Paper 2 Theme 1 Flashcards
How did nature of cities change 1955-63?
- population rose from 130 million in 1940 to 165 million by the mid 1950s
- 1950- 96.5 million people in urban areas, 1960- 124.7 million
- people moved from rural areas to town and cities
- black Americans escaped rural poverty- 1950s, USA’s 12 largest cities gained 1.8 million non-white residents
- 1960s- cities were becoming segregated, black Americans lived in certain areas like Harlem in New York and white Americans lived in suburbs
How did suburbs expand 1955-63?
- white residents left cities to live in suburbs
- 1960- home ownership became the norm, 3 in 5 families owned a home
- people moved form the North East to the ‘Sun belt’, Florida, Texas and California
- between 1950 and 1960 18 million people moved to suburbs
How did development of highways change 1955-63?
- between 1945 and 1960, the number of cars in the USA increased by 133%
- 1956 Defence Highways act improved the USA’s highway structure
- 10 year programme to construct 42,500 miles of interstate highways - cost $25 billion
How did car ownership change 1955-63?
- Detroit became car-producing centre of the world and produced 8 million cars in 1955 compared to 2 million 1946
- 1 in 7 Americans worked in an industry linked to car manufacture
- 1960- 75% of Americans owned at least one car and 15% owned more than one per family
- car-based culture appeared, 3000 new drive-in movie theatres, 1800 out of town shopping malls
How did white collar jobs and service industries change 1955-63?
- 1956 for the first time in the USA, there were more white-collar jobs than blue collar
- 1960- twice as many women in work than in 1940
- 1950- America increased defence spending which created lots of jobs
- because of the rise in white collar jobs and service industries, in the 1950s the average suburban family earned $6,500 a year- 70% more than the rest of the USA
How did consumerism and domestic technology change 1955-63?
- 1950- first credit card was introduced, by 1960 it was common
- between 1955 and 1963 there were new models of cars, TVs, radios etc.
- old city-centre retail areas declined and were replaced with new, out of town shopping centres
- teenagers influenced the music industry- idols like Elvis Presley were nationally known
- 1945 there were only 8 shopping centres in the whole country, by 1960 this rose to over 4000
To what extent was there conformity and challenge in literature 1955-63?
Conformity: best selling books were about men who worked in offices and lived in suburbia. ‘Life magazine’ produced a special about the ideal middle-class woman, ‘pretty and popular’, mother of four children and married at 16- shown as an excellent wife and home manager
Challenge: ‘the Organization Man’ criticised corporate America, authors argued there was a pressure to conform at a young age
To what extent was there conformity and challenge in TV 1955-63?
Conformity: lots of family sitcoms e.g ‘Father Knows Best’ showed white, middle class, suburban life. Very few roles for black actors, when they did get roles they tended to be minor, subservient roles e.g the butler Rochester in ‘The Jack Benny Show’
Challenge: for the first time in 1963 a black man, Sidney Poitier, won the Best Actor Oscar for his role in ‘Lilies of the Field’
To what extent was there conformity and challenge in film and Hollywood 1955-63?
Conformity: lots of popular Western movies that portrayed heroic men and submissive women with ‘evil Indians’
Challenge: more sexually explicit films were popular, some movies challenged racial stereotypes. Action movies and escapism was popular. Suburban life was not a common theme- 1957 ‘No Down Payment’ about a suburban family flopped
To what extent was there conformity in advertising 1955-63?
- showed traditional ideas and promoted conformity
- they encouraged consumer spending- advertisers spent $10 billion a year during 1950s and 60s to persuade customers to spend
Where was there evidence of challenge in teen culture?
- the beats/beatniks were middle class young people, mainly in New York, who didn’t like consumer culture and conformity of the 1950s and 60s, they preferred spontaneity, drugs and free love. Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac were some of the first members of the ‘beat generation’
- beatnik culture developed the popularity of rhythm and blues and folk music, it drew attention to young musicians like Bob Dylan. Some beats became acclaimed writers and musicians, they were a media sensation and it became almost fashionable for young people to have an anti-establishment attitude
music industry: Rock n Roll was popular with young people, had sexual lyrics and black artists.
- Elvis Presley had a lot of appeal- sexual dance moves made him popular, had number 1 singles and became a national idol.
- Berry Gordy founded the ‘Motown’ record label which had a distinctive black American sound- began the popularity of black American music.
- Rock n Roll began with teenagers and was later adopted by college students- all young people began to like it
Give context of the Civil Rights movement?
- the age of affluence was a white phenomena- considerable racial discrimination
- legal segregation continued into 1950s, separate schools, benches etc.
