Harry Truman– US president who succeeded FDR, made the decision to drop 2 atomic bombs at the end of WWII. He also helped implement the Marshall Plan, which was crucial for recovering Western Europe’s economy.

Truman Doctrine—President Truman’s policy of providing economic and military aid to any country threatened by communism or totalitarian ideology

Policy of Containment—a foreign policy strategy advocated by George Kennan that called for the United States to isolate the Soviet Union, “contain” its advances, and resist its encroachments by peaceful means if possible, but by force if necessary.

Kennan Long Telegram—created by George Kennan, it advised the Truman administration that the Soviets could not be dealt with as a normal government and proposed the policy of containment

Marshall Plan—Introduced by Secretary of State George G. Marshall in 1947, he proposed massive and systematic American economic aid to Europe to revitalize the European economies after WWII and help prevent the spread of Communism.

Alger Hiss Affair– an American government official who was accused by Richard Nixon of being a Soviet spy in 1948 and convicted of perjury in connection with this charge in 1950.

NSC-68–National Security Council memo #68 US “strive for victory” in cold war, pressed for offensive,  increased ($37 billion) in defense spending, determined US foreign policy for the next 20-30 yrs

NATO—1949, North Atlantic Treaty Organization; an alliance made to defend one another if they were attacked by any other country; US, England, France, Canada, Western European countries, an international organization created in 1949 by the North Atlantic Treaty for purposes of collective security.

Betty Friedan—1921-2006. American feminist, activist and writer. Best known for catalyzing the “Second Wave” of feminism through the writing of her book “The Feminine Mystique”

HUAC—The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) was an investigating committee which investigated what it considered un-American propaganda. This congressional Committee investigated Communist influence inside and outside the US government after WWII. The HUAC embodied the idea of McCarthyism.

McCarthyism– term to describe the “witch hunt” to find communists in America during the Cold War.

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg— convicted of espionage for their role in passing atomic secrets to the Soviets during and after World War II. The husband and wife were later sentenced to death and were executed in 1953.

Brown vs. Board of Education–1954- court decision that declared state laws segregating schools to be unconstitutional. Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), which had declared school segregation constitutional.

Richard Nixon–President of the United States from 1969 to 1974 who followed a foreign policy marked by détente with the Soviet Union and by the opening of diplomatic relations with China. In the face of likely impeachment for the Watergate scandal, he resigned.

Watergate Scandal—Watergate was a major political scandal that occurred in the United States in the 1970s, following a break-in at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C. in 1972 and President Richard Nixon administration’s attempted cover-up of its involvement.

Berlin Blockade/Airlift– airlift in 1948 that supplied food and fuel to citizens of west Berlin when the Russians closed off land access to Berlin
Churchill Iron Curtain Speech— former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill condemns the Soviet Union’s policies in Europe and declared, “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent.”