U.S. History STAAR

• Declaration of Independence 


  belief in consent of the governed, other nations recognized U.S. as a country, inspired others to question their governments
• Principles of the Constitution

  limits the power of the federal government by seperation of powers and chechs and balances
• 1st Amendment 


  freedom of religion, press, speech, assembly, and petition
• 5th Amendment 


  people accused of crimes must be read their rights (Miranda v. Arizona); eminent domain
• Alexis de Tocqueville


  democracy in America: liberty, egalitarianism, individualism, populism, and laissez-faire
• Civic responsibilities


  voting in electios, serving on a jury
• Gilded Age


  businesses became wealthy, and some corrupt government officials supported business first policies
• Electricity


  made manufacturing more efficient; light bulb led to more hours of work = more production
• Railroads


  mprovided farmers access to distant markets, allowed Americans to settle the west
• Monopolies


  total control of a product by one company, laws passed against monopolies to protect consumer prices
• Andrew Carneige 


  philanthropy to improve society through donations to education and the arts
• Labor unions


  fought for better pay and working conditions
• Urbanization


  growth industry resulted in people moving to cities to work in factories causing sanitation problems
• Political corruption


  government officials took bribes, bosses and political machines promised infrastructure for votes
• Immigrants


  came to America for better economic conditions, farm fertile soil, jobs in factories; citizens wanted assimilation
• Irish Immigrants


  persecuted becasue they were Catholic
• Nativists


  wanted restrictions on immigration, assimilation
• Chinese Exclusion Act


  passed because people in the west did not want to copete with immigrants for jobs
• Homestead Act


  resulted in the settling of the fronteir by farmers
• Dawes Act


  law intended to assimilate Native Americans into American culture
• Populist Party Platform 


  coinage of silver, graduated income tax, and regulation of railroad shipping charges
• Upton Sinclair


  wrothe The Jungle, resulting in the regulationg the safety of food products; FDA
• Jane Addams


  established settlement house movement to help assimilate immigrants
• W. E. B. DuBois

  helped found NAACP, a civil rights group that fought for the legal rights of African Americans
• State reforms


  initiative, referendum, recall; increased participation in democracy, made elected officials accountable
• Pure Food and Drug Act

  government policies protecting consumers, resulted from Muckrakers like Upton Sinclair
• National Park Service (Organic Act)

  Roosevelt, conserve land
• 19th Amendment


  allowed women's suffrage, right to vote
• Prohibition


  desire to decrease crime and health problems, resulted in increased crime & speakeasies, women supported
• Causes of Spanish-American War

  Cuban Revolution and sinking of U.S.S. Maine
• Effects of Spanish-American War

  helped establish America as a world imperial power
• Reasons for expansionism


  gain in access to natural resources and overseas markets, expansion in trade
• Alfred Thayer Mahan


  advocated for overseas expansion by growing the U.S. Navy
• Hawaii


  forced annexation by the U.S., supported by S.B. Dole
• Puerto Rico


  gained by U.S. after the Spanish-American War
• Panama Canal


  U.S. saw need for canal during Spanish-American War, obtained land by Roosevelt's "Big Stick" policy, more efficient travel time for navy and businesses
• Causes of WW1


  rise of militarism, assassination of Franz Ferdinand
• Trench warfare


  soldiers fought frome trenches with machine guns resulting in a stalemate, tanks and poison gas were used to try and break stalemate
• Zimmerman Telegram


  Germany tried to ally with Mexico, resulted in U.S. withdrawing position of neutrality
• Unrestricted submarine warfare


  Germans attacked U.S. merchant ships, resulted in U.S. declaring war on Germany