Chapter 28: Rebellion and Reaction (1960–1974) — Comprehensive Notes

Kennedy and Johnson expand the role of government

• Learning context: 1960 to 1974; focus on how Kennedy and Johnson expanded federal government’s role and the evolution of the black freedom movement.
• John F. Kennedy’s (JFK) rhetoric and priorities (domestic and foreign)
  • JFK’s 1960 Democratic National Convention speech framed the new frontier: solving unsolved problems of peace and war, ignorance and prejudice, poverty and surplus.
  • Early in his presidency, JFK prioritized fighting communism abroad (Cuba, Vietnam) over sweeping domestic reforms.
  • Domestic agenda beginnings included poverty and urban issues but faced legislative barriers; launched the Peace Corps (1961) to aid education, health, and development abroad.
  • Domestic ambitions included education and health care reform, but these faced opposition in Congress; announced a large-scale urban renewal program and poverty-focused efforts (e.g., a $2{,}000{,}000{,}000 urban renewal program in 1962; full-scale attack on poverty contemplated for 1963–1964).
  • JFK’s domestic program was cut short by his assassination (11/22/1963). He did not realize his full domestic reform agenda, though his rhetoric inspired later liberal reform.
  • Kennedy’s record on civil rights was cautious in office; while courting black votes, he resisted bold federal action on racial justice until mass protest pushed him to act. His death led to the rise of a more expansive civil rights agenda under LBJ.
• Lyndon B. Johnson’s (LBJ) Great Society: expansion of federal government for equality and opportunity
  • LBJ, taking office after Kennedy’s death, invoked a Great Society promising abundance and liberty and an end to poverty and racial injustice.
  • With civil rights movement momentum, postwar prosperity, and Supreme Court decisions, liberal aims expanded beyond New Deal security to include individual rights and racial justice.
  • Major achievements included civil rights legislation, poverty programs, education, medical care, housing, consumer safety, environmental protection, and the arts.
  • Johnson’s approach relied on personal political skills (e.g., the Johnson treatment) to marshal congressional support.
  • Despite legislative successes, opposition from conservatives and the costs of the Vietnam War constrained the scope and durability of Great Society programs.
• The Great Society and liberal expansion of the federal government
  • Liberal agenda broadened beyond economic security to include civil rights, education, health care, housing, environment, and consumer protection.
  • Civil rights measures and court decisions (Brown v. Board 1954 lineage, plus 1960s rulings) created a constitutional framework for equality and rights that enabled Great Society programs.
• The political context of crisis and backlash
  • Activists on the left argued the government hadn’t gone far enough to rectify social inequalities.
  • A rising conservative movement opposed the growth of federal power, arguing government programs discouraged initiative and failed to address structural economic problems.
• What JFK prioritized domestically and foreign policy tension
  • JFK’s foreign priorities included resisting communism (Cuba, Vietnam) and sustaining U.S. power abroad.
  • Domestic focus (poverty, education, health care) was pursued but lagged in Congress; public pressures and civil rights activism ultimately pushed reforms.
• Kennedy administration’s end and transition
  • JFK’s assassination accelerated the legislative effort and allowed LBJ to push through a more aggressive reform agenda.
• Notable figures and moments
  • Michael Harrington’s The Other America influenced JFK’s poverty discourse and later LBJ actions.
  • The Peace Corps and urban renewal initiatives symbolized American reform ideals and international outreach, though domestic ambitions remained contested.

