Divided Union 1945 - 80 full revision notes

Divided Union 1945 to 1980

After the First World War the USA had returned to a policy of isolationism, but when war
broke out in 1939, President Roosevelt wanted to help Britain and prepare the USA for
war against Germany. He asked congress for $1,300,000,000 to build up the army.…

4. Japanese Americans. They were interned during the war and many lost their homes and
property as a result. 120,000 were rounded up into camps in California alone. Although
later many Japanese Americans served in the armed forces, and some argued that
internment was against the US constitution.
5. Anti…

From 1945 to 1950, people had been lead to believe that there were secret communists in
all walks of life who were working towards the overthrow of the US government. This was
the atmosphere that Senator Joseph McCarthy used in 1950 to advance his political career.

In 1950 McCarthy claimed…

theoretically freed in 1863 but still suffered from poverty segregation and discrimination,
particularly in the South where most Blacks lived.

At the end of the war 17 states in the South, still enforced the "Jim Crow" laws. These laws
enforced segregation in almost every sphere of public life. Parks, transport,…

ruling of the supreme court. In 1957 Eisenhower went further and passed a civil rights act
which would prosecute anyone who denied another American their civil rights. The case
attracted world wide attention, and in 1958 Arkansas was forced to integrate all the schools
in the state.
However, many states…

In 1962 Robert Kennedy started the Voter Education Project to encourage blacks to
register to vote.
The Voting Rights Campaign was the result. The NAACP conducted campaigns to
increase the number of blacks who were registered to vote. They often faced intimidation
and worse at the polling booths.

In 1962…

approach to civil rights. Between 1965 and the end of the decade the nature of the civil
rights movement changed and became more violent.

Many felt that the pace of change was too slow. They believed that society was
fundamentally racist and that nothing could change it. There was an…

Kennedy was very good on television and was one of the first presidents to really
understand how to use the media his advantage. Kennedy at 43 was the youngest person
ever to be elected President and he and his equally young wife "Jackie" were both
extraordinarily popular influencing fashion trends…

2. The Area Redevelopment Act tried to improve poor communities
3. The Housing Act tried to clear slums and improve housing
4. The Social Security Act gave more money to the elderly and unemployed
5. The Manpower Development and Training Act tried to help the unemployed
6. He also tried…

people accused Johnson of stepping over the line into outright "dirty tricks", but he got the
job done and was respected for his ability in congress. He was much better than Kennedy at
getting his bills passed by congress.

Background
He was born in Stonewall Texas one of a family…