APUSH Unit 7 Review Flashcards

American Imperialism

• Definition: Expansion of a nation's empire, including acquiring territories and exerting political or economic control. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw a surge in European and American imperialism.

• Rooted in America's westward expansion and "Manifest Destiny". The idea that Americans were destined to expand and control the continent influenced overseas expansion.

• Frederick Jackson Turner's The Significance of the Frontier argued that westward expansion was crucial to American identity. The closing of the frontier in 1890 prompted Americans to look overseas for new opportunities.

• Alaska Purchase (1867):

  • William Seward (Secretary of State) led the effort.

  • Bought from Russia for 7,200,000. initially criticized as "Seward's Icebox" or "Seward's Folly".

  • Gold discovered in 1898, vindicating Seward and boosting Alaskan settlement.

Imperialists vs. Anti-Imperialists

Imperialist Arguments:

• Desire for raw materials and new markets. Industrialized nations sought resources and markets for their goods.

• Social Darwinism: Expansion as a means for America to prove its strength and fitness on the international stage. Advocates believed that nations, like species, competed for survival.

• Justification based on European empires. Seeing European powers control vast empires motivated American imperialists.

• Racial superiority, bolstered by writings like Josiah Strong's Our Country, Its Possible Future, and Present Crisis.

  • Argued Anglo-Saxons were the "fittest to survive". Strong advocated for spreading American culture and Christianity.

  • Belief in a Christian duty to spread Christianity and Western civilization. Missionaries played a key role in spreading American influence.

• Alfred Thayer Mahan's, The Influence of Sea Power Upon History (1890):

  • Advocated for a strong navy to secure foreign markets and protect American interests.

  • Led to Congress approving a new steel fleet, modernizing the US Navy.

  • Need to acquire territories for coaling and supply stations to support the expanding navy.

Anti-Imperialist Arguments:

• Principle of self-determination for all nations. Anti-imperialists believed that every nation had the right to govern itself without external interference.

• Appeal to America's historical isolationism (rooted in George Washington's farewell address). Isolationism was a long-standing tradition in American foreign policy.

Spanish-American War

• Cuba as a desired territory, but a Spanish colony. American businesses had significant investments in Cuba's sugar industry.

• Cuban nationalists' struggle for independence. Cuban rebels fought for freedom from Spanish rule.

• Yellow journalism: Sensational headlines about Spanish atrocities. Newspapers exaggerated the conflict to gain readership and sway public opinion.

• Sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor (1898):

  • Yellow journalists blamed Spain, fueling war sentiment.

  • Later determined to be an accident, but the damage was done.

• President McKinley's ultimatum to Spain: cease-fire or war. McKinley sought to avoid war but also protect American interests.

• Declaration of war and American victory. The US won decisively, marking the end of Spanish colonial power.

Outcomes and Effects

• Acquisition of Caribbean and Pacific islands, expanding American influence.

• Increased involvement in Asia, particularly in the Philippines and China.

• Suppression of a nationalist revolt in The Philippines. Filipinos sought independence from both Spain and the US.

• The Philippines:

  • Teddy Roosevelt's initiative to send the fleet to Philippines before war. Roosevelt, then Assistant Secretary of the Navy, saw an opportunity to expand American power.

  • US troops, with Filipino nationalists, overthrew Spain. Emilio Aguinaldo led the Filipino rebels.

  • US paid Spain 20,000,000 for possession of The Philippines, a controversial decision.

• Hawaii:

  • Annexation completed in 1898 after American settlers overthrew Queen Liliuokalani in 1893 with the help of US Marines.

  • The Spanish-American war and the acquisition of The Philippines just created the pretext to complete the annexation. Hawaii's strategic location became even more valuable.

• Puerto Rico: Became a US territory, with ongoing debate over its status.

Imperialist Debate Resurfaces

• Anti-imperialist concerns about acquiring a populated territory with a different race and culture. Critics questioned the compatibility of imperialism with American values.

• Arguments based on American values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Imperialism seemed to contradict these founding principles.

• Fear of entanglement in Asian conflicts. Some Americans feared that acquiring territories in Asia would lead to future wars.

• Imperialists win: Congress votes to add The Philippines to the American empire, reflecting expansionist sentiment.

• Filipino reaction: Enraged, they fight against American intrusion. The Philippine-American War lasted several years.

  • US eventually granted them independence in 1946, after decades of colonial rule.

