Deck 26: The Tumultuous Sixties, 1960-1968

Question 1

President Kennedy responded to the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba by __________________.

A) ordering a naval quarantine of Cuba
B) ordering a surgical air strike against the installations
C) publicly threatening a full-scale military invasion of Cuba
D) undertaking quiet negotiations with Castro

Answer 1

ordering a naval quarantine of Cuba

Question 2

In response to the violence encountered by the Freedom Riders in Birmingham and Montgomery, Alabama, President Kennedy __________________.

A) sent federal marshals to Alabama to protect them, but allowed them to be arrested in Mississippi
B) chastised those involved for engaging in civil disobedience
C) provided them with military escorts for the rest of their journey
D) took no action

Answer 2

sent federal marshals to Alabama to protect them, but allowed them to be arrested in Mississippi

Question 3

Which of the following is true of the young people who formed the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee?

A) They favored the concept of Black Power as expressed by Stokely Carmichael.
B) They were committed to the tactic of nonviolence in the civil rights movement.
C) They accepted Booker T. Washington's policy of accommodation.
D) They believed that African Americans should arm themselves in order to defend themselves against the injustices of white racism.

Answer 3

They were committed to the tactic of nonviolence in the civil rights movement.

Question 4

What was the Soviet response to President Kennedy's refusal to accede to their demands during the 1961 Berlin crisis?

A) A withdrawal of battleships from Cuba
B) The installation of nuclear weapons in East Germany
C) The building of the Berlin Wall
D) Withdrawal from the UN

Question 5

The Greensboro sit-in was ___________________.

A) a televised debate on issues related to the Vietnam War
B) the first in a series of nonviolent challenges to racial segregation in the South
C) a takeover by flower children of San Francisco's Greensboro Park
D) a prayer vigil in response to the assassination of John F. Kennedy

Question 6

In the 1960 presidential election, John Kennedy ___________________.

A) lost all of the Southern states
B) was hurt in some states because of his Roman Catholic faith
C) gained votes because of his honesty about his health problems
D) lost a substantial number of votes because of his call for a reduction in the size of America's nuclear arsenal

Question 7

The Cuban missile crisis appears to have been most directly the outgrowth of ____________________.

A) Castro's belief that the missile installations would bring jobs and spending to help the depressed Cuban economy
B) President Kennedy's anti-Castro projects, which led both Khrushchev and Castro to believe that the United States was planning an invasion
C) Castro's desire to win status and respect throughout Latin America
D) Khrushchev's determination to make Soviet inroads into Latin America

Question 8

Khrushchev installed nuclear missiles in Cuba for which of the following reasons?

A) He was preparing for a nuclear strike against the United States.
B) He did so solely to persuade the United States to remove its missiles from Turkey.
C) He did so both to deter an American invasion of Cuba and to improve the Soviet Union's position in the nuclear balance of power.
D) He was attempting to build an anti-American alliance among Latin American nations under Soviet control.

Question 9

Which of the following is true of the 1961 invasion of Cuba at the Bay of Pigs?

A) The invasion was planned and executed by military experts in the Pentagon.
B) The invasion was based on the assumption that the Cuban people would rise up against Castro.
C) The invasion was elaborately planned and skillfully executed.
D) The invasion was launched only after several attempts by President Kennedy to negotiate with Castro had ended in failure.

Question 10

In the aftermath of the Cuban missile crisis, _____________________.

A) the United States and the Soviet Union signed a nuclear test ban treaty
B) the United States began to fall further behind the Soviet Union in deliverable nuclear weapons
C) relations were normalized between the United States and Cuba
D) the nuclear arms race cooled, with both sides reducing their nuclear arsenals

Question 11

The Alliance for Progress (1961) illustrates __________________________.

A) the kind of successful Soviet investment in technological development in Africa that President Kennedy thought the United States had to make
B) the dozens of business-government cooperative ventures that President Kennedy promoted during his first year in office
C) a series of anti-Cuba trade agreements the United States pressured South American countries to sign
D) that the Kennedy administration applied the concept of nation building to Latin America by promoting economic development in the region

Question 12

Nation building did not work as President Kennedy had envisioned because ___________________.

