WWII Effects:

The US becomes a world power. The war brings economic and social optimism, as well as empowerment of the growing middle class. It resulted in the breakup of Europe’s huge overseas empires.

Baby Boom (Beginning 1946) - A period post-WWII that made birth rates spike tremendously.

Causes:

• Veterans returning home to start families

• The nation's prosperity - more people could afford children

Effects:

• The population growth has a lasting impact on education, infrastructure and housing.

Growth of Suburbs (1940s-1950s) - After WII, many begin to move away from cities, leading to suburban growth. 

Causes:

• Mass production of automobiles and the expansion of the road system

• Governmental policies (Federal Housing Administration (FHA))

• Better living conditions.

• African Americans began to move to northern cities, white people began to move to the suburbs (“white flight”).

• Suburban developments  (Levittown) were a planned community which offered inexpensive houses built by Levitt & Sons.

The 2nd Red Scare - 

• Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) (1938) - An investigating committee which investigated what it considered un-American propaganda. This congressional Committee investigated Commmunist influence inside and outside the US government after WWII. They mostly investigated Hollywood and other places where the ability to influence the public was huge.

  • Hollywood Ten - Ten prominent Hollywood directors were singled out to be communists and were summoned to testify in Congress about their obvious and filthy communism. They were blacklisted and could not find work in the industry.

    • The Screen Actors Guild, headed by Ronald Reagan also attempted to discover and purge its own communists.

• Taft Hartley Act (1947) - To limit management-labor disputes and to reduce unfair labor practices.

  • It slowed unionizations throughout the country, especially the South.

  • Union leaders were made to pledge that they were not members of the Communist Party.

  • It was apart of the anti-communist Crusade.

• Federal Employee, Loyalty, and Security Program / Executive Order 9835 (1947) - The order established the first general loyalty program in the United States, designed to root out communist influence in the U.S. federal government. The program investigated over 3 million government employees, just over 300 of whom were dismissed as security risks.

  • Many were accused if they had moral weaknesses like alchoism or homosexuality, which made it easy to be blackmailed.

  • 1949 - Former State Department official Alger Hiss was found guilty of consorting with a communist spy (Rixard Nixon was the congressman mostly responsible for Hiss’s downfall)

• McCarthysim - The atomposhere let Senator Joseph McCrthy rise to national fame when in 1950, he claimed to have a list of more than 200 known communists working for the State Department. McCarthy was unchallenged and led a campaign that ruined the lives of thousands of innocent people. 

  • He never uncovered a single communist, but McCarthy held years of hearings and forced confessions and accusations of others. Many who were tainted by these charges were blacklisted.

  • 1950 - McCathry’s downfall came during the Eisenhower administration. He accused the Army of harboring communists, but the Army fought back with the help of  Edward R. Murrow’s television shows in the Army-McCarthy hearings. McCathry was made to look foolish, and the public turned their back against him, marking the end of McCarthyism.

The Cold War (1947-1991)

Causes:

• The US emerged from WWII as the world’s most powerful and prosperous country. In contrast, the Soviuet union suffered heavy losses during the ar. 

• The allies agreed that central and eastern european countries would hold free elections. But Stalin decided he’d rather keep soviet troops stationed in those countries after the war to create a “buffer zone” between Russia and Germany. Those states became “Communist Satellite States.”

• There were also many disputes over Berlin. The city was split between the allies, but was in the middle of Svoeit land. These disputes caused mistrust between the US and the Soviets.

• The British and the US wanted to help Germany revitalize its economy. However, the Soviets wanted to weaken and collect reparations from them. Differing ideas (communism v. democracy) would split Europe in half separated by an “iron curtain.”

  • The Iron Curtain - A term coined by Winston Churchill, describing the no longer independent nations of Eastern Europe, becoming satellite states controlled by the Soviets.

• The American economy was growing more dependent on Exports, so helping the defeated european countries’ economies would help American’s economy too (Marshall Plan).

Reconstruction of Japan (1945-1952) - After WWII, the US occupied Japan, and its colonial possessions were divided up. The US took control of the Pacific Islands and the southern half of Korea, while the USSR took control of the northern Half of Korea.

• Under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, Japan wrote a democratic constitution, demilitarized, and started a remarkable economic revival.

