Western Europe & North America The Cold War Western Europe & North America

France & Charles de Gaulle Charles de Gaulle was a WWII hero In 1946, he established the Fourth Republic In 1958, de Gaulle was asked to form a new government and he drafted the Fifth Republic French president now had the power to chose the prime minister, dissolve parliament, and supervise defense and foreign policy

France & Charles de Gaulle De Gaulle wanted France to be a great power, so he invested in the development of nuclear weapons French economy grew 5.5% per year under de Gaulle and became a major industrial power May 1968  series of student strikes followed by a general labor strike De Gaulle resigned in April 1969 and died within a year

The Economic Miracle Three western zones of Germany were unified as the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949 Konrad Adenauer served as chancellor from 1949-1963 Cooperated with the United States and other western European nations to gain respect for West Germany Economic Miracle  revival of West Germany’s economy in which unemployment fell from 8% to .4% An economic downturn in the 1960s opened the door for the Social Democratic Party who gained control in 1969

The Decline of Great Britain Following WWII, Britain was left with massive economic problems Labour Party overwhelmingly defeated Churchill’s Conservative Party Clement Attlee  new Prime Minister of Britain, created a modern welfare state in which the government takes responsibly for providing citizens with services and a minimal standard of living

The Decline of Great Britain 1946  new government passed the National Insurance Act and the National Health Act Insurance Act provided funds to help the unemployed, sick, and elderly Health Act created a system of socialized medicine that ensured medical care for everyone Cost of creating a welfare state at home forced Britain to dismantle its empire abroad Continued economic problems brought the conservatives back from 1951-1964

The Move Toward Unity 1957  France, West Germany, the Benelux countries (Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg), and Italy signed the Rome treaty Created the European Economic Community (EEC) EEC was a free-trade area made up of the member nations Impose no tariffs or import charges By the 1960s, the EEC had become an important bloc (group of nations with a common purpose) 1973  Britain, Ireland, and Denmark joined the EEC

The U.S. after the War New Deal created a dramatic increase in the role and power of the federal government, the rise of organized labor, the beginnings of a welfare state, and a realization of the need to deal fairly with minorities An economic boom following the war led to a desire to purchase many consumer products Between 1945-1973, real wages (the actual purchasing power of income) grew an average of 3% a year

The U.S. after the War Fear of communism also grew in the 1950s and 60s Senator Joseph R. McCarthy charged hundred of people with being a communism during the second “red scare” However, when McCarthy accused officials in the Army, the Senate condemned him and his crusade ended quickly

1960s and Civil Rights John F. Kennedy, elected in 1960, began his administration in an era of youthful optimism November 22, 1963  Kennedy was assassinated and Lyndon B. Johnson took over the presidency Johnson promoted the civil rights movement (equal rights for African Americans)

1960s and Civil Rights Civil Rights movement began in 1954, with Brown v. the Board which overturned “separate but equal” August 1963  Martin Luther King Jr. led a march on Washington D.C. for civil rights Civil Rights Act of 1964  worked to end segregation and discrimination in the workplace and all public places Voting Rights Act  made it easier for African Americans to vote in the South

Social Upheaval Summer 1965  race riots broke out in Los Angeles over high unemployment for African Americans 1968  Martin Luther King Jr. assassinated and riots broke out in over 100 cities across the nation Riots led to “white backlash” (whites becoming less sympathetic to the civil rights movement)

Social Upheaval Anti-war protests over the Vietnam War grew during the late 1960s 1970  four students were killed by the Ohio National Guard at Kent State University during a student demonstration Social unrest led people to demand “law and order” which helped to lead to the election of Richard Nixon in 1968

American-Canadian Relations After WWII, Canada began to develop electronic, aircraft, nuclear, and chemical engineering industries on a large scale Investment of capital mostly came from US, which worried some Canadians that the US would dominate Canada’s economy Canada joined the United Nations in 1945 and NATO in 1949 Lester Pearson laid the foundation for Canada’s welfare state by establishing a national social security system and a national health insurance program

A New Social Structure Traditional middle-class made up of businesspeople, lawyers, doctors, and teachers  later joined by managers and technicians Lower class shifted from rural to urban Number of farmers decreased by 50% in Europe Consumer Society  a society preoccupied with buying goods Buying on credit became widely popular in the 1950s

Women in the Postwar World Women gained the right to vote in almost every country following the war When women were removed from their jobs during the war, the birthrate grew causing a “baby boom”

Women in the Postwar World In the late 1950s, women began to enter the workforce again Still earned less than men Women’s Liberation Movement  renewed interest in feminism Simone de Beauvoir  author of The Second Sex, which argued that women were defined by their differences from men and consequently treated as second class citizens

Student Revolts After the war, European nations began to encourage more people to obtain higher education European universities became overcrowded and professors paid little attention to their students Student revolts broke out in the late 1960s Some protested the war in Vietnam, some felt that the universities failed to met the needs of the students