The New Face of the United States

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, or Hart-Cellar Act, was a huge break from nearly one hundred years of nativism and immigration restrictions based on race and origin. While the Immigration and Nationality Act kept some of these provisions (including one that barred homosexual immigration), the shift in the American attitude towards immigration was obvious. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's carried over into the immigration debate, especially in regards to its race and nationality quotas. This new act prioritized family reunification, specialized skills, and established national caps, but focused more so on the categories of skills rather than nation of origin. It was the first time that a US immigration act had placed restriction on Western European immigration which had been basically unlimited from the beginning of American history. President Johnson spoke about the bill's consequences and how the status quo would not change, but he was completely wrong.

"[The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965] is not a revolutionary bill. It does not affect the lives of millions... It will not reshape the structure of our daily lives or add importantly to either our wealth or our power." Johnson 1965

The bill would change the face of the United States and the structure of the daily lives of Americans forever. It brought about the largest diversification of the American population seen in history and would impact American demographics drastically for generations to come.

Hispanic Americans

Hispanic Americans are the largest non-White demographic in the United States and its population is largely concentrated in the Sunbelt region of the west, namely California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. First under Spain and then absorbed into the United States, Hispanics have maintained a strong cultural heritage shown throughout the American Southwest. Hispanic Americans went from being 14% of the immigrant population in the 1960's to nearly half of it in the early 2000's. Hispanics have made significant impacts to the politics of the United States as politicians have more recently begun focusing on the "Hispanic vote" which is a very strong voting bloc in the Southwest. Just like other minority groups in the United States, Hispanics have a history of discrimination and have suffered severe repercussions such as the Zoot Suit Riot of 1943 and forced deportations in the beginnings of the Great Depression and during Operation Wetback in the 1950's. Hispanic Americans largely responded by reaffirming their status as American citizens and fighting for their rights alongside other groups. Cesar Chavez's National Farm Workers Association was one of the prime examples of a peaceful movement to push for further rights for Mexican Americans. The Chicano movement of the late 1960's was an additional cultural movement by Hispanics to join in on the larger Civil Rights Movement of the times. They fought for issues such as farmers rights, discrimination, education, and voter disenfranchisement and marched arm in arm with many other Civil Rights protestors of the time.

Percent of Hispanic Population by State in 2012

Immigration from Latin America drastically increased during the late 1900's due to political upheavals and violence in many Latin American countries. Thousands fled from nations such as Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Chile. Often without much money, skills, or English, these immigrants and refugees settled in the United States amidst complaints by Americans in regards to job stealing and non-assimilation. Systemic problems that have only recently been more largely targeted have resulted in very high poverty, high school drop out, and incarceration rates. Often the target of the War on Drugs and anti-immigration right wing sentiments, Hispanic Americans have faced many hardships from the United States government and other Americans regarding their status as citizens.

Regardless of these challenges, the population of 50+ million Hispanic Americans in the United States is growing every year and will be a significant portion of the minority population set to overtake the White population in 2043.

African Americans

African Americans are the second largest non-White demographic in the United States with its population largely concentrated in the South, Northeast, and Northwest regions of the United States. Their first ancestors were first brought over as slaves or hard laborers and lived through centuries of hardship and torture until the Civil War in the 1860's. Ever since the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendment guaranteed the end of slavery, the promise of equal civil rights, and the right to vote, African Americans have faced massive hurdles in winning back their civil rights. Following the Great Migration that started in the 1910's, African Americans have spread out from the South and raised their own families across the United States. From the Jim Crow laws, Black Codes, lynchings, hostile white neighbors, disinterest from the federal government, and every possible attempt at voter disenfranchisement, African Americans overcame many and continue to fight for these today.

