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Period: to
United States 1980-2001
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Eruption of Mt. St. Helens
An earthquake followed by the eruption of Mt St Helen's kills 57 people in Washington. There was over $1 billion in damage and the eruption caused the land to be wasteland. -
U.S. Economic Recession
The economy was already in weak shape coming into the downturn, as a recession in 1980 had left unemployment at about 7.5 percent. Both the 1980 and 1981-82 recessions were triggered by tight monetary policy in an effort to fight mounting inflation. The unemployment rate, already high by historical standards at the onset of the recession in mid-1981, reached 10.8 percent at the end of 1982, higher than at any time in post-World War II history. -
Tax Reform Act of 1986
The bill lowered the top corporate tax rate from 46 percent to 34 percent and reduced the highest marginal income tax rate from 50 percent to 28 percent, while also simplifying the tax code and eliminating numerous loopholes. -
Black Monday
The stock market crash known as Black Monday occurs on the New York Stock Exchange, recording a record 22.6% drop in one day. Stock markets around the world would mirror the crash with drops of their own. All of the twenty-three major world markets experienced a sharp decline in October 1987. -
Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty of 1987
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, or INF Treaty, was crucial to Euro-Atlantic security for decades. It eliminated a whole category of nuclear weapons that threatened Europe in the 1980s. The treaty committed both United States and Soviets to a sharp reduction in their nuclear arsenal. -
Operation Rescue Founded
In 1988 evangelical activist Randall Terry founded Operation Rescue, an organization that targeted abortion clinics and pro-choice politicians with confrontational—and sometimes violent—tactics. Operation Rescue demonstrated that the fight over abortion would grow only more heated in the 1990s. -
End of the Cold War
During 1989 and 1990, the Berlin Wall came down, borders opened, and free elections ousted Communist regimes everywhere in eastern Europe. At the Malta summit in December 1989, Gorbachev and US President George H.W. Bush declared the end of the Cold War. However, the complete end of the Cold War was marked in late 1991 with the Soviet Union dissolving itself into its component republics. With stunning speed, the Iron Curtain was lifted and the Cold War came to an end. -
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect, creating a free trade zone between Canada, the United States, and Mexico. -
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 decreased welfare benefits, restricted eligibility, and turned over many responsibilities to states. President Clinton said it would “break the cycle of dependency.” -
Attacks on Iraq
In 1998, a standoff between Saddam Hussein and the United Nations over weapons inspections led President Bill Clinton to launch punitive strikes aimed at debilitating what was thought to be a developed chemical weapons program.More than two hundred cruise missiles fired from U.S. Navy warships and Air Force B-52 bombers flew into Iraq, targeting suspected chemical weapons storage facilities, missile batteries, and command centers. -
Census of 2000
The 2000 census enumerates a population of 281,421,906, increasing 13.2% since 1990. -
9/11 Terrorist Attacks
Al-Qaeda terrorist organization led by Osama Bin Laden, hijacked four U.S. airliners and crashed them into the Pentagon and the World Trade Center in New York City. The attack of two planes leveled the World Trade Center and the crash of one plane inflicted serious damage to the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, causing more than 3,000 deaths.