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House Un-American Acitivites Committee (HUAC)
HUAC was created with the purpose of uncovering citizens with nazi ties infiltrating the united states. it eventually expanded its efforts by also investigating possible communist infiltration as a result of the anticommunist hysteria during the 1950's -
war powers act
the war powers act was a law that increased Federal power during World War II. It was implemented after the japanese attack on pearl harbor. -
Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944
also known as the GI Bill, the servicemens readjustment act was a law that allowed provided benifits to be given to returning war veterans. These benefits included things like low-cost mortgages, payed tuition and living expenses, and up to a year of unemployment compensation. -
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The iron curtain
The iron curtain was an Imaginary boundary during the cold war. It separated communist and noncommunist regions in Europe from economic, political, and social interactions. -
the containment policy
the containment policy was intended to prevent the spread of communism. During the cold war, this policy was used in response to actions of communist expansion by the soviet union. -
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The Cold War
After WWII, the tensions and distrust increased significantly between the US and the soviet union. Soviet expansion in europe caused America's fear of the possibility of world takeover by russia. During the cold war occured the cuban missile crisis, vietnam, and berlin wall. The growth of weapons of mass destruction was also a major concern in this time. -
The truman doctrine
President Truman introduces the truman doctrine which asks for assistance for greeve and turkey to stall communist takeover of the two nations. Some consider the truman doctrine to be the official decleration of the cold war. -
Marshall Plan
The marshall plan was an american initiative to aide western europe in economic support to helo rebuild western european economies after the end of world war 2. -
North Atlantic Treaty Orginization
NATO is a military alliance orginization which consists of a system of collective defense, which means the members of NATO agree to a mutal defense in the case of an attack by an external party. -
The Berlin Airlift
the berlin airlift is when soviet military forces divided and occupied germany. This made it clear that the blockade of west berlin had failed. west berliners did not reject their allies in the west nor had it prevented the unification of west german state. -
The Domino Theory
The domino theory was the belief held by the US government that even just one communist victory in another nation would undoubtly and inevitable cause a chain reaction of communist takeovers of that nations neighboring states. This theory was used by the US Gov to justify its support of their involvement in the vietnam war. -
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1950's culture
Mass culture began to dominate the United States due to large media producers trying to please a wide range of people. Televisions were present in 90% of homes, propagating mass media. -
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1950's Prosperity
At the close of WWII, american entered an unprecedented period of economic prosperity which continued for the next decade. It was an era of the baby boomers, burgeoning consumerism, optimism and hope, and developing neighborhoods (referred to as the white flight) White flight was the migration of whites into the suburbs from the city. The suburbs were less diverse than urban centers. -
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Korean War
War between N and S Korea. UN backed south, soviets and China backed North. -
Rosenberg Trial
The rosenberg trial involved ethel and julius rosenberg whom were being tried over espionage after being accused of selling nuculear secrets to Russia. They were sentenced to death row. -
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Rust belt and Sun Belt
Rust belt is the NorthEast region of the U.S. this region declined in population when industrial sectors experienced international competition due to trade agreements. Sun belt is a region of the U.S. spanning from Florida to California. These regions increased in population density during and after the 1960s because of the climate and retiring baby boomers. Also increased due to invention of AC. -
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Space Race (sputnik and moon landings)
The space race was a competition between the US and the USSR for technicological dominance specifically regarding space achievments. The race begun after the USSR's launch of SPutnik in 1957. Each side wanted to prove their superiority. The US "won" the space race by landing on the moon, while the soviets made many failed attempts to surpass the US. Ultimately, a joint mission involving both the US and USSR following the space race symbolized the improvement of US-soviet relations. -
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Vietnam War
The vietnam war was the conflict between the communist northern vietnam and viet cong against anti-communist south vietnam. The long, costly war was unpopular at home in the US, US forces were eventually out of vietnam in 1973 and vietnam still fell to communist rule two years later. more than 3 million were killed in the conflict -
McCarthyism
mccarthyism surfaced when joseph mccarthy claimed to have a list of communists that have infiltrated the U.S. He claimed they were famous influential people. He used the list to make accusations for his own advantage. It sparked the red scare. -
