The Affluent Society

Introduction

• In 1958, John Kenneth Galbraith published The Affluent Society, examining America's post-World War II consumer economy and political culture.

• Galbraith critiqued the economy's dedication to increasing production and consumption, arguing it would lead to economic inequality.

• He warned that an economy driven by creating wants was unsound, unsustainable, and immoral.

• Despite debates, Galbraith's analysis has become a label for postwar American society, characterized by massive economic growth and consumer goods abundance.

• The Affluent Society had flaws: existing inequalities persisted, with women fighting for equal rights and the poor struggling for access to opportunities.

• Suburban growth led to urban decay and ecological issues, while racial discrimination continued.

• Contradictions defined the decade: prosperity alongside poverty, innovation alongside destruction, opportunity alongside discrimination, and liberation alongside conformity.

The Rise of the Suburbs

• New Deal programs laid the groundwork for suburbanization with the creation of the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC).

• In 1932, 250,000 households lost property to foreclosure, and by 1933, half of all U.S. mortgages were in default.

• HOLC refinanced mortgages and introduced the amortized mortgage, allowing borrowers to pay back interest and principal over fifteen years.

• The HOLC eventually owned approximately one-fifth of America's mortgages, opening homeownership to many.

• The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) increased homeownership access by insuring mortgages, stipulating low rates and terms up to thirty years.

• Government programs and subsidies, like the HOLC and FHA, stimulated homeownership and suburban growth.

• Government spending during World War II stimulated the economy and would be sustained after the war.

• The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (G.I. Bill) offered low-interest home loans, college stipends, business loans, and unemployment benefits to veterans.

• Suburban population nearly doubled between 1950 and 1970, with 83% of all population growth occurring in suburban areas.

• The postwar construction boom boosted appliance and automobile sales and the use of credit cards.

• Television ownership increased dramatically, from 12% in 1950 to over 87% in 1960.

• Car ownership also increased, from 54% in 1948 to 74% in 1959, and motor fuel consumption rose significantly.

• William Levitt built the first Levittown in 1946, offering affordable suburban housing to veterans and their families.

• Suburban population share rose from 19.5% in 1940 to 30.7% by 1960, with homeownership rates increasing from 44% to almost 62%.

• Suburban communities grew rapidly between 1940 and 1950.

• Loans became easier to obtain, consumer goods more accessible, single-family homes cheaper, and well-paying jobs more abundant.

• Real estate appraisers used HOLC policies that considered mixed-race neighborhoods as credit risks.

• HOLC created Residential Security Maps, redlining minority-dominated areas and limiting loans there.

• Despite the economic boom, racial disparity, sexual discrimination, and economic inequality persisted.

• Phrases like “subversive racial elements” were used in redlined-area descriptions.

• The exclusionary structures of the postwar economy led to protests for fair housing, equal employment, consumer access, and educational opportunity.

• In Shelley v. Kraemer (1948), the Supreme Court declared racially restrictive housing covenants legally unenforceable, though discrimination continued.

• The postwar suburban boom exacerbated racial and class inequalities and caused environmental destruction.

• Developers sought cheaper land, damaging wetlands and floodplains.

• Historian Adam Rome noted that a territory roughly the size of Rhode Island was bulldozed for urban development every year.

• Typical postwar tract-houses had energy inefficiencies and malfunctioning septic tanks.

• Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962) denounced pesticide use, raising environmental awareness.

• Americans continued to rely on automobiles and idealized single-family homes, hindering shifts in land and energy use.

Race and Education

• School desegregation was a tense experience, particularly for African American students.

• The Little Rock Nine were the first to integrate schools in Arkansas, escorted by the U.S. Army in 1957.

• Activists challenged the constitutionality of “separate but equal” after the battles over racial exclusion.

• In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court declared segregation unconstitutional, violating the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause.

• Decades of African American–led litigation and activism led to this decision.

• The NAACP, led by lawyers such as Charles Hamilton Houston, Robert L. Clark, and Thurgood Marshall, undermined Jim Crow’s legal basis through court cases.

• The NAACP sought to demonstrate unequal resources and facilities in segregated schools.

• Brown v. Board of Education consolidated five separate cases from the southeastern United States.

• Briggs v. Elliott highlighted the disparity in funding between white and Black schools.

• The Brown suit focused on the social and spiritual degradation caused by segregation.

• The NAACP used historical and social scientific evidence, like the doll experiments of Kenneth and Mamie Clark, to show psychological damage to Black children caused by segregation.