Immigration from Africa did increase following the Immigration Act of 1965, but unlike other groups, African Americans had been in the United States for just as long as the Whites and were culturally removed from their African counterparts. African American men have fought in every war from our Revolutionary War in an attempt to earn a guarantee of protection of their rights from the federal government. Each failure ultimately lead to the concept of the Double Victory in World War 2 by African Americans who wanted to beat tyranny abroad and segregation at home. When the soldiers returned, they continued to fight for a desegregated army and a freer America. The NAACP (1905), Universal Negro Improvement Association (1914), Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (1960), the Congress of Racial Equality (1942), Freedom riders, and the Black Panter Party (1966) all represented the actions of many blacks, as well as whites, to fight for civil rights and equality for African Americans.

Victories came, such as in the ruling of Brown v Board of Education (1954), the ordered desegregation of the Montgomery buses, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but change was still slow. Persistent problems within African American communities, such as high school drop out rates, crime rates, and disproportionate poverty rates, continue to go unadressed.

The Refugee Act of 1980 largely affected Latin American, Asian, and African populations by enabling them to more easily seek refuge in the United States from political violence overseas. In recent years, this attitute has largely soured amongst a significant bloc of the American electorate as the country splits on the issue of refugees.

Asian Americans

As the largest growing minority in the United States, Asian Americans account for only 5% of the population, largely focused in the West Coast states and North East, the most recent boom in the Asian population stems from increased immigration from nations such as China and India whose growing middle classes turn to the United States for jobs and education. The number of immigrants from Asia have recently outpaced Hispanic immigration and continue to fuel the changing face of the United States. The Asian voting population has not been sought after to the extent of other groups, but its growth in recent years is starting to affect national politics. Asian-Americans have faced heavy immigration and racial discrimination in past centuries through the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 (barred further immigration), the Geary Act of 1892 (forced proof of citizenship), the Gentleman's Agreement of 1907 (barred Japanese immigration), the Asiatic Barred Zone Act of 1917 (barred the rest of Asia), and the Immigration Act of 1921 (national quotas to top it off).

Asians were faced with heavy discrimination from the American government and were utilitized as cheap labor as seen with the building of the Union Pacific railroad. They were sought after as cheap labor and low-skilled workers, but immigration acts restricted their movement and effectively barred their entry for many decades. Just like all other minority groups, Asian Americans, fought in the US Army to prove their citizenship and loyalty to their country. The Immigration Act of 1965 largely paved the way for increased Asian immigration from many regions of Asia. Thousands fled political violence in China, the civil war in Vietnam, brutal regimes in Southeast Asia, and thousands more sought out new homes for their children. Asian Americans have played a far more minor role in the history of the United States given their small number and lack of major organizations of ethnic unity, but still fought back against racial discrimination that boycotted all Asian-run stores and interrned whole populations of US citizens thought to be potential spies.

The most recent waves have been far different from past waves of Asian immigration and much other immigration. The large majority of Asian immigrants come to the United States for education and high-skilled works in the tech industry already armed with education and some level of English. This has driven this group to be overrepresented in higher education universities, have lower high school drop out rates, and have the highest median incomes of all ethnic groups in the United States. There are, however, differences between South, Southeast, and East Asians that become apparent as the level of education and income begins to vary between subsections.

The New Face of America

The profile of America is changing rapidly in the face of decades of liberalized immigration and higher birthrates amongst minority populations. White Americans are losing their dominant position in American society to a multicultural coalition of minorities who came to the United States for education or safety and who have come to make this country their home. As the face of the United States continues to dramatically change, the United States continues to thrive and stand out as an example of a multicultural republic with millions of different races, creeds, and beliefs thrown together into one country. It is now the country of diversity more than ever before- the Great Melting Pot.

