1950s America and the Vietnam War

The 1950s: Post-War America

Essential Questions

• What aspects of post–World War II America shaped the issues that arose in the 1950s?
• How did the Cold War affect American foreign policy during the decade?
• How did changing aspects of culture affect the upbringing of children and adolescents?
• Why did rock ‘n’ roll engender wildly different reactions from various segments of society?
• How did the modern civil rights movement evolve in the mid- and late 1950s?
• What impact did television have on society, economics, and politics during the 1950s?
• How did events and issues in the 1950s help lead to the cultural and social revolutions of the 1960s?

Returning Veterans “Readjust”

• GI Bill of Rights (Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944):
  • Provided veterans with education, training, and low-cost loans for businesses and homes.
  • Millions took advantage of benefits.
  • College enrollment skyrocketed.
  • The GI Bill helped create the "baby boom" of the 1950s and 1960s.

President Truman

• Became president upon the death of FDR in 1945.
• Faced Soviet aggression in Europe.
• Faced several domestic challenges.
• Won election to his own term in 1948.
• The Korean War began in 1950.

Truman and Civil Rights

• Congress rejected his civil rights legislation.
• He formed the President’s Committee on Civil Rights.
• Desegregated federal employees and armed forces.
• "Dixiecrats" split from Democrats in 1948 due to Truman’s policies on civil rights.

The Korean War: Outbreak

• June 1950: Truman sent troops to Korea.
• U.S. forces were part of a larger UN force.
• U.S. and UN forces suffered major setbacks at first.
• The Inchon landing helped turn the tide.

The Korean War: Stalemate

• UN forces pushed communists to the Yalu River.
• MacArthur clashed with Truman over the scope of the war.
• China entered the conflict, and the war became a stalemate.
• MacArthur was fired.
• A truce was signed in 1953.

The Election of 1952

• Truman decided not to run again.
• Democrats nominated Stevenson; Republicans ran Eisenhower.
• Eisenhower promised to “go to Korea” if elected.
• Eisenhower won handily.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

• Nicknamed “Ike.”
• Led troops in North Africa, planned, and ran the D-Day invasion.
• President of Columbia University.
• NATO commander.
• Elected president in 1952 and 1956.
• Died in 1969.

Adlai Stevenson

• Grandfather had been Cleveland’s VP.
• Governor of Illinois.
• Lost to Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956.
• UN Ambassador under JFK and LBJ.
• Died in 1965.

The Rise of Richard Nixon

• Congressman (later Senator) from CA.
• Became famous for prosecuting Alger Hiss.
• Eisenhower’s VP, 1953–1961.
• Lost a close presidential election to JFK in 1960.
• Elected president in 1968.

Nixon’s “Checkers Speech”

• Reports of a secret campaign “slush fund.”
• Calls for Ike to drop Nixon from the ticket.
• Nixon brought his case to voters on TV.
• Refused to give up his kids’ dog, Checkers.
• Popular opinion kept him on the ticket.

The “Second Red Scare”

• Sen. Joseph McCarthy
• House Un-American Activities Committee
• Accusations of communist ties in the film industry.
• Alger Hiss case.
• The Rosenbergs.

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

• Investigated KKK and Nazi activity in the 1940s.
• Investigated Alger Hiss.
• Made Nixon a major figure.
• Looked for communist infiltration of the film industry.
• Lost clout after McCarthy’s downfall.

Joseph McCarthy

• Junior senator from Wisconsin.
• Claimed to have names of communists in the U.S. State Department.
• Army–McCarthy hearings.
• Censured by the Senate for his tactics.

“McCarthyism”

• Refers to unfounded accusations of treason or disloyalty.
• McCarthy had little or no evidence to back up accusations.
• Murrow exposed McCarthy’s tactics.
• McCarthy stumbled in appearance on Murrow’s See It Now.

The Army–McCarthy Hearings

• The Army accused McCarthy and Cohn of seeking “favorable treatment” for a former staffer.
• McCarthy was challenged by the army’s chief counsel Welch.
• Televised hearings ruined McCarthy.

Levittown and the Suburbs

• Levittown was first developed on Long Island in 1947.
• It offered affordable, mass-produced housing.
• Highways spurred the shift to the suburbs and from the Rust Belt to the Sun Belt.

