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Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was a non-physical boundary. It divided Europe into two separate areas. It was from the end of World War II, which was from about 1946 until 1991 or the end of the Cold War. The period symbolizes the efforts of the Soviet Union to block itself. It also symbolizes how the Soviet Union blocked its satellite states from having open contact with the West and its allied nations. -
Cold War
The Cold War was a long period of tension between the democracies of the Western World and the communist countries of Eastern Europe. The west was led by the United States and Eastern Europe was led by the Soviet Union. These two countries became known as superpowers. They would constantly fight for superiority, dominance, and who was considered better than the other. The Cold War started in 1947 and did not end until 1991. -
Taft-Hartley Act
It was condemned by Labor leaders as a "slave labor law". It outlawed the "closed" shop, made unions liable for damages that resulted from jurisdictional disputes among themselves. It also required union leaders to take a non-communist oath. The Taft-Hartley Act was a United States federal law that restricts the activities and power of labor unions. It was enacted by the 80th United States Congress over the veto of President Harry S. Truman, becoming law on June 23, 1947. -
Fair Deal
The Fair Deal was a set of proposals that were put forward by U.S. President Harry S. Truman to Congress. It was during his January 1949 State of the Union address. The Fair Deal characterizes the entire domestic agenda of the Truman administration. The Truman administration was from 1945 to 1953. This occurred on January 5th, 1949. -
Korean War
The Korean War, 1950-1953, began when the North Korean Communist army crossed the 38th Parallel and invaded non-Communist South Korea. As Kim Il-sung's North Korean army, armed with Soviet tanks, quickly overran South Korea, the United States came to South Korea's aid. When America joined, China came to North Korea's aid and started attacking America. North Korea and South Korea ended up in a stalemate so on July 27, 1953, an armistice was signed and the fighting finally stopped. -
Brown vs. Board of Education
Brown vs. Board of Education was a court case in where judges ruled that racial segregation in schools was unconstitutional. Linda Brown, a third-grader, was not allowed into any of Topeka's all-white schools. Her father, Oliver Brown, went to court and claimed that the "separate but equal" doctrine was not accurate and that it had violated the 14th amendment. The court all ruled that this was unconstitutional and Brown had won the case. This case helped later on in fighting for racial equality. -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was when black passengers did not give up their seats to white passengers. They believed it was not fair the way they were treated and that there was segregation on the bus. -
Baby Boom
The baby boom was a period from 1946 to 1964, where there was an all-time high of when babies were born. This occurred because this time period was at the end of a war, specifically World War 2. This led many people to believe they were now confident in raising a family, which explains the increase in population. They were able to raise families because men were back from the war and they were back together with their families. The peak time of the baby boom was in 1957. -
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference was created in 1957. Also known as the SCLC, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference's main aim was to advance the cause of civil rights in America but in a non-violent manner. It was created after the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The founders were Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph Abernathy, Bayard Rustin, Fred Shuttlesworth, and Joseph Lowery. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference ended on December 21, 1956. -
Sputnik
Sputnik was Earth's first satellite launched into space. It was launched into space by the Soviet Union. At the time, the Soviet Union and the United States were having a competition between each other to out-do each other. So in response, the United States created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Sputnik started off the battle between the Soviet Union and the United States. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was when Soviet weapons were starting to come into Cuba. The United States did not approve of this so John F. Kennedy, the president at the time, warned the Soviet Union that they would not tolerate this. The Soviets decided to ignore the warning. However, after secret negotiating, there was no disaster that occurred. Russia decided to pull out of Cuba as long as the United States promised not to invade the island. -
Civil Rights Act
The Civil Rights Act was passed on July 2nd, 1964. This act prevented and did not allow discrimination by race/segregation in public places. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson. This was very important because, after so many years of being racially unequal, people did not have to worry about how they would be treated based on their race. Now, the country was taking a step forward in having people being able to live equally. -
Voting Rights Act
The Voting Rights Act was signed on August 6th, 1965. It was signed into act by President Lyndon B. Johnson. This act was significant because it did not allow non-constitutional practices in order to vote. An example of a practice that was outlawed was taking literacy tests in order to vote. By making certain people take these literacy tests, it was considered unfair because many people were not able to get an education, which led them to automatically fail. -
Tet Offensive
This was a series of attacks on more than one hundred cities and outposts in South Vietnam by the North Vietnamese. The attacks were attempted to incite rebellion among the South Vietnamese population. It also encouraged the United States to scale back its involvement in the Vietnam War. The North Vietnamese did not appreciate the involvement of the United States and wanted them to step back and take back their troops. This would be because then they would not be helping the South Vietnamese. -
My Lai Massacre
The My Lai Massacre was known to be one of the most horrific incidents against unarmed citizens in Vietnam. It was when American troops went into a South Vietnamese village and killed the majority of them. The reason for its occurrence was to force those civilians back out because it was needed by the United States as a landing area for helicopters. There was much unrest about the situation because many United States citizens did not agree with the actions that were committed. -
Stonewall Inn
The Stonewall Inn Riots were a series of riots by members of the gay community against the police. It began in the early hours of June 28th, 1968. The police raided the Stonewall Inn, arresting anyone who was not acting through the traditional ways that were set by society. There was a tip that was told to the Stonewall employees, but it was so late that they did not believe it was true or that it would happen. By fighting back, this led to a step forward in equality for the LGBT community. -
Title IX
Title IX states that "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance". This means that it is applicable for both sexes to get benefits and promote equality in schools. More specially, high schools and colleges. It was signed by President Nixon. It was during June of 1972 when it became a law. -
Oil Embargo
The Oil Embargo, also known as the 1973 Oil Crisis, was when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries stopped sending oil over to the United States. It lasted from 1973 to 1974. The reason for this was because the U.S was allies with Israel. The Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries did not like this because they were not on good terms with Israel. This caused for an oil shortage in the U.S because that was where their main source of oil came from. -
Vietnam Syndrome
The Vietnam Syndrome was a term used in U.S. politics that referred to the fact that the United States overlooks its overseas military interventions. It was talking about the acts that were committed by the United States military. While they were wrong, they did not want to bring up the fact of what they did. They knew it was wrong and they were not proud of their actions. This term came up about after the Vietnam War. It was used by other countries that would refer to the United States. -
Three Mile Island
On March 28, 1979, the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant experienced a cooling malfunction that caused the temperature of the coolant to rise. This caused the reactor to automatically shutdown, which in turn caused the pressure in the reactor to increase. In order to relieve the pressure in the reactor a pilot-operated relief valve opened, once the pressure fell it should have closed, but remained stuck open. In the end, the staff took a series of steps but made the situation even worse.
