB).

Brown v. Board of Education

The US Supreme Court case that reversed the $1896$ Plessy v. Ferguson segregation ruling and declared that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.

Thurgood Marshall

The winning lawyer in the Brown v. Board of Education case who later became the first Black Justice on the Supreme Court.

Emmett Till

A young African American boy whose brutal murder in Mississippi served as a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement.

Rosa Parks

A civil rights activist whose refusal to give up her bus seat sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Martin Luther King Jr.

The leader of the Civil Rights Movement who advocated for racial equality through non-violent civil disobedience.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

The US President who got involved with the Little Rock $9$ by sending federal troops to enforce the desegregation of Central High School.

Ho Chi Minh

The longtime Vietnam communist rebel leader who ruled North Vietnam.

Vietminh

The name for the communist rebels operating in North Vietnam.

Vietcong

The name for the communist rebels operating in South Vietnam.

$17^{th}$ Parallel

The line of latitude that divided Vietnam into North and South, creating a Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Ngo Dinh Diem

The corrupt and unpopular leader of South Vietnam supported by the United States.

Ho Chi Minh Trail

A supply route used by North Vietnam to transport weapons and soldiers through Laos and Cambodia to South Vietnam.

General William Westmoreland

The US General in the Vietnam War who found that fighting in the jungle was the most difficult aspect of the conflict.

Guerrilla Warfare

A combat style used by the Vietnamese against the US involving hit-and-run tactics, booby traps, and land mines.

Napalm

A jellied gasoline used in firebombs during the Vietnam War.

Agent Orange

A toxic chemical herbicide used by US forces to clear jungle vegetation in Vietnam.

Tet Offensive

A massive surprise attack by the Vietcong and North Vietnamese in $1968$; it is considered the turning point of the war.

Hawk

A person who supported the US military involvement and escalation in the Vietnam War.

Dove

A person who opposed the Vietnam War and believed the US should withdraw.

Muhammad Ali

The professional boxer who famously refused to be drafted into the Vietnam War due to his religious beliefs.

Deferment

A legal postponement of military service, commonly obtained through college enrollment or medical issues.

Counterculture

A movement mainly consisting of young people and hippies who rejected traditional values and were outspoken against the Vietnam War.

Freedom Riders

Protesters who rode buses through the South to challenge the illegal segregation of interstate bus terminals.

John F. Kennedy

The US President who began to support the Civil Rights Movement after witnessing televised attacks on peaceful protesters in the South.

March on Washington

The $1963$ protest intended to push for civil rights legislation, during which Dr. King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech.

$24^{th}$ Amendment

The constitutional amendment passed to stop the use of poll taxes to prevent people from voting.

Literacy Test

A difficult test of reading and writing ability used to disenfranchise African American voters.

Robert F. Kennedy

The Democratic candidate who was assassinated in $1968$ after winning the California primary.

Détente

The policy of relaxing Cold War tensions between the United States, China, and the Soviet Union under President Nixon.

Vietnamization

A policy started by President Nixon to withdraw US troops and transfer the responsibility of the war to the South Vietnamese government.

$26^{th}$ Amendment

The constitutional amendment that lowered the legal voting age from $21$ to $18$.

Watergate

The Washington DC office complex where workers for President Nixon were caught breaking into the Democratic election offices.

Richard Nixon

The US President caught obstructing justice during the Watergate scandal who was ultimately forced to resign.

Gerald Ford

The only person to serve as Vice President and President without being elected to either office; he famously granted a pardon to Richard Nixon.

Pardon

The official forgiveness given to Richard Nixon by Gerald Ford to ensure he did not go to jail for his crimes.

Apple

The computer company founded in $1976$ that helped launch the Computer Era.

Japanese Cars

Smaller, fuel-efficient vehicles that became popular in the US during the $1970s$ due to oil shortages.

Iran Hostage Crisis

A situation where Americans were taken hostage at the US Embassy in Tehran and held for $444$ days.

$1980$ Moscow Olympics

The Olympic Games boycotted by the US in protest of the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan.