Ch. 38 NotesThe Stormy Sixties

The Election of 1960

1. In 1960, the Republicans nominated vice president Richard Nixon while the Democrats nominated John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson.

2. The major issues of the election were the Cold War, the civil rights movement and Kennedy’s religion (he was Catholic – people were afraid the Pope would have a hand in the governing the U.S.).

The First Televised Debates

1. On September 26, 1960, Kennedy and Nixon took part in the first televised debate between presidential candidates.

2. Television had become such a large part of American’s lives that many observes blamed Nixon’s loss to Kennedy on his poor appearance in the debates.

3. Kennedy came across as cool, collected and more presidential.

The Influence of the Civil Rights Movement on the Election

1. In October of 1960, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested for conducting a sit-in at a lunch counter in Georgia.

2. King was sentenced to hard labor by the local judge but Robert Kennedy, JFK’s brother, worked to have him released.

3. This incident swayed many African Americans to support Kennedy in the election.

The Election Results1. Kennedy won the election by fewer than 119,000 votes – the closest election results since 1884 when Grover Cleveland defeated James Blaine.

2. Kennedy became the countries youngest elected president – 43 (Teddy Roosevelt was 42 but took the office when William McKinley was assassinated.

JFK’s New Frontier

1. JFK’s domestic platform was known as the New Frontier.

2. JFK challenged Americans to think of ways they could serve, famously saying “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.

3. In 1961, Kennedy will create the Peace Corps, asking individuals to volunteer to work abroad and work for the development of progress and peace in 3rd world countries – those countries that were neither aligned with the west (democratic) or the east (communist).

The Alliance for Progress

1. JFK also created the Alliance for Progress, an organization intended to improve economic growth and democratic reforms in Latin America.

2. It will not be very effective.

The 1962 Trade Expansion Act

1. Although the 1950’s had been an era of prosperity, the economy suffered through several recessions.

2. To combat this, Kennedy proposed a general tax cut – it won’t be implemented until after his death though.

3. He also had Congress pass the Trade Expansion Act, which reduced U.S. tariffs and increased international trade.

Kennedy and the Cold War

1. Kennedy’s strategy in the Cold War was one of flexible response – it called for a variety of military options that could be matched to the scope and importance of the crisis.

2. This was a departure from Ike’s “massive retaliation”.3. Kennedy tripled our nuclear capability, increased troops,

ships and artillery and created the Green Berets, a special forces group that could go anywhere at any time to help with anything.

4. He also promoted a “space race”, proposing to put a man on the moon – largely to restore American prestige that had been damaged by the Soviet Union’s Sputnik launch.

The Green Berets

The Bay of Pigs

1. In March of 1960, Ike gave the CIA permission to train a group of Cuban exiles for an invasion of Cuba.

2. When Kennedy learned of the plan (nine days into his presidency, he allowed the mission to continue but without U.S. air support.

3. It was a disaster – in April of 1961, the 1200 Cuban exiles came ashore and were met by 25,000 Cuban troops backed by Soviet troops.

4. Kennedy will go on t.v. and accept the blame for the failed mission.

Bay of Pigs

The Berlin Wall

1. The Soviet Union didn’t like that East Berliners were fleeing their city for the democratic west.

2. Just after midnight on Aug. 13, 1961, they began the construction of a 90 mile wall to separate East and West Berlin.

The Cuban Missile Crisis1. The Bay of Pigs fiasco strengthened Cuba’s ties to the Soviet Union.2. In October of 1962, U-2 photographs of Cuba revealed that the

Soviets were secretly installing nuclear missiles in Cuba.3. In response, Kennedy ordered a naval quarantine of Cuba – the U.S.

would stop any Soviet ship attempting to bring weapons into Cuba – and demanded that Khrushchev remove the missiles.

4. For almost two weeks the country waited as Soviet ships approached Cuba but at the last moment, Khrushchev agreed to a compromise – the Soviet Union agreed to remove the missiles on the condition that the U.S. would leave Cuba alone (and we also agreed to remove missiles from Turkey).