A) the monetary aid was usually funneled through a self-interested elite and often did not reach the very poor
B) Congress refused to appropriate the sums of money needed to make the program succeed
C) the Soviet Union gave more foreign aid to the Third World than did the United States
D) Communist subversives staged violent protests, which forced many countries to reject the U.S. offer of assistance

Question 13

In response to the Soviet agreement to withdraw its missiles from Cuba, President Kennedy pledged that the United States would ____________________.

A) establish normal diplomatic relations with Cuba
B) refrain from invading Cuba
C) end the economic boycott against Cuba
D) abandon the American naval base at Guantanamo Bay

Question 14

Which of the following is true of both the nation-building program and of counterinsurgency?

A) These programs were based on the American assumption that the United States model of capitalism and democracy could be successfully transferred to other parts of the world.
B) Each complimented the other and made it possible to place American aid in the hands of the people of the Third World who most needed that aid.
C) The two ideas revived faith throughout the Third World that America was the exemplar of freedom and democracy.
D) These programs drained money from all branches of the armed services, which were already underfunded.

Question 15

Which of the following is associated with Kennedy's nation-building policy among Third World nations?

A) The Limited Test Ban Treaty
B) The Organization of American States
C) The International Monetary Fund
D) The Peace Corps

Question 16

When John Kennedy first took office as President, his top priority was _________________.

A) reducing defense spending
B) civil rights
C) fighting the Cold War
D) cutting taxes

Question 17

Which of the following accurately restates the Kennedy administration's concept of counterinsurgency?

A) The United States can defeat anti-American radicals by using American forces to quell unrest and lawlessness in Third World countries.
B) All that is needed to defeat anti-American revolutionaries in Third World countries is to provide the people of those countries with food and medical supplies.
C) By training native troops and police forces in pro-American Third World countries, the administration will be able to defeat anti-American revolutionaries in those countries.
D) American economic advisors can help build stable economies in Third World nations and destroy the root cause of rebellion and revolution.

Question 18

What made Vice President Nixon unappealing to voters in 1960?

A) His lack of knowledge on foreign policy issues
B) An unappealing television image
C) His open endorsement of the civil rights movement
D) The installation of nuclear-capable missiles on Formosa

Question 19

Which of the following is true of the Kennedy administration's policy toward Cuba after the Bay of Pigs fiasco?

A) The administration directed American businesses to halt all trade with Cuba.
B) The administration opened talks with Castro through secret emissaries.
C) The administration continued trying to remove Castro from power through CIA activities.
D) The administration acknowledged its mistake and pledged to respect Cuba's sovereignty.

Question 20

A beneficial effect of the Cuban missile crisis was ____________________.

A) major improvements in the American civil-defense system
B) public support for improving relations with Cuba
C) installation of a Washington-Moscow "hot line"
D) tighter control of the CIA by Congress

Question 21

The Immigration Act of 1965 _______________________.

A) severely restricted immigration from Asia
B) lifted all immigration quotas
C) ended racially based immigration quotas
D) placed no quota on immigrants from the Western Hemisphere

Question 22

Upon entering the presidency, Lyndon Johnson made which of the following his top legislative priority?

A) Environmental protection
B) Civil rights
C) Military rearmament
D) Housing

Question 23

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ________________.

A) contained no enforcement provisions
B) established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate claims of job discrimination
C) forbade discrimination in public accommodations, but not the voting booths
D) still allowed discrimination on the basis of sex

Question 24

Which of the following is true of President John Kennedy on the issue of civil rights?

A) He took no significant action during his presidency.
B) He only gradually committed himself to first-class citizenship for African Americans.
C) He vetoed several civil rights bills.
D) He allowed George Wallace to prevent the integration of the University of Alabama.

Question 25

Which of the following is true of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party of 1964?

A) Its delegates were certified as the true Democrats of Mississippi.
B) Its delegation challenged the delegation of regular Mississippi Democrats at the Democratic National Convention.
C) Its delegation was totally ignored at the Democratic National Convention.
D) It was composed of white, middle-class racists who challenged the predominately African-American delegation of Mississippi Democrats.

