Chapter 21

Global Communism

• "by the 1970s, almost one-third of the world's population lived in societies governed by communist regimes" (Strayer, 1036). This is seen in the true examples that Strayer lists such as the Soviet Union, China, and parts of Eastern Europe.
• Because of the Russian Revolution, it had spread to Mongolia and there was a communist regime in 1924.
• In Vietnam, there was a "...communist movement under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh..." (1037).
• Strayer mentions, "The victory of the Vietnamese communists spilled over into neighboring Laos and Cambodia, where communist parties took power in the mid 1970s" (1,037).
• The idea of McCarthyism arrived in the 1950s and the United States feared a wave of comminism to enter the U.S. (more info in 1038)

Russia's Revolution (in 1 year) 

• "in hungary and Poland, for example, communist pressures led to the resdistribution of much land to poor or landless peasants..." (bottom of 1041-1042).

China (Revolutionary Struggle)

• By 1921, there was the establishment of the CCP - the Chinese Communist Party and they wanted to organize the country's "...miniscule urban working class" (1042).
• In China, "...intellectuals had been discussing socialism for half a century or more before the revolution, the ideas of Karl Marx were barely known in China in the early 20th century" (1042).
• In page 1043, Strayer mentions the impact that women had when land reform was experimented with. Strayer discusses how literacy was promoted after women were enrolled in owning as much land as men and that they were encouraged to make handicraft goods. "...such as making clothing, blankets, and shoes..." (1043).
• "...in the areas it controlled, the CCP reduced rents, taxes, and interest payments for peasants; taught literacy to adults; and mobilized women for the struggle (bottom of 1043-1044 top).