Crisis of Communism

Crisis of Communism

Paradox of representing workers while repressing them.

Great Leap Forward

Mao's failed attempt to rapidly industrialize China.

Deng Xiaoping

Leader who replaced Mao and introduced reforms.

Cultural Revolution

Mao's campaign to eliminate perceived capitalist elements.

Red Guard

Youth militia mobilized during the Cultural Revolution.

Little Red Book

Mao's collection of quotes used for propaganda.

Tiananmen Square

Site of pro-democracy protests in 1989.

Berlin Wall Collapse

Event marking the decline of Soviet influence.

Soviet Union Leaders

Lenin, Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, Gorbachev.

Economic Challenges

Communist regimes struggled against Western economic superiority.

Mao's Cult of Personality

Mao's image and ideology dominated Chinese society.

Individual Plots

Small-scale farming introduced by Deng Xiaoping.

Struggle Sessions

Publicly staged events where individuals, often intellectuals or perceived political enemies, were humiliated, criticized, and forced to confess to alleged wrongdoings, used as a tool of control and ideological enforcement.

Beijing Opera Assault

Targeting traditional arts as bourgeois under Mao.

Mass famine, millions of deaths, and economic collapse in China.

Result of Great Leap Forward's failed policies.

Jiang Qing

The wife of Mao Zedong, she was a prominent figure during the Cultural Revolution, playing a key role in political purges and promoting radical policies before falling from power after Mao's death.

Purging Officials

A series of campaigns aimed at removing perceived political threats and reinforcing ideological purity, often involving public humiliation, imprisonment, and harsh punishment for those seen as disloyal or corrupt.

Political Campaigns

CPC's conflicting aims led to public suffering.

Consumer Goods

West's economic advantage over Communist regimes.

Marx’s Dictatorship Paradox

The centralization of power in a ruling elite, undermining the vision of a classless, stateless society and leading to authoritarian regimes.

Glasnost and perestroka policies

Gorbachev's policies aimed at adding freedoms.

Mao's Revolutionary Struggle

Mao's desire to maintain revolutionary fervor.

Cultural Revolution

Political movement initiated by Mao Zedong in 1966.

Gang of Four

Radical political faction led by Mao's wife.

Deng Xiaoping

Pragmatic leader who proposed economic reforms.

Four Olds

Old customs, culture, habits, and thoughts targeted for destruction.

Nixon Visit 1972

Opened diplomatic relations between the US and China.

Open Door Policy

A late 19th-century proposal advocating equal trade access to a major Asian market for all foreign powers, aiming to prevent colonial monopolies and preserve territorial integrity.

Four Modernizations

Goals to modernize agriculture, industry, science, and military.

Ten Year Plan

1978 initiative aimed at economic modernization.

Zhou Enlai

Premier who supported Mao and Deng Xiaoping.

Lin Biao

Mao's designated successor, died in 1971 crash.

Hua Guofeng

Mao's successor who denounced the Gang of Four.

Beijing Spring

Pro-democracy movement in late 1970s China.

Wei Jingsheng

Activist who called for democracy, imprisoned for 15 years.

Capitalist Roaders

A label used during political campaigns to denounce officials seen as betraying revolutionary goals by favoring market reforms or bourgeois practices in China.

Losses from the Cultural Revolution

Widespread human, cultural, and economic devastation—including purged intellectuals, destroyed heritage, disrupted education, and millions persecuted or killed.

PLA

People's Liberation Army, military force of China.

Death of Mao 1976

Marked the end of radical policies in China.

Death of Zhou 1976

The death of Zhou Enlai in 1976 marked the end of an era in Chinese leadership, triggering widespread mourning and fueling political unrest, which culminated in the Tiananmen Incident later that year.

Democracy Wall

Site for pro-democracy protests in late 1970s.

Fifth Modernization

Call for democracy proposed by Wei Jingsheng.

Pollution and Corruption

Negative consequences of rapid industrialization in China.

Deng Xiaoping

A pragmatic leader who steered China towards economic reform and modernization, shifting away from strict communist policies while maintaining tight political control.

Tiananmen Square

Site of 1989 pro-democracy protests in China.

Gorbachev

Soviet leader promoting reforms in the USSR.

Glasnost

Policy of openness in Soviet Union under Gorbachev.

Perestroika

Economic restructuring policy in the USSR.

CCP Contradictions

Conflict between political liberalization and socialist values.

Goddess of Democracy

Symbol of the Tiananmen Square protests.

