US History STAAR Study Guide

US HISTORY STARR TEST:MAY 6, 2019

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 Revolutionary Era People
George Washington – Commander of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. He was also the 1 st President of the United States.
Thomas Jefferson – Author of the Declaration of Independence and 3rd President of the United States.
Benjamin Rush – American physician and political leader, a member of the Continental Congress and a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
John Hancock – American Revolutionary leader and first signer of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.
John Jay – A Founding Father of the United States who served the new nation in both law and diplomacy. He established important judicial
precedents as the first Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court (1789–95) and negotiated the Jay Treaty of 1794.
John Witherspoon – Scottish-American Presbyterian minister and president of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University); he was the
only clergyman to sign the Declaration of Independence.
John Muhlenberg – A Lutheran minister and a brigadier general in the Continental (American revolutionary) Army. He commanded the infantry at
the battle of Yorktown.
Charles Carroll – American patriot leader, the longest- surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence, and the only Roman Catholic to sign that
document.
Jonathan Trumball, Sr. – One of the few Americans who served as governor in both a pre-Revolutionary colony and a post-Revolutionary state.
During the American Revolution he was the only colonial governor who supported the American side.

Founding Documents
Declaration of Independence – Lists of grievances against King George III and justifies the colonies breaking away from England – includes
philosophy of Unalienable Rights – Rights that cannot be taken away: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable
Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among
Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these
ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government.”

The Articles of Confederation (1781) – First form of government established by the thirteen states. Replaced by the U.S. Constitution because it
had a weak central government.
Weaknesses included…
- No executive branch to enforce laws
- Congress could not collect taxes
- No national court system
- Each state had only one vote in Congress, regardless of population

United States Constitution - Supreme law of land for United States drafted at Constitutional Convention- Delegates from the thirteen states
drafted the U.S. Constitution in Philadelphia.
The Preamble is the introduction of the Constitution that states its purpose.
Ratification – to formally approve to go into effect, 9 out of 13 states had to ratify the Constitution

Principles of the U.S. Constitution

Separation of Powers – Divides the powers of the government into Checks and Balances – Makes sure no branch of government becomes too
three branches powerful. Example: The President can veto a bill and Congress has the power
Legislative Branch- makes the laws to override the veto.
Executive Branch – executes the laws
Judicial Branch – interprets the laws
Federalism – Power is shared between the states and national Limited Government – Power of the govt. is restricted by the U.S.
government. Constitution. “No one is above the law.”
Republicanism – A system where people vote for elected Popular Sovereignty – The people hold supreme power. Addressed in the
representatives to run the government. preamble…“We the people…”
Individual Rights – The individual rights protected in the Bill of Rights include economic rights related to property, political rights related to freedom
of speech and press, and personal rights related to bearing arms and maintaining private residences.

Approving the Constitution

Federalists – those who supported the Constitution and favored a strong federal government,
Anti-Federalists – those who wanted a constitution to include a Bill of Rights and favored a weaker central government with more power to the
states
Federalist Papers (1787-1788) – Essays written to encourage ratification of the Constitution. The authors include Alexander Hamilton, John Jay,
and James Madison.

The Bill of Rights

 The first ten amendments of the Constitution
 Protect individual rights and liberties
 The Bill of Rights was necessary in order for some states to ratify the Constitution

1st Amendment – Freedom of speech, religion, and press, right to assemble and petition
2nd Amendment – Right to bear arms

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3rd Amendment – No quartering of soldiers during peace time
4th Amendment – No unlawful search and seizure
5th Amendment – No double jeopardy; protect against self- incrimination (cannot be compelled to be a witness against himself), eminent domain
(government must pay for your property if they wish to take private property for public use)
6th Amendment – The right to a speedy and public trial by jury in criminal cases
7th Amendment – Trial by jury in civil cases
8th Amendment – No cruel or unusual punishment
9th Amendment – Rights reserved to the people (just b/c it isn’t written down, doesn’t mean it is illegal)
10th Amendment – Powers reserved to the states

Alexis de Tocqueville
French political thinker and historian best known for writing Democracy in America, examining the equality of social classes and liberty enjoyed in
the United States in the 1830s. Wrote about the values crucial to America’s success as a constitutional republic: liberty, egalitarianism,
individualism, populism and laissez-faire.

Five Values of American Democracy

Liberty – people are free - “Liberty cannot be established without morality, nor morality without faith.”

Egalitarianism – society of equals - “Americans are so enamored of equality, they would rather be equal in slavery
than unequal in freedom.”

Individualism – a persons life or wealth is what they make it – not determined by government - “They owe
nothing to any man, they expect nothing from any man; they acquire the habit of always considering themselves as
standing alone, and they are apt to imagine that their whole destiny is in their own hands.” “Men attend to the
interests of the public, first by necessity, afterwards by choice; what was intentional becomes an instinct, and by
dint of working for the good of one's fellow citizens, the habit and the taste for serving them are at length
acquired.”

Populism – people run the government / vote for officials - “It is indeed difficult to imagine how men who have entirely renounced the habit of
managing their own affairs could be successful in choosing those who ought to lead them. It is impossible to believe that a liberal, energetic, and
wise government can ever emerge from the ballots of a nation of servants.”

Laissez-faire – government does not interfere with the economy – “hands off” - “America is a land of wonders, in which everything is in
constant motion and every change seems an improvement.”

Westward Expansion
As the Transcontinental Railroad moved west beyond the Mississippi River, railroads and government encouraged the civilization of the West. The
government used the Homestead Act of 1861 to entice speculators to invest in land and farmers to move west and tame the land. Promises of cheap
land and increased opportunity encouraged the move west. 160 acres were provided with the promise to pay for title fees and improve the land
within 5 years. Railroads made the migration west easier and provided greater transport of goods between coasts. Mineral and timber resources lead
to a booming economy. Railroads were government subsidized with land rather than money and allowed railroads to sell land to speculators, develop
regional distribution centers, survey land for towns which became metropolitan centers. Railroads were given one section of land (one square mile-
6400 acres) for each mile of track laid. Further capital was raised from stock and bond speculation. By 1890 the US Census Bureau declared the
western frontier as closed, no longer a frontier, but civilized. 10 states were created between 1861 and 1890.

Manifest Destiny – the belief that the United States should stretch from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans; land acquisition through the 1860s

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Railroads
• Encouraged settlement in the West – made settlement easier
• Created thousands of new jobs
• Transcontinental Railroad completed in 1869 connected the U.S. east & west by train

California Gold Rush (1849) – After gold was discovered in California, over 40,000 people migrated from the East to “strike it rich.”

Klondike Gold Rush - Between 1896 and 1899 over 40,000 attempted to strike it rich in the gold fields of Canada along the Klondike River.
Permafrost made mining a greater challenge and the usual problems of a boom town included unsanitary conditions, epidemics, and overcrowding
made the struggle more difficult. In 1903 heavier machinery was brought in to make mining less of a challenge and operations moved to Nome,
Alaska.

Settlement of the Great Plains - the Homestead Act of 1862 encouraged farmer to move West and claim 160 acres of land. After
1870 the transcontinental railroad brought hundreds of immigrants and other farmers on the Plains. The lack of water and trees
forced the construction of sod houses and the use of dryland farming techniques. The destruction of the buffalo and removal of
native tribes resulted in a changed landscape.

Homestead Act (1862) – Law that provided 160 acres to anyone who was willing to settle land in the West.

Exodusters – African Americans who migrated to Kansas after Reconstruction.

Cattle Drives – As demand for beef increased, cowboys drove herds of cattle along cattle trails to be shipped to the East by
railroad. Famous trails include the Chisholm, Western, and GoodnightLoving.

Technology on the Great Plains

Soddy – a house built of mud and grass that was settled because of a lack of wood on the Great Plains.
Barbed wire – Used to fence in land on the Great Plains, eventually leading to the end of the open frontier.
Windmill – allowed dry-land farming by bringing up underground water to irrigate crops on the Great Plains.
Steel Plow – Farm machine used to break up soil to allow the planting of crops. The steel plow made farming more efficient.

Native Americans and A Way of Life

Buffalo – The Great Plains Indians relied on the buffalo to continue their way of life. When the buffalo was killed off, so was the lifestyle of the
Plains Indians.

Reservations – Plots of land given to Native Americans to live on as white settlers moved West.

Dawes Act – U.S. law that attempted to assimilate Indians by giving them individual plots of land.

Battle of Wounded Knee – U.S. soldiers massacred 300 unarmed Native Americans in 1890. This ended the Indian Wars.

The Gilded Age

Business During the Gilded Age

Andrew Carnegie – Business tycoon who controlled most of the Steel industry. Carnegie was also known as a “Captain of
Industry” and a “robber baron.”.

Wrote “The Gospel of Wealth” was Carnegie’s famous essay about the role of industrialists.

Known for his philanthropy – building libraries/donating to education to help less fortunate

John Rockefeller – Business tycoon who owned Standard Oil and Controlled 90% of the oil industry in the late 1800’s. He
was able to control the industry by making Standard Oil a trust.

Monopolies – Situation in which one company controls the supply of a product or service.
Trusts – Small companies join together to form one large company, usually as a monopoly.

Reactions to Big Business

Sherman Antitrust Act – Outlawed business monopolies

Labor Unions – Organizations that protected the interests of the worker.

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 - Labor unions dealt with the dangerous working conditions and long working hours that workers were faced with.
- They helped end child labor practices.
- Famous labor unions include the Knights of Labor and American Federation of Labor (AFL).
- Labor unions helped organize strikes to protest the injustices of the workplace.

Industrialization & Urbanization

Industrialization – The rise of a manufacturing economy and decline of an agricultural economy.
Urbanization – The large growth of cities. With urbanization came a large range of urban problems including sanitation, transportation, and
crowded living conditions.

Jane Addams – Founder of Chicago’s Hull House; campaigned for feminists and child labor reform.
First woman to receive Nobel Peace Prize for her work with settlement house

Settlement houses – community centers that helped immigrants address the problems of squalid living conditions, disease,
illiteracy, and unemployment.

Social Gospel- movement applying Christian ethics to social issues, particularly issues of social justice.

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 - prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers after they worked in the gold rush and railroad expansion in the mid
19th century. Violence in Los Angeles related to immigration expansion and the number of young males lead California to push for a limit to Chinese
immigration. This was the first legislation that singled out a particular ethnic group in the US.
Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 – Law designed to regulate the railroads and their monopolistic ways of doing business.

Politics During the Gilded Age

Political machines – Corrupt organized groups that controlled political parties in the cities. A political boss leads the machine and
attempts to grab more votes for his party.

William “Boss” Tweed – Ran Tammany Hall Political Machine in New York City

Tammany Ring Scandal – Political scandal involving William Tweed and the Tammany Hall political machine in New York City.

Civil Service Reform – laws passed in the 1870s and 1880s began to require government workers to take tests to work for the government and
began replacing the “spoils system”.

