P8/9 | APUSH | Wiley | The Cold War (1945-’91), D___ Name: What was the Cold War? A period of tension and hostility that developed between the U.S. and the USSR (Union of

Soviet Socialist Republics) after __________________________; the common concerns that had united the former allies (namely the fight against fascism and Nazi Germany) disappeared, leaving two radically different political, social, economic, and ideological systems

An ideological conflict between capitalism and communism that lasted for almost fifty yearso Differences in government : U.S. democracy vs. USSR. __________________________

(a form of government where all aspects of public and private life are controlled by a dictator; the needs of the state are put ahead of personal human rights)

o Differences in purported values : U.S. freedom vs. USSR equality and U.S. individualism vs. USSR __________________________

Remember, the U.S. had had general disdain/fear of Russia/communism since the __________________________ Revolution (1917); communism calls for the abolition of private property, economic classes, religion, and nationality and encourages violent overthrow of the capitalist system by way of a worldwide __________________________ revolution

Called a cold war because there was never direct military confrontation between the two countries; instead, the conflict fluctuated between periods of indirect military confrontations (ex: U.S. troops fighting with South Korea against North Korea, who was __________________________ by the Soviets—but Soviet troops were not fighting directly with the North Koreans) and periods of mutual coexistence (détente)

The superpowers used __________________________, propaganda, secret operations, and proxy wars (when opposing powers use third parties as substitutes for fighting each other directly) in their dealings with one another

Many countries around the world allied with one side or the other; both superpowers tried to garner support from newly-independent countries going through the decolonization process; most of these countries resented attempts to be used as pawns and decided not to align (example: India)

U.S. had many concerns about the USSR:o Very concerned about USSR’s satellite nations in Eastern Europe (Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Bulgaria,

Romania, etc.), which it had gained control over while it drove __________________________ forces west o Very concerned that war-torn Europe would be easy prey for communism; desperation, poverty, chaos, uncertainty

makes communism super __________________________o Very concerned about the communist desire to spark worldwide revolution (particularly in the post-WWII context where so

many nations were war-torn) The USSR was very concerned with U.S. strength, leadership, weaponry, and hostility towards the USSR’s political ideology and culture

Why did it begin in the aftermath of WWII (1945)? Despite working together during WWII to defeat Nazi Germany, the U.S. and USSR were at odds

o The Allies were angry with Stalin over his 1939 nonaggression pact with Hitler and expansionism early in WWII; they joined forces only out of convenience (to defeat Hitler)

o U.S. was worried that Eastern Europe would fall to complete Soviet control o USSR was angry with the Allies for not invading German-occupied Europe earlier; USSR felt that the delay was a plot to allow

Germany to __________________________ the Soviet Uniono USSR was still upset that the U.S. had tried to destroy the Russian Revolution during the Civil War that followed it (1918-1920)

Each country had differing postwar goals; some of these differences were rooted in different experiences during WWIIo The U.S. suffered 400,000 deaths but the country was intact; the USSR had at least 50 times as many fatalities (1 in 4 Soviets

was wounded or killed) and many Soviet cities were __________________________

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Table of Contents:Defining the Cold War, pp. 1-2

Cold War Perspectives: U.S. vs. USSR, pp. 2-3

Containment Policy, pp. 3-5

Threat of Nuclear War, pp. 5-6

McCarthyism, pp. 6-7

Cold War Culture (Religion, Women, Families), pp. 8-10

Alliances of Convenience, p. 10

End of the Cold War, p. 11

U.S. Postwar Aims USSR Postwar Aims• As the most powerful nation in the world, the U.S. looked to play

an active role in international affairs through the __________________________ (a total departure from earlier foreign policy)

• Encourage spread of democracy to prevent rise of communism• Gain access to markets to continue WWII-era growth• __________________________ Germany to use as powerful

counterforce against USSR• Limit Communist countries in the United Nations • Stabilize and rebuild postwar economies around the world (so

capitalism will be more appealing than communism)

• Keep Germany __________________________ to prevent it from waging war again (Russia had been invaded by Germany in both world wars and had lost millions to German aggression)

• Encourage spread of communism • Control Eastern Europe to protect Soviet borders and

__________________________ U.S. influence in Western Europe

• Rebuild war-ravaged economy of Russia using Eastern Europe’s industrial equipment and raw materials

Soviet Satellite Nations, 1945 GOAL: Shield itself from invasion from the west (centuries of history had taught the Soviets to fear invasion—Russia lacks natural

western borders) As WWII drew to a close, the Soviet troops pushed the Nazis across Eastern Europe At war’s end, the Soviets occupied a strip of countries Stalin regarded as a necessary __________________________ and installed

Communist governments in Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Poland, and Yugoslavia Truman pressed for __________________________ but Stalin refused