How did LBJ wage the war on poverty

• Johnson’s background and motivation
  • Born in the Texas Hill Country; taught at a Mexican American school; poverty left a lasting impression.
  • Early Senate leadership and the “Johnson treatment” helped him push legislation.
• The War on Poverty and the Economic Opportunity Act (1964)
  • The act authorized 10 new programs with $800{,}000{,}000 for the first year (roughly 1% of the federal budget) to confront poverty.
  • Target groups and programs included:
  • Head Start for preschoolers
  • Work-Study Grants for college students
  • Vista (Volunteer in Service to America)
  • Legal Services Program to provide lawyers for the poor
  • Community Action Program (CAP): required maximum feasible participation of the poor in anti-poverty projects; aimed to empower the poor to influence local decision-making in welfare, housing, schools, and policing
  • CAP opened pathways to political leadership and federal funds for communities usually excluded from governance, though local resistance dampened genuine representation.
• Aims and scope of the Great Society
  • Johnson outlined aims to combat discrimination, poverty, and inequality and to expand rights and opportunity beyond the New Deal and Fair Deal.
  • Major legislation and initiatives included:
  • Civil Rights Act of 1964: outlawed discrimination in employment, education, and public accommodations; extended protections to Native Americans on reservations; Title VII prohibited gender discrimination in employment.
  • Voting Rights Act of 1965: eliminated literacy tests; authorized federal intervention to ensure voting access; significantly increased Black political participation in the South.
  • Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965: ended national-origin quotas; opened pathways for non-European immigration; preference given to immediate relatives and skilled workers.
  • Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965: federal funds to local districts; emphasis on schooling for the poor.
  • Higher Education Act of 1965: expanded federal aid to colleges and universities for buildings, programs, scholarships, and loans.
  • Medicare (1965) and Medicaid: universal medical insurance for Americans 65+ and federal aid for the poor, respectively; by the 21st century, these covered roughly 87{,}000{,}000 Americans.
  • National Welfare Rights Organization and AFDC reforms: aimed to expand welfare access and dignity; welfare rolls grew from ~1{,}000,000 in 1960 to ~3{,}000,000 by 1972.
  • Food stamps expansion and rent subsidies to aid the poor.
  • Education and cultural grants: National Arts and Humanities Act (1965); emphasis on environment and urban development.
  • Other social supports and programs
  • Head Start and job training to raise opportunity and reduce dependence on welfare.
  • The CAP’s push for local accountability and community involvement in welfare agencies.
  • The Women’s component: Title VII’s gender protections, affirmative action expansion, and child welfare initiatives.
• Health care for the elderly and the poor
  • Medicare and Medicaid marked a watershed expansion of federal responsibility for health care, a central pillar of the Great Society.
  • The long-term effect: Health care coverage for a large portion of the population and a shift toward government involvement in social welfare.
• The environment, arts, and culture
  • Johnson’s environmental and cultural initiatives included the Environment focus (pollution controls, natural beauty) and the National Arts and Humanities Act (1965).
  • The Great Society era also emphasized consumer protection and urban development.
• Economic and social outcomes
  • Great Society programs boosted federal expenditure in health, education, and welfare; federal spending on these areas grew and helped reduce poverty.
  • The impact varied by race and gender; while some groups experienced notable gains and a growing Black middle class, many remained in poverty, particularly women-headed households and communities of color.
• The political limits and backlash
  • The Great Society’s pace slowed after 1966 as conservatism grew and the Vietnam War drained resources.
  • Critics argued the programs did not transform the economy’s structural inequities or fully redistribute income; liberal gains were tempered by fiscal constraints and political headwinds.

The Courts revolutionize rights

• The Warren Court (1953–1969) as liberal reform engine
  • The judiciary under Chief Justice Earl Warren often moved ahead of Congress, expanding individual rights and federal oversight.
  • Key effects included the rights of disadvantaged groups and criminal defendants; expanded constitutional protections beyond the states’ scope.
• Landmark rulings and consequences
  • Brown v. Board of Education (1954) continued to influence desegregation efforts in the 1960s.
  • Baker v. Carr (1963): established one person, one vote principle for state legislatures and U.S. House districts.
  • Griswold v. Connecticut (1965): established a constitutional right to privacy in the context of contraception.
  • Loving v. Virginia (1967): invalidated bans on interracial marriage.
  • Gideon v. Wainwright (1963): guaranteed counsel for those who cannot afford one.
  • Miranda v. Arizona (1966): required police to inform suspects of their rights.
  • Escalation of protections against illegal evidence, unlawful arrest, and improper surveillance; strengthened due process protections.
• Religion and church-state separation
  • 1963 ruling holding that Bible readings and public school prayer violated the Establishment Clause; subsequent rulings banned official school prayer
• Criticisms and counterarguments
  • Supporters argued these rulings protected civil rights and due process; critics claimed they constrained law enforcement and legitimate public policy.

How did the black freedom movement evolve?

