Economic Growth and Civil Rights ( )

Can you guess which vocabulary term each of the following pictures represent?

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Baby Boom ( ) Huge population growth caused by the large numbers of babies born after WWII when soldiers returned home Highest point – 1957 when 4 million babies were born within the year Created the largest generation in American history

Levittown Resulted from a shortage of housing after soldiers returned from WWII William Levitt developed methods for building houses cheaper, faster, and more efficiently Created the first suburbs (residential areas outside major cities) “Cookie cutter” houses for single families who worked in the cities Located on Long Island, NY it was the first master- planned community

Interstate Highway Act Little public transportation existed in the suburbs Residents were forced to rely on their automobiles to get them to work Increased car ownership increased demand for roads This act authorized the public works construction of a national highway network connecting every major city Included 41,000 miles of highways

Television Changes American Society 1949 – the first television broadcast was made It provided two hours of news and entertainment per week for a small audience on the East Coast By 1959, over 500 stations were broadcasting over the entire nation reaching the living rooms of most Americans

Television’s Effect on Elections 1960 – John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon held the first ever televised presidential debates 70 million people viewed them Nixon was more experienced and knowledgeable but Kennedy looked an spoke more forcefully Kennedy had been coached by television producers Kennedy won the election because of his television presence which would become a major concern of future candidates

Televisions Effect on Civil Rights Americans who might never attend a civil rights demonstration saw and heard them on television in the 1960’s Many became aware of the discrimination and violence for the first time TV coverage of this movement turned many American’s sympathies toward ending racial segregation and persuaded Kennedy to pass new laws giving African Americans more civil rights

Other Technological Wonders Telephones – lines covered the country allowing people to stay in contact regardless of distance Other technologies that “connected” Americans with others included –Personal Computer (1970’s) –Internet –Cellular Phones

Sputnik I The Soviet Union launched the first artificial satellite (Sputnik I) into space in 1957 This started the “space race” of the Cold War period Americans feared we had fallen behind the Soviets in science and technology Federal funds for education (especially math and science) were increased as well as national military defense programs Americans feared the Soviets might use rockets to launch nuclear weapons from space

Racial Integration Great strides were made in the Civil Rights Movement in the 25 years following World War II African American service in World War II and their work in factories encouraged many people to take bold actions to end continuing discrimination against them Most favored integration (or combination) of the different races in the U.S. Six major events helped to integrate society

Jackie Robinson First African American to play for a major league baseball team (the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947) Led to the integration of professional sports National League MVP in 1949 First African American inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame

Truman’s Executive Order 1948 order to integrate the U.S. Armed Forces and end discrimination in the hiring of U.S. government employees The first federal attempt to deal with racial discrimination Led to the Civil Rights Acts of the 1960’s

Brown v. Board of Education 1954 Supreme Court decision that overturned Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) Declared segregated schools did not provide black students with an equal education promised in the 14 th Amendment Schools began to integrate

Little Rock Nine Some resisted the decision of the court The governor of Arkansas ordered the National Guard to keep nine African American students from attending Central High School in Little Rock Pres. Eisenhower sent federal troops to escort the students to class

Martin Luther King, Jr. The most important leader of the Civil Rights Movement of the 50’s and 60’s 1963 – King was arrested in Birmingham, AL while demonstrating against racial segregation While in jail, he wrote his famous Letter from a Birmingham Jail

Letter From a Birmingham Jail Explained why it was hard for victims of segregation, violent attacks, and murder found it difficult to wait for changes to be made It was King’s answer to those who complained that the civil rights movement and integration was going too fast

I Have a Dream Speech In 1963, King led a March on Washington in support of the new civil rights legislation Over 250,000 people heard him deliver this famous speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial He asked for peace, equality, and racial harmony (his dream)

Civil Rights Act of 1964 Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech helped to create support for this law Signed into law by President Johnson after John F. Kennedy was assassinated Prohibited discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, and gender Allowed all citizens the right to enter any park, restroom, library, theater, and public building in the U.S.

Presidential Actions Influencing Civil Rights Legislation Truman’s Executive Order (1948) desegregating the military Eisenhower’s Executive Order (1954) that integrated schools in Washington, DC as an example to other school systems Kennedy sent federal troops to the University of Mississippi(1962) and the University of Alabama (1963) to force their integration James Meredith is escorted by troops sent by Kennedy as he integrates the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss).

Voting Rights Act of 1965 Outlawed the requirement for would-be voters in the U.S. to take literacy tests in order to register to vote because they were judged as unfair to minorities The Department of Justice was given the authority to oversee voting laws in districts that used literacy tests and poll taxes Federal funds would support programs to register voters in areas with large numbers of unregistered minorities