“White Flight”

• Refers to a movement of whites from cities to suburbs.
• Populations of inner-city areas remained constant or declined.
• Suburbs remained largely white.
• Differing theories as to this phenomenon.

Urban Renewal

• Federal Housing Act of 1949.
• Pittsburgh was an early example of urban renewal.
• The 1954 Housing Act popularized the term “urban renewal.”
• Results of urban renewal were mixed.

The Interstate Highway System

• Created by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956.
• Championed by Eisenhower.
• Initial planning had begun in the 1920s.
• Cost 114 billion to complete.
• Named the “Eisenhower Interstate System.”

The “Baby Boom”

• The term “baby boom” was first coined by columnist Sylvia Porter.
• Postwar boom ran from 1946–1964.
• An estimated 78 million Americans were born during the boom.
• Veterans used GI Bill benefits for mortgages and businesses.
• A return to typical gender roles.
• The boom leveled off by 1958.

Dr. Benjamin Spock

• Noted author and pediatrician.
• Authored The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care in 1946.
• Revolutionized how parents raised their children.
• Later became an activist against the Vietnam War.

Defeating the Polio Menace

• Salk vaccination was tested in 1952.
• It injected an inactive form of the virus into subjects.
• Sabin oral vaccine began testing in 1957.
• Polio was nearly eradicated worldwide.

Social Conformity in the 1950s

• People were described as “too timid to be individuals.”
• Women were encouraged to be obedient housewives.
• Popular culture defined “typical” family roles.
• Likely helped spur later countercultural movements.

Asch’s Experiments in Conformity

• Asch asked the group to visually compare the lengths of lines on cards.
• All but one (the subject) were in on the experiment.
• When the group gave an incorrect answer, the subject tended to go along, though obviously wrong.
• When at least one other gave the correct answer, the subject would agree.

The Organization Man

• William H. Whyte wrote The Organization Man in 1956.
• It was an indictment of the impact of conformity on American society.
• Individuality was portrayed as a handicap; conformity was needed for success in business.
• The Organization Man must not only accept being controlled but must “accept it as if he liked it.”

The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit

• Sloan Wilson wrote The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit in 1955.
• It was a fictional indictment of the Organization Man.
• It showed career men having dysfunctional family lives.
• The book (and film) stressed the importance of family over advancement.

The Affluent Society

• Written by John Kenneth Galbraith in 1958.
• It held that America had great “private sector” wealth but little in the “public sector.”
• Advocated putting federal money into public works.
• Helped shape U.S. economic policy into the 1960s.
• He coined the phrase “conventional wisdom.”

Rise of the “Affluent Society”

• Increase in the availability of consumer goods.
• Gross national product and median family income grew.
• The majority of Americans were considered “middle class.”
• Rise in consumer borrowing.
• More two-income households.

Credit Cards

• Used on a small scale in the 1920s.
• Diners Club was formed in 1949.
• Technically a charge card, could not carry a balance.
• American Express and Bank of America cards (later called “Visa”) appeared in 1958.

The Creation of Franchises

• Roots in the Singer Company in the 1850s.
• Coca-Cola soon followed with a bottling franchise.
• Franchisees paid a fee to sell a company’s product.
• Instant name recognition and consumer confidence.
• Franchising boom after WWII.
• Ray Kroc and McDonald’s.

“Planned Obsolescence”

• Coined by industrial designer Brooks Stevens.
• Commonly describes products that quickly break or go out of style.
• Further developed by Vance Packard:
  • Obsolescence of desirability
  • Obsolescence of function

The Ford Edsel

• The car hit the market in 1957.
• Named after Henry Ford’s son, Edsel.
• Failed miserably:
  • The public hated its styling
  • It was released during a recession
  • Ford management was divided
  • There was poor workmanship
• It was scrapped in 1960.

Television in the 1950s

• Television ownership boomed.
• It was in 90 percent of homes by 1961.
• Radio networks bought TV stations.
• Iconic pitchmen emerged.
• TV encouraged fads.
• TV reinforced gender and racial stereotypes.
• It was called a “vast wasteland” by the FCC chairman.
• Negatively affected movies and magazines.
• Greatly affected politics.

The Beat Generation

• A group of American writers.
• Included Ginsberg, Burroughs, and Kerouac.
• Rejected much of American values and culture.
• Started in New York; later San Francisco.
• Gave way to the 1960s counterculture.