Populism – The movement of the people, born with the founding of the Populist Party in 1892. William Jennings
Bryan was their leader.

Farm Crisis (1880s-1890s) - Farmers had over-farmed their land, were being overcharged to ship products and were
deep in debt. Would lead to support of Populist Party.

Immigrants
• About 20 million European immigrants arrived in the U.S. between 1870 and 1920.
• Before 1890, most immigrants came from Western and Northern Europe. These were known as the “Old Immigrants.”
• An increase of Southern and Eastern immigrants occurred after 1890. They were known as the “New Immigrants” and their arrival increased
social tension.
• 300,000 Chinese immigrants arrived between 1851 and 1883.

Tenements – Apartments built in city slums to house large numbers of people. Many immigrants
were forced to live in tenements in “slum” neighborhoods.

Child Labor was a major problem during the Gilded Age.

Sweat shops – A small factory where workers work many hours in bad conditions for little pay.
Immigrants (and children) were considered cheap labor and paid very little for their work.

Frances Willard – American educator, temperance reformer and women’s suffragist. Influence was instrumental in the passage of the
18th and 19th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. President of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union and advocate of “Do
Everything” policy including serving soup kitchens and medical clinics. First woman represented in Statuary Hall in the nation’s Capitol

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 The Progressive Era
Goals of Progressivism:
- Protect social welfare
- Create economic reform
- Political reform of government

Third Parties during Progressive Era

Populist Party - founded primarily to incorporate the needs of farmers and later represent labor unions
beginning in the 1880’s following economic panics, non political and evolved to be political in nature
demanding relief and protection from monopolies

Progressive Party - began in 1912, when the Republican party split between endorsing the incumbent William
Howard Taft and supporting former president Theodore Roosevelt; also known as the Bull Moose party when
an attempt on Roosevelt’s life failed and Roosevelt proclaimed “it takes more than that to kill a bull moose;” reforms called for
women’s suffrage, direct election of senators and direct primary elections; the split resulted in the election of the Democratic
candidate, Woodrow Wilson, but eventually would see the reforms enacted

Important terms:
Muckraker – Reporters and writers who exposed government corruption and the abuses of big business.
Suffrage – The right to vote.

Important Legislation:
Anti-trust acts - Sherman Anti-trust Act, which made monopolistic behavior of companies illegal,also had difficulty in being
enforced until President Theodore Roosevelt came along and applied it correctly to big business rather than unions. The Clayton
Anti-trust Act, which further defined and restricted company’s monopolistic behavior and limited the continued growth of
monopolies,was passed during the administration of another Progressive President, Woodrow Wilson.

Interstate Commerce Act - allowed the federal government to prevent monopolies to trade beyond state lines, directly aimed at
the railroad industry and expanded to include other types of monopolies. Lacking the necessary power to enforce their will at
first, the ICC would have to wait almost 15 years before they would have the backing to control the railroads. The railroads were
the first industry to be regulated and the Interstate Commerce Act was the beginning of the end of laissez-faire.

Pure Food and Drug Act - along with the Meat Inspection Act, promoted greater safety enforcement in the area of food and
drugs after The Jungle exposed abuses and potentially unhealthy conditions in the meat-packing industry

Federal Reserve Act of 1913 – Created and set up the Federal Reserve System, the central banking system of the United States
of America, and granted it the legal authority to issue Federal Reserve Notes (now commonly known as the U.S. Dollar) and
Federal Reserve Bank Notes as legal tender.

16th Amendment – Established the federal income tax.

17th Amendment – The direct election of U.S. Senators. Made govt. more responsive to the people.

18th Amendment – The prohibition of alcohol.

19th Amendment – The right to vote for women.

Initiative – Procedure by which citizens can propose a law to be placed on a ballot.

Referendum – A vote on an initiative.

Recall – Procedure by which a public official may be removed from office by popular vote.

Lobbying - begin the process of petitioning governmental leaders with petitions and initiative, referendum and recall

Non-violent protesting - temperance (Women’s Christian Temperance Union, Prohibition Party) and women’s suffrage/rights
(Anti-Saloon League, Women’s Suffrage, seeking divorce and property rights

Litigation - African Americans such as W.E.B. DuBois raising awareness of civil rights, N.A.A.C.P. (National Association for
the Advancement of Colored People) amendments - 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th

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The photographs of Jacob Riis helped expose the poor living conditions of the inner-city:

Theodore Roosevelt’s Impact

Trustbuster – Term used to describe Roosevelt’s attempt to reform big business by breaking up trusts.

Conservation – The preservation of wilderness areas.

Meat Inspection Act – Regulation of the preparation of foods and the sale of medicines.

Bull Moose Party – Roosevelt’s political party in the election of 1912. Roosevelt ran as a third-party
candidate.

National Park System - created in 1916, to manage the national parks, such as Yellowstone (1872) which as the first national
park had lacked state management; Yosemite National Park began as a state park and moved to federal control; Teddy
Roosevelt’s actions influenced by John Muir

Important People of the Progressive Era

Upton Sinclair - authored The Jungle, exposed corruption and unsafe conditions in the meat-packing industry; led to reforms in
meat-packing, packaged food and medicines and culminated in the Pure Food and Drug Act as well as the Meat Inspection Act

Susan B. Anthony - leading force in the women’s suffrage and equal rights movement as well as alcoholism and slavery. Along
with Elizabeth Cady Stanton, she formed the Woman's State Temperance Society of New York in 1853 and remained an active
force until her death in 1906

Ida B. Wells - anti-lynching, suffragist, women’s rights advocate, journalist and speaker. A more militant thinker and writer who
contributed to the foundation of the early civil rights movement as well as offered insight into the African American female
identity during the late 19th century

W. E. B. DuBois - African American intellectual, graduate of Harvard and first to earn a Ph.d. Promoted the concept of the
“Talented Tenth” the most intellectual black elites to advance the cause for all blacks. Published the Souls of Black Folk and
encouraged the immediate extension of rights to blacks so they could vote, take advantage of educational opportunities and use
public facilities. Helped to organize the NAACP, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, editor of
“the Crisis” until 1934 and promoted litigation to achieve equality. Frequently sparred with Booker T. Washington and
challenged his views on equality.

Jacob Riis -author of How the Other Half Lives, called attention to the plight of immigrants, life in tenement housing, and
pollution in ghettos.

Ida Tarbell -author of History of Standard Oil company, which led to the recognition of monopolistic behavior of companies.

Lincoln Steffens - author of Shame of the Cities, which increased awareness of the political machines and their destructive
political qualities.

Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette - as a reformer of state government developed the “Wisconsin Idea,” which changed
government programs process, and services to citizens of Wisconsin. He used expertise of colleges and universities as well as
experts on state commissions.

Teddy Roosevelt - first Progressive president , initiated suits against monopolies, good and bad trusts, established the
Department of Commerce and Department of Labor; increased the authority of National Park Service; negotiated the Anthracite
Coal Strike, neither side won; initiated “Square Deal;” and the Republican Party split to create the Progressive Party (Bull
Moose)

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William Howard Taft - increased the number of suits filed against monopolies to 90; Ballinger-Pinchot controversy over forest
conservation

Woodrow Wilson – The last President of the Progressive Era. Wilson passed the Clayton Antitrust Act which continued to
crack down on monopolies.

American Expansionism/Imperialism
Expansionism – refers to the doctrine of a state expanding its territorial base (or economic influence) usually, though not
necessarily, by means of military aggression.

Alaska (1867) –Purchased from Russia in 1867. Alaska was known as “Seward’s Folly” and was initially considered a bad
purchase.

Hawaii (1898) –Queen Liliuokalani was removed from power and Hawaii was annexed by the United States in
1898. Sanford B. Dole serves as President, Territorial Governor, and a US District Judge after the monarchy
ends.

Spanish American War (1898)

America becomes involved in world affairs, leaves its infancy and childhood to become a colonial empire and compete with
European powers on the international stage

Causes of the Spanish-American War

Spanish cruelty – Spain’s military abused power and mistreated Cubans

Yellow Journalism – News that exaggerates the truth in order to get a reaction

De Lome Letter – Letter intercepted from a Spanish ambassador criticizing President McKinley of the United States

U.S.S. Maine – U.S. warship blown up in Havana Harbor off the coast of Cuba. The Spanish were blamed and war was
declared.

Results of the Spanish-American War

- Spain loses most of its empire
- The Platt Amendment allows the U.S. to control Cuba
- The U.S. acquired the territories of the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico
- The U.S. increases its strength as a world power

Open Door Policy - In 1899 Secretary of State John Hay sent a letter to other major powers including England, France Italy,
Germany, Russia and Japan asking that territorial integrity be recognized and that ports be accessible to all countries equally
without regards to spheres of influence. In principle the countries agreed but fights over mining rights, railroad rights,
extraterritoriality, and trade continued to exist.

Teddy Roosevelt and Expansionism

Assistant Secretary of the Navy gave orders to attack Spanish fleet in the Philippines; resigned to
organize the Rough Riders and fight in Cuba; 26th President of the US

Rough Riders – Volunteer cavalry unit led by Teddy Roosevelt that gained fame at the battle of San
Juan Hill.

Roosevelt Corollary – Teddy Roosevelt declared that the U.S. would act as an international police
power in Latin America.

Panama Canal – Man-made waterway that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. Roosevelt was President when
construction began in 1904.

Important People during American Expansionism

Henry Cabot Lodge - supported expansion in the Senate to increase national pride, spread civilization, trade and global power
and respect from other nations. Supported coaling stations, naval bases in Pacific, control for Hawaii, Guam, Philippines, strong
navy

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Alfred Thayer Mahan - admiral and naval historian, author of The Influence of Sea Power on History (1890)-equated sea
power with world commerce and foreign power, promoted the acquisition of coaling (fueling) stations

Sanford B. Dole - negotiated Hawaiian annexation which paid republic debts in full but would remain as public trust for
Hawaiian residents; 1900 first Hawaiian Territorial Governor, presiding Hawaiian district court judge 1903-1915;

Panama Canal - Physically-reduced travel time and distance between the Atlantic and Pacific Human-reducing cost of goods
and increased communication, educate and uplift and introduce Christianity, “white man’s burden” Reduced the effects of
malaria on workers

Dollar Diplomacy - instituted under President Taft conceived at the end of Teddy Roosevelt’s term to promote American
investment in Latin America as well as East Asia

World War I (1914-1918)

The US attempted to stay out of the war in Europe, but eventually was forced into the war with the promise that this would be the
“war to end all wars.” The US entered the war as a result of the Zimmerman Telegram, arguing for the right of neutrals in order
to make the world safe for democracy.

Causes of World War I

Militarism Nations built large armies to help them secure their empires.
Alliances European nations signed secret treaties with each other that created a system of alliances.
Imperialism Competition between European countries to create empires.
Nationalism Strong feelings of pride for one’s country.

