Cold War and Pre Reagan

Nuremberg Trials

Postwar trials against German war criminals.

-Gehring will be on trial

United Nations

UN - An international organization committed to World peace. Led by its five-member security council that can veto all decisions

-USA, Britain, Russia, China, France

-League didn't work, so its redemption time

-Peacekeeping force made by members

-Problem? The U.S. and Russia will argue over and over again. Will fail to stop many genocides.

-Leads to Cold War

Cold War

Non-shooting war of tension between the US and the USSR between 1945 to 1990

"World War 3 is coming"

USSR and USA both have nuclear weapons

Born into a world where the Soviets are the villains, and the US are the good guys

Desk and air raid siren drills

Lies about the moon project

Taft-Hartley Act

Outlaws the closed shop and made Union leaders swear they weren't communists

-Closed shop businesses only hired union workers

-Fear of communism spreads even more than the original red scare

-Fear of workers uniting and killing landowners

-Under this law, union membership will go down

-Truman will try to veto the act, but will enforce it after Congress passes it

Dixiecrats

Southern Democrats who broke with the party over civil rights

-Truman is supportive of the labor unions (mostly in the North)

-The North expects Truman to be pro-civil rights

-The South will get upset and not vote for Truman

-South will flip

Baby Boom

Refers to the high birth rate between 1946 to 1964

Boys come home from war, and the girls are happy about that

First generation to go to college en masse, first to march for civil rights, and will test our resources

Fair Deal

Truman's economic plan included a national healthcare system and full employment; It failed (did not pass).

-1946, Depression is over, and war is over

-Return to peace, and the people will vote for Republicans in congress

-Truman will win in 1948 (running against the "80th Republican do-nothing congress")

Central Intelligence Agency

America's Spies

-During the war, America's spies grow (OSS)

-America will make spies a permanent thing in their budget

-FBI is the national police, CIA are our spies

Joe McCarthy

Republican Senator who accused people in the state department of being communists with little or no evidence.

-brings in the second red scare, grips the nation with his accusations, and will rise to prominence

-picks his enemy, says there is a communist conspiracy in the State Department, and is aiming for president

- will go after the military, but the American people realize by this point he is lying about everything

Alger Hiss

A member of the State Department who was a communist went to jail for perjury

-No good evidence that he was a spy

Rosenbergs

American couple convicted and executed for being Soviet spies.

-Similar to Sacco and Vanzetti

-Julius was a spy, and it is unknown about Ethal

-Accused of communism in 1950s america, you won't end up well

House (committee on) UnAmerican ACtivities

The government committee that investigates Communists in American society, led by Richard Nixon.

-Nixon is the public face of HUAC

-Nixon gains a national reputation from this

-Investigated Communism in the film industry (Hollywood)

-When they investigate Hollywood, they will also go after the Homosexuals

GI Bill of Rights

Serviceman's readjustment act. Provided returning WWII veterans with:

Tuition

Job training

Mortgages

Business Loans

Credited with starting the modern American middle class.

-Veterans are given certifications to work

-Homeowners are better for the economy

-Veterans are helped out with starting new businesses

-College Tuition will change everything for Americans

Marshall Plan

Post World War II, where the U.S. gives money to any country who wants to rebuild.

-The U.S. is the only one not destroyed by the War

-Way to spread influence and democracy

-The Soviets won't take our money

Containment

U.S. Foreign policy to stop the spread of Communism during the Cold War

-The basis of American Foreign policy during the era

-Similar to Free Soilers (leave slavery where it is, don't let it expand)

-US. Does not want Communism to grow; Leaves commie nations alone

Brinkmanship

US foreign policy under containment to go to the Verge of World War III to stop communism (Berlin & Cuba).

-Kennedy will one day give a WWIII speech

-Stalin will stop the war with the conflict in Berlin

-The U.S. is ready to go

Domino Theory

US Foreign policy, part of containment; Said that if one country fell to communism, all of its neighbors would follow (China, Korea, Vietnam). Theory is wrong

Satellite Nations

Countries are completely dominated by a larger nation.

-Russia is the big power in Eastern Europe

-US does not have satellites

North-Atlantic Treaty Organization

NATO

Mutual Defense Group made up of the US and Western Europe

-Paragraph V of the Nato Charter: An attack on one is an attack on all

Warsaw Pact

Mutual defense group made up of the USSR and Eastern Europe

Truman Doctrine

When Truman gave $400 million to Turkey and Greece to fight communism.

