Events Of 1960

458 Words2 Pages

Mrs. Cruse
English Composition II, Section 1213
24 February 2017
Events that Made 1960 The year 1960 was rocked by several events from a natural disaster to history being made on television. During this year the United States was in a war with the Soviet Union which was known as The Cold War, and President Richard M. Nixon was currently serving as the 37th president of the United States. The year would make history as Nixon and John F. Kennedy would square off on television. This event would be the first debate ever televised. The debate took place on the evening of September 26th in downtown Chicago. After Kennedy’s opening statement, Nixon stated, “I subscribe completely to the spirit that Senator Kennedy has expressed tonight” (The Kennedy-Nixon-Debates-U.S. Presidents-HISTORY.com). According to an online source, it is noted that Americans voted in record number that year after seeing the Great Debates on television. Kennedy won the popular vote 49.7% to 49.5% (The Kennedy-Nixon Debates-U.S. Presidents-HISTORY.com). It …show more content…

A major accomplishment for Kennedy was his support for the civil rights movement. He ended up providing federal support for the movement. African Americans in the South were not allowed to vote and were not allowed in public facilities. They were also discriminated against when it came to employment, education, and housing. In February of 1960, four African American students went to a restaurant in Greensboro, NC, where they sat at the counter and wanted to be served. They refused to leave the restaurant after they were refused service. This was the beginning of what became known as sit-ins. Fifty more African American students joined the four in the restaurant in the first of many protests that took place that year. Kennedy’s presidency was the beginning of change for African