Works Cited

Anderson, Monica. "African Immigrant Population in U.S. Steadily Climbs." Pew Research Center RSS. Pew Research Center, 02 Nov. 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Baral, Susmita. "Latinos Are No Longer The Fastest Growing Minority Group In The U.S." Latin Times. IBT Media, 26 June 2014. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

"Demographics of Asian Americans." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

"Demography of the United STates." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

"Fast Facts." Fast Facts. Institute of Education Sciences, n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Gutiérrez, David G. "An Historic Overview of Latino Immigration and the Demographic Transformation of the United States." National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

History.com Staff. "Black History Milestones." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 01 Jan. 2009. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

History.com Staff. "U.S. Immigration Since 1965." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 01 Jan. 2010. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

"Modern Immigration Wave Brings 59 Million to U.S., Driving Population Growth and Change Through 2065." Pew Research Centers Hispanic Trends Project RSS. Pew Research Center, 28 Sept. 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

N.d. The Intercept_. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Peralta, Eyder. "It Came Up In The Debate: Here Are 3 Things To Know About 'Operation Wetback'" NPR. NPR, 11 Nov. 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Percent of Hispanic and Latino Population by State in 2012. 2012. Wikipedia. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Piccorossi, Michael. "Asian Americans." Pew Research Centers Social Demographic Trends Project RSS. Pew Research Center, 18 June 2012. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

"Poverty Rate By Race/Ethnicity." Poverty Rate by Race/Ethnicity. Kaiser Family Foundation, n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Ravitz, Jessica. "Pew Study: Asian Immigrants May Overtake Hispanics." CNN. Cable News Network, 28 Sept. 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

"The Rise of Asian Americans." Pew Research Centers Social Demographic Trends Project RSS. Pew Research Center, 19 June 2012. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

 

Bursting Bubbles, Part 1

Upon taking office, the new President of the United States becomes perhaps the most powerful person on Earth. Despite all the leverage and influence the position confers, there are many things that are far out of the control of any president: it is hardly Harry Truman's fault that Roosevelt's premature death put him in the Oval Office, it is probably not Richard Nixon's fault that the Pentagon Papers were leaked under his administration, and it is almost impossible to blame George W. Bush for the events of 9/11. Regardless, the American people still enjoy attributing many events of circumstance to the president at the time. Even though the power of the Federal Reserve in placing regulations, setting interest rates, and increasing cash flow give the president a measure of control over the economy, even POTUS cannot immediately influence when prosperity and depression occur. Examining economic trends from the late 20th century to today, we see that monetary and fiscal policy (or the lacking thereof) do less to influence the economy than many might think. Rather, economic conditions are more dependent on the policies of the previous president, in addition to the traditional boom/bust cycles of capitalist economies.

Malaise

After the horrors of Watergate, the American people wanted an outsider. As it turns out, they wanted Jimmy Carter, who's now remembered as one of the worst presidents of the twentieth century. The infamous era of "stagflation," a woeful recession where unemployment and inflation somehow both increased at the same time, became one of the primary factors leading to the rise of Ronald Reagan. In spite of all his talk failures in the Iran hostage crisis, and in saving the economy, Carter cannot really be fairly blamed for stagflation. The seeds of recession were first planted by Nixon in 1971, where a 90-day wage and price freeze gave the illusion of fiscal stability. With price controls and demand from the Vietnam War both gone, inflation and unemployment were both on the rise. The trend continued through Ford's time in office, and was only worsened by the energy crisis following the Yom Kippur War. After flirtations with price controls, tax cuts, and tariffs, Ford managed to decrease inflation and unemployment slightly. Both figures, however, remained high as Carter's own attempts to fight the downturn failed on reaching the Senate floor, or on implentation. As they began rising once again through Carter's term, a second energy crisis brought about by the Iranian Revolution sealed the fate of his presidency.

