Social Movements of the 1960’s

1. Social Movements of the 1960’s USH Unit 6

2. The Start of the Women’s Movement • The Feminist Movement began in the late 1800’s • Concentrated on gaining right to vote • Seneca Falls Convention • Declaration of Sentiments • 19th Amendment ratified in 1920

3. Reproductive Rights • Margaret Sanger opens birth control clinic in 1923 • Shut down by police…then reopened • Birth control information is declared to be “not obscene” in 1936 • Birth control pills are developed and first approved by FDA in 1960

4. Equal Pay?? • Stereotypes in the 19th century and early 20th century limited women to household jobs or low paying jobs • By the early 1960’s, about half of all women held a job • President Kennedy’s “Commission on the Status of Women” is established in 1960 • But on average, women still made only .63 to every $1 men made

5. Equal Pay Act • Congress passes the Equal Pay Act in 1963, making it illegal for employers to pay a woman less than what a man would receive for the same job • Since 1963, when the Equal Pay Act was signed, the closing of the wage gap between men and women has been at a rate of about half a penny a year.

6. Impact of the 1964 Civil Rights Act on Women’s Rights • Many women who had been involved with the Civil Rights Movement applied techniques to their own struggles • A section of the 1964 Civil Rights Act called Title VII contained a section that outlawed discrimination on the basis of gender • This Act gave feminist groups legal standing • Extremely important!

7. Civil Rights Act- Title VII • "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal financial assistance."

8. Betty Friedan • Women began looking for ways to explore other aspects of their lives • Betty Friedan’s book, The Feminine Mystique, influenced many lives • The book described “the cultural patterns that prevented women from achieving their full potential” • AKA as “the problem that has no name”

9. NOW • The National Organization of Women • Founded in 1966 by Friedan and others • Sought pay and job equality • Called for more of an balance in child rearing and household responsibilities • Served as the major vehicle to end sex discrimination and promote equality

10. Ms Magazine • Ms. Magazine was first published as a sample insert in New York magazine; 300,000 copies are sold out in 8 days. • The first regular issue was published in July 1972. • The magazine became the major forum for feminist voices, and cofounder and editor Gloria Steinem is launched as an icon of the modern feminist movement

11. The Equal Rights Amendment • The 26th Amendment (proposed) • Proposed 1972 change to the U.S. Constitution • “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied…on account of sex.” • Did not receive needed 38 states; proposal died in 1982

12. Roe v Wade • Landmark Supreme Court case in 1973 • Legalized abortion in the U.S. • Became a radical cause on both sides

13. Equal Credit Opportunity Act • The Equal Credit Opportunity Act was passed in 1974 • It prohibits discrimination in consumer credit practices on the basis of sex, race, marital status, religion, national origin, age, or receipt of public assistance.

14. Opposition to Women’s Movement • Phyllis Schlafly, a conservative political activist led a campaign to block passage of the ERA • Feared that the ERA would lead to women in combat, coed bathrooms, and the end of traditional families • Became powerful political force

15. The Impact of Feminism • More women entered college, law school, and medical school • Women were admitted to military and police academies • Women became more involved in politics • Women became more involved in popular music • “I Am Woman” by Helen Reddy

17. “I Am Woman” “I am woman, hear me roar In numbers too big to ignore And I know too much To go back an' pretend 'Cause I've heard it all before And I've been down there on the floor No one's ever gonna Keep me down again….”

