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World Trade Center Bombing
On February 26th, 1993 Ramzi Yousef and a group of terrorists drove a van containing a 1,200-pound urea nitrate bomb into the World Trade Center parking garage. Their goal was to destroy the towers by lighting the bomb and fleeing. Although they did not destroy the towers the terrorists managed to kill 6 people and injured over 1,000. This attack is important to US history as it was the first major international terrorist attack on the US. (9/11 Memorial Staff, Putting Together the Fragments) -
NAFTA Goes in to Effect
The North American Free Trade Act was an agreement signed by President Bush to eliminate tariffs on goods that were being transferred between Canada and Mexico. Many democratic politicians did not agree with the NAFTA agreement but President Bill Clinton did. Clinton was able to get the legislation passed and went into effect by January 1st, 1994. Many companies did not like the concept and the NAFTA was appealed 15 years later. (Kruse and Zelizer, 208-209 - Class 4/19) -
Contract With America
The Contract With America was signed on September 27th, 1994. The contract dictated what legislation must be put into action during the first 100 days of congress, for the 104th congress of the 1995-96 year. A few of the many points the contract advocated for were a line-item veto for the president, term limits, welfare rollbacks, and a balanced budget amendment. The entire Contract was passed by the house and its speaker Newt Gingrich. (Britannica, "Contract with America") -
Oklahoma City (OKC) Bombing
April, 19th 1995 exactly 2 years after the Waco Siege, white nationalists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols blew up the Alfred Murrah Federal Building with a truck bomb, completely demolishing the structure. This attack led to 168 deaths and injured ~600 people. This showed the US the impact of terrorism and the rise of anti-government and white hate groups. The OKC bombing is an important event in the US as it’s the second most deadly terrorist attack prior to 9/11. (Kruse and Zelizer, 220-221) -
Defense of Marriage Act
The Defense of Marriage Act was a law signed by Bill Clinton that created an official definition of marriage, emphasizing that it was between a male and a female-intentionally excluding those in same-sex relationships. In addition to this, the DOMA enabled states to refuse the recognition of a same-sex marriage from a different state. This law is important to US history as it suppressed the rights of civilians and discriminated against people in same-sex relationships. (Kruse and Zelizer, 218) -
September 11th
On 9/11/2001, 19 members of Al-Qaeda boarded 4 commercial airplanes. The terrorists hijacked the planes with the aim of crashing into important buildings of the US. The worst of the attacks were the 2 planes that crashed into the Twin Towers causing them to collapse. A 3rd plane crashed into the Pentagon and while the 4th plane was aimed for the white house, passengers were able to take over, diverting it to crashing into a field in PA. In total, ~3000 people died. (Kruse and Zelizer, 249-250) -
The Patriot Act
The USA Patriot Act was formed after 9/11 as a part of the DHS. Once enacted on October 26th, 2001 the act allowed the government to conduct wiretaps, monitor phones and emails, as well as business records. In addition to this digital monitoring, the act enabled the government to increase their control over undocumented immigrants. This act played an important role in US history as it took preventative security measures against potential terrorists and monitored devices. (Kruse and Zelizer, 257) -
No Child Left Behind Act Signed in to Law
The No Child Left Behind Act enforced the federal commitment to fund public schools. The NCLBA set standards for students in math and english to ensure students were meeting government expectations and avoided prematurely advancing students to the next grade level. If schools couldn’t meet the federal standard then their funding would be cut and students would be moved to better schools. Because many people opposed the NCLBA, it was replaced by the ESSA in 2015. (Kruse and Zelizer, 245-248) -
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Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was a category 5 hurricane that impacted the gulf coast, with extreme impacts on New Orleans. New Orleans was hit the worst as the levees failed creating massive issues of flooding. People criticized the government as they were aware of the storm's potential but did not take enough precautions. With the property damage cost of $108 billion and 1833 deaths it is America's most lively and economically expensive natural disaster to this day. (Kruse and Zelizer, 280-281) -
Barack Obama Becomes President
Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the US on January 20th, 2009. This was an important event in United States history as he is the first African American to be elected as the US president. Barack Obama ran again as the democratic nominee in 2012 and won, serving a total of 2 terms. Obama’s 1st term was complex as the U.S was facing war in the middle east, terrorism, and economic crises. (The White House, Barack Obama The 44th President of The United States)