The Sixties: A Decade of Protest & Change

U.S. Presidents FDR ( ) Harry Truman ( ) Dwight Eisenhower ( ) John F. Kennedy ( ) Lyndon B. Johnson ( ) Richard Nixon ( )

JFK Brought a new spirit of youthful vifor to the White House. Supported Civil Rights, the space program (New Frontier), and freedom around the world (Peace Corps)

John F. Kennedy First & only Catholic President Cold War: Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba and Cuban Missile Crisis Assassinated in 1963, Dallas, TX

Bay of Pigs Fidel Castro came to power in 1959 and turned Cuba into a Communist dictatorship. Cuban exiles with U.S. support landed at the Bay of Pigs but were defeated.

Cuban Missile Crisis After Bay of Pigs, Castro and the Soviets tried to install nuclear missiles. U.S. spy planes saw the missile silos and Kennedy ordered a blockade around Cuba. During the crisis the world was on the brink of nuclear war. Compromise made: Cuba agreed to withdraw the missiles and the U.S. agreed to not invade Cuba (and withdraw missiles in Turkey)

Berlin Wall Soviet leaders began building the Berlin Wall in In 1963, Kennedy reassured West Berliners when he told them “Ich bin ein Berliner.”

Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) LBJ took office when Kennedy was assassinated in LBJ steered civil rights legislation and his Great Society programs through Congress. Great Society Program: gave aid to cities, fought poverty, and established Medicare.

Barry Goldwater Revived conservatism Lost to LBJ in the election of 1964

Barry Goldwater Arizona senator who ran for president as a Republican in Generally viewed as an extreme conservative. Lost to LBJ, but helped organize young conservatives into a political movement and win future elections.

During the 1960s, gains achieved by the Civil Rights Movement spread to other groups.

Women’s Liberation Movement Betty Friedan focused on the plight of missle- class suburban housewives. Women sought greater socioeconomic opportunities. Affirmative action programs and Title IX led to gender equality in education. Feminists also drew attention to biased attitudes. The Equal Pay Act required equal pay for men and women doing the same job.

Betty Friedan Women’s civil rights activist who founded the National Organization for Women (NOW). Wrote The Feminine Mystique in 1963 which explored women finding happiness outside of traditional roles, such as housewives.

Black Power Movement During the late 1960s, some African Americans became more “militant.” The movement believed AAs should rely more on themselves. Malcolm X believed that violence might be necessary to achieve equal rights. Black Panthers demanded equal opportunities and reparations for past oppression. In 1968, AA frustration led to rioting in cities after the assassination of MLK, Jr.

The Hate That Hate Produced (1959)

Black Panthers, 1966

Mexican Americans Struggle for Equal Rights Chicano Wall murals celebrated the culture. Organizers like Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, fought for the rights of migrant farm workers. Hector Perez Garcia fought discrimination against Mexican Americans. A series of court cases ended the segregation of Mexican-American children in public schools and the exclusion of Mexican Americans from juries

Mendez v. Westminster School District (1947) Delgado v. Bastrop ISD (1948) Hernandez v. Texas (1954) White v. Regester (1973) Edgewood ISD v. Kirby (1984)

Cesar Chavez United Farm Workers union Labor leader, civil rights Hispanic workers Si, se puede! (Yes, we can!)

Dolores Huerta Founded United Farm Workers union with Cesar Chavez Non-violent protest led to 22 arrests, in which one time she was severely beaten

American Indian Movement (AIM)

Vietnam War In 1954, Vietnam in Southeast Asia was divided in two: North Vietnam came under Communist control, while South Vietnam had the support of the West. When South Vietnamese leaders decided to oppose elections to re-unify the country, the Vietcong launched a guerilla war to win control of the country.

Domino Theory: Idea seen as early as the late 1940’s with Truman and Eisenhower’s policies of containing communism. Allowing one country to become communist, makes it easier for other countries to become communist, leading to a snowball or domino effect.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964) Gulf of Tonkin incident After Congress passed the resolution, President Johnson sent in thousands of U.S. ground troops.

Tet Offensive (1968) North Vietnamese & Viet Cong attack a large number of places simultaneously, “everywhere” at the same time NV initially consider Tet a failure, but is the turning point in the war Shows that in spite of serious sacrifices, no real progress has been made; US is clearly losing Election year, LBJ withdrawal from presidential campaign (Democratic primary)

Roy Benavidez Sergeant in Vietnam. Jumped out of helicopter with only a knife to help save fellow soldiers. 37 wounds. Received the Medal of Honor in 1981.

Anti-War Movement In the U.S., the war became very divisive. Demonstrations were staged throughout the country “credibility gap”

Richard Nixon President Nixon elected in 1968, escalated the war. He bombed the North and began a policy of Vietnamization to give the South Vietnamese a larger stake in the war. The U.S. signed an agreement with North Vietnam, withdrawing its forces from Vietnam. Fighting continued until the fall of Saigon in 1975, when Vietnam was re-united under Communist rule.

Challenging Conformity In the 1960s, Americans youths challenged the conforming behavior of their parents. The Beat poets and writers, like Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac, were forerunners of this new counter-culture. Beatniks Hippies “Freedom”: youth movement pushing for for greater personal freedom

26 th Amendment The right to vote to all citizens over 18 years old