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After the Civil War, various administrations rebuilt former Confederate states to satisfy all demographics equitably. The Union government established policies that protected the legal rights of ex-slaves.This era was important because it involved the legal abolition of slavery, equal protection under the law for all Americans, and a rise in political opportunities for Black men. Former Confederate states regained full recognition and federal representation in Congress.
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The United States purchased Alaska from the Russian Empire. The treaty enlarged the United States by 586,000 square miles. It prompted the United States' rise as a great power in the Asia-Pacific region, thanks to abundant natural resources, such as gold. -
Its implementation granted citizenship and equal civil and legal rights to African Americans and slaves who had been emancipated after the Civil War. It protected the lives, liberties and property of all citizens, under due process of law.
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This was a period of gross materialism and perpetual political corruption. Corporations and wealthy businessmen controlled politicians through bribes, in exchange for the fulfillment of their economic interests. This period was important because it brought technological innovations, especially in industries, mass immigration, growing political participation, patronage and corruption.
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It was the country's first major railroad strike and the first general strike in United States history. Starting in 1873, wages and working conditions kept worseningThe strikes and perpetual violence paralyzed the country's commerce and forced governors in ten states to mobilize 60,000 militia members to reopen rail traffic.The power of the people was finally unfolding. -
Booker T. Washington, an African American educator and civil rights pioneer, delivered the "Atlanta Compromise" speech at the Cotton States and International Exposition in Atlanta. His accommodationist strategy responded to racial tensions. He asked Whites to trust Blacks and give them opportunities so that both races could advance in industry and agriculture.This perspective of dealing with racism was supported and developed by many early civil rights activists and southerners as a whole. -
This armed conflict between the United States and Spain lasted from April 21,1898, until December 10,1898. When the USS Maine was exploded in Havana, Cuba, by the Spanish army, all hell broke loose. This event is significant because it ended the Spanish colonial rule in the Americas; it granted the United States territories in the western Pacific, like Hawaii, and in Latin America. It freed Cuba from Spanish imperialism, forming a strong sociopolitical and economic bond between the US and Cuba. -
W.E.B. DuBois and other Black intellectuals met on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls where Black people could speak freely. They developed a more active and aggressive movement in addressing civil and political rights for African Americans. It became so popular that it served as a pillar for the creation of the NAACP and the civil rights movement. -
The Model T, sold by the Ford Motor Company from 1908 to 1927, was the earliest car that the vast majority of Americans could afford. It helped rural Americans become more connected with the rest of the country. In 1908, the first Model Ts sold for $825. By 1925, the vehicles sold for only $260. -
It guaranteed American women the right to vote. Achieving this victory took over a hundred years of agitation and protest. Several generations of women suffragists lectured, lobbied, marched, wrote and practiced civil disobedience to obtain this fundamental right. Barely any early supporters lived to see final victory in 1920. This event is so important because it represents the fruit of so many years of perseverance and hardship among supporters of women's rights. -
In 1925, the state of Tennessee prosecuted high school teacher John T. Scopes for violating the state’s Butler Act, which prohibited the teaching of evolution in public schools. He was initially found guilty and fined $100, but his conviction was later overturned. His defense attorney, Clarence Darrow, proved religious fundamentalists wrong by explaining why the Bible shouldn't be taken literally. This event marked the beginning of evolutionary teachings in public schools across America. -
The Great Depression was the worst economic failure in the history of the industrialized world, lasting from 1929 to 1939. It began after the stock market crash of October 1929, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors. About a third of the US workforce was now unemployed. This led to many reforms, which shifted the course of the American economy and politics. -
This revolutionary list of acts dealt with the pressing banking crisis through the Emergency Banking Act and the 1933 Banking Act. The Securities Act of 1933 was enacted to prevent a repeated stock market crash.
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This second initiative from President Roosevelt led to the creation of the National Labor Relations Act, which sought to protect labor organizing; the Works Progress Administration (WPA) relief program, which turned the federal government into the largest employer in the whole country; as well as the Social Security Act and new programs to provide great financial help to tenant farmers and immigrants who initially struggled in America's workforce.
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Its main purpose was to develop a functional atomic weapon during World War II. The first two nuclear bombs were built as a result of fearing the Nazis' potential plan to nuke America. The nuclear fission technology created and mastered by the Manhattan Project engineers allowed the development of nuclear reactors, for power generators, as well as other technologies, including medical imaging systems, such as MRI machines, and radiation therapies for a myriad of forms of cancer. -
President Harry Truman's Fair Deal stated and ensured that all Americans could have health insurance, that the minimum wage be increased, and that all Americans be guaranteed equal rights. This had a strong and positive impact on sociopolitical, as well as economic relationships between the dominant group (white people) and minorities. -
The Montgomery Bus Boycott lasted for about a year, until December 20th, 1956. It was the first large-scale U.S. demonstration against segregation. Rosa Parks, a Black woman, was arrested and fined for not letting a White man sit in her seat. The U.S. Supreme Court ordered Montgomery, Alabama, to integrate its bus system. It allowed Martin Luther King Jr. to gain recognition. Alongside Rosa Parks, he eventually became one of the greatest Civil Rights leaders in American history. -
This law was President Lyndon B. Johnson's initiative to support the educational resources of the colleges and universities of the United States and to provide financial assistance to the increasing number of students who wished to continue their education beyond high school. For instance, it provides student assistance through scholarships, low-interest loans, and work-study programs, as well as improved teaching quality and more diversified library collections. -
AIM was founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It addressed systemic issues of poverty and police brutality against Native Americans in urban areas. It also demanded restitution for the hardship that Native Americans faced since the colonization of the Americas, in terms of unemployment, education and preservation of Indigenous cultures and institutions. In the following years, the group has led countless protests advocating Native American interests and denouncing their ongoing struggles in the US. -
American astronauts Neil Armstrong and his colleague Buzz Aldrin were the first humans to step on the moon. The moon landing taught us about the composition of the moon. It gave us the first perspective of the Earth from Space. Many technologies that we now use on a daily basis would not have been successfully developed if scientists did not continue to explore space.
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