21st Century Turning Points in U.S. History
21st Century Turning Points in U.S. History (2000-2009) examines the most significant events in America since the turn of the century: our nation under attack on her own soil, a natural disaster destroying one of her major cities, Americans facing the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression, and the nation’s infrastructure – roads, water systems and electrical grids – deteriorating. It is also a decade of hope. The country elected its first African American President, the Internet connected people in ways unimaginable just ten years ago, and mapping the human genome gives the promise of a brighter, healthier future.
Web resources include downloadable documents:
- Teacher’s Guide
- Blackline Master Quiz
- Supporting documents
1. 2000 – 2001 - The first two years of the decade brought about the George W. Bush presidency, a presidency that was defined by September 11th 2001, the first attack on American soil since the War of 1812. 2001 was also the year that began the second digital revolution. – 2000 – America Has a Contested Presidency – 2001 – 9/11 – 2001 – Apple Computer Debuts the iPod
2. 2002 – 2004 - The years between 2002 and 2004 ushered in America’s first pre-emptive war, saw the human genome project jump start the biotech revolution and Google monetize the Internet. – 2003 – Gulf War II – 2003 – Human Genome Project Completed – 2004 – Google Redefines the Internet
3. 2005 – 2007 – The middle years of the first decade of the 21st century were a time of great social change, as America’s failing infrastructure was exposed, performance enhancing drugs damaged sports; illegal immigrants made up as much as a tenth of the population; and the Internet redefined how people connect with each other. – 2005 – Hurricane Katrina Exposes America’s Failing Infrastructure – 2005 – Congress Investigates Performance Enhancing Drugs in Sports – 2005 – Blogging and YouTube Challenge Traditional Media – 2006 – Virtual Social Networking: Facebook, MySpace and Twitter – 2007 – Illegal Immigration Hits 11 Million
4. 2007 – 2009 – The end of the decade of the 21st century was the best of times and the worst of times. Finally, America understood the consequences of global warming; a sea change occurred when it elected a Black president, but in the end, it faced disaster when the subprime mortgage debacle almost brought the financial system to its knees. – 2007 – Al Gore Wins Nobel Peace Prize for Work on Climate Change – 2008 – Barack Obama Wins Presidency – 2009 – America Responds to a Deep Recession
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