Question 26

The provision in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that forbade discrimination on the basis of sex was included because _________________.

A) Southern congressmen hoped it would lead to the defeat of the bill
B) the Johnson administration was warned by Democratic congresswomen that they would vote against the measure unless the provision was included
C) liberal congressmen hoped it would convince their undecided colleagues to support the bill
D) the National Organization of Women pledged to lobby against passage of the bill if the provision was not included

Question 27

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 ___________________.

A) led to voter fraud and corruption in most state and federal elections
B) was an unreasonable infringement on the rights of the Southern states as guaranteed under the Tenth Amendment
C) had no noticeable impact on voter registration among African Americans in the South
D) caused a dramatic increase in the proportion of African Americans in the South who were registered to vote

Question 28

Beginning in 1961 and extending through the "Freedom Summer" of 1964, those who volunteered to work in Mississippi ______________________.

A) encountered little resistance from the white power structure as they worked to register African Americans to vote
B) refused to participate in the creation of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party
C) allowed all decisions about their activities to be made by a core of Southern African-American leaders
D) risked their lives attempting to build the political power of African Americans in the South

Question 29

The Medicare program, enacted in 1965, provided insurance against medical and hospital bills for __________________.

A) Vietnam veterans
B) ethnic minorities
C) the elderly
D) welfare recipients

Question 30

When Martin Luther King, Jr., put children on the front lines of protest in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963, the city's police commissioner ______________________.

A) allowed the march to proceed without incident
B) called out the Alabama National Guard to prevent the march
C) used powerful water guns and attack dogs against the protesters
D) lined the route of the march with Birmingham police to protect the children from violence

Question 31

When James Meredith attempted to attend the University of Mississippi as that institution's first African-American student, President Kennedy _______________________.

A) stood by while Governor Barnett ordered the university closed
B) urged Meredith to attend a northern university instead
C) prevented riots by quietly negotiating with the governor of Mississippi and university officials
D) ordered federal marshals to protect him

Question 32

Many of the laws that were part of Johnson's War on Poverty primarily focused on ________________.

A) providing adequate clothing to children living in poverty
B) providing free federal housing to the homeless in America
C) granting a guaranteed income to Americans below the poverty line
D) improving opportunities for the nation's poor

Question 33

Which of the following best explains why President Johnson was able to enact a sweeping program of reform legislation in 1965 and 1966?

A) His proposals received overwhelming support from the public.
B) The congressional Republicans decided to vote for his program.
C) He was able to use the patriotic spirit engendered by the Vietnam War to win support for his program.
D) In the 1964 congressional elections, the voters gave Johnson the most liberal Congress in American history.

Question 34

Which of the following laws outlawed legal discrimination based on race color, religion, national origin, and sex, and created means to enforce its provision?

A) Voting Rights Act of 1965
B) Immigration Act of 1965
C) Civil Rights Act of 1964
D) Economic Opportunity Act

Question 35

Which of the following is true of the presidential election of 1964?

A) The election marked the first time since the Civil War that a Democratic presidential candidate did not carry the states of the Deep South.
B) The election temporarily turned relations between the United States and the Soviet Union into a minor issue in American politics.
C) The election gave Johnson a landslide victory, but it also gave him the most conservative Congress in history.
D) The election featured the most peaceful party conventions in twenty-five years.

Question 36

Which of the following is true of the War on Poverty?

A) It provided public-works jobs to millions of poor people.
B) It especially benefited female-headed families.
C) It directly attacked the housing, health, and nutritional problems of the poor.
D) It alone was responsible for alleviating hunger in the United States.

Question 37

In relation to his program, called the New Frontier, John Kennedy __________________.

A) demonstrated an ability to move legislation through Congress
B) called for an end to the missile race
C) did little to push his social-policy agenda through Congress
D) made no mention of the problem of poverty in the United States

Question 38

In his vision of the Great Society, President Johnson believed _____________________.

A) it was better to provide public-works jobs to the unemployed than to provide job-training programs
B) he could rely primarily on economic growth to solve the problem of poverty
C) it was the responsibility of the government to provide every American with a guaranteed annual income
D) that the government must actively work to improve the lives of Americans

Question 39

In his campaign for the presidency in 1964, Barry Goldwater _________________________.

