Topic 2: Social change (1964-70) Flashcards
4
Describe change in the expansion of TV (1964-70)
- TV ownership increased to 91% in 1971 from 75% in 1961
- By 1969, TV accounted for 23% of lesiure time
- Hugh Greene (BBC Director-General 1960-69) reformed radio/tv in sixties
- 1967, BBC Two became first channel to show colour
2
Describe continuity in the expansion of TV (1964-70)
- TV ownership had been high beforehand
- Massive changes with ITV launch in 1955
6
Describe change in the expansion of radio (1964-70)
- Hugh Greene (BBC Director-General 1960-69) reformed radio/tv in sixties
- Development of cheap and portable transitor radio permitted survival
- Growth of commercial radio stations (e.g. Radio Luxembourg) to counter 3 BBC radio stations
- Rise of pirate stations from 1964 (e.g. Radio Caroline broadcast from ship off Essex Coast)
- Shut down by Marine Broadcasting Act 1967
- Former pirate DJs hired by BBC
2
Describe change in the expansion of print media (1964-70)
- Tabloid, The Sun, launched in 1964 and replaced more serious WC paper, the Daily Herald (though not tabloid until 1969 Murdoch purchase) - pg3 girls by 1970
- End of censorship - more permissive
6
Describe change in the growth of leisure activities (1964-70)
- By 1969, TV accounted for 23% of leisure time
- Cars permitted travel to larger shopping centres and leisure facilities
- Holidays (see other card)
- OU creation
- Rise in popularity of football after World Cup win in 1966
- Restrictions on footballers’ pay removed
3
Describe change in holidays (3 or more days) (1964-70)
- Holidays abroad rose from 4m in 1961 to 7m in 1971
- British Airways founded in 1964 - offerred European flights to places such as Malta
- Package holidays grew from 4% in 1966 of total holidays to 8.4% in 1971
4 - focussed on sport + holidays
Describe continuity in leisure activities (1964-70)
- Other WC sports did not garner same attention as football
- Cost of air travel meant foreign holidays were reserved for wealthy middle class
- 1971, 41m holidays, only 7m of which abroad
- Package holidays still in infancy
4
Describe change in scientific developments (1964-70)
- Labour government made scientific development a key aim
- 1969, Concorde’s first flight (made by an Anglo-French partnership)
- ‘Post Office Tower’ opened in 1965 to improve telecommunications (then tallest builiding in britain)
- Launch of polytechnics
3
Describe change in the reduction of censorship (1964-70)
- Theatres Act 1968 abolished Lord Chamberlain’s right to censor stage plays
- PMB by George Strauss (Labour backbencher) with Home Office support
- Rise in productions with nudity and swearing
5
Describe continuity in the reduction of censorship (1964-70)
- Newly dispensed books, like Fanny Hill, and productions, like Hair, would prove controversial
- Censorship remained through ‘British Board of Film Censors’ e.g. Alfie (1966) banned for abortion links
- Mary Whitehouse - ‘Clean-up TV’ pressure group launched in 1964
- Campaign led to ‘National Viewers and Listeners association’ in 1965, soon to hold 100k members
- Arguably legitimised decadence of 50s, rather than spurring revolution in arts
5
Describe change in female equality (1964-70)
- Second-wave feminism spread from USA, esp influential among middle classes
- Several Women became political heavyweights (Castle, Williams, Hart)
- 1st National Women’s Liberation Conference in 1970 set demands for equal pay and free 24hr childcare
- 1970 Equal Pay Act
- 1970 Matrimonial Property Act
Shirley Williams, Judith Hart
1
What did the 1970 Equal Pay Act do?
Prevented discrimination in employment, between men and women
1
What did the 1970 Matrimonial Property Act do?
