The Restoration of Coservative Social Policies (1968-1974) Flashcards
What is the Silent Majority?
It refers to the large group of Americans who did not publicly express their opinions but who Nixon believed supported his policies, especially regarding the Vietnam War and law and order
What did Nixon do regarding welfare and taxation?
- He proposed a negative income tax
- He tried to expand the Food Stamp Programme, renaming it the Family Assistance Programme (FAP) but he let it die in 1972
- He introduced the Supplemental Security Income (provided guaranteed income for the elderly and disabled)
- He increased Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits
What did Nixon do regarding business?
- Created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in 1970
- The Environmental Protection Agency
- The 1972 Noise Control Act
- The 1972 Marine Mammal Protection Act and the 1973 Endangered Species Act
- 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act
What were some mesures Nixon and Kissinger took in an attempt to decrease anti-war protests?
- Withdrawing troops (25,000 in Jun ‘69 and 60,000 in Dec ‘69)
- Altering the criteria for the draft
- Concealing the most damaging realities of Vietnam
- Using speeches to question the patriotism of anti-war protesters
Who were some celebrities that protested the war?
- John Lennon and Yoko Ono
- Bob Dylan
- Jimmy Hendrix
- Muhammad Ali
What happened at Kent State University?
On May 4th 1970, four students who were protesting Nixon’s incursion into Cambodia and chanting ‘1, 2, 3, 4, we don’t want your f*cking war’ were shot dead by the National Guard
What were some protests during Nixon’s presidency?
- Kent State 1970
- The ‘Hard Hat Riot’ 1970 (1000 students protesting Kent State)
- In April 1971, Vietnam veterans threw away over 700 medals on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington
What did Nixon do regarding civil rights?
- He chose to tread a line which pleased no one but moved desegregation forward slowly
- He asked Agnew to deal with the desegreation of schools and by 1970, less than 10% of black students were attending segregated schools (mostly due to busing)
- He launched the Philladelphia plan
What was busing?
A policy of transporting students to schools outside their local neighborhoods to achieve racial integration, a practice that faced significant controversy and opposition
What was affirmative action?
It aimed to increase opportunities for marginalized groups in education and employment by considering race, gender, and other factors to address past discrimination
What was the Philadelphia Plan?
A policy that required government contractors to hire a specific number of minority workers, marking the first significant federal affirmative action program to combat racial discrimination in employment
What did Nixon do for feminism?
- He used presidential power to increase the number of female appointments to the Administration
- He created a Presidential Task Force on Women’s Rights
- He instructed the Justice Department to bring sex discrimination suits unter Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
What was Nixon’s New Economic Policy and what did he do?
NEP was implemented in 1971 and it included wage and price freezes, temporary tariffs to protect American industry, and the end of the gold standard, which allowed the dollar’s value to float against other currencies
What was the OPEC oil crisis?
It occurred in 1973 when OPEC imposed an oil embargo (limits the transport of it) on Western countries in response to their support for Israel during the Yom Kippur War. This led to a significant increase in oil prices and shortages, triggering a global economic crisis characterized by fuel rationing, long lines at gas stations, and inflation
How high was inflation in 1974?
12.1% (it pushed the economy into a recession)
