U.S. History STAAR Review

Someone asked me if I wanted to make a New Year’s wish, and I said yes—and it was that I’d like to see every young person in the world join the “Just Say No” . . . club. Well, just the fact that Congress has proclaimed “Just Say No Week” and in light of all the activities taking place, it seems that my wish is well on its way to coming true. I’m so proud of all the young people, the parents, the citizens in cities and towns across the Nation, the Government, and everyone else who’s helping to create what I believe is the final solution to this problem. . . .

—First Lady Nancy Reagan, May 20, 1986

Which problem is Nancy Reagan hoping to solve with this campaign?

• Drug and alcohol abuse among children

• The effects of video-game violence on children

• Diets high in sugar and salt among children

• The effects of explicit lyrics in music on children

Which event prompted the United States to enter World War II?

• The German annexation of Austria

• The Soviet occupation of Germany

• The landing of Allied soldiers on Normandy Beach

• The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor

Which benefit resulted from the introduction of the Bessemer steel process?

• Mechanical reapers to replace horse-drawn reapers

• Stronger and cheaper material for railroads and bridges

• Transistors for radios

• Electric lightbulb

The Civil Rights Act of 1957 established a Civil Rights Division within the U.S. Department of Justice. What was the main purpose of this division?

• To enforce laws prohibiting discrimination

• To integrate public schools

• To enforce privacy protections

• To integrate the armed forces

Shenandoah National Park

Which guarantee in the Bill of Rights could affect the establishment of parks such as this one?

• “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects . . . shall not be violated. . . .”

• “Nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”

• “No Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause... describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

• “In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved. . . .”

What was a major influence on the popularity of the flapper during the 1920s?

• A decline in the number of women working in urban factories

• A shift away from the traditional roles of women

• An increase in the use of credit and installment plans

• A decrease in crime associated with prohibition

At the height of the Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, HUAC’s influence soared and contributed to a climate of domestic fear stoked by its sensational and often unsubstantiated investigations. —“The Permanent Standing House Committee on Un-American Activities,” U.S. House of Representatives Historical Highlights, http://history.house.gov (accessed September 14, 2016)

The committee mentioned in this statement was investigating suspected members of the —

• Communist Party

• Civilian Conservation Corps

• Navajo Code Talkers

• Flying Tigers

But when we come to the possible sequence of events, the loss of Indochina, of Burma, of Thailand, of the Peninsula, and Indonesia following, now you begin to talk about areas that not only multiply the disadvantages that you would suffer, . . . but now you are talking really about millions and millions and millions of people.

—President Dwight D. Eisenhower, news conference, April 7, 1954

In this excerpt, President Eisenhower is expressing concern about —

• a trade imbalance with Asia

• the spread of communism in Asia

• the educational opportunities available in Asia

• an environmental disaster in Asia

Rise of factory production in the late 1800s

• Long hours and low wages

• Dangerous working conditions

• Little bargaining power for workers

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Which result completes this?

• Ratification of a suffrage amendment

• Building of the transcontinental railroad

• Passage of prohibition legislation

• Expansion of labor unions

Which government positions were held by Hillary Clinton?

• • Supreme Court Justice

  • President of the United States

• • First Lady of the United States

  • Secretary of State

• • Speaker of the House of Representatives

  • U.S. Senator from New York

• • U.S. Attorney General

  • Governor of Arkansas