5. It also led to a hot line being established between the White House and the Kremlin in 1963 – that same year the U.S. and the S.U. agreed to ban nuclear testing in the atmosphere.

6. This compromise eventually led to Khrushchev’s removal as the premier of the Soviet Union – he was replaced by Leonid Brezhnev

The Cuban Missile Crisis

Cuban Missile Crisis

“The two most powerful nations had been squared off against each other,each with its finger on the

button.” -Khrushchev:

“It is insane that two men, sitting on opposite sides of

the world, should be able to decide to bring an end to

civilization.” - JFK:

Vietnam

1. Vietnam had been divided along the 17th parallel at the Geneva Conference of 1954.

2. North Vietnam was controlled by Ho Chi Minh and South Vietnam was controlled by Ngo Dinh Diem (French-educated Catholic) – within two years they were to hold democratic elections but Diem backs out because he knows he’ll lose the election.

3. In South Vietnam under Diem, his family holds all the power, wealth is horded by the elite, there is a lack of political freedom (Diem tortured his enemies) and Buddhism, the religion of most Vietnamese, is forbidden.

4. The U.S. aided Diem – Ike sent him financial and military aid (675 army advisors had been sent by 1960).

Ho Chi Minh and Diem

Self-Emulation by a Buddhist Monk

JFK and Vietnam1. When Kennedy is elected, he increased the number of military advisors to 16,000 to prevent Diem’s regime from falling to communist – communist rebels known as the Viet Cong are operating in South Vietnam.

2. Things get so bad in South Vietnam that Kennedy will eventually support the CIA’s involvement in a military coup to remove Diem from power.

JFK and the Civil Rights Movement

1. Kennedy was a strong supporter for the rights of African Americans – he will appoint several African Americans to high administrative positions within the federal government – he will also appoint Thurgood Marshall to the 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

2. However, Kennedy was initially cautious in advancing civil right legislation because he didn’t want to lose the support of conservative southern Democrats as he tried to pass his other economic and social legislation.

The Freedom Rides

1. May May of 1961, CORE (Congress of Racial Equality) organized an integrated group of “freedom riders” to travel by bus into the south to focus national attention on the inequality of the segregated facilities of the south.

2. Violent mobs in South Carolina and Alabama beat the riders and a bus was firebombed in Alabama.

3. This led Kennedy to embrace the civil rights movement regardless of the political consequences – JFK and his brother Bobby (who was his Attorney General) sent federal marshals into the south to protect the Freedom Riders.

4. He also asked SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) to focus on increasing the amount of registered black voters – in MS only around 4000 of the 394,000 African Americans living there were registered to vote.

The Freedom Rides

Ole Miss

1. In September of 1962, James Meredith attempted to become the first African American student to enroll in the University of MS.

2. Governor Ross Barnett prevented him from registering.3. JFK ordered U.S. marshals to escort Meredith to the

university to make sure he was enrolled – mobs moved in to prevent him from enrolling and riots ended up breaking out in Oxford.

4. JFK responded by sending in federal troops to stop the violence and make sure Meredith was enrolled – 2 people were killed and 375 were wounded.

James Meredith

The Birmingham March

1. In 1963, MLK led a march on Birmingham, AL, the most segregated big city in the nation.

2. TV cameras captured the Birmingham police (under chief Bull Connor) using attack dogs, clubs and fire hoses to end the demonstrations.

The Effects of Birmingham

1. The visual evidence of the vicious attacks on the peaceful demonstrators led American and world opinion to turn strongly in favor of the civil rights movement.

2. It also led Kennedy to request support for a strong civil rights bill to end segregation and protect black voters.

3. In August of 1963 MKL led a peaceful March on Washington in support of the new legislation – this is where he delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.

Medgar Evers1. On June 12, 1963 (the day after JFK addressed the nation, claiming that segregation was a “moral issues” that had to be addressed) Medgar Evers, the head of the NAACP in MS, was assassinated outside his home by Byron de la Beckwith.

2. He was tried twice and both trials ended with hung juries (finally declared guilty in 1994).

The Assassination of JFK

1. As the election of 1964 neared, Kennedy is concerned because he has lost the support of southern Democrats because of his stance on civil rights.