A) called for negotiations with the Soviet Union to end the arms race
B) indicated his support for the use of tactical nuclear weapons against the nation's enemies
C) implied that he would end America's involvement in Vietnam
D) stated that individual liberty could be achieved only when all Americans enjoyed equal opportunity in voting, employment, and housing

Question 40

This 1964 Republican presidential candidate voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and opposed the Social Security system.

A) Thomas Dewey
B) Barry Goldwater
C) Ronald Reagan
D) Henry Wallace

Question 41

Which of the following may be considered the underlying reason for the Watts race riot of 1965?

A) African Americans resented the fact that they were drafted disproportionately to whites to fight in Vietnam.
B) African Americans were frustrated and angry over their joblessness and lack of opportunity.
C) Radical left-wing instigators incited African Americans to engage in violence.
D) Whites were angry over the expansion of the African-American neighborhood of Watts into surrounding white neighborhoods.

Question 42

America's reliance on such things as carpet bombing, napalm, and crop defoliants in the Vietnam War _____________________.

A) caused Ho Chi Minh to abandon the Vietcong and concentrate his resources on the North Vietnamese army
B) alienated many South Vietnamese, bringing new recruits to the Vietcong
C) made Vietnamese villages safer and more secure by destroying the Vietcong's ability to wage war
D) led China to send troops and military materiel to aid the Vietcong

Question 43

Which of the following statements is consistent with the beliefs of Black Muslims in the mid-1960s?

A) African Americans must practice the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth by turning the other cheek and loving their enemies.
B) Whites are subhuman devils; therefore, African Americans must separate themselves from white society.
C) African Americans must work toward the end of creating a brotherhood of man, regardless of race, creed, or national origin.
D) Because politics is the primary source of power in the United States, African Americans must concentrate on getting elected to political office.

Question 44

The Black Panthers advocated ___________________.

A) establishment of a separate state exclusively for African Americans
B) extermination of the white power structure
C) destruction of the capitalist system
D) that African Americans rely on the American legal system to secure equality under the law

Question 45

Which of the following is true of President Johnson's response to the August 1964 report that U.S. destroyers had been attacked twice by North Vietnamese patrol boats in the Gulf of Tonkin?

A) Even though evidence of the second attack was questionable, President Johnson ordered retaliatory air strikes against North Vietnam.
B) Johnson suggested the use of tactical nuclear weapons against strategic targets in North Vietnam.
C) Johnson expressed grave fears that the incident would bring the United States and the Soviet Union into armed conflict.
D) The incident convinced Johnson that North Vietnam was being supplied with sophisticated military equipment by the Soviet Union.

Question 46

The Johnson administration was characterized by which of the following?

A) Limitless support for space exploration, a cheerful and optimistic White House, and confrontational dealings with the Soviet Union
B) Intensification of the Vietnam War, enactment of a wealth of legislation attacking economic and social ills in the country, and a dramatic increase in black elected officials in the South
C) Much-needed refurbishing of America's infrastructure, intense efforts to win friends in Latin America, and huge tax cuts
D) Major anti-crime legislation, contentious relations between the president and Congress, and defense-contract scandals

Question 47

The majority of American soldiers on the ground in Vietnam were _____________________.

A) career military
B) draftees
C) reservists
D) volunteers

Question 48

Malcolm X was assassinated by ___________________.

A) supporters of Martin Luther King, Jr
B) Black Muslims who believed he had betrayed their cause
C) white assassins hired by the FBI
D) a member of the Ku Klux Klan

Question 49

Which of the following is most consistent with the belief expressed by Stokely Carmichael in his 1966 call for Black Power?

A) To right the wrongs done against them, African Americans should move to several southern states, take them over, and push white residents out.
B) To be truly free from white oppression, African Americans must elect black candidates, organize their own schools, and control their own institutions.
C) African Americans can gain independence and dignity only by returning en masse to Africa.
D) African Americans must seek revenge for the wrongs done against them by forming vigilante groups to assassinate prominent whites.