Cold War Perspectives—What the U.S. Thought of the USSR and Vice Versa

George Kennan’s Long Telegram (Article X), 1946 Russian-based American diplomat, who had been stationed in Moscow since 1933, was directed by the State

Department to write a document about Soviet intentions and outlooks; they received back an 8,000 word telegram from Kennan

Kennan sought to explain the USSR’s actions in Eastern Europe and hostile/confrontational rhetoric (Stalin had repeatedly said that capitalism and communism could not coexist)

Kennan’s work formed the basis of American policy towards Russia for the next quarter of a century (containment, Marshall Plan)

Key ideas/quotes:

“At bottom of Kremlin’s (reference to Russia’s government) neurotic view of world affairs is traditional and instinctive Russian sense of insecurity . . . . [T]hey have always feared foreign penetration. . . . And they have learned to seek security only in patient but deadly struggle for total destruction of rival power, never in compacts and compromises with it.”

Leaders of the USSR represented the West as evil and corrupt—as Russia’s enemies, which justified an increase in military and police power of the Russian state

Accurately predicted actions the USSR would take (great displays to impress outsiders; continued secretiveness about internal matters; attempt to influence colonial areas, or those that were undeveloped or possibly opposed to Western centers of power)

Inaccurately predicted that communism would undermine Western governments through infiltration and spying; though there were regular spy scares, communism never managed to undermine Western governments

Explained that the Soviets were by far the weaker force, which would eventually collapse and would back down against a show of force Asserted that the U.S. should make sure people were wealthy, happy and secure; encouraged waging a propaganda war to make sure

citizens were aware of the benefits of Western freedoms “Much depends on health and vigor of our own society. World communism is like malignant parasite which feeds only on diseased

tissue.” “It is not enough to urge people to develop political processes similar to our own. Many foreign peoples are tired and frightened by

experiences of past, and are less interested in abstract freedom than in security. They are seeking guidance rather than responsibilities. We should be better able than Russians to give them this. And unless we do, Russians certainly will.”

Nikolai Novikov’s Telegram, 1946 The Soviets, well-aware of Kennan’s telegram, responded with a similar document of their own, written by

the Soviet Ambassador to the U.S. Was not made public until 1991, after the breakup of the Soviet Union; before that time virtually no

documents that looked at the Cold War from the USSR’s perspective were available

Key ideas/quotes:

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“Obvious indications of the U.S. effort to establish world dominance are also to be found in the increase in military potential in peacetime and in the establishment of a large number of naval and air bases both in the United States and beyond its borders. . . . Expenditures on the army and navy have risen colossally . . .”

Accurately noted that Western Europe was completely dependent on the U.S. (particularly after the Marshall Plan was enacted) Suggested that the U.S.’s new interest in Zionism (support for the creation of the state of Israel in former Palestine) was just an

attempt to gain control of oil resources of the Middle East “The foreign policy of the United States, which reflects the imperialist tendencies . . . is characterized in the postwar period by a

striving for world supremacy. This is the real meaning of the many statements by President [Harry] Truman . . . : that the United States has the right to lead the world. All the forces of American diplomacy—the army, the air force, the navy, industry, and science—are enlisted in the service of this foreign policy. . . . [B]road plans for expansion have been developed and are being implemented through diplomacy and the establishment of a system of naval and air bases stretching far beyond the boundaries of the United States, through the arms race, and through the creation of ever newer types of weapons.”

“Europe has come out of the war with a completely dislocated economy, and the economic devastation that occurred in the course of the war cannot be overcome in a short time. All of the countries of Europe and Asia are experiencing a colossal need for consumer goods, industrial and transportation equipment, etc. Such a situation provides American monopolistic capital with prospects for enormous shipments of goods and the importation of capital into these countries—a circumstance that would permit it to infiltrate their national economies. Such a development would mean a serious strengthening of the economic position of the United States in the whole world and would be a stage on the road to world domination by the United States.”

“The numerous and extremely hostile statements by American government, political, and military figures with regard to the Soviet Union and its foreign policy are very characteristic . . . . These statements are echoed in an even more unrestrained tone by the overwhelming majority of the American press organs. Talk about a "third war," meaning a war against the Soviet Union, even a direct call for this war—with the threat of using the atomic bomb—such is the content of the statements on relations with the Soviet Union by reactionaries at public meetings and in the press.”

Questions on U.S. & USSR Perspectives:1. What insights can be drawn from these two documents about the origins of the Cold War and who or what is responsible for its start?

2. Had the USSR’s perspective been more accessible in America, do you think things would have been different? Why or why not?