• Open Door Policy (John Hay, Secretary of State):

  • Response to European powers establishing "spheres of influence" in China. The US sought to ensure access to Chinese markets.

  • Hay asked European powers to observe an open door of trading privileges that would not exclude the US, promoting free trade.

Teddy Roosevelt's Imperial Legacy

• Successor to McKinley, continued imperialistic policies, expanding American influence.

• Big Stick Diplomacy: "Speak softly and carry a big stick." Roosevelt believed in using diplomacy backed by military strength.

• Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine:

  • Monroe Doctrine (1823): Western Hemisphere as America's sphere of influence, warning European powers to stay out.

  • Response to Latin American nations defaulting on debts to European powers (e.g., Venezuela to Great Britain). European powers threatened intervention to collect debts.

  • US would send warships to force repayment, asserting its dominance.

  • Asserted America as the "international police power," intervening in Latin American affairs.

The Progressive Era

• Period spanning Roosevelt's presidency through Woodrow Wilson's administration. A time of significant social and political reform in the US.

Key Concerns:

• Rising power of big business and monopolies. Progressives sought to regulate and control corporate power.

• Economic uncertainties after the Panic of 1893. The depression of the 1890s highlighted economic inequalities.

• Conflict between labor and capital, with strikes and labor unrest common.

• Influence of political machines and corruption in government. Progressives aimed to clean up politics and make government more responsive to the people.

• Jim Crow segregation (though not a universal concern among Progressives). Some Progressives addressed racial inequality, while others ignored it.

• Women's rights, including suffrage and greater equality.

Progressive Diversity and Unifying Belief

• Diverse group including Protestant church leaders, feminists, union leaders, black activists, etc. Progressives came from various backgrounds and had different priorities.

• Overriding belief: American society was flawed, and government intervention was necessary for reform. Progressives believed that government could and should play a role in addressing social problems.

Muckrakers

• Investigative journalists exposing corruption, leading to public awareness and demand for reform.

• Ida Tarbell: Investigation into Standard Oil corruption (1902), revealing the company's monopolistic practices.

• Jacob Riis: How the Other Half Lives, exposing tenement conditions in New York City.

• Upton Sinclair: The Jungle, exposing unsafe conditions in the meatpacking industry, leading to food safety regulations.

Progressive Reform Agenda

• Voter participation reforms, empowering citizens and reducing corruption:

  • Secret ballot: To prevent pressure on voters and ensure privacy.

  • Direct election of Senators: 17th Amendment (1913) granting citizens the right to vote for Senators, replacing selection by state legislatures.

  • Initiative, Referendum, and Recall:

  • Initiative: Voters could force a legislator to consider a bill, allowing citizens to propose legislation.

  • Referendum: Citizens could vote on a bill directly, giving them a direct say in lawmaking.

  • Recall: Ability to remove a corrupt politician before their term was up, holding officials accountable.

• Government efficiency based on Frederick Taylor's scientific management, applying business principles to government.

• Civil Rights:

  • Booker T. Washington: Advocated for education and economic endeavors as a foundation for political equality, emphasizing vocational training.

  • W. E. B. Du Bois: Argued for political equality as a prerequisite for economic equality, demanding immediate civil rights.

  • Niagara Movement (Du Bois): Protest and action to secure rights for the black population, challenging segregation and discrimination.

  • NAACP: Sought to abolish segregation and expand educational opportunities for black children, fighting for legal and social change.

Progressive Presidents

• Teddy Roosevelt:

  • Belief in presidency as setting the legislative agenda, actively shaping policy.

  • Consumer protection laws: Pure Food and Drug Act, Meat Inspection Act, ensuring food safety.

  • Conservation laws: Forest Reserve Act of 1891 preserving 150,000,000 acres of federal land, protecting natural resources.

  • Trust-Buster: Enforced Sherman Antitrust Act (1890), breaking up monopolies.

  • Distinguished between "good trusts" (regulated) and "bad trusts" (broken up), seeking to promote fair competition.

  • Square Deal: Intervention in labor disputes (e.g., anthracite coal miners' strike), mediating between workers and management.

• William Howard Taft:

  • Broke up twice as many trusts as Roosevelt, continuing antitrust efforts.

  • Continued conservationist policies, expanding protected lands.

• Woodrow Wilson:

  • Addressed the "triple wall of privilege": tariffs, banking, and trusts, targeting key economic issues.

