Q&A Hero

Q: The turning point of the Vietnam War, which convinced U.S. leaders that the war would end in a stalemate, was the ________. A) Tet offensive B) Gulf of Tonkin affair C) Battle of Pleiku D) Battle of Haiphong E) massacre at My Lai

Q: Who wrote the 1963 book The Feminine Mystique? A) Jacqueline Kennedy B) Rosa Parks C) Ella Baker D) Betty Friedan E) Coretta Scott King

Q: During the 1960s and 1970s, Csar Chvez ________. A) led a communist takeover of Nicaragua B) organized a Chicano political movement known as La Raza Unida C) organized California grape and lettuce workers to strike for higher wages D) was the first Hispanic player to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame E) campaigned for bilingual education programs in public schools in California and Texas

Q: Who advocated "black power" as the new leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in the 1960s? A) Martin Luther King, Jr. B) A. Phillip Randolph C) Stokely Carmichael D) Thurgood Marshall E) Robert Weaver

Q: What was the touchstone of the new counterculture of the sixties? A) journalism B) photography C) painting D) TV programs E) music

Q: In the spring of 1968, students seized five buildings at ________ for eight days before police regained control. A) Arizona State University B) Duke University C) the University of California at Berkeley D) Harvard University E) Columbia University

Q: What was the main issue that American college students protested during the sixties? A) the election of Richard Nixon B) the Vietnam War C) Lyndon Johnson's education policies D) the civil rights movement E) tax increases for the middle class

Q: The most prominent student protest organization of the 1960s was the ________. A) Students of America B) Students for a Democratic Society C) Yippie Movement D) Southern Christian Leadership Conference E) Young Republicans

Q: In Vietnam, American military strategists counted heavily on ________. A) enthusiasm for the war among the public to generate recruits B) superior American firepower, especially air strikes C) superior American counterinsurgency tactics D) the overwhelming number of American troops E) the overwhelming support from the Vietnamese people

Q: In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson sent American soldiers to ________ in order to prevent a communist takeover there. A) Cuba B) Argentina C) the Dominican Republic D) Lebanon E) Madagascar

Q: In his health care program, President Lyndon Johnson secured ________. A) free health care for all Americans B) the Medicare program for the elderly C) more rights for private insurance companies D) a restriction on health benefits for welfare recipients E) a free prescription drug program

Q: Lyndon Johnson's reform program was called the ________. A) Fair Deal B) New Frontier C) Great Society D) Great Future E) Morning in America

Q: Senator Barry Goldwater pushed for ________ during the presidential election of 1964. A) establishing peace with the Soviet Union B) making further advances in civil rights C) increasing the size of the federal government D) providing more aid to the unemployed E) ending the welfare state in America

Q: When Johnson became president after the assassination of Kennedy in 1963, he focused first on ________. A) ending the Cold War B) passing JFK's tax and civil rights bills C) escalating the war in Vietnam D) boosting the military E) bolstering international relationships

Q: What was one of Lyndon Johnson's greatest assets in the White House? A) his knowledge of the legislative process B) his acclaimed public speaking skills C) his polish and sophistication D) his excellent relationship with the media E) his unassuming presence that led others to underestimate him

Q: Who put the most pressure on Kennedy to openly support racial justice? A) A. Philip Randolph B) Thurgood Marshall C) Martin Luther King, Jr. D) Malcolm X E) Stokely Carmichael

Q: What was the 1961 "freedom ride"? A) a march on Washington in which participants rode bicycles B) a sit-in during which thousands of college students experimented with drugs C) a protest in which college students blocked the routes of segregated buses and trains D) a protest in which thousands of people crossed the United States on motorcycles E) a protest that tested the desegregation laws on interstate transportation

Q: Which African-American individual was appointed to a prominent post in the federal government during the Kennedy administration? A) A. Philip Randolph B) Thurgood Marshall C) Martin Luther King, Jr. D) Malcolm X E) Stokely Carmichael

Q: The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation that came very close to being a nuclear conflict between which two nations? A) Cuba and China B) Cuba and the Dominican Republic C) the United States and China D) the United States and Russia E) Russia and Cuba

Q: Kennedy's failed 1961 covert operation to overthrow Cuba's Fidel Castro was ________. A) the Monroe Affair B) the Cuban Missile Crisis C) the Bay of Pigs invasion D) Operation Castro E) the Havana Project

Q: What did President Kennedy do to help South Vietnam in 1961? A) He praised its government but took no action. B) He sent money and advisers. C) He sent combat troops. D) He threatened North Vietnam. E) He badgered Europe into sending aid.

