Overview of the 60`s

        Many social changes that were addressed in the 1960s 
are still the issues being confronted today. the '60s was a 
decade of social and political upheaval. in spite of all the 
turmoil, there were some positive results: the civil rights 
revolution, john f. Kennedy's bold vision of a new frontier, 
and the breathtaking advances in space, helped bring about 
progress and prosperity. however, much was negative: student 
and anti-war protest movements, political assassinations, 
and ghetto riots excited american people and resulted in 
lack of respect for authority and the law. 
 
        The decade began under the shadow of the cold war with 
the soviet union, which was aggravated by the u-2 incident, 
the berlin wall, and the cuban missile crisis, along with 
the space race with the ussr. 
 
        The decade ended under the shadow of the viet nam war, 
which deeply divided americans and their allies and damaged 
the country's self-confidence and sense of purpose. 
 
        Even if you weren't alive during the '60s, you know 
what they meant when they said, "tune in, turn on, drop 
out." you know why the nation celebrates Martin luther king, 
jr.'s birthday. all of the social issues are reflected in 
today's society: the civil rights movement, the student 
movement, space exploration, the sexual revolution, the 
environment, medicine and health, and fun and fashion. 
 
The Civil Rights Movement 
 
        The momentum of the previous decade's civil rights 
gains led by rev. Martin luther king, jr. carried over into 
the 1960s. but for most blacks, the tangible results were 
minimal. only a minuscule percentage of black children 
actually attended integrated schools, and in the south, "jim 
crow" practices barred blacks from jobs and public places. 
New groups and goals were formed, new tactics devised, to 
push forward for full equality. as often as not, white 
resistance resulted in violence. this violence spilled  
across tv screens nationwide. the average, neutral american, 
after seeing his/her tv screen, turned into a civil rights 
supporter. 
 
        Black unity and white support continued to grow. in 
1962, with the first large-scale public protest against 
racial  discrimination, rev. Martin luther king, jr. Gave a 
dramatic and inspirational speech in washington, d.c. After 
a long march of thousands to the capital. the possibility of 
riot and bloodshed was always there, but the marchers took 
that chance so that they could accept the responsibilities 
of first class citizens. "the negro," King said in this 
speech, "lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of 
a vast ocean of material prosperity and finds himself an 
exile in his own land." King continued stolidly: "it would 
be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the 
moment and to underestimate the determination of the negro. 
this sweltering summer of the negro's legitimate discontent 
will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn 
of freedom and equality." when King came to the end of his 
prepared text, he swept right on into an exhibition of 
impromptu oratory that was catching, dramatic, and 
inspirational. 
 
        "I have a dream," King cried out. the crowd began 
cheering, but King, never pausing, brought silence as he 
continued, "i have a dream that one day on the red hills of 
georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former 
slaveowners will be able to sit down together at the table 
of brotherhood." 
 
        "I have a dream," he went on, relentlessly shouting 
down the thunderous swell of applause, "that even the state 
of mississippi, a state sweltering with people's injustices, 
sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed 
into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have dream," cried 
King for the last time, "that my four little children will 
one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by 
the color of their skin but by the content of their 
character." 
 
        Everyone agreed the march was a success and they wanted 
action now but, now remained a long way off. president 
kennedy was never able to mobilize sufficient support to 
pass a civil rights bill with teeth over the opposition of 
segregationist southern members of congress. but after his 
assassination, President Johnson, drawing on the Kennedy 
legacy and on the press coverage of civil rights marches and 
protests, succeeded where Kennedy had failed. 
 
        However, by the summer of 1964, the black revolution 
had created its own crisis of disappointed expectations. 
rioting by urban blacks was to be a feature of every "long, 
hot, summer" of the mid-1960s. 
 
        In 1965, King and other black leaders wanted to push 
beyond social integration, now guaranteed under the previous 
year's civil rights law, to political rights, mainly 
southern blacks' rights to register and vote. King picked a 
tough alabama town to tackle: selma, where only 1% of 
eligible black voters were registered to vote. the violence, 
the march, the excitement all contributed to the passage of 
the second landmark civil rights act of the decade. even 
though there was horrendous violence, rev. king announced 
that as a "matter of conscience and in an attempt to arouse 
the deepest concern of the nation," he was "compelled" to 
lead another march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. 
 