U.S. Policy of Containment U.S.-USSR relations worsened in ’46 and ’47; an increasingly worried U.S. tried to offset the

growing Soviet threat to Eastern Europe President Truman, having been persuaded by the Long Telegram, adopted a foreign policy

called containment: a strategy to block Soviet influence and prevent the __________________________ of communism

Idea was to contain communism and let it destroy itself from within To help in this endeavor, the U.S. would form __________________________ (collective

security) and help weak countries resist Soviet advances (through financial or military aid) The U.S. created/increased military and security agencies, such as NATO (North Atlantic

Treaty Organization); an attack on any NATO member would be met with armed force by all member nations; U.S. effort to create NATO led the USSR to answer back with the Warsaw Pact alliance

Policy was seen as tough and combative as opposed to pre-war tactics utilized to “combat” Hitler (appeasement) Designed to defend position of global leadership An incredibly __________________________ policy; the dramatic increase in government spending to promote U.S. interests and

contain communism was possible due to rising general prosperity and an expanding middle class in America

Truman Doctrine, 1947 Called for [economically/militarily] supporting countries that __________________________ communism Said that the future of the “free world” was in America’s hands Caused great __________________________

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o Some objected to American interference in other nations’ affairso Some objected to the leaders that were given U.S. money; some were harsh and repressiveo Some asked: could the U.S. afford to carry on a global crusade against communism?

Congress authorized approximately $400 million in aid to Turkey and Greece, who were both in danger of falling under communist rule Represented a dramatic shift in U.S. __________________________ policy

“One way of life is based upon the will of the majority, and is distinguished by free institutions, free elections, and freedom from political oppression. The second way of life is based upon the will of a minority forcibly imposed upon the majority. It relies upon terror and oppression . . . fixed elections, and the suppression of personal freedoms. I believe it must be the policy of the United States to support free people resisting attempted subjugation [control] by armed minorities or by outside pressures.” – President Truman, 1947

Marshall Plan U.S. Secretary of State George Marshall proposed that the U.S. give aid to any needy European country

(there were many after WWII) to prevent economic disaster and __________________________ communism’s appeal to voters

Once the Communists seized power in Czechoslovakia in 1948, Congress approved the $17 billion program; would provide food, machinery, and other materials to __________________________ Europe

A spectacular success despite controversy “Our policy is not directed against any country or doctrine, but against hunger, poverty, desperation, and

chaos.” – Sec. of State George Marshall

Containment’s Longevity, Successes, & Costs The policy of containment remained the core foreign policy agenda of all the Cold War presidents (from

1945-1991, the fall of the Soviet Union: Truman to Bush Sr.) At times, presidents went beyond Truman’s conception of containment to “__________________________” communism where it

already existed (example: the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion of 1959, approved by ________, which had hoped to topple Communist leader Fidel Castro of Cuba with Cuban exiles financed and trained by the CIA)

There were times when containment worked successfully: o Marshall Plan : likely prevented many countries from being influenced by communism and helped the U.S. secure important

allies politically and economically, though at a huge financial costo Korean War (1950-’53): halted North Korea’s attempt to unite the Korean peninsula under communism; cost approximately

39,000 U.S. lives and the __________________________ of North Korea which continues to this day o Berlin __________________________ (1958-‘49): U.S. (and Britain) flew food and

supplies into West Berlin for about a year after the Soviet Union began “holding West Berlin hostage” in an effort to force the Allies out of Berlin and allow communism to spread to all of the capital; eventually the Soviets gave up and lifted the blockade of West Berlin

o Afghanistan (1979-‘89): U.S. supported anti-communist Afghans and encouraged the use of terrorism when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan to prop up a communist government; eventually the Soviets gave up and exited Afghanistan

Note: Many of the anti-communist Afghans ended up becoming the Taliban, who controlled the government of Afghanistan from 1996-2001. The Taliban allowed Al Qaeda to set up shop in Afghanistan in the years leading to 9/11, which is why the U.S. invaded that country immediately after the attacks. Since being removed from power in 2001 by the invasion of the U.S. and its allies in the aftermath of 9/11, they’ve been attempting to come back to power. Bin Laden, the former leader of Al Qaeda, was also recruited and financed during this time by the CIA in an effort to keep communism out of Afghanistan.

There were times when containment did not work:o China (1949): China fell to communism despite U.S. aid to the anti-communists (nationalists) o Vietnam War (1950s-‘74): U.S. aided the unpopular anti-communist South Vietnamese government against the North

Vietnamese communists; eventually the U.S. had to admit __________________________ and left the region, which was quickly toppled by the communists in 1975; the U.S. suffered approximately 58,000 casualties

At times, containment policy led to the assassination or ousting of power of Latin American and African leaders the U.S. perceived as __________________________-leaning (examples: Guatemalan president Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán was ousted in 1954 and Congolese president Patrice Lumumba was assassinated in 1960)

At times, the “__________________________ theory” was invoked to gain support for containment policies, as in the case of Vietnam:

