US II Final Exam Study Guide

1920s

• Effects of Prohibition: Rise in organized crime (Al Capone), speakeasies, bootlegging; divided public opinion; failed to reduce alcohol consumption significantly.
  
  

• Red Scare: Fear of communism post-Russian Revolution; Palmer Raids; suspicion of immigrants; violation of civil liberties.
  
  

• 19th Amendment: Granted women the right to vote (1920); major milestone for women’s suffrage.
  
  

• Laissez-Faire: Hands-off government approach to economy; dominant under Presidents Harding, Coolidge, Hoover.
  
  

• Economy of the Late 1920s: Booming stock market and consumerism; overproduction; credit buying; led to 1929 crash.
  
  

New Deal

• Lasting Effects: Social Security, FDIC, stronger federal government, public works programs, safety nets for the poor and elderly.
  
  

• Characteristics of an Economic Depression: High unemployment, bank failures, reduced spending, falling GDP.
  
  

• Social Security Act (1935): Provided pensions for elderly, unemployment insurance, and aid for disabled.
  
  

World War II

• Fascism: Authoritarian nationalism (Mussolini in Italy, Hitler in Germany); state over individual.
  
  

• US and Isolationism: Neutrality Acts; America First Committee; FDR gradually moved toward support for Allies.
  
  

• Pearl Harbor (1941): Japan attacked to neutralize US Pacific Fleet after US oil embargo; led to US entering the war.
  
  

• Battle of Britain: Air battle over UK (1940); British resistance prevented Nazi invasion.
  
  

• Hiroshima & Nagasaki: Atomic bombs dropped in August 1945; led to Japanese surrender and end of WWII.
  
  

• Internment: Japanese Americans forcibly relocated; justified as national security; upheld in Korematsu v. U.S.
  
  

• Hitler’s Final Solution: Genocide plan to exterminate Jews; led to the Holocaust (6 million Jews killed).
  
  

• Women and African Americans in WWII:
  
  

  • Women: Took industrial jobs (Rosie the Riveter); joined WAAC, WAVES.
    
    

  • African Americans: Served in segregated units; Tuskegee Airmen; Double V Campaign (victory against fascism and racism).
    
    

Cold War

• Truman Doctrine (1947): US would aid countries resisting communism (starting with Greece & Turkey).
  
  

• Iron Curtain: Term by Churchill to describe Soviet-controlled Eastern Europe.
  
  

• Korean War:
  
  

  • Cause: North invaded South Korea (1950).
    
    

  • Effect: Stalemate; Korea still divided; boosted Cold War tensions.
    
    

• Joseph McCarthy: Led anti-communist witch hunts; accused government officials without evidence.
  
  

• Civil Liberties: Red Scare II led to loyalty oaths, blacklists, and surveillance (violations of rights).
  
  

• Causes/Effects of the Cold War:
  
  

  • Causes: Ideological conflict (democracy vs communism), WWII aftermath, arms race.
    
    

  • Effects: NATO vs Warsaw Pact, proxy wars, space race.
    
    

• Events of the Cold War: Berlin Airlift, Cuban Missile Crisis, Space Race, arms race, Vietnam War.
  
  

Vietnam War

• Tet Offensive (1968): Surprise attack by Viet Cong; turned US public opinion against the war.
  
  

• Domino Theory: Belief that if one country fell to communism, neighbors would too.
  
  

• The Draft: Controversial; many protested; disproportionately affected minorities and poor.
  
  

• Containment: US policy to stop spread of communism; led to involvement in Vietnam.
  
  

• End of Vietnam War: US withdrew (1973); South Vietnam fell in 1975; US lost confidence.
  
  

• Spending: Massive cost; led to inflation and cutbacks in domestic programs.
  
  

Civil Rights & Other Movements

• March on Washington (1963): MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech; pushed for civil rights legislation.
  
  

• Martin Luther King Jr.: Led nonviolent protests; key in Montgomery Bus Boycott, Birmingham, Selma.
  
  

• Later Civil Rights Movement: Focus on economic justice, housing, and northern racism (e.g., Chicago Movement).
  
  

• Consumer Movement: Led by Ralph Nader; focused on product safety, auto regulations (Unsafe at Any Speed).
  
  

• Ralph Nader: Consumer advocate; brought attention to auto industry and public safety.
  
  

• Environmental Movement: Earth Day (1970), EPA founded, Silent Spring by Rachel Carson.
  
  

• Japanese American Citizens League: Fought for civil rights and reparations for internment.
  
  

• Cesar Chavez: Organized farmworkers using strikes and boycotts; co-founded United Farm Workers.
  
  

• Women’s Movement: Equal Pay Act (1963), NOW formed (1966), push for ERA; Title IX (1972).
  
  

• Other Nonviolent Movements:
  
  

  • LGBTQ+ rights (Stonewall uprising, ACT UP),
    
    

  • Disability rights (504 Sit-in),
    
    

  • Anti-nuclear protests,
    
    

  • Indigenous rights (AIM, occupation of Alcatraz).
    
    

• Malcolm X: Advocated for Black empowerment and self-defense; contrasted with MLK’s nonviolence but evolved over time.