Study Guide for Mid-4th Nine Weeks Test

Introductory Announcements

• Location and Purpose: The session is a study guide review for the end-of or mid-$4^{th}$ nine weeks test.

• Logistics: Students not participating in the EOC (End of Course) test training must relocate to portable $8$.

• Content Scope: The review covers Period $8$ of the AP curriculum. While not every point in the study guide will necessarily appear on the class test, all material is considered "fair game" for the official AP exam.

• Duration: The review session is scheduled to last approximately $1.5$ hours.

The GI Bill and Post-WWII Economy

• Origins: The GI Bill (properly known as the Servicemen's Readjustment Act) was initially implemented to reward and support service members returning from World War II.

• Purpose: It served as a way to pay back young men who sacrificed their college years for military service.

• Benefits:
      * Funding for higher education.
      * Low-interest loans to purchase houses.
      * Capital to start businesses.

• Economic Context: The American economy was thriving after World War II, allowing the government to afford extensive veteran benefits and other grand-scale social programs.

The Cold War and Containment Policy

• Definition and Timeline: The Cold War was an ideological and geopolitical struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union, running from approximately $1945$ to $1989$.

• Ideological Divide:
      * United States: Characterized by democracy and a capitalist economic system.
      * Soviet Union: Characterized by a communist ideology and a command economy.

• Containment:
      * The Essence: The primary goal was to contain communism and prevent its expansion into new territories.
      * George Kennan: The diplomat credited with developing the containment policy.
      * Efficacy: The US was dissatisfied with communist expansion in places like China but remained committed to stopping its spread elsewhere.

NATO and the Warsaw Pact

• NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization): A military alliance consisting of the United States, Canada, Western Europe, and eventually Greece and Turkey.

• Warsaw Pact: The communist bloc’s response to NATO. This military alliance was formed by the Soviet Union and the countries behind the "Iron Curtain" specifically after the creation of NATO.

The Eisenhower Presidency ($1953$-$1961$)

• Reaction to the New Deal: Despite being a Republican, Eisenhower did not dismantle FDR’s New Deal programs. Policies like Social Security became accepted as permanent fixtures of American life.

• The Highway Act of $1956$:
      * Infrastructure: A massive investment in the national highway system ($I-20$ and $I-95$ are noted examples).
      * Strategic Purpose: The primary motivation was national defense, specifically to facilitate the movement of missile systems and serve as potential landing strips for planes.
      * Secondary Benefits: It significantly improved trade, travel, and the circulation of money.

• The Military-Industrial Complex:
      * Definition: This term refers to the industries that profit from government military spending.
      * Eisenhower’s Warning: In his farewell address, he warned against the growing influence of this complex, noting that these industries had a vested interest in expanding the military for profit.

• Military Strategy: Eisenhower downsized conventional military forces to focus on "bang for the buck" through missile systems and nuclear deterrents. (Later, Kennedy would reverse this trend by building up conventional forces again, leading to deficits).

$1950\text{s}$ Society and Demographics

• The Baby Boom: A massive spike in the birth rate following World War II, causing the American population to get significantly younger. This was fueled by a strong economy where women could afford to stay home and raise large families.

• Suburbanization and Levittown:
      * Families moved to suburbs just outside urban centers.
      * Levittown: The quintessential example of the suburb, featuring mass-produced, "cookie-cutter" houses that looked identical to provide affordable housing for growing families.

• The Sun Belt vs. the Rust Belt:
      * The Sun Belt: A region stretching from Georgia to California that saw massive growth due to better weather.
      * Technological Drivers: The expansion of the TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority), electricity, and air conditioning made the South habitable and attractive.
      * The Rust Belt: The northern industrial areas (where cars were produced) that saw population decline as people moved south.

Economic Affluence and Pop Culture in the $1950\text{s}$

• Affluence: The $1950\text{s}$ was a decade of extreme wealth and high productivity. The US held a trade surplus, with more money flowing into the country than out.

• Rock and Roll:
      * Roots: This genre grew out of country, jazz, and particularly the blues, which was an African American art form.
      * Cultural Figures: Elvis Presley became the face of the movement as white artists began picking up the genre from earlier African American artists.

