1. Breakup of the USSR
Review – add details based on intro to the unit: Ethnic tensions
Glasnost and economic reform
Desire for democracy
Started in Baltics and spread east/south

2. b. Human rights Helsinki Accord - US, Canada, USSR, 30 European countries Ease tensions between non-Communists/West & Soviets USSR control over Warsaw Pact Boundaries only change w/ peace treaties Respect human rights Protect freedoms & cooperate in scientific, economic, humanitarian efforts USSR not accept human rights conditions (internal matter) Rebels formed within the Soviet bloc countries (ex. Hungary, Poland) Challenged their gov’ts openly - free speech, free assembly
Andrei Sakharov - Soviet human rights advocate – Nobel Peace Prize winner Exiled for 6 years for his protests
USSR responds with forced labor camps, censorship, emigration restrictions

3. Breakup of the USSR
Review – add details based on intro to the unit: Ethnic tensions
Glasnost and economic reform
Desire for democracy
Started in Baltics and spread east/south

4. a. What leads to USSR downfall
a. What leads to USSR downfall? Built extensive military, nuclear weapons Spread communism around world Totalitarian system with economic stagnation and isolation LED TO: Not enough food or modern goods for its citizens Lack of technology and agriculture

5. Break up of USSR led to movements in Bloc countries

6. Reunification of Germany and Fall of Berlin Wall
Gorbechev's liberal reforms caused great distress in East Germany Mass demonstrations demanding reforms econ in W. improving, E. as bad as USSR
1989 – Neighboring countries allowed in thousands of E. Germans
Berlin Wall falls
November Citizens dismantle the infamous wall Reunification treaty signed in Sept/Oct December 1991, the first all German free election since the Nazi period was held

7. Legacies of Soviet policies
1. Language barriers
2. Ethnic minorities forced relocation Often to a place where people already lived = ethnic cleansing
3. Econ and gov’t issues Economies underdeveloped or not developed at all in USSR communism Now responsibility of new independent country Many of these countries remain in the same state (BAD) today that they were in when the USSR collapsed

8. Personal story

9. Solidarity labor movement, Lech Walesa
1980 Polish gov't caused prices to increase , wages to decrease Workers in the shipyard began their strike Leader was Lech Walesa Demanding Right to unions and to strike Success = union called Solidarity Ten million participants
1981, “state of war” declared Loss of jobs Arrested/harsh sentences, six-day work week was re-imposed, full censorship – Poland held first elections in 75 years Solidarity made legal More media freedom First union movement in a Soviet-bloc country Gave rise to non-violent, anti-communist movement Over 9.4 million members

10. Research – former USSR countries