1. The economic boom of the 1950s dipped into a recession
By 1960, Americans were anxious about the changes that had taken place in the 1950s
The economic boom of the 1950s dipped into a recession
Soviet launch of Sputnik in 1957
The rise of Fidel Castro in Cuba in 1959
Rock ‘n’ roll music scared parents
Civil rights protests increased fears of racial violence
Communism in Vietnam
Use of brinksmanship & build up of ICBMs led to fears of a nuclear attack
Eisenhower’s foreign policies made many people wonder if America was losing the Cold War
The U-2 incident

2. The election of 1960 marked a turning point in U.S. politics
Republican Richard Nixon offered experience
Served 8 years as VP
Had foreign policy experience during the critical stages of the Cold War
Promised to keep gov’t spending & taxes low

3. The election of 1960 marked a turning point in U.S. politics
Democrat John F. Kennedy offered youth & hope
Served 2 Senate terms
Had no foreign policy experience; Seen as inexperienced; Catholic
But, offered active leadership to address America’s problems

4. The election of 1960 marked a turning point in U.S. politics
1960 was the 1st time presidential debates were on TV
TV debates helped JFK win the election
1960 marked the beginning of TV dominance in politics
With full 6.23 video play

5. JFK’s family captivated the nation
President Kennedy represented youth, charisma, hope, & a new approach to government
JFK’s family captivated the nation

6. JFK’s family captivated the nation
President Kennedy represented youth, charisma, hope, & a new approach to government
First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy created new standards of American fashion for women
JFK’s family captivated the nation

7. The nation adored their two young children
President Kennedy represented youth, charisma, hope, & a new approach to government
The nation adored their two young children

8. President Kennedy’s vision for America was called the “New Frontier”
He filled out his cabinet & White House staff with the “best & the brightest” political minds in America
President Kennedy wanted to improve the lives of all Americans
After the violence in Birmingham in 1963, JFK committed to create the Civil Rights Act
He wanted to wage a “war on poverty” to help close the gap between the rich & the poor

9. In the Cold War, JFK took a strong stand against the Soviet Union
He believed that the USSR had more ICBMs (“missile gap”) & better space technology
I am directing the Secretary of Defense to undertake a reorganization and modernization o the Army's divisional structure, to increase its non-nuclear firepower, to improve its tactical mobility in any environment, to insure its flexibility to meet any direct or indirect threat, to facilitate its coordination with our major allies, and to provide more modern mechanized divisions in Europe and bring their equipment up to date, and [to provide] new airborne brigades in both the Pacific and Europe.
President John F. Kennedy

10. He wanted a “flexible response” to fight the Cold War: more ICBMs but also a bigger military
He wanted a “first strike capability” against the USSR, (rather than “mutually assured destruction”)
I am directing the Secretary of Defense to undertake a reorganization and modernization o the Army's divisional structure, to increase its non-nuclear firepower, to improve its tactical mobility in any environment, to insure its flexibility to meet any direct or indirect threat, to facilitate its coordination with our major allies, and to provide more modern mechanized divisions in Europe and bring their equipment up to date, and [to provide] new airborne brigades in both the Pacific and Europe.
President John F. Kennedy

11. President Kennedy fought the Cold War in other ways
JFK created the Peace Corps in 1961 to send humanitarian aid & improve U.S. relations with under-developed nations

12. President Kennedy fought the Cold War in other ways
In 1962, JFK committed the U.S. to catch the USSR in the space race by landing a man on the moon by the end of the decade

13. Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, “Buzz” Aldrin
U.S. landed on the moon in 1969
Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, “Buzz” Aldrin

14. In JFK’s first year in office, Soviet leader Khrushchev threatened to cut off access to West Berlin
to never give up access to West Berlin

15. JFK vowed to never give up access to West Berlin
In JFK’s first year in office, Soviet leader Khrushchev threatened to cut off access to West Berlin
JFK vowed to never give up access to West Berlin
to never give up access to West Berlin
“Ich bin ein Berliner”

16. Rather than blockade the city, Communist leaders built the Berlin Wall to keep East Germans out of West Berlin

17. Walls and other barriers 10–15 feet high surrounded West Berlin
Walls and other barriers 10–15 feet high surrounded West Berlin. The length of the barriers around the city totaled about 110 miles
The “death strip” stretched like a barren moat around West Berlin, with patrols, floodlights, electric fences, and vehicle traps between the inner and outer walls

18. In 1959, Fidel Castro gained control of Cuba, seized property, & took aid from Khrushchev in the Soviet Union

19. Under Eisenhower, the CIA trained Cuban exiles to invade the island & overthrow of Castro
In 1961, JFK authorized the plan, but the Bay of Pigs invasion failed after JFK called off air strikes on Cuba
JFK went on TV & took responsibility for the failure at the Bay of Pigs

