APUSH Review: Key Concept 8.1 (Period 8: 1945 -1980)

Everything You Need To Know About Key Concept 8.1 To Succeed In APUSH

Period 8: 1945 - 1980

Key Concept 8.1

“The United States responded to an uncertain and unstable

postwar world by asserting and attempting to defend a position

of global leadership, with far-reaching domestic and international

consequences.”-- page 72 Curriculum Framework

Big Idea Questions:

1) 1) What were different ways the US sought to “contain”

communism, both domestically and abroad?

2) 2) How did independence movements throughout the world

affect the Cold War?

3) 3) How did the Vietnam War impact domestic life?

Key Concept 8.1, I

“After World War II, the United States sought to stem the growth of Communist military power and ideological influence, create a stable global economy, and build an international security system.”-- Page 71

A: US foreign policy was based on:1) Collective Security:

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) -an attack on one country was an attack on all

2) Multilateral economic framework that bolstered non-Communist nations:

Marshall Plan - provided billions of $ to Europe to rebuild war-torn countries

Truman Doctrine - $400 million in military aid to Greece and Turkey

Key Concept 8.1, I

US “contained” communism through:1) Military engagements in Korea and Vietnam:

Domino theory - fear if one country became communist, then surrounding countries would

2) threat of Massive Retaliation:

The US would respond with more force if attacked

3) Space Race:

Reaction to Sputnik US built up space program AND education in the US

Key Concept 8.1, I

Cold War fluctuated between direct and indirect military confrontations:

- Cuban Missile Crisis:

o 13 days in October, 1962

o Closest the US and Soviet Union came to war

o ‘hotline’ established from D.C. to Moscow

- détente: easing of tensions between superpowers

• SALT (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks) -> Treaties:

o Began with Nixon’s administration and continued through Carter’s

o Agreements to limit certain arms

Key Concept 8.1, II

“As the United States focused on containing communism, it faced increasingly complex foreign policy issues, including decolonization, shifting international alignments and regional conflicts, and global economic and environmental changes.”-- Page 72

• Impacts of postwar decolonization movements in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East:

• US and USSR sought allies among the new nations, although many remained neutral

• The US immediately recognized Israel in 1948

• Many revolutions were seen as pawns of the Soviet Union

Key Concept 8.1, II

• Cold War in Latin America:“US supported non-communist regimes with varying levels of commitment to democracy.”

o1954 - overthrow of Arbenz in Guatemala

oHe was democratically elected and nationalized land owned by the United Fruit Company

oHe was replaced with a military dictator, Armas

Key Concept 8.1, II

US involvement in the Middle East was shaped by Ideological, military, and economic concerns

Suez Crisis - Nasser of Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal, Britain and France attacked

The US helped end the conflict fear the Soviets would get involved

Oil crises helped initiate attempts at creating a national energy policy

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC):

Cartel formed by mostly Middle Eastern countries to control the supply of oil

After the US supported Israel in 1973 (Yom Kippur War), OPEC placed an oil embargo on the US, drastically raising gas prices

Caused a gas shortage

Key Concept 8.1, III

“Cold War policies led to continued public debates over the power of the federal government, acceptable means for pursuing international and domestic goals, and the proper balance between liberty and order.”-- Page 73

• Debates over methods to root out domestic Communists:o Truman’s Executive Order 9835 - “Loyalty Oath”

for Federal employees

o 2nd Red Scare:

- HUAC and the “Hollywood Ten”

- McCarthyism

• Both political parties supported containing Communismo Eisenhower (R) in Iran and Guatemala

o Truman in Korea (D) and LBJ (D) in Vietnam

Key Concept 8.1, III

Domestic opposition to wars:The Korean War produced only minor opposition

Vietnam saw violent protests that increased as the war went on

- Especially after the Tet Offensive (January 1968)

- Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) -used violence as time went on to protest

- Kent-State Protests (May, 1970) - reaction to Cambodia Bombings

Key Concept 8.1, III

• Americans began to debate:o The merits of a large nuclear arsenal

o The “military-industrial complex”

- Buildup of military and industries throughout the US

- Eisenhower warned of this in his farewell address

o Power of executive branch in foreign and military policy

- Congress reversed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution with the War Powers Act

Test Tips

• Multiple-Choice and Short Answer:o Ways the US sought to “contain”

communism - Korea and Vietnam; Marshall Plan and Truman Doctrine

o Détente successes/failures

• Essay Questions:o Change and Continuity post WWII

o Comparing and contrasting post-WWI with post-WWII

APUSH REVIEW: KEY

CONCEPT 8.2 (PERIOD 8:

1945 - 1980)Everything You Need To Know About Key Concept

8.2 To Succeed In APUSH

Key Concept 8.2

• “Liberalism, based on anticommunism abroad and a firm belief in the efficacy of governmental and especially federal power to achieve social goals at home, reached its apex in the mid-1960s and generated a variety of political and cultural responses.”-- Page 74 of the Curriculum Framework

• Big Idea Questions:

• What were some examples of successes during the Civil Rights Movement? How did the federal government contribute to this?

