“Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans” (Kennedy 916). With these words, John F. Kennedy in his inaugural address in 1961 described the 1960’s decade. This era in American history encapsulated a belief in the power of young people to change the world, a desire to help others globally and accept their differences, and a war that would eventually destroy all that America stood for. It was a time for new ideas in all aspects of life. This shift in thinking is apparent when looking at the happenings in society, the younger generation, and the media. The sixties were the beginning of many great revolutions in society.
The sixties were a time of many political changes. Three men were president during this time period, and their actions both impacted and molded the events that occurred. At the beginning of the decade, John F. Kennedy was president. He was a democrat who promised to get the country moving again. During his administration, he was heavily involved with foreign affairs. He eased tensions with USSR and increased military aid to South Vietnam (Horton 177). John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 by a man named Lee Harvey Oswald (Smith 220).
The second president during this decade was Lyndon B. Johnson, who took over after the assassination of Kennedy. Johnson was a democrat who believed in civil rights and raising the standard of living. During his administration, he brought the southern conservative and northern liberal wings together. He fought for civil rights to rid of past injustice and present prejudice (Horton 173). But as his term went on, opposition towards the president grew considerably. Since he escalated the Unit...
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... now. This goes to show that standing up and fighting for causes that you strongly believe in can produce great results over time.
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Horton, Edward, ed. U.S.A Sixties. 3 vols. Danbury, CT: Grolier Educational, 2001.
Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas A. Bailey. The American Pageant.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2002.
Singleton, Carl, ed. The Sixties in America. 3 vols. Pasadena, CA: Salem, 1999.
Smith, Carter. Presidents: All You Need to Know. Irvington, NY: Hylas, 2004.
Thomas, Scott, ed. America’s Presidents. Chicago: World Book, 2009.
Watts, Franklin. The 1960’s. New York: Franklin Watts, 1988.
Comparing the Books, Destructive Generation: Second Thoughts About the Sixties and The Sixties: Years of Hope, Days of Rage
The documentary “Sixties: Years that Shaped a Generation” illustrates a period in United States history defined by cultural movement. Several citizen led campaigns were developed to challenge long established American institutions and traditions. This age of defiance, cultivated a counter culture which stood against social injustice, racial inequalities, and the war in Vietnam.
The sixties was a decade filled with major political debates that affected the entire country. By the time the sixties came around we were in the most turbulent part of the Cold War, an era of military and political tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. As Dwight Eisenhower brought the fifties to a close it was time for a new president to take hold of the reigns. As the country closed in on one of the closest elections in history it was up to Democratic candidate, John F. Kennedy to compete agains...
The 1960's was a decade of tremendous social and political upheaval. In the United States, many movements occurred by groups of people seeking to make positive changes in society.
: The 1960’S AMERICA COLD WAR RACISM AFFLUENCE ZENITH PIVOTAL POTENTIAL FOR CONFLICT. AN ELECTION WAS FAST APPROACHING, SEEMED LIKE A PRETTY SET IN STONE CHOICE FOR LEADER. BUT HEY JFK WAS A SUPER BABE, MILLIONAIRE, AND WAS FINNA GET THE PRESIDENT SEAT WHICH WAS UP FOR GRABS. YO HE WAS AN UNDERDOG THOUGH. John F. Kennedy made a remarkable and courageous effort during the campaign of 1960. A Massachusetts-born Democrat, not only was Kennedy the youngest person ever to run for the presidency, but he was a Catholic with new and different political ideas campaigning against Vice President Richard Nixon, who had the upperhand because of his political experience. Thus, Kennedy created a campaign specifically for his time, one that appealed to the
Towards the end of the Sixties various tragic political assassinations managed to take away such great leaders as Martin Luther King Jr, Malcom X, Robert Kennedy.