Rock ‘n’ Roll

• Elements of gospel, country, blues, and other music forms.
• Considered subversive.
• DJ Alan Freed.
• White artists made rock acceptable to a wider audience.
• Featured in the film The Blackboard Jungle.

Rock ‘n’ Roll: Cultural Backlash

• Strong African American influences.
• Said to encourage race mixing and immoral behavior.
• Variously called:
  • the devil’s music
  • a communist plot
  • a communicable disease

Elvis Presley

• Born in 1935, in MS.
• First recordings for Sun Records in 1953.
• Became famous for songs such as “Hound Dog,” “Jailhouse Rock,” and “Heartbreak Hotel.”
• Died in 1977.

“Elvis the Pelvis”

• Elvis made TV appearances (including on the Ed Sullivan Show).
• Some saw his dancing as lewd behavior.
• Seen as a symbol of '50s “teenage rebellion.”
• Religious and political leaders were critical of his performances.

Women in the 1950s

• Roles began to evolve.
• The number of women entering the workforce increased.
• Wages were about half of male counterparts’.
• Schools and media reinforced traditional roles.
• Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique questioned these roles.

Hispanics in the 1950s

• Discrimination was common.
• Puerto Ricans:
  • Migrated to New York
  • Culture faded with assimilation
• Mexican Americans:
  • Bracero program
  • Deportations by Eisenhower
• Some gains by Hispanics.

Native Americans in the 1950s

• Among the poorest minorities.
• High death rates.
• U.S. policy changed from preserving tribal identities to assimilation.
• Several treaties were terminated.
• A voluntary relocation policy was a failure.

The Civil Rights Movement: Origins

• Became more organized and vocal in the 1950s.
• Strategy of nonviolent civil disobedience.
• Brown decision (1954) integrated public schools.
• Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955).
• Leaders included Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
• Southern Christian Leadership Council.

The Brown Decision (1954)

• The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that “separate but equal” schools were inherently unequal.
• Public-school segregation was declared unconstitutional.
• A second decision ordered schools desegregated “with all deliberate speed.”

The “Little Rock Nine”

• Early attempt at integration after the Brown decision.
• Little Rock schools selected nine black students.
• Gov. Faubus had the National Guard block their entry.
• Eisenhower sent federal troops to restore order.
• The school district integrated after the next year.

The Montgomery Bus Boycott

• Rosa Parks was arrested on Dec. 1, 1955.
• She refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white woman.
• Blacks planned a boycott of city buses until the ordinance was changed.
• King led the Montgomery Improvement Association.
• Courts ruled segregated busing unconstitutional.
• The boycott ended after 385 days.

MLK’s Philosophy of Nonviolence

• Influenced by Thoreau and Gandhi.
• Nonviolent civil disobedience.
• No fighting back, even if assaulted or arrested.
• Explained in “Letter From Birmingham Jail.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

• Founded in 1957 in Atlanta.
• Included several prominent activists, including MLK and Ralph Abernathy.
• Relied on the influence of black Southern religious leaders.
• Led 1963 protests in Birmingham as well as the March on Washington.

1950s Technology

• The chemical industry created pesticides, fertilizers, fibers, and plastics.
• Electronics and appliances became common.
• Nuclear power was developed.
• Computers and the transistor were invented.
• The birth of Silicon Valley occurred.

The H-Bomb and Brinksmanship

• The USSR tested an A-bomb in 1949.
• The U.S. made the first H-bomb test in 1953; the Soviets in 1955.
• Dulles’s brinksmanship involved huge stocks of nuclear weapons.
• “Mutually assured destruction” was the doctrine.

Fallout Shelters

• Civil Defense encouraged citizens to build shelters.
• Unlikely they would have been effective.
• Shelters' impact was more psychological.
• Made the public believe a nuclear war was survivable.

The Space Race

• International Geophysical Year (1957–1958).
• The USSR launched Sputnik I in 1957.
• It was a blow to U.S. prestige.
• Implied the superiority of Soviet missiles.
• The U.S. sent up Explorer I in 1958.

The U-2 Incident

• A U-2 was shot down over Soviet territory in 1960.
• Major setback in U.S./USSR relations.
• The incident forced summit cancellation.
• Powers was convicted of espionage and released in 1962.

