Research Project – US History I In this course, you will learn the skills of the historian, and apply them by writing an original paper based on your interpretation of primary and secondary historical sources. Each week, you will complete a Milestone assignment. Each Milestone will become a section of the final paper, at the end of the term. Milestone 1 – Choose Topic / Source Citation • Choose topic from list provided, and review materials. • Do the lesson on Turabian citations. • Compose an explanation of topic, in chronological order, including participants & causes. o Cite your sources. Milestone 2 –Historical Context • Do lesson on historical context. • Compose a description of at least 2 trends/themes, explaining how they relate to your topic. o Cite your sources. Milestone 3 – Thesis & Argument • Do the lesson on thesis and argument. • Compose a properly constructed thesis statement, including three pieces of evidence. • Compose an argument explaining how each piece of evidence supports your thesis. o Cite your sources. Milestone 4 – Intro / Conclusion / Paragraph structure • Read the lesson on Intro and Conclusion • Read the lesson on paragraph structure • Compose a properly constructed introductory paragraph • Complete the exercise on paragraph structure Final Paper • Revise your Milestone Assignments based on instructor feedback. • Put them in order in one file. • Make any necessary edits, transitions, additions, etc. • Write your conclusion • Be sure you have cited your sources correctly. Topics: Topic: Fighting Jim Crow Research Question: Of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois, who had the better approach to fighting racism and reversing Jim Crow? Topic: The Cold War - Cuban Missile Crisis Research Question: Did the Kennedy administration’s handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis calm Cold War tensions? Topic: Industry, Labor, and Reform - the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire Research Question: Did the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire represent a failure or a success for Progressive reformers? Topic: El Movimiento - Mexican American Civil Rights Research Question: Did a distinct "Chicano/a" or "Latino/a" identity play a central role in the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement? Sources: In addition to the textbook, you must use the secondary and primary sources found in the course site for the topic you choose. Milestone #2 The Cold War: Cuban Missile Crisis Following the end of World War 2, the United States began to fall back into the normal policies of avoiding any types of commitments with allied nations that would possibly lead to the commitment of America troops overseas. While this would be the most favorable foreign policy, with the old superpowers of Great Britain and France now seemingly unable to handle the load as the policemen of the World, The United States knew that it had to take a heavier role in foreign affairs. W ...

1. Research Project – US History I
In this course, you will learn the skills of the historian, and
apply them by writing an original
paper based on your interpretation of primary and secondary
historical sources.
Each week, you will complete a Milestone assignment. Each
Milestone will become a section of
the final paper, at the end of the term.
Milestone 1 – Choose Topic / Source Citation
• Choose topic from list provided, and review materials.
• Do the lesson on Turabian citations.
• Compose an explanation of topic, in chronological order,
including participants &
causes.
o Cite your sources.
Milestone 2 –Historical Context
• Do lesson on historical context.
• Compose a description of at least 2 trends/themes, explaining
how they relate to your
topic.
o Cite your sources.

2. Milestone 3 – Thesis & Argument
• Do the lesson on thesis and argument.
• Compose a properly constructed thesis statement, including
three pieces of evidence.
• Compose an argument explaining how each piece of evidence
supports your thesis.
o Cite your sources.
Milestone 4 – Intro / Conclusion / Paragraph structure
• Read the lesson on Intro and Conclusion
• Read the lesson on paragraph structure
• Compose a properly constructed introductory paragraph
• Complete the exercise on paragraph structure
Final Paper
• Revise your Milestone Assignments based on instructor
feedback.
• Put them in order in one file.
• Make any necessary edits, transitions, additions, etc.
• Write your conclusion
• Be sure you have cited your sources correctly.
Topics:
Topic: Fighting Jim Crow

3. Research Question: Of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du
Bois, who had the better
approach to fighting racism and reversing Jim Crow?
Topic: The Cold War - Cuban Missile Crisis
Research Question: Did the Kennedy administration’s handling
of the Cuban Missile Crisis
calm Cold War tensions?
Topic: Industry, Labor, and Reform - the Triangle Shirtwaist
Factory Fire
Research Question: Did the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire represent a
failure or a success for
Progressive reformers?
Topic: El Movimiento - Mexican American Civil Rights
Research Question: Did a distinct "Chicano/a" or "Latino/a"
identity play a central role in
the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement?
Sources:
In addition to the textbook, you must use the secondary and
primary sources found in the
course site for the topic you choose.
Milestone #2

