question

Martin Luther King, Jr. founded the ____________ to obtain civil rights for African Americans.

answer

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

question

n Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, the Supreme Court ruled that school segregation

answer

violated the 14th Amendment by creating feelings of inferiority and inequality.

question

President Eisenhower's approach to desegregation was to

answer

work behind the scenes to support the movement.

question

People's attitude toward organized religion in the 1950s was

answer

incredibly positive and religious affiliation boomed.

question

The economic abundance of the 1950s

answer

did not benefit the steel industry and agriculture as much as other industries.

question

What was the initial goal of the Montgomery bus boycott?

answer

to create a semi-segregated seating arrangement on a first-come, first-served basis

question

Which section of the nation benefitted the most from the economic boom of the 1950s?

answer

the Sunbelt states

question

The "beats" were

answer

writers and poets who rebelled against materialistic 1950s values.

question

The new American suburbs of the 1950s

answer

showed a surprising occupational diversity among inhabitants.

question

y 1960, what percentage of black children in the Deep South were attending schools with whites?

answer

less than 1%

question

he Truman administration failed to pass any civil rights legislation becaus

answer

southern politicians managed to block the legislation

question

As a result of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka,

answer

the slow process of desegregating schools began.

question

What was the first focus of NAACP efforts to end segregation practices?

answer

universities

question

What was the dominant social theme of 1950s America?

answer

consumerism

question

Which of the following famous men had the greatest influence on the philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr?

answer

Mahatma Gandhi

question

Why did Eisenhower send 1,000 paratroopers to Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957?

answer

to ensure that black students could attend a desegregated school

question

What was Dr. Benjamin Spock's 1946 bestselling book about?

answer

infant and child care

question

What effect did postwar life have on women in American society?

answer

Many women who had joined the workforce during the war returned to the home to assume the more traditional roles of wife and mother.

question

How did the drive-in culture of the 1950s change the way America shopped?

answer

Shopping centers and malls were built all over the country.

question

An immediate problem for rapidly growing suburban communities was providing adequate

answer

schools.

question

In the 1950s, Americans experienced a contradiction in

answer

denouncing the Soviet Union for human rights violations while discriminating against African Americans

question

Who inspired the Montgomery bus boycott?

answer

Rosa Parks

question

Martin Luther King, Jr.'s philosophy advocated

answer

nonviolent, passive resistance to unjust laws.

question

How did the Deep South respond to court-ordered desegregation?

answer

with massive and widespread resistance.

question

How did political activism for African American rights change from the 1950s to the early 1960s?

answer

Direct, peaceful confrontation replaced reliance on court action.

question

The first president to attempt seriously to alter the historic pattern of racial discrimination in the United States was

answer

Harry Truman.

question

The 1950s in America were characterized by

answer

a new affluence and a thriving economy.

question

By 1960, America's gross national product was ________ the 1940 GNP.

answer

more than double

question

Which was NOT an important stimulus to American economic growth in the late 1940s and early 1950s?

answer

direct government aid to industrial development

question

The Montgomery bus boycott

answer

led to the emergence of Martin Luther King, Jr. as a black civil rights leader.

question

Which was critical to life in the suburbs?

answer

the automobile

question

What group was rigidly excluded from all three Levittowns?

answer

African Americans

question

What kind of programming became popular after television stations abandoned live dramatic programs?

answer

quiz shows

question

Who were the Little Rock Nine?

answer

black students at a recently desegregated high school in Little Rock, Arkansas

question

Why was Rosa Parks arrested in 1955?

answer

She refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white man.

question

What organization was formed in 1960 as a result of "sit-in" demonstrations?

answer

the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

question

The term "baby boom" refers to a significant increase in

answer

the American birth rate.

question

The most significant social trend in postwar America was

answer

the flight to the suburbs.

question

What was the driving force for social change that gained civil rights for African Americans?

answer

African American activism

question

Who invented the concept of the mass construction of suburban homes?

answer

William Levitt

question

What effect did memories of the Great Depression have on Americans in the 1950s?

answer

Many Americans became almost desperately obsessed with gathering material goods.

question

Who led the Montgomery bus boycott?

answer

Martin Luther King, Jr.

question

During the Truman administration,

answer

an order for desegregation of the armed forces was issued.

question

Why did some people criticize American suburban life?

answer

They disliked the conformity and uniformity of suburban life.

question

What was a drawback of suburban life for the family?

answer

Many people had only infrequent contact with extended family members.

