Young people dreamed about revolutions they saw in the media and could not bear to sit around doing nothing. As McKay puts it, “Canadian leftists merely applied to their circumstances ideas and practices from elsewhere, but they often subtly changed how those learnings were activated in their particular domain” (28). Sarnia in the sixties mainly focuses on the ideologies that were brought from other regions of the world and the way they have been implanted in 1960 Canada. Nothing is forgotten, from the passive revolutions to gay rights movements. It is very interesting to point out that contrarily to other countries, the new ideas that emerged from the sixties were not bound to one generation and can still be found today in Canadian society.
1) Did the Ford and Carter presidencies fail to repair the damage done to the reputation of the presidency by the Watergate scandal and Nixon's resignation? If so, why not? This was driven by economic distress, social issues, desire for traditional values, unemployment, high inflation, and an energy crisis. The election of Reagan in 1980 helped this conservative surge. 2) Why did the American electorate become increasingly conservative during the 1970s?
The Civil Rights Act 1964 was the most arduous task in the civil right movement; it ‘gave the federal government the power to desegregate public accommodations, fight against workplace discrimination, speed up public school desegregation, mediate racial disputes, and restrict several other discriminatory practices’ (K. Germany, 2014). Similar bills had failed for 12 years previously, and after Kennedy’s death, the movement was at risk of being buried with him. However, Johnson saved and culminated it. Five days after the death of Kennedy he stated: “We have talked long enough in this country about equal rights... It is time now to write the next chapter, and to write it in the books of law.”
During the Civil Rights movement in the 1960’s, shifts in the political and societal views were very apparent. Through out the time era, we saw figures of great importance and the strength of activists are its highest. The build up of severe racism and discrimination led to the beginning of the civil rights era, which led to several divides in blacks, as well as a beginning of a more enriched society.. The Civil Rights era had several key events leading up to the full force of the movement - including bus boycotts, Freedom Riders, and the Little Rock Nine. Once the movement began to increase in involvement, many supporters were gained.
During the late 1960s to 1980, conservatism in America showed up because people were looking for stability in a changing world. Richard Nixon, who became president in 1968, wanted to bring order and safety, which many people liked. He also had a plan called the Southern Strategy to get more votes from white people in the South. This plan changed how elections worked. In the 1970s, a group called the Religious Right became more active, focusing on things like religion and abortion.
In Jacquelyn Dowd Hall’s “The Long Civil rights Movement and the Political Uses of the Past”, the author sees the past politicized through the revisionism of the New Right. Hall states that the goal of the article is to focus on how the New Right “distorted and reified” the Civil Rights Movement, to present a progressive “truer story” (Hall, 1235). Examining the political aspect of the movement the author focuses on the attempt by conservatives to reestablish laws on civil rights. Hall argues that the “war of ideas”, enforced by the New Right has “entrenched” its view of the Civil Rights Movement into the minds of society (Hall, 1238). Politicizing the movement, Hall examines Civil Rights interaction with those that criticized the movement.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended legal segregation in the US which demonstrates how the minimum independence given to African Americans during the Reconstruction era pushed them to strive for more equality. Furthermore, it shows how much closer African Americans were to achieving equal rights in the US. Although the Reconstruction era worsened racism in the US, it affected activists' determination on a greater
In the United States, it was the low-key rise of American conservatism; liberalism was considered the norm at the time and conservatives were put down for thinking otherwise. In the late 1950s and early 1960s conservatives were widely dismissed as "kooks" and "crackpots" with no hope of winning political power… at this time liberalism is not only the dominant but even the sole intellectual tradition… the right was not a serious, long-term political movement but rather a transitory phenomenon led by irrational, paranoid people who were angry at the changes taking place in America.
The reformation of civil rights and societal norms during the mid-twentieth century was a monumental moment in American history. From racial desegregation, to women breaking away from a male dominate society; they all have contributed to the liberalism and diversity of present day America.
Throughout the 1900’s, Many eras of civil rights movements emerged for different races, genders, and creeds because they believed they deserved better treatment than they were given by an opposing community. Although America claims to be a land of freedom and of many equalities, history has a timeline of making it evident that America has been opposed to specific communities, yet these communities have fought through blood, sweat, and tears in order to give us the rights we sometimes take for granted today. Through the LGBTQ community’s battles, the Civil Rights Movement in the 60’s, and the Japanese’s battles for equality during World War II, America was forced to reflect on the present, unequal rights and change the way the country operated
The 1960s was marked by radical changes in the way Americans sought rights in several areas of inequality. The fight for Women’s Rights, Gay Rights and social change were cornerstones of change during the civil rights era. These groups documented their platforms through legendary proposals that are now reference guides for social awareness. The fight for Women’s Rights gained momentum during this era which redefined the way women viewed themselves and their lives role.
The rise of conservatism between the 1960s and 1980s in the United States can be attributed to a multitude of factors, outlined here are several. Firstly, many conservative Americans were disturbed by the societal trends and movements of the 1960s, including the civil rights movement, anti-war protests, and the counterculture against traditional authority from the youth. These factors created a sense of unease among many Americans, particularly those who identified with traditional values and institutions. The response from this demographic was naturally to double down on these beliefs. (American Yawp: Chapter 29 Section II paragraph 2)
Classical Liberalism makes two important promises; to create a state that is free from oppression and give its citizens freedom. The United State has tried to keep true to these principles till this day, but has failed to address the detrimental effects of capitalism in our society. Many argue that classical liberalism is exactly what the founding fathers intended for America. They wanted its citizens to have civil rights, freedom, and protection, rather than a controlling monarchist system, and at first it was functionally a dream come true.
The 1960s were a time of change for the United States, as it started taking steps away from economics to focus on progressivism. These steps towards progressivism can be significantly seen in movements like the "Next Left" which was run mostly by student activist who wanted to focus on ideas of progressivism and spurned groups with opposing views like Marxist and liberalist. The movement believed that people should go out and find process instead of waiting for it to find them and was in favor of an open-ended humanism. The New Left would also take part in non-violent civil right movements, using the words of Martin Luther and Abraham Lincoln to fight for civil rights.
A movement, whether political, civil, or even religious, can only change a country if that movement changes the people’s hearts and minds, not just the laws in place. Within the United States, the modern civil rights movement, looking at it from the beginning in 1945 till the late 1960s, was necessary for the rights of African Americans to be fully acknowledged; to be treated equal, without separation. It was only through the passages and enforcement of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that protection for all American citizens became prevalent throughout. Before the sixties, there were a multitude of challenges faced