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“[Y]ou have broader considerations that might follow what you would call the “falling domino” principle. You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly. So you could have a beginning of a disintegration that would have the most profound influences. . . . But when we come to the possible sequence of events the loss of Indochina (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia), of Burma, of Thailand, of the Peninsula, and Indonesia following, now you begin to talk about areas that not only multiply the disadvantages that you would suffer through loss of materials, sources of materials, but now you're talking about millions and millions and millions of people.” – President Dwight Eisenhower, 1954

Containment was a real __________________________ undertaking, as evidenced by the graph below: o Americans believed federal power should be used to fight communism abroad, despite its high costo The cost was largely paid for by general rising prosperity in America and an expanding middle class

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SPENDING (in billions of dollars)

Fiscal Year National Defense Social Services Other Total Spending

1960 48.1 26.2 17.9 92.2

1966 58.1 43.3 33.1 134.5

1967 71.4 51.3 34.8 157.5

1968 81.9 59.4 36.8 178.1

National defense spending increased in the late ‘60s due to increased efforts to defeat communists in Southeast Asia—Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia

Social Services spending also dramatically increased during this time due to LBJ’s Great Society programs, which mirrored the government spending engineered by FDR’s __________________________

For perspective, today U.S. defense spending is at around 17%

o The policy of containment led to increased spending in other fiscal areas as well, such as education Congress (and Eisenhower) passed the National Defense Education Act of 1958, which allocated millions of dollars in

grants for schools to update their mathematics, science, and technology departments and curriculums and provided low-interest loans for students

After the Soviet Union launched Sputnik in 1957 (Sputnik was the first artificial Earth satellite which detected the density of the upper atmosphere), American officials worried that the country was __________________________ behind the Soviets in training scientists and engineers; the government then spent millions on research and development in universities, especially for defense-related projects

Containment & the Marshall Plan (see videos before answering):3. Take notes on the videos below:

4. Why might aid help turn people away from communism? Why do you suspect the Marshall Plan was viewed as a powerful economic AND political strategy?

The Threat of Nuclear War After the Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb in 1949, the American public was

understandably nervous; they were aware of the destruction that individual atomic bombs did to the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, yet they also wanted to possess stronger weapons than the Soviets

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President Truman was determined to develop a deadlier weapon (the H-bomb), which the U.S. did in 1952; the Soviets quickly followed suit

Both sides began building up their stockpiles of weapons, initiating an __________________________ that would continue for four decades

Providing some security was the doctrine of __________________________—Mutually Assured Destruction—which asserted that use of weapons of mass destruction by two or more opposing sides would cause the complete annihilation of both the attacker and the defender; the doctrine is based on the theory of deterrence where the threat of using strong weapons against the enemy prevents the enemy’s use of those same weapons

The Federal Civil Defense Administration (FCDA) was charged with educating and reassuring the country that there were ways to survive an atomic attack from the Soviet Union; one of their approaches was to involve schools

o The FCDA decided to commission an educational film called “duck and cover,” that would appeal to children and better prepare the nation for potential nuclear attack; the film featured an animated turtle that encouraged kids to duck down to the ground and get under some form of cover – a desk, a table or next to a wall – if they ever saw a bright flash of light

o The hero of the film was the animated Turtle named Bert who wore a helmet and quickly ducked his head into his shell when in danger

5. After viewing the Duck and Cover film, do you suspect it successfully assuaged American fears about a Soviet attack? Or, do you suspect the film exacerbated paranoia or fear during the Cold War? Why?

The Narrowing of U.S. Freedom during the Cold War Truman argued that national security demanded a substantial increase in the size of

the federal government, including military forces and surveillance agencies In response to an __________________________ /unstable world, the U.S. narrowed

freedoms by suppressing dissent and implementing loyalty oaths to employees Within two weeks of proclaiming the Truman Doctrine, the president signed Executive

Order 9835 (1947), establishing a loyalty program for all federal employees; the new Federal Employees Loyalty and Security Program, directed at members of the Communist Party, as well as fascists and anyone guilty of “sympathetic association” with either, established a political test for federal employment; it also outlined procedures for investigating current and prospective federal employees

o Loyalty review boards often asked employees about their opinions on the USSR, the Marshall Plan, or NATO, or if they would report fellow workers if they found out they were Communists

o An employee could be dismissed merely on “__________________________ grounds” rather than on proof of disloyalty

o Later amendments added “homosexuals” as potential security risks Many state and municipal governments enacted loyalty programs and required public

employees, such as teachers, to sign loyalty oaths; in all, some 7 million people underwent loyalty and security checks

Under Attorney General Tom Clark, a list of hundreds of social organizations deemed hostile to America were stigmatized and liable for investigation and prosecution; groups targeted had no right of appeal; only a handful of organizations had the funds to challenge the listing legally; most simply closed their doors

In 1950, Congress overrode the president’s veto to pass a bill that Truman called “the greatest danger to freedom of press, speech, and assembly since the Sedition Act of 1798”; the Internal Security (McCarran) Act required Communist organizations to register with the Subversive Activities Control Board and authorized the arrest of suspect persons during a national emergency