  • Underwood Tariff: Lowered tariffs, promoting international trade.

  • Federal Reserve Act (1914): Established a national banking system, regulating the money supply.

  • Clayton Antitrust Act: Strengthened the Sherman Antitrust Act, limiting corporate power.

Women in the Progressive Era

• Temperance movement, seeking to ban alcohol:

• 18th Amendment: Banned manufacture and sale of alcohol (Prohibition), later repealed.

• Women's Suffrage:

• 19th Amendment: Acknowledged women's right to vote. Efforts like petitions to state legislatures and protests, culminating in the right to vote.

World War I

Entry into the War

• Initial American neutrality, reflecting public sentiment and Washington's farewell address.

• Sinking of the Lusitania (1915): German submarines sunk passenger ship, killing 128 Americans, swaying public opinion.

• Resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare by Germany, violating international law and endangering American lives.

• Zimmerman Telegram: Germany solicited Mexico to become an ally and regain land lost in the Mexican-American war, arousing American anger.

• April 2, 1917: Woodrow Wilson asked Congress for a declaration of war, marking America's entry into the conflict.

American Expeditionary Forces (AEF)

• Led by John J. Pershing, plugged weaknesses on French and British lines, providing crucial reinforcements.

• American entry tipped the outcome decisively in favor of the Allies, breaking the stalemate.

The Home Front

• Mobilization: Wilson established wartime agencies, coordinating resources and efforts.

• Centralized control over prices and raw materials, stimulating the economy.

• Encouraged Americans to consume less to supply troops, promoting patriotism.

• Took control of railroads, ensuring efficient transportation.

• Increased migration from rural to urban centers (Great Migration) of black southerners seeking jobs, transforming demographics.

• Restriction of civil liberties:

  • Espionage Act of 1917: Imprisoned those inciting rebellion or obstructing the draft, suppressing dissent.

  • Schenck versus the United States: Limited speech if it presented a "clear and present danger.", establishing a precedent for free speech limitations.

  • Sedition Act of 1918: Prohibited disloyal comments about the government, further restricting free speech.

End of the War

• Treaty of Versailles (1919): President Wilson's 14 Points, envisioning a new world order:

  • Freedom of the seas and self-determination of nations, promoting democracy.

  • League of Nations: Collective body for nations to discuss problems. The US Senate refused to ratify the treaty due to the League of Nations provision, fearing loss of sovereignty.

Post-War Tensions

• Anti-German sentiment shifted to anti-communist sentiment (Red Scare), fearing communist revolution.

• Fear of communist infiltration from Russia led to xenophobia, fueling suspicion of immigrants.

• Immigration restrictions, limiting influx from certain regions.

• Palmer Raids: Mass arrests of socialists and labor agitators by Attorney General Mitchell Palmer and J. Edgar Hoover, violating civil liberties.

The 1920s

Politics

• Warren G. Harding: Promised a "return to normalcy", seeking stability after the war, series of Republican presidents reduced government intervention, favoring business.

Economics

• Economic slump followed by prosperity (except for farmers) until the end of the decade, creating an era of consumerism.

• Increased standard of living, with more Americans enjoying access to goods and services.

• Increased Productivity: Scientific management, Henry Ford's assembly line, revolutionized manufacturing.

• Shift in Energy Technology: Increased use of oil and electricity, powering industries and homes.

• Government policy: Tax cuts and a laissez-faire approach, promoting business growth.

American Culture

• Urbanization: More than half of Americans lived in cities, transforming social life.

• Women: Middle-class women expected to be homemakers, but urban opportunities emerged (though lower wages), leading to changing roles.

• Flappers: Rejected gender roles by drinking, smoking, cutting hair short, and dressing outside of cultural standards, symbolizing liberation.

• Immigration: Spike in immigration led to nativism, creating social tensions.

• Immigration quotas in 1921 and 1924 restricting Eastern European and Asian immigrants, reflecting discriminatory policies.

• Art and Literature:

  • Lost Generation: Disillusioned writers (F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Ezra Pound), reflecting post-war angst.

  • Harlem Renaissance: Black literary movement (Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, Zora Neale Hurston), celebrating black culture.

• Mass Programming: Radio, Motion Pictures, and Crisis in American Values which spurred the Scopes Monkey Trial.