2. So he scheduled a trip to Texas (LBJ’s home state) to try to rebuild some support in the south.

3. As he drove into Dallas, he was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald from a window of the Texas Book Depository building.

4. Oswald was later killed by Jack Ruby, leading to an investigation into JFK’s death – the Warren Report later declared that JFK had indeed been shot and killed by Oswald.

Lee Harvey Oswald

Lyndon B. Johnson 1. LBJ became president when he took the oath aboard Air Force One.

2. As president, LBJ will continue Kennedy’s domestic and foreign goals and will later begin his own war on poverty.

3. Johnson will have more success working with Congress than JFK did.

4. After Kennedy’s death, the 25th Amendment will be added to the Constitution to establish the procedures for filling a vacancy in the office of vice president.

The Election of 19641. In 1964, the Democrats

nominated Johnson and the Republicans nominated Barry Goldwater.

2. Goldwater was a conservative who opposed the Democrat’s social legislation.

3. He also wanted to take a hard line with the Soviet Union – was in favor of using nuclear weapons in Cuba in N. Vietnam.

The Election of 1964 1. Johnson wins the election in a landslide, largely because of loyalty to JFK’s legacy and because people liked his proposed social programs and his stance on Vietnam.

2. People were also afraid that Goldwater would end up getting us into a war with the Soviet Union.

The Great Society1. Johnson’s social platform was called the Great Society and was designed to fight poverty, discrimination, unemployment, pollution and other social ills within the the U.S.

2. At this time (mid-1960’s) the U.S. had the highest standard of living in the world but there were still many “pockets” of poverty in the U.S. – especially the inner cities, the rural areas of Appalachia and the deep South and on Native American reservations.

The War on Poverty

1. Johnson declared “War on Poverty” in January 1964.2. Project Head Start was created to help underprivileged preschoolers.3. The Job Corp was created to give free education and vocational

training to young adults.4. The VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) program was created to

get volunteers to provide the training within the job corp (also known as Americorp).

5. The National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities was created to support artistic projects in the U.S.

6. The Medicare and Medicaid programs were created to provide health care for the impoverished and elderly.

7. The Office of Economic Opportunity was created to run all these programs and many people in the U.S. supported these programs because they saw the benefits they provided.

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

1. LBJ also had Congress pass the Immigration and Nationality Act.

2. This law removed the old quota system set up after WWI (although it did put some restrictions on the overall number of immigrants entering the U.S. from the Western Hemisphere for the first time ever).

3. Instead, it increased the overall number of immigrants allowed in the country each year and made provisions/exceptions for the admission of family members of immigrants already living in the U.S.

4. During this time, the U.S. is going to see a shift in it’s population patterns – less immigrants will come from Europe and the majority of immigrants begin coming from Latin American and Asia instead.

LBJ and the Civil Rights Movement

1. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 will be passed and will ban any type of racial discrimination in public (and private if they serve the public) accommodations and employment.

2. It will also prevent sexual (gender) discrimination as well.

3. The 24th Amendment will also be ratified to abolish the use of poll taxes as a requirement to vote.

Freedom Summer

1. In the summer of 1964 SNCC will organize Freedom Summer.

2. Over 800 college students from all over the U.S. will descend on MS. to help register black voters – they will also have schools for black children and adults.

Neshoba County

1. During Freedom Summer, three civil rights workers were murdered in Neshoba County, MS.

2. The FBI will be sent in to investigate and sailors from the U.S. Navy will be used to search for the bodies.

Neshoba County 1. An informant will help lead to the location of the bodies.

2. Other informants lead to the arrest of 21 men.

3. Instead of trying them for murder, they will be tried in federal court for violating the three men’s civil rights.

4. Only seven were convicted – the mastermind, Edgar Ray Killen had his trial end in a hung jury – he was later convicted in 2005.

The March on Selma1. Early in 1965, MLK resumed a voter-registration campaign in Selma, AL.

2. On a march from Selma to Montgomery, state troopers used tear gas, whips and horses on the peaceful marchers – James Reeb, a white minister from Kansas, was beaten to death.

