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Transcript
Allies to Enemies: Origins of the Cold War During World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union had been allies against Germany. However, they had many serious ideological differences and often conflicting political agendas. In particular, the United States had a democratic system of government, while the Soviet Union had a communist government. Those differences led to tension-filled conflicts and increasingly polarized positions, as well as to opposing political and military initiatives. Because those conflicts never heated up to the point of major military action, the often intense struggle became known as the "cold war." Eastern Europe Despite an agreement to help European nations regain selfgovernment, the Soviet Union installed communist governments in Eastern Europe in the years between 1945 and 1948. Soviet leader Joseph Stalin justified his actions on the premise that those nations provided a security buffer from European invasion. He also believed that the United States had promised him this "sphere of influence" in Eastern Europe as part of their wartime alliance. Perhaps most important of all, Stalin wanted to spread communist ideology. To further that aim, the Soviets imposed communication and travel barriers to the West—known as the "iron curtain"—throughout its sphere of influence. Angered and concerned by Soviet actions, the United States and its allies took steps to fight the spread of communism. The Marshall Plan The United States feared Soviet dominance throughout Europe—and perhaps beyond. As a result, President Harry Truman committed the United States to supporting democratic resistance in Europe. The Truman Doctrine, and the containment policy it became, led to two key prongs of cold war strategy. The first was economic aid to Europe with the Marshall Plan (1947) as its cornerstone. Proposed by Secretary of State George C. Marshall, the plan hoped to stabilize Europe—thus protecting it against communist influences—by repairing European economies and infrastructures. Between 1948 and 1952, 17 European nations received Marshall Plan funds. The monies helped to restore industry, agriculture, and trade, while they shored up financial institutions. Berlin Each action in the cold war prompted a reaction from the opposing side, which raised tensions to new levels. In 1948, the western allies—who had occupied portions of Germany and the city of Berlin—decided to merge their zones into a new democratic German nation (founded in 1949). Because Berlin sat inside the Sovietoccupied portion of Germany, its western zones became a single isolated democratic island surrounded by communist territory. The Soviet Union responded in June 1948 by blockading all routes to West Berlin in an effort to push the western allies out. Only the Berlin airlift, which supplied the city by airdrop, enabled the people there to survive the 11-month blockade. NATO Incidents like the Berlin blockade further heightened tension and increased U.S. concerns about Soviet expansion. They also encouraged the second major prong of the U.S. containment plan: military deterrence. The United States and its European allies believed that a strong military and a united political front would deter the Soviets from an attack. In 1949, they formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which rested on the core idea that each member nation would treat an attack on any other member as an attack on itself. The United States, with its increasing store of nuclear weapons, offered a formidable military threat at NATO's helm. In response, the Soviet Union formed the Warsaw Pact among its allies. As the Soviets developed nuclear weapons (testing began in 1949), the race for military dominance began. "Allies to Enemies: Origins of the Cold War (Overview)." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 15 Feb. 2013. ------------------------------------------------------------- The Economy Booms When World War II began, the United States was faltering under the Great Depression. By the end of the war, the U.S. economy, stimulated largely by defense spending, had almost entirely turned around. Fueled by pent-up demand for products unavailable during the war, industry took off at a furious pace. In particular, the automobile industry, which had been making tanks and airplanes, began turning out new cars. Such technological advances as plastics, frozen foods, and jet engines spawned new industries, while consumer devices like air conditioners, dishwashers, and especially televisions were in great demand. Moreover, U.S. industry responded not only to American consumer demand but also to demand around the world. By 1952, the United States was supplying 65% of the world's manufactured goods! Moving Up in the World The housing industry also exploded during the postwar years. Government programs like the GI Bill offered low-cost housing and education loans to returning servicemen, which brought college education and home ownership to more Americans than ever before. Builders like William Levitt responded creatively to the new market by building inexpensive, mass-produced homes and creating the American suburb. Of course, the suburbs—which were outside the city and usually beyond public transportation systems—further fueled demand for automobiles, for businesses to serve the suburbs, and for better and bigger highway systems. Federal programs like the Highway Act of 1956 poured massive funds into linking the country. In addition, such devices as air conditioners made living in the hot Sun Belt regions of the nation more and more appealing. As cities expanded or emerged in places like Florida, Georgia, Arizona, and Texas, they created additional consumer markets for manufactured goods. People Changes For many returning servicemen and their loved ones, picking up their lives after the war meant marrying, settling down, and having children. In the postwar period, the United States experienced a huge population boom, with 28 million new Americans added between 1950 and 1960. In the prosperous economy, those added Americans became additional consumers fueling the fires of U.S. industry. In addition, changes in the law and in government regulations increased wages for many workers. For many other workers, their actual jobs even changed. Corporations began to consolidate during the postwar period, creating huge conglomerates like International Telephone and Telegraph. That meant an increase in office jobs, often with valuable benefits. Demand for schools, shops, and retail businesses meant an increase in service jobs. Many more Americans joined the middle class as they obtained homes, education, and disposable income. With more money to spend—and more goodies on which to spend it—Americans began to buy. They created the biggest period of retail spending the United States had yet seen. The Goodies In addition to houses (1 million built in 1952) and automobiles (4 million built in 1952), Americans bought a wide array of consumer products during the postwar period. Technological advances had allowed the creation of a plethora of goodies, and television advertising made sure that consumers knew about every new "musthave" product. By 1949, Americans were buying 250,000 televisions a month. And of course, they also bought frozen dinners, plastic items, dishwashers, garbage disposals, washing machines, automatic dryers, high fidelity record players, power lawn movers, synthetic fiber clothing and fabrics, and much more. With the growth of suburbia, businesses had relocated, and Americans could now shop at the nearby mall or supermarket. However, because this incredible prosperity left out many Americans—especially African Americans—the seeds were sown for the social upheaval that would soon follow. "The Economy Booms, 1950-1959 (Overview)." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 15 Feb. 2013. ------------------------------------------------------------- Boom-Time for Babies and Houses Half a generation of young men came of age overseas during World War II. When they returned to the United States, they were ready to take the next step in their lives. There were 12 million of them. Whole New Communities One man had a notion that whole towns could be built for the homehungry young families that needed places to live. He borrowed the war industries’ assembly line approach and applied it to home construction. He put his houses up—all 17,447 of them—on a former potato field on Long Island. His name was William Levitt. Originally called Island Trees, the community became Levittown on the last day of 1947. At first, the homes rented for $60 a month. Later, Levitt sold them for $7,990 each. A housing bill passed in 1948 made 30-year mortgages available to new home buyers. In addition, the bill allowed veterans to buy houses with no down payment. This gave thousands of struggling new families a chance to own their own homes. The Baby Boom Meanwhile, those 12 million veterans were starting families. Demographers recognize 1946 as the beginning of the post-World War II baby boom. The boom continued until 1965, when birth rates leveled off. Consider these birth statistics for the years before, during, and after the baby boom years. The Next Step Many of these newly returned veterans went to college with the help of the GI Bill. Many others went to work. Regardless of how these young men chose to continue their careers, they had one thing in common: a good many of them got married. This same phenomenon had occurred after World War I as well. The number of marriages and the birth rate increased for several years after the troops returned from Europe. Where to Put Them There was plenty of work to do. The war industries were declining, but the returning soldiers had to be clothed and fed. And these nowgrown young men, whether married or not, needed places to live. The whole country experienced a severe housing shortage. Thus began a housing boom. For example, in Michigan between 1954 and 1960, 1 million houses went up. No Room in the City All of this new building occurred on the fringes of towns and cities. These areas, called suburbs, began to expand. Living in the suburbs was made possible by the fact that more and more families could afford automobiles. Owning an automobile meant workers could live some distance from their workplaces. Dubbed the "crabgrass frontier" in Kenneth Jackson's book Crabgrass Frontier: The Suburbanization of the United States, the suburbs became the ideal of American life. A family, a house, a green yard, a nice street—all these elements became the picture of the American dream. Unfortunately, this dream was primarily available to white families. Most minority families remained in the cities and were largely unwelcome in the suburbs. Separate but equal was still the standard in schools and public facilities, but separate was emphasized more than equal. The burgeoning civil rights movement brought some of these problems to light, and changes began to be made to attempt to correct the inequalities. Still, crime, substandard housing, and race riots afflicted the African Americans and other minorities who remained in the cities, while white families lived more serene lives in the suburbs. Source: National Center for Health Statistics, National Vital Statistics Reports, Table 1-1, Live Births, Birth Rates, and Fertility Rates, by Race of Child: United States, 1909-80. The Baby Boom Echo The effects of the baby boom are still moving through our society. When those children were of school age, public schools struggled with record attendance levels. Later, those children all vied for jobs during the 1970s and 1980s. And in the 21st century, the earliest baby boomers are retiring. As they require increased health care and begin drawing Social Security, their large numbers will mean new changes in American society. "Boom-Time for Babies and Houses, 1950-1959 (Overview)." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 15 Feb. 2013. Important Items about the Cold War and the Fifties You need to begin familiarizing yourself with these terms. You will be having an identification quiz at the halfway point of the Unit. Remember, the quiz has no word bank, you must know these terms. Chapter 13 Sputnik Satellite Nations Space Race Iron Curtain _______________________________________ Chapter 14 Universal Declaration of Human Rights Closed shop Harry Truman Right-To-Work Laws Containment Union Shop Truman Doctrine Dixiecrats Marshall Plan Fair Deal Berlin Airlift Dynamic Conservatism NATO Amendment 22 Korean War Baby Boom Douglas MacArthur Franchise House Un-American Activities Committee Generation Gap Joseph R. McCarthy Rock’n’Roll McCarthyism Jonas Salk Subversion Mass Media Loyalty Review Program Beat Movement Perjury Poverty Line Censure Urban Renewal Fallout Termination Program Brinkmanship Juvenile Delinquency Covert Developing Nation Military-Industrial Complex The Cold War and the Fifties 1945-1960 A U.S. serviceman views television with his family at their home in Maine on July 1, 1954. Since the 1950s, the medium has become a cultural phenomenon. Present in nearly every household in the United States, and on for an average of seven hours per day, television plays a large role in the nation's communications network, culture, and economy. [AP/Wide World Photos] Essential Questions (you should be able to answer these by the time we finish the Unit) 1. Explain the breakdown in relations between the U.S. and the Soviet Union after World War II. 2. How did the United States attempt to contain Soviet influence? 3. How did the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan increase tension between the countries; including conflicts over Germany? 4. What was the U.S. reaction to the Communists coming to power in China? 5. Summarize the events of the Korean War. 6. How did the government investigate the loyalty of U.S. citizens? 7. Describe the efforts of Senator Joseph McCarthy to investigate alleged Communist influence in the United States. 8. Describe the American and Soviet actions that caused the Cold War to spread around the world. 9. What impact did Sputnik have on the United States? 10. What economic and social challenges did the nation face after World War II? Explain the causes and effects. 11. Describe the suburban lifestyle of the 1950s. 12. Identify the causes and effects of the automobile industry boom. 13. Explain the increase in consumerism in the 1950s. 14. How did television in the 1950s reflect middle-class values? 15. Explain how the beat movement and rock-and-roll music clashed with middle class values. 16. How did African-American entertainers integrate the media in the 1950s? 17. How did the white migration to the cities create an urban crisis? 18. Describe the efforts of minorities to gain equal rights and fight poverty.