work of wife, whether in employment or at home, taken into account of divorce settlements
5
Describe continuity in female equality (1964-70)
- Idea of female domesticity remained strong in 60s
- 1945 election - 24 women MPs, still only 26 by 1970
- Loopholes in 1970 Equal Pay Act
- Women accounted for only 28% of students in higher edu in 1970
- Only 5% ever reached managerial posts
6
List examples of ‘moral attitudes’
- Sex and contraception
- Abortion
- Divorce reform
- Homosexual relations
- Drugs
- Law and Order
6
Describe change in sex, divorce and abortion (1964-70)
- NHS Family Planning Act of 1967 (allowed local authorities to provide contraceptives and contraceptive advice)
- Number of illegitimate births rose from 6% in 1960 to 8% in 1970
- Development of antibiotics meant STDs like syphillis could be easily treated
- Pill available on NHS for all women from 1967 (had been available for married women from 1961)
- In 1963, 66% believed premarital sex between couples was wrong - had fallen to 10% by 1970s
- Sex now seen as recreational, not procreational
3
Describe continuity in sex, divorce and abortion (1964-70)
- In 1970, only 9% of women relied on pill
- Gorer’s 1969 survey found that only 12% expressed a ‘tolerant’ attitude towards homosexuals despite decriminalisation
- Social attitudes remained conservative outside Westminster bubble
3
Describe change in drug attitudes (1964-70)
- 1968 LEMAR rally in Hyde Park called to legalise cannabis
- Rise of LSD
- Cocaine and heroin addiction became 10x more prevalent in the first half of the 60’s
essentially no change
6
Describe continuity in drug attitudes (1964-70)
- Dangerous Drugs Act 1967 made possession of cannabis and cocaine unlawful
- 1967, 77% believed taking soft drugs should be a criminal offence
- By 1967, 2.5k prosecutions of cannabis possession
- Wilson rejected Wootton Report 1968 calling for legalisation of soft drugs
- 1970, maxmimum sentence for supplying drugs increased to 14 years
- Major social problem at time
2
Describe change in law and order (1964-70)
- Death penalty abolished in 1969
- Decline in order seen in organised fighting between Mods and Rockers e.g. in Brighton
2
Describe continuity in law and order (1964-70)
- Across 60’s, 61% to 82% of population in favour of tougher sentencing for muderers
- 1969 Conservative party conference in favour of restoration of capital punishment - though not adopted by Heath
4
Describe change in youth culture (1964-70)
- Portable transistor radio
- 1969 survey, more young people spent time listening to music at home than going to clubs/concerts
- Hippie movement grew - focussed on peace and environmentalism
- Changing fashion masked old class divisions
3
Describe continuity in youth culture (1964-70)
- Continued mods vs rockers violence
- Continued free time (e.g. end of National Service for boys after 1960)
- Skinheads distinctive to working class
2
Describe the main incident of rioting between Mods and Rockers during the sixties
- Summer 1964, Clacton
- 1k Mods fighting Rockers and police
3
Describe the anti-Vietnam war riots of the 60s
- Teachings of Vietnam in Summer 1965 by Oxford and LSE
- 1966, Vietnam Solidarity Campaign (VSC) set up - garnered support among university students
- Battle of Grosvenor Square 1968
3
Describe the Battle of Grosvenor Square 1968
- March 1968
- Demonstrations against American Embassy
- Led to arrest of 200
4
Describe the Race Relations Act 1965
- Made it illegal to discriminate on ground of race in public places
- Set up two bodies:
- Race Relations Board - to handle complaints arising from Act
- National Committee for Commonwealth Immigrants - to promote contact between races
3
Describe limitations to the Race Relations Act 1965
- Did not extend to employment and housing
- Conservative amendment made discrmination in public places a ‘civil misdemeanor’ rather than a criminal offence
- Report in 1968 made clear discrimination was still continuing
5
Explain what happened to Kenyan Asians during the sixties
- Friction between prosperous Asian minority and Black African majority in Kenya
- Black nationalists intended to expel Asian settlers at independence (Dec 1963)
- British government agreed to offer British passports to Asian and White British residents in Kenya
- Between Dec 1967-Feb 1968, 7k entered UK
- Members of shadow cabinet e.g. Powell called for tighter restrictions
4
Describe the Commonwealth Immigration Act 1968
- Only passport holders with ‘substantial connections’ with Britain (by virtue of birth, or their father or grandparents) would be admitted
- Intended to ease strain on social services
- East African immigration to Britain reduced to 6-7k
- Race relations entered political grandstage
5
Describe opposition to Commonwealth Immigrants Bill 1968
- Went further than Conservatives had proposed
- Clear distinctions between Asian/British Kenyans
- Subsequent impact in Uganda
- Callgaghan (HS) denounced as reactionary in Labour constituencies
- However, Labour able to claim moral high ground over Powell’s extremism
4
Describe the Race Relations Act 1968
- Extended unlawfullness of discrimination to housing, employment, trade unions, advertising
- Enforced by Race Relations Board
- Intended to close loopholes of 1965 act
- Limit - only one one offender put on trial within first year of passage of Act
Trade unions were previously a hot-belly of racism
4
Give examples of racial discrimination (1964-70)
- 1964-65, British version of KKK made brief reappearance
- National Front (NF) formed in 1967
- ‘Rivers of Blood’ speech 1968
- ‘Till Death Us Do Part’ (started 1966) evocative of ethos of time
2
Describe the Rivers of Blood speech
- Sacked from shadow cabinet within 48hrs in April 1968
- Powell gained support from dockers who marched to London
4
Outline change in issues of immigration and racism (1964-70)
- Race Relations Act 1965 and 1968
- Sacking of Powell
- Notting Hill Carnival, a Carribean festival, became a regular annual event from 1966
- Emergence of Chinese takeways led to new foodstuffs
3
Outline continuity in issues of immigration and racism (1964-70)
- Continuation of restrictions on immigration (Commonwealth Immigration Bill 1968)
- Continuation of racial discrimination
- Continued political movements through National Front
3
Describe the PEP report 1968
- 1968 Political and Economic Planning (PEP) Report into racial discrimination
- It investigated six areas of the country and found that discrimination against coloured people operated on ‘substantial scale’
- difficult to enact change at ground level
5
Describe environmentalism in the 1970s
- Rachel Carson’s book Silent Springs 1962 - sounded alarm about decline of birds and linked chemical usage to cancer
- increasing awareness of DDT
- 1963, Hunt Saboteurs Association created to carry out DA against fox hunting
- 1967, Torrey Canyon caused massive oil spill in SW England
- 1968, campaign book The Population Bomb dramatised environmental threat to overpopulation
