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CULTURAL CHANGES
Most Americans felt confident with their role in the world in the 1950s. They
accepted the need for a strong stance against global Communism and supported
efforts to share the benefits of democracy as widely as possible. At home, they
were experiencing phenomenal economic gains and a shift to a service economy. A
boom in births fueled the growth of suburban areas around cities. Yet not all
Americans participated in this good life, and gradually, challenges to the
status quo began to mount.
African Americans launched a movement to guarantee fair treatment everywhere.
They won a major victory in 1954 when the Supreme Court ruled that separate
educational facilities for black children were not equal to those for white
children. The decision started the process of desegregating the nation's public
schools. In the 1960s — led by the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. and with the
support of President Lyndon Johnson — African Americans won passage of civil
rights and voting rights legislation. Some black leaders, such as Malcolm X,
argued against interracial cooperation, and some militant calls for reform led
to violence. However, many African Americans made quiet, steady progress into
the ranks of the middle class, leading to a profound demographic change in
American society.
During the 1960s-70s, many American women expressed frustration that they did
not have the same opportunities as men. Led by writer Betty Friedan and
journalist Gloria Steinem, they organized a movement that helped change laws and
traditions to give women the chance to compete equally with men in business and
education. However, their efforts to adopt a constitutional amendment
guaranteeing equal rights for women fell short when only 35 of the necessary 38
states ratified it.
A new generation of Native-American leaders organized to defend the rights
the government had promised in various treaties with tribal groups. They used
the court system to regain control of tribal lands and water rights. They used
the legislative process to get the assistance they needed to house and educate
their people. The first Native American to be elected to the Senate was Ben
Nighthorse Campbell in 1992.
Hispanic Americans, especially those whose families came from Mexico, Central
America, Puerto Rico, and Cuba, became more politically active, too. They were
elected to local, state, and national offices, and they organized to fight
discrimination. César Chávez, for example, led a nationwide consumer boycott of
California grapes that forced growers to negotiate with his United Farm Workers
union for higher wages and improved working conditions.
Many students became politically active to protest the war in Vietnam, which
they believed was immoral. They organized large protests that eventually put
pressure on President Johnson to begin peace negotiations. Young people also
began to reject their parents' cultural values. The most visible signs of the
so-called counterculture were long hair, rock-and-roll music, and the use of
illegal drugs.
Americans concerned about the environment organized efforts to reduce air and
water pollution. The year 1970 saw the first "Earth Day" celebration and the
creation of the Environmental Protection Agency. Environmental legislation
reflected the need to reduce pollutants without imposing burdensome costs on
industries.
The great social changes of the 1950s-1980s grew out of an open, fluid, and
diverse society. Demands for change were sometimes peaceful, sometimes deadly.
Compromises were necessary. Surely, if sometimes slowly, the United States
changed to better reflect its multicultural foundation.
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