2.4 - Reactions to CC - Nixon's appeal Flashcards
(6 cards)
How popular was Nixon in 1972 compared with in 1968?
Nixon was significantly more popular in 1972 shown through the margins between his election victories. Nixon narrowly defeated the democratic candidate Hubert Humphrey in 1968 he was re-elected in a landslide victory in 1972 assisted by the impact of events during 1969 and 1970 that further alienated conservatives.
- Why did Woodstock and counter-culture concern American conservatives?
Middle America continued to observe counterculture with incomprehension and fear. While the young people who flocked to happenings such as the Woodstock music festival in 1969 saw liberation and freedom, middle America saw anarchy. They worried about youthful behaviour and role models such as rock stars Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix all of whom died from drug overdoses within a 10 month period in 1970 to 71. Even more worrying than Woodstock and rock stars was increased student radicalism and violence.
Why did student radicalism and violence concern American conservatives?
As the 1960s wore on, some student protesters became more militant and violent. In 1969-70 there were over 2000 bombings or attempted bombings. 56% were by students, 19% by black extremists. There are many examples of violent student behaviour:
* Radical students blew up University of Colorado buildings because scholarship funds for black students were frozen
* Anti capitalist students in San Diego CA set fire to banks
* Kent State students demanded the admission of more black students and the abolition of the ROTC. In a six hour battle with the police seven students were shot 13 injured and 600 arrested after which ohio’s governor called in the National Guard.
* A pro black Panthers demonstrations at Yale law school library books on fire
Much of this continuing student unrest was due to the Vietnam War
What triggered the eruption of protests in spring 1970?
Nixon’s first term as president was dominated by the ongoing war in Vietnam as antiwar protests continued because even as he withdrew American troops from South Vietnam he increased the bombings to ensure a strong negotiating position in the peace talks. In 1969 tens of thousands of protesters of all ages joined the nation’s largest ever antiwar protest: the moratorium. However many Americans disliked protesters with polls showing the 84% thought student protesters and black militants were treated ‘too leniently’. When Nixon extended the bombing to the communist supply trail in Cambodia in spring 1970 and antiwar protests erupted in over 80% of American universities while police and national guardsmen clashed with students most famously at Kent State, Ohio.
- What happened at Kent State University (Ohio) on 4 May 1970, and how did American conservatives view this event?
Kent State students rioted in the central business district and firebombed the ROTC building. Some held a peaceful protest rally at which panicked national guardsmen fired indiscriminately killing 4 and wounding 11. Days later two more students were killed and 12 wounded at Jackson state Mississippi when police opened fired on the woman’s dormitory. Perhaps it was because the Jackson state students were black that there was far less attention from the press. After Kent State some Americans felt the government was deliberately murdering dissenters but middle America agreed with Nixon’s criticisms of ‘these bums … blowing up the campuses’ over half of Americans blame the students for happened at Kent State.
Why did the shift to the left of the Democratic Party in 1972 aid Nixon’s re-election campaign?
Middle America watched the Democratic National Convention of 1972 in horror. Some long haired, young delegates expressed support for the communist cause in Vietnam and nominated communist China’s leader Mao Ze Dong as the democratic party’s candidate for vice-president. New party rules ensured the selection of the left wing George McGovern as the democratic party’s candidate for the presidency and many of the silent majority considered McGovern to be the candidate of the counterculture. He wanted to legalise marijuana and abortion and give $1000 to every American to decrease poverty. The party’s platform called for the ‘equitable distribution of wealth and power’ and the ‘right to be different’. Many delegates demanded the recognition of gay rights. This leftward movement of the Democratic Party helped increase Richard Nixon’s appeal in 1972.