Early U.S. Involvement in Vietnam

• The U.S. first supported Vietnamese independence from France.
• Later backed the French against Ho’s Viet Minh.
• The French were defeated at Dien Bien Phu.
• The Geneva Accords partitioned the country.

Hostilities Begin in Vietnam

• Diem seized power in the South.
• Southern communists formed the Viet Cong.
• The U.S. opposed elections to unify Vietnam.
• The Viet Cong began a guerilla war in the South.

The Election of 1960

• Vice President Richard M. Nixon (R).
• Senator John F. Kennedy (D).
• Nixon promised to continue Eisenhower’s peace and prosperity.
• JFK sought to “get the country moving again” in the rivalry with the USSR.
• JFK’s Roman Catholicism was an issue.

The First Debate

• Nixon:
  • was an experienced debater
  • looked scruffy, ill, and sweaty
• Kennedy:
  • looked and sounded “presidential”
  • made effective use of television
• TV viewers tended to think that JFK won, but radio listeners said the opposite.

A Close Election

• About 68 million votes were cast.
• JFK won the popular vote by about 118,000.
• Key states were Texas and Illinois.
• There were rumors of voter fraud in IL.
• Nixon lost by 84 electoral votes.
• Byrd got 15 electoral votes.

JFK Takes Office

• Kennedy promised a “New Frontier.”
• Asked Americans to work to make the country great.
• Idealism inspired many to help out in the U.S. and abroad.

The Legacy of the 1950s

• The Cold War got “colder.”
• The Civil rights movement led to the Civil Rights Act (1964) and Voting Rights Act (1965).
• The Women’s rights movement and NOW.
• Beats and other symbols of rebellion contributed to social activism.
• The 1960s “British invasion” built on early rock ‘n’ roll.

The Vietnam War

Indochina

• Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.
• Mountainous terrain.
• Deltas:
  • Red River (north)
  • Mekong (south)
• Tropical rainforests.

Vietnam in the Mid-20th Century

• French colony from the late 19th century to WWII.
• Japan invaded in WWII.
• Ho Chi Minh and the Viet Minh led the independence movement.
• Democratic Republic of Vietnam was formed.
• A power vacuum ensued.

The First Indochina War

• Ho Chi Minh declared independence in 1945 and received U.S. support.
• War with France broke out in 1947.
• Vietnam received assistance from communist China.
• The U.S. supported France.

Eisenhower and J.F. Dulles

• Eisenhower took office in 1953.
• Pressured France for a more aggressive strategy and a timetable for victory.
• France agreed in exchange for financial assistance.
• Dulles predicted victory by the end of 1955.

Dien Bien Phu and the End of French Colonial Rule

• The American and French plan failed.
• Viet Minh attacked French forces at Dien Bien Phu.
• The U.S. did not provide military assistance to the French.
• Major victory for Viet Minh.

The Geneva Accords and Aftermath

• The treaty officially ended foreign involvement in Indochina.
• Vietnam was divided:
  • Communist North
  • U.S.-supported, Catholic South
• “Ho Chi Minh Trail”: supply line through Laos and Cambodia to South Vietnam.

The Geneva Accords and Aftermath (continued)

• Ngo Dinh Diem took power in 1955.
• The Viet Cong threatened to overthrow Diem.
• The U.S. opposed the mandated unification election.

The Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese

• Viet Cong: communist revolutionaries in South Vietnam.
• North Vietnam: Ho’s communist government.
• North Vietnamese Army (NVA).
• North Vietnam wanted the Viet Cong to appear as if fighting independently.

Instability in South Vietnam

• Kennedy expanded aid to South Vietnam.
• Protests by Buddhists occurred.
• The U.S. supported the overthrow of the Diem government.
• Popular support for communists in the South increased.

Containment and the “Domino Theory”

• Kennedy began to call for a limited withdrawal of advisors.
• Johnson wanted escalation.
• The domino theory of communism’s spread.
• U.S. policy of containment.

LBJ: Why Escalation?

• The U.S. wanted to maintain its international respect and reputation.
• Hoped to prevent communist China’s expansion.
• Johnson’s political concerns and ego.
• Believed North Vietnam would give up its goals with gradual escalation.

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident

• Top-secret missions against North Vietnam from 1961.
• August 2, 1964: Attack on U.S destroyer by NVA torpedo boats; U.S. fired first.
• August 4: Alleged second NVA attack against U.S. destroyer.