- racial discrimination continued in housing and jobs- suburbs had mainly white people, black Americans lived in inner-city areas, usually with poor accommodation
How successful was the Montgomery bus boycott in improving rights for black Americans?
- buses were segregated into black and white areas
- black people refused to be segregated and so began boycotting the buses by walking
- lasted 382 days and most of Montgomery’s black population participated
success?
- Rosa Parks arrested in December 1956 BUT Supreme Court ruled that segregation was unconstitutional
- success of the boycott lead to created of the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) which was against segregation in the South
- led to the rise of MLK as a central figure of Civil Rights movement
- buses in Montgomery were desegregated BUT there was segregation in other public places
How successful were the 1960 Lunch Counter sit-ins in improving rights for black Americans?
- lunch counter at a Woolworth store was segregated
- black people sat in the ‘whites-only’ section and refused to move- was a peaceful protest
success?
- forced the store to end racial discrimination at lunch counters
- their actions created the SNCC (Students non-violent Co-ordinating Committee)
How successful were the 1963 Birmingham, Alabama protests in improving rights for black Americans?
- Martin Luther King encouraged black schoolchildren and other black people to join protest marches
- protestors were attacked by dogs and hoses by white people who were against them- confronted by police
- series of peaceful protests led to MLK being arrested
success?
- got a lot of media coverage, people who didn’t know about the racism in the South learnt about it - inspired more protests
- sight of police dogs and heavy-handed police on prime time TV horrified a lot of people
- Kennedy govt introduced new Civil Rights legislation, wanted to introduce a Civil Rights Act to give black people the same rights as white people- became the 1964 Civil Rights Act
How successful was the 1963 March on Washington in improving rights for black Americans?
- 250,000 people marched in Washington, 1963
- lots of speakers including MLK ‘I have a dream’ speech
- organisations e.g NAACP, SNCC and the SCLC hoped that a well-attended march would gain publicity to encourage Congress to pass the Civil Rights Bill
success?
- many people believed the emotional impact of the speech and the march contributed to the passing of the Civil Rights Act
- MLK awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and became one of the most respected Americans in the world
Why was Little Rock 1957 significant?
context: group of 9 black students joined Little Rock high school, were met with angry mobs
- NAACP helped the case, saw it as potential for desegregation
- Eisenhower and the governor had a meeting- police accompanied students there
- Elizabeth Eckford missed the bus so was not protected and met by angry mobs
- Eisenhower sent in paratroopers due to violent mobs outside the school
- black people liked Orval Faubus- he ordered black children to be protected by guards
why significant?
- showed the level of white resistance- mobs, violence, intimidation
- gave civil rights a national/international profile- televised across USA and the world
- role of President- following TV coverage, sent in army to protect black students
How effective was white resistance in the Emmett Till case?
- 1955 Emmett Till murdered for talking to a white girl in Mississippi while on holiday from Chicago- perpetrators were out on trial but acquitted, throughout 1955-63 the KKK still gave death threats and attacks
How effective was ‘the Southern Manifesto’ 1956?
- 100 Congressmen signed ‘the Southern Manifesto’ which pledged to support segregation- politicians had a lot of power, majority of the Congressmen were in the Democratic party which ruled Congress in late 1950s- effective because they had power to change legislation in Congress
How effective was white resistance to Little Rock 1957?
- President got involved and it was televised- arguably ineffective because white resistance was stopped by the President and the Little Rock 9 still went to the high school
How effective was white politician’s resistance to the Civil Rights act?
1957- politicians ensured the Civil Rights act would have little impact on segregation- slowed down the legal process, made it difficult for JFK to pass legislation to aid black Americans
How effective was white resistance to 1961 Freedom riders?
- faced violence from KKK- there were a number of violent attacks against them e.g they faced violence when they tried to use a whites-only waiting in Alabama and a bus was firebombed in Anniston, Alabama- effective because it would’ve stopped some freedom riders wanting to protest
How effective was the White Citizens Committee?
- 1961-62- White Citizens Committee members helped Governor Faubus and other Southern politicians to oppose school desegregation, by 1963 only 9% of Old South school districts were desegregated due to white resistance. Opposed James Meredith’s attempt to enter University of Mississippi- helped block advancements to civil rights so were successful. However failed to prevent federal intervention in Little Rock
How effective was white resistance with the NAACP?
- 1963- Leader of NAACP, Medgar Evers was assassinated by a member of the KKK- perpetrator was never brought to trial- effective because the perpetrator never faced punishment