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Final Spark Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary

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Important Dates
1914 – World War I begins in Europe
1917 – The United States enters WWI on the Allied side
1918 – The Allies win WWI when Germany surrenders

Important People
Archduke Franz Ferdinand – Archduke of Austria Hungary Assassinated by a Serbian in 1914. His murder was one of the
Causes of World War I.

Woodrow Wilson – President of the United States during World War I. Wilson wanted to fight the war “to make the world safe
for Democracy.”

General John Pershing – The commander of the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. Under his leadership,
American forces helped end the stalemate and led the Allies to Victory.

American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) - new to the battlefield experience and not tied to trench warfare; created new energy,
particularly with the French troops

Henry Cabot Lodge – U.S. Senator who opposed the League of Nations.

Alvin York – Medal of Honor recipient for leading an attack against a German machine gun nest in WWI.

Allied Powers Central Powers

- Great Britain- - Germany
- France - Austria-Hungary
-The United States - The Ottoman Empire
- Russia - Bulgaria
-Serbia

Reasons for U.S. Involvement in WWI

Sussex Pledge – Central Powers vowed not to attack any passenger ships without warning – they ignored their own pledge

Lusitania – British passenger ship that was destroyed by a German submarine. 128 Americans were killed.

Unrestricted Submarine Warfare – German policy of sinking any ships in the water, including merchant and passenger ships.

Ties with Great Britain – Americans and British spoke the same language. We shared the notion of democracy. Many
Americans traced their ancestry to Great Britain.

Zimmerman Note – Telegram sent by Germany, proposing that Mexico ally itself with Germany if the United States entered the
war. In return, Mexico would receive land that it had lost to the United States.

Key Terms:
Trench Warfare – Opposing sides attack from ditches instead of an open battlefield.

New weapons introduced during the war: machine guns, poison gas, tanks, and airplane warfare or “dog fighting.”

Stalemate – A situation where neither side can gain an advantage in combat.

Battle of Argonne Forest – final allied offensive of WWI – last major battle of World War I – resulted in a win for the Allies
because of the American Expeditionary Forces, led by General John J. Pershing

isolationism - non interference with countries outside the US with the exception of limited trade

neutrality - freedom to trade with all sides equally v. neutral as noninvolvement

machine guns - fired hundreds of rounds per minute caused devastation on the battlefield

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airplanes - used for reconnaissance and later for “dogfights” in the air

tanks - used and developed at the end of the war to protect troops moving across the battlefield and trenches

poison gas - mustard gas used to settle in low spots, particularly in trenches, upon exposure caused burning and destruction of
soft tissue, person faced slow painful death

Schenck v. US - whether free speech was violated by the Espionage and Sedition Acts-question raised by Justice Oliver
Wendell Holmes whether there was a right to yell “fire” in a crowded theatre when there was a “clear and present danger.”

Plans to End the War

Wilson’s Fourteen Points – Woodrow Wilson’s proposal for peace after WWI. Wilson called for freedom of the seas, ending
secret treaties, a League of Nations and other peaceful measures. neutrality of seas, remove tariffs, reduce militarism, no secret,
treaties, self-determination for nations, create an association of nations

League of Nations – International organization formed after WWI to help solve disputes between countries. The United States
did not join due to fears of being pulled into another international war.

Treaty of Versailles – The treaty that ended WWI. It blamed Germany for WWI and handed down harsh punishment, made
Germany pay $33Billion in reparations. The treatment of Germany in the treaty helped lead to the rise of Adolf Hitler and
WWII.

The Roaring Twenties

Important People
Henry Ford – Automobile manufacturer who created the Model T and began to mass-produce the automobile.
Ford used the assembly line to speed up production and satisfy demand. The assembly line lowered the prices to
make the automobile more affordable for an average American.

William Jennings Bryan – famous first presidential bid in 1896 and 1900 as well as 1908; served as Secretary of
State under Wilson but resigned prior to WWI; eloquent speaker and made famous the “Cross of Gold Speech in
1896; prosecuting attorney for the Scopes trial where he supported the literal interpretation of the Bible and
denounced teaching evolution in schools July 1925

Clarence Darrow – Defended John Scopes during the Scopes Trial he argued that evolution should be taught in
schools.

Charles Lindbergh – American pilot who made the first non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean in
the Spirit of St. Louis May 20, 1927. Established reputation as engineer and pilot

Glenn Curtiss – Pioneer aviator and leading American manufacturer of aircraft by the time of the
United States’ entry into World War I – “Father of Naval Aviation” and Founder of American Aircraft
Industry

Marcus Garvey – Charismatic black leader who organized the first important American black nationalist movement
(1919–26), based in New York City’s Harlem. promoted the concept of African nationalism-the return of blacks to
Africa to create a great nation of their own. Sold shares to raise funds for the United Negro Improvement Association
to encourage black-owned business and the independent black homeland in Africa. Investors of the Black Star Line
were promised huge returns. Garvey was convicted of mail fraud and later pardoned by President Coolidge and
deported

Political Issues
Red Scare – The fear that Communists were going to take over the United States in the 1920’s. This fueled people’s suspicions of
foreigners and led to immigrant quotas.

Teapot Dome Scandal – The prime example of corruption during Warren G. Harding’s Presidency. Secretary of the Interior,
Albert Fall had authorized the lease of naval oil reserves at Teapot Dome, Wyoming and accepted bribes in return. Harding’s
Attorney General was implicated as not prosecuting selected criminal cases until Congress discovered the issue in 1924. The
scandals may have contributed to Harding’s unexpected death in 1923.

Economic Issues: Causes of Prosperity during the 1920’s

- Government policies that reduced govt. interference in business

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- The growth and use of the automobile industry
- Efficient production techniques such as the assembly line
- Mass consumerism from the American public
- Overconfidence of American consumers led to the widespread use of credit.

Social Issues
Women’s Issues in the 1920’s
- Flappers embraced urban attitudes and fashions.
- Women began to demand more freedom and assert their independence.
- A double standard between men and women still existed.

Prohibition – Reform movement that banned the sale and consumption of alcohol. It also increased organized
crime.

18th Amendment – Prohibition is enacted and alcohol is illegal.

21st Amendment – The 18th Amendment is repealed and Prohibition ends.

The Scopes Trial – The famous “Monkey Trial” that pitted creationism against Darwin’s theory of evolution. The trial
represented the clash between science and fundamentalist religion.

Social Darwinism – theory of societies applying the theory of Darwinian evolution to sociology and politics.

Eugenics – applied science or the bio-social movement which advocates the use of practices aimed at improving
the genetic composition of a population, usually referring to human populations.

Nativism – favors the interests of certain established inhabitants of an area or nation as compared to claims of newcomers or
immigrants.

American Indian Citizenship Act 1924 – granted citizenship to America’s indigenous people in recognition for Indians who
served during World War I, Calvin Coolidge granted full citizenship to American Indians without requiring to serve in the
military, joining mainstream American society or giving up tribal claims.

Cultural Issues
The Jazz Age – Term coined by F. Scott Fitzgerald to describe the 1920’s.

Jazz – A popular form of music. Famous jazz composers include Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.

The Great Migration – The mass migration of African-Americans to Northern cities from 1910-1930.

The Harlem Renaissance – outpouring of black artistic and literary creativity that expressed pride in the African American
culture while promoting full social and political equality Period of African-American cultural creativity in music, art, and
literature during the 1920’s, centered in Harlem. Ex: poet Langston Hughes.

Tin Pan Alley - section of New York City noted for selling sheet music at the end of the 19th century. Small offices attempted
to sell and promote sheet music with the sound of a variety of pianos playing different pieces of music simultaneously in the
same area

Art of Roaring 20s - reaction to industrialization, mechanization and growing cities in the works of Edward Hopper, Georgia
O’Keeffe, Alfred Stieglitz, Diego Rivera, Thomas Hart Benton music - availability of radio promoted jazz stemming from
southern musicians (Jelly Roll Morton), West African rhythms and ragtime (Scott Joplin), Harlem’s Cotton Club (Duke
Ellington)

Film of the Roaring 20s - focused on the changing morals of the time period as well as silent movies and the growth of the film
industry in Hollywood with Cecil B. DeMille, Charlie Chaplin and westerns; including the “Jazz Singer” and more importantly
“The Birth of A Nation;” introduction of Walt Disney with “Steamboat Willy”

Literature of the Roaring 20s - Lost Generation of writers including Hemingway’s Farewell to Arms, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s
Great Gatsby and This Side of Paradise reflected a disillusionment in the “modern” culture, the brutality of war, and lack of
compassion by the wealthy

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 The Great Depression, 1929-1940
The Great Depression begins in 1929 with stock market crash and bank runs lead to economic collapse and severe
unemployment; excesses of the 1920s and return to laissez-faire policies are to blame resulting in lack of faith in Herbert
Hoover’s “rugged individualism”

Impact of tariffs on world trade - increase in tariffs resulted in a glut of supply and reduced purchases in the world market
thereby increasing American unemployment

Stock market speculation - "margin buying" paying for a portion of the actual stock price and the temptation for quick profits in
rapidly rising prices resulted in overpriced stocks

Bank failures - "runs" on the bank to pull checking and savings accounts prior to failure; questionable accounting practices; and
over speculation in the market (real estate, agriculture, and stocks) resulted in banks not having enough cash on hand to be
solvent; most failed banks were privately owned banks rather than state banks

Monetary policy of the Federal Reserve System - the supply and value of money makes up monetary policy; the Federal
Reserve and Department of the Treasury maintained a currency based on a gold standard; England dropped the gold standard for
currency which impacted imports and export prices

Causes of the Great Depression

- Decline in agricultural prices B – Buying on Margin / Bank failures
- Unequal distribution of income. I – Increased Interest Rates
- Overproduction of consumer goods. S – Stock Market Speculation
- Consumer overconfidence & buying goods on credit. H – High Tariffs
- Buying stocks on margin for quick profit - Bank failures S – Stock Market Crash

Herbert Hoover (1929-1933): President when the Great

Depression began. Hoover is criticized for allowing the Depression to deepen. He was defeated when voters looked to
the federal government for help.

Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945): Defeated Hoover in1932. Implemented the New Deal to help with the Great
Depression. Gave fireside chats on the radio to communicate with the American public.

Eleanor Roosevelt – First Lady and supporter of FDR’s New Deal and WWII policies. Also, championed civil rights
for women and minorities. Eleanor defined the role of First Lady under her husband, Franklin Roosevelt, serving as
his legs as she travelled across the country, gave speeches, and reported her experiences regarding New Deal programs
concerns or successes to the president during the Great Depression. She actively promoted better treatment for minorities,
despite threats from the KKK. She wrote a daily newspaper column “My Day” that she used to connect to the American public.
After FDR’s death, Eleanor continued to take political stands as one of the first delegates to the United Nations, chaired the UN
Commission on Human Rights, drafted the Declaration on Human Rights and chaired Kennedy’s Presidential Commission on
the Status of Women.

Important Dates
October 29, 1929 – Black Tuesday - The Stock Market Crash.