Q: What was Kennedy's top priority when he assumed the office of the presidency? A) civil rights B) foreign policy C) health care D) poverty E) the economy

Q: John F. Kennedy's domestic program was known as the ________. A) Great Society B) New Deal C) Fair Deal D) New Frontier E) Camelot Era

Q: What was one major factor that helped Kennedy defeat Nixon in the 1960 presidential election? A) Kennedy's performance in the first televised presidential debate B) Nixon's poor performance in a presidential radio debate C) Kennedy's extensive political experience compared with Nixon's D) Kennedy's warm relationship with the Eisenhower administration E) The nation was familiar with Kennedy, but Nixon was a newcomer to politics

Q: How did political activism for civil rights change from the 1950s to the early 1960s? A) Direct, peaceful confrontation replaced reliance on court action. B) Reliance on court action replaced direct, peaceful confrontation. C) Reliance on court action replaced violent means of forcing social change. D) Violent means of forcing social change replaced direct, peaceful confrontation. E) Direct, peaceful confrontation replaced violent means of forcing social change.

Q: What effect did postwar life have on women in American society? A) Women tended to marry later, so they had more time to pursue careers outside the home. B) Couples tended to have fewer children, so the focus of many women shifted from child-rearing to professional careers. C) Many suburban households included extended family members, so mothers had enough help to more easily pursue professional careers. D) Many women who had joined the workforce during the war returned to the home to assume the more traditional roles of wife and mother. E) Women were expected to maintain their wartime jobs while also meeting social expectations of the "perfect" wife and mother.

Q: Which of the following was NOT an important stimulus to American economic growth in the late 1940s and early 1950s? A) government relief aid B) pent-up demand for consumer goods C) heavy government spending during the Cold War D) $37 billion in American savings E) government spending during the Korean War

Q: What effect did memories of the Great Depression have on Americans in the 1950s? A) Many Americans became almost desperately obsessed with gathering material goods. B) Many Americans hoarded their money and refrained from purchasing expensive items. C) Many Americans continued to petition the government for relief programs. D) Many Americans donated money to charities rather than engaging in consumerism. E) Many Americans were mistrustful of banks, which damaged the economy.

Q: Which event prompted a massive wave of "sit-ins" across the country? A) African Americans went on a hunger strike after being refused service at a diner. B) An African-American soldier refused to stand and salute an abusive white officer. C) A white restaurant owner assaulted a black customer when she sat in a white area. D) Four college students refused to leave a lunch counter after they were denied service. E) Three African-American women would not get off a bus after being asked to move.

Q: What was the initial goal of the Montgomery bus boycott? A) to challenge the constitutionality of segregated seating B) to create a first-come, first-served seating arrangement on buses C) to challenge the racial discrimination in the hiring of bus drivers D) to establish equal bus fares for white and black passengers E) to create more bus routes in African-American neighborhoods

Q: The Montgomery bus boycott _______. A) moved Martin Luther King, Jr. away from his philosophy of passive resistance B) sparked an outburst of violence against blacks all over the South C) led to the emergence of Martin Luther King, Jr. as a civil rights leader D) failed to change Montgomery's strict segregation laws E) ended when President Eisenhower sent in troops to stop the boycott

Q: Why was Rosa Parks arrested in 1955? A) She instigated a race riot stemming from the desegregation of schools. B) She defied a court order by refusing to allow black students in her classroom. C) She refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white man. D) She assaulted a white man who had insulted her on a city bus. E) She was suspected of being a communist or communist sympathizer.

Q: What was the driving force for social change that gained civil rights for African Americans? A) landmark court cases B) presidential intervention C) laws passed by Congress D) the religious revival of the times E) African-American activism

Q: Why did Eisenhower send federal troops to Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957? A) to ensure that black students could attend a desegregated school B) to quell a violent race riot resulting from the integration of the military C) to investigate a planned terrorist attack from the Soviet Union D) to protect a top secret chemical weapon on its way to Washington E) to arrest hundreds of African-American activists and supporters

Q: President Eisenhower's approach to desegregation was to _______. A) actively fight to stop the process B) work behind the scenes to stop the effort C) misunderstand the importance of the issue D) remain passive while also using his power to enforce federal law E) publicly and consistently support desegregation in the South

Q: How did the Deep South respond to court-ordered desegregation? A) by taking action to end discrimination in schools B) with grudging acceptance of the decisions C) with apathy and passive acceptance D) with massive and widespread resistance E) with violence and threats to once again secede from the Union

Q: Why did more than a hundred senators and congressmen sign the Southern Manifesto? A) They were declaring an intention to secede from the Union again. B) They were expressing concern about the lack of a balanced federal budget. C) They were declaring an intention to hunt down communists working in government. D) They were asking Eisenhower to show his support for the bus boycott. E) They were protesting the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka ruling.

