Transcript truman doctrine - Laurel County Schools

Immediately following the conclusion of WWII, things across
America didn’t look so great!
Fear that the Depression might come back
The economy faltered and strikes occurred across the country
Congress passed the TAFT-HARTLEY ACT which outlawed the “closed
shop”, held unions liable for damages, and made union leaders take noncommunist oaths
Union membership would peak in the 1950s and begin a steady decline
By far, the biggest economic program for postWWII America was the passage of the
SERVICEMEN’S READJUSTMENT ACT OF 1944
Also known as the G.I. BILL OF RIGHTS or the G.I.
Bill
Dealt with the problem of 15 million American
vets returning to the employment market
Would send soldiers to school
Also created the Veterans Administration to help
soldiers with home loans, farms, etc.
Beginning about 1950, the economy began to grow and will grow for almost 2
decades
National incomes doubled
Americans had the most of the world’s wealth
Really saw the creation of the “MIDDLE
This economic growth provided
opportunities for women as they
could now reenter the workforce
Most of these jobs in the service
sector
Still had to deal with the “cult of
domesticity” versus being an
independent woman
CLASS”
The big economic boom of the early 1950s
was pushed by military spending
Lots of money for the Korean War
Money being spent on research and science
Cold War spending
Cheap energy costs were important too!
The post WWII era also saw lots of moving by
Americans across the country
Many families relocated after the war
Put strain on family members
Largest growth occurred in the SUNBELT
region
One word that describes this movement in America
was the SUBURB
Suburbs were areas outside of the cities that saw
enormous growth
People could afford new homes and they moved to
the suburbs
A major negative of the suburbs growth was the
movement of whites from the inner cities called
“WHITE FLIGHT”
Left the inner cities as poverty stricken areas
The Donna
Reed Show
1958-1966
Leave It to
Beaver
1957-1963
Father Knows Best
1954-1958
The Ozzie & Harriet Show
1952-1966
Another major result of post-WWII America was the large amount
of children born
This growth is called the BABY BOOM
More than 50 million new babies born in the period of 1945-1960
Had dramatic effects on everything and still does today!!!!
How did the Cold War begin in the first place? Depends on the point of view!
Stalin seemed intent on creating “spheres of influence” in Eastern Europe
Stalin has said he would allow free elections in Eastern Europe at the Yalta Conference but lied
Stalin and the USSR also refused to release East Germany
Without a doubt the US wanted democracy spread throughout the world
The Soviet Union also had some reasons to not trust the U.S.
Believed the Allies didn’t open a second front earlier on purpose so more Soviet soldiers
would die
The US had not shared information about the atomic bomb project
The Soviet Union also said they had been attacked by Germany twice in the 20th
century and needed a “buffer zone” to protect them in the future
But the signal of the official tone of the Cold War was delivered by WINSTON
CHURCHILL in his famous “IRON CURTAIN” speech
Said an “Iron Curtain” had descended upon Europe and split the European
continent
Not all hopes for a better world were gone though b/c some good things did occur!
At the BRETTON WOODS CONFERENCE they created the WORLD BANK and the
INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND to promote economic growth in war-torn and
underdeveloped areas
At the Yalta Conference, they had established the framework for a UNITED NATIONS
The UN created the SECURITY COUNCIL that was composed of five permanent members
(US, USSR, China, GB, and France)
UN also created a Jewish state of Israel
As the Cold War began, there was still issues concerning Germany
The NUREMBERG TRIALS dealt with Nazi war
criminals by putting them on trial for war
crimes
Germany itself was divided into 4 zones of occupation and the
Soviets refuse to give theirs up
BERLIN will become the focus of the Cold War for the first part of the post-WWII period
Soviets cut off access to Berlin in 1948
Truman will respond by sending airplanes in what is known as the BERLIN AIRLIFT
Officially froze relations between the US and USSR
The first president to have to deal with Cold War policy was Harry Truman
Developed the policy of “CONTAINMENT” with assistance from
US ambassador GEORGE KENNAN
Harry Truman will eventually issue the TRUMAN DOCTRINE and it
will define US foreign policy for the next 20 years!