Chinese Communist Revolution (1945-1952) - The US tried to stop communism in China, however it was unsuccessful.

• The US supported Chaing Kai-sheck’s Nationalist government against Mao Zedon’s Communist insurgents. Despide massive American military aid, the Communists overthrew the Nationalists, who fled to Taiwan. For years, the US refused to recognize the legitimacy of Mao’s regime.

Containment - A U.S. foreign policy adopted by President Harry Truman (Truman Doctrine) in the late 1940s, in which the United States tried to stop the spread of communism by creating alliances and helping weak countries to resist Soviet advances.

• The idea came from the Long Telegram (1946), which Geroge Kennan sent to Washington from Germany.

• In the Eisenhower Administration, it is known as liberation, to make containment more intimidating.

Truman Doctrine (1947) -Advocated containment of communism by lending support to any country that was  threatened by communism. The main idea was containment.

• Sent $40 million to Turkey and Greece to fend off the Soviets.

• It set a precedent for Americans that democracy = freedom and communism = tyranny.

Marshall Plan (1947) - Designed by Secretary of State Geroge Marshall and allocated over $15 billion in financial aid for European countries to rebuild. It supported a strong European economy and stabilized politics to resist communism. Followed the idea of containment.

• Countries with good economies would most likely choose democracy over communism.

Berlin Blockade (1948-1949) - Soviets blocked canals, roads, and railways that western suppliers used. 

• Berlin Airlift (1948-1949) - The Western response to the Berlin Blockade. They flew in food and supplies to blockaded West Berliners.

The North Atlantic Organization (NATO) (1949) - An attack against one of the member nations would be viewed as an attack against them all

• Protected member nations under American nuclear power

  • 1st US peacetime military alliance in history, formal end to US isolationism.

• Inspired Soviet Union to create the German Democratic Republic (Eastern Germany) and explode an atomic bomb in 1949, and set up a rival eastern bloc military alliance, the Warsaw Pact in 1955; sparked the massive arms race known as the Cold War.

Warsaw Pact (1955) - Basically NATO for communists.

The Arms Race - Both NATO and the Warsaw Pact put military might behind the countries’ differing ideas. Because of this, it began a Cold war competition between the U.S. and Soviet Union to build up their respective armed forces and weapons. This was the main idea behind the cold war-- each side builds arms upon arms.

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) (1947) - Was created by Truman from fear of Soviet invasion and spies.

National Security Council (NSC) 68 (1950) - Fear of Soviet invasion led to the creation of the NSC 68. It stated that the US should invest more money into military spending because they couldn't trust other countries to help protect them against communism.

Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) - Both sides feared for world domination, and it prevented both nations from deploying nuclear weapons.

Death of Stalin (1953) - Nikita Khrushchev becomes the new Soviet leader.

• He denounced Stalin’s totalitarianism and called for “peaceful coexistence.”

• Soviet states took Rhrushchev’s pronouncements as a sign of weakness, and rebellions occurred in Poland and Hungary.

  • When the Soviets crushed the rebellions, the USA and USSR relationship turned sour again.

Sputnik (1957) - The Soviets launched the first satellite, Sputnik, into space.

• This motivated the US to create the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Nationalism in Third World Nations - WWII resulted in the breakup of Eruope’s huge overseas empires. Countries in Africa, Asia and SOuth America broke free of European domination. They allied themselves with either the US or USSR. The US and USSR sought to bring Third World countries into their spheres of influence, as they represented potential markets and sources of raw materials. Nationalism swept through Third World nations, recently liberaterated with independence.

Bay of Pigs Invasion (1961) - A group of Cuban exiles organized and supported by the U.S. The CIA landed on the southern coast of Cuba in an effort to overthrow Fidel Castro. The invasion ended in disaster, and antagonized the Soviet and their allies in the process.

The Berlin Wall (1961) - The USSR built a wall to prevent East Germans from leaving the country. It came to represent the nature of communism and was also a physical reminder of the divide between the two nations.

The Peace Corps (1961) - Was made to provide teachers, specialists, health care, transportation and communications to the Third World, in hopes of fledgling communities with democracy. The government called it nation building.

Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) - Was the closest the world has ever gotten to nuclear war.