question

hat artistic movement is associated with the "beats"?

answer

abstract expressionism

question

What event prompted a massive wave of "sit-ins" across the country?

answer

Three African American college students refused to leave a lunch counter after being denied service.

question

Why did the government increase federal funding for science education in 1957?

answer

It was responding to the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik.

question

By 1960, the most racially integrated institution in American society was

answer

the armed forces.

question

What change in labor practice came about in the postwar era?

answer

Most people started working less than 40 hours each week.

question

Start of section 2 What is one reason why the Gulf of Tonkin affair was such a costly victory for Johnson?

answer

When the war started in earnest, Johnson was vulnerable to the charge of deliberately misleading Congress.

question

John F. Kennedy's domestic program was known as the

answer

New Frontier

question

In his healthcare program, President Lyndon Johnson secured

answer

the Medicare program for the elderly.

question

What was the 1961 freedom ride?

answer

a protest in which a biracial group tested the desegregation laws on public transportation

question

In part, Lyndon Johnson wanted the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution to demonstrate the American commitment to

answer

defending South Vietnam.

question

Which of the following was NOT a consequence of the Cuban Missile Crisis?

answer

the end of the U.S.-Soviet arms race

question

The turning point of the Vietnam War which convinced U.S. leaders that the war would end in a stalemate was the

answer

Tet offensive.

question

When Johnson became president after the assassination of Kennedy in 1963, he focused first on

answer

passing JFK's tax cuts and civil rights bill.

question

n Vietnam, American military strategists counted heavily on

answer

superior American firepower, especially airstrikes.

question

How did African American activism affect social change for other ethnicities?

answer

Other ethnic groups were inspired by African American activism and launched their own protests.

question

What caused the Gulf of Tonkin affair?

answer

American support for covert operations in Vietnam led North Vietnam to attack a U.S. ship.

question

Lyndon Johnson's political downfall resulted primarily from

answer

his pursuit of the Vietnam War.

question

Lyndon Johnson's reform program was called the

answer

Great Society.

question

What did President Kennedy do to help South Vietnam in 1961?

answer

He sent money and advisers.

question

What were Johnson's feelings about committing the United States to the war in Vietnam?

answer

He worried about the consequences of either withdrawal or invasion so he committed to a large-scale but limited military intervention.

question

Cesar Chavez

answer

organized California grape and lettuce workers to strike for higher wages.

question

When President Johnson managed to get Congress to pass Kennedy's proposed tax cut in 1964, the result was

answer

a sustained economic boom.

question

n 1965, President Lyndon Johnson sent American soldiers to ________ in order to prevent a communist takeover there.

answer

the Domican Repulic

question

What was one of Lyndon Johnson's greatest assets in the White House?

answer

his ability to persuade Congress

question

John F. Kennedy played down civil rights legislation because he

answer

feared the possibility of alienating southern Democrats.

question

n the spring of 1968, students seized five buildings at ___________ for eight days before police regained control.

answer

Columbia University

question

The most prominent student protest organization was the

answer

Students for a Democratic Society.

question

Why did Kennedy authorize a covert mission in which 1,400 Cuban exiles invaded Cuba?

answer

to topple the regime of Fidel Castro

question

How was the Cuban Missile Crisis resolved?

answer

Russia would remove its nuclear missiles from Cuba in exchange for America's promise not to invade Cuba.

question

Which was a difference between John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson?

answer

Kennedy was a better public speaker than Johnson.

question

How was participation in the Vietnam War most connected to socioeconomic class?

answer

Wealthy young men were more likely to be in college and thus could avoid the draft.

question

The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation that came very close to being a nuclear conflict between which two countries?

answer

the United States and Russia

question

How did the civil rights movement change in the mid- to late sixties?

answer

It became more militant and considered violence to force social change.

question

What was Kennedy's top priority when he assumed the office of the presidency?

answer

foreign policy

question

What finally caused Kennedy to support racial justice openly?

answer

Authorities attacked children in a segregation protest in Birmingham, Alabama.

question

Nixon's election signaled a public reaction against the

answer

growth of the federal government.

question

Who wrote the 1963 book The Feminine Mystique?

answer

Betty Friedan

question

Why did the United States become involved in the conflict between North and South Vietnam in 1961?

answer

to stop the spread of communism from North Vietnam to South Vietnam

question

Which individual was an African American appointed to a prominent post in the federal government during the Kennedy administration?

