The Cold War and Post-War America

Vocabulary-style flashcards covering the onset of the Cold War, the division of Germany, post-war economic structures, and social shifts in the United States.

Yalta Conference

A February 1945 meeting where major agreements were reached to divide Germany into zones, require its unconditional surrender, and establish the United Nations.

Bretton Woods Conference

A 1944 gathering that established the International Monetary Fund and World Bank to promote international trade without tariffs.

Security Council

A division of the United Nations consisting of the US, Britain, France, USSR, and China.

General Assembly

The branch of the United Nations where all nations are represented, each having one vote.

Nuremberg war crimes trial

Legal proceedings held from 1945-1946 to deal with Nazi officials after World War II.

Berlin Airlift

A US operation to fly supplies into West Berlin after the Soviet Union tried to choke off the city's supply lines.

Containment doctrine

A strategy proposed by George Kennan as a way for the United States to deal with Soviet expansion.

Truman Doctrine

A policy of using military aggression to stop the expansion of communism.

Marshall Plan

An economic aid and recovery program designed to rebuild Europe after World War II.

National Security Act of 1947

Legislation that created the Department of Defense, the National Security Council (NSC), and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

An alliance formed to stem the expansion of communism and unify Europe.

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

A committee that investigated subversion as Americans showed anti-Communist tendencies in the post-WWII era.

Dixiecrats

A faction of the Democratic Party that split in the 1948 election, represented by candidate Strom Thurmond.

Fair Deal

President Truman's program aimed at improved housing, full employment, a higher minimum wage, and social security expansion.

Korean War

A conflict starting when North Korea attacked South Korea, leading to UN assistance to restore peace.

Checkers Speech

A televised address given by Richard Nixon in 1952 to deny charges of taking illegal donations.

GI Bill

Also known as the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, it provided education, small business, and mortgage loans to veterans.

Sunbelt

The region stretching from Virginia to California that saw its population double and received increased federal funding post-WWII.

Levittown

A development that revolutionized home construction and contributed to the movement of people from cities to suburbs.

White flight

The movement of white people leaving majority-black cities for the suburbs, often leaving the cities economically broke.

Baby boom

A massive post-war population increase that transformed education numbers and consumer spending through a new youth culture.