Q: As a result of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, _______. A) segregation in the South ended almost immediately B) the slow process of integrating schools began C) the civil rights movement ended quietly D) African-American students were fully accepted by white teachers E) African Americans could finally be teachers in the South

Q: During the Truman administration, _______. A) voting discrimination against African Americans came to an end B) public schools were desegregated in many states C) an order for desegregation of the armed forces was issued D) Congress established a permanent civil rights commission E) the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department was weakened

Q: In the 1950s, Americans experienced a contradiction in _______. A) their apparent obsession with technology but reluctance to embrace television B) their growing commitment to organized religion while having less time for church activities C) moving to the suburbs yet longing for the excitement and opportunities found in cities D) saying they feared another depression but refusing to spend money to bolster the economy E) denouncing the Soviet Union for human rights violations while supporting segregation

Q: The Truman administration failed to establish the Fair Employment Practices Commission because _______. A) Truman himself secretly worked to defeat its passage B) most people were against the idea of wives working C) it was seen as a criticism of consumer culture D) Southern politicians managed to block the legislation E) the public thought the program was a socialist plot

Q: The government increased federal funding for science education in 1957 in response to _______. A) the cultural shift from religion to science B) the public interest in electronic gadgets C) the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik D) the criticism of "progressive" education E) the economic competition from Japan

Q: People's attitude toward organized religion in the 1950s was _______. A) positive and religious affiliation boomed B) negative and churches lost large numbers of members C) indifferent and it was seen as less important than in the past D) indifferent as people focused more on spirituality than organized religion E) indifferent as lives became too hectic to include religious services

Q: What was a drawback of suburban life for the family? A) Many families were torn apart by pressure to conform to suburban expectations. B) Many young families had to share their homes with extended family members. C) Many parents were too focused on earning money to make time for family bonding. D) Many mothers and wives remained locked into stereotypical gender roles. E) Many children received little attention from their hard-working parents.

Q: The new American suburbs of the 1950s were NOT _______ diverse. A) economically B) socially C) professionally D) racially E) ethnically

Q: Which of the following statements best describes typical Americans who were born in the 1930s? A) As children, they experienced boom times; as young adults, they lived through hard times. B) As children, they lived through hard times; as young adults, they experienced boom times. C) As children, they witnessed the rise of cities; as young adults, they saw the decline of cities. D) As children, they witnessed the rise of cars; as young adults, they saw cars replaced by mass transit. E) As children, they lived through war; as young adults their country was at peace for decades.

Q: The economic abundance of the 1950s _______. A) benefited all geographic regions of the country almost equally B) virtually erased unemployment throughout the United States C) did not benefit the steel industry and agriculture as much as other industries D) had very little effect on the American public outside of the upper class E) led to a surprising racial equality

Q: Why did some people criticize American suburban life? A) They accused suburban families of snobbery since only the wealthy could live there. B) They thought the houses were built with substandard materials and craftsmanship. C) They disliked the conformity and uniformity of suburban life. D) They were afraid that a mass exodus to the suburbs would harm urban economies. E) They worried about the pollution generated by suburban automobile commuters.

Q: The 1950s in America were characterized by _______. A) a lower standard of living B) migration from the suburbs to urban areas C) unprecedented restraint on consumerism D) a new affluence and a thriving economy E) economic recession and inflation

Q: Why was the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee founded? A) to run the Montgomery bus boycott B) to stage peaceful civil rights protests C) to provide research for military court cases D) to ferret out communists on college campuses E) to lead the fight against desegregation

Q: Where did the "sit-in" movement begin? A) Montgomery, Alabama B) Little Rock, Arkansas C) Washington, D.C. D) Topeka, Kansas E) Greensboro, North Carolina

Q: Martin Luther King, Jr. founded the _______ to obtain civil rights for African Americans. A) Black Panthers B) Fair Employment Practices Committee C) National Association for the Advancement of Colored People D) Southern Christian Leadership Conference E) Urban League

Q: Martin Luther King, Jr.'s philosophy advocated _______. A) immigration to Africa rather than trying to gain rights in the United States B) acceptance of discrimination until the courts brought about changes C) the use of violence to get the nation's attention for his cause D) the use of any means necessary, including dirty tricks, to gain equality E) the use of nonviolent, passive resistance to unjust laws

Q: Who led the Montgomery bus boycott? A) Martin Luther King, Jr. B) Ella Baker C) Rosa Parks D) Thurgood Marshall E) Bayard Rustin

Q: Whose action sparked the Montgomery bus boycott? A) Martin Luther King, Jr. B) Ella Baker C) Rosa Parks D) Thurgood Marshall E) Orval Faubus

Q: By 1960, what percentage of African-American children in the Deep South attended schools with white students? A) less than 1% B) 10% C) 25% D) 45% E) more than 50%

Q: In Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, the Supreme Court ruled that school segregation _______. A) was acceptable as long as the schools were actually equal B) could not be banned as long as local voters supported it C) violated the Fourteenth Amendment by creating feelings of inferiority D) was necessary in order to foster a strong sense of racial identity E) was protected by the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution

