1950

1. Domino theory	Extension of Truman Doctrine by Dwight Eisenhower . If one country falls to communism it makes those around it more likely to fall. Drags US into Vietnam War. Later revived in the 1980’s for Latin America.
2. massive retaliation	MAD (Mutual Assured Destruction)—Ability to destroy world will prevent war. US’s official policy of Nuking the USSR if they showed aggression in Western Europe
3. brinkmanship	Dulles (sec of state under Ike) plan to take the US up to the brink of war (and over) to oppose Soviets.
4. Sputnik	1^st space flight by USSR. Leads to a “space race” to have the first man in space and finally to put the first man on the moon.
5. The Suburbs	1950’s phenomenon: White flight to the suburbs and away from the cities. Made possible by a booming economy and a drop in the price of automobiles and the building of the first superhighways. Highway Act of 1954 creates an interstate system that speeds this phenomenon. Also symptomatic of white flight from the cities.
6. Civil Rights	NAACP formed in 1909 had been fighting for equal rights for blacks; the movement becomes much stronger in the 1950s, after Truman desegregates the military and with the heroic service of African Americans in WW2.
7. Jackie Robinson	1^st Black Professional baseball player. Becomes a symbol of success for African Americans and an ambassador for civil rights to white America.
8. Rosa Parks	1955—refusal and arrest, for not sitting at the back of the bus. Worked w/NAACP and became a test case—led to a 381 day boycott of the busses until they were integrated.
9. Brown v. Board	Linda Brown denied enrollment in an all white school near her home challenges the separate but equal policy of the Topeka school district. The court struck down separate but equal and ordered integration in the nation's schools with "all deliberate speed." Began the most productive phase of the civil rights movement.
10. Little Rock 9	Nine African-American students, the "Little Rock Nine," were admitted to Little Rock's Central High School for 1957-1958. Violent white reaction against integration forced President Dwight D. Eisenhower to order 1000 army paratroopers to Little Rock to restore order and protect the children.
11. James Meredith	1962, James Meredith sought to enroll as the first black student in the history of the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss). His enrollment triggered resistance. As a result, President John F. Kennedy ordered federal marshals to ensure Meredith's right to enroll and to protect him as he moved to the campus.
12. Dr. Martin Luther King	Led many protests using passive resistance and civil disobedience (Marches, sit-ins, boycotts). His “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” and “I Have a Dream” speech are considered the best statements on equality in US.
13. Medgar Evars	Young President of the NAACP was assassinated. The assassin was white supremacist Byron De La Beckwith, a member of the Ku Klux Klan and a man with an intimidating and violent personality. Beckwith was arrested, tried, and acquitted by an all white jury.
14. March on Washington	To pressure the government and Congress to act more quickly on the civil rights agenda, a massive march on the nation's capital was planned, scheduled, and carried out on August 28th, 1963. According to estimates, over 250,000 participated in the peaceful demonstration which culminated in the speech given by Reverend Martin Luther King.
15. SCLC	SCLC (Southern Christian Leader-ship Conference): promote nonviolent resistance sit-ins, boycotts. Most effective and positive of groups. Their influence ends after assassination of Evers and King.
16. Civil Rights Act 1964	Victory for Civil Rights movement. Makes illegal segregation of people based on color in any public facility. (challenged in Heart of Atlanta Hotel v. US)
17. Voting Rights Act 1965	Empowered the federal government to oversee voter registration and elections in counties that had used tests to determine voter eligibility or where registration or turnout had been less than 50 percent in the 1964 presidential election. It also banned discriminatory literacy tests and expanded voting rights for Americans who do not speak English.
18. Bay of Pigs	The Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful attempt by United States-backed Cuban exiles to overthrow the government of the Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. President Kennedy had the option of using the U.S. Air Force against the Cubans but decided against it. Consequently, the invasion was stopped by Castro's army. Led to severing of diplomatic relations with Cuba.
19. Cuban Missile Crisis	The Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest the world ever came to nuclear war. USSR attempted to put nuclear missiles in Cuba. Kennedy put a naval blockade around Cuba. Threats followed. USSR backed down.
20. Peace Corps	Kennedy’s vision of US helping the world. Organization that took privileged children (college graduates) and gave them the opportunity to volunteer and help people in the 3^rd world.
21. Race to the Moon	Part of the Cold War. Kennedy commits America to be the first to put a man on the moon. 6 years later the US does (1968)
22. Nuclear Test Ban Treaty	1^st treaty with the Soviets (1963) to stop the proliferation of Nuclear weapons.
23. Johnson & Great Society	Pres Johnson continues Kennedy’s war on poverty by expanding social programs: VISTA, Medicare, and Education spending, more $ for welfare programs.
24. Malcom X	As a devoted follower of Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X rose quickly within the Nation of Islam. Becomes leader of NOI, a separatist black group that follows the teachings of Islam. He eventually repudiates the separatist ideas of the NOI and is assassinated.
25. Watts Riots	In 1965, a Los Angeles police officer, during a routine traffic stop, used his baton on a gathering crowd. News of the act of police brutality soon spread throughout the neighborhood. The incident, combined with escalating racial tensions, overcrowding in the neighborhood, and a summer heat wave, sparked violence on a massive scale. 5 days of rioting followed.
26. Vietnam	US sent $ support to French forces in S. Vietnam, and then eventually $, and advisors and equipment and, when the French withdrew sent troops in 1963.
27. Tet Offensive	1968 a massive attack on 5 large US installations in S. Vietnam is unsuccessful but makes clear the commitment that the US has made in Vietnam and starts a protest at home.
28. War Protests	Massive demonstrations against the war take place on college campuses all over the country. Led by groups like the Students for Democratic Society (SDS), it became clear that the war was very unpopular with youth culture.
29. Counter-culture	Fueled by war protests and a belief that the Gov and older America was disconnected from them the Hippy movement, characterized by Drugs, peace movements and free love) was perceived as a threat by the establishment.
30. Assassination of MLK & Robert Kennedy	1968: Deaths of Martin Luther King (leading to rioting all over the US) and Robert Kennedy (who was running on an anti-war platform). Led many groups to move from peaceful to violent protest.
31. 1968 Dem convention	Chicago 1968: Protestors were severely beaten by the Chicago police. Became symptomatic of the disconnect between those who opposes and supported the war.
32. Impact of Vietnam	Split in culture, a disillusionment with the Gov and established practices and a slow decline in involvement in public affairs (voting % go way down after 1968).