Life during the Great Depression

Unemployment – Unemployment rose as high as 25% during the Great Depression. since all sectors of the economy
experienced deep economic depression, unemployment will rise to its level at 25% plus unemployment or 1 out of 4 families.

“Hoovervilles” – Shantytowns on the outskirts of the cities of homeless and unemployed people.

Bread lines and soup kitchens – Methods by which the needy could obtain free or low-priced food.

Dust Bowl – overproduction, drought, and poor land management in the Great Plains resulted in monstrous clouds of dust, not
only effectively burying farms in dust and creating dust lungs, but removing critical topsoil

Deportation and repatriation of people of European and Mexican heritage - repatriated refers to people returning to their

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homeland. As immigrant labor found themselves out of work to make way for American workers, many repatriated to their
homeland. Unfortunately, many Mexicans were American citizens.

John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath – Famous novel that describes the hardships of the Great Depression. In the novel, a
family from Oklahoma moves to California to escape the Dust Bowl.

Country and western music - another genre of music that combined bluegrass, folk music of the 1930s, with gospel which led
to the development of Nashville, Tennessee as the recognized center for this genre of music. In Texas in the 1930s and 1940s,
“western swing” was a combination of big band, blues, dixieland,and jazz.

FDR’s New Deal Policies

Created “security” for jobs and workers of all vocations; economic and social adjustments

Hoover Dam (Boulder Dam) – Dam built on the Colorado River to help stimulate business and provide jobs.

The New Deal Programs during the Great Depression

Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) – Law that attempted to raise crop prices by lowering production.

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) – Public works program that gave jobs to young men. The workers planted
trees, fought forest fires and built public parks.

Works Progress Administration (WPA) – Created jobs by hiring writers and artists.

New Deal Programs still in effect today:

FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) – Provided insurance for people’s bank accounts.

SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) – Govt. agency that regulates the stock market.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) – Program that built dams in the Tennessee Valley area in order to control
flooding and provide electric power.

***Social Security Act*** -- The most important act of the New Deal. Social Security provided unemployment
insurance, aid to the disabled, old age pensions, and insurance for families. Social Security - funded to provide
small retirement opportunities for Americans, mostly the laboring class, while providing assistance to special
groups, such as children with handicapping conditions. By the mid-1980s, issues of program solvency arise as more
and more of our domestic resources are used to fund the program.

New Deal Opponents

Huey Long - Governor of Louisiana, known as the “Kingfish”; proposed his “Share Our Wealth” and “Every Man a King”
program to take money from the wealthiest Americans through taxation and re-distribute to other Americans, capping income at
0 million and providing ,000 per family in his accounting; candidate for president 1936 and assassinated prior to the Democratic
nomination; extremely liberal position denied as a socialist philosophy, Long proclaimed it came from the Bible; provided
patronage jobs in his home state and hoped to expand across the nation
Francis Townsend - proposed the government should provide a pension of 0 to elderly Americans in their retirement beyond age
65; later adopted as the Social Security program under the New Deal

Father Charles Coughlin - Canadian Catholic priest whose popular radio program, produced in Detroit, expanded across the
nation; criticized the New Deal as the “Pagan Deal”; removed from the air because of anti-Semitic and Fascist comments

Supreme Court - declared two New Deal programs (AAA and NRA-”blue eagle”) as unconstitutional
and challenged the New Deal on the basis of interfering with small businesses, dictating hours, pay, and
benefits for workers; led to Roosevelt’s “court-packing” plan

-FDR battles the Supreme Court – The Supreme Court had declared several New Deal
programs unconstitutional. In order to get his programs passed, FDR tried to add more
members to the Supreme Court, a tactic known as court-packing.

-WWII brought us out of the Depression by creating jobs in industry and the military.

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 World War II (1941-1945)
World War II began in 1939 with the invasion of Poland after attempts of appeasement failed; American involvement after the
attack on Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941; war in Europe ended May of 1945 followed by Japanese surrender in August of 1945
after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Important Dates
1939 – Adolf Hitler invades Poland. WWII begins.
1941 – Japan attacks Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii. As a result, the U.S. enters the war.
1945 – Germany is defeated to end the war in Europe. The atomic bomb is dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki to end the war in the Pacific.

Causes of World War II

- Harsh treatment of Germany after World War I / conditions listed in Treaty of Versailles
- The rise of dictators and totalitarianism in Europe.
- German attacks on Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia, and Poland
- Japanese attack and invasion Manchuria and Nanjing province of China
- Italian attach and invasion of Ethiopia and North Africa

Allied Powers Axis Powers

-Great Britain -Germany
-France -Italy
-United States -Japan
-Soviet Union

Mobilization for the war effort - mobilized war making from domestic usage switching from “butter” to “guns” and continuing
the sacrifices made during the Great Depression; reduced number of automobiles and increased the number of ships, planes,
tanks and other implements of war to be distributed among Allies; recycling drives and rationing contributed to rapid
mobilization as well as labor union agreements to not raise wages or strike during the war
Important People
Franklin D. Roosevelt – President of the United States during WWII. Declared war on Japan after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Harry Truman – President of the United States during WWII. Made the decision to use the atomic bomb on Japan.

General Dwight Eisenhower – U.S. general in Europe during World War II. He was in charge of the Invasion of Normandy
(D-Day) – was named Supreme Allied Commander of all Allied forces in Europe. He was born in Texas, raised in Kansas, led
the invasion of North Africa in 1943 and defeated Rommel’s Afrika Korps in 1943 before pushing into Europe.

General Douglas MacArthur – U.S. general in charge of the Allied forces in the Pacific Ocean. graduate of West Point, veteran
of WWI and II; commanded troops in Southwest Pacific and presided over Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay; left Philippines
prior to invasion with “I shall return”; appointed military governor of Japan 1945-50

General Omar Bradley –U.S. Army general with ability to organize large forces and concern for individual soldiers;
commanded divisions in North Africa under Dwight Eisenhower; commanded First Army during D-Day and Normandy
campaign; participated in Patton’s march through France and Belgium in Ardennes areas; drove through central Germany to
Elbe River and joined Russian forces to push into Czechoslovakia

General George Marshall – Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army during World War II. He oversaw all military operations in the
War in Europe. After the war, he was responsible for the Marshall Plan. He was a graduate of Virginia Military Institute (VMI);
aide to Pershing during WWI; organized Civil Conservation Corps during New Deal; US Army Chief of Staff-organized troop
training, development of strategic plans, appointed top military personnel

Admiral Chester Nimitz – Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet during WWII. He was born and raised in Fredericksburg,
Texas; rank of Fleet Admiral as five star admiral of US Navy; dual commander of Commander in Chief, US Pacific Fleet
(CinCPac) and Commander in Chief, Pacific Ocean Areas (CinCPOA) for Allied air, land, and sea forces during WWII; leading
Naval authority on submarines and well as Chief of the Navy’s Bureau of Navigation in 1939

General George S. Patton – U.S. Army officer who was an outstanding practitioner of mobile tank warfare in the European
and Mediterranean theatres during World War II. He was a soldier and graduate of West Point, learned tank tactics during WWI
on similar tactics of cavalry in Killeen, TX; directed amphibious landings on Casablanca, North Africa campaign, led Third

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Army out of Normandy; assisted with Battle of the Bulge; marched into Germany; despised the communists of Russia and
proposed that remaining German and US forces combine against the Soviet Union; favored retaining Nazis in some positions
after the war; “Blood and Guts” was considered one of the most successful field commanders of any war

The Flying Tigers – The 1st American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the Chinese Air Force in 1941–1942, famously nicknamed
the Flying Tigers, was composed of pilots from the United States Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. All volunteer flying units
created to train a new Chinese Air force in the American model; commanded by Claire Chennault; 3 squadrons of 20 planes
each; a shark face was painted on the nose of the Curtiss P-40 fighters; located in remote villages in western China; depended on
early warning system; tactic included the “dive-and-zoom” to avoid the turning maneuverability of Japanese planes

Navajo Code Talkers – About 400 young Navajo men who served as radio operators for the US Marines and transmitted secret
communications on the battlefields of WWII. They drew upon their proud warrior tradition to brave the dense jungles of
Guadalcanal and the exposed beachheads of Iwo Jima. Their unbreakable code played a pivotal role in saving countless lives and
hastening the war's end. Their code was never broken by the Japanese and the soldiers had the ability to code and decode
messages in a fraction of the time it took coding machines to do it.

Tuskegee Airmen – first African-American military airmen; trained and flew single or multi-engine planes and were trained at
the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama; first class graduated 1942; escorted bombers and recorded over 200 combat missions; known
for their Red Tail on the back of their planes. They were the most decorated unit of ALL of World War II.

Vernon J. Baker - spring 1945, only black officer in his company-commanded weapons platoon with 2 light machine gun
squads and 2 mortar squads; near Viareggio, Italy ordered to attack Castle Aghinolfi at dawn held by German forces; second day
of assault, Baker led the battalion that secured the mountain; received Purple Heart, Bronze Star, and Distinguished Service
Cross during his service; 52 years after military service President Clinton awarded him with the Congressional Medal of Honor;
only living black veteran to earn the Medal of Honor

The War in the Pacific

Pearl Harbor – On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, as a result, the U.S.
enters the war.

Battle of Midway – The turning point in the war in the Pacific. This pivotal battle dealt a severe blow to the Japanese navy.
Japanese navy attempted to entrap the remaining American fleet; American forces were able to outmaneuver the Japanese
Admiral Yamamoto and Nagumo after deciphering their code and Japanese miscalculations replacing torpedo and dive bombs; 4
Japanese carriers, Akagi, Kaga, Soryu and Hiryu were sunk while American navy lost the carrier Yorktown

Island-hopping – Allied naval strategy to reach Japan by taking one island at a time. Island hopping after the successful Battle
of the Coral Sea, retaking one island after another until close enough for an invasion of the main Japanese island; aerial attacks
and fire bombing targets by Doolittle in Tokyo from bases in China attempted to reduce Japanese morale
The atomic bomb – Powerful weapon dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Harry Truman made the
decision to drop the bomb in an effort to reduce American casualties. As a result, WWII ends.

Bataan Death March –Started in April 1942, after Allied forces had to surrender after 3 month battle on the Bataan Peninsula.
The forcible transfer, by the Imperial Japanese Army, of 76,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war after the three-month
Battle of Bataan in the Philippines during World War II, which resulted in the deaths of thousands of prisoners.

The War in Europe

The Holocaust – The mass murder of 6 million Jews and others in Nazi concentration camps.

Invasion of Normandy (D-Day) – On June 6, 1944, General Dwight D. Eisenhower led an Allied attack on German-controlled
France. The Allied forces won the battle, causing German forces to retreat.

Battle of the Bulge – last major battle where Germans attempted to break through Allied lines of Western Front of France

Liberation of concentration camps - over 300 extermination and labor camps were opened as Allied troops crossed Germany
and Poland including Auschwitz liberated by Soviet troops, Dachau liberated by American troops, and Treblinka destroyed by
Germans and never liberated

The Homefront
Entering WWII helped the United States end the Great Depression.