• Television:
      * Sales Influence: TV ownership skyrocketed during the $1950\text{s}$.
      * Socializing Influence: Reinforced the "cult of domesticity," depicting a traditional family structure with a stay-at-home mother and a breadwinner father.
      * Political Impact: Television played a critical role in the televised debates between Kennedy and Nixon and later influenced public perception of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War.

Conformity and Counterculture

• Conformity: In the $1950\text{s}$, society expected individuals to act and live in a uniform, traditional manner.

• Counterculture Movement:
      * Beatniks ($1950\text{s}$): The first major pushback against social conformity.
      * Hippies ($1960\text{s}$): As the Baby Boom generation aged, they formed the hippie movement, which was more aggressive in its rejection of traditional values.

• Generation Gap: By $1970$, nearly half the population was age $20$ or younger, creating a massive "generation gap" or age gap between the youth and their elders.

McCarthyism and the Second Red Scare

• Context: The First Red Scare occurred after World War I due to the Russian Revolution; the Second Red Scare occurred after World War II as a reaction to the Cold War.

• Joseph McCarthy: A senator who conducted "witch hunts," recklessly accusing people of being communist without evidence, thereby destroying careers.

• The Downfall: McCarthy’s reckless and illogical nature was exposed during the televised US Army hearings. Public discredit led to the end of the Second Red Scare by approximately $1957$.

The Truman Presidency and the Fair Deal

• Fair Deal: Truman’s domestic program, which served as an extension of FDR’s New Deal policies.

• Desegregation: Truman used his executive power to desegregate the federal government and the military via Executive Order $9981$. While he could not directly end segregation in individual states, this was a landmark move for the federal level.

The Space Race and Korean War

• The Space Race: A competition for extraterrestrial dominance between the US and USSR.

• Sputnik: The Soviets successfully launched the first satellite, Sputnik, which shocked the US.

• NASA: Formed by the US as a direct cause-and-effect response to the launch of Sputnik to coordinate the effort to reach the moon.

• The Korean War:
      * Cause: Communist North Korea invaded South Korea.
      * International Involvement: The US led a United Nations force to intervene.
      * Outcome: They pushed the North Koreans back to the $38^{th}$ Parallel, which remains the border.
      * Assessment: Containment was considered successful in Korea, as the expansion of communism was halted.

The Civil Rights Movement: $1950\text{s}$

• Brown v. Board of Education ($1954$): This Supreme Court decision overturned Plessy v. Ferguson ($1896$), ruling that the doctrine of "separate but equal" was unconstitutional and that schools must desegregate.

• Desegregation Timeline: The court ordered desegregation with "all deliberate speed," a vague phrase that allowed Southern states to delay progress until the $1960\text{s}$.

• The Little Rock Nine: $9$ African American students attempted to desegregate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Despite initial resistance, they eventually succeeded with the support of President Eisenhower.

• Montgomery Bus Boycott ($1955$): An effort that led to the desegregation of public busing systems.

Politics and Civil Rights: $1960\text{s}$

• $1960$ Election: The first televised debates occurred between Kennedy (Democrat) and Nixon (Republican). Kennedy’s performance on TV is widely credited with giving him the edge to win.

• Martin Luther King Jr.: Preached nonviolent resistance (influenced by Gandhi and Thoreau). His career culminated in the $1963$ March on Washington and the "I Have a Dream" speech. He was assassinated in $1968$.

• SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee): A student-led organization that conducted:
      * Freedom Rides: Testing the desegregation of interstate buses by traveling from the North into the South.
      * Freedom Summers: Registering African Americans to vote in Mississippi.
      * Sit-ins: Occupying segregated restaurant counters until served or forcibly removed.

• The Shift to Militancy: By the late $1960\text{s}$, the movement became more aggressive.
      * Malcolm X: Nation of Islam leader who advocated for self-defense "by any means necessary."
      * Black Power Movement: Led by Stokely Carmichael; focused on political and economic equality in urban areas.
      * Black Panthers: A group that wore uniforms and sought to "police the police" while improving conditions in cities.

Civil Rights Legislation and Court Cases

• Civil Rights Act of $1964$: Landmark legislation pushed by Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) that provided protections for African Americans and other disadvantaged groups.