• Distinction from the New Deal liberalism
  • The 1960s civil rights protests and legal victories marked a more assertive, mass-based, morally charged era of reform than the New Deal.
  • The movement shifted from Southern-based legal rights to national struggle against racial inequality and economic injustice.
• From legal rights to broader aims
  • Black activism expanded from desegregation to address poverty, housing, education, and political empowerment.
  • By the early 1970s, local efforts and grassroots organizing grew as federal support faced political resistance.
• Strategies and major campaigns
  • Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955–1956) catalyzed a national civil rights movement and leadership from Martin Luther King Jr. and the SCLC.
  • Sit-ins and nonviolent direct action in the South (1960s) and nonviolent protest strategies.
  • Freedom Rides (1961) to enforce court-ordered desegregation of public transportation; federal marshals sometimes intervened to restore order.
  • Voter Education Project (1962) and voter registration drives in the South; resistance, violence, and criminalization of activists (e.g., church bombings, arrests).
  • Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party challenge to the all-white delegation at the 1964 DNC highlighted tensions within the movement and federal responses.
  • The Birmingham campaign (1963) drew national attention to violent suppression and led to federal civil rights action.
• Police and federal responses
  • FBI surveillance and counterintelligence efforts targeted leaders like Martin Luther King Jr.; efforts to disrupt, misdirect, and discredit leaders and movements.
• Selma and the Voting Rights Act
  • Bloody Sunday (Selma, 1965) spurred federal action; LBJ called up National Guard to protect marchers; Voting Rights Act of 1965 intensified federal oversight of voting and dismantled barriers to Black suffrage.
• Black Power and urban uprisings
  • By 1966, Black Power rhetoric arose, led by figures like Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture) and organizations such as the Black Panther Party; a shift toward self-determination, community control, and armed self-defense in some urban areas.
  • Watts (1965), Newark and Detroit (1967), and Washington, D.C. (1968) uprisings highlighted the link between civil rights, economic disparity, and police brutality.
  • The movement faced backlash from white Americans; public opinion shifted against the pace of change by the mid- to late-1960s.
• Martin Luther King Jr.’s stance and assassination
  • King supported economic justice and radical reconstruction through nonviolence and integration, while acknowledging the need for economic reform.
  • His assassination in 1968 triggered widespread protests and riots; his legacy continued to influence later movements.

Native American, Latino, and other movements within the era

• Red Power and Native American rights
  • Native activists advanced Pan-Indian identity and sovereignty; occupations and demonstrations drew attention to treaty rights and federal policies.
  • Alcatraz occupation (1969–1971): Indians of All Tribes asserted land rights and pushed for cultural recognition; led to broader activism and policy discussions.
  • AIM (American Indian Movement) emerged in 1968 to address police harassment and economic inequality; notable actions included the Trail of Broken Treaties (1972) and the Wounded Knee incident (1973).
  • Legislation and court decisions in the 1970s began to restore some sovereignty and lands, and protect religious rights and cultural practices.
• Chicano movement and brown power
  • Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta led the United Farm Workers (UFW) to organize farm workers and win wage increases via nationwide boycotts (e.g., California grapes) in the 1960s and 1970s.
  • The Chicano movement helped mobilize Mexican American communities, press for anti-discrimination in education, and advocate political access; LULAC continued litigation efforts; Brown Power emphasized cultural pride and political empowerment.
  • The movement included initiatives like freedom schools (Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales) and cultural organizations (Unafic, Marazónita, the United Race). It achieved greater political representation and education access and helped public awareness of migrant workers’ struggles.
• Latinos and civil rights organizing
  • The broader Latino civil rights struggle included Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, and other Latino populations; activism ranged from anti-discrimination law to labor rights and political representation.

Why did young people join the new left and counterculture?

• The new left and SDS (Students for a Democratic Society)
  • SDS outlined a new left’s purpose in 1962: civil rights, peace, and universal economic security; critique of bureaucratic complacency and alienation.
  • The Free Speech Movement at UC Berkeley (1964) sparked campus-level organizing against restrictions on political activity; widespread student protests and campus occupations followed.
  • The New Left promoted curricular reforms (Black Studies, Women's Studies), broader financial aid for minority and low-income students, and greater student governance in campuses.
• The counterculture and youth revolt
  • The hippie movement rejected mainstream consumerism and traditional authority; the culture emphasized authenticity, nonconformity, and experimentation with lifestyles.
  • Golden Gate Park 1967 human be-in and the Woodstock Festival (1969, ~400{,}000 attendees) symbolized youth culture’s centrality to the era.
  • The counterculture incorporated rock and folk music as social commentary and a form of political expression; drugs and sexual liberation (the sexual revolution) became defining features.
• Gender, sexuality, and feminism
  • The era’s sexual liberalization overlapped with feminism; 1960s and 1970s saw the rise of second-wave feminism, challenging traditional gender roles and labor discrimination.
  • The emergence of women’s rights organizations and feminist publications (e.g., Gloria Steinem’s Miz) and the push for legal protections and equality in education, work, and reproductive rights.