PLA

The military force that was central to securing communist rule in China, participating in both the revolution and maintaining strict control over the country, often influencing political decisions.

June 3-4, 1989

Dates of the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

Removed

Removed

Tianemen Square Massacre

A violent crackdown on pro-democracy protests in Beijing, resulting in a tragic loss of life.

Amnesty International

A global human rights organization dedicated to advocating for prisoners of conscience, opposing torture, and promoting justice and freedoms worldwide.

Brezhnev Era

Period of Leonid Brezhnev's leadership in the USSR.

Zastoy period

A period of political and economic stagnation marked by rigid leadership, lack of reforms, and growing dissatisfaction, which contributed to the eventual collapse of the Soviet system.

Brezhnev Doctrine

Soviet policy to maintain control over Eastern Europe.

Prague Spring

1968 reform movement in Czechoslovakia suppressed by USSR.

Virgin Lands Program

Khrushchev's initiative to increase agricultural production.

Sino-Soviet Split

Political rift between China and USSR in 1960.

Berlin Wall

Barrier separating East and West Berlin, erected in 1961.

Cuban Missile Crisis

1962 confrontation between US and USSR over missiles.

Cult of Personality

Promotion of an individual as an extraordinary leader.

Stability Cadres

Guarantees to leaders and workers to maintain order.

Economic Stagnation in the USSR

A prolonged period of declining productivity, technological lag, and systemic inefficiencies hampered development and eroded living standards.

Détente

Easing of tensions between USA and USSR.

SALT I

A 1972 agreement between the U.S. and the Soviet Union aimed at limiting nuclear arms, marking a step toward easing Cold War tensions and promoting strategic stability.

ABM Treaty

1972 agreement limiting anti-ballistic missile systems.

Paris Peace Accords

1973 agreement to withdraw from Vietnam.

Helsinki Accords

1975 agreement focusing on human rights.

SALT II

1979 continuation of arms limitation talks.

UN Recognition

USA recognized China by UN in 1971.

Nixon visit to china

A pivotal 1972 trip that marked the first formal contact between Washington and Beijing in decades, easing tensions, isolating a mutual rival, and laying the groundwork for normalized relations.

Sino-Soviet Split

1960 ideological and political rift between China and USSR.

Zhenbao Island

A small, disputed island on the Ussuri River, where violent clashes occurred in 1969 between Chinese and Soviet forces, escalating border tensions between the two nations.

Anatoly Dobrynin

Soviet diplomat involved in US-Soviet negotiations.

Yom Kippur War

A surprise 1973 attack by Egypt and Syria on Israel, leading to a major Middle East conflict.

John Lewis Gaddis

A prominent historian known for his influential work on the Cold War, particularly for framing it as a strategic and ideological conflict shaped by both superpowers’ choices and structures.

Richard Pipes

Critic of détente, viewed it as a Soviet strategy.

Watergate Scandal

Political scandal that limited Nixon's diplomatic opportunities.

Daniel Ellsberg

Released Pentagon Papers revealing Vietnam War deceptions.

Kabul University

Site of communist ideology spread in Afghanistan.

PDPA

A Marxist-Leninist party that seized power in Afghanistan in 1978, leading to a period of political upheaval, reforms, and the eventual Soviet intervention in the country.

Mujahidin

Afghan resistance fighters against Soviet invasion.

Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan

1979 military intervention to support PDPA government.

Khyber Pass

A historic mountain pass connecting Afghanistan and Pakistan, once a key trade route and strategic military gateway, often a site of conflict and invasion throughout history.

Communist Revolution

1978 uprising welcomed by Kabul University students.

Soviet troops

Entered Kabul in 1979, marking war's start.

Mujahidin

Afghan resistance fighters against Soviet forces.

Operation Cyclone

A covert U.S. operation in the 1980s that provided support to Afghan resistance fighters, funneling weapons and aid to counter Soviet forces during the conflict.

Brezhnev Doctrine

Justified Soviet intervention to maintain communist regimes.

Margaret Thatcher

Elected UK PM in 1979, known as 'Iron Lady'.

Reagan Doctrine

US policy aimed at rollback of communism.

SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative)

Proposed missile defense system announced in 1983.

US Stinger Missile

Shot down first Soviet helicopter in 1986.

KAL 747 incident

Soviet Air Force downed Korean Air flight in 1983.

Gorbachev era

Period of reform and change from 1985 to 1990.

Detente

Eased tensions between US and USSR during Cold War.

Evil Empire

Term used by Reagan to describe the Soviet Union.