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Dwight D. Eisenhower's Presidential Term
As a War Hero, Eisenhower was a clear favorite, and won the 1952 presidential election. -
Battle of Dien Bien Phu
During the Battle of Dienbienphu, France was surrounded, and lost which caused them to leave Southeast Asia. This created a void where communism could grow. The battle marked the real beginning of America's interest in Vietnam because they felt if cominism fell to one country, then it would create a domino effect that could result in other contries falling under a communistic dictatorship. -
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
The case rulled that segregation in public schools was unconstituotional. It reversed the infamous Plessy v. Ferguson court case which stated "seperate but equal facilities" were constitutional, and provided legal foundation for the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Eventhough it stated desegregation would happen rapidly, the schools in the Deep South were highly hesitant to integrate. And after 10 years, only 2% of the schools were integrated. -
The Geneva Accords
The Geneva Accords allowed France too peacefully withdraw from the Vietnam War and as a result, an international conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland to discuss the situation of Indochina. It stated the country would be divided at the seventeenth parallel into two parts; the north and the south. -
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Vietnam War
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Rosa Parks
In Montgomery, Alambama, Rosa Parks made history when she refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. She was then arrested for violating Jim Crow Laws. Her arrest showed the lengths one would travel to fight for what he/she beleived in. -
The Montgomery Bus Boycott
The arrest of Rosa Parks resulted in the creation of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which was catapulted by Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. It was a yearlong black boycott of city buses and showed the blacks would no longer indulge in the unfairness of segregation. -
Eisenhower Doctrine
The Doctrine promised the U.S.would give help to the Middle East if threatened by communism while communist countries were providing arms to Egypt and offering strong support to Arab states. Even though communism wasn't the real threat to the U.S., nationalism, the power of oil was. -
Sputnik I & Sputnik II
The space race was started once the Russians had placed the first satellite in orbit called Sputnik I (184 lb). A month later, Sputnik II (1100 pound satellite), and a dog where then launched into space. This disturbed the confidence of the Americans, and caused the americans to doubt their scientific advancements and caused many military questions. in response, Eisenhower established NASA & in Feb 1958, the US managed to put a 2.5 lbs satellie into orbit. -
The New Frontier
Created by JFK, it was aimed to boost the economy, provide international aid, boost the space program, and provide for national defense. -
"Sit-In" Movement
In Greensboro, NC, four black students demanded service at a "white-only" lunch counter. Even though they were refused service, they returned the following day with more students. This eventually caused an up-roar that swept the South, causing sit-ins, lie-ins, and pray-ins to attain equal treatment in restaurants, employment, transportation, voter registration, and housing. These southern black students formed the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee to organize and focus these efforts. -
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John F. Kennedy's Presidential term
Kennedy was handsome, articulate, and was able to utilize the television to benefit his campaign. -
Freedom Riders
Usually consisting of young white northerners, these people rode buses through the South to draw attention to segregation. The violence in the south that resulted in reaction to the freedom riders brought more attention to the racial fight for equality. -
Peace Corps
JFK established the Peace Corps which was an army full of volunteers who aimed to bring American skills to underdeveloped countries. The fields it mainly focused on were health, agriculture, languages and math. -
Cuban Missle Crisis
Photos showed the U.S.S.R. putting nuclear missiles in Cuba. In response,JFK chose to establish a naval blockade but Khrushchev promised to run the blockade and continue assembling the missile sites. For 13 days, the world was close to a nuclear war but Khrushchev backed down and the Soviet ships retreated. Kennedy responded by agreeing to remove missiles from Turkey and encouraged the US to think more postivily toward the U.S.S.R. -
March on Washington
A Civil Rights Movement led by Martin Luther King, Jr which involved about 250,000 demonstrators who marched to the nation's capital to participate in the March on Washington, protesting segregation and job discrimination against blacks in the nation. This is where MLK recitied his infamous, "I Have A Dream" speach & resulted in a meeting between MLK & JFK at the White House. -
Assassination of President Kennedy
While riding in a limousine in Dallas, Texas, JFK was shot by Lee Harvey Oswald in the brain and died instantly. -
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Lyndon B. Johnson's Presidential Term
He was sworn into president immediately after JFK's assassination. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Lyndon B. Johnson signed it. This Act stated the banning of discrimination in public facilities. It also sought to end segregation. -
Gulf of Tonkin Incident
Naval Batlle in the Gulf of Tonkin between the US & the North Vietnamese. It resulted in a major demployment of US Armed forced into the Vietnam War. -
Assasination of Malcom X
Prominent African American Civil Rights Activist who felt whites should undergo the harshest penalties for their brutal and harsh crimes against African Americans. Unlike Martin Luther King Jr, he beleived violence was necessary for attaining equality. He was killed by Black Muslims in New York. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
It was established to end racial discrimination that went with voting, ban literacy tests, and send registrars to the polls to watch for unfair occurrences. -
Uproar against the Vietnam War
During 1966-1967, the US protests against the Vietnam War increased. Students burnt draft cards, fled to Canada to avoid the drafted, and held protest to fight against the war. As a result, America was being split into doves who were against the war and hawks who were for the war. -
Tet Offensive
Late January 1968, was the breaking point of the Vietnam War. North Vietnam launched a massive Tet Offensive against southern cities. Eventhough the US stopped the attack, it showed there were still multiple years of fighting left. -
LBJ announces he will not run for reelection
In a shocking address, LBJ suddenly announced he was freezing troop levels in Vietnam and he would not run for a second term. -
Assissination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. was a prominent African American Civil Rights activist who used non-violent tactics to help put an end to racial discrimination. He was hit by a sniper's bullet while standing on the balcony in front of his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. -
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Richard Nixon's Presidential term
Without Johnson running, Nixon won the presidential election of 1968 -
Vietnamization
a new strategy created by Nixon to end the america's involvement in the Vietnam War. It was intended to transfer all the military responsibilities to South Vietnam. -
Watergate Scandal
Five men were caught breaking into the Democratic Party's headquarters in the Watergate building snooping and planting headphones. In response, Nixon fired John Dean, the lawyer for Watergate, which was highly suspicious and outraged the Democrats. -
Richard Nixon Resigns
Eventually tapes were discovered reguarding the Watergate Scandal. Nixon's refusal to let go of the tapes question his innocence and on August 8, 1974, nixon suddenly resigns as President. -
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Gerald Ford's Presidential term
Became president after Nixon's resignation. -
South Vietnamese Surrender
North Vietnam overran and took over South Vietnam after the march on Saigon.