Gay men, lesbians, and the rise of LGBT activism

• From homophile activism to a broader movement
  • The homophile movement of the 1950s gave way to more visible activism in the mid-1960s.
  • The Stonewall uprising (1969) catalyzed a new wave of LGBT organizing, leading to groups like the Gay Liberation Front and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
• Early milestones
  • 1972: First anti-discrimination ordinance for sexual orientation in Ann Arbor, MI; 1974: Elaine Noble (Massachusetts) elected to state legislature as openly gay; 1973: American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality as a disorder.
• Cultural and political impact
  • LGBT activism emphasized pride and visibility; advocacy for equal rights and anti-discrimination protections increased, though progress was uneven and contested through the 1970s and beyond.

What explains the rise of a new environmentalism?

• From conservation to ecosystem health
  • The new environmental movement built on earlier conservation traditions but emphasized the costs of unchecked growth and pollution.
  • Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962) highlighted ecological risks from pesticides like DDT and sparked public concern about environmental health.
  • Groups such as the Sierra Club expanded their agendas to include broader environmental reform.
• Public mobilization and policy action
  • Earth Day (April 1970) drew ~20,000,000 Americans to environmental education and advocacy events.
  • The Nixon administration accelerated environmental policy by creating the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970; supported OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Act) and other regulations.
  • Major statutes included: Clean Air Act (1970), Endangered Species Act (1973), Clean Water Act (1972; enacted over Nixon’s veto), with ongoing environmental policy shaping.

How did the black freedom struggle influence other social movements of the nineteen sixties and nineteen seventies? What sparked a new wave of feminism?

• Cross-pollination of movements
  • The civil rights movement inspired Latino, Native American, women’s, gay liberation, environmental, and other movements to adopt direct action strategies and demand structural reforms.
  • The activism model—mass protests, legal challenges, and coalition-building—translated across groups.
• The feminist wave (late 1960s–1970s)
  • The second wave emerged from the broader civil rights era; organized around equal opportunity, reproductive rights, workplace equality, and anti-discrimination, with a focus on legal changes.
  • The movement saw both mainstream and radical strands; NOW (National Organization for Women) (founded 1966) led the push for equal rights and anti-discrimination legislation; radical feminism emerged around issues such as abortion rights, sexual autonomy, and challenging family structures.
• Key gains and ongoing challenges
  • Legal gains included Equal Pay Act (1963) and further anti-discrimination laws; ERA debates; Roe v. Wade (1973) recognizing abortion rights.
  • Title IX (1972) outlawed sex discrimination in education; 1974 strengthened credit and employment protections; 1976 opened military academies to women; 1978 banned pregnancy discrimination in the workplace.
  • Obstacles included conservative backlash, the ERA’s defeat in several states, and ongoing wage gaps and underrepresentation in some professional fields.
• Cultural and societal shifts
  • Feminist activism reshaped public expectations about gender roles, family life, and sexuality; media produced new female-led publications addressing feminist issues; universities expanded women’s studies and other gender-focused curricula.
  • The era broadened women’s public leadership and legal rights, but persistent disparities remained in pay, career advancement, and childcare access.

Where did conservatives gain ground?

• The rise of the conservative movement and its bases
  • Hidden beneath Johnson’s landslide victory, a robust conservative movement coalesced around opposition to black power, student protests, feminism, and expansive government programs.
  • Barry Goldwater’s 1964 campaign framed liberal excess and promoted smaller government, free enterprise, and traditional moral values; conservatives would later leverage discontent to reshape American politics.
  • The grassroots right included suburban middle-class voters, the John Birch Society, and the Young Americans for Freedom (YAF); Ronald Reagan emerged as a key conservative figure in the late 1960s and 1970s.
  • The Sunbelt and South provided fertile ground for conservative organizing due to resistance to federal civil rights policy and a preference for limited federal government, despite economic reliance on federal defense spending and infrastructure.
• Conservative arguments and tactics
  • Emphasis on individualism, personal responsibility, and anti-communist rhetoric; opposition to what was perceived as excessive social experimentation and federal overreach.
  • Concerns about crime, social disorder, and perceived declines in traditional values—linked to Court decisions (school prayer, abortion, obscenity) and Great Society programs.
• Nixon era and the conservative turn
  • Nixon’s presidency did not reverse all liberal programs, but shifted the political balance and ideology toward a more market-driven, individual-responsibility approach.
  • Nixon expanded some liberal programs (e.g., Pell Grants for students) while opposing broad expansions of social welfare; he championed a mixed policy that mixed federal programs with private market emphasis.
  • Nixon implemented affirmative action for federal contractors and increased loans to minority businesses; he also advanced disability rights (Rehabilitation Act of 1973) and environmental regulation (EPA) as part of a pragmatic, cautious stance on liberal reforms.
• The aftermath and political realignment
  • The 1968 election cemented a conservative reset in American politics; Republicans sought to regain the White House by building a coalition of disaffected whites, blue-collar workers, and regional voters who felt left behind by liberal reforms.
  • The Nixon era featured paradoxes: continued federal spending on social programs while advancing a rhetoric of “self-reliance” and a reduced role for government.