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, over Truman’s veto, barred people deemed “subversive” or “homosexual” from becoming citizens or even visiting the U.S.; it also empowered the attorney general to deport immigrants who were members of Communist organizations, even if they had become __________________________

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The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) investigated alleged disloyalty and subversive activities on the part of private citizens, public employees, and those organizations suspected of having Communist ties (more on this in video below)

McCarthyism and the Second Red Scare, 1947-early ‘60s Wisconsin Republican Joseph R. McCarthy first won election to the Senate in 1946 during a campaign marked by much anticommunist

Red-baiting By 1947, the nation was in the throes of another Red Scare, like the one that began following the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 McCarthy, in a speech at Wheeling, West Virginia in 1950 (see below) mounted an attack on Truman’s foreign policy agenda by

charging that the State Department harbored “traitorous” Communists Advance copies of this speech distributed to the press claimed there were 205 Communists in the State Department but McCarthy

revised this claim to 57 in a letter to Truman and in the “official” transcript of the speech that McCarthy submitted to the Congressional Record

McCarthy never made the list public

Speech of Joseph McCarthy, Wheeling, West Virginia, 1950 Ladies and gentlemen, tonight as we celebrate the one hundred forty-first birthday of one of the greatest men in American history . . . . Five years after a world war has been won, men’s hearts should anticipate a long peace—and men’s minds should be free from the heavy weight that comes with war. But this is not such a period—for this is not a period of peace. This is a time of “the cold war.” This is a time when all the world is split into two vast, increasingly hostile armed camps—a time of a great armament race.

…There is still a hope for peace if we finally decide that no longer can we safely blind our eyes and close our ears to those facts which are shaping up more and more clearly . . . and that is that we are now engaged in a show-down fight . . . not the usual war between nations for land areas or other material gains, but a war between two diametrically opposed ideologies. The great difference between our western Christian world and the atheistic Communist world is not political, gentlemen, it is moral. For instance, the Marxian idea of confiscating the land and factories and running the entire economy as a single enterprise is momentous. Likewise, Lenin’s invention of the one-party police state as a way to make Marx’s idea work is hardly less momentous. Stalin’s resolute putting across of these two ideas, of course, did much to divide the world. With only these differences, however, the east and the west could most certainly still live in peace. . .

Karl Marx dismissed God as a hoax, and Lenin and Stalin have added in clear-cut, unmistakable language their resolve that no nation, no people who believe in a god, can exist side by side with their communistic state. . . . Today we are engaged in a final, all-out battle between communistic atheism and Christianity. Lest there be any doubt that the time has been chosen, let us go directly to the leader of communism today—Joseph Stalin. Here is what he said—not back in 1928, not before the war, not during the war—but two years after the last war was ended: “To think that the Communist revolution can be carried out peacefully, within the framework of a Christian democracy, means one has either gone out of one’s mind and lost all normal understanding, or has grossly and openly repudiated the Communist revolution.” . . . Ladies and gentlemen, can there be anyone tonight who is so blind as to say that the war is not on? Can there by anyone who fails to realize that the Communist world has said the time is now? . . . that this is the time for the show-down between the democratic Christian world and the communistic atheistic world? Unless we face this fact, we shall pay the price that must be paid by those who wait too long.

Six years ago, . . . there was within the Soviet orbit, 180,000,000 people. Lined up on the antitotalitarian side there were in the world at that time, roughly 1,625,000,000 people. Today, only six years later, there are 800,000,000 people under the absolute domination of Soviet Russia—an increase of over 400 percent. On our side, the figure has shrunk to around 500,000,000. In other words, in less than six years, the odds have changed from 9 to 1 in our favor to 8 to 5 against us. This indicates the swiftness of the tempo of Communist victories and American defeats in the cold war. . . . When a great democracy is destroyed, it will not be from enemies from without, but rather because of enemies from within. . . . The reason why we find ourselves in a position of impotency is not because our only powerful potential enemy has sent men to invade our shores . . . but rather because of the traitorous actions of those who have been treated so well by this Nation. It has not been the less fortunate, or members of minority groups who have been traitorous to this Nation, but rather those who have had all the benefits that the wealthiest Nation on earth has had to offer . . . the finest homes, the finest college education and the finest jobs in government we can give.

This is glaringly true in the State Department. There the bright young men who are born with silver spoons in their mouths are the ones who have been most traitorous. . . . I have here in my hand a list of 205 [later changed to 57] . . . a list of names that were made known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping policy in the State Department. . . .

