1968-1980

The Reshuffling
of America
I. New Politics of Identity
(Cultural Nationalism)
 Protest movements embrace emphasis on
group
 Stress differences between racial/ethnic
cultures
 Some blacks reject integration; focus on
preserving distinct Afro-American culture
 Mexican-Americans (Southwest) also suffer
continued poverty/discrimination
 Chavez’s UFW protest exploitation of migrant
farm workers
I. New Politics of Identity
(cont.)
 Others protest “Gringo” invasion & embrace
separatism of Chicano “Brown Power”
 Some Native Americans activists accept pan-
Indian Red Power; reject assimilation
 Radical American Indian Movement (1973)
seize hostages at Wounded Knee, SD
 Moderates get US Gov’t to grant more
control on reservations (‘74), but poverty
remain
II. Affirmative Action

 Shift from emphasis on individual opportunity to

group outcomes
 Reflect results of continuing protest & limits of
earlier legislation (case-by-case problem)
 Nixon start requiring US Gov’t contractors to
meet specific goals of female/minority workers
 Proponents see remedy for past discrimination
 White males see it as limiting their job/education
prospects at time of economic decline
III. Women’s Movement

 Diverse “second wave” start in 1960s

 The Feminine Mystique (Friedan, 1963) voice
frustration of many with limits on their lives
 Women form NOW (1966) because little US
Gov’t action
 Liberal wing: work with men to achieve equal
rights through laws & court decisions
 Lobby EEOC to enforce ’64 Civil Rights Act
IV. Radical Feminism

 Move beyond legal issues to challenge

cultural assumptions & traditions
 Protest Miss America Pageant (1968) as
demeaning sexism (sex-role stereotypes)
 Civil rights & antiwar activities motivate these
young women to act
 Use consciousness-raising discussion groups
V. Accomplishments of the
Women’s Movement
 Challenge traditional view of rape
 Roe v. Wade (1973) = right to end pregnancy*
(2005: the estimated total number of abortions is over 46 million)

 More women attend professional schools

 Colleges do more with women’s studies &
sports
 Some minority/poorer women see organized
feminism as white, middle-class movement
VI. Opposition to the
Women’s Movement
 Conservative groups oppose feminism
 Advocate patriarchal families (biblical base)
 Schlafly, others, see feminism as attack on
traditional family/gender roles
 Antifeminists stop ERA (late1970s/early ’80s)
 Join growing conservative movement
VII. Gay Liberation

 Suffer extensive discrimination/harassment

 After Stonewall (1969), organized protest
emerge
 Push for legal equality & Gay Pride
 Some adopt identity politics (reject
integration with straight society)
 Cities & colleges = base for movement
VIII. Nixon (1969–74) &
Vietnamization
 An ardent Cold Warrior, Nixon promise to end
the war & win the peace
 Reject full withdrawal & loss of S. Vietnam
 Replace US troops with S.Vietnamese forces
 Increase US bombing to force concessions
 Nixon expect quick end to war
 VC/ N.Vietnam not give in to US demands
 After secret bombing (‘69) Nixon try invasion
IX. Invasion of Cambodia
(1970)
 Many protest war’s expansion (Kent & Jackson
St.)
 Pentagon Papers (1971) show US lies on Vietnam
 More division over war within USA
 My Lai (’68) reflect problems within US military
 Nixon increase bombing in 1972
 Both sides make concessions for cease-fire (1973)
 USA then withdraw troops
 Both sides then violate cease-fire
X. End of War & Its Costs

 N.Vietnam/VC defeat S.Vietnam by 1975

 Deaths: > 58,000 Americans; 1.5 to 3 million
Vietnamese; plus Laos & Cambodia
 Initial cost to USA = $170 billion
 War anger allies & 3rd World; delay détente
 War hurt US economy & politics
 Devastate SE Asia (esp. agriculture with
Agent Orange & bombing)
XI. Debate over Lessons of
Vietnam
 Hawks claim USA could have won war
 Doves blame war on imperial presidency
 War Powers Act (1973) seek to restrain
executive
 Veterans suffer PTSD & Agent Orange
XII. Nixon, Kissinger, &
Détente
 Limits to US power in new multipolar world
 Rely more on allies with Nixon Doctrine
(1969)
 In Cold War, try some cooperation with USSR
 Expand USA-USSR trade
 To slow arms race, sign SALT treaties (‘72) to
limit ABM systems & # of ICBMs
 Both USA & USSR need to limit spending
XIII. Nixon & the World

 Go to PRC (1972); agree to resist Soviet

expansion
 USA want stability among great powers
 Middle East unstable
 Israel gain land in Six-Day War (1967)
 Settlements escalate conflict with
Palestinians/PLO
 In ‘73 war, Arabs in OPEC embargo oil to USA
because they see USA as pro-Israel
XIII. Nixon & the World
(cont.)
 Also want to curb radicalism in 3rd World
 CIA replace Allende with Pinochet (Chile, ’73)
 Chile then suffer brutal dictatorship (20 years)
 Nixon initially back racist governments in
Africa
 Slowly accept some pro-US black
governments
XIV. Nixon’s Domestic Agenda

