Chapter 38: The Stormy Sixties, 1960-1968 Flashcards
- Did Kennedy fulfill his promise to get America moving again? Why or why not?
Kennedy took strong action in favor of equal rights through calling for new civil rights legislation. After the failed invasion of Cuba, the USSR began to stockpile even more weapons, and the space race began. The Kennedys are known for their participation in the growth of technology that put a man on the moon. Later, Kennedy found that both countries would benefit if they slowed the arms race, and his administration helped make progress towards the end of the Cold War. Therefore, yes, in many ways, Kennedy did fulfill his promise to get America moving again.
- Was the nonviolent civil rights movement of the 1960s a success? Why or why not? Can it be argued that the violent protests of the civil rights movement were more successful than the nonviolent protests?
The nonviolent civil rights movement of the 1960s was certainly a success, even more so than the violent protests. Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., and others fought peacefully for civil rights. African Americans would walk into “white” areas in peaceful protest, and they received plenty of attention for it. Actually, most violent protests began after African Americans had already made their most prominent legal victories. For example, in the case of Brown vs. Board of Education the Supreme court ruled against the “separate but equal” doctrine of the Plessy vs. Ferguson. Later, in 1955, President Eisenhower established a Committee to enforce nondiscrimination in government employment, and soon after the Supreme Court expounded on the Brown vs. Board of Education case to say that segregation must end with “deliberate speed.” Sit ins and the desegregation of schools continued. Up until this point, Civil Rights action was primarily nonviolent on the side of African Americans. The Civil Rights Act was signed in 1860. In the 1960s, more violent campaigns began, and President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights act in 1965. While the violent protests no doubt had an effect on the reforms passed in the 1960s, a large portion of the Civil Rights progress was made in the nonviolent 1950s action, making it difficult to deem whether the violent actions were any more successful. To me, it seems that the nonviolent action was more successful during the 50s, so the 60s were probably not any better off for the violence that occurred in them.
- What were the causes of the Vietnam War?
The Vietnam War began because the Vietnamese sought freedom and independence from France and China. Before World War II, Vietnam was under the rule of the French Empire. During the war, the Japanese took control. After the war, the Japanese left and the Vietnamese set up their own government under Ho Chi Minh, but the Allies returned South Vietnam to France, while leaving the North under the Chinese. The Chinese were very nationalistic, which caused them to treat the Vietnamese brutally, so Vietnam’s forces gathered around Ho Chi Minh to gain freedom. The Chinese left North Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh’s hands in the 1940s, and France attempted to reclaim the North. The primary reason for the start of America’s involvement in the Vietnam War was the Cold War. Ho Chi Minh was a communist, backed by the USSR and China, so because America feared the spread of communism in South Asia, they aided the French. The fighting was brutal and resulted in the deaths of many.
- Were the cultural upheavals of the 1960s a result of the political crisis, or were developments like the sexual revolution and the student revolts inevitable results of affluence and the baby boom?
The cultural upheavals of the 1960s were a result of a combination of the political crisis and the baby boom. The political crisis caused the technological changes in culture that America began to experience. For example, when the Soviets sent the first man into space, Americans were alarmed and worked to send a man to the moon. New, modern spying devices and technology were created because of the Cold War. Student revolts started because of the Vietnam War. The sexual revolution, however, sprouted because of the baby boom. The baby boomers who did not participate in the political action became hippies who exercised “free love” and sex, and the sexual revolution spread from them.
