Unfinished Business: Kennedy and Cuba

The Cold War refers to the years of tension and suspicion following World War II that strained relations between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Americans recognized that the Russians wanted to spread Communism around the globe, in part by manipulating third-world countries. Both superpowers had developed nuclear bombs capable of mass destruction, and neither trusted the other not to use them.

Nikita S. Khrushchev (1894-1971) was premier of the USSR and first secretary, or chairmain, of the Communist Party. A tough and experienced Soviet politico, Khrushchev rose to power after the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953. He advocated the expansion of Communism and engaged in the arms race with the U.S.

The American people reacted fearfully to the threat of Communism and the realities of nuclear weapons, creating bomb shelters and rationing supplies. Schoolchildren practiced "duck and cover" drills, filing into the hallways and covering their heads with their hands. Some American families dug trenches and installed fallout shelters in their backyards, and everyone learned to recognize the yellow-and-black signs that indicated fallout shelters in their neighborhoods.