3. The nation watched “Bloody Sunday” on t.v. and was horrified.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965

1. As a result of the Selma march, LBJ signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 into law in August of 1965.

2. This law outlawed literacy tests as a requirement to vote and also sent federal registrars into the south to help register African American voters.

3. This law will cause a huge change in politics in the south as white southerners begin changing their ways to get the African American vote.

4. More African Americans will begin serving in public office during this time as well.

The Watts Riots1. In August of 1965, rioting broke out in Watts, an all African American

neighborhood of Los Angeles.2. Los Angeles was a segregated city (de facto segregation) and African Americans

were often subjected to police brutality.3. A young black man was pulled over by the police because he was suspected of

drunk driving. 4. A crowd gathered, became unruly, and as more law enforcement was called in,

a riot eventually broke out.5. For five days, business (African American businesses) were looted and burned –

the fire department was blocked from entering.6. In the end, 34 people were killed, over a thousand were injured and over $40

million worth of property was destroyed.7. MLK was furious, claiming that the black population was destroying themselves

– the people of Watts said at least we made the country pay attention to us.

The Watts Riots

Black Power1. The Watts Riot symbolized a more militant, confrontational phase of the civil rights movement.

2. The younger generation of African Americans were tired of the slow process of gaining their rights and they were mad that political gains didn’t equal economic gains.

3. This Black Power attitude was championed by Stokely Carmichael, the former leader of SNCC.

4. He emphasized racial pride and called for black separatism.

Black Power

Malcolm X1. Born Malcolm Little,

Malcolm X got rid of his last name because it was his slave name – the X represented his long lost African name.

2. He joined the Nation of Islam (also known as the Black Muslims) and urged his followers to defend themselves against discrimination by “any means necessary”.

3. In 1965 he was assassinated by competing members of the Nation of Islam.

The Black Panthers1. In 1966, Huey Newton

and Bobby Seale formed the Black Panthers in Oakland, California.

2. The Black Panthers were a militant group that pushed for black separatism.

3. They patrolled city streets to maintain order and opened up doctors clinics.

4. Because of their socialist ideas, LBJ has the FBI get involved – they arrested its leaders and the movement collapsed.

The Assassination of MLK

1. On April 4, 1868, Martin Luther King Jr. was killed outside his hotel room in Memphis, TN, by James Earl Ray.

2. Ray was tried and sentenced to 99 years in prison – he died in 1998.

3. MLK’s death rocked the African American community – it will spark a week of rioting in several major cities, leaving around 50 people dead.

MLK’s Influence

1. MLK’s efforts will spark other minority groups to begin pushing for more equality.

2. In 1969 Cesar Chavez will become a labor activist by forming the United Farm Workers to aid migrant workers in California.

3. Betty Friedan(author of The Feminine Mystique) will help form NOW – the National Organization for Women.

4. The American Indian Movement will organize to push for rights for Native Americans – they were more militant and 1969 they took over Alcatraz island for nineteen months.

LBJ and Foreign Affairs

1. When it came to Vietnam, LBJ didn’t want to involve the U.S. in foreign wars but he also didn’t want to appear weak or allow a communist victory.

2. If he pulled our support S. Vietnam would fall (and if the domino theory was right, so would the rest of S.E. Asia).

3. If he continued with limited support of S. Vietnam, it could still end in a defeat.

4. He could actively enter the war and attack N. Vietnam, but that could lead to war with the Soviet Union.

The Gulf of Tonkin Resolutions1. What LBJ decided to do was to begin secretly bombing positions

held by the Vietcong.2. He also used the U.S. Navy to support S. Vietnamese raids along the

coast of N. Vietnam.3. Then in August of 1964, LBJ announced to the American public that

N. Vietnamese boats had fired on two American destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin (he claimed they were unprovoked attacks – not quite true).

4. In response, Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolutions, giving LBJ an open hand to do whatever he decided needed to be done with Vietnam – Congress handed their war powers over to the President.

5. LBJ ordered a massive bombardment of N. Vietnamese bases – it only strengthened the resolve of the N. Vietnamese and the Vietcong.

