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G.I. Bill
This law was passed by president Franklin D. Roosevelt. It is to provide people who had served in the armed forces during WWII an education as well as other benefits. It helps aid veterans or people who currently serve in the military with their needs. -
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Cold War
The cold War was not an actual war but rather a sate of tension between the East and the West (mostly the U.S and U.S.S.R). This tension regarded communism V.S. capitalism, space race, and the arms race. -
Hiroshima
Hiroshima is significant for being the first city to be targeted by a nuclear bomb. On August 6th the U.S Air force carried out the nuclear bomb, "Little Boy", which directly killed 70,000 people. This bomb left the city in ruins and left radiation all over it. This made way for many more future nuclear attacks. -
Iron Curtain
The political boundary that separated East and West Europe. Eastern Europe was communist while Western Europe was capitalist. This was put in place after WWII in hopes of the East isolating itself and its people from capitalist beliefs of the West -
Berlin Airlift
After the Soviets blocked all travel to and from West Berlin America was shocked and decide to respond with military response. President Truman decided to conduct airlifts done by the U.S army in which they supplied the people of West Berlin with food, clothes, medicine, and other basic necessities. By the end of the airlifts there had been 200,000 planes that aided over 2 million people of West Berlin. -
Fair Deal
The "Fair Deal" was president Truman's plan for health care and minimum wage in America. He wanted the minimum wage to be raised, and also fought for all Americans to have health care. The Fair Deal also was to outlaw racial and religious discrimination in jobs. Unfortunately congress was against most of his points and the Employment Act of 1946 was the only thing to come out of the Fair Deal. -
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1950's
This decade marked much importance for American Culture. The creation of the stereo-typical American Family occurred at this time. The beginning of the Civil Rights Movement sparked during this time as well -
Television
In the 1950's the television became a typical house hold item. Americans began to watch it regularly for entertainment and news. Many popular shows came about at this time such as "I Love Lucy". Also political events began to be aired on TV for families to view. -
McCarthyism
Senator McCarthy of Wisconsin began to make accusation on people in the government who were supposedly communist. His accusations started to seem fake when he started pointing fingers at people in the military, which led him to be censured by the U.S Senate where he lost most of his allies. -
North Korea invades South Korea
Following the beginning of the cold war came the split of Korea between North and South Korea. The invasion started shortly after the North got support from the soviets. One night they performed a surprise attack and sparked the beginning of the Korean War -
Rock N' Roll
A music genre that swept the U.S in the 50's. This new music was contrary to popular belief, first sung by African American singers. Rock N' Roll was loved by teens and thought to be too provocative by parents. -
Ike Turner
Ike Turner is credited for producing the first known Rock N' Roll song ever. His song tittle "Rocket 88" is known to have influenced and started a new genre of music that was very influential in the 1950's youth culture. -
Beat Generation
Beatniks were known to challenge the ideals of 1950's and early 1960's ideals. Usually teens who rebelled their parents and did what pleased them, not caring what others thought. Many call them "The Hippies of the 50's". -
Brown V.S Board of Education
This was a landmark supreme court case in the United States.It declared Schools to be desegregated, and separate schools for white and black and white children were unconstitutional. -
Earl Warren Supreme Court
Earl Warren is most popularly known for being the 14th chief justice of the United State. He is very liberal with most of his decisions. He took part in many famous and significant supreme court cases such as, Brown V.S Board of Education and desegregating schools. HE was also apart of the Warren Commission that investigated J.F.K's assassination. -
Domino Theory
The term that came from President Eisenhower's speech in which he referred to South East Asian countries falling to communism after Vietnam rid its rule from France. -
Emmett Till Tragedy
Emmett Till was a boy who was killed when he was falsely accused of flirting with a white woman. While on vacation in Mississippi Emmett visited a store where he supposedly flirted with a white woman, later 2 close males of her's brutally beat and lynched Emmett. His mother had an open casket funeral to make it known about his injustice and pictures of his deformed face spread. The pictures shocked people everywhere and people began to stand up for their rights. -
