period 8 vocabulary

Yalta Conference

February 1945 meeting of FDR, Churchill, and Stalin to plan post-war Europe.

Potsdam Conference

July 1945 meeting where Truman, Stalin, and Churchill/Attlee discussed Japan’s surrender and division of Germany.

Cold War

Political and ideological conflict between the US and USSR from 1945–1991.

United Nations

International organization founded in 1945 to promote peace and cooperation.

Satellite States

Eastern European countries under Soviet control during the Cold War.

Iron Curtain

Metaphor for the division between democratic Western Europe and communist Eastern Europe.

Containment Policy

US strategy to prevent the spread of communism.

Truman Doctrine

US pledged to support nations resisting communism, particularly Greece & Turkey.

Marshall Plan

US economic aid program to rebuild Europe after WWII.

Berlin Airlift

US response to the Soviet blockade of West Berlin (1948-49).

NATO

Military alliance of Western countries against Soviet threats.

Warsaw Pact

Soviet-led military alliance in response to NATO.

Arms Race

Competition between the US and USSR for nuclear superiority.

38th Parallel

Division line between North and South Korea.

Brinkmanship

Policy of pushing conflicts to the edge of war to deter opponents.

U-2 Incident

1960 US spy plane shot down over Soviet territory.

Loyalty Review Board

Investigated federal employees for communist ties.

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

Investigated suspected communists in the US, especially in Hollywood.

Alger Hiss

US official accused of being a Soviet spy.

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg

American couple executed for allegedly spying for the USSR.

McCarthyism

Senator Joseph McCarthy’s anti-communist campaign based on accusations with little evidence.

Servicemen’s Readjustment Act

GI Bill that provided education and housing benefits for WWII veterans.

Baby Boom

Post-WWII population explosion.

Levittown

First mass-produced suburban community in the US.

Sun Belt

Southern and western US states that experienced growth due to warm climate and job opportunities.

22nd Amendment

Limited US presidents to two terms.

Highway Act

Funded the creation of the Interstate Highway System in 1956.

1950s Culture

Characterized by conformity, consumerism, suburbanization, and rise of TV.

Beatniks

Countercultural writers and artists who rejected mainstream 1950s values.

Bay of Pigs

Failed US-backed invasion of Cuba to overthrow Fidel Castro in 1961.

Berlin Wall

Barrier built by East Germany in 1961 to stop East Berliners from escaping to the West.

Cuban Missile Crisis

1962 confrontation over Soviet missiles in Cuba; nearly led to nuclear war.

Détente

Easing of US-Soviet tensions in the 1970s.

SALT I

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty between the US and USSR to limit nuclear weapons.

New Frontier

JFK’s domestic policies focusing on education, civil rights, and space exploration.

Stagflation

Economic situation of high inflation and unemployment in the 1970s.

The Great Society

LBJ’s programs to eliminate poverty and racial injustice (Medicare, Medicaid).

Barry Goldwater

Conservative Republican presidential candidate in 1964.

Silent Spring

Rachel Carson’s book that exposed the dangers of pesticides, leading to environmental regulations.

Immigration Act of 1965

Abolished quotas based on nationality, leading to increased immigration from Asia and Latin America.