AMSCO 8.4-8.7

Chapter 8.4 – Postwar America

• Harry S. Truman – The 33rd U.S. president (1945–1953), who led the country through the end of World War II and the early Cold War. He is known for the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and desegregating the military.

• Employment Act of 1946 – Established the Council of Economic Advisers to assist the president in promoting economic stability, full employment, and production.

• Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (GI Bill of Rights or GI Bill) (1944) – Provided benefits to World War II veterans, including funding for higher education, low-interest home loans, and unemployment benefits.

• Baby boom – A significant increase in births between 1946 and 1964, leading to a major demographic shift in the U.S.

• Levittown – A suburban housing development created by William Levitt in the late 1940s, symbolizing postwar suburbanization and affordable housing for veterans.

• 22nd Amendment (1951) – Limited U.S. presidents to two terms in office, a reaction to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s four-term presidency.

• Taft-Hartley Act (1947) – Restricted the power of labor unions, outlawed closed shops, and allowed states to pass right-to-work laws.

• Fair Deal – Truman’s domestic policy program aimed at expanding New Deal programs, including health care, education, and civil rights, though most were blocked by Congress.

• Dwight D. Eisenhower – The 34th U.S. president (1953–1961), a former World War II general who promoted moderate Republican policies and expanded the highway system.

• Modern Republicanism – Eisenhower’s political approach that balanced conservative economic policies with support for some social programs, such as Social Security expansion.

• Highway Act (1956) – Authorized the construction of the Interstate Highway System, facilitating suburban growth and national defense.

• New Frontier – John F. Kennedy’s domestic agenda focused on civil rights, space exploration, and anti-poverty programs.

Chapter 8.5 – Culture and Social Movements

• Beatniks – A countercultural group in the 1950s known for rejecting societal norms, promoting artistic expression, and influencing the 1960s counterculture.

Chapter 8.6 – Civil Rights Movement

• Jackie Robinson – The first African American Major League Baseball player, breaking the sport’s racial barrier in 1947.

• Committee on Civil Rights (1946) – Established by Truman to investigate racial discrimination and recommend solutions for civil rights issues.

• Thurgood Marshall – NAACP lawyer who successfully argued Brown v. Board of Education and later became the first African American Supreme Court justice.

• Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) – Supreme Court case that ruled racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson.

• Southern Manifesto (1956) – A document signed by Southern politicians opposing racial desegregation in schools following the Brown decision.

• Desegregation – The process of ending racial segregation, particularly in public institutions like schools.

• Little Rock (1957) – A crisis in which Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus attempted to block nine Black students from integrating Central High School; Eisenhower sent federal troops to enforce desegregation.

• Rosa Parks – Civil rights activist who refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Alabama, sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

• Martin Luther King Jr. – A leader of the civil rights movement who advocated for nonviolent protest and delivered the "I Have a Dream" speech.

• Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955–1956) – A yearlong protest against segregated buses in Montgomery, Alabama, leading to a Supreme Court ruling against bus segregation.

• Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) (1957) – A civil rights organization founded by Martin Luther King Jr. that promoted nonviolent resistance.

• Sit-in movement – A form of nonviolent protest where African American students occupied segregated lunch counters to demand equal service.

• Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) (1960) – A civil rights organization that organized sit-ins, freedom rides, and voter registration drives.

Chapter 8.7 – Cold War Foreign Policy

• Covert action – Secret CIA operations to influence foreign governments and counter communism, such as in Iran (1953) and Guatemala (1954).

• Suez Crisis (1956) – A conflict in which Egypt’s President Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, leading to a military response from Britain, France, and Israel. The U.S. intervened diplomatically to resolve the crisis.

• Eisenhower Doctrine (1957) – A policy pledging U.S. military and economic aid to Middle Eastern countries resisting communism.

• Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) (1960) – A coalition of oil-producing nations that coordinated policies to regulate oil prices and supply.

• Yom Kippur (October) War (1973) – A war between Israel and Arab nations (Egypt and Syria), leading to a U.S.-supported Israeli victory and tensions in the Middle East.

• Oil embargo (1973–1974) – An OPEC-led restriction on oil exports to the U.S. in response to American support for Israel in the Yom Kippur War, leading to an energy crisis.

• Camp David Accords (1978) – A peace agreement brokered by President Jimmy Carter between Egypt and Israel, leading to Egypt’s recognition of Israel.

• Peace Corps (1961) – A volunteer program established by Kennedy to promote international development and goodwill.

• Alliance for Progress (1961) – A U.S. initiative under Kennedy aimed at improving economic and social conditions in Latin America to counter communist influence.