APUSH: Period 8

Truman Administration (1945 – 1963)

• Civil Rights – desegregated the military, appointed more blacks than ever to high government

offices, and created a President’s Committee for Civil Rights – not very effective, but a start

Cold War (1945 – 1991) – Think back to Cold War chart

• McCarthyism – Senator Joseph McCarthy gave a speech claiming that he had the names of over

100+ people in government offices that were communists – this was a lie, but no one knew this

• Containment: US policy of containing communism – we know that it is not going to disappear

completely, but we want to contain it as much as possible

• Truman Doctrine (1947): US gave aid to Greece and Turkey, to help countries who are ALREADY

fighting communism – while helping Turkey, we put nukes there, leads to Cuban Missile Crisis

• Marshall Plan (1947): helps Europe rebuild after WWII, we help so that communism does not

spread to these countries – communism/dictatorships/fascist regimes takes hold during economic

depressions – Example: Europe during the Great Depression leading up to WWII

• North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): Western Europe and the US form a security pact

• Warsaw Pact: Eastern Europe (satellite nations) and the Soviet Union form an alliance

• Douglas MacArthur: US naval commodore whose job it was to rebuild Japan after dropping the

atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, later was asked to lead the US forces in the Korean

War – was later fired due to wanting total war with Communist North Korea AKA atomic war

o Korean War: North Korea was supported by Communist China and the UN (90% US

forces) supported Democratic South Korea, ends in stalemate on 38th parallel – DMZ zone

• NASA (1958): created under Eisenhower Administration to make more missiles as well as to

win the Space Race – Soviets launch Sputnik, first satellite in space, US get the first man on moon

• Vietnam War (1955 – 1975): Geneva Accords were created to divide Vietnam into communist

north and democratic south – didn’t really work because we want to contain communism so US

gets involved through SEATO – goal was to protect Vietnam, US fights Vietcong (northern

Vietnamese forces who support communism) and eventually forced to recall troops

Civil Rights Movement (1950s – 1960s)

• Thurgood Marshall: worked against the separate but equal policies from Plessy v. Ferguson

(1896) – later promoted to a Supreme Court Justice by Kennedy

o Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954): ruled that separate facilities denied kids

equal protection under the law –desegregation happened 1 year later –Southern schools

resisted – Little Rock Nine in Arkansas (1957), Ruby Bridges in Louisiana (1960)

• Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955): Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her seat to a white

man, sparked the bus boycott which was led by MLK Jr. who used civil disobedience as method

• Civil Rights Act of 1964: desegregation of public establishments, under Kennedy, signed by LBJ

1950’s – Cultural Changes in Society – Think back to 1920’s and 1950’s Comparison Chart

• Baby Boom: population generated a need for new services – construction, cars, & household items

• GI Bill and Federal Housing Administration: made it easier for veterans returning home from

WWII to get loans to buy houses, new jobs, etc. – meant to help them return to normalcy at home

• Interstate Highway Act (1956): Eisenhower signed and authorized the construction of 41,000

miles network of interstate highways that would span across the country

• Suburbia on the Rise: suburbs start to pop up all over the country, but the most famous is outside

of NYC called Levittown – homes made by William Levitt who used only a few floor plans for

cheaper and faster building – all white neighborhoods, interstates needed going into the city

• Technological Advancements: television, microwave, refrigerators, washing machines, music, cars

• Women’s Roles: women go back to the home to be the “perfect” housewife – domestic sphere

Nixon Administration (1969 – 1974)

• Watergate Scandal: spying on campaign opponent and later resigns before being impeached