• How did awareness for groups such as Latinos, American Indians, Asian Americans, women, and gays and lesbians change during this time?

• Why were some people on the left and right assailing liberalism?

Key Concept 8.2, I

• “Seeking to fulfill Reconstruction-era promises, civil rights activists and

political leaders achieved some legal and political successes in ending

segregation, although the progress toward equality was slow and

halting.” - page 74

• After WWII, civil rights activists used a variety of strategies

to challenge racial segregation

• Legal challenges: NAACP cases, led by attorney Thurgood

Marshall, future Supreme Court Justice

• Direct action: Fannie Lou Hamer and Freedom Summer

• Sought to increase the number of African Americans

registered to vote in Mississippi

• Nonviolent Protest tactics:

• Montgomery Bus Boycott

• Sit-ins - Greensboro, NC sit-ins across the country

Key Concept 8.2, I

• All 3 branches helped promote greater racial justice:

• Executive - Harry Truman’s Executive Order 9981

desegregated the US military in 1948

• Judicial - Brown v. Board - ruled that segregation was

inherently unequal, overturned Plessy v. Ferguson (1896

- period 6)

• Legislative - Civil Rights Act of 1964 - part of LBJ’s Great

Society, which was an extension of the New Deal, and

focused on Civil Rights

• Discrimination in the workplace became illegal

• Guaranteed equal access to public accommodations

Key Concept 8.2, I

• White resistance slowed efforts at desegregation

• “Massive Resistance” - Southern schools would shut down

before desegregating

• Little Rock Nine - Governor Orville Faubus refused to

integrate schools, Eisenhower sent troops to enforce

integration

• Post-1965 (riots in cities, increased involvement in Vietnam)

debates emerged among activists over tactics and

philosophy:

• MLK - still urged nonviolence, but some urban protestors

were frustrated

• Black Panthers - advocated armed self-defense to

violence

Key Concept 8.2, II

• “Stirred by a growing awareness of inequalities in American

society and by the African American civil rights movement,

activists also addressed issues of identity and social justice,

such as gender/sexuality and ethnicity.” - page 74

• Challenges to society’s assumptions about gender

• Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique - argued that many

housewives (especially suburban) were not happy and felt

they lived unfulfilled lives

• Gloria Steinem - helped create the National Women’s

Political Caucus

• Supports women that seek to be involved in politics

• Calls for social and economic equality for gays and lesbians:

• Stonewall Riots (1969) - birth of the Gay Rights Movement

Key Concept 8.2, II

• Groups that demanded social and economic equality and to

redress past grievances included:

• Latinos:

• Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers

• Led a grape pickers’ strike to bring attention to the plight

of Mexican-American workers

• American Indians:

• Indians of All Tribes (IAT) and American Indian

Movement (AIM) used protests to bring attention to the

struggles of Native Americans

• Asian Americans:

• California overturned its Alien Land Law - forbade

Japanese immigrants from owning land

Key Concept 8.2, II

• Although it appeared there was overall

affluence, poverty was a national issue, and

efforts began to address it

• Michael Harrington’s The Other America

• Helped influence LBJ’s Great Society

• Argued 25% of the nation and 40% of

African Americans lived in poverty

• Native Americans were the hardest hit

group

Key Concept 8.2, III

• “As many liberal principles came to dominate postwar politics and court

decisions, liberalism came under attack from the left as well as from resurgent

conservative movements.” - page 75

• LBJ’s Great Society was the high point of liberalism and sought to:

• Use federal power to end racial discrimination:

• Civil Rights Act of 1964 - banned discrimination in public facilities

• Voting Rights Act of 1965 - eliminated literacy tests, federal

government could register voters

• 24th Amendment - eliminated poll taxes

• Eliminate poverty:

• Head Start Program, HUD

• Foodstamps, Medicare, and Medicaid

• Address other social issues and attack communism abroad:

• Education - provided $ for primary and secondary education

• Vietnam War - sought to keep communism from spreading

Key Concept 8.2, III

• Liberal ideas were aided by:

• Supreme Court Decisions that expanded democracy and

individual freedoms

• Miranda v. Arizona - those arrested must be made aware

of their rights

• Griswold v. Connecticut - struck down a law forbidding

contraception; determined the Constitution established a

“right to privacy”

• Great Society social programs and policies

• Power of the federal government

• Impacts of those above?