The 1960s and 1970s helped shape the conservative movement to grow in popularity and allowed conservatives to enjoy modern benefits such as economic prosperity and consumerism without conforming to liberal ideologies. The period of strong conservative support, the 1960s, usually refers to the time frame between 1964 through 1974. The grass roots mobilization started strong with the help of Orange County's middle-class men and women volunteers. The effort and hard work of these people along with economic support from businesses such as the National Review helped to spread conservative philosophy. Other contributions to the effort include community meetings, film showing, handing out pamphlets, and Fred Schwarz's school of anti-communism to inform Southern Californians of communist threat. Among anti-communism, conservatives also believe in the importance of religion, a restrictive government role, upholding traditional American values, and private business prosperity. The ethos upheld by long-time residents along with a heavy migration of people who would later join right-wing conservatism made Orange County the ideal location to enrich and expand the movement.
Throughout the history of the United States, there were various decades in the 1900’s which each had unique characteristics. One such decade, amongst the others, seemed to step out of its comfort zone and pushed outside the boundaries, pushing for a new identity and culture. This decade is referred to as the 1960’s. The 1960’s was characterized by an intense movement of social change that pushed for freedom of expression and human rights without restrictions to race, color or sexuality identity. The 1960’s was a decade characterized by great social disturbance and drastic change.
As World War Two came to a close, a new American culture was developing all across the United States. Families were moving away from crowded cities into spacious suburban towns to help create a better life for them during and after the baby boom of the post-war era. Teenagers were starting to become independent by listing to their own music and not wearing the same style of clothing as their parents. Aside from the progress of society that was made during this time period, many people still did not discuss controversial issues such as divorce and sexual relations between young people. While many historians regard the 1950s as a time of true conservatism at its finest, it could really be considered a time of true progression in the American way of life.
its ups and down but from what I have read and seen I wouldn’t say
Lyndon B Johnson was elected president on November 22, 1963 directly after the assassination of John F Kennedy, “the elevation of Lyndon B Johnson to the office of the president of the United States was impressively smooth”(Robert E. Gilbert, 761). Prior to his election Johnson was worked closely with the US government as a member of Congress, the US Navy, and as a US Senator. From his first political position to his last Johnson had one goal, making America into a "Great Society". It was through this idealist philosophy of his that he became invested in the Civil Rights Movement. Lyndon B Johnson’s role in the Civil Rights Movement was key to its success; Johnson proved his devotion to the people and their rights when he said, "The Great Society rests on abundance and liberty for all. It demands an end to poverty and racial injustice, to which we are totally committed in our time. But that is just the beginning”(Government Printing Office, pp. 635-640). Johnson wanted nothing more than to see the movement, in which so many fought f...
In the early nineteen sixties, John Fitzgerald Kennedy held the position as president of the United States. President Kennedy was very popular among the people, but because of his extreme principles and policies, Kennedy had some critics, however. President Kennedy became a strong ruler of America in the sixties, which made individuals worried. As for one man named Lee Harvey Oswald, he thought the same. Oswald, an ex-military sharpshooter, had a plan of his own for Kennedy.
Although the sixties were a decade in which the United States became a more open, more tolerant, and a freer country, in some ways it became less of these things. During the sixties, America intervened in other nations and efforts were made to stop the progress of the civil rights movement. Because of America’s foreign policy and Americans fight against the civil rights movement, it is clear that the sixties in America were not purely a decade of openness, tolerance, and freedom in the United States.
There is many decades that people would call the Decade of change but the 1960’s is the decade that changed the most. The 60’s was a very crazy and wild time because of the historical events that happened. Everyone was starting to experiment with LSD and Other kinds of drugs. There was also a huge surge of musical history that had happened in the 60’s that changed the History of music forever. The 60’s is what I like to call the best decade in history. The 60’s is the decade of change because of the political, technological, and Musical advances that happened in America. The music industry went from poor to the number one hit in America. The technology went from nothing to systems that would change the world, and last but not least America went from a place where blacks were not accepted to everyone getting along. It is crazy to see how the 60’s changed the history of America.
Although 1969, was the end of a significant decade, it held possibilities and hope for a new prosperous 10 years. Still in the midst of what was seen to many as the most pointless American war, the young generation especially was desperate to enforce a change. Change was a common theme of the 1960’s, deriving from movements such as the civil rights movements, the second feminist wave, a social revolution, and the anti-war movement. In addition, technology in America was at one of its highest peaks. Events such as the Space Race against the Sov...