The Reagan Revolution

While Jimmy Carter is now the bane of the Democrat party's good name, Ronald Reagan is now the idol of the Republican side. His success in destroying the Carter recession, and the prosperity that followed made his economic policies (collectively known now as "Reaganomics") the model for every Republican leader to follow him. Oddly enough, some of the credit for beating inflation must go to Carter. After Carter's initial attempts to beat inflation failed, he asked his entire cabinet to resign, and Paul Volcker was brought in as chairman of the Federal Reserve. Volcker almost immediately raised interest rates to tighten monetary supply, compounding the energy crisis that led to even deeper recession in 1980. With the election of Reagan (and a few years time), corporate tax cuts to match tight monetary policy reversed the trends of inflation and unemployment, bringing prosperity back to the economy. It took the monetary policy of a Carter appointee combined with the fiscal policy of Ronald Reagan to finally whip inflation.

Even if the combination of Volcker an Reagan had not succeeded, the inevitability of time may well have ended the recession anyway. A 2010 article in The Economist argues that cyclical factors were already working to stop the rise of inflation. A newfound interest in energy efficiency in the 1970s, spearheaded by Carter but also forced by oil shocks, led to record low petroleum usage in the United States. Even ignoring less demand, another factor would have driven economic recovery. Global oil production rose 30% between 1970 and 1980, and after the crises of 1973 and 1979, oil prices reached all-time lows for the next few decades. Finally, the cycle of increasing prices and increasing wages, a driving factor of inflation, was already being broken in the mid-1970s. Increased foreign competition led to sharp declines in union membership and consequently, a decline in union bargaining power. Taken together, low oil prices and lower wages would eventually have curtailed inflation with or without Ronald Reagan.

Will inflation, thought dead by the hands of Ronald Reagan, return when a Democrat takes office? Find out next week (or maybe the week after), on the next episode of Bursting Bubbles.

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3360

http://millercenter.org/president/biography/ford-domestic-affairs

http://www.forbes.com/sites/briandomitrovic/2011/02/07/volcker-and-the-reagan-legacy/#67fe07346415

http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2010/03/volcker_recession

The Israeli-American Connection- DC to Jerusalem

On May 14th, 1948, the United States officially recognized the sovereign state of Israel which had just been declared earlier that day. Immediately after, the surrounding nations of Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, and Saudi Arabia waged war on the newly formed state in order to prevent the formation of a Jewish state and maintain the Arab-controlled Palestine before the 1947 UN Partition Plan for Palestine. The United States held an arms embargo on both sides and refused to get involved in this regional conflict as its aims were largely in Europe with the Soviets and in East Asia with the rapid fall of Kai-shek's pro-western nationalist government in China to Mao's communists. Following a peace treaty in which Israel maintained its land and gained some more Palestinian land (while also evicting hundreds of thousands of Palestinians), the United States continued to recognize the nation, but did not have a relationship nearly as close as the one we all know of today. This was about to change.



Raising the Flag of Israel in front of the newly formed Israeli Defense Force; April, 1948

Six Day War and Yom Kippur War
The history of Israel itself is a long and complex one that requires years and years of study just to understand the last 80 years of it. Despite this, the modern state of Israel has been born in war and conflict. The idea of the Israeli state was finalized in 1917, following WW1, and finally realized after WW2 during which over six million European Jews were exterminated. Its official independence was won in its Arab-Israeli War of 1948 and Israel has continued to face aggressive neighbors up to the modern day. Regardless, two major wars in Israeli history represented huge changes in America's relationship with Israel.

Following the upheavals in Arabic countries surrounding Israel after their rapid victory in the Six Day War, the United States began to pay more attention. The French cut military aid to Israel in an attempt to gain friendlier relations with the Arabs at the same time that Syria and Egypt allowed Soviet military bases and the pro-Soviet coups in Iraq took power. All of these occurring so rapidly drew the attention from the United States who saw Soviet power projection in these new nations and began to move to increase relations with the only pro-Western liberal democracy in the region, Israel. President Johnson was at the head of this effort and planted the seeds of one of the modern world's strongest alliances.