First act of containment, Truman goes to congress, and will get money for Greece and Turkey

US hands out money blindly (out on a limb)

Eisenhower Doctrine

Part of containment; When Eisenhower gave money to any country fighting communism, especially the Middle East.

US wants a good relationship in the Middle East for the oil

Berlin Airlift

When Stalin closed the roads to West Berlin in an attempt to take the city; Truman started an airlift, and Stalin backed down

-West and East Germany

-USSR has East, Allied is West

-Half of Berlin is not worth WWIII

-Truman can't let Stalin take West Berlin; Raw Politics, The rest of the world watches, so Pentagon decides to do an airlift

-Truman will tell Stalin what we will do because we are sending supplies, and Stalin won't shoot them down (they don't have a nuke yet)

Isreal

Jewish homeland created after WWII; Becomes a big part of American containment

The Jews need a military, a government, and a homeland

Nikita Khrushchev

Leader of the Soviet Union after Stalin dies

-Stalin big strong leader (not good guy)

-When Stalin dies, there is a giant void in the USSR

-Khrushchev will emerge, but his grip won't be as strong as Stalin's

-He has to prove that he is Stalin and that can face the US

-He wasn't ready for WWIII (prevents the war)`

Cold War (USA vs USSR)

After the fall of NAZI Germany the ______ immediately begins with both the US and the USSR carving up parts of the world to spread their influence.

Image of america

In the immediate aftermath of the War the US tries to spread influence by helping countries rebuild using the Marshall Plan, essentially handing out $ to whoever would build in the __________________

Iron Curtain (Said by Churchhill)

The USSR is equally aggressive in trying to spread communism across the world. As early as 1946 Winston Churchill said it was as if an "_____" had descended across Europe dividing the world in half.

Chiang Kai-Shek

Nationalist Chinese leader in Chinese Civil War

Mao Zedong

Led Communist forces in Chinese Civil War

Mao / Communists

Meanwhile in China the Civil War has continued between the Nationalist forces of _Chiang Kai-Shek_ and the Communist forces of _Mao_. After the defeat of Japan the war is eventually won by ______ and China becomes "Red" China. Disaster for Truman and the West

Taiwan

Truman and the UN refused to recognize Communist China and instead recognized "_______" as the rightful Chinese Government. Regardless, by 1949 the US was forced to deal with two giant communist nations. This was seen as a vast failure of the US foreign policy of Containment.

Great Leap Forward

Once in firm control of China Mao began the "________" which sought to "Collectivize" all agriculture

15 to 55

The Great Leap Forward causes a famine in China that was responsible for the death of an estimated ________ million Chinese peasants.

NATO

In this environment (growing communist influences), the US and Western Europe decide to create ______. Which is a mutual defense treaty.

The two major tenets of NATO

1. An attack on one member shall be regarded as an attack on ALL members

2. All member nations shall spend 2% of their budget on defense every year.

Warsaw Pact

Immediately threatened by the creation of NATO the Soviet Union responded by creating the _______. Which was made up of them and all their Satellites in Eastern Europe.

The Berlin Blockade

June 1949 the first major crisis of the Cold War threatened to start WWIII: _________________ The USSR barricaded the city (completely within "their" half of Germany) in violation of international law (Yalta).

Truman's three options (concerning Berlin Blockade issue)

a. Run the blockade and risk a war

b. Let Berlin go and risk humiliation (like in _China_)

c. Start an airlift to resupply the city

Obstacles with Berlin Airlift

a. Was it even possible to fully resupply a modern city by air?

b. Cargo planes are notoriously slow and easy to shoot down

c. Air traffic control.

stalin

In starting an airlift Truman essentially left it up to_______ to decide if he would order the planes shot down. The USSR backed down and reopened the roads into Berlin failing to take over the city

Atomic Bomb

Stalin_ didn't shoot down the planes because he didn't have the ______ until the end of 1949.

Fallout shelters

Once the USSR had the Atomic Bomb in 1950 the world expected a Nuclear War to begin as Americans began to build _______.

Mutually Assured Destruction

USSR and USA realized that a Nuclear exchange meant death for both countries is known as: ______ (MAD). This principle as much as anything else keeps the world safe during the Cold War era, though the two sides remained mutually provocative.