  • Clarence Darrow defended Scopes, while William Jennings Bryan prosecuted. Scopes was convicted. The important part about this case is that since this whole trial played itself out right in the plain view of the public, fundamentalism was discredited in their sight because it was unable to adequately defend against the modernist onslaught of Darrow and his incisive pummeling.

The Great Depression

Stock Market Crash

• October 29, 1929 (Black Tuesday), marking the beginning of the Great Depression.

• Buying stocks on margin grew rampant, creating an unstable market.

• On October 24, a huge volume of stocks were sold and therefore prices were quickly depressed. On October 29, in response to these depressed prices, panicky investors ordered their brokers to sell even more, but there were no buyers available. Fear of market failure starts the great depression.

• Everyone lost their money and this event ushers us into the Great Depression, plunging the nation into economic hardship.

Effects

• Poverty and homelessness abounded, with millions struggling to survive.

• Mortgage foreclosures increased, displacing families.

• Hoovervilles: Shantytowns mocking President Herbert Hoover's laissez-faire policies, demonstrating public discontent.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the New Deal

• Active government intervention, a departure from previous policies.

• Three Rs: Relief for the unemployed, recovery for businesses, and reform of economic institutions, addressing the crisis.

• Relief for the Unemployed:

  • Public Works Administration (PWA): Infrastructure work (roads, dams, bridges), creating jobs.

  • Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA): Electric power plants, erosion control, and flood control, modernizing the region.

• Recovery for Businesses and Reform of Economic institutions:

  • Glass Steagall Act: Increased regulation in banks, restoring confidence.

  • Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): Insured bank deposits, protecting savings.

  • Social Security Act of 1935: Provided monthly payments to those retired, offering a safety net.

• Conservatives thought the New Deal to be outright socialism, if not a slippery slope into communism. And so conservatives took their battle to the Supreme Court, which actually agreed with them handing down a decision that limited the scope of the New Deal.

• FDR wily fellow that he is, sought to mitigate this defeat by proposing a judicial reorganization bill which would allow the president to appoint new justices for every justice over the age of 70.

• After this plan was struck down, regardless of any success or failure it had, the New Deal left a legacy of reforms and regulatory agencies in its wake. It also fostered a long term political realignment of blacks and working class folks and ethnic minorities into the Democratic Party, who they believe tried to help them in the midst of their suffering during the Great Depression.

World War II

Origins

• Rise of fascist and authoritarian governments in Italy, Germany, and Japan, threatening world peace.

• Japan's invasion of Manchuria (1937), violating international agreements.

• Germany's invasion of Poland (1939), triggering the start of World War II.

Road to American Involvement

• American isolationism but leaned towards the Allies, providing support without direct intervention.

• Cash and carry policy: Allowed belligerents to purchase arms with cash and transport them on their ships, aiding Britain and France.

• Lend-Lease Act: Allowed Britain to obtain arms on credit, becoming the "arsenal of democracy."

• December 7, 1941: Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor led to American entry into the war, uniting the nation.

Mobilization

• Federal spending increased by 1000%, transforming the economy.

• Shift from private factories producing domestic products to wartime materials, gearing up for total war.

• About 1,000,000 African Americans joined the ranks. While fighting for the American cause, they continued to face discrimination in the ranks. Despite fighting for freedom, they experienced racism at home.

• About 300,000 Mexican Americans joined the ranks. In 1942 Mexican farm workers were given a special provision to enter The US and help with harvest season without having to go through the normal immigration procedures, addressing labor shortages.

• Japanese American internment: Over 100,000 Japanese American citizens were sent into internment camps. After the court actually handed down a decision that upheld the internment camps as a wartime necessity the camps became a gross violation of the rights of citizens. A case called Korematsu versus the United States was created after the initial decision, challenging the constitutionality of the internment.

Fighting the War

• Americans saw it as a fight for democracy against fascism, unifying the war effort.

• News of the Holocaust strengthened the resolve, highlighting the horrors of Nazi ideology.

• D-Day invasion: Turning point in the European theater, liberating Europe from Nazi control.

• Island Hopping: A strategy to bypass heavily fortified islands for less strategic islands, saving resources and time.

• Atomic Bombs: Dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, leading to Japan's surrender, ending the war.

• After a decisive victory at Midway Island, US forces engaged in an island hopping campaign, gaining strategic positions.

Post-War

• The US economy dominates due to less destruction. The US assumes a dominant role in postwar peace settlements as they become the most powerful nation on earth. After WWII The US led efforts to establish international organizations to encourage trade and prevent conflict.