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6. Take notes on the McCarthyism and the Second Red Scare video below:

Religion & the Cold War Affirmation of Christian religious identity was an explicit part of the government’s strategy for

combating the influence of “__________________________ communism” Eisenhower led the charge for Congress to insert “under God” into the Pledge of Allegiance (1954)

o The change was motivated by a desire to differentiate between communism, which promotes atheism, and Western capitalist democracies, which were largely Christian

Christianity throughout the Cold War took on an anti-communist edge Throughout the Cold War, atheism was considered as unpatriotic and un-American as communism More and more public school districts required students to recite Christian prayers in schools; the

Supreme Court, beginning in the 1960s, began to rule that these prayers were __________________________, which triggered vocal opposition and open defiance

Cold War Women & Families In the aftermath of the Second World War and the onset of the Cold War, men and some women

spoke of and tried to maintain the “beautiful ideal”—the idea that physical __________________________ and vulnerability are women’s most important assets; that women should strive to achieve their physical and emotional beautiful ideal

o Female writers and activists started challenging this notion in the 1960s, in what came to be called the Women’s Liberation Movement

Having worked during WWII, women wished to continue in full-time employment, but they ran up against popular opinion, which disproved of women working

o Noting that most Soviet women worked outside the home (communism—in theory—seeks the elimination of all hierarchies, including gender), many commentators appealed for a return to the image of a “traditional” family; but for most families, middle-class life could only be achieved with _____ incomes

Popular image of traditional nuclear family dominated popular perceptions of the era, although actual family structure was undergoing profound changes as the number of __________________________ women increased and social attitudes started to shift

Middle-class __________________________ of the late 1940s and ‘50s became the ultimate symbol of American prosperity

o At the center of the picture of the perfect suburban life was the suburban __________________________—efficient, patient, and always charming—who became a dominant image in television, movies, and magazines

Note: TV was developed by the late 1930s but WWII postponed its introduction to the public until 1946; by 1960, nearly nine in ten families owned at least one set; TV reshaped leisure time and political life and helped to create a new kind of national community

Young couples were marrying younger and producing more children than at any time in the past century; though the U.S. Census Bureau predicted that the “baby boom” would be temporary, the birthrate continued to grow at a record pace, peaking in 1957

o Note: “__________________________” are those born during the post-WWII baby boom between 1946-1964

Cold War Families: Cold War, Warm Hearth by Elaine Tyler May, Ph.D. University of Minnesota, History Department

In the summer of 1959, a young couple married and spent their honeymoon in a fallout shelter. Life magazine featured the “sheltered honeymoon” with a photograph of the duo smiling on their lawn, surrounded by dozens of canned goods and supplies. Another photograph showed them kissing as they descended twelve feet underground into the 22-ton, steel and concrete, 8-by-11-foot shelter where they would spend the next two weeks. The article quipped that “fallout can be fun” and described the newlyweds’ adventure as fourteen days of “unbroken togetherness.” As the couple

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1950s houses in the suburban development of Levittown, New York, one

of the first suburbs built as planned [white]

communities meant to highlight the success of

capitalism.

“If we ever forget that we are one nation under God, we will be a nation gone under.” –Ronald Reagan

embarked on married life, all they had to enhance their honeymoon were some consumer goods and their privacy. This is a powerful image of the nuclear family in the nuclear age: isolated, sexually charged, cushioned by abundance, and protected against impending doom by the wonders of modern technology.

The stunt was little more than a publicity device; yet, in retrospect it takes on symbolic significance. For in the early years of the Cold War, amid the uncertainties brought about by World War II and its aftermath, the home seemed to offer a secure private nest removed from the dangers of the outside world. The message was ambivalent, however, for the family also seemed particularly vulnerable. It needed heavy protection against the intrusions of forces outside itself. The self-contained home held out the promise of security in an insecure world. It also offered a vision of abundance and fulfillment. As the Cold War began, young postwar Americans were rushing into this vision of marriage and family life.

Demographic indicators show that in the period immediately following World War II, Americans were more eager than ever to establish families. The bomb-shelter honeymooners were part of a cohort of Americans of all racial, ethnic, and religious groups, of all socio-economic classes and education levels, who lowered the age at marriage for both men and women, and quickly brought the birthrate to a twentieth-century high after more than a hundred years of steady decline, producing the “baby boom.” Although the nation remained divided along lines of race and class, family fever swept the nation and affected all Americans. The trend of early marriage and relatively large families these young adults established lasted for more than two decades. From the 1940s through the early 1960s, Americans married at a higher rate and at a younger age than did their European counterparts.

Why did postwar Americans turn to marriage and parenthood with such enthusiasm and commitment? Scholars frequently point to the family boom as the inevitable result of a return to peace and prosperity. They argue that postwar Americans were eager to put the disruptions and hardships of economic depression and war behind them and enjoy the abundance at home. There is, of course, some truth in this claim, but prosperity followed other wars in our history, notably World War I, with no similar increase in marriage and childbearing. Peace and affluence alone are inadequate to explain the many complexities of the postwar domestic explosion. The demographic trends went far beyond what was expected from a return to peace. Indeed, nothing on the surface of postwar America explains the rush of young Americans into marriage, parenthood, and traditional gender roles.

