The Cold War and President JFK

E. America Enters World War II

(1945-Present)

f. Analyze the social, cultural, and

economic changes at the onset of the

Cold War era

g. Analyze the origins of the Cold

War, foreign policy developments, and

major events of the administrations

from Truman to present

John F. Kennedy

-In 1960, Eisenhower’s Vice President, Richard Nixon, ran for the Republican Party for the Presidency. He faced off against a young Democrat named John F. Kennedy.

-They had the first televised Presidential debate. Television greatly helped JFK due to his youthful appearance and communication skills.

-JFK was only 43 years old when he became President. He became the icon for change in the USA. He asserted in his inaugural address that, “The torch has been passed to a new generation.”

The Nixon vs. JFK Debate on TV

Policies of JFK

-JFK supported one of the chief issues of his day, the Civil Rights Movement. He wanted to see Jim Crow Segregation end and for African Americans to possess the rights they deserved.

-As the Cold War continued, JFK was afraid impoverished countries would embrace Communism. He encouraged aid to be given to these nations and for Americans to volunteer to work in groups like the Peace Corps to assist these countries.

-Instead of Brinkmanship, JFK wanted the USA to be able to fight ground wars as well, not just threaten the USSR with nuclear annihilation. This strategy was called the “Flexible Response.”

In this picture, JFK met with young Americans

who volunteered to serve in the Peace Corps.

When World War II was finished, the USA, Britain, and France grew

concerned. They wanted the nations of the world to accept Democracy.

Yet, it was clear that Stalin wanted Eastern Europe

to be dominated by Communism.

Truman’s goal of “Containment” was simply to keep

Communism from spreading any further into the world.

Communism expanded out of the

USSR. Containment failed. Many

feared when Communism also

spread to Cuba.

Fidel Castro led the

Communist Revolution in Cuba.

The Bay of Pigs

-Fidel Castro made Cuba Communist, with the help

of the USSR. In 1960, Eisenhower let the CIA train

Cuban exiles to invade and try to gain control over

Cuba.

-In April of 1961, JFK allowed the group to invade

Cuba. However, the Soviet Union gave aid to Cuba

and the exiles were crushed by Castro.

-This was a massive failure and embarrassment for

the USA. Cuba remained under Communist

control.

The USA tried to train Cuban Exiles to invade the Bay of Pigs

and assume control of Cuba. Yet, it was a massive failure.

The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962

-The USSR and Cuba began working together

to secure the Communist government of

Cuba.

-The USSR wanted to be Cuba’s ally because

it would give the Soviet Union a close area to

keep nuclear weapons pointed at the USA.

-Nikita Khrushchev of the USSR sent missiles

to be planted in Cuba and pointed at the USA.

If the USSR had

missiles in Cuba,

it would mean

that they had

closer access to

launch a nuclear

attack on the

USA. .

The End of the Cuban Missile Crisis

-JFK sent a blockade around Cuba. Many feared that nuclear war was about to erupt between the USA and the USSR.

-Khrushchev and JFK reached an agreement to remove the missiles, if the USA decided not to invade Cuba. It was learned later in history that the USA also secretly removed missiles in Turkey to appease the USSR too.

-Cuba remained an independent, Communist government. It is still a Communist government today.

The Berlin Wall

-After the USSR was not able to maintain a nuclear presence in Cuba, they began to be more aggressive with their control of Eastern Europe.

-Khrushchev began to take actions to try and control the border of West Berlin. He was angry that many were fleeing to West Berlin to escape Communism.

-He built the Berlin Wall to try to ensure that people could not flee to the West to pursue freedom and Democracy.

Stalin had secured the Soviet control of

Eastern Europe after WW II.

Even though Berlin was in the Eastern Communist area, half the city

remained in control of West Germany and was a Democracy. This

agreement was reached after WW II.

The Berlin Airlift was an attempt to help the Western Half of

Berlin stay Democratic.

Khrushchev built a literal wall around the Western Half of

Berlin. Communist Eastern Europeans were forbidden from

coming into the Western Half of the City.

Eastern Germans building the Berlin Wall

By the 1980s, the Berlin Wall had multiple sections and

guards watching from towers. If anyone tried to cross it,

they could be shot and killed.

The Space Race

-The USSR was the first nation to launch a

Satellite, Sputnik, into space in 1957.

-Also, the USSR was the first nation on Earth to

put a man in space. Soviet Cosmonaut, Yuri

Gagarin, made it to space in 1961.

-The USA felt that the Soviets were gaining an

edge in space technology. JFK promised that the

USA would be the first to the moon. His promise

was fulfilled in 1969 as Neil Armstrong became

the first human ever to walk on the moon.

Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet Cosmonaut, was

the first man in space.

JFK’s “promise” of landing on the Moon was

achieved in 1969, when Neil Armstrong

landed on the moon.

A Tragedy Strikes the Nation

The Loss of a President

-On November 22, 1963, while on a trip to Dallas, JFK was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald.

-Oswald’s motives were not well known. However, he was a former Marine who had traveled to the USSR and supported their ideology.

-A man named Jack Ruby killed Lee Harvey Oswald while he was under arrest.

Jack Ruby killed Lee Harvey Oswald as

news cameras were reporting live.

THE

END

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