AFFLUENCE AND CONFORMITY, 1955 - 63

Question 1

How did cities change because of changes in racial minorities?

Answer 1

• Black communities moved from the old south to northern cities in the 50s
  BUT
• Racial tensions w/ restrictive covenants
• Racially segregated cities, minority groups in city centres forming e.g. Watts district in Los Angeles, Bronx and Harlem in NYC, whites in suburbs

Question 2

Suburbs?

Answer 2

• Levittowns, over 17,000 in NY state and Pennsylvania
• White, m/c areas

Question 3

Sun belt vs rust belt?

Answer 3

Rust belt = North eastern. People left it for the sun belt, cities like Houston, Miami, Dallas, Los Angeles

Question 4

Highways?

Answer 4

• 1945-1960, cars grew by 133%
• National Interstate and Defense Highways Act 1956, Eisenhower - made impr. to highway structure, 42,500 miles added, caused by Cold War tensions

Question 5

Cars?

Answer 5

• Detroit was car producing centre of the world in 50s
• General Motors, Chrystler, Ford
• By 1960, 75% had at least 1 car
• Contributed to rise of suburbia, commuters
• 1,800 out of town malls, rise of McDonald’s
• Rock’n’roll linked with car culture, hot rods
• National parks became accessible

Question 6

White collar work?

Answer 6

• In 1956, white collar outnumbered blue for the first time in American history
• In 1960, 40% of women over 16 had a job
• Tensions in Korea + cold war led to rise of Lockheed and Boeing, manufacture of defence and weaponry. Eisenhower’s ‘military-industrial complex’.

Question 7

Consumerism!

Answer 7

• Consumer boom due to credit. 1958 American Express credit card, commonplace amongst m/c by 1960s
• 1955-63, boom in cars, home appliances, vinyl + radio

Question 8

Civil rights movement :)

Answer 8

• Montgomery bus boycott, 55-56, Rosa Parks, rise of MLK
• SNCC as student protest against segregation at lunch counters, CORE freedom riders who faced constant attacks by mobs in Alabama, gov. were forced to protect them due to Boynton v Virginia
• Birmingham 1963, non-violent demonstrations from MLK in relation to lunch counters, fitting rooms, toilets, and to inc. hiring of black Americans in business. Arrested for 3 days + made national news, released by JFK and attorney general Robert Kennedy. Caused new eq. legislation

Question 9

Civ rights, Washington March 1963

Answer 9

• 250,000 converged in Washington, 1/4 were white
• MLK’s ‘I have a dream’ speech
• Influenced Kennedy to (try) passing civil rights, LBJ was successful with Civil Rights Act 1964

Question 10

Re-rise of KKK, White Citizens’ committees

Answer 10

• Threat to desegregation from Old South politicians, ‘The Southern Manifesto’, made it hard for JFK to pass anything
• KKK paraded through towns, burned crosses, intimidated black Americans trying to register to vote
• Frequent attacks and murders from KKK, murder of Emmett Till, no convictions
• KKK firebombed a freedom riders bus
• White Citizens’ Councils made across the south, less violent, called ‘Country Club Klans’, made up many of the people trying to stop Little Rock 9 in 1957

Question 11

JFK NEW FRONTIER WHOOOOO

Answer 11

• Welfare provision during recession, raised minimum wage from $1 to $1.25
• Equal Pay Act 1963, passed but had no enforcement powers + oly covered some women
• JFK tried to inc. social security by 0.25%, blocked and prevented by House Ways and Means Committee
• School Assistance Bill failed at House of Reps as didn’t want to fund religious schools (was first Roman Catholic president). Did manage to give 700,000 schoolchildren free meals + free fresh milk
• Trade Expansion Act, cuts to tariffs between USA and EEC
• CEEO led by LBJ (vice pres.), allocated proportion of jobs to black Americans, first federal affirmative action
• National Park Service, 3.85 million acres of land added
  Clean Air Act, reduced pollution from cars and factories
• PEACE CORPS YEAHHH, sent American men and women to developing countries. 5000 in first two years
• Critics saw as ‘Yankee Imperialism’, supporters saw as helping the developing world. Still in place today
• SPACE WOOOAHAHHA, caused by space race between America + USSR, Cold War
• USSR got first satellite in space in ‘57, Sputnik
• JFK requested extra $7-9 billion, got two in space and one in orbit of earth
• Direct contr. to eventual man on the moon in ‘69