APUSH Unit #8

39) Eisenhower's Farewell Address (January 1961)/ The military-industrial complex.

During his Farewell Address in January 1961, President Eisenhower warned Americans of the dangers of the military-industrial complex. The military-industrial complex is the close relationship between the U.S. Military and the giant corporations that built its weapons. He viewed it as a threat to liberty and to democracy.

95) Three Mile Island accident (1979)

In 1979, there was a partial meltdown of the reactor core at Three Miles island. Even though no one was hurt. It had a devastating impact on the nuclear power industry. (The nuclear regulatory commission has not reviewed an application to build a new nuclear power plant in the United States since.)

96) Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique (1963)

In her book, friedan focused on the isolation, boredom, and lack of fulfillment that many housewives felt. (Her famous words were "is this all"?). The feminine mystique was significant because it helped end the cult of domesticity (or separate spheres theory) and urged women to pursue independent careers.

61) The Omnibus Housing Act (1965)

It appropriated money for more low and middle income housing, including rent supplements for low income families.

63) The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

It eliminated the discriminatory quotas set-up in the 1960s and treated all nationalities and races equally. (There were hemispheric ceilings, and the law provided for the admission of close relatives of u.S. Citizens.) After this, most immigrants came from Asia and Latin America.

62) The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (1965)

It provided more than $1 billion in aid to public and parochial schools.

60) The Medical Care Act (1965) (Medicare, Medicaid)

Medicare is government provided medical insurance and care for people over 65, while Medicaid is government provided health care for the poor.

59) The Great Society/ Project Head Start

The Great Society was the name given to Johnson's programs to end poverty and fight racial injustice. Between 1964 and 1966, some 435 bills were passed as part of the great society, the most significant period of reform legislation since the New Deal./Project head start provides education for preschoolers from disadvantaged families.

40) Flexible response

The president would be given a range of options for dealing with international crises (instead of always having the same response, which massive retaliation indicated). (In other words, the U.S. would have options that might include conventional forces, special forces (the green berets), the use of nuclear weapons, or economic methods or pressure.)

99) The sexual revolution

The sexual revolution was when sexual permissiveness increased greatly in the 1960's and 1970's. In 1960, the birth control pill came out on the market, and more women used the iud (intrauterine device) or the diaphragm, thus decreasing fears of unwanted pregnancy.

28) Rock and Roll/ Elvis Presley

They believed it to be too sensual (too sexually offensive). Elvis was known as Elvis the Pelvis because of the way he moved his hips. (Some who first heard him on the radio thought he was black).

29) The Beats (Beatniks) [Jack Kerouac/ Allen Ginsberg]

They were a group of writers who had long hair and were involved in sexual promiscuity and drug experimentation. They criticized the conformity, competition, and materialism of the 1950s- they glorified society's outcasts. (They were the forerunners of the counterculture of the 1960s- the hippies).

93) Rachel Carson's Silent Spring (1962)

This book attacked the use of the pesticide DDT as being harmful to fish, animals, and even humans. By 1972, the government had banned almost all use of DDT. (This book in many ways launched the modern environmental movement).

101) Roe v. Wade (1973)

This declared that a woman had the right to obtain an abortion during the first three months of pregnancy, overturning the laws that most states had passed which prohibited or limited abortion.

94) The Clean Air Act of 1970

This was the first comprehensive federal attempt to reduce air pollution. The Environment Protection Agency, or EPA, was set up to carry out the law and other environmental legislation.

98) The National Organization of Women (NOW) (Established: 1966)

Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibited job discrimination because of race, religion, national origin, and gender. However, the government was doing a poor job of enforcing the "gender" portion of Title VII. Newspapers commonly listed "Help Wanted- Male", or "Help Wanted- Female". The NOW was formed to enforce Title VII's provision against job discrimination based on gender. Now elected Betty Friedan as its first president.

41) The Peace Corps

Young men and women were sent all over the world to do volunteer work in developing countries.

97) Causes of the increasing number of women in the workforce

(1): Soaring divorce rates forced many to work. (2): Inflation was a factor. With higher prices, some women felt they had to work even if their husbands were working. (3): A lower birthrate made it easier for women to work. (4): A longer life expectancy enabled women to enter the workforce and put off having children until they were older.

29) Technological changes in the 1950s

(1):The tremendous growth of television spread conformity and consumerism (more than 90% of households had them by 1960). (2):There was an explosion in the electronics industry and computers that led to new products (like electric washers and dryers) and more efficiency in business.

31) John Foster Dulles/ massive retaliation/ deterrence/ brinksmanship

The U.S. would respond to Soviet aggression with an all-out nuclear attack. The idea was that this would stop Soviet aggression completely because the soviets would be afraid of an all-out nuclear attack.

42) The Alliance for Progress

The alliance aimed to stop communism in Latin America by offering economic and technical aid to nations in the region; however, it was a failure because too much of the money ended up in the hands of the wealthy, not the masses, thus strengthening the rule of dictators in Latin America.

58) Michael Harrington: The Other America (1962)

The book described how nearly 20% of the nation lived in poverty, including the aged, minorities, and single parent families. He discussed how the poor were cut off from educational and employment opportunities, as well as medical care.

100) The battle over the Equal Rights Amendment (1970's)/ Phyllis Schlafly

The equal rights amendment was proposed in 1923 by Alice Paul to guarantee women "equality of rights under the law". Some women, led by anti-feminist Phyillis Schafly opposed it saying that it would undermine the American family by violating "the right of a wife to be supported by her husband" and it might lead to women in combat. Both Houses of Congress approved of the Amendment by a two-thirds vote by 1972. However, it was never ratified. By 1982, 35 out of 50 states ratified it and they needed 38 states within ten years.

30) The growth of the Sunbelt

The sunbelt is a smiling crescent from Virginia through Florida and Texas to Arizona and California. People moved to this region in search of jobs, a better climate, and lower taxes.