Marion Motley

First Famous African-American Football player; 1940s

-Running back with the Cleveland browns

-Helps to bring down racial stereotypes

-Sports will help change society (not with Football yet)

Jackie Robinson

First African-American to play major league baseball

-27 years old, and a phenomenal player in the Negro Leagues

-Branch Ricky of the Dodgers wants to win a championship, and wants better players

-Ricky looks at Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and Jackie Robinson

-Robinson was a WWII veteran, college educated, lettered in three sports, is married, and has a kid on the way

-Jackie was perfect

-In 46, Jackie is put on the Brooklyn Brown Dodgers

-Ricky will put Jackie on the regular Dodgers, but warns him about how hard it will be. He tells Jackie that he has to be strong

-in 1947, Robinson will play with the Dodgers

-Robinson gets death threats, never takes Racheal to the games, and gets booed at and ridiculed,

-Robison will go through hell, but will become the National Rookie of the Year

-Jackie has to perform and prove that the color barrier must come down

Branch Ricky

Hired Jackie Robinson

Brown v. BOE of Topeka Kansas

1954 Supreme Court case that overturned Plessy, said separate is inherently unequal.

-Earl Warren's most important case

Thurgood Marshall

Brown's lawyer; First African-American Justice on the Supreme Court

-NAACP lawyer

Emmet Till

13 year old African-American boy murdered in Mississippi in 1955. Launched the Modern civil rights movement.

family was part of the Great Migration; Kid is born and raised in Chicago. His mother will send him to Mississippi every summer; He hangs out with his cousins. He and his cousins will go to the grocery store to buy candy, and while buying it, the 21yr old cashier will say that the boy whistled at her

-3 days later, the kid will be tracked down, kidnapped, beaten, mutilated, and murdered

-His mother will decide that she wants an open casket for her son (world-changing decision)

-The photo of son's destroyed body will go "viral"; Eisenhower will see the photo and he will become furious and knows the South has a problem

-The two men will go on trial, and Mississippi will not find them guilty (all-white jury). The two guys who did the murder will cash in on it, confessing to it, and Mississippi will not convict them

-Krushchev will criticize the US over the murder (doesn't happen in the USSR)

Rosa Parks

Alabama woman famously refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus in 1955.

-She was a civil rights activist, and is about 40 when she kickoffs the bus boycott

- will sit in the Colored Section of the bus, and knew the bus would fill up, but she will refuse to give up her seat to a white man on the bus

-Police will arrest Rosa Parks for not giving up her seat

-Brown vs. BOE, ends segregation in schools, but different events have to bring the rest of it down

Montgomery Improvement Association

Civil Rights organization that desegregated the Montgomery bus system led by MLK.

-First time America hears of MLK

-When the African-Americans get together and boycott, they almost bankrupt the bus companies

-Bus's will become desegregated after the African-Americans decide to withhold their money

Little Rock 9

9 African-American honor students who desegregated Central Highschool in Little Rock Arkansas in 1957.

-Integration has to take place a little at a time

-The 9 best students were chosen to go to Central High

-They will tell the 9 the same thing that Branch Ricky told Jackie (A lot of pressure on these kids; You can't fail the class either)

-Will show up to school the first day

Orville Faubus

Governor of Arkansas who blocked the Little Rock 9

-Goes on TV in Arkansas and says that the US is a democracy

-One of those instances in which the US does not call itself a democracy

-Eisenhower tells him that he can't violate federal law/will tell the idiot he will enforce Federal law

-On September 12th, Eisenhower tells idiot to get to Rhode Island. Eisenhower will tell idiot to put the blame on him, but that he can't do this (sets a bad precedent)

-President will end up calling the Military (104st Airborne) to roll through Little Rock with tanks to make sure the Little Rock 9 got into school

-Redemption is coming to an end

Suez Crisis

When Eypgt seized the Suez Canal, Britain, France, and Isreal attacked Eygpt; the Soviet Union threatens Britain and France, and US backed down

-Egypt will get money from America, and will get the Soviets will give them more

-Egypt will build a dam in the Suez, and will build a toll

-Britain, Israel, and France all go after Egypt; The Soviets will roll in

-Britain and France will run to Eisenhower

-Cold War: Back down, back down, back down

Sputnik

First Soviet satellite was launched into space, 1957

-Soviets make it to Space first

-Bad Day for America

-Eisenhower's response: Increased funding for Math and Science

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NASA

US Space Program

-War Department changed to Defense department

-Moon idea is really popular

-Government will create NASA to convince people we are going to the moon

-Based in Houston, Texas

Explorer 1

The first American Satellite launched into Space

Elvis Presley

King of Rock and Roll

- family is poor, and his family will move to the African-American part of town. He will hang out with African-American kids; Listens to their music. Will hear country western and rhythm/blues/soul also