Escalation1. In February of 1965, LBJ

ordered an escalation (military expansion) of the war.

2. U.S. planes began bombing more targets and the decision was made to send in ground forces.

3. The problem was large numbers of troops weren’t effective because of the guerilla warfare used by the N. Vietnamese and Vietcong.

Limited Warfare1. Because the Vietcong

wouldn’t come to them, the U.S. troops began to send out patrols searching for the enemy.

2. Armored divisions weren’t effective so they developed new tactics.

3. They dropped napalm and Agent Orange to kill the jungle vegetation and the enemy in it.

4. They burned villages that they believed were supporting the Vietcong.

5. None of it was very effective.

The Tet Offensive1. By late 1967 General

Westmoreland is telling LBJ (and he’s telling the U.S. public) that we’re winning and the end is near.

2. But on January 30, 1968 (Tet Holiday – Vietnamese New Year) the Vietcong and N. Vietnamese launch a coordinated attack on all U.S. bases in S. Vietnam and on most of S. Vietnam’s major cities.

The Tet Offensive

Aftermath of the Tet Offensive

1. The Tet Offensive will ultimately be defeated by the U.S. troops but it will be a serious blow to LBJ’s Vietnam policy.

2. Westmoreland will request 209,000 more troops to help continue the war.

3. This is going to lead to growing protest to the war in Vietnam and it will come mainly from the younger, more affluent generation.

LBJ and More Escalation

1. In March of 1968 LBJ stops most of the bombing runs and will hold peace negotiations in Paris but no agreement could be reached.

2. LBJ then decides to begin secretly bombing the Ho Chi Minh in Cambodia – the N. Vietnamese are using it to move troops and supplies into S. Vietnam.

3. He doesn’t like the U.S.’s involvement in Vietnam but doesn’t want to be the first U.S. president to end the war.

The Counter Culture Revolution

1. The counter culture revolution was made up of young people rebelling against the established values and beliefs of the 1950’s.

2. They studied different religions and philosophies, they experimented with hallucinogenic drugs, they dressed unconventionally and even left home to live in communes.

Hawks and Doves

1. People who supported the Vietnam War were known as hawks – it was largely made up of the blue collar portion of society who believed it was their patriotic duty to answer the call of their government during times of war.

2. Those opposed to the war were known as doves – largely college students and college professors who openly protested the war and especially the draft – many burned their draft cards and even moved to Canada to avoid the draft.

The Antiwar Movement

1. Anti-war protests became even more common after the Tet Offensive – people felt lied to because the government had been telling them the war was almost won.

2. LBJ even had the CIA spy on domestic antiwar protestors, which was illegal.

3. As all this was going on, LBJ was approaching reelection.

The Election of 1968

1. As the election of 1968 nears, LBJ begins facing challenges from within his own primary – his Great Society is falling apart because of war spending.

2. In the New Hampshire primaries, LBJ was nearly defeated by Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota.

3. Then Senator Robert (Bobby) Kennedy then entered the ring (JFK’s brother).

4. On March 31, 1968, LBJ announced that he would not run for reelection.

The Assassination of Bobby Kennedy

1. When LBJ drops out, Bobby Kennedy slowly begins emerging as one of the frontrunners for the Democratic nomination.

2. Then, after winning the California primary, he was assassinated by Sirhan Sirhan, an immigrant from Jordan who didn’t like the U.S.’s support of Israel.

The Democratic Convention in Chicago

1. When the Democrats meet in Chicago to choose their candidate, the frontrunner is Hubert Humphrey, LBJ’s vice president.

2. Anti-war protestors show up at the convention and their protests (and the actions of the Chicago mayor and police) will lead to major rioting outside the convention – and some inside as well.

The Election of 1968

1. The Democrats end up nominating Hubert Humphrey while the Republicans nominate Richard Nixon.

2. Former Alabama governor George Wallace also runs on a third party ticket, claiming he wants to restore law and order (and segregation) to the U.S. – he had tried to prevent the integration of the University of Alabama.

3. Nixon ends up winning the election by exploiting the division within the Democratic party and appealing to the moderate conservatives of the nation.