answer

Thurgood Marshall

question

Which statement best describes the social change that American women experienced from the 1920s to the 1960s?

answer

In the 1960s, there were actually fewer women enrolled in college and professional schools than there were in the 1920s.

question

What effect did the Vietnam War have on future U.S. foreign policy?

answer

It caused America to abandon its containment policies.

question

Kennedy's failed 1961 covert operation to overthrow Cuba's Fidel Castro is called

answer

the Bay of Pigs.

question

Lyndon Johnson's main theme in the presidential election of 1964 was

answer

ending poverty in America.

question

What was the main issue that American college students protested during the sixties?

answer

the Vietnam War

question

Who put the most pressure on Kennedy to openly support racial justice?

answer

Martin Luther King, Jr.

question

How did Kennedy secure the African American vote in the 1960 presidential election?

answer

He supported the release of Martin Luther King, Jr. from jail.

question

American bombing of North Vietnam

answer

was largely ineffective.

question

Lyndon Johnson must bear great responsibility for the American problems in the Vietnam War because he

answer

failed to confront the American people with the stark reality of the war.

question

What was one major factor that helped Kennedy defeat Nixon in the 1960 presidential election?

answer

Kennedy's performance in the first televised presidential debate.

question

Which statement about the Voting Rights Act of 1965 is correct?

answer

It led to a dramatic increase in African American voting registration in the South.

question

The foreign policy of Lyndon Johnson

answer

was, in many respects, simply a continuation of Kennedy's policies.

question

Which 1968 presidential candidate cut deeply into Democratic candidate Hubert Humphrey's voter base by running on the American Independent Party ticket?

answer

George C. Wallace

question

What was the touchstone of the new counterculture of the sixties?

answer

music

question

Who advocated "black power" as the leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in the 1960s?

answer

Stokely Carmichael

question

Which statement about Johnson's war on poverty is correct?

answer

It emphasized self-help and brought almost 10 million people out of poverty.

question

Start of section 3 The antimissile system based on the use of lasers and particle beams to destroy incoming missiles from outer space was called

answer

SDI.

question

With the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), both the Soviet Union and the United States agreed to

answer

remove and destroy all intermediate-range missiles in Europe.

question

What caused President Reagan's change of policy towards the Soviet Union in his second term?

answer

New Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev was interested in making peace with the United States.

question

The Camp David Accords provided a framework for peace negotiations between

answer

Israel and Egypt.

question

The results of President Reagan's economic policies were

answer

mixed-there were record federal deficits but the economy overall improved.

question

Why did the Nixon administration decide to resume relations with China?

answer

The United States believed it would force better relations with the Soviet Union.

question

How did President Clinton change the experience of gays and lesbians in the military?

answer

He established the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy.

question

In 1979, revolutionaries in ________ took U.S. diplomats hostage.

answer

Iran

question

Why did Congress refuse Reagan's request for money and authority for further intervention in Nicaragua?

answer

They feared repeating the mistakes of the Vietnam War.

question

The international oil organization most responsible for raising petroleum prices in the 1970s was

answer

OPEC.

question

The most encouraging economic development for women in the late twentieth century was that

answer

the number of female business owners increased greatly.

question

President Gerald Ford's brief "honeymoon" with the American public ended when he

answer

granted disgraced President Richard Nixon a full pardon.

question

The Boland Amendment

answer

prohibited American military aid to overthrow the Nicaraguan government.

question

How did Reagan challenge the liberal premises of the New Deal?

answer

He asserted that the private sector should solve America's problems rather than the federal government.

question

Who served as Nixon's national security advisor during his first term?

answer

Henry Kissinger

question

The court decision in Roe v. Wade guaranteed women's right to

answer

obtain an abortion.

question

Which statement best characterizes Reagan's two terms as governor of California?

answer

He was flexible instead of trying to implement all of his conservative beliefs.

question

How did Reagan's approach to the conflict in Nicaragua differ from Carter's?

answer

Carter gave economic aid to the Sandinista government; Reagan cut off that economic aid.

question

Which component was NOT part of Nixon's plan to end the war in Vietnam?

answer

increased military spending

question

A central tenet of Reagan's approach to foreign policy at the beginning of his presidency was the belief that

answer

the Soviet Union was a deadly enemy that threatened the United States.

question

What did the United States do in the early 1980s that caused the Soviet Union to break off disarmament negotiations in Geneva?

answer

It placed missiles in Europe within striking distance of the Soviet Union.