Operation Nickel Grass

Seething from their loses in the Six Day War, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia joined with Algeria, Morocco, and Cuba (surprisingly) to take revenge. Shortcomings in the CIA-Mossad intelligence communities as well as oil embargo threats from OPEC aided this alliance in massive overwhelming victories in the first part of the war. Word of using a last resort nuclear option was discussed and the Soviet Union started to pour more aid to its allies to defeat Israel. Despite tepid European support (few offered staging bases), Nixon and Kissinger gave the go-ahead to Operation Nickel Grass which airlifted thousands of tons of tanks, artillery, and heavy weaponry the replenish the depleted IDF. The Soviets began to increase threats of intervention on behalf of the Egyptians as the Americans played a very dangerous power game to aid Israel and prevent this from becoming the start of World War III.

Camp David Accords 1978

 

The Israelis were victorious in the Yom Kippur War and the redefined balance of power in the Middle East following this led to the signing of the Camp David Accords under President Carter in 1978. Under this, the first Arab country, Egypt, officially normalized diplomatic relations with Israel in return for the Sinai Peninsula, which Egypt had lost in 1967.

Late Cold War and Post Cold War Israel and Palestine
The United States continued its massive support for the State of Israel and the existence of Israel was more firmly secured than ever before. President Reagan urged Israel to resolve the Palestine issue which had been at the heart of every major war thus far. Israel continued to have problems with Palestinian uprisings as well as terrorist attacks from HAMAS and Hezbollah, two terrorist proxies working to take down Israel.

“President Reagan's chief spokesman today called on both sides involved in the violent protests in Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip ‘to step back from confrontation,’ which he said is damaging ‘the self respect and world opinion of the Israeli people.' He said the effect of the occupation ‘also damages the self-respect and world opinion of the Israeli people.’”

After the 1979 Revolution in Iran, tensions between Iran and Israel grew markedly worse with both sides threatening war and pre-emptive attacks. Recent American actions such as President Obama's Iran Deal have driven some to believe that the United States has driven Israel away and towards Saudi Arabia, but this is not entirely true. The Israelis still enjoy one of the United States highest priorities and strongest alliances. Actions often speak more than words and while Benjamin Netanyahu may decry American deals, joint military projects and bilateral trade between the two nations speaks to the contrary and demonstrate how strong the United States-Israel relationship is (being one of the few issues that receives bilateral support in the US Congress with 83 senators recently supporting a military aid increase to Israel).


IDF bombings of Gaza Strip 2014

In recent years, in regards to the Palestine issue, the Israelis launched Operation Protective Edge (2014) to respond to Palestinian aggression in the form of rocket attacks and tunnel drilling. It is arguable who was the main provocateur with Israel setting up military checkpoints at all Palestinian entrances and continually building Israeli homes into Palestinian lands and with Palestine continuing attacks on Israel and being the source of many terrorist attacks on Israel and its citizens. Regardless of who is at fault, IDF special forces sweeps continue in Palestinian settlements as Palestinian knife stabbings of Israelis persist today. Both sides may be at fault, but neither side is willing to come to the table with a definitive solution that would appease the Likud conservative party of Israel and the two different governing parties in Palestine, the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Rockets fired from Gaza Strip into Israel 2014

Today, the United States relationship with Israel is as strong as it has ever been. While many on the American left criticize Israel of its human rights abuses to Palestinians and their expansionist policies, many on the American right counter Israel's need for national security and point to it being the strongest Western democracy in the entire region. It is the third largest receiver of US military aid, of which 75% is spent again on US arms sales which helps US arms industries as well as securing the State of Israel.

There is a long time yet to go for the future of the United States and Israel, especially regarding the ever shifting political arena in the region, but one thing is certain, the strength and power of the US-Israel relationship will not be disappearing anytime soon. It is a prosperous alliance, but by no means a perfect one, and each successive crisis will always show the true nature of the United States-Israel relationship.

Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel with President Obama of the United States

Works Cited

"The 1967 Arab-Israeli War - 1961–1968 - Milestones - Office of the Historian." Office of the Historian. U.S. Department of State, n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

"The Arab-Israeli War of 1948 - 1945–1952 - Milestones - Office of the Historian." Office of the Historian. U.S. Department of State, n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Barber, Glen. "Israel's History in Pictures." The Israel Forever Foundation. The Israel Forever Foundation, n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Camp David Accords. 1978. Turner. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

Camp David Accords. 1978. Turner. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

"Creation of Israel, 1948 - 1945–1952 - Milestones - Office of the Historian." Office of the Historian. United States Department of State, n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Friedman, George. "The Complex History of the U.S.-Israel Relationship." RealClearWorld. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

IDF Bombing. N.d. Indiatoday. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

N.d. International Business Times. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

Netanyahu and Obama. N.d. Cherson and Molschky. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

Nickle Grass M60 C-5. 1972. Wikipedia. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

"Response To Common Inaccuracy: US Gives Israel Too Much Aid." ADL. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Scheindlin, Dahlia. "Israel's Argument for War against Palestine Ignores the Context | Dahlia Scheindlin." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 26 July 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Smith, Ben. "Would Reagan Have Passed the GOP's Israel Test?" POLITICO. N.p., 13 Dec. 2011. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

United States of America. National Security Agency. Office of the Archive. NSA Archive. United States National Security Agency, 18 Oct. 2000. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

"U.S. Relations With Israel." U.S. Department of State. U.S. Department of State, 10 Mar. 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Zanotti, Jim. Israel: Background and U.S. Relations. Rep. Congressional Research Service, 1 June 2015. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

 

 

Khmer Rouge

The Communist Party of Kampuchea, or more commonly known as the Khmer Rouge was a brutal regime that took control of Cambodia on April 17, 1975 and remained in power until 1979. The party's existence remained a secret with no one outside of the Khmer Rouge knowing the specifics of its leaders, other than the fact that they referred to themselves as “Angkar Padevat”.

After five years of resistance and civil war between the American backed government under Marshal Lon Nol and the Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge took power. While living in the remote north-east Pol Pot had drawn influence from the surrounding hill tribes, who had self-sufficient communal living, with no use for money. When the Khmer Rouge took power they immediately started to transform Cambodia into what they wanted to be an agrarian utopia. Only days after taking power the Khmer Rouge began to force nearly two million people from major cities into the countryside to undertake agricultural work. The Khmer rouge wanted to transform Cambodia into a rural classless society, one with no rich, no poor, and no exploitation.

In order to achieve their agrarian utopia they declared that the nation would restart its calendar at “Year Zero”, empty its cities, abolish money, private property, religion, free markets, normal schooling, foreign clothing, religious practices, and traditional Khmer culture. Public schools, pagodas, mosques, churches, universities, shops, and government buildings were either closed or turned into either prisons, stables, reeducation camps, or granaries. Public and private transportation was gotten rid of, non-revolutionary entertainment was outlawed and leisure activities were restricted. People throughout the country, including the leaders of the Khmer Rouge were forced to wear black costumes. Anyone thought to be an intellectual was killed. Often even those simply wearing glasses or knowing a foreign language were condemned.

During this time all basic rights were taken away. People not only weren’t allowed to leave their cooperative, but anyone who would gather and hold discussions were accused of being enemies and were executed. Simply gathering in groups of three and talking would get one would killed.

Anyone who was deemed as not being pure was arrested, this included hundreds of  thousands of soldiers, military officers and civil servants. Thousands of the educated middle class were tortured and executed. One of the most notorious execution and torture centers was the S-21 jail which held about 14,000 prisoners while in operation. However of these 14,000 only 12 survived. Hundreds of thousands of others died from disease starvation or exhaustion. Under the terms of the Khmer Rouge’s 1967 “Four-Year Plan” Cambodians were to produce 3 tons of rice per hectare. This meant that those not imprisoned would have to grow and harvest rice all year. And in most regions the Khmer Rouge forced people to work more than 12 hours a day without rest or adequate food.