Question 50

Which of the following is a legitimate criticism of the War on Poverty?

A) It did not give sufficient attention to poverty in female-headed households.
B) It did nothing in response to the increase in poverty among the elderly.
C) It did not accomplish any significant reduction in poverty.
D) It primarily focused on the problem of rural poverty, with few resources directed toward ending urban poverty.

Question 51

As a result of the War on Poverty, ___________________.

A) the number of elderly Americans living in poverty declined dramatically
B) rural poverty was practically eliminated
C) health-care costs began a slow but steady decline
D) poverty in households headed by women steadily declined over a period of ten years

Question 52

The Johnson administration chose to "Americanize" the war in Vietnam despite the fact that Democratic leaders in the Senate, some administration officials, and many of America's allies had misgivings. Why?

A) Intelligence indicated that China would immediately invade Vietnam if American forces withdrew.
B) Japanese leaders expressed fears of instability and disorder throughout Southeast Asia if the United States failed to defend South Vietnam.
C) Johnson believed that "Americanizing" the war was the first step in convincing the United Nations to send a multinational peacekeeping force to Vietnam.
D) The administration believed that America's credibility was at stake.

Question 53

The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution is particularly significant in American history for which of the following reasons?

A) The resolution marked the point at which most Americans began to have serious doubts about the American role in Vietnam.
B) The resolution served notice to the rest of the world that the United States no longer accepted any geographical limits on its freedom to patrol the seas.
C) In enacting the resolution, Congress relinquished its war-making powers to the president.
D) Passage of the resolution established the precedent of U.S. rejection of United Nations Security Council authority in international disputes.

Question 54

The term for those who supported American goals in the Vietnam War was ______.

A) hawks
B) the free speech movement
C) doves
D) the counterculture

Question 55

What triggered the 1964 race riots in Harlem?

A) Violence against African-American-owned businesses by white mobs.
B) Attempts by African Americans to desegregate suburban neighborhoods.
C) The shooting of a black teenager by a white police officer.
D) The assassination of an African-American state legislator.

Question 56

Senator Fulbright's public hearings on the Vietnam War ____________________.

A) demonstrated that public officials were deeply divided over America's role in the Vietnam War
B) convinced President Johnson that he must find a way to honorably end America's role in the war
C) were merely an attempt by Senator Fulbright to embarrass the Johnson administration
D) indicated that Congress had turned a deaf ear to anti-war protests

Question 57

The Sharon Statement of 1960 and Goldwater's presidential nomination in 1964 indicate that _____________________.

A) support for the Vietnam War was waning
B) the group Young Americans for Freedom had some success in achieving its goal of moving the Republican party in a more conservative direction
C) strong support for an activist federal government crossed party and regional lines in the 1960s
D) a significant number of Americans believed that communists had infiltrated all aspects of American government and American society

Question 58

In response to the concept of Black Power, groups such as CORE and SNCC began to ___________________.

A) oppose the involvement of African Americans in American politics
B) purge whites from their membership rolls
C) support the NAACP's approach of challenging discriminatory practices in court
D) organize a back-to-Africa movement

Question 59

The Kerner Report, issued in 1968 by the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, blamed the urban riots of the mid- to late-sixties on _________________________.

A) white racism within American society
B) unfair distribution among the nation's socioeconomic classes of the burden of fighting the Vietnam War
C) anger over the steep climb in taxes necessary to pay for welfare programs
D) rising unemployment among the nation's youth

Question 60

What is the term for opponents of the American military's involvement in Vietnam?

A) Hawks
B) The Free Speech Movement
C) Doves
D) The counterculture

Question 61

Explain how and why the United States had become so deeply involved with the defense of South Vietnam by the time of President Kennedy's assassination in 1963. How does this compare with U.S. involvement in Vietnam under President Johnson?

Question 62

Discuss President Johnson's Great Society program. What were its accomplishments? What were its failings?

Question 63

The 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago was marred by which of the following?

A) The Chicago police attacked peaceful antiwar protesters outside the convention hall.
B) White Mississippi Democrats staged a walkout over the seating of delegates belonging to the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.
C) The inability of the delegates to choose a presidential nominee after several ballots caused turmoil and confusion.
D) President Johnson's appearance sparked a tumultuous riot on the convention floor.

