In the context of the apartheid, "The Troubles" and Vietnam in the 1960's there was a lot of protest. These protest were for many different issues, and came in various forms. They all feared for their nations and strived for change. Through this, key events took place that would shape history, and stay important to this day.
In 1948, South Africa passed a monumental law that would shape the nation for decades to come. This would be known as apartheid. The apartheid was a racially-motivated law that separated the white South Africans from the black, brown or mixed South African in the country. The word is Afrikaans for "the state of being apart". A literal translation meaning "apart-hood". This meant that everything in South Africa
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was separated. Transport, libraries, cinemas, beaches, toilets and anything else where the blacks and whites could possibly mix. Through this the black South Africans lost many basic rights. They were not allowed to vote in election. This meant they had no say for South African government. They also could not own land. All land they did own was taken away from them. Including land they inherited from past generations. They had lost their freedom as people.The worse the circumstances became, the more people would protest. They had had enough of the inaccessibility to their rights as humans. They had also become fed up with the racial abuse and targeting from police. Many black South Africans faced prejudice from police, who were not afraid to harm or even kill when they saw fit. This among many other issues sparked protests and the formation of groups such as the African National Congress. Who was lead by Nelson Mandela, until he was sentenced to life in June of 1964. Protest did not only occur in South Africa, but globally. Many countries thought that South Africa was still living in the past, as most countries with similar laws had since moved forward. This lead to resistance from other nations, who because of the apartheid would not trade with South Africa. It wasn't only Trade, but sport as well. In 1981, South Africa's national rugby team the "Spring Boks" toured New Zealand. This sparked controversy between those who disagreed with the apartheid and their all-white squad, and those who said "sport and politics don't mix". The apartheid had now become something bigger than just a national law, and now something that the world was speaking about. On the 11th of March 1990, Nelson Mandela was walked out of prison a free man. In 1994, he was elected president of South Africa. Signaling the beginning of a new dawn and the end to years of adversity. People were finally seen as equal, and although everything has not been mended.The fear of separation had ended. The end to apartheid was a massive stride on the right path. The war in Vietnam, came with many questions. Is communism taking over the world? Can we win? Why are we even there? With these many questions from the public came protest and a new wave of American culture. The US became involved in the "Indochina war" in the 1950's, but weren't heavily involved until the 1960's. As the years passed, the number of troops escalated at rapid amounts. Tripling in the span of just two years between 1960-1962. One method that got soldiers was the "drafting system". Where the government would randomly select American males aged 19 through to 25 and have them enlisted. The age was seen as the "prime" of their lives. This was not received well by everybody. People feared they would lose too many. Many protested against the draft, seeing it as America throwing away our future generations, for a cause that many were unsure about. Other protests came from the counter-culturists.
or "hippies". These people protested against the violence. They wanted peaceful approaches to the situations, and did not want the young males of America to fight a "rich mans war". They also protested against the mainstream culture. Where everyone was just conforming and brainlessly joining or supporting the war, without looking into it. They feared that people were losing their own identity and individuality. The protest of the counter culturists didn't just come in the form of banners and signs, but through their everyday life. They grew their hair out, and wore eccentric and bold outfits. Something the general public would never do. They also traveled around a lot, and could not be keep to one address which was also seen as a rebellion to conform to the social norms. This war was the first ever to be televised, you could see it everyday on the news and develop your own opinion. Some saw this as the right thing to do, and that the government knew what they were doing and that they should be trusted. Others did not see the point, America had no sufficient reason for going overseas. They saw it as a waste of millions of dollars and thousands of lives. The war sent shockwaves through the media and contributed to a new culture for the …show more content…
nation. "The Troubles" was an ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland that spanned over 30 years. The two belligerents were the Nationalists (Ireland) who wanted to join the two Irelands, and the Unionists (UK) who wanted to remain with the United Kingdom. It was very territorial, with two different sides with different ideals and visions. The 5th of October 1968 is widely seen as the genesis of "The Troubles". What started as just a march by the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) quickly turned sour. The NICRA and the few hundred protestors were met with resistance from police from the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). The RUC were armed with batons and water cannons in an attempt to evacuate the protestors. This caused violent retaliation by the NICRA that ultimately left at least 30 injured, including children. This was just the first of many protests and mass violence in "The Troubles". Both parties feared for the future of the country. Nationalists believed that there was no good reason for the British to be in the country. They wanted to be independent. on the Unionist side, they felt they would have a lack of rights and control would be a one sided affair. Both were hostile towards each other for decades, no one knew if it had really ended. Surprise attacks and bombings such as the "Omagh" left the nation in shock, and helped with the realization that the violence needed to end. In April 1998, the "Good Friday Agreement" was signed. Which saw the official end to "The Troubles". This was necessary in order to keep the people safe and prevent the risk of more violence and loss. This did not mean the complete end, there was and even still is animosity between Unionists and Nationalists but for the most part, there is a small peace. These moments in history have quite a few things in common.