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Civil Rights
The Civil Rights era was a fight for equality for African Americans in America. They fought for their equal rights, which brought protest, brutality, and years of fighting for what they believed in. -
Montgomery Bus Boycotts
After Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her seat to a white man in a public bus, civil rights activist began a bus boycott. The Montgomery bus boycotts lasted a whopping 13 months in which people did not ride the bus but instead carpooled or simply walked. The boycotts proved to be effective when segregation on public transportation became unconstitutional. -
Elvis Presley
Known as the "King of Rock N' Roll", Elvis Presley made a huge impact on American youth culture and quickly came to fame. His music was heard all around the U.S by teens. Parents believed his music had a sexual meaning and his music still lives on to this day. Today he is recognized as an American Music Icon. -
Dr. Jonas Salk
Dr. Jonas Salk discovered the Polio Vaccine. Although he didn't discover a cure he did find a way to prevent it. Before this people everywhere feared being in danger of dying because of this disease. Now thanks to him all Americans are vaccinated with his discovery and free of getting polio. -
Polio Vaccine
Dr. Jonas Salk announced that he had discovered a vaccine to prevent Polio. Polio was a major disease that affected thousands of American people before the cure. -
Eisenhower Interstate System
Roads were unsafe and many times confusing in the United States, so the president decided to carry out the Interstate system. This repaired unsafe roads, and created highways initially meant to carry out military affairs and evacuate people in case of emergencies. -
Orval Faubus
Orval Faubus was the 36th governor of Arkansas. He was a a firm believer in segregation in America. He was governor during the Little Rock Nine and denied the students entry to the school. He even went as far as to call the National Guard. His doing were later undone by the president who demanded the students be allowed entry. Shortly after segregation in schools all across America was ruled unconstitutional. -
Sputnik
This was the first artificial space satellite launched by the Soviet Union. This launch marked the beginning of the space race. After this many Americans were full of anxiety fearing that they were being watched by the Soviets. -
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1960's
A decade that started with much hope for America and ended leaving many people doubting the prosperity of the country in the future. With major issues like the Civil Rights movement and the Vietnam War, Americans were faced with a lot to handle. -
Sit- Ins
As part of Martin Luther King's non-violent protesting came sit-ins. During this practice African Americans sat a t white only dinners and asked to be served. They would not leave until otherwise, though most times they were harassed by employees or white customers. Many times sit -ins became violent while white customers thru food, punches, and even spit at them or punched them. -
Chicano Mural Movement
This Movement began in the 1960's. It was done by Chicanos in hopes to educate American people on culture and problems in the Chicano community. Murals were painted on the side of building in cities depicting the Mexican culture for others to have a better understanding and an insight look on the lives of the million of minorities in the U.S -
New Frontier
During his presidential acceptance speech JFK spoke of a "New Frontier". This new frontier was the of the 1960's for new scientific discoveries of space, solving problems with peace and war, and much more. The New Frontier was closely related to man reaching the moon. This was achieved in 1969 when The U.S crossed a new frontier when they placed the first man on the moon. -
Nixon & Kennedy Presidential Debate
This debate was the first televised presidential debate with millions of Americans who tuned in to watch. This was the first time that presidents paid much attention on how they appeared to the public. Out of the debates Americans voted in record setting numbers, and Kennedy came out on top. The Television can be credited for the presidents victory. -
LSD
This drug was popularized during the 1960's by the counterculture youth. When consumed this drug made people hallucinate and have lucid dreams. Many people took this to escape the troubles of the time. Soon this drug became all the craze with everyone taking it, and many became addicted, causing states to make it illegal. -
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is a volunteer program ran by the United States that was established by President Kennedy. Through the Peace Corps JFK hoped to encourage interaction between Americans and people of other nations. People in the program traveled to usually third world countries to offer aid and help its peoples. -
Sam- Walton's Just In Time Inventory.
