Setting the Scene – The 1960s
The 1960s in America began as a time of prosperity, hope and energy, bolstered by the growing confidence of the U.S. in its role as a superpower. As President John F. Kennedy said: “It is a time for a new generation of leadership, to cope with new problems and new opportunities, for there is a new world to be won.”
Things soon changed, however, with the assassination of JFK and the nation’s growing involvement in Vietnam. Near the end of the decade, the Vietnam War became the first war brought to the masses through the power of television. As the war dragged on and the body count continued to climb, civil unrest escalated, most notably through student protests on college campuses.
The counterculture was in full swing as young Americans flocked to the iconic Woodstock music festival to “tune out.” Hippies and “flower power” took center stage, as the backlash against the “establishment” continued to grow, culminating in the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., the riots in the wake of his death and the assassination of U.S. Senator and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy.
As America reeled from the cataclysmic changes taking place, signs of hope began to emerge. The Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969, in which man took his first steps on the moon, helped America win the “space race.” And as the decade came to a close, the U.S. began to wind down its involvement in Vietnam and to look ahead to the 1970s.
