Eisenhower Years
(1953-1961)
Kennedy Years
(1961-1963)
Explain the significance:
What impact did this event have on social interactions and the government policies of the United States?
Arms race & nuclear proliferation
The US and USSR began building as many nuclear weapons as possible as a way to compete for superiority during the Cold War. Eisenhower believed that having nuclear weapons could be a form of ‘deterrence’ that would keep the USSR from attacking.
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
The CIA operation in Guatemala was such a success that five years later, when Fidel Castro seized power in Cuba, the CIA began training teams of Cuban exiles in the Everglades, the Florida Keys, and Guatemala. This time, however, their effort led to disaster at the Bay of Pigs.
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO)
American leaders also felt obliged by their membership in SEATO, an alliance of the United States and other countries similar to NATO, but with a focus on Southeast Asia.
U2 Incident
In 1953 Nikita Khrushchev became the leader of the Soviet Union after Stalin's death.
Although he seemed less extreme than Stalin, Khrushchev believed strongly in the superiority of the Communist system. Plans for a Soviet-American summit conference in 1960 were abruptly called off when an American U2 spy plane flown by Gary Powers was shot down over the Soviet Union.
Cuban Missile Crisis
The "Cuban Missile Crisis" is often seen as Kennedy's greatest foreign policy success. Because of his cool handling of the crisis, Kennedy was able to persuade the Soviet Union and Cuba to back down.
Berlin Wall
Khrushchev ordered the construction of the Berlin Wall which was a wall of concrete and barbed wire, guarded by machine gun towers that separated East and West Berlin.
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs invasion led Castro to strengthen his ties with the Soviet Union. The US discovered from its spy planes that Cubans were secretly trying to build bases for Soviet nuclear missiles which would have given the Soviet Union the ability to launch an immediate nuclear attack on the US.
Peace Corps
Young Americans provided economic and social assistance to developing countries.
Space Race
Space Race
In 1958, NASA was formed and America entered the "space race." Florida has played a key role because all of the American rockets launched into space took off from Cape Canaveral. In 1963, NASA acquired 90,000 acres on nearby Merritt Island, which became the Kennedy Space Center.
The space program brough tens of thousands of scientists to Florida, turning Central Florida into the "Space Coast."