-comes up with Rock and Roll

-Baby Boomers love this music. ____ is extremely controversial (Corrupting the youth of America)

Richard Nixon

-The ideal vice president

-does not win the election first go around, but the Republicans have a young candidate

-Gives Republicans hope

New Frontier

Kennedy's Plan for America, included the Peace Corps, the "moon" and Civil Rights

-Kennedy knows the truth about the "moon," and tells NASA he wants a date for the moon

-By 1975, we have to reach the moon

-Kennedy says that getting to the moon is a good goal; We lose nothing from it

Fidel Castro

Communist Dictator of Cuba from 1950s to 2010s

-Was a revolutionary

-He had wanted to become a baseball player, didn't make the cut, and got involved in the revolution

-He was absolutely horrible to Cuba

-Castro wants a visit to the US, and we are willing to give him money (don't know if he is communist yet)

-Castro doesn't want the money; He just wants to see America

-Congress will be frightened by Communist Cuba

Bay O ' Pigs

Kennedy's Failed invasion of Cuba using Cuban refugees; empowers the USSR

-Khrushchev is not scared of Kennedy

-The Soviets will build the Berlin Wall

-CIA will go to Kennedy, and tell them they have to bomb the wall, but JFK refuses

-Khrushchev feels empowered and will put missiles in Cuba

-The UN will do nothing about it

-CIA tells Kennedy to Bomb them

Cuban Missle Crisis

When the Soviets put missiles in Cuba, Kennedy blockaded Cuba, and Khrushchev backed down

Kennedy doesn't have a lot of options: Bomb missile sites or nothing

Kennedy calls a blockade of the Island (Calls it a Quarantine)

He writes a letter to Khrushchev saying he doesn't want WWIII

Khrushchev gets a badly written letter from him and a well-written letter

One wants war, the other refuses it. Kennedy ignores the second letter.

The whole world watches terrified

Kennedy needs to make the order of letting ships run a blockade or shoot them (he orders them to shoot)

The USSR will back off; Problem not done yet

Boddy sent to negotiate with a Russian diplomat

Missles out of Cuba

Missles out of Turkey

Never invade Cuba again

-JFK wants six months to get the missiles out of Turkey (reelection win)

James Meredith

First African American to attend Old Miss University

-Old Miss is Mississippi

-James is talented and can go to any University he wants

-NAACP will tell James that he can make history

-Governor blocks the door, Bobby gets on the phone

-Bobby doesn't care about the Governor's complaints and tells him to let James in (gives Governor a few weeks)

-Governor waits until a Football home game, and James gets registered

-Football will integrate schools in the South

16th Street Bombing

Refers to the bombing of an African-American church in Birmingham Alabama in 1963; Killed 4 young girls

The Four girls volunteered at the church

A white bomber comes in, and they will die as the Church caves in

8 years after Emmet Till; King doesn't care anymore, he won't wait for Re-election; When will it end?

Medgar Evers

NAACP lawyer, famously murdered in Mississippi, his killer walked free

George Wallace

Governor of Alabama, supporter of segregation, shot while running for president in 1968

Lee Harvey Oswald

Murdered JFK in 1963

38th Parallel

After WWII Korea was to be split in half between the US and the USSR. Korea had no obvious natural barrier in which to split the country so the US/USSR decided to split the country at the ____

North Korea, Seoul

In June of 1950 (With the blessing of both the USSR and China) __ invaded South Korea and immediately occupied the South Korean capital of ___.

UN

As South Korea is beginning to fall the __ intervenes (only because Russia withdrew temporarily to protest Communist China not being recognized).

MacArthur

Most UN forces were American and __ was appointed the Supreme Commander of all UN forces. Truman will fire this guy

Yalu

Late September 1950 the US/UN reinvaded Korea and quickly pushed North Korean forces to the _____ river which is the natural border between Korea and _China_.

nukes

China invaded and pushed back US forces back to Seoul. MacArthur immediately called for the use of ______ against China. President _Truman_ refused and Mac both privately and publicly criticized him including to Congress.