4. The Cold War: Cuban Missile Crisis
Following the end of World War 2, the United States began to
fall back into the normal policies of avoiding any types of
commitments with allied nations that would possibly lead to the
commitment of America troops overseas. While this would be
the most favorable foreign policy, with the old superpowers of
Great Britain and France now seemingly unable to handle the
load as the policemen of the World, The United States knew that
it had to take a heavier role in foreign affairs. With isolationism
no longer an option, the United States look toward a bigger role
in containing what was thought to be the most crucial threat to
Europe following World War 2, the spread of Communism.
Following the deterioration of US and Soviet relations, the
United States was thrust into a climate of fear, espionage, and
secrecy. As suspicion of Communist sympathizers in the United
States grew, a number of tactics and state departments would be
introduced and implemented to help in the containment of
Communism both at home and abroad. With the successful
detonation of a nuclear weapon by the Soviet Union in August
of 1949 and the execution of 2 alleged American citizens that
had fed the Soviet information on the United States’ Nuclear
technology, an all-out nuclear arms race began to unfold
between the United States and the Soviet Union. With all of this
in play, the United States was constantly on edge and on the
look-out for the potential spread of communist to other
countries in what would become known as the Domino Effect.
With the victory of the communist party in China, the United
States was more fearful of the effects and spread of Communism
as ever before, and with the secret instillation of Soviet missile
defense systems in Cuba that gave the Soviets the capability to
engage the United States at any time, the Cold War began.
While no actual military engagement occurred, these events
acted as catalysts in developing a very restless, paranoid, and
reactive society within the United States for years to come.

5. Topic
Overall research question: Did the Kennedy administration's
handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis calm Cold War tensions?
Each “milestone” I sent you was an assignment that when all
were out together with a conclusion should make up the entire
paper. It’ll prob end up being. 4-5 pages but it is double-spaced.
There has to be aspects of each paper that I wrote in the final
essay so it looks like i just revised and added more substance.
Aaron Lopez
A00527589
The Cold War: The Cuban Missile Crisis
During the 1960’s, the relationship between the United
States and the Soviet Union was experiencing the most tension
in its history. Following the strategic placement of
Intercontinental ballistic missiles on the country of Cuba by the
Soviet Union, President Kennedy was treading precarious
waters and knew that this type of military action could not go
unchecked. With his swift action and decisive response to what
became known as The Cuban Missile Crisis, the Kennedy
Administration was able to successfully calm Cold War
tensions. One of the first and most instrumental action taken by
the Kennedy Administration that was a critical step to easing
Cold War tensions was the naval blockade that was ordered to
be put in place by Kennedy. Following the debacle of the Bay of
Pigs, the Kennedy Administration was out to reestablish the
United States as a strong and unwavering military power.
Immediately following the instillation of Soviet missiles on
Cuban Soil, Kennedy commanded the American Navy to set up a
fleet of ships to hinder any further advancement of Soviet
artillery onto Cuban Soil.[footnoteRef:1] While this may seem
rather obsolete, this truly set the tone of the United States as the
Cold War progressed into the mid-1960’s. Another very critical
move by the Kennedy Administration that helped to ease Soviet

6. tension was the off-the-record discussions that JFK’s brother
Robert Kennedy had with Soviet ambassadors.[footnoteRef:2]
Following the Bay of Pigs incident, the United States was seen
as a rather soft and indecisive military power and while the
suggestions of Robert Kennedy may have not been entirely true,
he worked to paint the United States as a very aggressive and
decisive military power that was not to be tested. While each of
these previous actions were invaluable in the oppression of
Soviet tension during the Cold War, one of the most elementary
yet effective solutions implemented was the installation of the
telephone “hot line” between the Soviet Union and the United
States. With this open line of communication, it was
exponentially easier for the Kennedy Administration and any
administration following Kennedy to swiftly and efficiently
identify and manage any issues between the Soviet Union and
the United States before it escalates into another issue like the
Cuban Missile Crisis and the Cold War.[footnoteRef:3] [1: ]
[2: ] [3: ]
Milestone #1
The Cold War- Cuban Missile Crisis
With military instillations being constructed at an
unprecedented rate, in 1962, President John F. Kennedy issued a
speech addressed to the Soviet Union, The American people,
and the Nation of Cuba. This stand-off between us and the
Soviet Union has always been an interesting topic for me and
for that reason, I will happily choose it as my topic for my
semester long research project. Within the project, I will go into
length about the events that took place that led up to President
Kennedy giving his speech on October 22nd, 1962 from the
reports that the Soviet Union was deploying missiles in Cuba,
the following warnings that were given to the Soviet Union,
both officially and those communicated through private

7. channels by the President’s brother and Attorney General,
Robert Kennedy.[footnoteRef:1] Along with plenty of depth into
the Soviet response through the letter from Chairman
Khrushchev following the President’s TV address to the nations.
I intent to dissect many of the Chairman’s statements including
the proposal for the Soviet Union to remove the military and
missile instillations from Cuba in exchange for the United
States removing our position in Turkey[footnoteRef:2], as well
as the eventual conclusion of these statements and any action
that was taken or not. Finally, I will explore the conclusions of
the Cuban Missile Crisis and address and “wins” or “losses”
that were accrued by either the Soviet Union or the United
States as President Kennedy did his best to extinguish what he
would call in his address a “clear and present danger to the
safety of the American people”.[footnoteRef:3] [1: ] [2: ]
[3: ]