Dissent and Discontent in the 1960s and 1970s Dissent and discontent in the 1960s Civil rights movement not only dissent in the 1960s o Challenges changes over decade 1960s began with optimism John F Kennedy elected in 1960 o Democrat WWII Navy US Congress o Well connected wealthy o Young idealistic glamorous Narrowly defeated Richard Nixon Promised leadership and service at inauguration Kennedy inspired Americans especially the young Concerned about poverty in US o 1962 got 2 billion in aid for urban renewal job training o Summer 1963 began plans for broader agenda on poverty o Proposed huge tax cut in 1963 too o JFK reasoned a good economy benefitted all Americans Made US competitive in world with Soviet Union o Tax cut passed in February 1964 Contributed to major economic boom Unemployment dropped to 4 1 Overall JFK s domestic record unremarkable Resisted dealing with civil rights until 1963 Failed to get anything done on education and health care o Asked aides to prepare civil rights bill in summer 1963 Unknown if 1963 marked shift in his agenda o Assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald on November 22 1963 o Stunned the nation o Placed Lyndon Johnson into the presidential seat Johnson becomes president Johnson had extensive political experience o From Texas served in congress from 1937 to 1960 o Senate majority leader in 1955 o Coarse wit lacked eloquence of JFK o Extremely effective behind the scenes Signed tax cut proposal in 1964 Signed Civil Rights Act 1964 Voting Rights Act 1965 o 1964 announced war on poverty Passed laws to fund job training work study in college business loans Established legal services for poor Programs expanded help to Americans 1964 faced Barry Goldwater for election o Americans generally favorable of Johnson o Goldwater did manage to win 5 southern states o Johnson won 61 of popular vote o Democrats won huge majorities in congress o Goldwater s campaign generated grassroots appeal Contributed to the rise of conservatism in later years Second term Johnson announced plans for a Great Society o Extremely successful in passing legislation o Laws on discrimination poverty medical care environmental protection o Also immigration reform support for the arts Johnson s programs succeeded in reducing poverty o From 20 in 1959 to around 13 in 1968 o Not all Americans benefitted equally Elderly male headed households rose from poverty faster Female headed households worsened Whites rose faster while minorities struggled African Americans made up 1 3 of impoverished citizens in 1970s o Programs did provide job training food assistance Built roads new housing o But funding depended on economic growth not taxes Problem because not enough spent to claim victory on poverty o Conservatives very critical of handouts and government initiatives Johnson s domestic record overshadowed by foreign policy Both Kennedy and Johnson pursued containment Both continued to build up nuclear arsenal o JFK did sign limited test bad treaty in 1963 Both escalated US involvement overseas o Kennedy sent advisors money to Vietnam o Johnson continued to do the same August 1964 used incident in Gulf of Tonkin to expand US activity Got congress to approve all necessary measure to protect US forces Said US ships had been fired on Johnson continued to escalate US involvement in 1965 o Focused tactics on bombing campaigns Pilots dropped 3 2 million tons of explosives o US measured success in body counts o Average age of soldiers was 19 in Vietnam Most were poor or working class o About 10 000 women served o Soldiers face difficult conditions and confusion about who the enemy is o Vietnamese suffered deaths dislocation By 1968 about 30 of population are refugees Opposition to war grew after 1965 o Vietnam first living room war o College students initiated first mass protests Protested on college campuses Washington DC Angry about the draft violence o Mainstream press became critical New York Times Wall Street Journal Life o Goals of anti war protesters were diverse Totally withdrawal end to bombing campaigns o Americans who supported war angry at protests Cold War consensus began to break down 1968 saw major tensions o January 30 1968 Tet Offensive launched Communists launched surprise attack on major cities bases Not successful lost 30 000 men o Not successful but showed credibility gap in US rhetoric Johnson said the US had been winning but this incident shows the truth that they aren t winning o March 1968 Johnson announced US would scale down bombing Would rely more on South Vietnamese to stop communism Johnson also announced he wouldn t seek re election o Assassinations of MLK Robert Kennedy also shocked the nation American in major turmoil going into 1968 election 1968 election Democrats nominated Hubert Humphrey Republicans nominated Richard Nixon Nixon won with 301 electoral votes o Democrats lost seats but still controlled congress Election signaled the fracturing of the New Deal Coalition o Southerners flocked toward Nixon o Union workers also broke ranks to vote for Nixon o Issues of civil rights poverty relief and Vietnam factored in o Economy also beginning to struggle by 1968 Into the 1970s Nixon promised to end Vietnam war with honor o Determined to keep communism out of South Vietnam though Believed failure undermined American credibility o Did begin to scale down troop numbers Down from 543 000 in 1968 to 140 000 in 1971 Supported growth of army in South Vietnam Relied heavily on bombing campaigns Secretly bombed Cambodia for over a year to weaken North Vietnam o Public outraged when Nixon ordered invasion of Cambodia in 1970 Sparked mass protests across the country Veterans became more heavily involved Nixon continued heavy bombing through 1972 January 27 1973 US and Vietnamese governments signed deal o US troops had to leave POWs returned o Essentially a face saving accord for US Fighting resumed in Vietnam o South Vietnam fell in May 1975 o Communism spread to Cambodia and Laos o Did not spread to other parts of Asia In response to war congress passed War Powers Act in 1973 o President had to notify congress about troop deployment o Approval required to keep troops engaged beyond 60 days o Meant to limit the ability of the president to wage war without declaring it Nixon s challenges Vietnam not the only issue Nixon faced Rhetoric indicated shift to the right o Strong military strong anti communism limited government in domestic affairs In practice Nixon kept a number of Great