USA (EDUQAS)

• The Great Depression was a period in the 1930s when there was severe economic problems and high unemployment
• Rugged Individualism


  Individuals responsible for their own lives
• Hoovervilles


  Shanty towns on the edge of cities
• New Deal


  Roosevelt's policies to deal with the Great Depression
• The 3 Rs of the New Deal

  • Relief
  • Recovery
  • Reform
• Alphabet Agencies


  Nickname for New Deal organisations
• Federal government


  Government in Washington that makes laws for the whole country - different to state governments
• Kennedy was the first President to openly support the civil rights movement
• Kennedy's New Frontier captured the mood of the time with its promises of reform
• Johnson was an experienced politician who was more successful than nearly any other President in getting measures passed by Congress
• Johnson's Civil Rights legislation was particularly significant as it was the first federal legislation to outlaw discrimination
• Watergate was a turning point in public attitudes towards politicians and undermined confidence in politics
• CREEP


  Committee to Re-Elect the President - set up by Nixon in 1972
• White House


  Residence of the President - refers to President and his advisors
• Cover up


  Attempt to prevent people discovering the truth
• New Frontier


  Name given to Kennedy's programmed of reform
• Great Society


  Name given to Johnson's programme of reform
• Impeach


  To put the President on trial for treason
• Reagan's Reaganomics policy included the biggest tax cut in history and reduced welfare spending, which benefited the rich but increased the national debt
• Reagan's tough stance on defence and the space race worsened relations with the USSR and led to a second Cold War
• Bush's economic policies increased the deficit, but by 1992 interest and inflation were the lowest in years
• Clinton's economic policies eliminated the deficit for the first time in 30 years and reduced unemployment to the lowest in 30 years
• Clinton failed to introduce a system of universal health insurance
• The war boosted the civil rights movement, as African Americans fought fascism abroad while facing discrimination at home
• Brown vs Topeka was the first victory for the NAACP and set a precedent that challenged the principle of 'separate but equal'
• The Montgomery Bus Boycott showed the power of direct action to force change
• The Little Rock incident exposed racism in the South and made the President enforce the Brown vs Topeka decision
• The civil rights marches highlighted specific issues and gained positive publicity
• The Civil Rights Act was the first piece of federal legislation that made discrimination illegal
• Martin Luther King Jr's leadership and non-violent tactics gave the civil rights movement the moral high ground
• Black Power presented a radical alternative to MLK's methods, focusing on institutional racism and demanding change 'by any means necessary'
• The principle of 'separate but equal' was used to justify segregation
• Segregation


  Separation of public facilities by race in southern states
• Integration


  Opposite of segregation; all races can use facilities
• Direct action


  People coming together to take action e.g. Boycotts, marches
• NAACP


  National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People
• SCLC


  Southern Christian Leaders Conference; formed by MLK
• The war extended the role of government, with the War Production Board organising industry for the war effort
• Big business worked more closely with the government during the war
• The USA became a superpower after the war, producing half the world's weapons