20. After the failure at the Bay of Pigs, Soviet leader Khrushchev promised to defend Cuba from the USA

21. In 1962, U.S. spy planes revealed nuclear missile camps in Cuba

22. JFK warned that he would not allow nuclear missiles in Cuba
If assembled, Soviet ICBMs in Cuba would give the USSR first strike capability on U.S. targets
JFK warned that he would not allow nuclear missiles in Cuba

23. Quick Class Discussion: How should President Kennedy respond?
Advisors presented JFK with several options
What are the positives/negatives of each?
What should JFK do? Rank order these options
Immediate air strike on existing missile sites
Full military invasion of Cuba; Take out Castro
Diplomacy: trade ICBMs in Cuba for ours in Turkey?
Naval blockade to keep out the in-route Soviet missiles

24. Kennedy announced a quarantine (blockade) to keep more missiles out & demanded that the Soviets remove the missiles already in Cuba
Soviet ships, escorted by nuclear-equipped submarines, soon approached the quarantine line & the world waited for World War III

25. The standoff ended when a deal was reached
Soviet ships turned around at the last minute & Khrushchev removed its missiles from Cuba

26. The standoff ended when a deal was reached
Soviet ships turned around at the last minute & Khrushchev removed its missiles from Cuba
JFK promised that the U.S. would not invade Cuba & secretly agreed to remove ICBMs from Turkey
The crisis ended as a victory for JFK, but it revealed how close the two sides came to nuclear war

27. The Assassination of JFK
On Nov 22, 1963 John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas

28. The Assassination of JFK
On Nov 22, 1963 John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas
Chronology of events:
Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested
VP Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as president on Air Force One
Two days later, Oswald was killed by Jack Ruby
After a 10 month investigation, the Warren Report stated that Oswald was a “lone gunman”
Kennedy's Assassination: Dallas Chronology. Sequential chronology of the SPECIFIC, PROVABLE events that took place in Dallas on November 23, 1963.
11:40 a.m. Air Force One arrives at Love Field in Dallas, Texas.
11:45 a.m. The Presidential motorcade leaves Love Field.
11:50 a.m. President Kennedy stops to greet youngsters at Lemmon Avenue and Lomo Alto Drive.
12:22 p.m. The motorcade stops at Ervay Street.
12:30 p.m. President Kennedy and Senator John Connally are hit by bullets. Their limousine speeds to Parkland Memorial Hospital.
12:36 p.m. The President's limousine arrives at Parkland.
12:40 p.m. Vice presidential aides arrive at Trade Mart, where a crowd is awaiting the president's arrival.
12:40 p.m. Lee Harvey Oswald boards a bus.
12:44 p.m. Oswald gets off the bus.
12:47 p.m. Oswald enters a cab.
12:54 p.m. Oswald leaves the cab and walks to his boarding house.
12:59 p.m. Oswald arrives at his boarding house. He leaves several minutes later with a pistol.
1:15 p.m. Oswald is stopped by police officer J.D. Tippit. Tippit is shot to death.
1:45 p.m. Oswald runs into the Texas Theater.
1:50 p.m. Oswald is arrested inside the theater.
2:08 p.m. A hearse bearing Kennedy's body leaves Parkland hospital.
2:15 p.m. The hearse arrives at Love Field.
11/24/63:
Morning Jack Ruby is at his apartment when a friend calls asking him to wire $25.
11:17 a.m. Ruby arrives at Western Union to wire the money.
11:21 a.m. Ruby shoots Oswald.

29. JFK Conspiracy Theories
For more information on JFK conspiracy theories, check out this link

30. JFK’s assassination had important consequences for America
The “martyrdom” of JFK put pressure on Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964
VP Lyndon Johnson carried out JFK’s “war on poverty”
LBJ enacted his own program called the “Great Society” with civil rights, medical, environmental, & social programs

31. In 1963, LBJ finished the last year of JFK’s presidency & then ran for president in the 1964 election
His opponent was conservative Republican Barry Goldwater who talked about strongly resisting the USSR with nuclear weapons
LBJ won & began his “Great Society,” the broadest series of social reforms since FDR’s New Deal
The Great Society was

33. By 1963, the momentum of the civil rights movement caused President Kennedy to draft a civil rights bill that would outlaw all segregation
But, before the law could be written, President Kennedy was assassinated in November 1963
VP Lyndon Johnson assumed the presidency & pushed the bill through Congress

34. President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964
The law outlawed discrimination based on race, religion, & gender & ended most Jim Crow laws
The law integrated restaurants & hotels & gave the Justice Dept power to sue businesses that failed to comply with the law
History Channel link is broken:

35. Despite the success of the Civil Rights Act, African American leaders were not satisfied because the law did not protect voting rights
Southern state governments used literacy tests & poll taxes to restrict black citizens from voting
In most Southern states, less than half of eligible African Americans were registered to vote