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High levels of military enlistment, volunteerism - the attack on Pearl Harbor; the enlistment of Hollywood celebrities such as
Jimmy Stewart, Clark Gable as well as Ronald Reagan; movies and cartoons encouraged patriotism and demonized Axis leaders

Internment of Japanese-Americans – Forcing over 100,000 Japanese Americans to relocate to crowded prison camps during
WWII. During the war, women and minorities played a large role at home. Women and minorities were asked to fill the jobs that
were left behind by soldiers going overseas.

Victory Gardens – government rationed sugar, butter, milk, cheese, eggs, coffee, meat and canned goods to distribute items to
soldiers; lack of transportation and harvest labor made getting goods to market difficult; citizens were encouraged to make up for
shortages by planting gardens of fruits and vegetables, offered information on canning goods; 20 million Americans planted
gardens where available, front, back, side yards, community gardens, rooftop gardens and formed cooperatives; rationing books
were issued based on personal appearance before a rationing board; rationing prevented rapid inflation

War Bonds – used to finance military expenditures; generally affordable to different income levels; purchased for .75 in ten
years would mature and pay ; Norman Rockwell’s Four Freedoms series on tour resulted in 2 million in bonds; Hollywood
celebrities were encouraged to promote the sale of bonds around the country; approximately 5 billion were raised in total

US Office of War Information – a U.S. government agency created during World War II to consolidate government
information services. It operated from June 1942 until September 1945.

Executive Order 9066 – Executive Order by Franklin D. Roosevelt in February 1942 that led to the internment of Japanese and
Korean Americans for the duration of WWII. It allowed military to establish zones "from which any or all persons may be
excluded”; used primarily to restrict the movements of Japanese Americans on the West Coast; Japanese born and American
born; sent to relocation centers in Wyoming, Utah, Arkansas-most notable Manzanar, California Gila River, Arizona Minidoka,
Idaho; Detention centers- Crystal City, Kennedy and Seagoville, Texas few of the 140,000 Japanese on Hawaii were relocated;
attempt to keep life as close to normal as possible including education, Boy Scout troops

Women during the War: Rosie the Riveter, nickname for women taking jobs traditionally reserved for men including ship and
airplane manufacturing as well as munitions along with more traditional secretarial positions and nursing; more employment
outside the home; women found greater independence during the war than after

Opportunities and obstacles for minorities: African Americans “Double V” campaign to promote victory over discrimination
and victory over fascism; large numbers moved to take jobs in major cities such as Detroit and Chicago only to face
discrimination and race riots

Important Terms
Two-front war – Germany was forced to fight British and American troops from the West and Russia from the East. This
divided Germany’s army in two and helped the Allies gain the advantage in Europe.

Rationing – Wartime restriction of items used by the public.

COLD WAR BEGINS

Plans for After the War
United Nations (1945) – International organization formed after WWII to serve as a peacekeeper in world conflicts. The United
States and Soviet Union used the UN to promote their beliefs during the Cold War.

Containment – The policy that the United States should prevent communism from spreading to other nations.

Truman Doctrine - promised an alternative to the Soviet threat through military support and began with a promise to aid Greece
specifically

Marshall Plan - encouraged the economic alternative to nations wanting to avoid communism beginning in Europe and expanded
to other Third World Countries

North Atlantic Treaty Organization - offered a military alliance between countries in Europe and based in Brussels, Belgium

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 Domino Theory - fear of communism and the
spread of communism into South Vietnam
from North Vietnam and support from
Communist China similar to the spread into
South Korea

Life under Harry Truman (1945-1952)

GI Bill (Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944) - assisted returning veterans of WWII in three areas:
education (for those who did not complete high school-General Education Diploma, GED; continued
higher education in colleges and universities led to profound college enrollment and university
expansion; measuring college potential with SAT-Scholastic Aptitude Test); low interest loans for
homes and business startups; promoted a more

Taft-Hartley Act – Law passed in 1947 that struck a blow to the power of the labor union. The bill
overturned many rights won by unions under the New Deal.

Support for Israel - since Israel’s creation in 1947, the US supported Israel’s right to exist and provided
economic and military support; the result put America at odds with other Middle Eastern countries and
caused US support for favorable administrations in Iran and Egypt

The Baby Boom – The period from the end of World War II through the mid-1960s marked by unusually high birth rates. 50
million babies were born between 1945-1960 as a result of confidence in the economy and general relief during post WWII; the
direct impact included economic purchasing and increased attention devoted to this new generation for education and future
growth

Effects of prosperity in the 1950s - increased consumption increased jobs and tertiary jobs which lead to further spending and
more taxable income for the federal government; government surpluses resulted in three of eight years

Increased consumption - led to additional purchases; new homes meant purchasing items to be used in and around the home
which increased jobs and new technology along with innovations; per capita disposable income increased three times on average
between 1945-1960; the influence of television with one out of 3 Americans owning a set increased the demand for new
products such as air conditioning and automobiles

Growth of agriculture and business - increased demand meant increased food supply through more effective technology,
farming methods such as fertilizers as well as businesses related to simplifying meals and increasing convenience-frozen
dinners, canned and pre-packaged foods

Suburbs – Communities built on the outskirts of Major cities. Levittown was the first suburb community.

McCarthyism - Senator Joseph McCarthy’s attempt to expose the communist influence in America and charges of 205
communists working in the State Department created a fear of its expansion and American vulnerability

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) - prosecutions by Richard Nixon, the committee hearings fomented the
continued surveillance of communist activity which led to the Alger Hiss affair, and the Julius and Ethel Rosenberg executions.

The Rosenbergs (1951) – An American couple who were accused of Communism and helping the Soviet Union obtain
information about the atomic bomb. They were found guilty and sentenced to death.

Venona Papers - counter-intelligence program that originated in 1943 under General Mark Clark to gather information related
to Soviet espionage in the U.S.; findings exposed possible spying within the Manhattan Project, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and
additional Soviet espionage in Central Europe

Korean War - North Korea’s invasion of South Korea led to the first major United Nations military action; support from
Communist China rather than the Soviet Union countered by American support of South Korea as a “police action” in an attempt
to contain communist expansion in East Asia

Korean War (1950-1953)

- After WWII, Korea was divided between North and South at the 38th parallel.
- North Korea (Communist) invaded South Korea (Democratic) in 1950.

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- As a result, the United States sent troops to help the South Koreans.
- In 1953, the war ended in a stalemate but South Korea remained a democracy.

Life under Dwight Eisenhower (1953-1960)

Interstate Highway Act (1956) – Authorized the building of a national highway system. The new
roads encouraged the development of suburbs away from the city.

Rock N’ Roll – originated with a combination of African American blues, jazz, gospel and Western
swing; made popular among the youth culture influencing dress, language and culture; accentuated in
new technology including snare and bass drums, electric guitar and amplifiers; early influences
included Little Richard, Bo Diddley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Fats Domino; later evolution will lead to the
development of subcultures and “hard rock

Beat Generation - movement of rebellious writers such as poet Allen Ginsberg, The Howl, 1956 and
Jack Kerouac, On the Road, 1957; the Beatniks encouraged rebellion of traditional standards and
inspired the 1960s youth movement questioning traditional values of women, families and government fed by Vietnam protests,
violence on college campuses, and government reaction

Space Race – Competition between U.S. and U.S.S.R. for supremacy in space exploration between 1957 and 1975. American
feeling of advancement was thrown off balance with the successful launch of the Soviet satellite “Sputnik”; the fear and
possibility of launching armed missiles without a defensive mechanism lead to a race for conquering space; Kennedy’s proposal
to “land a man on the moon and return him by the end of the decade” forced the Americans and Soviets to compete in space
rather than consistently share new technologies;

Sputnik launch in 1957 ignites U.S.-Soviet space race - the Soviet Union and the United States take the challenges between
these super powers, leading to the escalation of nuclear weaponry, increased defense spending.

Civil Rights Act of 1957 – First civil rights legislations since Reconstruction. Protected voting rights of all voters by making it
illegal to coerce, intimidate or interfere with a person’s right to vote.

Beat Generation – a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s who originally met in New
York and would later move to San Francisco.

Life under John F. Kennedy (1961-1963)

Kennedy and Richard Nixon were involved in the first televised debate.

Peace Corps – Volunteer program that helped developing nations.

New Frontier – Kennedy’s program that addressed social and international concerns and the expansion of
the space program.

Cuban Missile Crisis - In October of 1962 after the disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion, U-2 reconnaissance
planes discovered Soviet missiles launch pads in the process of being built in Cuba. The East Coast of the
US, including Washington, DC. were at risk as potential targets. With multiple options available, Kennedy
chose to blockade further Russian supply ships and insisted on removing all weapons. If challenged the incident could have
escalated to full scale nuclear war between the US and Soviet Union. Khrushchev eventually relented and removed the missile.
Kennedy would later remove missiles from sites in Turkey and sign a Nuclear Test Ban Treaty with the Soviets.

NASA – The United States’ space agency that sent Americans into outerspace. In 1969, the first man landed
on the moon.

Apollo 11 - Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin successfully landed on the moon in July 1969 meeting John F. Kennedy’s
goal from 1961, to send a man to the moon and return him successfully to Earth

On November 22, 1963, John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.

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Life under Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1968)
Great Society – Lyndon B. Johnson’s program that addressed America’s social problems including
health care, civil rights, and urban decay.

The War on Poverty – Johnson’s agenda designed to help poor Americans. This included the Head
Start program and Job Corps Training.

Medicare (1965) – Federal program that provides health insurance to Americans over the age 65.

Medicaid (1965) – Program that provides health insurance for people on welfare.

HUD (Housing and Urban Development) – The federal department responsible for the major housing
programs in the United States.

Johnson’s Civil Rights Record

Civil rights was a focal point during the Johnson administration and many laws were passed during his Presidency including:
- The Civil Rights Act of 1964 – Made discrimination based on race, religion or national origin in public places illegal.
- The Voting Rights Act of 1965 – eliminated literacy tests for voters.
- 24th Amendment – abolished the poll tax.
- The Civil Rights Act of 1968 – Prohibited discrimination in the sale or rental of housing.

CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT

The Struggle for Freedom
Slavery – Bound in servitude as the property of another person. The slave trade brought slaves from Africa to the colonies and
the United States.

Abolition movement – The movement to end slavery. Famous abolitionists include Frederick Douglass
and William Lloyd Garrison.

Emancipation Proclamation (1863) – during the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln freed all the slaves in the
Confederate states. Slave states loyal to the Union were allowed to keep their slaves.

13th Amendment – Abolished slavery.

14th Amendment – Defined U.S. citizenship & gave all equal protection under the law
15th Amendment – Gave all men right to vote regardless of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude”

Early Struggles for Equality

Segregation – separation of races

Jim Crow laws – Southern race laws that encouraged segregation and discrimination against African-
Americans

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) – Supreme Court decision that upheld segregation and said that “separate but
equal” facilities were legal.

