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The Iran Hostage Crisis
After the Shah of Iran was allowed to shelter in New York City to escape the successful revolution in Iran, 52 Americans at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran were taken captive for 444 days. Operation Eagle Claw was a miserable attempt at rescuing the hostages, and Carter’s administration appeared increasingly ineffective and weak as the crisis continued. Eventually, negotiations began and the hostages were released a few hours after Reagan became president. -
The Emergence of AIDS
At first, this disorder was called gay-related immune deficiency (GRID) because it seemed to be most prevalent among young gay men. However, as the issue proliferated, the CDC began referring to it as acquired immune deficiency syndrome. People realized it could also be passed through heterosexual sex, and the retrovirus HTLV-III and LAV were identified as the causes. These later became known as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). By the end of 1985, every part of the world had had AIDS cases. -
Sandra O'Conner becomes Supreme Court Justice
Despite the discrimination against women in the legal industry, O’Conner became the first female majority leader for a state senate, serving as Arizona’s republican senator twice. After also working in Arizona’s supreme court, she was nominated by President Reagan and elected unanimously by the Senate to serve as the justice for the Supreme Court. She often advocated for women’s rights during her time and became a crucial swing vote in many rulings such as Planned Parenthood v. Casey. -
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Ronald Reagan's Presidency
His doctrine was “peace through strength.” Internationally, he supported anti-Communist efforts, negotiated with Gorbachev to reduce tensions with the USSR, and increased the US government’s defense expenses by 35%. Although this led to a deficit, he also remained firm in his domestic policies for cutting taxes and reducing federal expenditures. He set out to strengthen American in all forms, including its economy and work force, which involved slowing inflation and increasing employment rates. -
Mikhail Gorbachev begins glasnost and perestroika
In May of 1985, Gorbachev openly criticized the USSR’s economy. The following year, he declared the need for perestroika and glasnost. He instituted ambitious reforms such as handing back a bit of control to business owners, which gave rise to privately-owned shops and companies. He also loosened the foreign trade limitations. These changes continued to destabilize the economy with inflation as farmers and producers could now determine their own prices and workers fought for higher wages. -
The Iran-Contra Affair
Robert McFarlane followed Reagan’s instructions to find some way to help the Contras’ anti-communist struggle in Nicaragua after such action had been banned by the Boland Act because of their brutal methods and drug-based sponsorship. McFarlane accomplished this by selling weapons to Iran, who had had a trade embargo with the U.S. In return, McFarlane won seven hostages back from Iran, and Oliver North funneled the money to fund the Contras. When this was revealed, it became a massive scandal. -
The Chernobyl Disaster
This nuclear power plant meltdown occurred in Chernobyl, Ukraine. Its estimated costs have been in the several hundred billion range, and the effects of it are still being felt today around the world. It significantly reduced the nuclear power production in the U.S. No one applied to construct another plant until 2007, and the progress in nuclear technology has been significantly hindered by the hesitation and controversy that now surrounds it. The meltdown also heralded the collapse of the USSR -
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
Gorbachev needed to cut the military spending of the Soviet Union as he fought to halt the downward spiral of its economy. After a couple years of back-and-forth negotiations, Gorbachev announced that he was ready to plan the elimination of intermediate-range missiles with no conditions. Gorbachev and Reagan built a hesitant but genuine relationship and the two signed the INF Treaty in December of 1987, eradicating their stocks of them from around the world. -
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George H. W. Bush's Presidency
Bush ended up focusing mostly on foreign affairs, successfully guiding America through the Gulf War and the collapse of the Soviet Union. However, it is often perceived that he failed in regards to domestic measures: the government was mired in deficit spending, and he was not able to keep his promise to not raise taxes. The faltering economy ultimately led him not being elected once more. -
The Berlin Wall Crumbles
As protests and tensions grew in Easter Berlin, the government officials attempted to ease some of it by loosening the border restrictions. The announcer stated that the citizens were now permitted to travel into Western Berlin. Masses swarmed to the wall to confront the few border guards on duty. The one in charge, Harald Jäger, acted without direct orders and opened the gates to prevent rioting. With that, the border began to crumble. -
The Gulf War
Saddam Hussein led Iraq into attacking Kuwait to gain control of most of the massive oil reserves in the Middle East. The United Nations condemned this action, and President Bush initiated Operation Desert Shield, amassing the forces of the United Nations from August of 1990 to January 17, 1991. The U.S. then launched Operation Desert Storm, which commenced with a five-week bombing mission in Iraq. Then, after four days of ground combat, the Iraq forces withdrew from Kuwait on February 28. -
The End of the Cold War- USSR dissolves
On this date, Gorbachev officially resigned, and Boris Yeltsin was left in charge as the president of a newly established Russian state. Gorbachev’s release of satellite countries and his implementation of glasnost and perestroika led to this, and the Russian tricolor flag replaced the Soviet symbol above the Kremlin. -
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Bill Clinton’s Presidency
Clinton’s major success was the economic boom in America. He lowered the government’s spending deficit, unemployment rates, inflation, and crime rates. One of his major failures was his inability to pass a national health care system. Under his leadership, America continued its conflict with Iraq when Saddam Hussein continued to cause issues. Ultimately, however, he also became the second president to become impeached. -
Oklahoma City Bombing
Timothy McVeigh planted and detonated a home-crafted bomb (made with the help of Terry Nichols) outside a federal building. 168 people were killed and over 700 were injured. The two main associates were ex-Army members and acted on the ideology of the extreme right Patriot movement, which was a rebellion against federal government and a disbelief in the system of law and police. McVeigh stated he wanted to avenge the death of the 80 people who died in the controversial Waco incident. -
Clinton Lewinsky Scandal
This was the sexual scandal that led to the impeachment of President Clinton. After tape recordings were exposed that provided proof of an affair between him and Monica Lewinsky, an intern at the White House, he was charged with perjury and obstruction of justice. He was the second president to have ever been impeached. -
The 9/11 tragedy
19 members of the al Qaeda, an Islamic extremist group, hijacked four planes. They crashed two of them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center and one into the Pentagon. Passengers on the fourth plane managed it crash in a field in Pennsylvania after hearing about the other planes. It became the deadliest terrorist attack to take place, resulting in around 3,000 deaths. It was the horrible catalyst for the U.S.’s mission to combat terrorism. -
Beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom
This U.S. operation began in collaboration with the British with an airstrike on Afghanistan. Its primary mission was to destroy the safe haven for the al Qaeda group in Afghanistan provided by the Taliban. By the end of 2001, numerous countries had committed troops to the cause, the Taliban had lost their last main city, and the Afghan Interim Authority was instituted with Hamid Karzai as its leader. This operation ended officially on December 28, 2014.