Matthew B. Ridgway

By April of 1951 the relationship between Truman and MacArthur was unsustainable. Truman fired MacArthur, replacing him with _______.

"Limited War"

Korean war: Truman gave the order to hold the line at the 38th Parallel and essentially fight a ______.

armistice

Korean War: Peace talks with China/North Korea stalled for over a year until the Eisenhower administration took over and signed an ________ ending hostilities in Korea. The 38th parallel is still the dividing line between the "2 Koreas" and even more significantly no permanent peace treaty has EVER been signed.

Forgotten War

In all the Korean war claimed nearly _55k_ American lives and left the armistice line virtually the same as it was before the war making the war seem unnecessary historically. For this reason the Korean War is often seen as the "_____" of American history.

Economy boom, Nuclear Family, Strong influence, President Ike, Growing middle class, Suburbs

America in the 1950's is often remembered as a nearly ideal time for several reasons:

"Nuclear" family

50s life:

The was intact for the most part as traditional gender roles were reintroduced and largely followed.

Eisenhower

50s life: America was strong in the world with only the USSR to challenge our authority

For most of the decade __ was President which gave most Americans a sense of confidence in our leadership.

Middle Class

The Great Depression never came back despite fears immediately following WWII because the GI Bill of Rights basically created the Modern American ___________.

Interstate Highway act

The Suburbs are also created as the building of roads by the ______ made it easier for people to drive to work in the city. Created under Eisenhower

Civil Rights, Juvenile Delinquency, Cold War (USSR and CUBA), Women and LGBTQ+, McCarthyism

For all the good of the 1950's there were many problems bubbling around the surface waiting to explode on the decade:

On The Road, Kerouac

Written by Jack ____ 1957. Rejected the stifling conformity of the 1950's and talked about living a more "free" lifestyle.

The Feminine Mystique, Friedan

Betty, 1963. Really marks the rebirth of Second Wave Feminism as women begin to feel frustration with examples of systemic sexism such as the wage gap

Beat movement

Movement started by On the Road

November 22, 1963

The "Innocence" of the 1950's was permanently destroyed when JFK is shot. Americans immediately believed in conspiracies about the murder and the country would be forever changed

Peace Corps

Kennedy's program to help developing nations and spread democracy.

-Nicer way to spread democracy

-Help third-world nations with College Students

Great Society

LBJ's war on poverty that created the modern welfare system.

-Lyndon says poverty is bad, and he believes that poverty fuels inequality

Volunteers in Service to America

Vista; Domestic Peace Corps (Part of the Great Society)

-Johnson looks at the Peace Corps, and decides that people inside the US should be helped

Medicare

Government-sponsored health insurance for the elderly, part of the Great Society. The most expensive program in American History

-More expensive each year (rising medicine costs and life-expectancy)

Medicaid

Government-sponsored health insurance for the poor (Part of the Great Society)

-Tax payer funded

Housing and Urban Development

HUD

Provides low incoming housing for people in inner cities also known as "the projects"

-Inner cities are expensive to live in

-The projects are filled with Drug and Crimes

-Gets so bad that the police won't go there

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

SCLC

Civil Rights group led by MLK, organized through African-American churches

-MLK was a reverend and will organize the churches

-Most church goes are older women

-King wants non-violent protest

Student non-violent Coordinating Committee

SNCC

a Civil rights group organized through colleges, later breaks apart and becomes the Black Panthers

Recruiting students

The issue with non-violent protest is you'll get hurt and will have to resist

A lot of the Students don't like being hit by the hoses so they will campaign for civil rights by any needs necessary

Congress on Racial Equality

Civil rights group that started the Freedom Rides

-The SCLC, SNCC, and CORE target different parts of society

-White American Adults need to get on board to make this work

Freedom Rides

Bus rides throughout the South in the summer of 61, attacked by the police in the South, and eventually protected by federal marshalls.

-African-Americans do not vote a lot

-Core organizes this because they ask "What If we get thousands of voter registration in at once to avoid individuals getting targeted"

-In NC, they won't let them park, and in the deeper South starts shooting at the bus

-Federal government has to get involved, and RFK will have the Marshalls protect the buses

March on Washington

In August of 63, Civil rights rally led by MLK where he made his "I have a Dream" speech.

-JFK begged him not to do it, MLK says he will, and JFK will support him

-JFK watches it from the windows of the white house