unit 8: early cold war & 1950s prosperity & beginning of civil rights (1947-1964)

KEY TERMS:

Communism - political theory by Karl Marx, advocating class war &  leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned & each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs.

Arms race - After WWII, U.S. & Soviet Union became superpowers. The two had competing ideologies & competed in an arms race for almost 50 years. After the devastation following Truman’s decision to use atomic weapons & resulting arms race, fear among U.S. citizens prompted worry of a nuclear disaster and the building of bomb shelters. 

Space race - Soviet Union launched SPUTNIK I in 1957, which was first spacecraft to orbit earth. U.S. created NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) & increased funding for math & science education in order to remain technologically superior to the Soviet Union. 

Sputnik - first spacecraft to orbit earth by Soviet Union in 1957.

Tet Offensive - North Vietnamese and other forces carried out surprise attacks on American forces in South Vietnam.  Turning point in Vietnam War.

Vietnamization - change in U.S. Military policy in Vietnam by President Nixon that failed. This policy focused on equipping, training, and giving more responsibility for combat actions to local South Vietnamese forces. At the same time, U.S. ground forces started to be drawn down and transitioned to more of an advisory role.  

Escalation - increase. Example: Escalation of troops by LBJ After Gulf of Tonkin Incident (Vietnam War)

Draft - Conscription - in response to an increase of U.S. military presence, the draft was instituted during the Vietnam war.  FORCED MILITARY SERVICE.

26th Amendment - lowered voting age from 21 to 18 years old - Vietnam War “Old Enough to Fight, Old Enough to Vote”

Credibility gap - refers to the public's skepticism over President Johnson’s administration’s statements & policies on the Vietnam War.

Silent majority - term coined by President Nixon, meaning the people who support the Vietnam War. Anti-War Movement may be loud but doesn’t represent majority of people. The silent majority represented those who were overshadowed by protestors against the Vietnam War and the media. 

Anti-war Movement - movement of the 1960s advocating the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Vietnam. It often became violent. (Kent State)

Prosperity - condition of being successful or thriving especially : economic well-being.

Middle Class - economic group between the upper and lower classes, including professional and business workers and their families.

Suburbs - outlying district of a city, especially a residential one. Example: Pasadena

Vaccines - product that stimulates a person's immune system to produce immunity to a specific disease, protecting the person from that disease. Example: Polio Vaccine created in this time.

Antibiotics - Medications provided treatment for diseases and illnesses. a medicine ( penicillin) that inhibits the growth of or destroys microorganisms.