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident (continued)

• Based on a second “attack,” Johnson ordered retaliatory airstrikes.
• The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution allowed military action without a declaration of war.
• Recent evidence shows that the second attack never happened.

Aerial Bombing Begins

• Aerial bombing campaign began in March 1965 (“Operation Rolling Thunder”).
• The U.S. wanted to end North Vietnam’s support for the Viet Cong.
• Bombing campaigns were not effective toward this goal.

The Ground War

• The number of ground troops grew rapidly.
• “Search and destroy” missions were conducted.
• Caused difficulties for the South Vietnamese: loss of farmland, inflation, refugees.
• Many South Vietnamese came to see the U.S. as the enemy.

Westmoreland’s Strategy

• Gen. William Westmoreland.
• War of attrition.
• Large-scale ground and air attacks.
• The Viet Cong and NVA fought a smaller-scale guerilla war; difficult for the U.S. to counter.
• Attrition did not work.
• “Logistical miracle.”

American Allies’ Views of the War

• Traditional European allies did not contribute; France openly opposed the war.
• Pacific Rim allies included Australia, S. Korea, New Zealand, Thailand, and the Philippines.
• All small and reluctant contributions.
• Support waned as the war went on.

American Soldiers in Vietnam

• Terrible conditions in the Vietnamese jungle and swamps.
• Constant vigilance was required.
• Hard to distinguish Viet Cong from South Vietnamese villagers.
• Some turned to drug abuse.
• Low morale was common.

Weaponry

• Bombers and fighters.
• Tanks and armored personnel carriers.
• Troops’ individual weapons: rifles, mortars, grenades, mines.
• “People sniffers.”

Weaponry (cont.)

• Chemical incendiary devices (e.g., napalm).
• Agent Orange:
  • Killed jungle foliage
  • Caused genetic defects
• Agent Blue:
  • Destroyed crops
  • Peasants were more affected than the Viet Cong

Women in the Vietnam War

• Thousands served in various military and civilian roles.
• Noncombat roles.
• Witnessed the same types of atrocities as men.
• Women’s efforts were not highly recognized.
• Vietnam Women’s Memorial Project.

Prisoners of War

• Kept in North Vietnamese prisons in or near Hanoi.
• Horrendous conditions.
• Interrogation and torture increased after a failed escape attempt.
• The U.S. began to publicize prison conditions.
• Improvements occurred after Ho’s death.
• Continued controversy over some POWs’ fate.

Public Opinion in the U.S.

• Most Americans supported the war early on.
• Opposition began to spread more widely in 1966.
• Many still remained supportive.
• “Hawks” and “doves.”

The Antiwar Movement: Ideologies

• Three general categories
  • Pacifists
  • Radicals
  • Antiwar liberals
• Did not always agree on the best protest strategies.

The Antiwar Movement: Protests

• Individual acts of protest:
  • Burning draft cards
  • Self-immolation
  • Antiwar entertainment
• Group protests:
  • Government and associated buildings
  • Draft boards, recruiters
  • Weapons manufacturers

The Antiwar Movement: Protests (cont.)

• Group protests:
  • March on the Pentagon (1967)
  • “Teach-ins” and “sit-ins” on college campuses

The Antiwar Movement: Leaders and Organizations

• Pacifist movement:
  • Often Quakers or Unitarians
  • Dr. Benjamin Spock and SANE

The Antiwar Movement: Leaders and Organizations (cont.)

• Some grew out of the civil rights movement:
  • Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
  • Free Speech Movement
• The “New Left.”

The Antiwar Movement: Impact

• Protests did little to change public opinion about the war (or may have increased support for the war).
• Brought the war more closely into the public eye.
• Kept Johnson from drastically escalating the war.

Martin Luther King Jr.

• Hesitated to speak out because of LBJ’s War on Poverty.
• Became a vocal critic of the war:
  • Felt it was morally irresponsible
  • It diverted money from antipoverty programs
• “Beyond Vietnam” speech condemned the war.
• Criticized for his antiwar position.

MLK’s Philosophy of Nonviolence

• Influenced by Thoreau and Gandhi.
• Nonviolent civil disobedience.
• No fighting back, even if assaulted or arrested.
• Explained in “Letter From Birmingham Jail.”