Unfortunately violence played a major role in a lot of this, and there were thousands of casualties across all three of these events. This was not the only similarity. Most notably, was how they all had some form of the protest through music. Music was seen as a way to address the issues of these events in a non violent way. In South Africa, songs such as "Nelson Mandela" helped to get the message of Mandela's imprisonment to people all over the world in a fun but effective fashion. In Ireland, the band U2 sent a powerful message to fans and people a like when they released "Bloody Sunday". Where the band questioned "The Troubles" and sang about the harsh realities of it all. In the Vietnam War, names such as Bob Dylan stand out. Bob Dylan strongly fought against the war, his music passionately portrayed his feelings for it. He believed the government was making grave mistakes, and thought their actions were cowardly. At times he even wished death upon them.
They also shared many differences. The apartheid was between the white and blacks of South Africa, and was a racial dispute. Whereas the Anti-Vietnam protest was between just Americans who had different opinions on the war. Furthermore, "The Troubles" and Apartheid were not actual wars, like the one in Vietnam. Their methods were also different. Groups such as the ANC and the IRA, were not afraid to resort to violence., but Counter-Culturists preferred to not
use means of violence. They all had different ways to get their point across in order to make change. The events that have taken place, all hold significance and importance. The protesting in South Africa was pivotal in the overthrowing of apartheid. The "Anti-Vietnam Protests" shifted pop-culture and created new types of protest through ways of fashion and behaviour. "The Troubles" are significant to the history of Ireland, as it helps to remember the effects of conflict. Although many lives were lost, all of these conflicts ended with a difference. Through the strength and will of few, the lives of many were changed.
During the 1960’s, there was a rising tide of protests that were taking place. College students began to stand up for their rights and protest for a stronger voice in society. The United States was going through a tough period marked by the Cold War against communism and also the war in Vietnam. From Truman to Nixon the United States government involved the country more and more in Vietnam. Nixon announced a new policy in 1968 called Vietnamization. (Foner, 4th edition, pg.1028) This policy would bring American troops back home, but it neither limited the war nor ended the antiwar movements.
One of the most significant societal movements during the 1960s was the Civil Rights movement, a coalition lead by many that voiced strong opposition to the war in Vietnam. Martin Luther King Jr was a huge voice for civil liberties, and according critic Mark Barringer, “Martin Luther King Jr openly expressed support for the antiwar movement on moral grounds…asserting that the war was draining much-needed resources from domestic programs”(Barringer 3). Martin Luther King Jr had a profound effect on the 1960s civil rights movement. He was eventually assassinated for his invo...
In 1968, the United States of America was participating in a violent war that some of the general public greatly disapproved of. Tension between political parties was rising and this did not help efforts with the war. Anti-war sentiment was growing in popularity amongst the younger generation; they wanted to get their voices heard. Protests and riots were occurring more frequently and growing larger in size all throughout the United States. This was the case for eight Chicago men who protested peacefully.
The difference is that this segregation was not just between whites and blacks; it was among whites, and all the other races. The races were broken up into four categories: whites, Africans, Asians, and coloreds. How the people lived in South Africa depended on the race the person was. Everything was affected from education, employment, medical care and even where that person lived depended on their race. The apartheid was established to keep up white dominance in this country.
“In July 1965, Lyndon Johnson chose to Americanize the war in Vietnam.” Although Johnson chose to enter America into the war, there were events previous that caused America to enter and take over the war. The South Vietnamese were losing the war against Communism – giving Johnson all the more reason to enter the war, and allowing strong American forces to help stop communism. There were other contributing factors leading up to the entrance of the war; America helped assist the French in the war, Johnson’s politics, the Tonkin Gulf Incident, and the 1954 Geneva Conference. President Johnson stated, “For 10 years three American Presidents-President Eisenhower, President Kennedy, and your present President--and the American people have been actively concerned with threats to the peace and security of the peoples of southeast Asia from the Communist government of North Viet-Nam.”
hard for them to understand those who were so passionate against the war. “Young protesters were often dismissed by many older Americans for being part of the counterculture that rejected traditional American values and embraced experimentation with sex and drugs. Yet the protests represented a genuine, and growing, resistance in the United States to the country's role in the Vietnam conflict.” (Doswell). Because the protesters, had a hard time connecting to the older parental generation, the nation was even more tense and divided. While there were plenty of people protesting against the war, there was also plenty of people that were against the protest. For example, many police officers disagreed with the protesters. They were often just as
The Anti-Vietnam War Movement in United States was a collection of unrelated groups all opposed to US involvement in the Vietnam War. It began in 1964 with nonviolent demonstrations and protests by college students, but later gained support from hippies, mothers, women’s rights, Black civil rights, the Chicano movement, and even military veterans. There were three main reasons Americans opposed the Vietnam War: the draft, use of caustic herbicides, and the war expenses. By 1975, the war and the federal lost almost all support from its people.
