Post WWII & Civil Rights
By 1952, the difficulties of the cold war began to affect the American mood. Charges of
communist subversion by people such as Senator Joseph McCarthy convinced many
Americans that the Soviet Union had planted its agents in high U.S. government
positions. Meanwhile, America's military action in Korea resulted in a growing number
of American casualties. Many Americans blamed the nation's Democratic leaders for
America's difficulties. In the national elections of 1952, American voters rejected the
Democratic Party which had controlled the federal government for twenty years. The
voters elected a Republican Congress and Republican President, Dwight D. Eisenhower.
In economic affairs, President Eisenhower adopted a middle-of-the-road approach to
government involvement in the economy. Despite urgings by some conservative
Republicans, he did not want to abandon all New Deal regulations and return to the
laissez-faire policies of the 1920s. But at the same time, Eisenhower did not want to
restrict America's free-enterprise system with further regulations. This moderate
approach to government involvement in the economy was called "Modern
Republicanism."
Modern Republicanism seemed well suited to the America of the 1950s. During these
years, the economy functioned well. Government intervention seemed unnecessary. The
ever-increasing demand for new cars, TV's, home appliances, and other products spurred
economic growth. In part, the postwar "baby boom" fueled this growth. Increased
family size led to a housing-construction boom, especially in city suburbs. Childoriented industries flourished. Meanwhile, construction of a massive interstate highway
system spurred economic growth even more.
The Eisenhower years also witnessed a great social change in America -- the civil
rights movement. In 1954, Linda Brown and NAACP lawyers challenged the legality of
racial segregation of public school students. After hearing the arguments in their case,
which was called "Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas," the Supreme Court
declared that racial segregation of students was unconstitutional. Soon after the Court's
ruling, blacks began to demand that other forms of racial discrimination be outlawed. To
bring about such change, Martin Luther King Jr. and his followers waged a campaign of
nonviolent, civil disobedience against "Jim Crow" laws and other discriminatory
practices. This action, plus the growing white empathy for blacks, led to the passage of
civil rights laws designed to guarantee blacks the same rights as any other American
citizen.
In foreign affairs, the Eisenhower years got off to a good start. In June of 1953, an
armistice ended the fighting in Korea. Meanwhile, in March of 1953, the Soviet dictator,
Stalin, died. Many hoped that new Soviet leadership would lead to better U.S. Soviet
relations. But hopes for peaceful coexistence between the two super powers did not
materialize. Americans were angered at Khrushchev's brutal crushing of a democratic
reform movement in Hungary in 1956. The U.S. was also angry over continued Soviet
support for communist revolts in places such as Vietnam. Meanwhile, the Soviets
blamed the U.S. for deepening the cold war. They criticized the U.S. for its support of
repressive leaders such as Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam. The Soviets also blamed
America's spy-plane flights over the Soviet Union for deepening cold war suspicions.
Cold war distrust intensified when Fidel Castro established communist rule in Cuba.
Despite American efforts to remove him from power, Castro, with the help of the Soviets,
kept his grip on Cuba.
In 1957 the U.S.S.R. scored two major technological breakthroughs. In October, it
launched "Sputnik," the world's first artificial satellite, into orbit. Later the Soviet Union
successfully tested the first intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Americans were
shocked that the U.S. seemed to be losing the arms and space race with the Soviet Union.
When the Eisenhower years closed, many Americans were unsure about the nation's
security. In the national elections of 1960, Democrats blamed the Republicans for
America's failure to keep the U.S. military strong. In a close election, the voters rejected
the Republican presidential candidate, then Vice-President Richard M. Nixon, and
instead elected the Democratic candidate, Senator John F. Kennedy.