36. Civil rights leaders responded with new initiatives to bring voting rights
In 1964, white & black college students took part in Freedom Summer to help register African American voters in Mississippi
Freedom Summer volunteers faced resistance; 3 volunteers were murdered by the KKK & local police

37. In 1965, MLK organized a march in Selma, Alabama to protest voting restrictions
Police violence at Selma convinced President Johnson to push for a new federal voting law
In an effort to bring the issue of voting rights to national attention, Martin Luther King, Jr. launched a voter registration drive in Selma, Alabama, in early Even though blacks slightly outnumbered whites in the city of 29,500 people, Selma's voting rolls were 99 percent white and 1 percent black. For seven weeks, King led hundreds of Selma's black residents to the county courthouse to register to vote. Nearly 2,000 black demonstrators, including King, were jailed by County Sheriff James Clark for contempt of court, juvenile delinquency, and parading without a permit. After a federal court ordered Clark not to interfere with orderly registration, the sheriff forced black applicants to stand in line for up to five hours before being permitted to take a "literacy" test. Not a single black voter was added to the registration rolls.
When a young black man was murdered in nearby Marion, King responded by calling for a march from Selma to the state capitol of Montgomery, 50 miles away. On March 7, 1965, black voting-rights demonstrators prepared to march. "I can't promise you that it won't get you beaten," King told them, "... but we must stand up for what is right!" As they crossed a bridge spanning the Alabama River, 200 state police with tear gas, night sticks, and whips attacked them. The march resumed on March 21 with federal protection. The marchers chanted: "Segregation's got to fall ... you never can jail us all." On March 25 a crowd of 25,000 gathered at the state capitol to celebrate the march's completion. Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed the crowd and called for an end to segregated schools, poverty, and voting discrimination. "I know you are asking today, 'How long will it take?' ... How long? Not long, because no lie can live forever."
Within hours of the march's end, four Ku Klux Klan members shot and killed a 39-year-old white civil rights volunteer from Detroit named Viola Liuzzo. President Johnson expressed the nation's shock and anger. "Mrs. Liuzzo went to Alabama to serve the struggle for justice," the President said. "She was murdered by the enemies of justice who for decades have used the rope and the gun and the tar and the feather to terrorize their neighbors."
Two measures adopted in 1965 helped safeguard the voting rights of black Americans. On January 23, the states completed ratification of the 24th Amendment to the Constitution barring a poll tax in federal elections. At the time, five Southern states still had a poll tax. On August 6, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act, which prohibited literacy tests and sent federal examiners to seven Southern states to register black voters. Within a year, 450,000 Southern blacks registered to vote.

38. After the Selma march, LBJ signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965
Banned literacy tests & sent federal voting officials into the South to protect voters
Voter turnout & registration increased among black citizens
African Americans elected black politicians for the 1st time since Reconstruction
The act finally accomplished what Republicans had envisioned with the 15th Amendment in 1870

40. The Civil Rights movement of the 1950s & 1960s finally brought an end to segregation
African Americans brought an end to segregation and gained true voting rights
The Civil Rights movement inspired other minority groups to demand equality

42. 1968: A Year of Turmoil
Americans experienced great change in the 1960s:
The decade began with hope & optimism under Kennedy
But, events in the mid-1960s increased tensions & anxieties
The decade closed in 1968 with one of the most tumultuous years in U.S. history

43. 1968: The Assassination of MLK
James Earl Ray
In 1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated

44. 1968: The Assassination of MLK
Stokely Carmichael
MLK’s death set off race riots in over 100 cities

45. 1968: The Assassination of MLK
The Black Panthers
Stokely Carmichael & SNCC
Stokely Carmichael
MLK’s assassination marked a turning point in the civil rights movement from nonviolence to radicalism & “Black Power”
The Black Panthers

46. 1968: The Assassination of Robert Kennedy
Sirhan Sirhan
In 1968, JFK’s brother Robert Kennedy was assassinated when he ran for president

47. 1968: The Assassination of Robert Kennedy
RFK’s death divided the Democratic Party & led to a massive, violent protest at the Chicago Democratic National Convention

48. 1968: The Assassination of Robert Kennedy
Republican Richard Nixon took advantage of the divided Democrats & won the 1968 election

49. 1968: Student Protest & Vietnam
Since 1965, Americans were sent to fight Communism in Vietnam

50. 1968: Student Protest & Vietnam
1968 was the height of the Vietnam War & the year of the disastrous Tet Offensive

51. 1968: Student Protest & Vietnam
Students & activists across the country protested American involvement in Vietnam

52. 1968: Student Protest & Vietnam
The anti-war protest convinced Lyndon Johnson not to run for a second term as president