The lasting effects of sixties era liberalism

• A new federal commitment to social welfare and equality
  • The period between 1960 and 1974 marked the most concerted effort since the New Deal to reconcile American promises with the reality of inequality.
  • The era produced enduring programs and legal rights that reshaped American public policy (e.g., Medicare/Medicaid; Civil Rights Act; Voting Rights Act; federal education funding; environmental regulation).
• Limitations and uneven outcomes
  • Anti-poverty programs focused on opportunities and services rather than broad income redistribution; many programs required sustained economic growth to remain viable.
  • Racial and gender inequality persisted; white resistance to civil rights and open housing, as well as economic disparities, limited the effectiveness of reforms for some groups.
  • The Great Society’s expansion was meaningful but not a permanent cure for poverty or systemic inequality; it faced fiscal and political constraints.
• The long arc of reform and backlash
  • The era catalyzed a broad civil rights and cultural transformation that influenced later policy debates, social movements, and political ideologies.
  • Civil rights, feminist, environmental, Native American, Chicano, and LGBTQ+ movements carried reforms into the 1970s and beyond, often continuing to push for new laws and programs and for broader social changes.
• Overall legacy
  • Liberal era reforms helped create a civil rights foundation, expanded access to education and health care, regulated industry for consumer protection and public health, and elevated environmental awareness.
  • The era demonstrated both the power and the limits of federal government in addressing social problems, feeding the enduring political debate about the proper size and scope of government in American life.

Summary connections and takeaway themes

• The 1960s saw a dramatic expansion of federal government roles in civil rights, poverty alleviation, education, health care, housing, and environmental policy under Kennedy (policy rhetoric and early programs) and Johnson (massive legislative program and enforcement).
• The black freedom movement evolved from legal desegregation and voting rights to a broader struggle for economic justice and Black power, with regional and national campaigns and a violent response from some opponents.
• A wave of social movements—feminism, Native American rights, Chicano activism, environmentalism, and gay rights—drew inspiration and tactics from the civil rights movement, creating a more plural and contentious political landscape.
• The conservative reaction challenged the expansion of federal power, culminated in Nixon’s presidency, and reshaped public policy and political alignments for decades.
• The era’s legacies include lasting programs and rights, mixed results on poverty reduction and equality, and an enduring tension between federal action and demands for greater local control and individual responsibility.

ext{Key figures and acts mentioned:}

• Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Voting Rights Act of 1965
• Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965
• Medicare (1965) and Medicaid (1965)
• Economic Opportunity Act of 1964; CAP, Head Start, VISTA, Legal Services
• Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965; Higher Education Act of 1965
• National Welfare Rights Organization; AFDC expansions
• National Arts and Humanities Act of 1965
• Environmental acts under Nixon: EPA (1970); Clean Air Act (1970); Clean Water Act (1972); Endangered Species Act (1973); OSHA (1970)
• Roe v. Wade (1973); Title IX (1972); ERA debates; SNCC, SCLC; Stonewall (1969)
• 26th Amendment (1971)
• Alcatraz occupation (1969–1971); Wounded Knee (1973)
• Watts uprising (1965); Newark and Detroit uprisings (1967); Washington, D.C. uprising (1968)
• Woodstock (1969; ~400{,}000 attendees)
• Earth Day (1970); 20,000,000 participants
• PBS: Johnson’s Education Act, $800,000,000 budget for OEO in first year; $2{,}000{,}000{,}000 urban renewal program referenced for JFK period
• Poverty rates: from 20 ext{ ext{%}} in 1959 to 13 ext{ ext{%}} in 1968
• Black voting rates surges after Voting Rights Act (map references: 28.2); Black officeholders rising to over 1{,}000 by 1972
• Population covered by Medicare/Medicaid: 87{,}000{,}000$$ Americans by 21st century"