It might have been otherwise. The Great Depression of the 1930s brought about widespread challenges to traditional gender roles that could have led to a restructured home. The war intensified these challenges and pointed the way toward radical alterations in the institutions of work and family life. Wartime brought thousands of women into the paid labor force when men left to enter the Armed Forces. After the war, expanding job and educational opportunities, as well as the increasing availability of birth-control devices, might well have led young people to delay marriage or not marry at all, and to have fewer children if they did marry. Indeed, many observers at the time feared that these changes seriously threatened the stability of the American family. Yet, the evidence overwhelmingly indicates that postwar American society experienced a surge in family life and a reaffirmation of domesticity that rested on distinct roles for women and men.

What makes the postwar demographic explosion even more curious and remarkable is its pervasiveness across all groups in the society. Americans of all backgrounds rushed into marriage and childbearing, even though many of these newly formed families—most notably large numbers of Americans of color—were excluded from suburbia, the site of the “American way of life.” Racial and class divisions were concealed beneath an aura of unity in the aftermath of the war. Post–World War II America presented itself as a unified nation, politically harmonious and blessed with widespread affluence. Emerging triumphant from a war fought against racist and fascist regimes, spared the ravages of war-torn Europe and Asia, and prosperous from the booming wartime economy, the United States embraced its position as the “leader of the free world.”

But major challenges lay ahead if the nation was to maintain its leadership in the world. The atomic blasts that devastated Hiroshima and Nagasaki marked both the end of the Second World War and the beginning of the Cold War. The United States now faced its former ally, the Soviet Union, as its major foe. The Cold War was largely an ideological struggle between the two superpowers, both hoping to increase their power and influence across the globe. The divisions in American society along racial, class, and gender lines threatened to weaken the society at home and damage its prestige in the world. In the propaganda battles that permeated the era, American leaders promoted the American way of life as the triumph of capitalism, allegedly available to all who believed in its values. This way of life was characterized by affluence, located in suburbia, and epitomized by white middle-class nuclear families. Increasing numbers of Americans gained access to this domestic ideal—but not everyone who aspired to it could achieve it.

Poverty excluded many from suburban affluence; racism excluded others. Nevertheless, experts and officials insisted that the combined forces of democracy and prosperity would bring the fruits of the “good life” to all. Racial strife, they asserted, was diminishing. Workers, they argued, were prosperous. But anxieties surrounding these issues did not disappear. Policymakers perceived racial and class divisions as particularly dangerous, because dissatisfied workers and racial minorities might be drawn to left-wing political agitation, leading to socialism or even communism. According to the Cold War ethos of the time, conflict within the United States would harm our image abroad, strengthen the Soviet Union, and weaken the nation, making it vulnerable to communism. The worst-case scenario was Communist

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takeover and the defeat of the United States in the Cold War. Although strategists and foreign policy experts feared that the Soviet Union might gain the military strength and territorial expansion to achieve world domination, many leaders, pundits, and other observers worried that the real dangers to America were internal ones: racial strife, emancipated women, class conflict, and familial disruption.

To alleviate these fears, Americans turned to the family as a bastion of safety in an insecure world, while experts, leaders, and politicians promoted codes of conduct and enacted public policies that would bolster the American home. Like their leaders, most Americans agreed that family stability appeared to be the best bulwark against the dangers of the Cold War era. Because of the political, ideological, and institutional developments that converged at the time, young adults were especially eager for the comforts and security that the nuclear family promised. Like the young couple who honeymooned in the fallout shelter, postwar Americans set their sights on the affluent and protected home as the location of their own personal pursuit of happiness.

7. For what reasons do you suspect the “sheltered honeymoon” was featured in Life magazine in the late ‘50s?

Alliances of Convenience In an effort to contain and combat communism, the U.S.

government forged many alliances with right-wing dictators who __________________________ communism

President __________________________ (1977-’81) was the one president who tried to stop this practice

Historians are often critical of these alliances today, pointing out that very little, if any, short-term benefits came of the alliances, and the world is still dealing with some of the long-term consequences; two helpful examples are below

U.S. support for Islamic jihad in the Middle East (1979-’89) o U.S. supported anti-communist Afghans and encouraged

the use of terrorism when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan to prop-up a communist government; eventually the Soviets gave up and exited Afghanistan

o Many of the anti-communist Afghans ended up becoming the Taliban, who controlled the government of Afghanistan up until 2001. The Taliban allowed Al Qaeda to set up shop in Afghanistan in the years leading to 9/11, which is why the U.S. invaded that country immediately after the attacks. Since being removed from power in 2001 by the invasion of the U.S. and its allies in the aftermath of 9/11, they’ve been attempting to come back to power. Bin Laden, the former leader of Al Qaeda, was also recruited and financed during this time by the CIA in an effort to keep communism out of Afghanistan.

