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President Eisenhower's second term begins.
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President Eisenhower sends federal troops to Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas to enforce integration of black students.
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The Explorer I, the first American satellite, is launched.
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Alaska becomes the 49th state.
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Hawaii becomes the 50th state.
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Freedom Rides begin.
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The U.S. severs diplomatic relations with Cuba.
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John F. Kennedy becomes the 35th president.
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Bay of Pigs invasion fails.
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Lt. Col. John Glenn becomes first U.S. astronaut to orbit the earth.
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Cuban Missile Crisis.
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Martin Luther King Jr. gives his, "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington D.C.
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President Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas, Tx. Vice president Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president.
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President Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act.
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North Vietnam attack U.S. destroyer in the Gulf Of Tonkin.
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Congress approves the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, letting president Johnson take any measures necessary to defend the U.S. forces.
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The U.S. begins bombing raids of North Vietnam.
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At the state of the Union address, President Johnson proposes his "Great Society" program.
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President Johnson's second term begins
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State troopers attack peaceful protesters led by Martin Luther King Jr., while crossing a bridge in Selma, Alabama.
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First U.S. troops arrive in South Vietnam.
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Voting Rights Act is signed prohibiting discriminatory voting practices.
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Six-day riot in Watts, Los Angeles, 35 people are killed and 883 are injured.
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Miranda v. Arizona: Landmark Supreme Court decision further defines due process clauses of the 14th Amendment and establishes Miranda rights.
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25th Amendment is ratified to the Constitution outlining the procedures for filling vacancies in the presidency and vice presidency.
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American Soldiers kill 300 Vietnamese in My Lai massacre.
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Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee.
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Senator Robert F. Kennedy is assassinated in Los Angele, California.
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Richard Nixon becomes the 37th president.
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Neil Armstong and Edwin Aldrin Jr. are the first men to land on the moon.
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The U.S. troops invade Cambodia.
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Four students shot to death by the National Guardsmen at an antiwar protest at Kent State University.
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The 26th Amendment is ratified to the Constitution, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18.
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Nixon makes a historical visit to Communist Chine.
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Nixon's second presidential term begins.
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Roe v. Wade legalizes abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy.
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North and South Vietnam, the Viet congress and the U.S. sign a Ceasefire agreement in Paris.
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The last U.S. troops leave Vietnam.
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Senate Select Committee begins televised hearings to investigate Watergate cover-up
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Nixon is impeached due to obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress.
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Nixon resigns, Vice president Ford becomes President.
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South Vietnam surrenders to North Vietnam, U.S. embassy Marine guards and last U.S. civilians are evacuated.