question

What executive order did President Ford give to the CIA in 1975?

answer

He outlawed assassinations as an instrument of U.S. foreign policy.

question

What was the Moral Majority?

answer

a religious fundamentalist group

question

Why did militants take 53 Americans prisoner from the U.S. embassy in Tehran in 1979?

answer

Carter had allowed the exiled shah to seek medical treatment in the United States.

question

The birth of the gay liberation movement was

answer

the Stonewall Riots

question

Which group overwhelmingly supported Carter in the 1980 presidential election?

answer

African Americans

question

How did the American family unit change after 1970?

answer

The number of births to women over age 30 increased.

question

Nixon's program to improve relations with the Soviet Union was known as

answer

détente.

question

he turmoil of the 1960s and the economic and political troubles of the 1970s

answer

turned America to conservatism.

question

What inspired the infamous protests at Kent State during which four students were killed?

answer

the U.S. invasion of Cambodia

question

The Iran-Contra affair was

answer

a scandal in which the government planned to sell weapons to Iran in order to finance exiles fighting in Nicaragua.

question

The greatest economic challenge faced by the Nixon administration involved

answer

a dramatic increase in international oil prices.

question

The first person to become president without being elected president or vice president was

answer

Gerald Ford.

question

The SALT treaties involved

answer

reduction of U.S. and Soviet offensive ballistic missiles.

question

What was most important about the SALT I agreements?

answer

They were a symbolic first step in a peaceful resolution of the tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union

question

President Reagan's tax compromise with Congress called for an income tax cut of

answer

5 percent the first year and 10 percent for the second and third years.

question

How did Nixon feel about anti-war protestors?

answer

He had very little sympathy for them.

question

What is one neoconservative criticism of liberals?

answer

Liberals are too willing to sacrifice high domestic standards to achieve social equality.

question

How was the Watergate Scandal similar to the Iran-Contra affair?

answer

They both involved secret, illegal government actions that tarnished the President's reputation.

question

hile the United States was home to only 6 percent of the world's population, it was responsible for _______ percent of the world's energy consumption.

answer

40

question

What was the Watergate Scandal?

answer

President Nixon's attempts to hide his involvement in a break-in at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee

question

What do supply-side economists believe?

answer

that tax cuts will lead to an economic boom

question

How did President Reagan's policies toward the Soviet Union change in his second term?

answer

He was more willing to cooperate with the Soviet Union in his second term.

question

How did Carter try to redeem himself after his unsuccessful presidency?

answer

He tried to pin responsibility on the public and his dismissed cabinet members

question

How does the Watergate Scandal compare to previous presidential scandals?

answer

Unlike previous presidential scandals, Watergate was about power rather than money.

question

Why did Saudi Arabia cut off oil shipments to the United States in 1973?

answer

The United States had sent emergency aid to Israel during the October War.

question

What was the main focus of the Nixon presidency?

answer

foreign policy

question

The most serious consequence of the 1970s oil shock for America was

answer

rampant inflation.

question

Who was the first woman to be appointed to the United States Supreme Court?

answer

Sandra Day O'Connor

question

Why did some working class women oppose the Equal Rights Amendment?

answer

They worried about losing the protections of state laws designed to help women

question

Start of section 4How did most Americans feel about the future by 2010?

answer

About half of Americans thought that the country's best days were over.

question

What did the Bush administration insist Iraq was hiding in 2002?

answer

weapons of mass destruction

question

What campaign pledge did President George H. W. Bush have to break in 1990?

answer

his pledge not to raise taxes

question

What did the Obama administration accomplish that Democratic presidents since Harry Truman had wanted to achieve?

answer

a comprehensive medical insurance program for all Americans

question

How did George H. W. Bush respond to the 1989 repression of protestors in Tiananmen Square?

answer

He denounced the violence but maintained a working relationship with China.

question

What issue became especially controversial after Chief Justice William Rehnquist died and Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor retired?

answer

abortion

question

The outcome of the 2000 presidential election hung on legal battles over the vote count in

answer

Florida.

question

The U.S. and allied military campaign against Iraq in 1991 was known as Operation

answer

Desert Storm.

question

How did Congress respond to concerns about the economic effects of undocumented workers in 1986?

answer

It penalized employers who hired undocumented workers

question

What issue made science education controversial in the early twenty-first century?

answer

demands to teach intelligent design instead of evolution

question

What event revealed to the nation that poverty in America was not colorblind?