Early African-American Leaders

W.E.B. Du Bois – Early civil rights leader and founder of the NAACP. Du Bois demanded equality
for African-Americans.

Booker T. Washington – Early African-American leader who believed African-Americans should

achieve economic independence before social equality.

Techniques used to prevent voting:

- Poll taxes
- Literacy tests
- The Grandfather clause
- Racial violence with the Ku Klux Klan and others

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Civil Rights Gains Support in 1950s
Desegregation of the armed forces - Truman integrated the armed forces signing Executive Order 9981 only two weeks after
receiving the Democratic nomination in 1948 as part of his Fair Deal Program. Dixiecrats threatened Truman’s re-election
chances as a result

Civil Rights Act of 1957 - set up a six member Civil Rights Commission to oversee and investigate violations related to
elections. It was enacted by Congress to support the Brown v. Board of Education decision. Reaction in Congress included
Senator Strom Thurmond's historic longest filibuster.

American Indian Movement (AIM) – Organization of the Native American Civil Rights movement. Focusing on recognition
of their rights, AIM temporarily seized some federal government properties in the early 1970’s

Chicano Mural Movement – Outgrowth of the Civil Rights Movement and as a way to document history, express their cultural
heritage and promote political social activism - Artistic movement from the 1920s through its height in the 1950s inspired by
nationalistic, political, and social themes from the revolution in Mexico; murals highlighted on government buildings were
influenced from artists such as Diego Rivera, Jose Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros

Important People
Rosa Parks – member of the NAACP; arrested December 1, 1955 for refusing to give up her seat on a public bus
to a white man; actions led to a boycott of the Montgomery, Alabama bus company; US Supreme Court ruled
segregation on city buses was unconstitutional; Martin Luther King participated in the meeting and launched his
civil rights career

Malcolm X – Black Muslim leader who argued for separation, not integration, and influenced the Black
Power movement. He changed his stance but was assassinated in 1965.

Martin Luther King, Jr. – Civil Rights leader during the 1950’s and 60’s. He helped organize the
Montgomery bus boycott to protest segregation on buses. He organized the March on Washington where
he delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. King was assassinated in 1968.

Thurgood Marshall – Supreme Court justice and argued many cases in the Supreme Court including
Brown v. Board of Education.

The Little Rock Nine – Group of African-American students that were integrated into an all-white school, Little
Rock High School, in 1957.

Cesar Chavez –Helped organize mostly Spanish- speaking farm workers into the United
Farm Workers of America. The success of this union led to other civil rights reforms for Hispanic
Americans, including bilingual education. He also used strikes, boycotts and other means of civil
disobedience; urged cooperation between growers and workers

Dolores Huerta -- Co-founder of the United Farm Workers of America and longtime supporter of farm
workers rights. The success of this union led to other civil rights reforms for Hispanic Americans,
including bilingual education. (United Farm Workers)

Hector P. Garcia- founded the G.I. Forum for Mexican-Americans; had an MD from the University 0f Texas at
Austin in 1940; earned the Bronze Star during World War II; protected the rights of Mexican-American veterans
as well as financial and medical benefits; member of the Texas State Democratic Committee and the Democratic
National Committee; founded the Political Association of Spanish-Speaking Organizations (PASO) and involved
in LULAC, League of United Latin American Citizens and awarded the Medal of Freedom in 1984

Betty Friedan - author of the 1963 book, Feminine Mystique, that reflected the frustrated lives of women, asking “is that all that
there is?” after expecting to be fulfilled through the achievements of their husbands and children; founder of the National
Organization for Women (NOW) and the National Women’s Political Caucus

George Wallace – 4 term Governor of Alabama in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s. A staunch segregationist who ran for President 4
times. Famous for his quote “...I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever.” .” As governor he physically
refused two African American admission to the University of Alabama in his infamous “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door as a
public display of defiance.

Orval Faubus – 6 term Governor of Arkansas from 1955- 1967. Known for his stand against integrating schools in Little
Rock and Eisenhower federalizing the National Guard in Arkansas and removing them from Faubus’ control.

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Lester Maddox – 1 term Governor of Georgia in the late 1960’s and a staunch segregationist who refused to allow MLK’s
body to lie in state in the Georgia Capitol after MLK’s assassination., claiming plots of potential riots and storming of the
capitol. Mourners participated peacefully in the funeral procession as 150 state police guarded the capitol grounds.

Congressional Bloc of Southern Democrats - Dixiecrats left the Democratic party during the election of 1948 after Truman’s
nomination to the ballot. The State’s Rights Democratic Party focused on segregation and state’s rights as the dominant party
platforms and ran no candidates for local or state offices. The result was a slow demise of the “Solid South” as a political bloc in
national elections. When Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota introduced a plank for ending segregation, 35 southern Democrats
walked off the floor of the convention. At Birmingham, Alabama delegates chose South Carolina Governor Strom Thurmond as
their party’s candidate for President and hoped to send the election to the House of Representatives when no majority was
reached. The party received 39 electoral votes in the election but not enough to disrupt the 303 votes for Truman and 189 for
Dewey.

Civil Rights Organizations

LULAC – League of United Latin American Citizens (help Latinos)

National Organization of Women (NOW) – founded in 1966 to support “full equality for women in America.” Founded by
Betty Friedan, author of Feminine Mystique. Gloria Steinem was another leader of this movement. Phyllis Schlafly vocal
opponent of women’s movement

Civil Rights Legislation / Laws

Brown v. Board of Education (1954) – Supreme Court decision that made segregation illegal in public schools - 1954 Linda
Brown and 8 year old African-American was denied access to a school five blocks from her home, instead assigned a school 21
blocks from home; reversed Plessy v. Ferguson (separate but equal doctrine) and established “integration with all deliberate
speed” based on evidence that schools were indeed separate, but not equal by their nature; first applied to education and
expanded to include other facets of society;

24th Amendment – Abolished the poll tax.

Civil Rights Act of 1964 - The act outlawed discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion or national origin. It was the most
definitive and comprehensive act for civil rights since Reconstruction. It was intended to enforce integration in schools,
employment and voting rights

Voting Rights Act of 1965 - The act further defined the right to vote in the 15th Amendment without regard to race.

Mendez v. Westminster - 1946 precursor to Brown v. Board indicated segregation of Mexican-American children in a
California school district was illegal and led to Delgado v. Bastrop I.S.D. in Texas

Hernandez v. Texas - 1951 Edna, Texas field hand Pedro Hernandez murdered his employer; challenged Jim Crow
discrimination against Mexican Americans

Delgado v. Bastrop I.S.D. - segregation of Mexican-American children in a Texas school district was illegal

Edgewood I.S.D. v. Kirby - sought a review of an appellate court order that found the Texas school financing system violated
the Texas constitution; wealthy districts had 700 times more funding per student available than poorer districts; sought “Robin
Hood” plan lacked educational efficiency; court did not offer a solution or specific remedy but did set a time limit of September
1991 to develop a new financing system for the state

Sweatt v. Painter - 1946 Heman Sweatt applied to admission to the University of Texas School of Law meeting all eligibility
requirements except race; state court dismissed case but US Supreme Court ruled the scheme continued to violate the Equal
Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment; where no public graduate schools existed for non-white students, students must be
admitted to white schools; UTexas admitted black students when no program existed at universities such as Prairie View A&M
or Texas State University

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 – The law states, "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..."

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 COLD WAR CONTINUES AT HOME & ABROAD
Vietnam War (under Johnson & Nixon)
A war between the Communist armies of North Vietnam who were supported by the Chinese and
the noncommunist armies of South Vietnam who were supported by the United States.
- At home, the nation was divided over U.S. involvement in the war.
- The United States withdrew and South Vietnam was overtaken by communists in 1975.

Reasons for Vietnam War - independence from France and lack of involvement from the U.S.;
switch in support from Communist Ho Chi Minh after World War II to Diem as a democratic
president; continued military support and escalation from a role of observation and military
training to full fledged naval, aerial and land forces to protect engaged U.S. troops

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution - North Vietnamese gunboats fired on the American navy resulting in Congress giving the President
power to take “all necessary measures” to protect U.S. forces; critics accused the President of using unlimited force in an
undeclared war

Tet Offensive - The Vietcong’s surprise attack on provinces and cities during the Lunar New Year holiday of Tet resulted in
heavy Vietcong losses but politically was seen as a loss through the media reports in the U.S. press accounts and viewed as
demoralizing to the U.S.

Escalation of Forces - The Tet Offensive lead to 200,000 additional troops requested by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and further
escalation of the war; Johnson announced he would not run for reelection in 1968

Vietnamization - Nixon announced a gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops from 540,000 in 1969 to 30,000 in 1972 and
simultaneously provide monetary and military training for Vietnamese troops to conduct their own war efforts; Nixon Doctrine

War Powers Act - passed in 1973 over a presidential veto requiring the president to notify Congress within 48 hours when
troops are to be committed and returned in 60 days thereby limiting the war powers of the executive branch

Draft - the need for troops and lack of volunteer service created the need for conscription; disapproval and unwillingness to fight
lead to protests on college campuses, protests by the Weathermen at the 1968 Democratic convention, Robert Kennedy’s
approval rating prior to his assassination, anti-war promises by Eugene McCarthy, burning of draft cards, and extreme measures
including flight to Canada to avoid the draft; discussions regarding amnesty for those who fled the country during the war

26th Amendment - decreased the age for voting from 21 to 18 with the understanding that a person old enough to serve the
country through draft should be old enough to vote and make political decisions

Role of media - the increase in satellite technology allowed major news agencies and television channels direct access to events
during the war; Walter Cronkite, Peter Jennings and other correspondents were allowed greater access to information and reports
from the front; news accounts during the dinner hour provided Americans with a constant stream of information and closer
access to the front lines

Credibility gap - the information printed and displayed in the media created concerns for what the government accounts
portrayed as accurate information led to the public’s question regarding what was believable

Silent Majority - In an address to the nation on November 3, 1969, President Nixon appealed to the nation’s less vocal, and
what he believed to be the majority of the American people, who wanted to end the war quickly, support a peaceful ending while
he ran for reelection; Nixon criticized the war protests in San Francisco

Anti-war movement - protests began on college campuses across the country in an organized effort to stop the war and question
American involvement; draft cards and American flags were burned among those who would be called upon to serve in the draft;
enlistments could be deferred through college enrollment, responsibility of family, and flight to Canada; student protests and
clashes with National Guard troops on the Ohio Kent State University campus May 4, 1970 resulted in killing 4 wounding 9 and
further affected public opinion regarding the war

Hawks – Supporters of the Vietnam War who believed the U.S. should increase military force in order to win the war.

Doves – Critics of the Vietnam War who believed the U.S. should withdraw.