• Voting Rights Act of $1965$: Specifically addressed voting barriers, outlawing literacy tests and making it easier for minorities to register.

• Miranda v. Arizona: Established "Miranda rights," requiring police to read arrested individuals their rights so their ignorance cannot be exploited.

Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis ($1962$)

• The Crisis: The closest the world has ever come to nuclear war. The Soviets attempted to place missiles in Cuba.

• Outcome: A victory for Kennedy through "brinksmanship" (going to the brink of war to force a retreat).

• The Deal:
      * The USSR removed missiles from Cuba.
      * The US promised never to invade Cuba.
      * (Unofficially) The US agreed to remove missiles from Turkey.

LBJ’s Great Society

• Programs: LBJ’s domestic agenda (succeeding Kennedy’s "New Frontier"). It included the "War on Poverty" to break the poverty cycle through education and economic aid.

• Assessment: It successfully decreased the number of people below the poverty line, but was extremely expensive, contributing to later inflation.

• Immigration Act of $1965$: Part of the Great Society; it did away with the old quota system, making immigration from outside Western Europe fairer.

• Public Broadcasting: Another result of Great Society initiatives.

The Vietnam War

• Ideology: Communist North vs. South Vietnam. The US intervened based on the "Domino Theory" (if one falls, all of Southeast Asia falls).

• Gulf of Tonkin Resolution ($1964$): After reports of North Vietnamese attacks on US ships, this resolution gave LBJ the authority to escalate military involvement without a formal declaration of war.

• Tet Offensive ($1968$): A massive surprise attack by the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong. While a military loss for the communists, it was a propaganda victory that showed the US was nowhere near winning the war.

The $1970\text{s}$: Credibility Gap and Stagflation

• Credibility Gap: A period of deep public distrust in the government fueled by:
      * The Pentagon Papers: Revelation that the government lied about the war's progress.
      * Watergate: Nixon’s scandal and subsequent resignation.
      * Ford’s Pardon: Gerald Ford pardoning Nixon, which angered many citizens.

• Stagflation: A combination of high unemployment and high inflation.
      * Causes of Inflation: Great Society spending, the Vietnam War, and the energy/oil crisis.

The Rise of Modern Conservatism

• Backlash: Conservatism grew as a reaction to the $1960\text{s}$ counterculture movement.

• The Moral Majority: A conservative movement that gained momentum leading into the election of Ronald Reagan in $1980$.

Women's Movement and Environmentalism

• Betty Friedan: Author of The Feminine Mystique and leader of NOW (National Organization for Women). She criticized traditional gender roles in the home.

• Roe v. Wade: A Supreme Court decision (originating in Texas) that protected abortion rights by striking down overly restrictive state laws.

• Equal Rights Amendment (ERA): A proposed amendment for absolute equality for women; it was not ratified by the states.

• Phyllis Schlafly: A conservative woman who led the opposition against the ERA, arguing it would destroy traditional roles and lead to women being drafted into the military.

• Rachel Carson: Author of Silent Spring, which highlighted the dangers of pollution and the expansion of suburbs, effectively launching the modern environmentalist movement.

The Nixon and Carter Presidencies

• Nixon’s Successes ($1968$-$1972$): Despite lacking a mandate in his first term ($43\%$ of the vote), he had massive foreign policy wins, including visiting China and signing the SALT (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks) agreements with the Soviets.

• International Strategy: Playing the Chinese and Soviets against each other to reduce nuclear stockpiles and limit Soviet support for North Vietnam.

• Nixon’s Failure: Watergate, which led him to resign before he could be impeached/removed.

• Carter’s Presidency:
      * Success: The Camp David Accords, which paved the way for peace between Israel and Egypt in the Middle East.
      * Failure: The Iran Hostage Crisis, which severely damaged his reputation and cost him the presidency.

Questions & Discussion

• Draft and Women: Phyllis Schlafly argued that if the ERA passed, women would lose their exemption from the draft because men and women would be treated exactly the same across the board.

• Nixon’s Pardon: Gerald Ford, Nixon's successor, pardoned him for any crimes related to Watergate, keeping him out of prison.

• Carter Success: A student clarified that his greatest success was the Camp David Accords regarding Israel and the Middle East.