Politics
Important things in politics during the 1950s
Interstate Highway Act
The Interstate Highway Act authorized the building of nationwide highway networks. Construction of these highways took place throughout the 1950's beginning in 1956, all across the United States. It was one of the biggest projects in American history.
President Eisenhower approved the plan of building interstates all across America. He felt that it could help us in many ways. It made it easier for transporting things from one side of the country to the other. Also in case of a military attack on the US they could be shut down to people and used for military purposes to get supplies and troops from one side to the other side quickly. The results of this act were many highways were built which connected the US together better and made cross country travel easier than before.
Termination Policy
The Termination Policy eliminated economic support of Native Americans, discontinued the reservation system and distributed tribal lands among individual Native Americans. This all began throughout the US in 1953 and continued until 1963 when it was abandoned. The Native Americans suffered many problems because of this.
Many Native Americans struggled after this policy was put into action. Many were relocated to cities but were unable to find jobs in the cities. They also faced many prejudices in the cities they were relocated to. One big thing they were left without was medical care. This policy had a big effect on Native Americans, it made their life even harder and increased their struggles.