• American spy planes detected missile sites in Cuba, and imposed a naval quarantine on Cuba to prevent any further weapons shipments from reaching the island, and Kennedy went on national television to demand the Soviet withdraw their missiles. 

• In return, the Soviets demanded that the US promise never to invade Cuba and that the US remove its missiles from Turkey. Both sides agreed to withdraw their missiles.

The Truman Administration (1945-1953)

Truman, set a precedent in the Truman Doctrine for the Containment of Communism. He believed in helping Aftican Americans (President’s Committee on Civil Rights). At this time, the NAACP won some important lawsuits against segregated schools and buses. However, Truman became unpopular because he alienated labour (UMW Strike (1946), railroad strike), and he fired General Douglas MacArthur during the Korean war.

United Mine Workers (UMW) Strike (1946) - Shut down steel foundries, auto plants, and more. Truman ordered a government seizure of the mines. Truman alienated labor workers, and started rising conservatism in the US.

Jackie Robinson (1948) - Robinson broke the color barrier in 1948 in baseball.

Dixiecrats (1948) - Advances in the balck community caused coalitions with liberal white organizations. It provoked an outbreak of racism in the South, and segregationists Democrats known as Dixiecrats.

President’s Committee on Civil Rights (1948) - Called for the end to segregation and poll taxes, and for a more aggressive enforcement of antilynching laws. Truman’s executive order forbade racial discirmination in the hiring of federal employees and desegregated the Armed Forces.

The Fair Deal (1949) - In 1946, the inflation rate was nearly 20%, so Trump offered a New-Deal style solution. However, it had little effect.

• G.I. Bill / Servicemen Adjustments Bill (1944) - It provided economic and educational assistance to veterans. It allowed WWII veterans to receive a college education and to receive a discounted mortgage on their home.

The Korean War (1950-1953):

Context:

• Stated when Communist North Korea invaded the US backed South Korea. Believing the Soviet Union to have engineered the Invasion, the United States took swift countermeasures. Truman decided to attempt a reunification of Korea, attacked North Korea, provoking China. China entered the war, pushing the Americans and South Korean troops back near the original border dividing North and South Korea.

• General Douglas MacArthur suggested going to war with China, to overthrow the communist regime, but Truman decided against it. Truman fried the General, and hurt himself politically as MacArthur was popular.

The Eisenhower Administration (1953-1961):

During the 1950s, Americans believed in conformity and a census of values. They believed that America was the best in the world, that communism was evil and had to be stopped. A home in the suburbs, and access to modern conveniences (aka consumers) did indeed constitute the “good life.”

The 1950s also proved to be the era in which the civil rights movement build the advances of the 1940s and met some violent resistance. It was also an era of spiritual unrest in art forms as Beat poetry and novels (“Howl,” On the Road), teen movies (Blackboard Jungle, The wild One, Rebel Without a Cause), and rock’n’roll (Elvis Presley, Little Richard, Jerry Lee lewis, Chuck Berry).

Election of 1952 - Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican), became 34th President of the US. Nixon became vp.

• He ran against democrat Adlai Stevenson. Democrats had been in office for 20 years.

• He sought to balance the budget, cut federal spending, and ease government regulation on business. But popular New Deal supporters prevented him from eliminating New Deal programs.

  • Eisenhower reduced military spending by reducing troops and buying powerful weapons (New Look Army), but was unsuccessful to eliminate deficit spending.

Interstate Highway System - Under the Eisenhower administration, the government began developing the highway system, partly because it made it easier to move meant that soldiers and nuclear missiles around the country.

• This promoted tourism, sped up travel, and the development of suburbs.

Termination (1953) - Eisenhower’s federal policy toward Native Americans. It would close down reservations, end federal support to Native Americans, and subject them to state law. 

• Native American protested, convinced that termination was simply stealing more native land. 

• The plan failed and stopped in the 1960s, but not before causing the depletion and impoverishment of a number of tribes.

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) - A Lawsuit brought on behalf of Linda Brown (a black school-age child) by the NAACP. The court ruled to overturn the “separate but equal” standard it applied to education from Plessy v. Ferguson (1968).

• Was a huge victory for the Civil Rights Movement. But it did not solve school segregation.

• Southern States started to pay the tuition for white children to attend private schools, and some closed their public schools.

• Eisenhower disapproved of segregation, but opposed rapid change, and his inactivity allowed for Southern resistance.