• The Clarks demonstrated that Black children showed a aesthetic and moral preference for white dolls, revealing the self-loathing produced by segregation.

• The Supreme Court's orders in Brown II (1955) to desegregate “with all deliberate speed” were vague and ineffective, leaving enforcement to segregation supporters.

• School integration occurred slowly, with 80% of Black southerners in mostly nonwhite schools by 1968.

• By 1972, only 25% were in such schools, and 55% were in schools with a nonwhite minority.

• The 1964 Civil Rights Act enforced the Brown decision by threatening to withhold funding from non-compliant school districts.

• Court decisions like Green v. New Kent County (1968) and Alexander v. Holmes (1969) closed loopholes like “freedom of choice” plans.

• The significance of Brown lies in its idealism and momentum, attacking Jim Crow segregation and offering constitutional support for the civil rights movement.

Civil Rights in an Affluent Society

• The struggle for Black inclusion included fighting against racist policies, cultures, and beliefs in all aspects of American life.

• The Double V campaign and postwar economic boom led to rising expectations for African Americans.

• Persistent racism and segregation led to unprecedented mobilization against discriminatory structures.

• The 1950s were a significant decade in the civil rights movement, preceding the well-known events of the 1960s.

• In 1953, Sarah Keys challenged segregated public transportation.

• Keys v. Carolina Coach Company (1955), the Interstate Commerce Commission ruled that “separate but equal” violated the Interstate Commerce Clause.

• This ruling provided legal coverage for the Freedom Riders and motivated further assaults against Jim Crow.

• In 1955, Emmett Till's murder highlighted the brutality of racism, galvanizing the civil rights movement.

• An all-white jury acquitted the murderers, who later boasted about their crime.

• Rosa Parks' refusal to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus in December 1955 led to her arrest and the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

• The Montgomery Bus Boycott lasted from December 1955 to December 20, 1956, when the Supreme Court ordered their integration.

• The boycott crushed segregation in Montgomery's public transportation, energized the civil rights movement, and established Martin Luther King Jr.'s leadership.

• The Civil Rights Act of 1957 created the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Commission.

• The civil rights movement faced violent opposition, including church bombings and death threats.

• Civil rights activists viewed the 1950s as a decade of mixed results.

• In 1957, King and other leaders formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to coordinate civil rights efforts in the South.

Gender and Culture in the Affluent Society

• The Affluent Society reshaped American culture and identities.

• Television became popular in the late 1940s, with regular broadcasting available by 1947.

• Television borrowed organizational structure and content from radio, with NBC, CBS, and ABC dominating the airwaves.

• The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) endorsement of the big three’s stranglehold on the market happened via refusal to issue any new licenses between 1948 and 1955.

• Early programs adapted popular radio shows, accompanied by live plays, dramas, sports, and situation comedies.

• Limited channels and programs meant shared viewing experiences and noncontroversial shows aimed at the entire family, such as Father Knows Best and Leave It to Beaver.

• Mid-1950s primetime programming cost about $150,000$$$150,000$$ (approximately $1.5$$$1.5$$ million today) per hour to produce, leading to joint financing and thirty-second spot ads.

• Television idealized the nuclear family, traditional gender roles, and white, middle-class domesticity.

• Shows like Leave It to Beaver depicted breadwinner fathers and homemaker mothers.

• Advertising was prevalent, including on TV shows like Twenty One.

• The postwar baby boom resulted from economic prosperity, larger homes, and cultural emphasis on large, insular families.

• Women were pressured to focus on homemaking and child-rearing, influenced by experts like Dr. Spock.

• A new youth culture emerged, with anxieties of the atomic age and embrace of rebellion, as shown in Rebel Without a Cause.

• American youth embraced rock ’n’ roll, with artists like Little Richard, Buddy Holly, and Elvis Presley.

• Elvis Presley’s sensuality and energy revolutionized youth culture.

• Other Americans rejected conformity, with the Beat Generation seeking deeper meaning in life through travel, Eastern religions, drugs, sex, and art.

• Behind the scenes, Americans were challenging sexual mores.

• Gay men established the Mattachine Society in Los Angeles, and gay women formed the Daughters of Bilitis in San Francisco as support groups, providing support and literature.

Politics and Ideology in the Affluent Society

• Postwar prosperity renewed belief in capitalism, cultural conservatism, and religion.

• The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) promoted “free enterprise” and “The American Way of Life.”

• NAM became a node for business leaders such as J. Howard Pew and Jasper Crane to network with like-minded individuals.

• This network formed the basis for free-market advocacy groups.

• Leonard Read founded the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE) in 1946 to promote libertarian economics.

