Glossary

Capitalism

a free market economic system in which resources are privately owned and managed.

Cold War

a struggle between communism and the free market systems of Europe and the United States fought with propaganda, rising military budgets, wars by proxy, covert activities and the political use of military and economic aid.

Cold Warrior

a leader guided by the politics of the Cold War.  An American "Cold Warrior" advocated strong measures to address Soviet expansionism and communist beliefs and practices in our country and around the world.

Communism

an economic system with no private property. The state plans and controls the economy.

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

founded in 1942, this civil rights organization used non-violent protest to challenge segregation. James Farmer, a co-founder of CORE, initiated the Freedom Rides in 1961.

Cooper

one who makes or repairs barrels or casks.

Containment

policies established after World War II to prevent the spread of Soviet and communist influence and power in Western European nations such as France, Italy and Greece.

Coup (also known as coup d’etat)

the unlawful, sudden and forced removal of a government, usually by the military.

Declaration on the Neutrality of Laos

a 1962 agreement created from a 14-nation conference which provided for the neutrality of Laos under a unified government. The agreement proved temporary, and open warfare resumed in 1963.

Domino Theory

an assumption underlying foreign policy during the Cold War that if one country fell to Communism, the surrounding countries would also fall, like dominoes.

EXCOMM (Executive Committee of the National Security Council)

a group of advisors organized by President Kennedy on October 16, 1962 to consider what actions should be taken in response to the building of nuclear missile bases on Cuba.

Fascism

a form of government in which a political party or dictator has complete control over the political, economic, and social systems of a country.

Fine Arts Committee for the White House

a committee formed by Jacqueline Kennedy in 1961 to seek donations of furniture and artwork either owned by previous presidents or representative of particular periods in the building’s history.

Freedom of the City

an Irish tradition begun in the 14^th century; a ceremonial award, given by a local government to those who have served in some exceptional capacity, or upon any whom the city wishes to bestow an honor.  President Kennedy received the award from three different cities during his trip to Ireland in 1963. 

Freedom Rides

a 1961 non-violent movement originally organized by CORE (Congress of Racial Equality) with the aim of ending segregation in interstate transportation (seating on buses and waiting rooms, restrooms, and restaurants in bus stations).

Geneva Accord of 1954

signed by France and Vietnam after years of fighting, this agreement led to the temporary partition of Vietnam, with the proviso that national elections be held in 1956 to reunify the country. These elections never took place.

Indochina

the former federation of French colonies in Southeast Asia from the 1880s to 1954, comprised of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The capital was Hanoi.

Iron Curtain

the division between the communist nations of Eastern Europe and the non-communist nations of Western Europe, coined by Winston Churchill in 1946.

Jim Crow Laws

laws intended to restrict social and sexual contact between whites and other groups, and to limit the freedom and opportunity of people of color. Enacted mainly in the South beginning in the late nineteenth century and lasting until the 1960s, these laws kept the races separate and unequal.

Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

a treaty banning nuclear testing in the atmosphere, underwater, and in outer-space signed on August 5, 1963 by the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom. Underground testing was still permitted.

The March on Washington

a peaceful demonstration for civil rights in Washington D.C., held on August 28, 1963 and attended by more than 200,000 people. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech at this demonstration.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

led by twenty-six year old Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1955-56, this boycott ended segregated seating on buses in Montgomery, Alabama and won national attention.

NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People)

founded in 1909, this civil rights organization was responsible, along with Howard University Law School, for the Brown v. Board of Education decision of 1954, and many other important civil rights achievements.

NASA

the National Aeronautics and Space Administration formed on October 1, 1958, as a result of the Soviet Union’s successful launch of Sputnik.

National Gallery of Art

a museum created in 1937 by a joint resolution of Congress with a gift from financier and art collector Andrew W. Mellon whose paintings and sculptures have formed the core collections of the museum.

National Urban League

founded in 1910, this organization worked to improve the lives of African Americans, particularly those moving from the rural south to northern cities. It provided job training, as well as assistance with housing, education, health care and social services.

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)

established in 1949 as an alliance of the United States, Canada and European Nations for mutual defense against Soviet attack.

Ngo Dinh Diem (1901–1963)

the first President of South Vietnam from 1955-63, assassinated in a coup d’etat in 1963.

Profiles in Courage

President Kennedy’s 1957 Pulitzer prize-winning book that recounts the stories of eight U.S. Senators who risked their careers by taking principled stands for unpopular positions.

Project Mercury

the United States space exploration program that executed eight unmanned flights and six manned flights from 1961 to 1963.

PT Boats

small patrol torpedo boats used by the U.S. Navy during World War II in the Philippines, the Southwestern Pacific, the Mediterranean, and the English Channel mainly to harass the enemy, cut their supply lines, and to gather intelligence.

Red

slang term for communist.

Sit-ins

a method of non-violent protest that was used often in the early sixties to protest segregation. African-Americans would sit at lunch counters and other public facilities that were designated as "whites only" and ask to be served. In February 1960, four African-American men sat down at a segregated lunch counter at Woolworth's in Greensboro, North Carolina, and ignited a sit-in movement that swept the South.

Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)

an important civil rights organization formed as a result of the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955-56. The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. served as president of the SCLC from 1957-68.

Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

founded in 1960 by African-American college students, this civil rights organization worked to end segregation and assure voting rights for African-Americans.

Sputnik

Soviet satellite program. Sputnik I, the world's first artificial satellite, was launched on October 4, 1957. The Soviet media did not ascribe a specific name for the satellite, generally referring to it as Sputnik, the Russian word for 'satellite,' often also loosely translated as 'fellow traveler.'

U-2

spy planes used to gather intelligence.

Vietcong

slang term for a Vietnamese Communist.