Tinker v. Des Moines - in 1965, John Tinker was suspended from school for wearing a black armband supporting the Christmas

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truce idea of Senator Robert Kennedy; a 7-2 decision backed Tinker and protected symbolic speech from the First Amendment.
"It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the
schoolhouse gate” Justice Harlan and Black argued that disruptive “symbolic speech” should not be tolerated as free speech

Fall of Saigon - Capture of Saigon by the North Vietnamese in

April 1975 effectively ending the Vietnam War. April 1975
Saigon surrendered to the Communist government in Hanoi as
150,000 Vietnamese were evacuated fearing political retribution;
American confidence in the military and national government fell
to another low

Outcomes of Vietnam War - conflicts between the Executive and

Legislative branches over war power; growing distrust of the
federal government’s role in the conflict; discontent among
America’s youth on college campuses

Roy Benavidez - Master Sergeant Benavidez voluntarily joined an extraction team outside of Loc Ninh; took fire and received
wounds while assisting with the extraction; the helicopter pilot was killed during the attempt and Benavidez recovered secret
documents during continued enemy fire; continued to provide first aid to team until final extraction team was successful

Life under Richard Nixon (1969-1974)

Silent Majority – Nixon’s reference to those who did not participate in the anti-war protests, public
discourse or the counterculture.

26th Amendment – Gave voting rights to Americans 18 years and older.

Nixon’s trip to China – In 1972, Nixon visited China, a Communist ation, to open up diplomatic and
economic relations. This was seen as a success with the American public.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – Began under Nixon in 1970 and is charged with the
protection of human health and the environment.
Endangered Species Act – Signed into law by Nixon to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of
economic growth and development untempered by adequate concern and conservation."

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 – The law states, "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..."

Wisconsin v. Yoder - 1972 Supreme Court found that Amish children could not be compelled to attend school after the eighth
grade on the grounds of freedom of religion ranked above compelling school attendance

White v. Regester - 1973 challenged the Texas legislative apportionment scheme as gerrymandering; districts in Dallas and
Bexar county discriminated against racial or ethnic groups against Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment; provided for
district divisions remain for the 1972 election but the counties were forced to create single member districts.

Foreign Relations under Nixon

Normalization of relations with China - while continuing to recognize Taiwan instead of China, but in an effort to relax
tensions with mainland China, Nixon began ping-pong diplomacy, sharing competitions between national ping-pong teams;
leads to the first American President to set foot on Chinese soil; Nixon believed the Soviets were in part assisting Communist
Vietnam and hoped for assistance from Communist China in offsetting the balance in the communist world and bringing the
Vietnam war to an end

Détente - the easing of tensions with the Soviet Union closely followed the policy of realpolitik, no longer would the US avoid
relations with a country solely on the basis of being Communist

Watergate – A political scandal involving abuse of power and bribery and obstruction of justice; led to the resignation of
Richard Nixon in 1974. Ended in the resignation of President Richard Nixon as a result of a June 17, 1972, break-in at the
Democratic National Committee Headquarters in the Watergate Hotel complex in Washington, D.C.; Nixon denied knowledge
of any criminal activity; FBI connected money given to burglars originated with the Committee to Re-elect the President
(CREEP); Nixon refused to turn over tapes from the White House on the grounds of “executive privilege” and national security
but forced to release them after U.S. v. Nixon; Nixon resigned after House impeachment and before Senate trial could begin;

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Nixon was pardoned by Gerald Ford; Watergate resulted in America’s lack of faith in the president, distrust of his “enemy’s list”
and frustrated with the lack of progress in Vietnam

The Reagan Era

Under Ronald Reagan, the U.S. increased military spending, technological innovation, and diplomacy
to force the Soviet Union to release their control over former Soviet possessions in Eastern Europe
and internally within the Soviet system; detente (and easing of tensions begun under Nixon) coupled
with Soviet changes including perestroika (reorganization under Mikhail Gorbachev) and glasnost
(openness) began with Poland’s Solidarity movement, the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the
culmination of the dissolving of the former Soviet Union

Ronald Reagan – 40th President of the United States. Former Governor of California and radio,
television and movie star.
Reaganomics – Reagan’s economic policy, also known as supply-side economics. The 4 parts of the
plan included: reduce government spending increases, income and capital gains taxes and government
regulations and control the money supply. The stagflation of the 1970’s associated with a stagnant economy and severe inflation
resulting from the oil crisis attempts were made to enforce Wage and Price controls under Nixon and reduced under Carter;
Reagan had proposed a form of supply side economic policy and deregulation; Reagan’s policy was based on reducing federal
spending, and reducing personal income tax; critics referred to Reagan’s policies as “trickle-down economics” meaning money
given to the wealthy would slowly trickle down to the poorest of Americans and “voodoo economics” by George Bush the
Republican Presidential contender before being named as the Vice Presidential candidate

Heritage Foundation – conservative think-tank and responsible for the Republican mission in President Reagan’s administration
to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual
freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense”; Foundation has continued its influence through Obama’s
presidency
Moral Majority – Political organization founded by Jerry Falwell that brought together the “religious right” groups. Active
during the 1980’s.

National Rifle Association (NRA) – National non-profit civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of Second
Amendment Rights and promotion of firearm ownership.

Rust Belt to Sun Belt migration (1970’s – 1980’s) – Migration of people from the manufacturing areas of the north and
northeastern U.S. to the southern states due to changes in economics and industry.

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978) – Supreme Court case dealing with affirmative action programs
designed to increase minority representation in colleges and professions.

Foreign Policy Under Reagan

Camp David Accords –In an effort to create more stabilized relations in the Middle East, Carter attempted to bring together
Egypt’s Anwar Sadat, and Israel’s Menachem Begin in September of 1978; thirteen days of intense negotiations resulted in a
framework that included: a self-governing West Bank and Gaza strip, recognizing the rights of the Palestinian people; a reduction
in troops in the Sinai Peninsula resulting in billions of dollars in aid to both Israel and Egypt

“Peace through strength” – the support of military strength for the purpose of creating peaceful international relations. Reagan
used this as a basis for his foreign policy. Ronald Reagan had the largest peacetime military buildup of 40% between 1980 and
1985 in an effort to stop the spread of Communism; Reagan quoted George Washington “to be prepared for war is one of the
most effective means of preserving the peace.”; Reagan gave the example he had never seen anyone insult heavy-weight
champion Jack Dempsey

Iran Hostage Crisis - Americans had supported secular Muslim, Shah Mohammad Pahlavi, since he came to power in 1941; he
left the country in 1979 after being diagnosed with cancer and his regime was overthrown by fundamentalists led by the
Ayatollah Khomeini; when demands for the shah’s return failed Iranian students stormed the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979 and
took hostage 52 Americans; President Carter refused to actively campaign for reelection until the hostages were returned; the
same day as President Reagan’s inauguration in 1981 the hostages were released after 444 days of captivity

Iran-Contra Affair -- senior Reagan administration officials secretly facilitated the sale of arms to Iran, the subject of an arms
embargo. Some U.S. officials also hoped that the arms sales would secure the release of hostages and allow U.S. intelligence
agencies to fund the Nicaraguan Contras.

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Marines in Lebanon - during the Lebanese Civil War in October of 1983,Arab terrorists drove a bomb laden truck into a U.S.
military base killing 241 American peacekeeping troops;1984 Reagan pulled all U.S. troops out of Lebanon

Important People during Reagan’s Presidency

Billy Graham - Southern Baptist evangelist and preacher who led rallies in conventions centers across the nation and world.
Graham became an advisor to presidents such as Eisenhower, Johnson, and Nixon. On television his conservative message
reached middle class Americans and was a strong influence in the 1950-80s. During the civil rights movement, Martin Luther
King and Graham become close and during a rally in San Antonio following Brown v. board of Education, Graham insisted on
integrating his audiences. Graham and MLK disagreed on American involvement in Vietnam

Barry Goldwater - Senator from Arizona and ultra-conservative Republican candidate against Lyndon Johnson in 1964;
encouraged less government, strong military and end of welfare; lost presidential election but maintained Senate seat until 1986
after three terms; “Daisy ad” campaign implied if Goldwater were elected, nuclear holocaust would be the end result

Phyllis Schlafly -- Constitutional lawyer and an American politically conservative activist and author who founded the Eagle
Forum, Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), women’s liberation movement opponent, and author; opposed the ERA since it would
require women to serve alongside men in combat and believed it would have a negative impact on the family institution and
create unisex restrooms; her lobbying efforts included: Stop ERA and Eagle Forum and testifying in 30 state legislatures; the
ERA was defeated in 1982

Sandra Day O'Connor - first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court by Ronald Reagan in 1981 until her retirement in
2006 was known as a moderate conservative and became a swing vote for the court writing the majority opinion while writing
her own concurring opinion for many cases; born in El Paso, Texas and held political and judicial positions in Arizona

COLD WAR ENDS

End of the Cold War - began with Reagan as president; Reagan increased military spending beyond Moscow’s capabilities
through deception in the Star Wars defense system, developed close alliances including Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher,
found common ground in Poland’s Solidarity Labor movement under Lech Walesa, wore down political adversaries in Mikhail
Gorbachev and later Boris Yeltsin and took advantage of Soviet reforms of perestroika (economic restructuring) and glasnost
(openness and political transparency); the Iron Curtain began to rust and break apart as previous Soviet states, beginning with a
coup d’etat in 1991 Latvia and followed by Lithuania and eventually Russia sought independence from the Soviet bloc

Life under George H.W. Bush (1989-1993)

Recession – economic downturn due to reduced consumer spending, greater foreign competition & lay
offs in key industries

End of Cold War (1991) – USSR officially dissolves & Berlin Wall falls

Tiananmen Square - thousands of Chinese protest for pro-democracy but was crushed by the
Chinese Army as many massacred

Persian Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm) – U.S. successful show of force to remove Iraq from Kuwait & protect oil
reserves. code-named Operation Desert Storm lasted from January 17 - February 28, 1991; the invasion of Kuwait by Iraqi
forces led by Saddam Hussein was crushed after a 34 nation alliance sanctioned by the United Nations led by General
Colin Powell and Norman Schwarzkopf destroyed Iraqi defenses

The Balkans Crisis - began in 1991 through 2001 first in Yugoslavia as a part of international, particularly Eastern
European attempts for dividing countries along ethnic, religious (Christian and Muslim), and nationalistic lines; result was
dividing into Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Slovenian, and Macedonian regions following the fall of the former U.S.S.R. and
Soviet alliances

Life Under Bill Clinton (1993-2001)

Contract with America - document released by the Republican Party in 1994; authored by Newt Gingrich and
Dick Armey (from Texas); the document was a promise to the American people, signed by all but 2
Congressional Republicans during President Clinton’s mid-term elections; a promise to reduce taxes, the size of
government, tort and welfare reform if Republicans were elected to a majority of Congressional seats

Clinton Impeachment – Clinton faced charges regarding his relationship in 1998 with a White House intern,
Monica Lewinsky, and later reports of relations with others came to light including Paula Jones, as well as

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questionable land dealings while Governor of Arkansas and obstruction of justice; the Senate trial found Clinton not guilty of
charges and Clinton later apologized for his conduct; upon leaving office Clinton had historically high approval ratings for the
job he did as president; there may have been a residual impact on the Presidential election of 2000 with Vice President and
Democratic candidate Al Gore forced to defend the administration policies rather than the Democratic agenda. Further scandals
involved previous financial cover-ups with Whitewater and personal financial deals.

