Transcript America in the 1950s

Chapter 28
America in
the 1950s
“The election of Dwight Eisenhower to the presidency
ushered in one of the most prosperous periods in
American history. Economic growth resulted in increased
employment and higher wages throughout the 1950s.”
-TAJ
Section 1
Eisenhower in
the White House
In 1952, Truman decided not to run for
reelection. Democrats nominated
Adlai E. Stevenson (governor of
Illinois) and Senator John Sparkman of
Alabama as his running-mate.
Republicans nominated World War II
hero, Dwight D. Eisenhower and
Richard M. Nixon (California senator)
as his running-mate.
1952 - Landslide
Victory for
Republicans!
Eisenhower promised
to bring the Korean
War to an “early and
honorable end.”
(Even if he had to go
there himself.)
When Nixon was
accused of accepting
political gifts from
supporters, he made
his famous
“Checkers” speech,
saying the only gift he
kept was the family
dog- checkers. The
speech gained him
support and
Eisenhower kept him
on the ticket.
Eisenhower had little experience, but
proved himself an effective politician.
His approach to domestic policy was
moderate- or “middle-of-the-road”
“I feel pretty good when I’m attacked
from both sides. It makes me more
certain I’m on the right track.” Dwight D. Eisenhower
He stayed away from ambitious NEW
government programs and resisted
pressure to get rid of older ones- even
expanding some of the old policies.
When he left office the federal budget
had a $300 million surplus.
Eisenhower’s greatest
domestic program
involved building a
network of interstate
highways. FEDERAL
HIGHWAY ACT (1956)
funded building of more
than 40,000 miles of
highways that tied the
nation together.
Alaska and Hawaii became a state during
Eisenhower’s presidency- making 50 states.
(The only 2 states that do not border other
states)
The rivalry between the United States
and the Soviet Union kept the Cold
War at the center of foreign policy.
Eisenhower’s most important foreign
policy advisor became John Foster
Dulles.
Dulles condemned the
containment policy and
proposed a bolder policy
of massive retaliation – If
the Soviet Union
attacked any nation- the
U.S. would instantly
attack using nuclear
weapons.
“Rather than let the Communists nibble us
to death all over the world in little wars, we
will rely in the future on massive mobile
retaliatory [attacking] powers.”
Vice President Richard Nixon
Soviet’s attempt to counter the policy
of massive retaliation produced a
nuclear arms race. Each nation build
more and more weapons.
HYDROGEN
BOMBS
INTERMEDIATE-RANGE BALLISTIC
MISSILES (could reach targets 1,500
miles away)
INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC
MISSILES (range of many thousands of
miles)
“If an attack should come, however, the first warning you may get
could be the flash itself. Your first move should be to close your eyes
and bury your head in your arms or clothing to block out the light.
The flash may last for several seconds, so keep covered until it
begins to dim. The shockwave will come next. Take cover so you
will not be knocked down. If you are in a car, roll down windows to
avoid flying glass and lie on the floor.”
-LIFE magazine, 1961 (U.S. government’s suggested preparations for a nuclear attack.
SPACE RACE
Soviet launch of Sputnik and the failure
of the U.S. satellite-Vanguard (which
exploded only a few feet off the
launching pad) led U.S. to develop the
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) the nation’s own
space program.
FOREIGN POLICY
UPRISING IN
CHALLENGES
HUNGARY
CRISIS IN MIDDLE EAST
Arab states attacked Israel. (U.S. WAR IN SOUTHEAST
backed Israel, Soviets kept ties
ASIA
Vietnam- a former French
with Arabs)
Egyptian president Gamal Abdel
Nasser NATIONALIZED – or
brought the Suez Canal under
government control (from British
control.)
Britain and France attacked,
fearing Nasser would close
the canal and cut off oil
shipments. Threatened by
the Soviet Union, they
pulled out of Egypt.
colony - Vietminh, nationalist
rebels led by Communist
leader Ho chi Minh
Vietminh forces trapped
13,000 French troopsThey pleaded with the
U.S. for help.
Eisenhower refused:
“I can conceive of no greater tragedy than
for the United States to become engaged
in all-out war in Indochina.”
French surrendered.
French and Vietminh representatives in
Geneva, Switzerland, negotiated a cease-fire
agreement- known as the Geneva Accords. It
temporarily divided Vietnam.
Vietminh controlled the north; French
controlled the south.
Eisenhower believed if one Asian nation fell under control of the Communists, it
would be one after the other.
Eisenhower’s DOMINO THEORY:
“You have a row of dominoes set up. You knock over the first one, and what
will happen to the last one is that it will go over very quickly.”
To prevent this, the U.S. helped create the
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO)an alliance that included the U.S., Great
Britain, France, New Zealand, Australia, the
Philippines, Pakistan and Thailand.
Eisenhower also had to deal with communist
challenges in Latin America.
The CIA (Central Intelligence Agency)
helped overthrow the government of
Guatemala- which government leaders
felt were leaning toward communism.
After Joseph Stalin died in 1953,
new leader Nikita Khrushchev
and American leaders were
interested in easing cold War
tensions.
Americans had sent U-2 spy planes
over Soviet territory for years. On May
1, 1960, Soviets shot down a U-2 plane
and captured its pilot Francis Powers,
it “refroze” the Cold War.
Eisenhower issued a warning about the influence of the military in his 1961
Farewell Address. He felt military and business leaders had allied to seek
bigger, more expensive weapons. He felt this “military-industrial complex”
could heat up the arms race.
Section 2
1950s Prosperity
From 1945 to 1960 the total value of
goods and services produced in the
U.S. increased about 250%.
Some of this growth was because of
military spending during the Korean
War.
The economic boom
raised the American
standard of living
(measure of people’s
overall wealth and
quality of life.)
During the prosperous 1950s, many
American families moved to the
suburbs.
Families enjoyed growth during the
postwar years. The nation’s
population increased from 150 million
to 179 million in the 1950s (soaring
birthrate was called Baby Boom.)
1949- over 900,000 American
households had televisions.
Teenagers kept up with the latest hit
songs on the show “American
Bandstand.”
Different attitudes toward music
helped form the generation gap.
The bar
graph
shows
United
States
households
with radios
and
televisions,
1950-1990.
Section 3
Problems in a
Time of Plenty
More than 20% of Americans lived in
poverty during the 1950s.
Some critics believed that the
sameness of suburban and corporate
life had caused a loss of individuality.
Writer, Betty Friedan,
believed that many
American housewives
were dissatisfied with
their lives.
“The suburban housewife was the dream image of the young American woman.
She was healthy, beautiful, educated and concerned only about her husband, her
children and her home.” -Betty Friedan
This image was reinforced by television, magazines and advertising.
The percentage of Americans below the poverty line was about ½ as high in 2000 as 1960.
In which state were there no distressed counties in
1960 or 2000?
“Riddle: what’s college? That’s where girls who are above
cooking and sewing go to meet a man they spend their lives
cooking and sewing for.”
This excerpt from an advertisement for college women’s clothing reinforced
the idea that women were husband and home oriented.
Writer, John Kenneth Galbraith’s book, The Affluent Society,
explored the problems faced by society (“the social ills”)
African Americans questioned their place in society.
Brown v. Board of
education of Topeka (1954)
declared that racial
segregation in public
schools was
unconstitutional.
African Americans staged a successful
boycott of segregated buses in
Montgomery, Alabama.
President Eisenhower sent troops to Little Rock, Arkansas to
enforce a court order to integrate a high school.