Doc. A - Yalta Conference, Plaschke, Chicago Tribune American, 1945

Transcription

1 Doc. A - Yalta Conference, Plaschke, Chicago Tribune American, 1945 The eight-day Yalta Conference was held under extreme war-time secrecy at the Russian Crimean coast resort at Yalta on the Black Sea. (February 1945) The conference defined the Allied powers' policy towards Germany and gave the Soviets twofifths of pre-war Poland after England swore to defend the country. Doc. B - Excerpt from the "Marshall Plan" speech at Harvard University, 5 June 1947 It is already evident that, before the United States Government can proceed much further in its efforts to alleviate the situation and help start the European world on its way to recovery, there must be some agreement among the countries of Europe as to the requirements of the situation and the part those countries themselves will take in order to give proper effect to whatever action might be undertaken by this Government. It would be neither fitting nor efficacious for this Government to undertake to draw up unilaterally a program designed to place Europe on its feet economically. This is the business of the Europeans. The initiative, I think, must come from Europe. The role of this country should consist of friendly aid in the drafting of a European program and of later support of such a program so far as it may be practical for us to do so. The program should be a joint one, agreed to by a number, if not all European nations. Doc C. Operation Vittles, Berlin Airlift

2 Doc. D Herblock Political Cartoon of Joseph McCarthy Doc. E - Los Angeles Times Magazine June 19 th, 1953 Doc. F - Hollywood 10 Photograph, 1950

3 Doc. G. State Department Statement, May 7, Response to U-2 Incident 1960 The Department has received the text of Mr. Krushchev's further remarks about the unarmed plane which is reported to have been shot down in the Soviet Union. As previously announced, it was known that a U-2 plane was missing. As a result of the inquiry ordered by the President it has been established that insofar as the authorities in Washington are concerned there was no authorization for any such flight as described by Mr. Khrushchev. Nevertheless it appears that in endeavoring to obtain information now concealed behind the Iron Curtain a flight over Soviet territory was probably undertaken by an unarmed civilian U-2 plane. It is certainly no secret that, given the state of the world today, intelligence collection activities are practiced by all countries, and postwar history certainly reveals that the Soviet Union has not been lagging behind in this field. The necessity for such activities as measures for legitimate national defense is enhanced by the excessive secrecy practiced by the Soviet Union in contrast to the free world. One of the things creating tension in the world today is apprehension over surprise attack with weapon of mass destruction. To reduce mutual suspicion and to give a measure of protection against surprise attack the United States in 1955 offered its open-skies proposal - a proposal which was rejected out of hand by the Soviet Union. It is in relation to the danger of surprise attack that planes of the type of unarmed civilian U-2 aircraft have made flights along the frontiers of the free world for the past 4 years. Doc. H. Herblock s Political Cartoon and HUAC s Purpose HUAC In 1947 the committee s purpose was threefold: First, it intended to prove that the Screen Writer s s guild had Communist members. Second, it hoped to show that these writers were able to insert subversive propaganda into Hollywood films. Third, J. Parnell Thomas, head of the committee, argued that President Roosevelt had encouraged pro Soviet films during the war. Although none of these claims was ever substantiated, the committee s tactics worked to force many talented and creative people to leave Hollywood.

4 Doc. I The Berlin Wall Doc. J. Cuban Missile Crisis An Excerpt from JFK s Cuban Missile Crisis Address delivered on Oct. 22, 1962 and photographic evidence from a U-2 Spy plan. Good evening, my fellow citizens: This Government, as promised, has maintained the closest surveillance of the Soviet military buildup on the island of Cuba. Within the past week, unmistakable evidence has established the fact that a series of offensive missile sites is now in preparation on that imprisoned island. The purpose of these bases can be none other than to provide a nuclear strike capability against the Western Hemisphere. The characteristics of these new missile sites indicate two distinct types of installations. Several of them include medium range ballistic missiles, capable of carrying a nuclear warhead for a distance of more than 1,000 nautical miles. Each of these missiles, in short, is capable of striking Washington, D. C., the Panama Canal, Cape Canaveral, Mexico City, or any other city in the southeastern part of the United States, in Central America, or in the Caribbean area. The path we have chosen for the present is full of hazards, as all paths are; but it is the one most consistent with our character and courage as a nation and our commitments around the world. The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender or submission. Our goal is not the victory of might, but the vindication of right; not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere, and, we hope, around the world. God willing, that goal will be achieved. Thank you and good night.

5 Doc. K. - Timeline of Space Exploration 1957 Oct. 4 - USSR launches Sputnik 1. Nov. 3 - USSR launches Sputnik 2 which carried a small dog named Laika into orbit Jan Explorer 1, the first American satellite to reach orbit, is launched. It carried scientific equipment that lead to the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belt. Oct. 1 - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is formed Jan. 2 - Luna 1 is launched by the USSR. It is the first man-made object to orbit the Sun. Mar. 3 - Pioneer 4 is launched on an Earth-Moon trajectory. It passed within 37,000 miles of the Moon before falling into a solar orbit. Oct. 4 - Luna 3 orbits the Moon and photographs 70% of its surface Apr. 1 - Tiros 1, the first successful weather satellite, is launched. Aug The US launches Discoverer XIV, its first camera equipped spy satellite Apr Yuri Gagarin orbits the Earth once and becomes the first man in space. May 5 - Alan B. Shepard becomes the first American in space. May 25 - President John F. Kennedy addresses Congress and challenges the nation to go to the Moon before the end of the decade. Dec. 7 - NASA announces the Gemini Program Feb John Glenn orbits the Earth three times Jun Cosmonaut Valentia Tereshkova becomes the first woman in space Jul Ranger 7 transmits the first close range images of the Moon Apr. 3 - Luna 10 becomes the first satellite to orbit the Moon. Aug Lunar Orbiter 1 enters orbit around the Moon and takes the first picture of the Earth from that distance. Nov Gemini 12, the last flight of the Gemini Program, launches with James Lovell and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin aboard Jul Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin become the first men to walk on the Moon while crewmate Michael Collins orbits around the Moon alone.

6 Doc. L - Salt Treaty (1972) and Time Magazine Cover Doc. M - Cover of Time Magazine and Excerpt from Ronald Reagan s Tear Down This Wall Speech "In the 1950s, Khrushchev predicted: 'We will bury you.' But in the West today, we see a free world that has achieved a level of prosperity and well-being unprecedented in all human history. In the Communist world, we see failure, technological backwardness, declining standards of health, even want of the most basic kind- -too little food. Even today, the Soviet Union still cannot feed itself. After these four decades, then, there stands before the entire world one great and inescapable conclusion: Freedom leads to prosperity. Freedom replaces the ancient hatreds among the nations with comity and peace. Freedom is the victor. "And now the Soviets themselves may, in a limited way, be coming to understand the importance of freedom. We hear much from Moscow about a new policy of reform and openness. Some political prisoners have been released. Certain foreign news broadcasts are no longer being jammed. Some economic enterprises have been permitted to operate with greater freedom from state control. "Are these the beginnings of profound changes in the Soviet state? Or are they token gestures, intended to raise false hopes in the West, or to strengthen the Soviet system without changing it? We welcome change and openness; for we believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace. There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace. "General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!'"