18. “You can bend but never break me'Cause it only serves to make meMore determined to achieve my final goalAnd I come back even strongerNot a novice any longer'Cause you've deepened the conviction in my soul” “Oh yes, I am wiseBut it's wisdom born of painYes, I've paid the priceBut look how much I gainedIf I have toI can do anythingI am strong (strong)I am invincible (invincible)I am woman…”

19. I am woman watch me growSee me standing toe to toeAs I spread my lovin' arms across the landBut I'm still an embryoWith a long, long way to goUntil I make my brother understand Oh, yes, I am wiseBut it's wisdom born of painYes, I've paid the priceBut look how much I gainedIf I have toI can face anythingI am strong (strong)I am invincible (invincible)I am woman

20. Oh, I am womanI am invincibleI am strongI am womanI am invincibleI am strongI am woman Oh, yes, I am wiseBut it's wisdom born of painYes, I've paid the priceBut look how much I gainedIf I have toI can face anythingI am strong (strong)I am invincible (invincible)I am woman

21. Ethnic Minorities Seek Equality • Latinos • Asian-Americans • Native Americans

22. Latinos • Latino population was growing quickly • Family origins in Latin America • Also known as Chicanos in 1960’s-1970’s • Had been seen as outsiders and denied employment, education, and housing • Large numbers of Latinos and Chicanos began to organize themselves into powerful political groups

23. Civil Rights for Latinos • The Mexican American Civil Rights Movement, one of the least studied social movements of the 1960s, encompassed a broad cross section of issues—from restoration of land grants, to farm workers rights, to enhanced education, to voting and political rights. • Also known as the Chicano Movement addressed negative stereotyping of Mexicans in mass media and the American consciousness through the creation of works of literary and visual art that validated the Mexican-American ethnicity and culture. http://www.albany.edu/jmmh/vol3/chicano/chicano.html

24. The Bracero Program, created under a joint U.S.-Mexico agreement in 1942, permits Mexican nationals to work in U.S. agricultural areas on a temporary basis and at wages lower than domestic workers The Bracero Program is terminated in 1963. In 1968, the U.S. Congress designated "National Hispanic Week" in mid-September, to coincide with the Independence Day celebrations in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua on September 15, and with Mexico's Independence Day on September 16. In 1988, Congress expanded the commemoration, appointing the month running from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 as "National Hispanic Month." Important Milestones

25. Important Court Case • 1974: In Lau v. Nichols, the Supreme Court rules that, under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, school districts are required to provide assistance to LEP (limited-English-proficient) students that ensure that they receive the same opportunities as fluent English students

26. Cesar Chavez • Founder of United Farm Workers (UFW) • Was a migrant worker from Arizona; his family was among the first to strike for equal rights and pay in the fields • Organized Mexican field hands against powerful grape and lettuce farmers

27. Chavez and Grape Boycott • Striking farm workers and supporters begin a national boycott of California table grapes in1967 • In 1968 Cesar Chavez fasts in Delano for 25 days. • He is joined by Sen. Robert Kennedy at the end of the fast. The UFW campaigns for Robert Kennedy in the California primary • Resulted in a 1975 California law that required collective bargaining for migrant workers

28. Asian Americans • Have faced discrimination since their arrival in the U.S. • The prejudice reached a peak in the 1940’s (Internment camps) • Most were well-educated by 1960’s, yet still earned less and found less jobs available in management • This began to change by 1970’s • The new state of Hawaii sent several Asian-Americans to Congress changing stereotypes

29. Immigration from Asia • The most significant change in immigration from Asia occurred when highly restrictive "national origins" quotas were lifted in 1965. • The new country-specific quotas enabled significant immigration from every country in Asia, which led to dramatic and ongoing changes in the Asian American population in the U.S.

30. Native Americans • By 1871, Native American tribes were not recognized as independent powers • However Native Americans were not considered US citizens, either! • After 1924, Native Americans who had been born in the U.S. were granted citizenship • However, it wasn’t until 1948 that all were given the right to vote • Old stereotypes vanished slowly

31. Native Americans and Discrimination • Native Americans suffer from many of the same social and economic problems as other victims of long-term bias and discrimination - including, for example, disproportionately high rates of poverty, infant mortality, unemployment, and low high school completion rates. • The struggle for equal employment and educational opportunity is key to addressing these problems

32. Discrimination Against Native Americans • American Indians faced discrimination similar to the segregation that as African Americans experienced • In some states you could find three separate drinking fountains labeled "whites," "Colored" and "Indian." • There were also three sections in some movie theaters.

