The 1960s were marked with the eruption of various social movements across the United States of America. Nowadays, the talks about them cause lots of controversies, as far from everyone thinks that that era became the watershed in American history. The Social Protests movements of the 1960s often cause an air of disappointment, and most Americans think that despite the fact the idea was good, it was not finished just fading into the background and bringing no changes. The aim of this paper is to argue against this statement. One cannot call the Social Protests movements of the 1960s frustrating, as they not just granted equality or its beginnings to the specific groups of the American population but also gave people strength to claim their rights, voice opinion, and make changes.
The Social Protests movements of the 1960s arose because of several connected to each other reasons. In the 1930s, the role of the federal government in the life of people significantly increased, and it became the main power that should have solved the social problems across the country. After the Second World War, the influence and power of the United States of America in the world expanded, and the Cold War and the conflicts with the USSR convinced Americans and citizens of other countries in the superiority of the Western democracy. When John Kennedy became President, he promised Americans the “government possessed big answers to big problems” (Patterson 316). During the 1950s and 1960s, the country experienced economic prosperity, and the promises of the new President seemed realistic. Kennedy’s statement became the slogan that determined the expectations of the nation during the decade. However, the Presidency of Kennedy and his successor Lyndon Johnson was not notable for the promised answers, and the expectations dwindled. Officially, Johnson supported Kennedy’s politics of “big answers to big problems” and promised Americans to increase the level of the United States and "to move not only toward the rich society and the powerful society, but upward to the Great Society" (Patterson 394). His promises remained just promises, as along with the war on poverty, Johnson and his government fought the war in Vietnam. The American budget could not sponsor both wars, and the priority was given to the one that could increase the influence of the country on the international stage. In the 1960s, the Vietnam War gained momentum, and Congress issued a decree about the general draft. The promises of the American government did not meet its actions and led to the growth of the popular discontent. In should not go unnoticed that the 1960s were the era of television and were marked with the rise of the educational levels. As the result, American youth had a better understanding of the world issues and became more active and brave to start companies aimed to attract the attention of the government to the issues of domestic politics.
One cannot say that the Social Protests movements of the 1960s passed without leaving a trace. Wasow writes that the American government reacted to the 1960s protests with the “increased investments in social policy and other redistributive policies” (Wasow 9). However, as one can understand, it was just a temporary reaction that could disappear soon after the end of social unrests. The Social Protests movements of the 1960s went far beyond that achievement to gain more important and global points. For instance, let’s consider the civil rights movement, the first and one of the largest to arise in the 1960s. The civil right movement appeared among Southern Black Americans because of the racial discrimination in the issues of education, employment, and voting. It brought popularity to the greatest person in the history of Blacks in the United States, Martin Luther King. The participants of the civil rights movement declared the tactics of non-violence born of the aggressive manifestations of racism. However, according to Wasow, they also deliberated over the violent tactics that were caused by the governmental repressions (Wasow 39). The expansion and scales of the social rights movement and the ability of its participants to resist finally drew the attention of the government to the problems of African-American people in the United States. In 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that disallowed segregation and granted African Americans equal educational and employment rights. One year later, Congress adopted the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and ensured them the right to vote. As Patterson writes, “these [acts] were the most significant of the many Great Society laws that expanded rights-consciousness in America” (Patterson 409). They symbolized the defining moment in the lives and the social standing of African Americans in the American society equaling them with Whites. The Acts of 1964 and 1965 granted modern black Americans the life lots of them have, and it was the greatest accomplishment of their parents and grandparents.
One should also mention the women’s movement that arose in the late 1960s against the background of social oppression and the traditional role of women that lied in being housewives and raising children. The physical weaknesses and the destined role of mothers deprived women of getting careers and social status and made them dependent on their husbands. One of the most important achievements of the women’s movement was the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 1963, the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women published the report that highlighted gender inequality in the American society. That publication motivated women to advocate for their rights, and Kennedy ordered private employers to hire people due to their skills, not sex. The Equal Pay Act passed the same year prohibited gender differences in payment rates. Despite the government laws, the gender discrimination continued, and in 1966, Betty Friedan formed the National Organization for Women that claimed against gender job discrimination and supported the rights of women on having a career. However, according to Wood, the main goal of the women’s movement was the passage of The Equal Rights Amendment that officially guaranteed men and women the equality of rights all across the United States (Wood 3). Despite the fact it has never been added to the Constitution, lots of its states “now guarantee equal rights for women under the law” (Wood 3). The 1960s women’s movement significantly contributed into the social background of American women and the rights they have nowadays.
One more social movement that is definitely worth to mention was the anti-Vietnam War movement that appeared against the background of the escalated military actions in Vietnam. It was massive and wide spreading and got support from lots of people including the participants of the other social movements, students, women, and African Americans. According to Lester, the scales of the movement were so great that influenced not just American citizens but also the government and caused disagreements within the Johnson administration (Lester vi). On March 31, 1968, Johnson made the public speech regarding the military actions in Vietnam and the necessity to solve the conflict during peace negotiations. Lester writes, “the president's attempts to deal with the antiwar opposition changed between 1963 and 1969 from grudging tolerance to outright attacks and then to pained acceptance” (Lester vii). Despite the fact historians doubt the importance of the anti-Vietnam War movement in the anti-war policies, there is no escaping the fact that in November 1968, Johnson announced the end of bombings in North Vietnam and the beginnings of negotiations in January 1969. Furthermore, the next president Richard Nixon gained popularity and won the presidential race due to his promises to completely end the war.
Indeed, the successes of the 1960s Social Protests movements were not limited to the ones mentioned above. Along with the achievements of the turning points in the rights of women and African-Americans and the end of the Vietnam War, the foundations of further changes were laid in the governmental and social acceptance of gays, the National Environmental Act of 1970, etc. Stewart et al. state that despite the fact we often doubt the impact of the social movements, their main significance is the way they influence individual psychology (Stewart et al. 91). The social movements of the 1960s not just gave Americans an opportunity to claim their rights but also increased the social interest towards political issues and decisions, the tradition we continue to follow nowadays.
Works Cited
Lester, Robert E. “The Johnson Administration’s Response to Anti-Vietnam War Activities. Part 1: White House Aides’ Files.” Lexis Nexis. The Library of Congress, 2004. Print.
Patterson, James T. Great Expectations: The United States, 1945-1974. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1996. E-book. PDF.
Stewart, Abigail J., Settles, Isis H., and Nicholas J. G. Winter. “Women and the Social Movements of the 1960s: Activists, Engaged Observers, and Nonparticipants.” Political Psychology 19.1 (1998): 63-94. Print.
Wasow, Omar. “Do Protest Tactics Matter? Evidence from the 1960s Black Insurgency.” Race, Ethnicity and Immigration Colloquium. Berkeley, 10 Jan 2016. PDF.
Wood, L. Maren. “The Women’s Movement.” LEARN NC. LEARN NC, n.d. Web. PDF. Accessed 6 Jun 2016.
