Contemporary United States
1968 - Present
This era is, in large part, a study of the United States as a global power – politically, economically, and militarily. The detente with communist China under President Richard Nixon began a shift from the “Domino Theory” of foreight policy in Asia. The collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War changed how the United States interacted with Europe. At the same time, interventions increased in our own hemisphere and in the Middle East. Terrorism also became a driving force behind foreign policy.
Socially, this time period saw for the first time immigration primarily from Asia and Central America. A new wave of reform movements promoted environmental, feminist, and civil rights agendas. There was also a resurgence of religious evangelicalism. Technological advances once again redefined not only the economic landscape of America, but also the lives of everyday citizens.
Learn more in the National U.S. History Content Standards.
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Honor Dr. King, Broadside, 1970
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Terrorist Attack on the Pentagon, Photograph, September 11, 2001
On the morning of September 11, 2001, members of the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda launched a coordinated attack against the United States. They hijacked four planes scheduled to be cross-country flights from the East Coast to California. American…
Telegram from Major General Kenneth Wickham to Mrs. Carol A. Sowder, 1970
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Virginia Indian Tribes Pay Tribute Taxes to Governor Baliles, Photograph, 1989
The annual payment of tribute by Virginia's Indians has been a long-standing practice that still occurs today. In 1646, Necotowance, "the King of the Indians" as the English referred to him, signed a treaty to end the third Anglo-Indian War. Annual…