• Little Rock Nine (1957) - The governor of Arkansas called in the state National Guard to prevent a group of black students (little rock nine) from enrolling in a Little Rock high school. The courts ordered Eisenhower to enforce the law, in response, Arkansas closed all high schools in Little Rock for two years.

Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-1956) - Started when Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, as required by Jim Crow laws. Outrage over the arrest, spurred blacks to boycott Montgomery buses. It brought national prominence to Martin Luther King Jr., who was a pastor at Parks’s church..

• The Supreme Court resulted in the integration of city buses in Montgomery and elsewhere.

Civil Rights Acts (1957&1960) - The first pieces of federal civil rights legislation passed since Reconstruction. Initially conceived to better enforce the 14th and 15th Amendments, the 1957 Act was met with fierce resistance from southern white segregationist senators.

• They strengthened voting rights, protection of Southern blacks and the punishment for crimes against blacks,

• Eisenhower  supported the Acts.

The Kennedy Administration (1961-1963)

Kennedy promised that America was about to conquer a New Frontier. He pushed legislation that increased unemployment benefits, expanded Social Security, bumped up the minimum wage, and aided distressed farmers, women’s rights, etc.

Election of 1960 - John F. Kennedy (democrat) became the 35th President of the US. Lyndon B. Johnson was his vp.

• He ran against Richard Nixon (Republican).

Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) - Led by Martin Luther King, Jr. the conference stated sit-ins, boycotts, and other peaceful demonstrations.

Freedom Riders Movement (1961) - A revolutionary movement where black and white people refused to sit in their designated areas of buses to protest segregation. Blacks sat in the front of the bus and whites sat in the back, opposite of the usual arrangements. There were multiple different rides from several different locations and a variety of people. At every stop, the freedom riders would use the opposite segregated facilities such as bathrooms, restaurants, and water fountains.

Assasination of Medgar Evers (1963) - Medgar Evers was Mississippi’s NAACP director, and was shot to death by an anti-integrationist. Demonstrators in Montgomery, Alabama were assaulted by the police. Both events were reported and horrified millions of Americans, which helped bolster the movement.

Equal Pay Act (1963) - Required that men and women receive equal pay for equal work. Employers continue to get around this federal law by changing job titles.

Assasination of Kennedy (1963) - Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald. His motivation was most likely linked with the Civil Rights Movement, although debated.

The Johnson Administration (1963-1969):

Johnson took on more immediate action to the Civil Rights Movement than Kennedy.

The Warren Court (1953-1969) - Chief Justice Earl Warren, was extremely liberal. The time he served, he worked to enforce voting rights for blacks and forced states to redraw congressional districts so that minorities would receive greater representation. The Warren Court expanded civil rights.

• The court prohibited school prayer and protected the right to privacy

• Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) - Ruled that a defendant in a felony trial must be provided a lawyer.

• Miranda v. Arizona (1966) - The creation of Miranda Rights, where upon arrest, a suspect must be advised of their right to remain silent and consult with a lawyer.

Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Outlawed discrimination based on a person’s race, color, religion, or gender.

• It is the most comprehensive piece of Civil Rights legislation enacted in US history.

Johnson’s War on Poverty - Johnson, who grew up poor, expanded his antipoverty program numerous times.

• Economic Opportunity Act (1964) - Appropriated nearly $1 billion for poverty relief.

• Project Head Start (1965) - Prepared underprivileged children for early schooling

• Upward Bound (1965) - Did the same thing as Project Head Start, but with highschool students.

• Job Corps - Trained the unskilled for better jobs.

• Volunteers in Service America (VISTA) (1965) - Was the peace corps for domestic problems.

• Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) (1965) - Increased federal aid to low-income apartment renters, and built more federal housing projects, and established Medicare and Medicaid.

Immigration and Nationality Acts (1965) - 

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) (1965) - The agency was made to enforce the employment clause of the Civil Rights Act (1964).

Voting Rights Act of 1965) - The law cracked down on states that denied blacks the right to vote despite the 15th Amendment.

Great Society - Johnson’s social agenda for civil rights and the under-previlidged represented a sweeping change to the US government since the New Deal. Many supported Johnson, because many taxpayers did not feel pain. However, people not in support of the Civil Rights Movement did not like Johnson.