Officially initiated the policy of containment
First real test of this policy occurred in Turkey and Greece since
the British were no longer able
Truman recognized Israel as the new country
To follow through with the containment policy, the US needed to make sure that nations were less
vulnerable to the threat of communism
To meet the needs of many European nations torn by WWII,
the US began the MARSHALL PLAN
Soviet Union kept Eastern European nations out
Truman will also create the ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES
Created to prevent communism in Latin America
To meet the demands of the Cold War, Truman also began to reorganize the United States
defensive structure
In 1947 Truman pushed through the National Security Act that created the
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Also created the NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL and the CENTRAL
INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Also issued NSC NUMBER 68 which would implement a rigorous worldwide defense of
communism with an “immediate and large-scale build up of our military”
In 1948, Truman ordered the first peacetime military draft
Also created the ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION which established civilian control over nuclear
development and gave the president sole authority to use the atomic weapons in warfare
During Harry Truman’s second term, other Cold War alliances and policies were put
into place
The NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION or NATO was formed as a
COLLECTIVE SECURITY organization that essentially warned Moscow that a threat to any
members would be met with force
The USSR formed the WARSAW PACT as a response to NATO
In 1949, the Soviet Union exploded the atomic
bomb which meant that the US no longer had
a monopoly on atomic weapons
A major test for Truman’s Cold War policies was put to the test with
the nation of CHINA in 1949
US supported CHANG KAI SHEK
Communist led by MAO ZEDONG who eventually defeats Shek and
force him to move to the island of FORMOSA (TAWAIN)
Loss of China a major defeat for US and Truman criticized for allowing
China to fall to Communists
In 1952, the United States explodes the HYDROGEN BOMB, but in 1953
so do the Soviets
For the first time in human history, humankind has the ability to end
civilization
The Korean War lasted between the years of 1950 through 1953
The problem with Korea started back in the days of World War II
Russian troops had occupied northern Korea
US troops had occupied southern Korea
By 1949, both sides had set up regimes
North Korean led by KIM IL-SUNG and was supported by the Soviet Union
Conflict in Korea started in 1950 when North Korean army with Soviet made
tanks invaded South Korea and took nearly all the country
Truman invoked NSC-68 which called for a military buildup
UN Security Council, with Russia absent, called for members to restore peace
and condemned invasion
UN votes military aid to South Korea
With the call for military aid, the UN votes to establish a UN force with Truman’s choice,
GENERAL DOUGLAS MACARTHUR as UN Commander who took orders from
Washington
Truman ordered US troops into fighting
US soldiers make up 4 out of every 5 UN troops
By August 1950, North Korea captured virtually all of South Korea
MacArthur directed a surprise amphibious landing at INCHON behind Korean lines
In two weeks, UN forces had recaptured nearly all of South Korea
MacArthur ordered UN forces to cross North across the 38TH PARALLEL with support
of Truman and UN
North Korean forces driven back to edge of Chinese border
In November 1950, Chinese soldiers poured into North Korea which forced UN troops to
retreat with heavy losses across the 38th parallel
Truman horrified that Korea might be completely lost
In one of the most surprising moves of the Korean War, President Truman is forced to fire
Gen. Douglas MacArthur
Truman sought a “LIMITED WAR” with specific objectives rather than total victory
Said nuclear weapons would NOT be used
If US invaded into China, meant Soviet Union might retaliate in Europe or Asia
MacArthur against “limited war” saying there “Is not a substitute for victory”
MacArthur asked for nuclear weapons to be used on China
MacArthur circumvents President Truman and demands total North Korean
surrender
Undercuts Truman as Commander in Chief
Truman orders MacArthur removed from command
MacArthur returns to US a hero
The basic end of the conflict in Korea began with the election of 1952
when Republican candidate DWIGHT EISENHOWER promised to
personally go to Korea and end the conflict
Eisenhower did go to Korea once elected
Eisenhower also threatened to use nuclear weapons unless the
negotiations were successful
Cease fire was signed in 1953 and remains in effect today
38TH parallel boundary restored
Created a DMZ around the boundary
The long term effects of the Korean War are both good and bad
54,000 US soldiers dead
UN successfully repelled North Korean attack on South Korea
US successfully enforced its “containment” policy
One of the places that the Cold War
was really striking was the home
where a new anti-red chase was in full
gear
There were fears that communist spies
were trying to undermine the
government
Fear they were trying to mislead
foreign policy
In response, Truman ordered a massive
“loyalty” program
The loyalty of American became a major
concern to many people and leaders in
America
Almost none were given the opportunity to
prove their innocence
LOYALTY REVIEW BOARD established
to investigate federal employees
LOYALTY OATHS required for many jobs
including most teachers!!!
Historians refer to this post World War II fear as the SECOND RED SCARE
Fear of communism at home
Fear of nuclear war
Fear of communism spreading around the world
Culture reflected those fears in movies such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The
Blob
Truman’s Administration passed the SMITH ACT OF 1940 in
an effort to jail leaders of the American Communist Party
Made it illegal to advocate the overthrow of the government
by force
Made it illegal to belong to an organization advocating such a
move
11 Communists brought to trial in NY in 1949 and sent to
prison
America’s great fear of communism showed up nationally with the creation of the HOUSE
COMMITTEE ON UN-AMERICAN ACTIVITIES (HUAC)
Created in 1945 to root out communism and lasted into the 1950s
The committee went after public figures in Washington and Hollywood
Liberals and members of the New Deal were targeted
One of the lead members of the HUAC committee was a
young RICHARD NIXON
One of the most famous cases of the HUAC
committee involved ALGER HISS
Hiss a current member of the State
Department
Hiss denied being a communist member
in the 1930s, but was convicted of
perjury and sentenced to 5 years in
prison
Case allowed Nixon to gain national
recognition
Another famous “commie case” involved the
ROSENBERGS in 1954
Julius and Ethal Rosenberg were
convicted and executed for allegedly
giving atomic bomb secrets to the Soviet
Both were avowed Communists
Many actors and actresses plus directors in Hollywood were “BLACKLISTED’
1O of these were known as the HOLLYWOOD TEN
They refused to testify and decided to go to prison rather than testifying to the HUAC
Industry responded by denying work to 250 actors, writers, and directors
Eventually, a central figure rose to prominence in the early 1950’s known as JOE
MCCARTHY
McCarthy a senator from Wisconsin
Asserted that 200 unknown communists were in the State Department
McCarthy had some crazy ideas and made accusation without any evidence
Downfall of McCarthy occurred when he took on the Army in 1954
A famous work by ARTHUR MILLER called THE CRUCIBLE was a popular play
in the 1950s that used the 1692 Salem Witch trials as a metaphor for McCarthyism