Chapter 22: The Vietnam War Era (Vocabulary)

Front 1

Domino Theory

Back 1

idea that if a nation falls to communism, its closest neighbors will also fall under communist control

Front 2

SEATO (South East Asia Treaty Organization)

Back 2

defensive alliance aimed at preventing communist aggression in Asia

Front 3

Vietcong "Charlie"

Back 3

South Vietnamese communist rebels that waged a guerrilla war against the government of South Vietnam throughout the Vietnam War

Front 4

Napalm

Back 4

jellied gasoline dropped in canisters that explode on impact and cover large areas in flames; dropped by U.S. planes during Vietnam War

Front 5

Hawk

Back 5

A person who supported U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War

Front 6

Dove

Back 6

person who opposed U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War

Front 7

Draftee

Back 7

young American man drafted into military service

Front 8

SDS (Students for a Democratic Society)

Back 8

organization founded in 1960 at the University of Michigan to fight racism and poverty

Front 9

"Credibility Gap"

Back 9

American publics growing distrust of statements made by the government during the Vietnam War

Front 10

Tet Offensive

Back 10

communist assault on a large number of South Vietnamese cities in early 1968

Front 11

Vietnamization

Back 11

President Nixon's plan for gradual withdrawal of U.S. forces as South Vietnamese troops assumed more combat duties

Front 12

Pentagon Papers

Back 12

classified U.S. government study that revealed American leaders intentionally involved the United States in Vietnam without fully informing the American people; leaked to The New York Times in 1971

Front 13

War Powers Act

Back 13

1973 law passed by congress restricting the Presidents war-making powers; the law requires the President to consult with Congress before committing American forces to a foreign conflict

Front 14

Realpolitik

Back 14

a foreign policy promoted by Henry Kissinger during the Nixon administration based on concrete national interests instead of abstract ideologies

Front 15

Detente

Back 15

flexible diplomacy adopted by Richard Nixon to ease tensions between the United States, the Soviet Union, and the People's Republic of China