• Libertarianism emphasized individual liberty, property rights, and minimal government regulation.

• Ludwig von Mises authored much of FEE's libertarian literature.

• Friedrich Hayek founded the Mont Pelerin Society (MPS) in 1947 to challenge Keynesian economics.

• Milton Friedman and the Chicago School of Economics became influential free market advocates.

• Ayn Rand's novels The Fountainhead (1943) and Atlas Shrugged (1957) promoted individualism and “rational self-interest.”

• The ethos of individualism became the building blocks for a new political movement.

• Evangelical churches filled a social void in suburban communities, reinforcing conservative views and economic individualism.

• After World War II, the Republican Party faced a choice between conservative (Robert Taft) and moderate (Thomas Dewey) factions.

• Debates over foreign aid and communism further divided the party.

• Eisenhower defeated Taft, motivated to prevent the party adopting a course which could lead to national suicide, particularly their anti-collective security arrangements.

• He felt the best way to stop communism was alleviating the conditions under which it was most attractive through New Deal programs.

• Eisenhower felt that abolishing social security, unemployment insurance, labor laws and farm programs would be political suicide.

• Eisenhower's legislative proposals were defeated by conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats.

• Eisenhower's domestic achievements included expanding social security and creating the Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) cabinet position.

• His foreign policy involved bolstering anticommunist allies and the threat of “massive retaliation.”

• Despite Eisenhower's mainstream approach, the party was moving to the right, nominating Barry Goldwater in 1964.

• The political moderation of the Affluent Society stood on the precipice of revolution, giving the world liberal reforms and conservative ascendancy.

Conclusion

• Prosperity seemed to promise ever higher standards of living, but things fell apart.

• Wracked by contradiction, dissent, discrimination, and inequality, the Affluent Society stood on the precipice of revolution.

• In 1958, John Kenneth Galbraith published The Affluent Society, critiquing America's economy focused on production and consumption, leading to inequality.

• Galbraith called for a focus on equitable growth rather than merely increasing wealth.

• Suburbanization was fueled by New Deal programs, increasing homeownership and reshaping demographics, despite persistent inequalities and segregation.

• School desegregation efforts, notably Brown v. Board of Education, faced significant resistance but laid the foundation for civil rights activism.

• The civil rights movement gained momentum in the 1950s, highlighted by events like Rosa Parks' arrest and the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

• Television became central to American culture, reflecting and reinforcing traditional family values and gender roles.

• The political landscape shifted towards conservative capitalism, with figures advocating for free-market principles and opposing welfare policies.

• Ultimately, the Affluent Society was characterized by contradictions: economic prosperity coexisted with social inequality and environmental issues, ultimately setting the stage for societal upheaval and change.

In 1958, John Kenneth Galbraith published The Affluent Society, critiquing America's economy focused on production and consumption, leading to inequality. Galbraith emphasized that the economy's emphasis on creating wants was harmful and advocated for a focus on equitable growth, rather than just wealth accumulation.

Suburbanization was significantly influenced by New Deal programs that facilitated homeownership. The Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) and Federal Housing Administration (FHA) programs made mortgages accessible, resulting in a suburban population surge from 19.5% in 1940 to 30.7% by 1960. However, this suburban growth was accompanied by persistent inequalities, including racial segregation and discrimination, with practices such as redlining limiting opportunities for minority populations.

School desegregation became a critical issue in the 1950s, particularly following Brown v. Board of Education (1954), which declared segregation unconstitutional. This decision was the culmination of years of African American-led litigation and activism aimed at dismantling Jim Crow laws. Despite significant resistance, this ruling laid the groundwork for the burgeoning civil rights movement.

During the 1950s, the civil rights movement gained momentum through prominent events, including Rosa Parks’ arrest that sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The boycott marked a turning point by effectively challenging segregation in public transport and elevating leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr.

Television became an integral part of American culture, reflecting and emphasizing traditional family values, gender roles, and consumerism, with shows like Leave It to Beaver idealizing the nuclear family. These programs shaped societal norms and expectations around family life during the prosperous postwar period.

The political landscape transitioned toward conservative capitalism in this era, with strong advocacy for free-market principles, exemplified by organizations like the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) and influential figures such as Milton Friedman. The Republican Party grappled with differing views on welfare policies, which led to tensions that foreshadowed future political shifts.

Ultimately, The Affluent Society illustrates a paradox: while it was an era of unprecedented economic growth, it also highlighted deep-seated social inequalities, racial issues, and environmental degradation, all contributing to a society on the brink of significant upheaval.