Sam Walton was the creator of Walmart. During his planning of a new store he thought of the "Just In Time Inventory". This plan was to keep huge inventory of products, so that customers feel comfortable knowing where the things they are purchasing are kept. This was also efficient because if the store ran out of something on the shelves they had a whole batch more to place on display next. Years later Sam Walton's plan shows how successful it is. -
March on Washington
This march was held in the nations capitol in hopes of civil rights for African American people. This was the largest demonstration Washington ever. At this march people stood up for their equal rights, and it is here where M.L.K gave his famous "I Have a Dream" Speech. It was all over TV and Americans saw the drive that people had to fight for equal rights. A total of about 250,000 were in attendance to take part in the march -
Assassination of JFK
During a parade in Dallas, Texas president JFK was shot and killed by Lee Harvey Oswald. When shot his head was blown off and his wife tried to retrieve it. His killer was in a nearby building and was caught later that day when he was reported looking suspicious, he also managed to shoot a cop who questioned him. The reason for the assassination is still not known, and there are many speculations that Fidel Castro has something to do with it -
Warren Commision
This commission was made up by L.B.J to investigate the assassination of J.F.K. From the start the seven men on the commission were questionable to people if they were the right men for the investigation, with many thinking that they were trying to cover up something. At the end of the investigation they really didn't go deep into the assassination and just stated the obvious about the murder. Many people to this day are reluctant to believe the commission. -
Malcolm X
He was another Civil rights leader. Instead of using non-violent tactics he urged his followers to use violence as a means to achieve equality in society. He also believed forcing it upon people would be more effective.It has been said that the popular Black Panther Party later used his tactics in their practices. -
Daisy Girl Ad
This controversial Ad was used by President Lyndon B. Johnson during his presidential campaign. He hoped to win the votes of Americans by emotional appeal, and the little girls death due to a nuclear bomb did just that. Americans everywhere saw the urgency to prevent this and looked to L.B.J to hopefully help. -
Counter Culture
The counterculture of the 60's was a time in which the decades norms and people common values were broken. The people of the counterculture were young people who were usually college students and they were for civil rights and protested the war in Vietnam. Many of these people did what they pleased such as living the way they wanted and sleeping with whoever they wanted. -
Barry Goldwater
Barry Goldwater was a political figure who served as governor of Arizona for 5 terms. He is mostly known for running for president in the election of 1964 against L.B.J. In this election he made it very clear he was against Social Security system, Federal Income Tax, Civil Rights legislation, and much more. He was a very unpopular candidate and his opponent won votes at a large scale. -
Great Society
This was President Lyndon B. Johnson's plan for America during his time in office. It was a set of programs to promote the end of poverty and fight racial injustice in the states. Many of his ideas from this plan remain to this day such as Medicaid and Medicare, which are popular healthcare plans. -
Rodney King Incident
He was pulled over for drunken driving. Four white police officers proceeded to beat him with their night sticks. The whole incident was caught in tape, and broadcaster over the nations news. In reaction to this, the black community of Los Angles rioted for three day, burning various parts of the city. Nearly 2000 people were injured, and 40 died in the riot. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
outlawed discriminatory voting practices that had been imposing African Americans their right to vote. Prior to this Act many African Americans in the south were forced to take tests to see if they were qualifies enough to vote. They also feared being in danger if they did practice their right to vote. All of this was gone after the Act and they cold now freely vote without any restrictions. -
Black Power Movement
This was for the social and political empowerment of African Americans in the United States.Many times people who followed beliefs of the Black Power Movement wanted to use force to encourage civil rights and were not scared to fight back if needed. -
Warren Burger Supreme Court
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court from 1969 to 1986, he was responsible for bringing the Court somewhat back to the right after the Earl Warren years. He presided over major cases involving abortion, affirmative action, the death penalty, and school desegregation. -
Apollo 11
Space flight that landed the first two men on the moon. This marked a huge win for the U.S in the Space race against the Soviets. This event was broad casted on TV and a total of 600 million people watched as a new frontier was being crossed for mankind -
The Silent Majority's Involvement in Politics
Nixon Administration's term to describe generally content, law-abiding middle-class Americans who supported both the Vietnam War and America's institutions. As a political tool, the concept attempted to make a subtle distinction between believers in "traditional" values and the vocal minority of civil rights agitators, student protesters, counter-culturalists, and other seeming disruptions of the social fabric. -
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1970's
Era in which women, African Americans, Native Americans, gays and lesbians and other marginalized people continued their fight for equality, and many Americans joined the protest against the ongoing war in Vietnam. -
Watergate
The Watergate hotel was very popular with political figures, even president Nixon stayed there. It was discovered that the president along with other political figures were caught wire tapping and attempting to steal secret documents. After being caught Nixon denied it which caused him to loose support and question american politicians from then on. He later resigned because of the -