        The four-day, 54-mile march started on the afternoon of 
Sunday, March 21, 1965, with some 3500 marchers led by two 
nobel prizewinners, the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. And 
ralph bunche, then u.n. Under secretary for special 
political affairs. in the march, whites, negroes, clergymen 
and beatniks, old and young, walked side by side. president 
johnson made sure they had plenty of protection this time 
with 1000 military police, 1900 federalized alabama national 
guardsmen, and platoons of u.s. Marshals and FBI men. 
 
        When the marchers reached the capital of alabama, they 
were to have presented a petition to then governor george 
wallace protesting voting discrimination. however, when they 
arrived, the governor's aides came out and said, "the 
capital is closed today." 
 
        About this same time, the term, "black power" was 
coming into use. it was meant to infer long-submerged racial 
pride in negroes. Martin luther king, jr. Specifically 
sought to rebut the evangelists of black power. "it is 
absolutely necessary for the negro to gain power, but the 
term black power is unfortunate, because it tends to give 
the impression of black nationalism. we must never seek 
power exclusively for the negro, but the sharing of power 
with white people," he said. 
 
        Unfortunately, the thing that really moved the civil 
rights movement along significantly was the murder of rev. 
Martin luther king, jr. In late 1965. cruelty replaced 
harmony with nightmarish suddenness. rioting mobs in the 
negro suburb of watts, california, pillaged, burned and 
killed, while 500 policemen and 5000 national guardsmen 
struggled in vain to contain their fury. hour after hour, 
the toll mounted: 27 dead at the week's end, nearly 600 
injured, 1700 arrested, and property damage well over $100 
million. 
 
        The good that came out of all of this, is that 
thousands of negroes were flocking to register in the nine 
counties in alabama, louisiana, and mississippi where the 
government posted federal examiners to uphold the voting 
law. in four days, 6,998 negro voters were added to the 
rolls in counties where there had previously been only 
3,857. 
 
        In that time of sorrow and guilt when King was 
murdered, there was an opening for peace between the races 
that might otherwise never have presented itself. president 
johnson pleaded, "i ask every citizen to reject the blind 
violence that has struck dr. King." he went on to say that 
to bring meaning to his death, we must be determined to  
strike forcefully at the consciences of all americans in 
order to wrest from tragedy and trauma, the will to make a 
better society.  

The Student Movement 
 
        Americans who were young in the 1960s influenced the 
course of the decade as no group had before. the motto of 
the time was "don't trust anyone over 30." another, "tell it 
like it is," conveyed a real mistrust of what they 
considered adult deviousness. 
 
        Youthful americans were outraged by the intolerance of 
their universities, racial inequality, social injustice, the 
vietnam war, and the economic and political constraints of 
everyday life and work. one group that formed during this 
time was s.d.s. (students for a democratic society). opposed 
to "imperialism," racism, and oppression, the s.d.s. found 
the american university guilty of all three. they did do 
some good at the beginning like organizing northern ghetto 
dwellers in projects such as chicago's jobs or income, now 
(join). but the viet nam war led to a change in their 
tactics. they became an independent radical force against 
society. the deluge of disorders made it harder and harder 
for most americans to keep events in perspective. they 
tended to forget that most of the nation's 6,700,000 
collegians were studying hard at school and not causing 
trouble. an underlying pattern emerged in the american 
university. The university suddenly became a political 
arena. the students wanted to address the national problems 
of war, race, and poverty. as a result, the university lost 
some of its neutrality. students created a new u.s. 
institution: the political university. 
 
        However, another element among youths was also 
emerging. They were called hippies. this movement marked 
another response to the decade as the young experimented 
with music, clothes, drugs, and a "counter-culture" 
lifestyle. in 1967, hippies preached altruism and mysticism, 
honesty, joy and nonviolence. they had a child-like 
fascination for beads, blossoms, and bells, strobe lights, 
ear-shattering music, exotic clothing and erotic slogans. 
they wanted to profess "flower power" and love. they were 
predominantly white, middle-class, educated youths, ranging 
in age from 17 to 25. Perhaps the most striking thing about 
the hippie phenomenon, is the way it touched the imagination 
of the "straight" society. hippie slang entered common usage 
and spiced american humor. boutiques sprang up in urban and 
suburban areas to sell the "psychedelic" color clothes and 
designs that resembled art nouveau. 
 
        A major development in the hippie world was the "rural 
community," where nature-loving hippie "tribesmen" escaped 
the commercialism of the cities in an attempt to build a 
society outside of society. another development was the 
illicit use of drugs, creating the slogan, "tune in, turn 
on, drop out." "better living through chemistry" was another 
advertising slogan that was a sly joke to the young, but a 
real worry