answer

Hurricane Katrina

question

The first move in the war on terror was the overthrow of a radical Islamist regime in

answer

Afghanistan.

question

Bill Clinton was impeached for

answer

perjury and obstruction of justice.

question

What was President George W. Bush's first order of business after being elected?

answer

a large tax cut

question

The first crisis of the post-Cold War era occurred when

answer

Iraq invaded Kuwait.

question

What was the purpose of the "No Child Left Behind" measure?

answer

It mandated state testing to evaluate student performance in reading and math.

question

How did the Democratic Party change its tactics in the early 1990s and regain the White House?

answer

It became more moderate and began tailoring programs to the middle class.

question

How did the American public react to Kenneth Star's report outlining the possible impeachment charges against Clinton?

answer

The public condemned Starr for revealing such graphic and intimate details of sexual practices on the news.

question

How did the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States change American foreign policy?

answer

The United States took on the role of global police officer.

question

How did life improve for African Americans over the last few decades of the twentieth century and the first decade of the twenty-first century?

answer

The average educational level of African Americans increased.

question

How was George W. Bush's economic policy different from Clinton's?

answer

Clinton favored eliminating the deficit, while Bush favored tax reduction.

question

What is NAFTA?

answer

a free trade agreement between the United States, Mexico, and Canada

question

Affirmative action policies are designed to

answer

ensure greater participation by minorities.

question

Who was responsible for the liberation of Eastern Europe from repressive governments?

answer

Mikhail Gorbachev

question

What caused a riot in South Central Los Angeles in which 53 people were killed?

answer

The court's acquittal of the police officers who beat Rodney King.

question

In what way was Iraq's invasion of Kuwait influenced by the end of the Cold War?

answer

The Soviet Union was no longer a superpower that could influence Saddam Hussein.

question

How did President Obama affect the experience of gays and lesbians in the military?

answer

He repealed the "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

question

How was the age of the American population related to the economy?

answer

Health care costs rose alarmingly as the American population aged.

question

Which countries did President George W. Bush call the "axis of evil" in 2002?

answer

Iraq, Iran, and North Korea

question

Which statement best describes the 2004 presidential election?

answer

It was especially bitter and spiteful as each party blamed and criticized the other.

question

People living in American urban centers

answer

had more education than people in rural areas.

question

How did the dismal economy affect the 2008 presidential race?

answer

It helped Obama gain ground during the campaign.

question

Bush's 2003 decision to go to war in Iraq initially seemed

answer

wise because the military quickly succeeded in taking Baghdad.

question

How did the September 11, 2001, attacks affect the U.S. economy?

answer

The airline industry was devastated as people were afraid to fly.

question

In 1989, popular demonstrations calling for democratic reform were violently suppressed in

answer

China.

question

How did Ralph Nader's candidacy in the 2000 presidential election affect the race?

answer

Gore moved further to the left, leaving more room for Bush among independents.

question

How did the 2000 presidential election break from historical trends?

answer

The state of the economy did not determine the outcome of the election.

question

Why was George H. W. Bush's plan to bring down the federal budget deficit unsuccessful?

answer

His plan coincided with the beginning of a recession.

question

By 2002, ________ had become the nation's largest ethnic minority.

answer

Hispanics

question

In what way did the 2000 presidential election reveal a division in American life?

answer

The poor voted for Gore while the rich voted for Bush.

question

The largest single group of Asian Americans was of __________ descent.

answer

Chinese

question

Why did the George H. W. Bush administration feel so much pressure after Iraq invaded Kuwait?

answer

The United States was the sole remaining superpower following the Cold War.

question

The only significant piece of social legislation enacted in the first Bush administration was the

answer

Americans with Disabilities Act.

question

What was President George H. W. Bush's primary focus during his presidency?

answer

foreign affairs

question

What did immigrants from the four major Hispanic groups have in common?

answer

They tended to be relatively young.

question

Which of the following was NOT a component of the Contract with America?

answer

universal health care coverage

question

Which statement most accurately compares Al Gore and George W. Bush?

answer

Gore seemed aloof but had experience, while Bush was personable but inexperienced.

question

The terrorist attacks on the United States led the George W. Bush administration to initiate a new global strategy known to its critics as

answer

unilateralism.

question

Which area of the United States experienced dramatic growth from the 1970s to the 1990s?

answer

the Sunbelt

question

What was the central issue of the 2004 presidential election?

answer

the war in Iraq

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