Other Protest Movements Flashcards
how did the civil rights protests affect other protests movements
-inspired groups which were facing similar discrimination to protest
reasons for the growth of protest movements
-emergence of teenagers - rebelled against parents and questioned their beliefs. More went to Uni and started to form and join protests groups. Films like Rebel without a Cause and musicians like Elvis Presly created a separate culture for young people
-Media - American homes had TVs and saw what was happening in the Vietnam War, leading to a growth in opposition to the war. Coverage in protests attracted more supporters and opposition, and coverage of issues like racism increased awareness and support in protests.
-Increasing role of Government - after Roosevelt’s intervention during the Great Depression, it became more accepted that the Federal government should intervene to solve problems. By the 1960s, people protested to ask the government to take action for recognised injustices
-Baby boomers made up large proportion of population, people listened to them as they were so many of them
-Economic Prosperity - great prosperity in USA, but mainly for white men, highlighting people who were not so fortunate
-protests movements elsewhere - other protest movements inspired people to protests in USA, e.g. protest in Paris where workers went on strike against capitalism and traditional values
-music and arts - ideas were communicated through these forms which challenged American traditions e.g. The Beatles
why were there student protests
-rise in Americans that went to college (nearly 40%)
-with student became more concerned with major social issues and injustices that existed in American Society
-rejected opinions of older people including parents, thought these people created a corrupt society with inequality, “Don’t trust anyone over 30”
-joined existing protests and organisations, and campaigned on a variety of social issues
-most left wing, thought government should intervene
student for a democratic society features
-protest organisation set up by students
-aims to campaign against racial injustice, war and the violation of human rights
-protested against rules that allowed university officials acting like the student’s parents by setting strict rules
-150 colleges had SDS groups and had 100k members in the 1960s
Berkeley free speech movement features
-protested against racial discrimination on the university campus
-university banned students from protesting on university ground
-students ignored the ban and continued protesting, a few were suspended, so the other 400 students signed a petition and filled the hall of administration building demanding to be suspended
-police were called and arrested one protestor, but the police car was blocked for 32 hours by students. More police came and threatened to arrest all the protestors but students negotiated with university’s president and agreed to leave
-students created the Free Speech Movement to protest until they won the right to hold protests and speak about anything on university grounds.
-FSM held rallies and handed out leaflets to gain support. 14k students at Berkeley were in FSM
-4 students who were suspended were charged with breaking university rules, so the FSM organised a rally and sit-in of the administration building which was supported by 6,000 students
-police arrested protestors, taking them 12 hours to make 750 arrests
-university staff voted for there to be no limits on protests on the campus
achievements of student movements
-did not gain support of US society
-large numbers of issues protested was an issue
-united on opposition to Vietnam war
Vietnam War
-tensions between communist North Vietnam and anti-communist South Vietnam increased
-during cold war, US presidents wanted south Vietnam to remain capitalist to encourage other South Asian countries to remain capitalist
-USA supported them, and the situation became a war, and the North sent soldiers into the South to help southern communist take over the country
-North Vietnamese boats attacked American boats off the coast of Vietnam, leading to Congress passing Guld of Tonkin Resolution requested by Johnson, allowing Johnson to do anything necessary to prevent attacks on US forces without approval from Congress
-US soldiers became more involved as the war went on, there were 500,000 US soldiers in Vietnam
-was a difficult war for USA, eventually troops were pulled out by Nixon in 1973, and in 1975 South Vietnam fallen to communist North
why did protestors oppose the Vietnam War
-huge cost of US intervention with little success
-rising deaths and injuries to US troops
-Us support of corrupt South Vietnam government
-USA acted like an imperial power by enforcing its will on another country
-US tactics of mass bombings and chemical weapons to destroy crops and forests killed and injured many Vietnamese civilians
-draft system which was unfair, average age was just 21(students were exempt from the draft
-footage of burning villages and terrified and injured children were broadcasted on TV
-media could broadcast what they wanted, and created opposition to the war
Anti-Vietnam War protest methods
-mass rallies, where protestors shouted ‘Hey, hey, LBJ, how many kids did you kill today?’, and ‘Hell no, we won’t go!’
-sit-ins and teach-ins, where people gave lectures on conflict in Vietnam in public buildings, army recruitment centres and railway tracks transporting troops
-burning draft cards and helping those who had been drafted to go into hiding or leave USA, and giving advice to avoid being drafted
what happened in Kent State University in Ohio
-national guardsmen were called to break up a protest on 4 May 1970
-students refused to move despite tear gas being used
-troops fired into the crowd
-4 killed 11 injured
impact of Anti-Vietnam war movement
-split society into who supported the war and those who did not
-led to Johnson not running for re-election
-led to Nixon being elected, had a policy of Vietnamization
-not clear if protests led to government withdrawing from Vietnam
-Protestors were not trusted by Americans, they were unpatriotic and declared support for communism and burned US flag
Hippies features
-promoted peace, love, happiness and experimented with sex, dugs, art and music
-lived in communes or vans
-had long hair and colourful clothing
-passionately protested on civil rights, women’s rights and anti-war
-wore flowers, were called ‘flower children’
hippies impacts
-shocked Americans, did not understand why they behaved this way and thought they were harming the country
-hippies had little impact on government policies
-led to equality and acceptance on sexuality, race or gender
attitudes to women before women’s movement
-Americans believed that a woman’s primary role was to look after the home and raise children
-when they married it was expected to give up jobs and become housewives
-some companies dismissed female employees once married
Roosevelt
-campaigned for women’s civil rights since 1930s, encouraged women to protest
-held women only press conferences, so female journalists had to be employed
-pressured her husband and later presidents to employ more women
-wrote many articles and made broadcasts on her opinion and women’s civil rights
-helped draft the universal declaration of human rights
-supported JFK in his campaign as he created PCSW
-joined PSCW which promoted women’s civil rights
-women earned 50-60% less and less few career opportunity
-Equal Pay Act was signed by JFK in 1963