The Khmer Rouge was finally overthrown in 1979 by invading Vietnamese troops after a series of armed border conflicts. The Khmer Rouge leaders then fled to the west and with aid from China and Thailand were able to reestablish their forces. However they have been losing power ever since. The country then begin to open its borders revealing the full horrors of the regime. The UN then voted to give the resistance against the Khmer Rouge a seat on the general assembly. Between 1979 to 1990 they were recognized as the only legitimate representative of Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge finally fell completely in 1999, however its legacy of death and suffering remains.

Resources:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-10684399

http://www.cambodiatribunal.org/history/cambodian-history/khmer-rouge-history/

Foreign Policy During the Clinton Administration

        When Bill Clinton was elected as President in 1992, he intended to maintain a focus on domestic policy and leave existing foreign policy as it was. His efforts to improve America’s economy through free trade with NAFTA and the World Trade Organization involved countries all over the world, but Clinton also got involved in various military interactions all over the world. 
The Clinton Administration inherited various conflicts in Africa, including American troops being dispatched to Somalia under President Bush’s orders. The mission had started as an attempt to solve the issue of famine, but it escalated into violent conflict. When American soldiers were killed and helicopters were shot down, Clinton’s response of sending more troops only increased political opposition to the war, and he was forced to withdraw. The intervention had been unsuccessful and warlords remained in control of a non-functional government after U.S. and UN troops withdrew in 1994. Unfortunately, this failure led to future trepidation in intervening in c Rwanda, where a civil war led to a large-scale massacre of a minority group. Clinton and the U.S. received widespread criticism over over their inaction. There was also hesitation to act in the Balkans when Yugoslavia split and violence descended over the area in 1995. It was only after genocide in Bosnia that there was NATO bombing operation, ordered by Clinton, to resolve the situation. Even after the countries signed the Dayton Peace Accords, new conflict was sparked again three years later and was met with another bombing campaign.
International terrorism was also escalating in the Clinton years, and the President took action after U.S. embassy bombings by al Qaeda in Tanzania and Kenya. The U.S. led missile strikes on terrorist training camps and a chemical factory in Sudan that was suspected of manufacturing chemical weapons, but it turned out to be a pharmaceutical company that manufactured drugs for the Sudanese people. Though the strikes did not have their intended effects of destroying the terrorists, Clinton maintained that it was the right thing to do.
While Bill Clinton enjoyed various successes domestically during his presidency, foreign policy was not his strength, and this combined with a multitude of violent conflict emerging in the world at that time made for a failure to promote peace and an ineffective U.S. foreign policy.

Sources
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/clinton-legacy/
http://millercenter.org/president/biography/clinton-foreign-affairs
http://study.com/academy/lesson/bill-clintons-foreign-policy-the-middle-east-haiti-african-northern-ireland.html

Japanese Internment

During the duration of WWII, over 172,000 Japanese were imprisoned in internment camps, caused by the executive order signed by President Roosevelt in 1942 that allowed for Japanese relocation. This was caused by the Post- Pearl Harbor Hysteria, in which many people in the US believed that Japanese Spies were  responsible for the damage created in the attack. The paranoia against the Japanese was especially strong because of their large population on the West Coast.  They were held at the camps purely based off their race, and often had no chance to take care of their property and belongings before being forced to leave, leading to their houses being hastily sold at fractions of their true value, or sometimes even the loss of almost all their property, leading to the internees losing hundreds of millions of dollars.  Despite the injustice, the act was deemed constitutional in 1944 through the Korematsu vs US case. Adults were able to work in the camps for a meager $5 dollars a day, and children attended schools, but the very basis of the camps was a clear violation of the Constitutionally guaranteed rights given to Americans.  In 1988 the US government gave $20,000 to all that had been part of the internment.

 Image Source: https://www.mtholyoke.edu/~matsu22k/classweb/index3.html