GATT – General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. Established in 1947 and was replaced by the World Trade
Organization (WTO) in 1993. A set of rules on trade for nations who are a part of the agreement.

NAFTA – North American Free Trade Agreement. Opened door to tariff free trade on certain products and
increased imports and exports between the countries of the United States, Canada and Mexico.

OPEC – Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Established in 1965 and consists of 12 countries who are net exporters
of oil.

Late 20th Century Entrepreneurs

Bill Gates - founded Microsoft Corporation in 1976 urges government, private citizens, and manufacturers to cooperate in the
communications revolution as computers shifted from mainframes to personal computers linked through the Internet

Sam Walton - founder of Wal-Mart and Sam’s club beginning 1962; Walton was named in Time Magazine’s top 100 most
influential figures in 1998 and the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992

Estée Lauder - self-made cosmetics entrepreneur until her death in 2004; daughter of immigrants, worked with uncle who was a
chemist on making products to make women look younger; quoted as saying, “Beauty is an attitude. There’s no secret… There
are no ugly women—only women who don’t care or who don’t believe they are attractive,

Robert Johnson - founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET) and first African-American to be a majority
owner of a major professional sports team; sold his ownership to Viacom in 2001 making him the first African-
American billionaire

Lionel Sosa - marketing agent and founder of the largest Hispanic advertising agency; media consultant for George
Bush in 2000 and 2004; author of The Americano Dream: How Latinos Can Achieve Success in Business and Life
in 1998.

Leslie’s Illustrated magazine, McClure’s Magazine, Harper’s Weekly - encouraged an awareness as well as a call to action in
a reform movement and a platform for the reform movement

Oprah Winfrey - as media sensation, the Oprah Winfrey Show, provided a forum for the world’s opinion-makers, established
careers of other professionals, and known for her philanthropy on her show and around the globe; sometimes referred to as “the
most powerful woman in the world” as a result of her influence and opinions; established reading lists and encouraged literacy in
a variety of topics while influencing the careers of new authors

Modern Era
Life Under George W. Bush (2001-2009)

September 11 Attacks- Tuesday September 9, 2001 Four passenger planes were hijacked costing the
lives of 2,977 people; The World Trade Center North and South Towers were struck and collapsed,
one Pentagon wing was targeted and Flight 93 was retaken by passengers and crashed before reaching
its final destination possibly the White House or Congress building; President Bush received word
while attending Emma E. Booker Elementary in Sarasota, Florida while Mrs. Bush was preparing to
speak before the Senate Committee on Education; President Bush was taken to Barksdale Air Force
Base in Louisiana and then Offutt in Nebraska before returning to assess damage in Washington, D.C.
Constitutional issues raised included the holding of civilian prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for
interrogation; the use of waterboarding as an interrogation technique; the restructure of the Cabinet to
include the Department of Homeland Security; the collection of information within and outside
American borders and interdepartmental use of information collected; collection of persons of potential threats within the US;
restrictions and increased security on immigration

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Global War on Terror - Following the attacks on the Twin Towers World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and possible
second target in Washington, D.C. the US joined a coalition of NATO forces with eventual United Nations sanction
to displace al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, and other terrorist organizations as an international threat. Multiple fronts
under Operation Enduring Freedom eventually removed Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq, took on threats in the
Philippines, the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Horn of Africa, and Pakistan. The operation eventually led to the
capture of Osama bin Laden and other high level operatives

USA PATRIOT ACT of 2001– signed into law by President Bush in response to the 9/11 attacks. Stands for Uniting (and)
Strengthening America (by) Providing Appropriate Tools Required (to) Intercept (and) Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001.

Hurricane Katrina - when Katrina made landfall, the category 5 hurricane had been downgraded to a category 3; the death
count rose after the catastrophic failure of the levee in 53 locations in and around New Orleans and flooded 80% of the city;
death toll rose to over 1,833 and cost billion in damages making the storm one of the 5 deadliest storms in U.S. history; President
Bush declared a state of emergency 2 days prior to hurricane landfall reaching the coast; Bush was faced with either sending
troops with limited police power, or using the Insurgency Act to allow troops to use force if necessary after rescue efforts were
being met with gunfire; Louisiana Governor Blanco faced criticism after reports of unnecessary deaths surfaced; land erosion
and oil spills resulted in the closure of 16 National Wildlife Refuges; flood water returned to Lake Pontchartrain was found to
include pesticides and raw sewage, potentially dangerous to fish; evacuees were sent to all 50 states, including Texas, until
housing could be replaced. Once the hurricane left, Americans were homeless, businesses were stalled, and the federal
governments FEMA efforts were thwarted by new bureaucratic alliances

Hillary Clinton - as first lady she became very active in domestic policy, principally health care reform; elected as Senator for
New York which was the first time a former first lady was elected to an office; 2009 became Secretary of State under President
Obama after running as a presidential candidate and losing in the Democratic National Convention

2008 Presidential Election – Led to the election of, Barack Obama, the first black President of the United
States.

ARRA 2009 – American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Signed into law by President Obama
and was passed in response to the economic recession of the late 2000’s. Provided money for infrastructure,
education, health, and energy, federal tax incentives, and expansion of unemployment benefits and other
social welfare provisions.

Sonia Sotomayor - nominated by Obama for the US Supreme court as the first Hispanic justice and third
female on the court; Puerto Rican descent; prone to vote with the liberal bloc on the court

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Transportation
Transcontinental Railroad – Completed in 1869, it helped connect the West and East coasts. It made transportation of people
and goods faster and helped jumpstart industry.

Automobile – The automobile transformed the American landscape. It made the biggest impact on the economy from the 1920’s
until the 1970’s.

Airplane – In 1903, the Wright Bros. conducted the first successful flight of an airplane. Since then, the airplane has been used
for military purposes and the transportation of people and goods.
Space Travel – In 1961, the Soviets put the first man in space. In 1969, the Americans put the first man on the moon. Today,
astronauts use space shuttles and other aircraft to travel in space.

Communication & Entertainment

Telegraph – Invented by Samuel Morse, the telegraph was the first machine to enable long-distance communication. The
telegraph used the Morse code to translate codes.

Telephone – Invited by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876, the telephone allowed people to transmit messages from long distance.

Radio – This invention allowed communication through wireless sound waves making voice transmission possible. By the
1930s, the radio was a major source of entertainment and advertising.

Television – The television became popular in the 1950’s. By 1960, 90% of American households had a television. The
television is a main source of entertainment and advertising.

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Computer – Computers were developed in the late 1940’s and are the most important invention of the last 50 years. Computers
have transformed life at home and in the workplace.

Medicine
Penicillin- Penicillin is an antibiotic used to cure or stop the spread of certain infections. The development helped people survive
infections that would normally kill.

Polio Vaccine- In the early 1950’s, Jonas Salk invented the vaccine for polio, a crippling disease. The most famous person
affected by polio was President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Agriculture
Barbed Wire- Used to fence in ranches on the Great Plains, eventually leading to the end of the open frontier.

Windmill—allowed dry-land farming by bringing up underground water to irrigate crops on the Great Plains.

Steel Plow – Farm machine used to break up soil to allow the planting of crops. The steel plow made farming more efficient.

Other Revolutionary Developments

Steel – Steel is a light, flexible and rust-resistant metal that helped in the development of structures such as bridges, cars and
skyscrapers.

Bessemer Steel Process – the technique used to convert iron ore into steel.

Electricity – In 1880, the light bulb, invented by Thomas Edison, was patented and helped change business. In the 1920’s,
electricity was widespread in American homes and household appliances made life easier.

Petroleum-based products – These products are used in our everyday life and include gasoline, oil, and asphalt. Gasoline
powers vehicles. Asphalt is used to construct the nation’s highways. Oil provides about 40% of the energy that Americans
consume.

Patriotic Terms
National ethos - move from laissez-faire to government consumer protection with anti-trust legislation; Pure Food and Drug Act
and to allow govt regulation of natural resources; protecting American public from the evils of big business; the reality of the
farmer’s interest

Patriotism - riding the wave of imperialism; and still respecting the opinion of anti-imperialists; hyphenated American and
nativism immigrants stung by WASPs; rise of KKK in the 1920’s; fear of anarchists

Civic responsibility - progressive reforms (at the federal, state, and local level) providing more civic responsibility and
removing power from the wealthy and influential forces

IMPORTANT AMENDMENTS
Amendment 1 – Freedom of Religion (exercise or establishment), Assembly, Press, Petition, Speech

Amendment 2 - Right to Bear Arms or own weapons (as long as doing so legally)

Amendment 3 – No quartering of soldiers – no one can force you to allow soldiers to live in your home
Amendment 4 – No unreasonable search and seizure – you may not be searched or have property seized without probable cause
and/or a search warrant (does not apply in school)

Amendment 5 - Rights of the accused (Self-incrimination, Double Jeopardy, Due Process) & Eminent Domain – if government
wants to take your private property for public use, they must pay for it

Amendment 8 – No cruel and unusual punishment or excessive bail

Amendment 10 – States rights – if there is no federal (national) law then states can make their own

Amendment 13 – Abolition of Slavery – Reconstruction Amendment

Amendment 14 - Defines citizenship as any person born or naturalized in the United States and says that ALL US citizens have
equal protection and due process of law - Reconstruction Amendment

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Amendment 15 – African American men receive the right to vote – guarantees right to vote to all men, regardless of “race, color,
or previous condition of servitude” – Reconstruction Amendment

Amendment 16 – Income Taxes - Congress has the power to lay and collect taxes on incomes

Amendment 17- Direct Election of Senators. The states have the power to directly elect senators to represent them. (before this,
the state legislature decided who the senators were)

Amendment 18- Prohibition of Liquor – sale, transportation, manufacturing of alcohol is illegal

Amendment 19- Women’s Suffrage – creation of universal suffrage

Amendment 21-Repeal of 18th amendment (Prohibition)

Amendment 22- Presidents can only serve 2 full terms or 10 years total - No person can be elected president more than twice.

Amendment 24- Abolished poll taxes

Amendment 25- Sets up presidential line of succession if president is removed, dies, or resigns, - VP becomes President

Amendment 26- Voting age lowered from 21 to 18

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 DON’T LET THESE BE YOU!

TUTORING STARTS AFTER SPRING BREAK!

EVERY TUESDAY & THURSDAY 4:20 TO 5:20
EVERY SATURDAY 8:30 AM TO 11:30 AM (Breakfast provided)
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