Question 64

Evaluate and compare the roles of John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson in securing passage of the liberal domestic reform program of the 1960s. Which president, Kennedy or Johnson, deserves more credit for achieving the goals of this reform program? Why?

Question 65

The Tet Offensive in Vietnam in January 1968 led to _______________________.

A) the Communist occupation and control of Saigon for a temporary period
B) a renewed determination in the United States to support President Johnson's war policies
C) a wave of South Vietnamese support for American troops
D) the realization by Secretary of Defense Clark Clifford that further escalation of the war would not bring victory

Question 66

Which of the following was a major target of student protesters in the 1960s?

A) College fraternities and sororities
B) Sex discrimination in college-admission policies
C) The practice of granting tenure to college professors
D) The doctrine of in loco parentis

Question 67

John Kennedy promised extensive domestic reform. Explain why he was able to accomplish so little. Why was his image after his assassination so much brighter than it was when he was alive?

Question 68

In running for the presidency in 1968, Richard Nixon ____________________.

A) criticized the containment doctrine
B) called for an end to the welfare state
C) pledged to halt the rise in African-American unemployment by offering job-training programs in inner-city neighborhoods
D) promised to end the war in Vietnam

Question 69

Discuss the causes and consequences of the Cuban missile crisis, and assess President Kennedy's handling of the crisis.

Question 70

In the aftermath of the Tet Offensive, President Johnson ____________________.

A) asked Hanoi to begin negotiations
B) received a pledge from fellow Democrats that they would fully support his policies in Southeast Asia
C) announced his intention to seek another term in office
D) began a sustained bombing program above the 17th parallel

Question 71

Defend or refute the following statement by presidential adviser and historian Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.: "In the end [counterinsurgency proved] a ghastly illusion. Its primary consequence was to keep alive the American belief in their capacity and right to intervene in foreign lands."

Question 72

Which of the following is true of the Port Huron Statement?

A) It called for the replacement of the American two-party system with a European-style multiparty political system.
B) It condemned racism, poverty, and the Cold War.
C) It called upon college students to boycott corporations whose activities served to support racism or militarism.
D) It suggested the formation of a new political coalition consisting of college students and minority groups.

Question 73

In the late 1960s, the Haight-Ashbury section of San Francisco became a haven for ________________________.

A) disaffected black nationalists
B) Communist revolutionaries
C) young people associated with the counterculture
D) fundamentalist Christians

Question 74

Discuss the concept of nation building and the idea of counterinsurgency as elements of President John Kennedy's foreign policy. What actions demonstrated attempts to implement these ideas? What were the consequences of these actions?

Question 75

The race riots in 130 cities across America in April 1968 were precipitated by _____________________.

A) congressional defeat of an extension of the Voting Rights Act
B) the announcement of another escalation of the Vietnam War
C) the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr
D) President Johnson's announcement that he would not seek reelection

Question 76

Which of the following candidates in the 1968 presidential primaries was assassinated?

A) Hubert Humphrey
B) Robert Kennedy
C) Eugene McCarthy
D) George Wallace

Question 77

The first major march in opposition to the Vietnam War was sponsored by ________________________.

A) the NAACP
B) Women Against War
C) Students for a Democratic Society
D) Young Americans for Freedom

Question 78

Where was the epicenter of the "Summer of Love"?

A) Woodstock, NY
B) San Francisco, CA
C) Austin, TX
D) Chicago, IL

Question 79

Which of the following was a factor in the emergence of the student protest movement at the Berkeley campus of the University of California in the fall of 1964?

A) The university's ban on political activity at the students' traditional gathering place
B) A sharp increase in tuition
C) The mediocre quality of many academic programs
D) The willingness of campus administrators to give draft officials access to student records

Question 80

Increased use of the birth-control pill in the 1960s was in some measure responsible for ____________________.

A) a trend toward more casual sexual customs among young people
B) a decline in the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases
C) a decline in the number of abortions
D) a trend away from sterilization as a means of controlling fertility