“Letter From Birmingham Jail”

• Response to white clergy who advocated legal action, not protests.
• Advocates direct action to force negotiation.
• Says people have a “moral responsibility” to disobey unjust laws.

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

• Founded by Ella Baker in 1960.
• Involved in Freedom Rides (1961), March on Washington (1963), “Freedom Summer” (1964), and the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.
• Later focused on “Black Power.”

The Greensboro Sit-In

• Four black students were denied service at a lunch counter and stayed until closing time.
• Hundreds joined the protest.
• Expanded to other local businesses.
• Sparked sit-ins in cities across the country.

“Freedom Rides”

• The Supreme Court ordered bus terminals desegregated in 1961.
• SNCC decided to test if Southern cities had complied.
• Riders were beaten in South Carolina and firebombed in Alabama.
• Federal injunctions finally integrated bus terminals.

Integrating the University of Alabama

• Hood and Malone sought admission.
• Governor George Wallace made a “stand in the schoolhouse door” to block their enrollment.
• Justice Department officials and federal troops forced Wallace to relent.

The Birmingham Campaign

• Birmingham was known as the “most segregated city” in the U.S.
• SCLC protests took place.
• Police Commissioner “Bull” Connor used fire hoses and police dogs to stop demonstrations.
• Publicity gave the movement a high level of visibility.
• Downtown merchants relented.

JFK’s Civil Rights Bill

• Kennedy decided to act after the Birmingham campaign.
• Introduced comprehensive civil rights bill in June 1963.
• The bill was finally passed during the Johnson presidency.

The March on Washington

• Conceived by A. Philip Randolph in 1941.
• The “Big Six” organized the 1963 march.
• The purpose of the march changed to encompass civil rights legislation, as well as employment rights and a higher minimum wage

The March: Opposition

• JFK disapproved at first.
• Malcolm X called it the “Farce on Washington.”
• Members of the Nation of Islam faced suspension for participating.
• While many labor unions supported the march, the AFL-CIO remained neutral.

The March: Highlights

• Estimated at over 250,000 participants.
• More like a celebration than a protest.
• Several celebrities spoke and performed.
• Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

• Introduced by JFK.
• Guided through Congress by LBJ.
• Prohibited discrimination in public accommodations.
• Ended unfair voting requirements.
• Made enforcement of legislation easier.

“Freedom Summer”

• Established by the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) in 1964.
• Designed to register blacks in Mississippi to vote.
• Also set up voluntary schools.
• Over 1000 enlisted, mostly white Northern college students.

Schwerner, Chaney, and Goodman

• Three civil rights workers were killed by Ku Klux Klan members.
• Disappeared in June; bodies were found in August.
• Perpetrators were tried for civil rights violations and received light sentences.
• One was not convicted until 2005.

Malcolm X

• Born Malcolm Little.
• Embraced the Nation of Islam; changed name.
• Second most powerful Black Muslim.
• Controversial statements.
• “By any means necessary.”

Malcolm X (continued)

• Broke from the Nation of Islam; converted to Sunni Islam.
• Changed in philosophy.
• Assassinated in 1965.

The “Black Power” Movement

• A more militant philosophy than MLK’s.
• Stokely Carmichael was a leader.
• Advocated racial separation, black nationalism, and violence in certain circumstances.
• Important to blacks’ self-worth to make gains without whites’ assistance.

The Black Panthers

• Founded in 1966 by Huey Newton, Bobby Seale, and others.
• A means of armed resistance against the oppression of blacks.
• Developed “Ten Point Plan” of goals including self-determination, full employment, adequate housing and education.
• The party disintegrated in the 1970s.

Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party

• An alternative to the segregationist Democratic Party.
• LBJ was concerned about losing Southern support.
• Hamer addressed the Credentials Committee.
• Failed to seat delegates.
• Brought attention to blacks’ lack of political representation.

Selma to Montgomery Marches

• Marches for voting rights in 1965.
• The first march was known as “Bloody Sunday.”
• MLK led a second, symbolic march.
• The third march reached Montgomery.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

• Strengthened enforcement of the 15th Amendment.
• Allowed for federal oversight where registration or turnout was under 50 percent in 1964.
• Banned literacy tests as qualifications for voting.
• Had dramatic results.

1960s Counterculture and the War