Cold War
Order by
30 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Baby Boom | A significant increase in the number of children being born; one took place in the United States after World War II |
| Brown vs. Board of Education | Supreme Court ruling that declared the racial segregation in public schools was illegal; overturned the separate-but-equal doctrine established in the 1896 case Plessy vs. Ferguson |
| Civil Rights Act of 1964 | Law banning racial discrimination in the use of public facilities and in employment practices |
| Cold War | Power struggle between the United states and the Soviet Union that lasted from 1945 to 1991 |
| Containment | US foreign policy followed during the Cold War that sought to prevent the expansion of Soviet Communism |
| Detente | Period in the 1970's when relations between the United States and the Soviet Union were less hostile than in the past |
| Domino Theory | Belief common during Dwight S. Eisenhower's administration and beyond; stated that if one nation in Southeast Asia fell to communism the rest of Southeast Asia would also fall |
| Doves | Americans who called for US withdrawal from the Vietnam War |
| Freedom Rider | Bus trips by civil rights workers through various southern states in which protesters challenged illegal segregation in bus terminals |
| Great Society | Legislation introduced by President Lyndon B. Johnson to create government programs and end poverty and racism |
| Hawks | Americans who pushed for increased military spending and involvement in the Vietnam War |
| ICBM | Missile, usually carrying a nuclear war head that is capable of hitting a target about 10,000 miles away |
| Iron Curtain | Figurative reference to the barrier between the democratic, capitalist countries of Western Europe and the totalitarian, communism countries of Eastern Europe |
| Marshall Plan | US program of giving money to European countries to help them rebuild there economies after WWII |
| McCarthyism | Method of making viscous accusations without offering proof; Named after senator Joseph McCarthy |
| Medicaid | Federal Health insurance program for people with low incomes |
| Medicare | Federal health insurance program for people over the age of 65 |
| Mutual Assured Destruction | The idea that if the Soviet Union launches its missiles against the US, the US will have time to launch its missiles at the Soviet Union (and Vice versa) |
| Nonviolent Resistance | Protest strategy that calls for peaceful demonstrations and and the rejection of violence, even for self defense |
| North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) | Alliance formed in 1949 by the United States, Britain, and 10 other countries to help defend each other in case of attack |
| Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) | Alliance formed by the major oil producing nations in 1960 to maintain high prices by controlling the production and sale of oil |
| Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) | The treaty that pledged countries in Asia to defend each other against attacks from other countries |
| Tonkin Gulf Resolution | Congressional act that gave President Lyndon B. Johnson the authority to wage war in Vietnam |
| Totalitarianism | Political system in which the government controls every aspect of the citizens' lives |
| Truman Doctrine | President Harry S. Truman's policy stating the United States would help any country fighting against communism |
| United Nations | International organization chartered in 1945 for settling problems between nations |
| Vietcong | Communist Guerrilla force that functioned as the National liberation Front's army began fighting against Ngo Dihn Diem's government in South Vietnam in the 1950's |
| War Powers Act | Legislation that required the president to get congressional approval before committing US troops to any struggle |
| Warsaw Pact | Military alliance formed in 1955 by the Soviet Union and its satalite states |
| Watergate | Scandal in which President Richard M. Nixon authorized a cover-up of a break-in at the Democratic National Committee HQ; led to Nixon's resignation in 1974 |
First Time Here?
Welcome to Quizlet, a fun, free place to study. Try these flashcards, find others to study, or make your own.