 Complex: seem to mix liberal with conservative

 Support ERA; pioneer affirmative action
 Revenue sharing (state control of US Gov’t
funds)
 Overall seek to undercut liberal programs
 Use divisive rhetoric (call Democrats “radicals”)
 Southern strategy: appeal to southern whites by
nominating conservatives to Supreme Court
 Oppose Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenberg (1971)
XV. Enemies and Dirty Tricks

 Nixon: intelligent, but paranoid

 Win easy re-election in 1972 (60% of vote)
 McGovern offend many
 Little-noticed during campaign, break-in
occur at Democratic HQ (Watergate)
 Spying part of larger illegal program
(Plumbers) to get Nixon’s “enemies”
 Also use FBI, CIA, IRS against critics
XVI. Cover-up; Nixon’s
Resignation (1974)
 Slowly reporters, prosecutors, judges, &
Congress unravel cover-up
 Supreme Court order Nixon to turn over tapes
 Tapes prove Nixon knew about break-in &
order efforts to hamper investigations
 House Judiciary Comm vote for impeachment
 Nixon then resign to avoid impeachment
 Congress pass laws to restrain exec abuses
XVII. Ford’s Presidency
(1974–77)
 1st unelected president in US history
 Face cynicism & economic decline
 Congress assert itself in wake of Vietnam &
Watergate (override Ford’s vetoes)
 Comedy show less respect for presidency
 Carter defeat Ford in 1976 election
XVIII. Carter as “Outsider”
President (1977–81)
 Promise honesty & stress “outsider” status (tap
public suspicion of US Gov’t)
 Face assertive Congress (outsider status hurt
him)
 Carter, like Ford, unable to fix economy
 Encourage Americans to accept limits &
conserve energy
 Able to create Energy & Education Departments
 Support deregulation; protect environment/
labor
XIX. Economic Crisis

 Stagflation: high unemployment with high

inflation
 US Gov’t deficits contribute to inflation
 US productivity & quality decline just as USA
face more foreign competition (Europe, Japan)
 1971: USA begin to run trade deficits
 Oil embargo (1973) & repeated OPEC price
increases cause inflation to skyrocket
 US manufacturers (autos) lay off workers
XIX. Economic Crisis (cont.)

 Traditional remedies not work

 Nixon devalue dollar (1971)
 Ford: neither voluntary Whip Inflation Now
(WIN), nor higher interest rates help
 Carter alienate Democratic liberals by efforts
to curb inflation via spending cuts
 Frequent recessions (no economic growth)
occur
XX. Impacts of the Economic
Crisis
 Deindustrialization start
 Heavy industries decline/move abroad
 Wages & benefits much lower in emerging
service sector
 Blue-color workers slip from middle-class
 Shifts to Sunbelt & suburbs accelerate (Map
31.1)
 Fiscal disaster for urban North & Midwest
XXI. Tax Revolts;
Credit & Investment
 Combine cynicism with growing conservative
critique of “big government” (i.e., liberalism)
 Proposition 13 (CA, 1978) cut property taxes
to limit government spending; others copy it
 Growing personal debt with more credit card
use
 Americans move money from saving
accounts into mutual funds, stocks, & other
investments
XXII. Environmentalism

 Key developments occur in US culture

 Disasters (oil spills, Three Mile Island)
increase public awareness of problems
 Public uproar push Nixon to accept EPA (‘70)
 Earth Day celebrations begin (1970)
 Ecology argue earth’s resources finite
 Call for conservation to avoid overuse
 New questions about technology/science
XXIII. Religion;
Sexuality; Diversity
 Evangelical/ fundamentalist Protestantism
grow
 Therapeutic culture focus on “feelings”
 Broader public acceptance of premarital sex
 Couples delay marriage; have fewer children
 More divorces & births to unmarried women
 Most new immigrants = people of color
 Court outlaw rigid quotas (Bakke, 1978), but
allow consideration of race/ethnicity
XXIV. Carter’s Divided
Administration
 Vow to reduce Cold War & pay attention to
3rd World concerns while curbing radicalism
 His administration divide on foreign policy
 Vance push use of diplomacy, but Brzezinski
win overtime with rigid Cold War perspective
 Panama Canal Treaties (1977) reduce tension
 Camp David (1978): Israeli-Egyptian peace
 Détente deteriorate; Cold War deepen
XXV. Carter & Renewed Cold
War
 USSR invade Afghanistan (1979) to protect
communist gov’t from Muslim rebels
 Stall arms control & produce Carter Doctrine
 USA will intervene to protect Persian Gulf
 Begin CIA funding of Mujahidin
 Because of US ties with shah, anger at USA
central to Iranian Revolution, 1979
 Hostage crisis (‘79–81) = humiliation for USA
XXVI. US Foreign Relations

 Afghanistan & Iran reflect rise of Islamic

fundamentalism = reject western ways
 Resent history of western domination in
Middle East & Central Asia
 Iraq remain secular under Hussein (1979)
 USA favor Iraq in war with Iran (start, 1980)
 Carter inconsistent on human rights
 Increase military spending & troops abroad