Roe v Wade
In this controversial supreme court case the topic of abortion was questioned. Roe was a fake name a woman used, she wanted an abortion but the state of Texas denied it. In the end abortion was ruled legal and dangerous illegal practices were left in the past -
Stagflation
During the 60's and 70's, the U.S. was suffering from 5.3% inflation and 6% unemployment. Refers to the unusual economic situation in which an economy is suffering both from inflation and from stagnation of its industrial growth. This was a growing problem and many Americans looked to political figures for help. -
Nixon's Resignition
The Watergate scandal escalated, costing Nixon much of his political support, and on August 9, 1974, he resigned in the face of almost certain impeachment and removal from office. -
General Ford's Presidency
Following the resignation of president Nixon was General Ford. Ford was the first un- elected president tin history. He served as president of the U.S from 1974 to 1977.He is credited with helping to restore public confidence in government after the disillusionment of the Watergate era. -
Decline of the Industrial Midwest
The Region of the United States from the Great Lakes to the upper Midwest States, referring to economic decline, population loss, and urban decay due to the shrinking of its once-powerful industrial sector, also known as de-industrialization. Industry was really big at one point but took a turn in the 1970's. Now this area in the Mid-West is known as the "Rust Belt" -
The Moral Majority
The Moral Majority was a political group made up of fundamentalist Christians. Although it did not accomplish much, it did show that Americans were starting to worry about the moral fabric of society. The believed strongly that morals were being left in the past and needed to be brought back. -
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1980's
The populist conservative movement known as the New Right enjoyed unprecedented growth in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It appealed to a diverse assortment of Americans, including evangelical Christians; anti-tax crusaders; advocates of deregulation and smaller markets; advocates of a more powerful American presence abroad; disaffected white liberals; and defenders of an unrestricted free market. -
Election of 1980
The election of 1980 had Republican nominee, Ronald Reagan against Democrat nominee, Jimmy Carter. Reagan was aided by the Iran Hostage Crisis and won by a landslide. With his win Republicans won control of the United States Senate for the first time in 28 years. -
Reagan Presidency
The policies of the first Reagan administration which increased defense spending reduced social programs and cut taxes. Based on supply side theory of growing the economy by cutting government interference and taxes. -
Reaganomics
This was the belief that US economic problems were caused by government intrusion in free market economic system. People believe there were too much regulation and too many handouts.IT was a new tax program claimed to reduce government regulation, and tighten the money supply in order to reduce inflation. -
MTV
MTV was a entertainment channel that started in the 80's. It started as a channel where music videos were featured. It quickly became popular among the youth. It normalized hip hop culture in the 80's and 90's. Celebrities started to take more time with music videos as they knew people would watch on MTV. -
Sandra Day O' Connor
The first woman to be in the Supreme Court. Appointed by Ronald Reagan, O'Connor was an Associate Justice from 1981 until 2006. She is affiliated with the Republican Party. She was more liberal. -
A.I.D.S. Crisis
It was diagnosed in US in 198. The epidemic didn't receive much attention as perceived as a gay mans disease. Later over 32,000 died in a 7 yr period, which brought attention to it. People became more cautious and checkups became crucial. -
Discount Retailing
The idea of sales during shopping became all the craze in america during the 80's. People began to be interested in good bargains and looked for the best prices offered. This consumer practice got its popularity in shopping malls and department stores everywhere in the 80's -
Iran Contra Affair
The Iran Contra Affair was a scandal that erupted during the Reagan administration when it was revealed that US government agents had secretly sold arms to Iran in order to raise money to fund anti- communist "Contra" forces in Nicaragua. -
Challenger Explosion
The space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds into flight, killing all aboard. The explosion was caused by a faulty seal in the fuel tank. The shuttle program was halted while investigators and officials drew up new safety regulations, but was resumed in 1988 with the flight of the Discovery. -
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah is best known for being a great philanthropist. She established Harpo Productions in 1988 and was named one of TIME 100 Most Influential of 20th Century. In 2003 Forbes listed as first African American female billionaire -
George H.W Bush
George H.W Bush was the 42nd president of the United States, previously being Ronald Reagan's vice-president. His policies and ideals derived heavily from his predecessor and were built on them. He was a well-to-do oil tycoon before devoting himself to the public. He served as a congressman, emissary to China, ambassador to the UN, director of the CIA, and vice president before becoming president. -
Fall of the Berlin
The fall of the Berlin wall marked the end of communism in East Berlin. To celebrate the people of East Berlin tore down the wall that had stood for 28 years separating the city. -
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1990's
The end of the 20th century was filled with much commission. New issues arose with middle eastern powers. It was also a time of new rapid advancement of technology such as the computer. Culture also became largely swayed by music of the time (Hip-Hop) -
Affordability of Personal Computers
