albright chap 35

ABC-1 Agreement

A secret military agreement in early $1941$ between the United States and Britain. It established the strategy of focusing on defeating Germany first in the event of a two-front war, with the Pacific theater against Japan being a secondary priority.

Executive Order No. 9066

Signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in $1942$, it authorized the internment of over $110,000$ Japanese Americans, most of whom were U.S. citizens, into camps due to fears of espionage and sabotage during World War II.

War Production Board (WPB)

A government agency established to oversee wartime production and allocate resources. It directed factories to focus on war-related goods, leading to the massive production of planes, tanks, and other military equipment.

Office of Price Administration (OPA)

Created to control inflation during World War II, it regulated prices and rationed essential goods like food, fuel, and rubber to ensure fair distribution and prevent shortages.

National War Labor Board (NWLB)

A federal agency that mediated labor disputes to prevent strikes and keep wartime production steady. It also enforced wage ceilings to control inflation during the war.

Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act

A $1943$ law that allowed the federal government to seize and operate industries vital to the war effort if strikes threatened production. It was passed after coal miners staged significant strikes.

WACs (Women's Army Corps)

The women's branch of the U.S. Army, established during World War II, where women served in noncombat roles such as clerks, nurses, and communication specialists.

WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service)

The women's division of the U.S. Navy, where women filled noncombat roles, including administrative and medical duties, to free up men for combat service.

SPARS (U.S. Coast Guard Women's Reserve)

The women's reserve branch of the U.S. Coast Guard. were tasked with clerical, communications, and logistical work during the war.

Bracero Program

An agreement between the U.S. and Mexico in $1942$ that brought Mexican laborers to work on American farms and railroads to fill labor shortages caused by the war.

Fair Employment Practices Commission

Created by Executive Order $8802$,fought against racial discrimination in the defense industry and government jobs, marking an important step toward civil rights during World War II.

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

A civil rights organization founded in $1942$ that used nonviolent direct action to fight racial segregation and promote equality, laying the groundwork for the Civil Rights Movement.

Code Talkers

Native American soldiers, especially from the Navajo and Comanche tribes, who used their languages to transmit coded military messages in the Pacific and European theaters, ensuring secure communication.

Battle of Midway

A pivotal naval battle in June $1942$ where the U.S. Navy defeated Japan, halting Japanese expansion in the Pacific. It marked a turning point in the war by crippling Japan's naval strength.

D-Day

The Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied France on June $6$, $1944$. Also known as Operation Overlord, it was the largest amphibious assault in history and marked the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany.

V-E (Victory in Europe) Day

May $8$, $1945$, the day Nazi Germany officially surrendered, marking the end of World War II in Europe.

Potsdam Conference

A meeting in July $1945$ between Truman, Churchill (later Attlee), and Stalin to decide the postwar fate of Europe and issue an ultimatum to Japan: surrender unconditionally or face destruction.

Manhattan Project

A top-secret U.S. project during World War II that developed the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It involved leading scientists and marked the start of the nuclear age.

V-J (Victory in Japan) Day

August $15$, $1945$, the day Japan announced its surrender, effectively ending World War II. Formal surrender ceremonies occurred on September $2$, $1945$.

Douglas MacArthur

A prominent U.S. Army general during World War II and later the Korean War. He led Allied forces in the Pacific theater, famously retaking the Philippines and accepting Japan's surrender in $1945$. Known for his bold strategies and statement, "I shall return."

Chester Nimitz

A U.S. Navy admiral who commanded Allied naval forces in the Pacific theater. He was instrumental in major victories, including the Battle of Midway and the island-hopping campaign, which ultimately brought the U.S. closer to Japan.

Dwight D. "Ike" Eisenhower

A five-star general in the U.S. Army and Supreme Commander of Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe during World War II. He led the D-Day invasion and coordinated Allied efforts to defeat Nazi Germany. Later served as the $34th$ President of the United States.

Harry S. Truman

The $33rd$ President of the United States, succeeding FDR in $1945$. He authorized the use of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end World War II and played a key role in shaping the postwar world, including the start of the Cold War and the Marshall Plan.

Albert Einstein

A German-born physicist whose theory of relativity revolutionized modern science. Though a pacifist, he alerted President Roosevelt about the potential for nuclear weapons, indirectly leading to the Manhattan Project.