Social Ferment Of The 1960s Essay

The 1960’s was a decade of formidable social ferment. The Vietnam War was a factor for this cause. The war founded many Americans to question the US government on to why they were becoming involved. This created numerous of protest by students and many others to help justify that the US involvement was unnecessary. Another ferment was the African Civil Rights movement. This movement caused a stir amongst the population. Many African leaders rose to the front demanding justice to their social injustices. Notable leaders as in, Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, and Andrew Goodman all fought for justice. The last major ferment of the 60s was the Civil Rights Movement for women. These elements each had their own impact in the 60s, in which

caused a revision for society to be made.
The Vietnam War also known as a war on resistance caused great disbelief in American citizens.

Almost all Americans questioned as to why the Vietnam War was happening. The government justified that the involvement was because they did not want the idea of Vietnam to fall to communism that would carry into the rest of Southeast Asia, creating a domino effect. Protest sprung all around the country mainly by peace activist on college campuses. The protest caused a disruption of the draft process and military morale was lowered. They began to spread amongst students, mothers, and anti-establishment hippies. Another protest not amongst campuses, but by young adults who began to burn their draft cards. The results of the Vietnam War and the protest began to take a toll on United States society. Opposition of the war spread through most of Europe and Asia. Protest sprung up and many people deemed the US to be unlawful. One of the most iconic protest in the 60s was from a Buddhist Monk setting himself on fire. The Civil Rights Movement also helped spread anti-war movements around the country. The Vietnam War left Americans struggling, to absorb lessons from military intervention and sprung new views on the American

people.
The African-American Civil Rights Movement was a prompting success. After seeing protest about the Vietnam War and what type of people it was creating African-Americans and many others took to the streets to stir up the civil rights movement. They were tired of being the lesser from the white man and they fought to become equals. Many of the phases began with isolated, small-scale protest and rose to an emergence of new, more militant movements, leaders, and organizations. One major outing began from the Rosa Parks incident that happened on a bus in Alabama, in which shook the foundations of segregation. The local NAACP began a boycott under the support of Rosa Parks. They organized to share rides, took taxis, or walked to work. The boycott created national attention, in which struck the eyes of Martin Luther King, Jr. MLK Jr, brought light into the eyes of many people. He created and provided many words and views for everyone around the nation especially those who were not being treated as equals to white men. Martin Luther King, Jr., possessed unique conciliatory and oratorical skills. He understood the larger connotation of everything and learned from Gandhi that nonviolent tactics seem to work the best. King took pride in his marches and speeches where he rose to become a national face of the civil rights movement. Another popular face was Malcolm X, whom took a more militant approach to get his word across. Malcolm X urged his followers to defend themselves against white aggression. He became an influential leader of Black Nationalism and sought to encourage disadvantage young blacks searching for confidence in segregated America. The African American Movement in 1960 took effect from its protest and leadership and began to change the face of African Americans in US history.
The Civil Rights Movement of the American feminist. Women were only to follow one path and that was to marry early, start a family, and devote their life to homemaking. Even the women who worked were limited to specific jobs as teaching, becoming a nurse or secretary. In the early 60s a women known as Betty Friedan wrote a book, “The Feminine Mystique” in which captured the image that women were being portrayed as. The movement was mainly to focus on to dismantle workplace inequality. They used different means to strive for equality as in, campaigning congress to change laws, publicly announcing issues through media, and raise the awareness of other women that feminism can help. The strive to become equal to men brought women closer and that it would later take an effect on society in upcoming years.
I believe that the African American civil rights movement was the most significant in society because it allowed African Americans who were deemed always to be a lesser of white men. They created a strong movement that expanded fast and brought everything that needed to be done. This movement caused the strength of African Americans to increase tremendously and it provided the ground in which to build upon for future society.
The Vietnam War was the stronghold for many protest that brought other movements into effect. Both the African American and women civil rights movements succeeded from the protest and agitations that followed up to help provide their future for the better. The 1960s was a time in need of great change and the foundation of the beginning of a new society.