• Emergence of a conservative movement that focused on:

• Defending traditional visions of morality

• Debating the proper role of state authority

Key Concept 8.2, III

• Groups on the left assailed liberals because they

believed:

• Liberals did not transform the racial and economic

status quo at home

• Black Panthers - urged arming of African Americans

for self defense

• Liberals pursued immoral policies abroad (Vietnam

War)

• Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) - protested

the Vietnam War as the US increased involvement;

criticized the gap between the rich and poor

• Inspired march-ins, sit-ins, and teach-ins

Test Tips

• Multiple-Choice and Short Answer:

• Examples of strategies used by Civil Rights Activists - direct

action, legal challenges, and nonviolent protest

• How all three branches contributed to the Civil Rights

Movement

• Great Society - EVERYTHING

• Criticisms of liberalism on the left and right

• Essay and DBQ:

• Comparing the Civil Rights movement with earlier time periods

(1890s - 1920s - Booker T., W.E.B., etc.)

• Comparing the Women’s Rights movement with earlier time

periods (1840s, 1920s, etc.)

APUSH Review: Key Concept 8.3

(Period 8: 1945 - 1980)Everything You Need To Know About Key Concept

8.3 To Succeed In APUSH

WWW.APUSHREVIEW.COM

Key Concept 8.3

“Postwar economic, demographic, and technological changes

had a far-reaching impact on American society, politics, and the

environment.”-- Page 76

Big Idea Questions:

How did economic growth impact American society and

American values?

How did new immigration laws in 1965 impact immigrants?

(Change and continuity)

How did the counterculture impact on American society?

Key Concept 8.3, I

“Rapid economic and social changes in American

society fostered a sense of optimism in the postwar

years, as well as underlying concerns about how these

changes were affecting American values.“-- Page 76

Economic Growth increased due to:

Federal spending, baby boom generation,

prosperous private businesses

Impacts of this growth?

Suburbanization, higher education opportunities,

“Sun Belt” gaining influence (at expense of the “Frost

Belt”)

Key Concept 8.3, I

The rise of a homogeneous mass culture

Was caused by:

Economic and Social Changes

Anxiety over the Cold War

Was challenged by artists, intellectuals, and youth

Beat Movement - writers that challenged middle class

conformity

Rock and roll music - Elvis Presley, Beatles

Key Concept 8.3, I

Rise of a conservative movement:

Was caused by:

Urban unrest - riots in cities (Watts), increase in

violence

Juvenile delinquency

Challenges to the traditional family - increase in

divorce rate and births out of wedlock

Promoted their own agenda:

Smaller government, tougher stance on crime

Key Concept 8.3, II

“As federal programs expanded and economic growth reshaped American

society, many sought greater access to prosperity even as critics began to

question the burgeoning use of natural resources.”-- Page 76

Internal and International immigration increased -> economic opportunities

Immigration Law of 1965:

***Abolished the quota system from the 1920s***

Families of legal immigrants living in the US were given preferential

treatment

Especially benefited immigrants from Latin America and Asia

Key Concept 8.3, II

Increased calls for conservation and fighting pollution:

Caused by:

Abuse of natural resources

Environmental problems:

Rachel Carson and Silent Spring - wrote about the dangers

of pesticide

Helped inspire the EPA

Led to:

Clean Air Act:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):

Created under Nixon’s administration

Purpose is to help protect the environment and human

health

Key Concept 8.3, III

“New demographic and social issues led to significant political and

moral debates that sharply divided the nation.”-- Page 77

The American family structure was not always what was perceived

Image: traditional nuclear family

As seen in many TV shows: Leave It To Beaver, Father

Knows Best

Changes to the American family:

More and more women increasingly worked outside the home

(especially in the 1970s)

Divorce rates increased

Key Concept 8.3, III

Counterculture of the 1960s (“Hippies”)

Rejected many of their parents generations’ values

Social - used marijuana; new music (Woodstock; Haigh-

Ashbury district in San Fran)

Economic - rejected materialism, sought to live a simpler life

Political - protested the Vietnam War; active in civil rights,

promoted women’s rights;

Initiated:

A sexual revolution

Greater informality into US Culture

Key Concept 8.3, III

Clashes between liberals and conservatives:

Power of the presidency and the federal government:

Movements for greater individual rights:

Bakke v. University of California - Supreme Court upheld

affirmative action, however, it ruled that quotas were not

allowed

Phyllis Schlafly - Critic of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

Argued that the ERA would hurt women by taking away

certain benefits

Her campaign helped lead to the defeat of the ERA

Test Tips

Multiple-Choice and Short Answer:

Rise of the conservative movement

Causes of the environmental movement

Family structures and counterculture

Essays:

Immigration - comparing post 1965 with prior time periods

(1920s immigration quotas)

Rise of the conservative movement (making connections to

the 1960s under LBJ)