Before the 1990's most people did not own their own personal computers. Computers were so large in size that mostly colleges and big companies used them to organize and store information. It wasn't until 1990 that the computer was more normalized and people could now use it for work or just plain entertainment. -
Persian Gulf War/ First Iraq War
After Iraq invaded Kuwait, the US invaded Iraq to liberate Kuwait.Iraq set Kuwait's oil fields on fire so the Americans couldn't gain the oil, which caused the US to set military bases in Saudi Arabia. Also called Operation Desert Storm -
Climate Change Findings Come Out
The issue of global warming and tension in the Middle East is causing debate on America's dependence on fossil fuels and the search for alternative, eco-friendly resources. -
Election of 1992
President George H.W. Bush ran for a second term as a republican while the Democrats nominated Bill Clinton. The key issue was the economy and both said they would help with unemployment. In the end Bill Clinton won a significant electoral victory with 43% of the votes. -
Don't Ask, Don't Tell Policy
The act prohibits any homosexual or bisexual person from disclosing his or her sexual orientation or from speaking about any homosexual relationships, including marriages or other familial attributes, while serving in the United States armed forces. -
NAFTA
This was put in place in order to establish a free trade zone between Canada, United States and Mexico. This resulted in a net gain in jobs due to opening of Mexican business in the U.S -
Lewinsky Affair
In early 1998, inquiries led to charges that the president had had a sexual relationship with a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky; that he had lied about in his deposition before Paula Jones's attorneys and that he had encouraged Lewinsky to do the same. -
Bush v Gore (SCOTUS CASE)
The court ruled that manual recounts of presidential ballots in the Nov. 2000 election could not proceed because inconsistent evaluation standards in different counties violated the equal protection clause. In effect, the ruling meant Bush would win election. -
Election of 2000
In the presidential election of 2000 Republican nominee George W. Bush ran against Democratic nominee Al Gore. This was a very controversial election due to the suspicious victory of Bush. Gore won the popular vote but the votes in the state of Florida were disputed and recounted. Suddenly the recount was halted and Bush was named the president. This left many people upset and suspicious of what had happened and if the government had fixed the votes. -
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Contemporary
The now modern era began with many issues regarding middle eastern conflicts and a new fear of terrorism in the United States. New boundaries were crossed when the first African American president in the U.S took office in 2008. The era contained many horrible disasters which tested the will of the American people, and continues today. -
9/11 Atacks
This was the tragedy of the terrorist attack on the famous World Trade Center. The attack was carried out by two plane highjakers who crashed in to the north and south towers killing all the passengers on board and many people in the buildings. This incident changed America forever, with the fear of terrorism increasing and customs becoming more strict. -
No Child Left Behind Education Act
This act was apart of president Bush's education reform.This put in place the standardized test the states are required to give to their students to test their reading and math skills from grade 3 on. This act was put in place to give test that improved Teacher Quality State Grants, increase the academic achievement of all students by helping schools and school districts to improve teacher and principal quality and ensure that all teachers are highly qualified. -
Hurricane Katrina
This natural disaster is considered to be the one crisis of the Bush administration's 2nd term and in its inefficiency to deal with the crisis. It destroyed 80% of New Orleans and more than 1300 people died, while the damages toppled $150 billion. This tragedy brought upon more problems for the U.S such as it's people, and its economy. -
Immigration Upticks from Asia and Latin America
In the years of 2006-2009 america saw rapid growth in its population. With thousands of immigrants from mostly Asia and Latin America coming over to make a better lives for their families and themselves. Many Americans saw this time as a horrible time as they felt they were getting robbed of their tax money to sustain the lives of these immigrants. Contrary to popular belief researchers saw that many jobs that came about during this time were thanks to the immigrants. -
The Great Recession
Officially began in December 2007 and ended in mid-2009, has had long-term lingering effects on unemployment, and was preceded by the largest housing bubble in US history, caused by short term economic thinking, speculation, and irresponsible spending. -
Election of 2008
The election of 2008 was one to change the United States forever. It was between Democratic nominee, Barrack Obama, and Republican nominee, John McCain. In the end Barrack Obama won both the popular as well as the electoral votes. He won and was named the new president of the United States making history as the first African American president -
First Hispanic SCOTUS (Sonia Sotomayor)
Sonia Maria Sotomayor is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. In 2009 she made history in America when she became the first Hispanic SCOTUS member. She was nominated by President Barrack Obama. She is affiliated with the Democratic party and is more on the liberal side. -
Affordable Care Act (ACA) "Obamacare"
An expansion of Medicaid, most of employers must provide health insurance, have insurance or face surtax, prevents rejection based on pre-existing condition. Also referred to as "Obamacare", signed into law in 2010. This was apart of president Barrack Obama's plan to offer a better choice for healthcare. Today this act helps million of Americans afford healthcare , but it is unfortunately at risk of being taken away. -
OPEC
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries; international cartel that inflates price of oil by limiting supply; Venezuela, Saudi Arabia and UAE are prominent members. Made to take caution from another recces ion because of oil such as the one in 1973.