Q: Which institution was the first focus of the NAACP's efforts to end segregation? A) kindergartens B) elementary schools C) middle schools D) high schools E) universities

Q: By 1960, the most racially integrated institution in American society was _______. A) the public high school system B) the private university system C) corporate America D) the armed forces E) Protestant churches

Q: The first president to attack racial discrimination seriously was _______. A) Harry Truman B) Franklin Roosevelt C) Theodore Roosevelt D) John F. Kennedy E) Herbert Hoover

Q: Which of the following adjectives best describes Eisenhower's administration? A) moderation B) neoconservative C) liberal D) progressive E) reformist

Q: Who were the "beats" of the 1950s? A) jazz musicians who experimented with folk music B) a light rock group on a popular variety show C) writers and poets who rebelled against materialistic values D) a motorcycle gang whose members included Jack Kerouac and James Dean E) a group of talented screenplay writers in the early days of television

Q: What was the focus of the bestselling book The Lonely Crowd? A) life in suburbia B) love and romance C) Cold War politics D) manufacturing work E) life in the cities

Q: What kind of programming became popular after television advertisers abandoned dramas? A) documentaries B) cooking shows C) quiz shows D) talk shows E) reality television

Q: An immediate problem for rapidly growing suburban communities was providing adequate _______. A) water supplies B) schools C) waste disposal D) law enforcement E) mass transit

Q: What was the dominant social theme of 1950s America? A) individualism B) free love C) philanthropy D) consumerism E) political activism

Q: What was Dr. Benjamin Spock's bestselling book about? A) infant and child care B) public education C) Cold War politics D) dating and marriage E) space travel

Q: Which of the following was critical to life in the suburbs? A) jobs close to the home sites B) efficient public transportation C) the automobile D) American school systems E) air conditioning

Q: Which section of the country benefited the most from the economic boom of the 1950s? A) the Hawaiian Islands B) the Great Lakes region C) the Midwest region D) the Sunbelt states E) the New England area

Q: By 1960, America's gross national product was ________ the 1940 gross national product. A) less than half B) about ten percent less than C) about the same as D) about fifty percent higher than E) more than double

Q: The term "baby boom" refers to a significant increase in _______. A) the infant survival rate in America B) the American birth rate C) the amount of money spent on babies D) the popularity of adopting children E) the rise in teenage pregnancies

Q: The most significant social trend in postwar America was _______. A) the decline of the nuclear family B) a decrease in the birth rate C) a decline in family size D) the emergence of the drug culture E) the flight to the suburbs

Q: What group was rigidly excluded from all three Levittowns? A) the middle class B) the working class C) African Americans D) Protestants E) Catholics

Q: Who invented the concept of the mass construction of suburban homes? A) William Levitt B) Thurgood Marshall C) Joseph McCarthy D) Norman Vincent Peale E) Reginald Rose

Q: Which statement best describes the transition from war to peace in America after World War II? A) The transition caused inflation and labor unrest. B) The transition was an exceptionally smooth one. C) The transition solved the wartime economic problems. D) The transition was a period of contentment for the American people. E) The transition gave Democrats an advantage over Republicans.

Q: How did U.S. intervention in China differ from its intervention in Korea? A) The United States could only respond with diplomacy in the Chinese conflict, but gave supplies and funds to North Korea. B) The United States responded with all-out war in China, but refused to get involved in the Korean conflict. C) The United States extracted itself from the conflict when civil war broke out in China but sent troops to aid South Korea. D) The United States sent troops to China when civil war broke out, but only sent money to South Korea when the violence began. E) The United States intervened with diplomatic efforts and supplies in North Korea, but did not intervene in any way in China's civil war.

Q: Which of the following was NOT a reason why Congress voted to implement the Marshall Plan? A) to strengthen the U.S. military and win the arms race B) in reaction to a coup in Czechoslovakia C) to stop the spread of communism across Europe D) to improve the economy in Western Europe E) in response to the perceived Soviet threat

Q: What was one effect of McCarthyism? A) a political and cultural conformity that discouraged dissent B) outspoken support for freedom of speech C) an intellectual revolution that encouraged new ideas D) a drop in literacy rates among American youth E) a wider appreciation of diversity in the United States

Q: How did President Eisenhower deal with Joseph McCarthy? A) He asked McCarthy to investigate military officers. B) He ordered McCarthy to focus on celebrities, not government employees. C) He openly attacked McCarthy and quickly ended his career. D) He gave McCarthy his unconditional support. E) He waited for McCarthy's zeal to be his own undoing.

Q: How did Joseph McCarthy develop power over his fellow senators? A) He physically threatened them. B) He blackmailed them. C) He instilled fear in them. D) He bribed them with campaign contributions. E) He was wildly popular with the public.