33. The American Indian Movement (AIM) • The native civil rights movement began with the founding of the American Indian Movement (AIM) in 1968. • AIM began as a rallying group for the rights of Indians living in urban areas, and initiated a series of protests and confrontations that continued into the 1970s

34. The American Indian Movement (AIM) “Everything is tied to our homeland” • Indian land claims included: • Seneca Nation in New York • Seminole Nation in Florida • Fight for autonomy (self-government) on Indian Reservations

35. Violence in the Movement • Members of AIM briefly took over the headquarters of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C. • They complained that the government had created the tribal councils on reservations in 1934 as a way of perpetuating paternalistic control over Native American development.

36. Issues of the Movement • During the Summer of 1968, two hundred members of the Indian community came together to discuss various issues and critical developments within the Native American community. Amongst them were -- • Police Brutality •  Slum Housing •  80% unemployment rate • Disgraceful if not shameful practices of the Minneapolis public school system and its lack of concern regarding Indian education. • Racist and discriminatory policies of the Hennepin County welfare system toward Native American clients. • Questionable behavior of federal government in its regard to Native policies

37. The Occupation of Alcatraz in 1969 • Several Native American groups claimed the former prison • The occupiers held the island for nearly eighteen months, from Nov. 20, 1969, until June 11, 1971, reclaiming it as Indian land and demanding fairness and respect for Indian peoples. • The protest failed and federal officials removed the protestors in 1970

39. The Confrontation at Wounded Knee • In 1973, about 200 Sioux, led by members of AIM, seized the tiny village of Wounded Knee, South Dakota the site of the last great massacre of Native Americans by the U.S. cavalry (1890). • Among AIM’s demands was a review of more than 300 treaties between the Native Americans and the federal government that AIM alleged were broken. • Wounded Knee was occupied for 70 days before the militants surrendered. • Two AIM members were killed and a dozen people were hurt including federal marshals • AIM leadership were jailed for the protest and violence.

40. Civil Rights Act of 1964 • All of the civil rights laws that protect people from discrimination because of race or color or national origin also protect American Indians including the Civil Rights Act of 1964

41. The Environmental Movement • Roots of the Environmental Movement can be traced back to the late 1800’s, and to the New Deal • Early environmentalists included John Muir and Teddy Roosevelt • Muir was instrumental in persuading TR to preserve vast public lands as parks, forests, and wildlife preserves

42. There can be nothing in the world more beautiful than the Yosemite, the groves of giant sequoias and redwoods, the Canyon of the Colorado, the Canyon of the Yellowstone, the Three Tetons; and our people shoud see to it that they are preserved for their children and their children's children forever, with their majestic beauty all unmarred." Teddy Roosevelt, Outdoor Pastimes of an American Hunter 1905.

43. Best Seller’s List • Rachel Carson • Author of Silent Spring • Condemned the use of chemical pesticides such as DDT which threatened the food chain destroyed many birds and fish including the bald eagle

44. Important Environmental Actions • The creation of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 1974 • Chief goal to ensure that nuclear power faculties were operated safely

45. Earth Day • Earth Day was created in April 1970 • Increased awareness and clean-up day • Celebrated on April 22 • Wear green, walk to school, and plant some flowers! • http://www.earthday.net/earthday2007.aspx

46. Government Action • Creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970 http://www.epa.gov/epahome/intro.html • The first EPA undertakings set standards for factory waste, car emissions, and the use of pesticides and toxic substances • The Clean Air in 1970 • The Clean Water Act in 1972 • Problems between businesses and the new laws continue today

47. Consumer Safety ExpertRalph Nader • Headed a consumer effort to protect Americans from unsafe products • Published, Unsafe at Any Speed: The Designed-in Dangers of the American Automobile in 1964 • Later, headed efforts to make baby food, insecticides, and the meatpacking industries safer; ran for president in 2000