interstate highway act
the interstate highway act authorized the building of highways throughout the nation. It was the biggest public works project in the nations history. -
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1960's culture
the 60's was a decade of complex intertwined culteral and political trends around the globe. This decade marks the revolution of social norms such as clothing, music, drugs, sexuality, etc. Some also refer the 60's as the decade as "one of irresponsible excess, flamboyance, and decay of social order" -
Bay of Pigs
the bay of pigs was a full scale invasion of cuba by 1,400 cubans who fled their homes when castro took over. The invasion was unsuccessful as the invaders were significantly outnumbered by castros troops and surrendered less than 24 hours later. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The cuban missile crisis was a 13 day military standoff over armed missiles in cuba that the US was unaware of. It caused major panic in the US and the military was unsure whether or not to use military force to neutralize the threat. Eventually both the US and cuba compromised, cuba agreed to remove their missiles if the US agreed to remove their missiles from turkey. -
John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy became the U.S. president in 1961. During his term Kennedy resolved the cuban missile crisis and also established the nuclear test-ban treaty and the allience for progress. in november of 1963 JFK was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
On August 2nd, a US Destroyer was fired on by north vietnamese torpedo boats. Following the attacks, LBJ submitted a resolution to the senate which would authorize him to take any measures he believed necessary in order to repel armed attacks against the US to prevent further aggresion. Ultimately the gulf of tonkin resolution gave approval for the expansion of the vietnam war. -
Miranda v Arizona
This case reffers to ernesto miranda and his claim that he was subjected to multiple interrogation techniques without being informed of his 5th amendment right. The case settled that the prosecution may not use statements said during interrogation where the 5th amendments protection has been ignored. -
Tet Offensive
One of the largest military campaigns of the vietnam war. North Vietnamese forces launched surprise attacks on south vietnamese forces, including U.S. and Australian forces. -
Dwight D Eisenhower
After becoming the first supreme allied commander of the north atlantic treaty orginization (NATO) in 1951, Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected U.S. President in 1952.He promoted Atoms for Peace in order to ease Cold War tensions. He served for two terms. -
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1970's culture
social progressive values such as increasing political awareness and political/economic liberty of women continued to grow. The environmentalist movement also began to increase dramatically. -
Vietnamization
Vietnamization was a stragety implemented by President Nixon that's purpose was to end american involvement in the vietnam war by giving all military responsibilites to south vietnam. Nixon believed this would allow the gradual withdrawal of US aid and prepare south vietnam to take responsibility for their own defense against communist northern vietnam -
26th amendment
The 26th amendment assured anyone 18 years old or older the right to vote no matter what. -
Lyndon B Johnson
LBJ was originally VP, but became president after the assassination of JFK. LBJ proposed the "great society" social programs. He also signed the civil rights act into law. many opposed his expasion of american involvment in the vietnam war. -
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1980's culture
Many fundamental changes to the standard of living occured in this decade. there was the expanded role of television, fashion, movies, music, and sports. The 80's also saw the end of the cold war, -
Ray Kroc
in 1961, Kroc purchased Mcdonalds and implented automation and strict preparation standards that made mcdonalds the largest restaraunt franchise in the world. -
Abbie Hoffman
Hoffman was a very active political activist in the civil rights movement and then the protests against the vietnam war. He also protested the american economic and politcal system. -
Richard Nixon
Nixon was the 37th president and the only president to ever resign from presidency, which he did following the watergate scandal of the 1970's. It involved the white houses involvement in an isolated burglary of the democratic nation election headquarters. This was all attempted to be covered up by Nixon which significantly damaged his presidental reputation and forced him to resign -
Jonas Salk
Jonas Salk was a physician and medical researcher who developed the first polio vaccine in 1955 in his research lab at the University of pittsburgh. His vaccine helped us (almost) eradicate polio. He founded the salk institute for biological studies in 1963 and died in 1995 -
Roy Benavidez
Benavidez was a member of the US Army special forves who recieved the medal of honor for his actions in combat in south vietnam. He was wounded after stepping on a landmine. He also fought to keep the US government from cutting his disability payments. The government has previously terminated the disability assistance to 350,000 people. -
Betty Frieden
Betty was a writer, feminist, and womens rights activist who wrote the Feminine Mystique, which encouraged women to find fullfilment beyond the traditional gender roles in society. In 1966, she co-founded the national orginization for women which pushed women to have a greater role in the political world.