U.S. support for Mobutu Sese Seko in the Congo (1960-90s) o With Belgium, the U.S. organized the assassination of the first democratically elected

Congolese leader (Patrice Lumumba) in 1960 for his alleged support of communism o Installed and supported Mobutu (he went by his first name), an authoritarian, repressive dictator, because he took an anti-

Communist stanceo Mobutu was a mass murderer and stole billions of dollars from the state while his people became impoverished o Led to a series of civil and external wars that continue today: millions have died as a result

8. What does this information highlight about the difficulties involved in crafting foreign policy?

The End of the Cold War Soviet Union __________________________ into 15 separate countries in 1991; hailed by the

West as a victory for freedom/capitalism The project of creating a unified, centralized communist state proved problematic for the USSR

for several reasons:o Underestimated degree to which non-Russians would resist Soviet advances and

attempted assimilation o Economic planning failed to meet needs; instead, money/resources were funneled into

a vicious arms race, leading to gradual economic decline which necessitated reform

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o Communism lost its appeal to satellite nations, who associated the term more with totalitarianism and repression than __________________________

Scholars contend that the fall of the USSR was directly precipitated by Gorbachev’s 1980s policies of glasnost (freedom of speech) and perestroika (economic reform introducing more freedom)

o He unwittingly unleashed emotions and political feelings that had been pent up for decadeso When economy did not improve, newly allotted freedom of speech was used to criticize Gorbachev for his economic failures

Periphery states started to demand autonomy; eventually Russians did too While historians today maintain that consistent implementation of containment by the Cold War presidents (Truman to Bush Sr.)

helped to bring about an end to the Cold War, they argue that the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 was at least as much a result of internal affairs of the USSR, rather than just U.S. foreign policy, which had been argued in previous decades

Two Perspectives on the U.S. & the Cold War:James Henretta (University of Maryland) Peter Kuznick (American University)“Behind much of the US foreign policy in the first two decades of the Cold War lay the memory of appeasement. The generation of politicians and officials who designed the containment strategy had come of age in the shadow of Munich, the conference in 1938 at which the Western democracies had appeased Hitler by giving him part of Czechoslovakia, paving the road to WWII. Applying the lessons of Munich, American presidents believed that appeasing Stain (and subsequent Soviet leaders) would have the same result. Thus in . . . Korea, . . . Vietnam, [etc.] the US staunchly resisted the Soviets—or what it perceived as Soviet influence[,] drawing Americans into armed conflicts—and convinced them to support repressive, right wing regimes—that compromised, as much as supported stated American principles.”

“There is, still today, a fundamental misunderstanding about why the United States entered the Cold War. There is no doubt that the Soviets imposed repressive, and when challenged, brutal dictatorships on Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia. But it is equally clear that the Soviets were initially willing to accept governments friendly to them in these countries until the United States began to make threatening moves on both their ideology and their security. During this post-war period, it was the United States with its atomic monopoly, its creation of NATO, its hyper-spending on defense, and its paranoia, which bears the lion’s share of responsibility for starting the Cold War. In all these matters after liberating Western Europe after WWII, the United States was now signaling fear and aggression. Why this fear? We are separated from the rest of the world by two enormous oceans and are still susceptible to fear Is it necessary to exaggerate the fear of persecution from abroad? We are the most heavily armed nation in the world; but when any nation goes to an extreme degree to protect itself, it’s inevitable that even this amount of protection will never seem psychologically to be enough. It is also often true that the image of the enemy will grow proportionate to the size of the defense, resulting in an overreaction and accelerated spending of energies in a futile attempt to liquidate that fear which never seems to erode. In hindsight, US leaders had exaggerated the threat from an enemy THEY felt THEY needed, wanting to frame the world as an existential clash between two antagonistic social systems.”

9. Summarize the key argument from each historian. Compare the two statements. What notable similarities do you see between Henretta and Kuznick? Differences?

10. Have these authors presented a plausible argument that the United States’ actions are mainly to blame for the origin/rise of tensions between itself and the USSR in the early decades of the Cold War? If you agree, explain how the evidence proves this statement. If you disagree, present evidence to the contrary in your response.

Attachment: Word Choices for The Cold War Document

Airlift Weaken Bolshevik Spying ControversyAtheistic Opposed Suburbanization Wife Working

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Collectivism Demolished Rejected Animosity Falling dominoForeign Totalitarianism Roll back Nazi Economic

United Nations Balance Expensive Aided BufferWWII Free elections Appealing Left New Deal

Citizens Marxism Baby boomers MAD Arms raceReunite Divided Workers’ Lagging Defeat

Expansion Alliances Rebuild LessenReasonable Attractiveness Disintegrated Carter

Unconstitutional Uncertain Two JFK

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