History

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RUNNING HEAD: MOST SIGNIFICANT EVENTS

Final Project: Most Significant Events

Axia College of University of Phoenix

The American Experience Since 1945

HIS/135

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1 Introduction

This document is an essay of the most significant events in the past 50 years of U.S. history. The essay covers one particular event from each of the five decades studied in class. Each selected topic, I believe, had the most powerful influence on the American people economically, socially, or politically. To conclude this essay, I have provided a hypothesis of the anticipated changes to the U.S. over the next ten years.

1950’s: McCarthyism

With the Soviets declaring their intentions of exporting revolution throughout the world, McCarthyism effectively used the fear and hatred Americans had of communism in order to manipulate the American public and sway political decisions. After America learned, from Britain, that Klaus Fuchs, had spied for the Russians while working on the Manhattan Project, Senator McCarthy claimed that there were communists within the State Department (Rockwell, 2004). He used the thought of espionage and conspiracy as a scare tactic against the American people. McCarthy lied to the American public and made false claims against U.S. government officials. America as a society was confused, fearful and angry, about communism, espionage, and conspiracy. Their decision-making wasn’t rational and McCarthy fed off of this and used it to his

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advantage. “Most people thought that communists were worse than murderers” (Mack, 2002). McCarthy used this as a tool to manipulate the American public into agreeing with him and his policies even-though it caused panic fear throughout the nation.

1960’s: Vietnam War

The U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War during the 1960’s was a significant event in U.S. History. During the Vietnam War, the United States belived that if...