Part 1: Post a Response

By the early 1950s, the US was a world super-power militarily and economically. The Great Depression was no more. But, two major rival powers were developing, rivals ideologically and militarily: The Cold War between the US and its allies versus the Soviet Union and its allies/clients would be the dominant international issue for the next four decades. Domestically, in the 1950s and the 1960s, the US would begin grappling head-on with major Civil Rights and economic issues, as well as a divisive conflict in Vietnam—and widespread demonstrations and some high profile assassinations.

Choose and discuss (in a full paragraph or two) one of the following two topics related to the period from the late 1940s and through the 1960s.

1. Discuss America’s Cold War policy or strategy aimed at dealing with communism and the Soviet threat, and an example of a Cold War conflict or crisis.
   • Identify one or two Cold War strategies of the US. Describe a specific example of a conflict or crisis that was part of this Cold War strategy, and compare or contrast this to the international situation today.
   • Identify the source(s) where you read about these Cold War issues.
2. Discuss the Civil Rights advances and struggles that took place in the 1950s and 1960s along with relevant legal developments.
   • Identify two key specific events of the Civil Rights struggle and at least one major piece of legislation or court decision.
   • Explain the historical significance of your examples and ways they have impacted our own time.
   • Identify the source(s) where you read these Civil Rights issues.

Part 2: Respond to a Peer

Read a post by one of your peers and respond, making sure to extend the conversation by asking questions, offering rich ideas, or sharing personal connections.

Reference Material

Chapters 24 and 25

Week 7 Learn materials

Week 7 Primary Sources

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Reply

Discuss the Civil Rights advances and struggles that took place in the 1950s and 1960s along with relevant legal developments.

• Identify two key specific events of the Civil Rights struggle and at least one major piece of legislation or court decision.
• Explain the historical significance of your examples and ways they have impacted our own time. Identify the source(s) where you read these Civil Rights issues.

The civil advances throughout the 50’s and the 60’s brought about change in the voting laws, change in the seating on buses due to the Montgomery Bus Boycott for the arrest of Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat to a white person.

Two major events of the civil rights struggle, was in 1957 in Little Rock, Arkansas and Federal troops enforce desegregation of a high school. Brown v. Board of Education, the unlawful segregation of schools. The major peice of legislation that affected these events is the Civil Rights Act of 1965 (Schultz, K. M., 2018,2016, HIST 5, Vol 2. U.S. History Since 1865, pg. 483.

The historical significance of the Federal troops having to enforce desegregation of a high school in Little Rock, Ak is expounded on with the case Brown v. Board of Education, that ruled that school segregation was unlawful. That meant that all those individuals that wanted equal education opportunities at college and universities could now get them without having to drive long distances from their homes. It also meant that the books that they would have access to learn from would be the same books that their white counterparts were actively learning from, instead of being thirty year old hand me down books (How to sound smart learn materials video).

Stephanie Rishel

Sources

How to Sound Smart Learn Video (Brown v. Board of Education.

Text Book, Schultz, K. M. 2018, 2016., HIST 5, Volume 2. U. S. History since 1865., pg. 483.