The Vietnam War was a horrific war between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. There were many causes for the Vietnam War from both the North and South side. There were also many emotions during the war for United States citizens, Vietnam citizens and soldiers of the war for both Americans and Vietnamese. United States couldn’t help but get into the war. They had to intervene which brought tons of good and bad things to the United States. The Vietnam War wasn’t only affecting the North and South Vietnam it also affected the United States and the citizens of the war from both the United States and Vietnam.
During the war in Vietnam, Americans growing opposition towards the war increased especially in 1967. By 1967 close to nineteen thousand soldiers had died so far and each month, another thirty thousand were drafted into the military. Also, Americans were once again agitated when, in order to meet the costly war expenses, President Johnson requested the creation of new taxes (Keene 792). The Americans who opposed the war included working- and middle-class people, college students, working-class women, and African Americans and they were all apart of the antiwar movement. These college students, African Americans, and middle class members recognized the problems with the war, were affected socially and culturally by the war, and helped shape the general response to the war by the American public.
War opposers gathered around at Woodstock in 1969 to experience “3 days of peace and music.” Woodstock captured the American antiwar spirit. Jimi Hendrix played his famous rendition of the star spangled banner on his electric guitar. His interpretation captured the agony of war with the harrowing sound of bombs bursting and jets clashing within the song. Although Woodstock was a music festival, the event consisted of expressions of anti-war. Musicians such as Country Joe, chanted their anti-vietnam protest songs to the audience. The impact of the anti-war movement shaped artists’ music and changed the face of Rock and Roll
...rry their pass books (“Black’s resistance to Apartheid”). “During 1980 there were 304 major incidents concerning struggle with apartheid including arrests, tear gas violence, stoning, and strikes (“Black’s resistance to Apartheid”). In 1986 violent conflict forced the government to assert a national state of emergency (Wright, 68). The Public Safety Act increased penalties such as fining, imprisonment, and whippings for protesting the law (“History of South Africa in the apartheid era”).
The Vietnam War took action after the First Indochina War, in fact the Vietnam War is also known as the Second Indochina War. This war included the communist North Vietnam and its allies of the Viet Cong, the Soviet Union, China and other communist allies going against South Vietnam and its allies, the Unites States, Philippines and other anti-communist allies. It was a very long and conflicting war that actually started in 1954 and ended in 1975. The war began after the rise to power of Ho Chi Minh and his communist party in North Vietnam. More than three million people were killed during the war, this included approximately 58,000 Americans and more than half of the killed were actually Vietnamese civilians. The Vietnam War ended by the communist forces giving up control of Saigon and the next year the country was then unified as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Many people, including both men and women were directly and indirectly involved within the war itself. Women worked many different roles in the Vietnam War, and they are most definitely not credited enough for all that they actually did.
After the National Party won the elections of 1948 and introduced legislative measures for the promotion of apartheid, harsher political repression arose and led to increased organization among blacks. Before the 1940s, society was often overwhelmed by the numerous acts of rebellion that many blacks carried out in their daily lives; however, many black organizations refrained from visible remonstration of the National Party government. In the 1950s until the mid-1990s, the significant shift to new black political tactics that stressed open protest became a driving force in the fight against apartheid. This new defiance campaign was composed mainly of actions on a wide-scale level in which black political organizations and civic associations took a powerful role in staging protests and creating mounting unrest. The most significant were political activities; even activities that were originally non-political forms of defiance inadvertently became politicized, such as criminal behaviors prominently displayed by youth, squatter movements, and pass-law violations. Activities of political defiance included the organization of anti-apartheid parties such as the African National Congress, Pan-Africanist Congress, and United Democratic Front, and the politicization of labor unions and civic associations; constant government efforts were unable to suppress these actions. Black South Africans' acts of resistance, whether political or seemingly non-political, eventually united them in a massive fight against racial oppression which ultimately destroyed apartheid.
The apartheid was a very traumatic time for blacks in South Africa. Apartheid is the act of literally separating the races, whites and non-whites, and in 1948 the apartheid was now legal, and government enforced. The South African police began forcing relocations for black South Africans into tribal lines, which decreased their political influence and created white supremacy. After relocating the black South Africans, this gave whites around eighty percent of the land within South Africa. Jonathan Jansen, and Nick Taylor state “The population is roughly 78 percent black, 10 percent white, 9 percent colored, and l...
Apartheid in South Africa became a huge issue due to the loss of human rights. Apartheid segregated and created problems between the whites and blacks of South Africa. Many of the blacks of South Africa had their rights violated due to the National Party making the white minority more powerful. Which automatically made the white richer and the black poorer. This was all changed when Nelson Mandela and F.W. De Klerk joined the African National Congress (ANC) and stood up against the National Party which created a more equalized South Africa.